I read David Brooks’ intriguing essay on nerds and geeks (New York Times) and came to the conclusion that I’m a geek. Now I may be flattering myself. It’s a self-analysis so don’t blame me if I’m wrong. (I’m over 70 and that in itself may disqualify me from geekdom.)According to Brooks, [...]
When I glance through the obit pages of the papers, I’m very much struck by the ages of Americans who have died. Within the past few weeks or so, I’ve noticed that J. C. Hurewitz, a Columbia professor, was 93. Jan Pokorny, an architect who restored historic buildings for reuse, was 83. Jimmy Slyde, [...]
According to his own theory, Senator Frank Lautenberg–now 90–is. And I say, Give it up!
26 years ago, running for the Senate against Millicent Fenwick, then 72, he ran the campaign indicating she was too old for the job (and was an “eccentric” to boot!) He was elected.
Having worked for her, I did not believe his [...]
Older actors have a tough time. Once they reach their 50s, they seem to fade away. There was a period, in the 1930s and 40s, when middle-aged and older men had starring roles–the likes of Edward Arnold, Spencer Tracy, Lewis Stone. Today there is one, Peter O’Toole, over 70, who still commands a big role [...]
In another day, ladies my age would have been horrified to learn that women want to wrestle. Some colleges are starting women’s wrestling teams because girls deliberately seek out schools that have them. Rosters are filling up fast. Even religious-affiliated colleges like Missouri Baptist University offer programs, and in 2004 the Olympics featured women’s wrestling.
What’s [...]
I fall into the error of thinking if only the wars in the Middle East and Africa would end, then the carnage would stop. But then I read about the drug lords in Mexico and the Camorristi of Naples and realize that murder and bloodshed will never end. Whether it’s nations at war, or men [...]
Pick up any issue of The New York Times (I take the Times as as an example because it is probably the bestwritten paper in the country) and you’ll find that certain writers are starting to use a new, not generally known vocabulary. Sometimes I don’t know what they’re saying. When I was growing up, [...]
What’s happening to our ministers? They bust church portals and are out bamboozling candidates running for president. The current debacle began with Osama’s church minister, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Jr. who ended up on television challenging his own parishioner. Now Senator McCain’s two church backers, ‘agents of intolerance’ (a phrase once used by McCain himself), [...]
Chipped nails are in? This is the most astonishing bit of trivia reported yesterday in a 3/4 page piece in the NY Times. How far can today’s fashion go? You can polish your nails, then for fun, sit down and start chipping at the polish–and be truly fashionable! There’s a photo of a beauiful lady [...]
The sudden news of Senator Edward Kennedy’s illness with a brain tumor has shaken the world. I had been thinking how fortunate we were that after the tragic assassinations of two brothers and the death of his war-hero oldest brother, he was still with us. The unspoken hope of many was that he would live [...]
