Category Archives: Uncategorized

A COOL, CLOUDY morning. Mostly. The weather people promise a high of about 90 degrees this afternoon, but at a tad past 7 a.m., coolness reigns. So do the birds. The grackles, who are just coming to life, the mockingbirds, … Continue reading →

TRAVELING ABROAD, especially in Europe, always serves to remind my how incredibly stupid and ridiculous American politicians tend to be. With every election season, we hear the all-too-familiar boast about this being the universe’s greatest and best nation. As proof, … Continue reading →

AT THE TRAIN station in Milan last week, I was one of the first to board the train that would take me to Switzerland. A few minutes later, an American couple and their daughter, who appeared to be about 9 or … Continue reading →

There is no bad wine in Italy. There is no bad wine in Switzerland, especially when your host knows his wine. A quarter-liter of wine is enough with lunch. A half-liter is too much. Way too much, unless you’re close … Continue reading →

ONE OF THE DRAWBACKS drawbacks of traveling in Italy is that bathrooms in public spaces are scarce. You either have to try to sneak into a restaurant’s facility, risking the wrath of the owner, or you search for a public … Continue reading →

I LOST A FRIEND yesterday. A painting I did about a decade ago. It had hung in my office in Washington and here it had hung on my kitchen wall. It is a bright painting in vivid, contrasting colors, so … Continue reading →

I’M SITTING OUSIDE a coffee shop, enjoying the nice relatively mild Houston evening. A beautiful thundershower powered through the area this afternoon, bringing with it temperatures just a tad cooler. Normally these summer storms leave behind nothing but steaming mugginess, … Continue reading →

August 17, 2013 IT’S BEEN A while since I’ve been on a plane — since December, I believe — and I didn’t realize how much I missed it. I’m on my way to Montreal aboard an Embrear 170, the larger of … Continue reading →

I’M SITTING IN a coffee shop, alone, at a table for four. Normally I take a smaller table but this is the only one unoccupied. I see a grandmother and her grandson, about four years old, come to a nearby … Continue reading →