Blog

Christmas 2024

Our Christmas decorations are finally out and up and, like always, there was plenty to do.  The tree was purchased, white lights were strung (inside and out), wreaths with red bows were hung, and the multiple nativity scenes were set up on book shelves, table tops and credenzas. Our holiday pillows were thrown, candles placed, […]

Thanksgiving 2024

This Thanksgiving will be different than so many in the past. The large gathering of 40+ family and friends for our boisterous and fabulous meal that we have hosted for almost every one of the past thirty years won’t be had. The reasons are many. Our kids are grown and settled in their working lives […]

The story is told in Mark’s gospel of Jesus and his “inner core” of Peter, James and John taking a walk up a high mountain where Jesus was “transfigured.” The voice of God spoke from a cloud that covered them and confirmed what Jesus’ miracles were pointing to all along:  “This is my Son, whom […]

A Darkness Upon Us

I attended a vigil with the Congregation Ahavath Chesed at their Temple in Jacksonville. It was a moving ceremony remembering the eleven people killed and several wounded at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood, gunned down by the automatic weapons fire of a hate-filled man who said, when apprehended, that “all […]

What are you passionate about?  I got a kick out of watching the recent FIFA World Cup (pun intended). I mean, here I am living in the Southland mecca of college football, with a local NFL team to boot (pun again), and I thought I knew what passionate fandom is all about.  There’s no doubt […]

4th of July

If you’ve never been to a Naturalization Ceremony, where immigrants are sworn in as new citizens of The United States, you should look up the schedule at your local federal courthouse and go sometime.  I’ve been to several over the years in a variety of capacities, and they are the most uplifting of events.  Smiles […]

Idols

Ben Howard’s song “The Fear” repeats the prophetic and potentially haunting refrain: “Oh, I will become what I deserve.” [1] While what we deserve may be subject to debate or even delusion, I can’t help but wonder if Ben has put his finger on a fear that most of us experience when we allow ourselves […]

Food, Glorious Food!

I’m a foodie, I admit it.  Not that I claim to have any sophisticated palate, but my culinary tastes are broad and varied and I take tremendous — sometimes even rapturous — delight in eating.  I know what’s good and what I like, and it matters little to me whether a dish is ethnic, fusion, […]

Flat Tire

I recently left my office before 5pm to get home in time for an important phone meeting that would last well into the evening.  My plan was to beat rush hour and join the call from home so I could avoid another late night at the office.  As I left the parking garage, I drove a […]

Considering the Moon

My wife and I love moonrise at the beach, especially when it’s a full moon. We take our spot in the sand, sometimes with a few friends and some wine, and look over the surf to the horizon, waiting expectantly.  On a night when it is crisp and clear, the place where it always seems […]