by admin | Sep 5, 2022 | Blogging, Books, Education, History, Immigration, Journalism, Literature, Personal history, Writing
My mother was definitely a neatnik. Everything in its place, but don’t keep too many things in the first place. If something did not have an obvious use, get rid of it. A sentimentalist, she was not. She lived her life in the suburbs of Cleveland, which is where I...
by admin | Sep 25, 2021 | Blogging, Movies, Personal history, Philosophy, Writing
In the fourteenth century, French philosopher-priest Jean Buridan, a student of William of Ockham, posited the hypothetical story of a donkey that starved to death while situated equidistant from two delicious bales of hay. The fictional donkey was supposedly a victim...
by admin | Jan 13, 2021 | Aging, Careers, Medical, Personal health, Personal history, Public safety, Weather, Writing
For those who have noticed, it has been more than five weeks since I last posted to this blog. It has been a rough stretch, but it could have been much rougher. At least to my knowledge, I never have contracted COVID-19. Not that people weren’t asking, especially...
by admin | Sep 20, 2020 | Activism, Art, Climate, Coronavirus, History, Literature, Politics, Racism, Wildfire, Writing
I might have thought by now you would have found the exit from the hall of mirrors. But no. You are mesmerized by its dreamy distortions, imprisoned by its illusions. Perception arises from wave lengths and shadows, reflections against a shifting surface. Tall becomes...
by admin | May 26, 2020 | Careers, Economics, Personal history, Transportation, Urban Planning, Volunteerism, Writing
Starting this summer, John Fuller will find something new to do with his time. He is retiring after 41 years on the faculty of the University of Iowa, where he has been a professor in the School of Urban and Regional Planning (SURP) since 1979. But he has been much...
by admin | Mar 30, 2020 | Aging, Careers, Chicago, Child Welfare, Coronavirus, Disaster, Education, Emergency Management, Healthcare, Medical, Parks, Personal health, Public health, Resilience, Travel, Urban Planning, Volunteerism, Weather, Writing
I miss my gym already, closed just two weeks ago. There was a profusion of equipment to keep anyone in shape, whether you were working on legs, biceps, core, cardio, some combination, whatever. Here at home, I have small barbells, some ankle weights, and perhaps most...