Today is November 2, though here in Chicago, you’d think otherwise. Brilliant, radiant sunshine, 70 degrees, sublime. The sunshine is the tell, though. This time of year, the sun hits at flatter angles than it does in the summer. Lots of contrast, and the things that glimmered in July sun positively gleam this time of […]

Ah, I remember my twenties when I was attending one friend’s wedding after another. But just barely. Because now I’m of that certain age – when you attend your friend’s children’s weddings. This past weekend, I attended the third such event in the last three months. And it was splendid. Our friends’ son is a […]

Back in 2002, after he turned 16, our son Gus moved to a residence for developmentally disabled people operated by Bethesda Lutheran Communities. I have a pretty good list of “most difficult times in my life,” as we all do if we live long enough. That time is unsurpassed. But it was made substantially less […]

Remember the last mass shooting? It’s been a whole 10 days, which is seeming like a long time between such tragedies. (In fact, FBI stats put the average length between mass shootings, defined as resulting in four or more deaths, at two weeks.) After each one, this Onion headline always springs to mind: No Way […]

Sometimes I just want to talk to somebody. It could be an old  friend, an acquaintance, or maybe even someone I haven’t met before. Taverns used to be the best place to pick up a conversation, but it’s become nearly impossible to do so these days without the omnipresent, glowing, flashing distraction of TVs. And not just […]