[NB: ‘Tis the season for college applications. Since many students are scrambling to complete their essays, I wanted to share what my high school senior recently wrote. Earlier, I posted an essay my son submitted to one university. Today I’m offering the “Common App” response he provided to all colleges to which he applied. Perhaps […]
Athens, GA October 14, 2022 [NB: My younger son is in the midst of writing essays to apply for college. Below (in italics) is the essay the University of Georgia asked him to write, and the answer David provided.] The college admissions process can create anxiety. In an attempt to make it less stressful, please […]
Auburn, AL September 25, 2022 “SWEET AUBURN! Loveliest village of the plain.” – Oliver Goldsmith, The Deserted Village This is Homecoming and “Parents Weekend” at Auburn. We aren’t alums. But we do have a son who hopes to be one in about a year. So with his younger brother, Rita and I came to campus. […]
Auburn, AL September 15, 2022 Mark Twain said that while history doesn’t repeat, it often rhymes. Today the stanza and meter brought back memories. My younger son is a senior in high school. He’s taken his tests, compiled his grades, and is applying to college. Our elder son went thru the same process three years […]
Atlanta, GA September 9, 2022 I’ve had opportunities to encounter a lot of people. We lost one of them last week with the death of Mikhail Gorbachev. Another departed yesterday, when Queen Elizabeth II gave up the ghost. I crossed paths with Gorbachev in 1995, while I was working as a civil engineer for the […]
Atlanta, GA September 7, 2022 September, as Mark Twain noted, is the most dangerous month to speculate in stocks…”along with July, January, April, November, May, March, October, June, December, August – and February.” Since the Second World War, September is the only month with negative average market returns. But as we wade into dangerous seasonal […]
Atlanta, GA August 29, 2022 Rahm Emmanuel famously advised governments to “never let a serious crisis go to waste.” He needn’t have worried. They rarely do, even if they create the “crisis” to take the advantage. Which they usually do. It’s one of the few things the State does well. And it’s gotten better at […]
Tampa, FL August 22, 2022 A couple years ago, I noted how little time the typical adult spends with his parents. A couple years later, I acknowledge how little I’ve done about it. Since I lamented how few days I have left with my own parents, I’ve continued to see them as infrequently as I always […]
Atlanta, GA August 14, 2022 Today is my maternal grandparents’ eightieth anniversary. I wish they were here to celebrate their marriage. But I’m relieved they’re not around to mourn their country. A couple years ago we imagined what one of their contemporaries might’ve thought of how their descendants have treated their bountiful inheritance. Today I’m […]
Atlanta, GA August 6, 2022 “Richelieu founded Odessa – watched over it with paternal care – labored with a fertile brain and a wise understanding for its best interests – spent his fortune freely to the same end – endowed it with a sound prosperity, and one which will yet make it one of the […]