Atlanta, GA November 16, 2022 Chesterton advised to “not ever take a fence down till you understand why it was put up.” But sometimes they come down whether we like it or not. The previous owners of our house had some reason to line each side of the property with a double-rail border fence. We […]
Atlanta, GA November 4, 2022 Imagine going to the doctor with unfamiliar chest pains. The physician hears your symptoms, drops everything, and immediately suggests open-heart surgery. Just to be safe. You question the decision, and ask for some tests, additional data, or perhaps another opinion. You also try to inform him of other health issues […]
As we did a couple days ago, we delve the archives, and recall a wonderful place in a pleasant time. [Earlier installments in this series: Orléans, Chenonceau, Amboise, Chambord, Montrichard, Blois, Tours, Chartres, Paris] Paris, France April 26, 2000 After the Religious Wars, the Bourbons supplanted the Valois, and moved regal soirées from the Loire […]
On the Feast of All Saints, we remember a day we spent with one. November 25, 2000 Spello, Italy The Apennines divide Umbria like uneven vertebrae up the spine of Italy. Yesterday, we crossed the ridge in search of a saint. Near the central crest, in the province of Perugia, sits the comune of Cascia. We’re spending […]
Atlanta, GA October 26, 2022 Degenerate societies despise children. The Canaanites immolated them, Carthaginians took them to the tophets, and Aztecs hurled them into volcanic pits. Being more “civilized” than its ancient ancestors, modern culture dispenses with kids by averting its eyes. Every year in America alone, almost a million unseen innocents are intentionally exterminated […]
Atlanta, GA October 15, 2022 “There must be something about Russia; like a chorus girl on the make for a rich, old man, she seems to attract degenerate empires.” – Bill Bonner We’re teetering on the cusp of the Fourth Turning. And the incorrigible idiots who’ve put us on the precipice seem bound and determined […]
Atlanta, GA October 5, 2022 A couple years ago, we stirred the pot by assessing every occupant of the Oval Office (or whatever office preceded it). We sampled the executive stew, appreciated the few palatable portions, and spit out the most rancid elements. Now, only eighteen months later, we must revise the recipe. The best […]
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 […]