Tales of the Bottle
Not since Prohibition has there been such a strong and widespread public warning. It feels a little odd.
Society & Culture
The Dark Side of Gold
Chuck away all the awards and trophies? Absolutely.
Thin-Skinned
“Ach! Don’t do that!” The dog dropped his paw, dismayed by my sharp tone. For years he has swiped my arm to get my attention, wangle a treat, stop me from overwork. Now—seemingly overnight, right after my sixty-fifth birthday—my skin has thinned to tissue paper, and his toenails cause blotches…
How Lego Surfed Trends in Play to Become the Crime That Pays
A brush-up on the toy company’s history points to one simple corporate marketing decision on which this strange trend in crime rests: the death of child’s play, and the rise of adult hobby obsession.
Painted Ladies (Et Alia)
“Honey, you look sick without it,” my mom informed teenage me. Gentle and loving, she was hardly ever that harsh. But she was caught in the cult of femininity, and she wanted to make damned sure her daughter understood the need for artifice. I would like to say I ignored…
‘Go Bags’ in Relationships
The impulse is to think that someone who makes plans for something else also helps bring it about. That fantasy does not seem to be doing us much good as a body politic, but the idea has taken root everywhere, including at Department of State.
All The World’s Wisdom
A solid old brick house on Clayton Road with a sign outside: Living Insights Center. A meeting place, maybe, some kind of recovery program? I step inside. In the first room to the right, a lifesize statue of St. Therese of Lisieux gazes at an illuminated Qur’an, a silver menorah,…
We Failed Each Other Long Before AI
Introduced to a chatbot, people soon pour out doubts and questions they would not dare reveal to another human being. Why not?
The Uneasy Award of Divine Solace
I am not losing my faith. I am wondering where that religion truly is. Is this really the place where God Himself enters into physical form in our midst?
Keep the Award or Take It Away
Recognition is complex, often mixed with merit, institutional needs, and fair randomness. If I produce something of value and receive no “gold medal,” I am no longer discouraged by not getting any recognition. I know the work I have done. I know the growth I have experienced.