Be advised that a hurricane named Sandy is swirling off the coast of Florida and heading north. Sandy will bypass Florida and probably the Carolinas as it follows a north-northeast curve.
Halfway up the coast, Sandy is expected to turn left and take aim straight into the densely populated East Coast of the U.S. Broadcasters and headline writers are trampling each other in their rush to label Sandy “the perfect storm.” Continue reading
My unfinished review of J.K. Rowling’s “The Casual Vacancy” is weighing heavy on my mind. Also, I’ve been wanting to post a remembrance of Sen. George McGovern, who passed over to a more peaceful place on Sunday, at the age of 90. And I have another “power in a box” review waiting to be written, about the new Kindle Fire. Nevertheless, I’m distracted by the sound of distant thunder. Hurricane Sandy is heading north with potential to rearrange the Eastern Seaboard. The hurricane is the blip on the radar that I cannot ignore. — John
This post by another blogger ends with a thoughtful prayer. Click on “read more” to see the entire post and the prayer. It’s not very long. — John
I was perusing MSN’s homepage, and I found a slideshow on war-torn Libya. I could not help but be struck with a sense of awe while looking at this picture. Take a moment and just look at the details. Please.
In a world with so many modern advances– cancer research, clean energy, cell phones, and the Internet– I struggle with the idea that people feel the need to destroy cities and kill people to “win.” Aren’t there more 21st Century ways of dealing with problems? The destruction in this picture represents a total disregard for life and progress. And what does all of this destruction accomplish?
The fact does not allude me that when and where we are born is not a choice. I am lucky that my house is not one of the bombed apartments in this picture. Right now, I have pumpkins and scarecrows in my yard. I am celebrating autumn and anticipating Halloween…
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Stayed up way late last night (nothing unusual about that) and finished “The Casual Vacancy.” I reached that point where you’re so close to the end, you don’t dare put it down.
Adventure stories have a chase scene near the end, to step up the tempo and raise the suspense.
Mysteries have a detective following the evidence, piecing it together, closer and closer, the danger mounting, until . . .
J.K. Rowling’s wounded and wounding humans wander in circles, running away, crossing paths, reversing direction . . . not seeing the obvious until it’s too late . . . the sirens come . . . bringing them all together, sort of, . . . and they find themselves . . . and each other . . . or not.
Whew! A great novel. Now all I have to do is find time to write a review that’s worthy of the author, the book, and the characters.
— John
I haven’t forgotten about my unfinished review of J.K. Rowling’s “The Casual Vacancy.” I’m on p. 448. The pace of the story is picking up as I near the end @ p. 503. It’s a wonderful book tracing an intricate web of human interactions, hypocrisy and deceit. I haven’t written another interim installment of the review (the first part is here) partly because I hardly know where to begin.
And partly because I’ve been busy with so many other projects, like trying to become a photographer and to improve this blog. Hard to believe I’ve written 12 posts on other subjects in the intervening days. Casual Vacancy, despite its length, is a book I would easily finish in two days (and enjoy more) if only I could sit down and read it straight through. Continue reading
Did anyone notice the color of the carpet on the debate stage? It was an almost blinding shade of bright red? Unusual color to see anyplace but on a fire truck. Don’t believe I’ve ever seen a carpet of that color before.
The logical explanation is that the debate planners didn’t want you to see the blood on the floor.
Yes, I recused myself from criticizing the debate performance of President Barack Obama and Gov. Mitt Romney. But I have to say I’m appalled by the state of American political discourse in general. Maybe we should skip the debates and select the next president by mixed martial arts in a cage. Or if that’s over the top, maybe an old-fashioned fist fight with civilized rules and a referee.
CANNON POWER SHOT SX 160 — WHENEVER I’M BUYING NEW TECHNOLOGY, I ALWAYS WONDER: “DOES EVERYTHING I NEED COME IN THE BOX?” IN THIS CASE ‘YES,’ ALTHOUGH A PROTECTIVE CARRYING CASE WOULD BE A NICE ADDITION.
You want to know what an obsolete bachelor’s degree feels like? Long time ago, as part of my journalism major at University of Maryland, I took a class on news photography. Although 135 mm film and Single Lens Reflex (SLR) cameras were state of the art in the 1960s, the journalism class provided us with older Yashika Mat cameras.
Today, I unboxed the very latest Canon digital camera. It can make an amateur photographer like me feel like a pro! Photography has come a long, long, way since I took that class.
Unbelievable!
Wouldn’t you know it, my Friday-afternoon post speculating on an I-95 World Series was the kiss of death for the Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals. Before the night was over, BOTH teams were eliminated from the 2012 pennant chase, the O’s in the American League and the Nats in the National League.
A short post on my humble blog has the same power to jinx as a Sports Illustrated cover story? Who’d ‘a thunk it?
Welcome to the latest chapter in the long history of baseball in the Nation’s Capital.
It only happens about once a century: A Washington baseball team representing the Nation’s Capital playing in the postseason! Last time was in 1933, when each league had eight teams, and the Washington Senators played in the World Series. Now baseball has expanded to many more cities, and two rounds of postseason playoffs lead up to the World Series.
The Washington Nationals in the field, the St. Louis Cardinals at bat, view of the field from the nosebleed seats on the third-base side of Nationals Park, one of America’s great new ballparks.
Living Simply And Still On The Grid 