There are not too many major destinations in New York City that Kathy and I haven't already explored in our many visits there over the last fifteen years. We have yet to step inside the United Nations (we've been outside of it) or in MOMA - the Museum of Modern Art (we've only explored
It's hard to believe that we are approaching the 15th anniversary of the tragic events of 9-11. In some ways it feels like it happened yesterday- and in other ways it seems like a hundred years ago. I think one reason for that strange sense of displacement in time is that it is one of
Kathy and I have just returned from what amounted to a rather whirlwind trip to New York City. We landed in NYC on Monday morning around 8 - and we took off Wednesday night about 7:30 - so if I'm doing my math correctly, that means that we were on the ground in New York
Most people remember the first time that they heard the singing of the infamous Florence Foster Jenkins. For me, it was while I was a freshman at Luther College, which means it was roughly 37 years ago. I'm not sure who it was who pulled her LP off of the shelf in the
It has to be one of the most wonderful questions Kathy and I have ever been asked: an inquiry from our two Iowa nieces, Aidan and Anna, seeing if it would be okay for them to come visit us for several days sometime in August. Okay?!? Are you kidding?!? It was the kind of
Today is the day! Today, our beautiful goddaughter, Anneka Potter Barrow, embarks on what promises to be a truly extraordinary adventure: a year-long mission trip to a small, remote community in rural Mexico as part of YAGM- Young Adults in Mission. (This is the group under whose auspices another young friend of ours, Laura
The Rio Olympics happened to open on the same day that I watched a deeply troubling documentary on HBO Real Sports that chronicled the terrible scandals that have undermined the reputation and standing of the IOC, the International Olympic Committee. The charges are varied, but perhaps the most serious objections raised about the IOC
One cannot completely celebrate Star Trek's greatness - or fully appreciate that greatness - without acknowledging those instances when it most seriously fell short of its immense potential. A rough corollary is when one watches figure skating on television. All too often, one only gets to watch the top finishers - but it's only
I couldn't possibly leave off my celebration of the best of Star Trek: The Original Series at my top five episodes, so here are the next five on my list ...... my Honorable Mentions. Tomorrow is Yesterday. In this intriguing first season episode by D. C. Fontana, some sort of violent space storm
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the premiere of Star Trek, I am celebrating my five favorite episodes from the original series. Episodes one through four are all "bottle shows," meaning that through the course of each story, the crew of the Enterprise pretty much never leaves the ship. With my #5 episode,
