Window on the World Column | Springtime Pouring and Sipping
It’s that time of year again. At the end of a long, wet winter, we Californians are exhausted by the grey, the mud, the mess. We are tired of short days and rain and storms. Our bodies are depleted of vitamin D and our...
Guest Review | Captivating Performances Shine in ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ at The Western Stage
The Hunchback tolling the bells of the ancient cathedral of Notre Dame is an image of timeless appeal. Salinas citizens will want to catch the current local iteration of Victor Hugo’s tale, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” on The Western Stage at Hartnell College.
This...
Funny Papers Again Column | The Travails of Patient and Customer
I am grateful for Mee Memorial Healthcare System, I really am. In the past decade I have had more contact with the folks there than I wanted to, but as one ages one must face the realities of natural physical deterioration or, as in...
Worthy to Print Column | Another Day in Paradise
How was your week? Mine was pretty great. Shoot, it should have been. After all, I was turning 80, and if you can’t have a good time on your 80th birthday, when are you going to have fun?
Like most good things that happen to...
Window on the World Column | In the Bleak Midwinter
About this time of year — February blending into March — I can get really sick and tired of winter. Folks back home might have a chortle at that; because, yeah, I know, we don’t really have “winter” per se in our neck of...
Worthy to Print Column | Looking Ahead
Today I want to address the activities that are occurring on just about every college campus in the United States. I don’t know who is responsible, but it seems to have just about everyone involved. These kids seem to feel as if they will...
Worthy to Print Column | Finally!
For the readers who have been reading my thoughts for the past few years, you will be happy to know that my old ’56 Ford F-100 is finally on the road. Of course, it isn’t completely finished as I would like it to be...
Guest Column | Reading the Haggadah in Berlin
It is an uncommon occurrence in my own life to find myself in a situation where I become distinctly and acutely aware that I am—in that moment—a minority. This once occurred when I attended a young adult LGBTQ organization in Long Beach, where black...
Letter to the Editor | Facts Matter, or Should
To the Editor:
The Oct. 7 mass slaughter of 1,100 Israeli civilians by 3,000 Hamas gunmen in Israel shocked part of the civilized world. Even more macabre was the kidnapping and rape of 300 other Israeli civilians.
Most Americans recognize Israel’s right for self-defense. And also,...
Window on the World Column | A Letter to My Sister — Part I
“You’re here.” I hear your whisper. It comes down on a wisp of wind from the mountains above your home. Where your shell now lies still, and your spirit is at peace. Once listless and always searching, you finally slowed your quest to live...
