The photo that accompanied the Facebook friend request looked more familiar than the name that accompanied it but I still wasn’t sure who was asking me to be their “friend.” 

            So I looked at as much of his pro… Read full post »

            If you’ve read enough of my posts, you know that I find many of my stories from my casual and (more often than not, I admit it) studied observations of people I run into on the street, while sitting in bars or restaurants, that sort of… Read full post »

Now that Valentine’s Day is nigh, and people are getting ready to soak in love, flowers, chocolate, lingerie, fragrance, power tools, go on, I wanted to take some time to think about those who may be soaked in something other than love.   Maybe they are sopping wet with hear… Read full post »

Despite the tear and accolade fest that rightly (and I think, and hope, sincerely) accompanied the farewell ceremony for Gabby Giffords in the House of Representatives, no one need be a genius or even moderately sentient to know that people think precious little of what goes on in our nation’s… Read full post »

As anyone who has read many of my posts knows, I don’t really, totally hate winter.  Since I live in Minneapolis, such a feeling would, to my mind, lead to unnecessary mental exasperation.  And who needs that when there are so many others things about which one can more rightly become… Read full post »

When one chooses to live somewhere such as Minneapolis that is known by evil and good alike as a place of winter misery, it’s easy to forget that sometimes the winter brings forth some quite lovely things.

I was reminded of such last night as I walked home along the Mississippi… Read full post »

I just returned to the somewhat cold of Minnesota after spending “pre-Christmas” (or, as this former airline spokesperson calls it, the relatively sane travel spot that exists between Thanksgiving and Christmas) with my mother at her retirement community in Arizona.

Now some of you might… Read full post »

In August, I wrote a story for these pages called “Unforeseen Romance and Cigarettes” that concerned a quite attractive man and woman I had observed since last winter while walking in downtown Minneapolis.  I had seen them smoking outside their posh office tower on a number of occasi… Read full post »

   As a former spokesperson for a major airline, I’m often asked two questions.  One is whether I’ve seen the show “Pan Am.”  The answer is yes.  I don’t dislike it but I think it’s mostly an hour packed with candy and cookies for bo… Read full post »

So the major holidays are nearly upon us.  For single women such as myself who won’t be able to be with family because they live thousands of miles away (and whether this is a good or bad thing can be debated at another time), it might be a time for tears,/… Read full post »

           A lot of people were quite concerned that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie might have jumped into the Republican presidential nomination fracas.  Some worried as to whether the 300-pound Christie could even execute a real jump.

 &… Read full post »

In light of Michele Bachmann’s pronouncements regarding what she believes could be a link between the human papillomavirus vaccine and mental retardation and cures for homosexuality (to name just a few of her recent statements from her self-anointed mount), I’ve been asked by more th… Read full post »

            If you’re looking for a story about university freshmen friendships forged for life in a near Gothic dormitory (complete with beanies, stupid songs, and “naughty” midnight cookie raids), this will not be the piece fo… Read full post »

            The new school term started at most North American colleges and universities this week.  In the not too distant past, this time of year was often marked by buoyant optimism and lofty plans for a great future for the students atte/… Read full post »

It’s fairly common knowledge that college campuses have become places full of many more young women than men.  The hard numbers give proof to this knowledge:  in 1990, 55 percent of U.S. undergraduates were women, and by 2003, the percentage had risen to 57 percent.  I often walk/… Read full post »

This is not going to be a piece about being a really athletic jock but it is about walking.  Because I like to walk.  A lot.  I’ve loved it for many years now.  A bad week of sloth sees me putting on only about 10 miles.  Most weeks I try to/… Read full post »

As he nearly galloped like a wild horse up the grassy way with the woman who would, within minutes, become his wife (you need to know right away that this was not an ordinary wedding), I thought, well, he seems fine, even though I really didn’t like him dressed as a… Read full post »

            She got on the already crowded train at one of the stops just beyond the world famous or infamous Mall of America.  As she tried to make her way to any available seat in strappy sandals that could have been worn by a Roman (if th/… Read full post »

At first, or even second, third or fourth glance, they don’t look like the sort of people who might be a couple.

However, in a world where the unhealthy and socially unacceptable habit of cigarette smoking has been restricted to the spaces just outside restaurants, bars and office buildings, yo… Read full post »

Former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis would have been 82 on July 28 had she not succumbed to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in May 1994. 

To commemorate her birthday, I spent a little time thinking about “what would Jackie do” in today’s world.  So many of us remembe… Read full post »

            During this Great Recession, it seems almost selfish to say one quit a decent, stable job with a decent, stable organization to pursue a dream that to some seemed more crazy than sensible. 

      &… Read full post »

Given all of the talk (talk based on a large measure of very painful reality) about how divided America is, between red states and blue, conservatives, liberals and the assumed great mass of moderates in-between, real Americans and traitors, I figured it would only be a matter of time before I… Read full post »

The Great Recession that has pounded the United States and much of the world for nearly four years has left so much misery in its wake that even if we address the debt ceiling, the nation’s credit rating and the enormous debt that is cratering that ceiling and rating, things are… Read full post »

It’s finally summer in the American Great White North and as such, I’m planning to drive by myself within the next month or two from my current home of Minneapolis, where I’ve lived off and on for years, to my hometown of Milwaukee. 

Despite the fact that Milwaukee is… Read full post »

To mark both Canada Day (July 1) and Independence Day (July 4), I thought it might be worthwhile to revisit the highly controversial, not completely accurate, but still historically interesting pro-American recitation esteemed Canadian broadcaster Gordon Sinclair made famous in 1973.  A great ma/… Read full post »