The Nature of Summer

By Sunday, August 3, 2014 7 0

The nature of summer is that it makes us richer in what matters. One reason I know this is that I got to dance outdoors last night in the Columbia Gorge. The warm air held my body like a lover.  I was swooning, I was so relaxed. Only in summer can this sensation happen, at least here in the ...

Five Little-Known Tips For Disaster Preparedness

The record-breaking cold in much of the U.S. reminds me that we're all vulnerable to extreme weather and disasters, and need to be prepared for them. Climate change means more of everything: drought, destructive hurricanes, heat, cold and floods. It's broader than just global warming. It’s our internal resources -- our attitude and coping skills – that ...

The Five Best Movies You Haven’t Yet Seen

By Sunday, October 13, 2013 10 0

What if real life scenarios could provide compelling entertainment? Stories that you and I could inhabit? Movies without exploding helicopters, not set in millionaire mansions, about people who neither commit nor solve spectacular crimes? These five movies I love are about people with lots of heart, and without lots of money. They face hard things, and ...

Top Ten Reasons Small Towns Rock, Part II

By Monday, September 3, 2012 2 0

  Autumn in La Grande, Oregon In Part I of Small Towns Rock, I described how I feel I'm straddling the urban-rural divide since I live in Portland, Oregon, but steadily travel for my work into its small towns and rural areas. I love all these places -- but wish they loved each other more. In particular, ...

Non-Mainstream Review of ‘The Hunger Games’

By Saturday, March 24, 2012 5 0

We all like good entertainment. I had furlough yesterday (an unpaid day off), and went to see The Hunger Games. My report? From a mainstream perspective, it’s a ‘good’ movie. It has a compelling storyline, credible, sympathetic characters and strong production values. It’s riveting; once you start watching it, you’ve simply got to know how it ...

Panhandling At The Oregon Zoo

By Wednesday, August 3, 2011 1 0

"Um, excuse me, do you have any extra concert tickets?" "No, sorry." The young family clearly wished they could help. "That's OK. Hi there, do you have any extra tickets?" Before you judge me and my friend Colleen for panhandling for Big Bad Voodoo Daddy tickets outside the Oregon Zoo here in Portland this afternoon, I want ...