Advertorial is a new word in the journalist’s lexicon. Many of us read advertorials without realizing it, unless our eyes notice the tiny word sponsored at the corner of the computer screen or see, special section in a magazine. What the reader is looking at isn’t news but a
Not long ago, I wrote a blog ruminating on why young women no longer heed the call for equality. (Blog 2/16/16) A day later, I received an interesting response from a reader. What politically active young women focus on today, she wrote, isn’t about women’s equality but about
Monday, I walked into the restaurant at my retirement center and ordered a croissant with my lunch. The new girl behind the counter said a croissant didn’t come with the meal. I’d have to pay extra. When she held out her hand for $2.00, I asked if there’d been a change in policy
Isabel Allende has many fans, though I’m not among them. Nonetheless, I did stop to scan a short article she’d written for AARP Magazine. (“Beads, Books and Bijoux,” by Isabel Allende, AARP, Dec 2015/Jan 2016, pgs. 60-61.) In it, she reveals that creating jewelry enhances he
I’m going to tell a story on myself in the hope of making a point. Last week I went to pick up a new pair of glasses. Twice I went back to the store to have the frames adjusted. On each occasion, I was assisted by the same clerk. Neither adjustment worked. When the young man
The image accompanying today’s blog is the work of one of my Facebook friends. I asked if I could share his image with my readers as I admired the fluidity of the brush strokes and their almost mystical innocence. Having studied both Japanese and Chinese painting styles, I appreci
A reader sent me a blog written by a librarian who, after having a daughter, admits she fell into a “cultural wasteland” where neither books nor movies existed. Eventually, her librarian instincts kicked in, and in 2015 she read 164 books, some with pleasure, some because she thou
The philosopher, George Berkeley, famously asked, “If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” Recently, writing about the life of Samuel Steward, author of one successful book and many failed others, Jennifer Senior asks a similar
I’m sure I’m a disappointment to my publishers. I don’t buy my books from them then schlep the tomes to every book fair and public watering hole in an effort to get my investment back. I think it is a poor business model for a writer. I prefer Snoopy’s approach in the cart
I’m no genius, but I like to think people who read my blogs are. Why? Because if they find me, they discover curious items about the world, together with references that will allow them to pursue further information, if they choose. Blogs featuring boxing cats and the dogs t