“You see, I knew that song so long before we met, that it means so much more than it might” —Elvis Costello, King Horse Elvis is onto something here, I think. There are certain songs that take on meanings that are far beyond whatever the songs are “about.” Surely everybody has their own songs...
The Submission, by Amy Waldman
I’ve just finished reading The Submission, a novel by Amy Waldman. It was one of the most powerful books I’ve read lately. It begins as a jury is picking the winner of an anonymous competition to design the memorial at Ground Zero in New York City. Primarily at the urging of one member—who had...
The Yellow Cap
Note: When written, this was one of a series of posts describing the pictures that appear in the blog header. However, I’ve since changed the design of the blog, and hence, the pictures are different. Nothin’ stoppin’ you from reading the posts, though; previous posts are here and here and here;. Admit it. You...
Reading List, May 2012: My Last—And Next—Five Books
Here we go with the latest “reading list” post, representing the last five books I’ve read. This one took a little longer than the last installment, only because I’ve been kinda busy with work, and I got bogged down a little in the science of No. 3. Still, five books in less than four...
Out Of The Trees
Your city may have an ocean. It may have mountains. It may have an NBA franchise, or even a Major League Soccer team. It may have real subways. It may have a happily integrated population and a vibrant downtown nightlife. But unless your city is my city, it doesn’t have an Arch. Or at...
When Linda Was Country
I recently went retro and bought three CDs, small-disc versions of LPs that I owned decades ago but haven’t heard in many years, owing to the fact that I haven’t owned a working turntable since some time in the Clinton administration. Anyway, the three CDs are: Randy Newman—Sail Away Randy Newman—Trouble In Paradise Linda...
The Meditations Of Our Hearts
Every once in a while, Pastor Dave will use these beautiful lines at the beginning or the end of a prayer: “Let the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in thy sight…” The first time I heard this, it stopped me cold. I knew these words, but from...
On Brotherly Love
Today, a story about my brother Phil, who celebrates yet another birthday on this 18th day of April. Over the years, Phil has been just about anything that anyone could want in a big brother. He took me to my first concert (Linda Ronstadt), my first NFL game (Cardinals-Giants), my first World Series game...
From The Old (New) To The New (Old)
In honor of today’s St Louis Cardinals home opener, I thought I’d put up a few photos of the construction of Busch Stadium. This is, of course, the third Busch Stadium in St. Louis; the first one was on the north side of town, and the second, opened in the 1960s, was right downtown....
Two Easters, Far From Home
For a few decades there, I wasn’t much of a churcher. However, on two Easter Sundays during that time, I found myself at churches that were a long way—both geographically and ideologically—from home, and they were probably my most memorable Easters ever. Easter 1987 It was Jean’s and my first Easter together as husband...