Monthly Archives: June 2010

Why vacations matter

Posted on June 27, 2010 by

AIX-EN-PROVENCE, France — Hotel Cardinal sits three blocks south tree-lined Cours Mirabeau in the heart of this city.  Yet it couldn’t be quieter at night. The ceilings of our room must be 12-feet high. It has three original paintings on … Continue reading →

Posted in travel | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Market day: Sustenance for the stomach — and soul

Posted on June 26, 2010 by

AIX-EN-PROVENCE, France – The sounds and smells of the Saturday market are unmistakable in this Provencal city. The tastes are even better. First comes the music of the vendors,  calling out to customers, walking shoulder to shoulder down narrow aisles … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, travel | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Is it goodbye or see you soon?

Posted on June 23, 2010 by

Kathy and I are off to Provence, France, leaving our golden Murphy, under a sitter’s tutelage, to guard the house and eat the kitchen cabinets. (It’s a tradeoff, these guard dogs.) When we get back, I frankly don’t know whether … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Memories of Dad have been passed through the generations

Posted on June 20, 2010 by

My Dad died  on Father’s Day 30 years ago.  On a beautiful June night, my family walked out of Mary Hitchcock Hospital, then in Dartmouth, N.H., where he had been rushed two weeks earlier after suffering an aortic aneurysm. We … Continue reading →

Posted in lifestyle, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Once in awhile, even true stories have happy endings

Posted on June 19, 2010 by

Let’s face it: This country is in a funk. With millions of gallons of inky oil continuing to gush into the Gulf and the economy still spinning its wheels in the mud, even anticipation of summer and  the year’s longest … Continue reading →

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It's time to take a stand against the anti-immigration zealots

Posted on June 16, 2010 by

First came the law that mandates racial profiling in Arizona. Now an Arizona legislator is working on a plan that would defy the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution by denying citizenship to the children of illegal immigrants born in … Continue reading →

Posted in immigration, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

As Times public editor steps down, journalism loses an important voice

Posted on June 13, 2010 by

Without fanfare, New York Times public editor Clark Hoyt published a final column in today’s Sunday Week In Review, ending a three-year contractual agreement. He promised that The Times will soon name a successor. But even so, his departure is … Continue reading →

Posted in media coverage | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Barbara Boxer's hair: The news media thump another vapid story

Posted on June 11, 2010 by

Barbara Boxer and Carly Fiorina are tough women at opposite ends of the political spectrum, just engaging in  what promises to be a spirited campaign for the U.S. Senate in California. Boxer,  a liberal Democrat, is seeking a fourth term … Continue reading →

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Internet service out, again! Try calling the Philippines

Posted on June 9, 2010 by

My Internet service and the technicians who support it have been about as reliable in recent weeks as the BP engineers trying to cap that well off Louisiana’s shore.  Nothing seems to work. For the record, my service provider is … Continue reading →

Posted in business, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Let's not be too quick to embrace that 'post-racial' society

Posted on June 5, 2010 by

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Listen to Tim Wise and the dangers of  liberal America’s love affair with the concept of “post-racial color blindness” become imminently clear. “Color blindness allows us to rationalize disparity,” Wise, a prominent author and speaker on … Continue reading →

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