A Day To Remember; A Life To Celebrate
Sean MurphyAugust 30, 2002* Everything that is good about me is because of my mother. Fortunately, I was able to convey this simple truth many times in my adult life, but…
Props for Pops (71st Birthday Edition)
I have written more than once about my mother (here and here) but I haven't said a great deal (here) about my old man. That is, in part, because he…
Albert Hofmann, R.I.P.
Talk about better living through chemistry! Albert Hofmann, the chemist who invented/discovered LSD, has passed away at the dignified, enviable age of 102. On April 16, 1943, he made history. On…
Spring*
95 South: Eventually, the skyline turns from gray to green, with trees instead of telephone poles and hills instead of hotels on either side. On the tops of these hills,…
The Long Way Home (Revisited)
If I ever need to check myself and consider what a privileged life I've led, I simply need to recall that moving across town in the summer of '79 was…
Two Years To Write, One Year To Revise…
Exactly one year ago, I wrote the following words: It takes a village to raise a family; it takes a forest to write a book. They are true, both of…
Wishing For Eternity So Dick Cheney Could Spend It In Disgrace
I'm not sure what it says about me, but I've gone on record declaring, at times, a fervent wish that there was a God. Because if there was a God,…
The Truth About Cats & Dogs
Let's go to the videotape. Dogs: Cats: Any further questions? (Two disclaimers: the cat with the door stopper is genius, and all kittens are cute and can therefore be forgiven…
The Catholic Church is Decadent and Depraved: Papal Edition
So here is the best thing I've seen this week relating to the Pope slinking away into post-Prada obscurity. Selena Coppock Pope Benedict is stepping down from his official duties,…
Coal Mines, Unions, Big Business and (of course) George Orwell (Revisited)
Watching coal-miners at work, you realize momentarily what different universes people inhabit. --George Orwell Quite by chance (no, really), I saw an old classic that had been languishing in my…