Journey to the Past

It’s July 4. Independence Day in America. The nation’s 248th birthday. Before I enjoy pool parties, fireworks, and hot dog eating contests, I reflect on the “Founding Fathers” (and so many unnamed Founding Mothers who supported them) and I celebrate… …their vision, commitment, and courage. Melissa and I visited Philadelphia last year and went to…

When I was a sixth-grader at Conway School in St. Louis, MO, my teacher, Don Moyle, issued the Chalk Mark Challenge: During recess period, grab a piece of chalk, make marks on the board (in sets of five), and stop when you’ve made one million marks. You can spread the effort over multiple recess periods.…

Around 20 years, a fabric artist in Austin, TX wrapped a door handle in yarn… …and the rest — as they say in some knitting circles — is history. The artist is Magda Sayeg. After wrapping the door handle, the artist, Magda Sayeg, wrapped a stop sign post, a fire hydrant, and other urban objects.…

On this day in 1953, Edmund Hillary became the first man to reach the summit of Mt. Everest. One week later, Queen Elizabeth knighted the climber. History remembers and honors Sir Edmund Hillary — especially in the Western Hemisphere. Tenzing Norgay? Not so much. “Who’s Tenzing Norgay?” you ask. He’s the Sherpa who accompanied Hillary…

Around the turn of the millennium, when our twins were six, Melissa took them to American Girl Place in Chicago. Maddie had a small family of American Girl dolls — Molly, Kirsten, and Samantha. Molly was her favorite, so she tagged along on the Chicago adventure. American Girl Molly (I skipped the fun and went,…

When Charlotte was 20 and just getting started as a writer, she sent one of her creations to England’s top poet. Poet Laureate Robert Southey liked Charlotte’s work. But in a letter dated March 12, 1837, he wrote, “Literature cannot be the business of a woman’s life: & it ought not to be. The more…

Sydney Story didn’t ask to have the red light district named after him (who would ask for that???). It just turned out that way. Here’s Story’s story: He was an alderman in New Orleans who, in 1897, wrote legislation to establish “The District. It was an area north of the French Quarter where prostitution (technically…

Today is my birthday… …which means I’m thinking more than usual about my dad. Dad died on this day in 1990, my 25th birthday. That evening, family and friends gathered at our house to remember Dad and mourn our loss. At some point, Mom interrupted the somber chatter by marching into the living room with…

Last night, Melissa and I saw the rock opera Rent at The Muny, the great outdoor theater one mile from our house in St. Louis. It was a beautiful, cloudless night — mild and breezy. The second act opened with Seasons of Love (“…five hundred twenty-five thousand, six hundred minutes. How do you measure a year in the life?”)…