As Americans, we’re undergoing so many hardships right now: A pandemic out of control and one that claims lives day-to-day, pushing our healthcare workers and hospitals beyond their limits. The rise of neo-fascist groups and hate crimes, police brutality and the targeting of people of color, bounties placed on American soldiers in Afghanistan, PPP loans…
Hey Bernie Supporters, We Gotta Support Biden
I was pretty aghast and despondent with the Super Tuesday primaries back in March, 2020. Bernie Sanders was on fire after winning New Hampshire and Nevada earlier in February, and things were looking good on March 3 when he swept California, Colorado, Utah and Vermont. But then something bizarre happened, Joe Biden, who before March…
Take the Statues Down
Over the past few weeks, statues of Confederates, slave traders, and Spanish conquistadors are being toppled, and it’s not just here in the US. There’s Bristol England, where protesters tore down the statue of a 17th Century slave trader named Edward Colston and tossed it into the harbor, and Chile, where protesters In Temuco lassoed…
Why Should I Vote?
I remember back in 1980, when I turned 18, my grandmother Ethel told me in her characteristic, “there’s-no-arguing-with-me” manner that I should vote. She stood in our kitchen in St. Paul, my mom putting a fresh pot of coffee on, and my grandma looked me in the eyes, pointed her finger at me and said,…
White People, Black Lives Do Matter
I’m a white woman, a daughter of immigrants. My great grandparents on both sides immigrated from Scandinavia and Ireland to seek a better life here in America. I’m as white as they come, raised in a quiet neighborhood in St. Paul Minnesota, my father a Lutheran theologian and pastor, my mother an artist, home-maker and…
Please Wear a Mask: If Not for You, Do it for Others
COVID-19 continues to spread, and despite reports from various news outlets that the curve is flattening, in my home state of New Mexico we continue to witness it’s deadly ravaging of Native American communities. It is no secret that the federal government has failed to provide leadership during this crisis, and that our president and…
It’s hard to say good-bye, so I’ll say, “Until we meet again.”
Last year, my husband and my family lost two wonderful, loving pets, Caspar and Lilly. But maybe “lost” isn’t the right word. I still feel their presence in our home, and in the places where they loved to run, romp and swim. I have such warm memories of these two wonderful companions: Camping and hiking…
Travel Tips for the Budget Traveler
My husband and I love to travel overseas on our own, forming our own itinerary based on what we want to see and visit. We also operate on a tight budget, so five-star hotels, and flying first-class are not options for us. We don’t typically look for packages or tours, since we like the independence…
Travel: Not Just Good for the Soul
I was fortunate to grow up in a household where my parents loved to travel. My father, especially, would get the “travel itch,” and announce things like, “let’s go to Ireland,” or, “I’d really like to see the Parthenon.” In 1971, I was nine years old, and my father was up for a teaching sabbatical,…
The Bridge of Sighs: A History Not So Romantic
My husband and I were lucky enough to travel to Italy in December of 2015, and of course we had to see the eternal city of Venice with it’s Grand Canale, the Palazzo Ducale, the Basilica di San Marco and Cafe Florian, where such authors as Charles Dickens, Lord Byron and Andy Warhol most surely…