Coming to Life 2 Weeks a Year Talk about a dramatic contrast! Every late August, the empty parking lot above (looking west) magically transforms into the Minnesota State Fair midway (below). (I was in the area, and couldn’t resist driving through the now-empty fairgrounds). Note the smokestack in the center of the photo below WAY...Read More
I Hope They Don’t Have Any Workaholics I can just imagine the dinner-time conversation in the household of an over-zealous employee of Roseville-based Yada Systems, Inc. “‘YADA, YADA, YADA’ . . . that’s all you ever talk about,” the beleaguered spouse complains. Sorry — blame it on Seinfeld, not me. 🙂Read More
To Open an Account or Not (That is the Question) My son’s Bar Mitzvah (Jewish confirmation, sort of) is rapidly approaching, which means that a slew of checks — many of them from out-of-state relatives — isn’t far behind. Opening a “kid” checking account for him certainly seems like the smart, responsible thing to do....Read More
Epic . . . Slog “It’s like a dog walking on its hind legs. It’s not done well, but the surprise is that it’s done at all.” –Samuel Johnson Sad to say, that’s my take on octogenarian Thomas Wolfe’s most recent (and last?) effort, “Back to Blood.” Who but Wolfe could conjure — for the...Read More
Political Analysis Reductio Ad Absurdum If you believe the pundits, the entire Presidential election turns on a handful of swing states. Of these, Ohio apparently looms largest. Even within Ohio, however, a handful of counties are considered most pivotal. Within those counties are especially critical wards, and within said wards are a handful of toss-up...Read More
“And the Oscar White House Goes to . . .” What do you call the person who finishes last in their medical school class? Answer: “Doctor.” –old joke. If Mitt Romney wins today’s election, he is, of course, President. If he loses? Like other runners-up (Minnesota’s Walter Mondale, Al Gore, John McCain, etc.), he is...Read More
