In late March, as “The Great Hunkering” began, my mom (aka. Gracie) began sitting down to her piano each weekend to play hymns. Since I had moved to her place so she wouldn’t be isolated, I was on hand to record her playing. Then I decided to start posting them, first on Facebook, and later […]
8 Things I Love About the USA
Today I’m re-upping a post I did back in 2014, just 2 years after I had moved back to the US from China. Six years on, I still feel the same about this place; even more so. Even though I have spent the better part of my life as an expat, I still love the […]
A Recluse Hero
In honor of Memorial Day, I am re-publishing this post I wrote about my mom’s cousin, who ferried soldiers to the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. I always knew him simply as Cousin Del, even though he was actually my mom’s cousin, not mine. He never married and took care of his mother until her death. […]
American Factory – The Movie
I finally got around to watching the award-winning Netflix movie “American Factory” this week. I had read good reviews and heard good things from friends who had seen it. But for some reason, I had found myself hesitant to sit down and watch it. I’m not entirely sure why — maybe because I could picture […]
Being Counted
I finally did my civic duty this weekend and filled out my census form. I noted with interest that this is the first time I remember being counted as part of the population of the United States. When I was young, we lived in Pakistan, so doubt I or my family were included in the […]
A Birthday Parade
Yesterday, April 22, was my mom’s (Aka Gracie) 93rd birthday. As readers of this blog know, we have a history of trying to pull off wild events to help her celebrate. For her 70th birthday, we arranged for her to drive a tractor. For her 80th, a friend got her in to a hockey arena […]
