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My Father on Marriage
This was my father's comment, from a 1993 letter, on the prevalence of creative wedding vows. I think that trend started in the 1960's....
sursumcorda, 5 June 2026 |
It Was a Bad Idea in Nixon's Time, and It's No Better Now
I have created my first, and I hope only, anti-Trump political cartoon. I usually give the president grace for decisions he makes...
Connecticut's New Home Education Bill Is a Warning to All
Guard with jealous attention the public liberty. Suspect everyone who approaches that jewel . — Patrick Henry...
Claude's Book List
I've been working pretty intensely with Anthropic's Claude on my father's letters, but every once in a while I need a break and delve...
Memorial Day 2026 - For the Forgotten Ones
We almost never sing my favorite verse of the Star-Spangled Banner , so I was especially pleased that we did so at the regular...
Dancing
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Possibly I inherited my attitude toward dancing from my father. The following is taken from...
The Feeling of Being Lost
Incomprehensible to our grandchildren's generation—from a 1992 letter from my father. Today I had an appointment with my...
You Have to Understand His Sense of Humor
Today I came across this treasure from one of my father's letters. The penultimate line is what made me laugh, and struck me as...
Ski Trip Cooking, 1981
I love my father's sense of humor, and I love the way he write. I recognize that not everyone does, but as I write for those who enjoy...
Why Be Polite to a Machine?
Do you say "please" when you tell Alexa to turn on the lights, or to play your favorite song? Do you find yourself saying "thank...
Personality Revelations through Letters
From Claude conversation 4/28/26. After it had transcribed letters from Dad from 1977 - 1981, plus a couple from the 1960's, I asked...
Collaborating with Claude
I certainly have my worries about Artificial Intelligence, and plenty of frustrations with the LLM's I've been working with, but it...
Junk Food and Screens
Poignant commentary from my father, written more than 30 years ago. Dad was a regular volunteer at Philadelphia's Franklin Institute...
Montevideo, 1993 or New York City, 2026?
Here's another excerpt from my father's Elderhostel travels, this time to Uruguay in 1993. The Mayor of Montevideo is the second...
Driving in Boston
In 2001, just a couple of days after September 11, we moved from Florida to near Boston, Massachusetts. What's one of the first things...
Copilot Lied to Me
In all my excitement about what AI has been able to do for me with my father's Elderhostel project, I have never forgotten that LLMs are...
AI Photo Editing Success
Most if not all of my father's Elderhostel courses included a certificate of completion, and his trip to Alaska and Siberia was no...
LLM Transcription of Printed Text
ChatGPT has become my go-to LLM for transcribing printed documents. I have many, many pages of typed text from my father's writings that...
Between the Earth and the Moon
The Holy Saturday (Easter Eve) message sent from our Artemis II astronauts of course reminded me immediately of the Christmas Eve...
Holy Week in One Hymn
Traditionally sung on Palm Sunday, Ride On, Ride On in Majesty is a musical journey through Holy Week, from Jesus' triumphal...
What I Think of When I Hear "Lambeth"
Whenever I hear "Lambeth," I think of Lambeth Palace, the residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury. But do you suppose that someone in...
Doing the Lambeth Walk
In 1992 my father and one of my brothers made a trip to London to visit another brother who was living and working there. When he...
Endangered Eating
Endangered Eating: America's Vanishing Foods by Sarah Lohman (W. W. Norton & Company, 2023) The first Sarah Lohman book...
Priceless Background for Understanding the War in Iran,...
The Kindle version of The Fall of Heaven: The Pahlavis and the Final Days of Imperial Iran is currently on sale a for $1.99. If...
The Remarkable Cousin Sylvia
When my father, an avid Elderhosteler, discovered a course with lots of outdoor activities intended for grandparents and their...