I love to fly, even in Economy. Fellow passengers are almost always considerate, showing respect for personal space. They might even have interesting stories to tell.But I do have a few requests for my seat-mates. Please do not tug on my seat. If you only follow one request please follow this one: when getting out… Continue reading Personal Space in Economy
Category: Life Changes
Zen and the Art of Casserole Assembly
Oh, the things I wish I’d known when I was young. Take the ingredients for a basic bake pictured at the top of this post. They look simple enough but for me they represent small lessons learned over decades. Mise en Place I enjoy the calmness of preparing and laying out all the ingredients for… Continue reading Zen and the Art of Casserole Assembly
My Kagoshima: Chunking the Map
I’m filled with questions when I look at a map of a place I have never visited. How do I chunk up a manageable journey through this place? How do I get there? Which areas do I visit? Where are the hiking trails? Where are the trailheads? How do I get around? How do I… Continue reading My Kagoshima: Chunking the Map
Superior Trail Planning
Damp day: a good day to plan a Superior Trail hike. (Any day is a good day to plan a hike.)
Travel Gear: Buying the Wrong GPS
Whether it’s investments or stuff, I’m a buy-and-hold kind of person. I’d had my handheld GPS (a Garmin, function-key-driven GPSMAP 6OCSx) 8 years when I lost it on a trip in January 2015. I was not ready to replace it because it still performed well relative to current units. But now I had no GPS. I… Continue reading Travel Gear: Buying the Wrong GPS
Channeling Eva Gabor in Kirishima
As the floor plan shows, the lower levels of big Japanese resort hotels have something for everyone. Last week, in Kirishima, Kyushu, Japan, I walked through the hotel’s amusement area dressed in a yukata, clutching a towel, heading for the stairs to the outdoors hot springs. People were laughing and joking and drinking. Their… Continue reading Channeling Eva Gabor in Kirishima
An Unplanned Night in Houston
Well, I didn’t get too far today. The plan was to get from Fort Lauderdale to Kirishima, southern Japan. Instead I got as far as Houston. My United flight from Houston to Tokyo was repeatedly delayed: something about a problem under the floor, eventually traced to a cargo door.I retreated to the KLM club where… Continue reading An Unplanned Night in Houston
Iron Road to the Capital of Latin America
Tomorrow I leave Savannah for Miami, the end of the line on Amtrak. A journey from a world constrained by history to a place that is still inventing itself. For tourists, Charleston and Savannah are about colonial times and early independence through the end of the civil war. A white history with selective amnesia. Miami… Continue reading Iron Road to the Capital of Latin America
Iron Road to the Capital of Latin America
Posted Iron Road to the Capital of Latin America.
The Other
Woolworth’s lunch counter (Smithsonian) I tried to build a coherent picture of my seatmate as I rode Amtrak from Cleveland to New York. The obvious stuff: 40-ish, black, heavyset, financially on the edge. I got the financial bit as he talked on the phone about his imminent move to a smaller apartment. He clicked away at… Continue reading The Other