What is the most culturally diverse city? Some say it’s Amsterdam, with about 178 different cultures. London can make a strong claim for second, with approximately a third of its population foreign-born. The most diverse city in the U.S. would be Los Angeles, rated third in the world, with an estimated 86 languages spoken by
Last year at my 50th high school reunion, I renewed acquaintances with a dear friend. His main job now is as a township trustee, and when I asked why, his answer was simple — “It’s a way to help people.” I was reminded of that today as I watched excerpts from the funeral of President
Some historians rate Woodrow Wilson as a near-great president, which always made me curious because he is most remembered for his idealistic League of Nations proposal, which his own country shunned. So my curiosity led me to Wilson, a highly rated biography by A. Scott Berg. The truth is Woodrow Wilson lived a life of
I guess it’s a sign of my advancing age that I can get excited about a pair of pajamas. This weekend I stumbled across a sale, and purchased a pair that I normally would’ve considered too pricey. Not that they were extravagant to begin with, but I must confess to having a cheap streak. This
Still getting caught up after Thanksgiving, so here’s a quick poem from the unpublished pile — My Nemesis I don’t know why we didn’t get along. But all through high school he was there. He drew mustaches on my baseball cards. In music class when we were supposed to be singing he harassed me.
As a history nerd, I know there are lots of strange stories during wartime. This is right up there with them. On a hill near the village of Itter in Austria sits a small castle that during World War II was seized by the Waffen SS and converted into a prison camp for high-profile prisoners
Since it’s officially the Christmas season, I’m re-posting my Christmas story as my contribution to the holidays. This story is included in my book Stories Short and Strange, available on this website and on Amazon.com in both hardcopy and downloadable formats. Thanks, Santa I guess I shouldn’t complain. I live in a nice house on
I can rarely resist a book, especially a book about history. Recently I found an interesting little volume — The Civil War: Voices of Hope, Sacrifice, and Courage, edited by Gordon Leidner. It lists over 220 quotes from soldiers and civilians on both sides, as well as texts and excerpts from some of the war’s
Here is a link to my favorite Thanksgiving poem. Unfortunately, I didn’t write it; Jack Prelutsky did. But it’s the kind of poem I wish I could write. http://www.homemakerscorner.com/turkeyshot.htm (Jack Prelutsky began as a folk singer, and has been making words rhyme for over 45 years. Since his first book, A Gopher in the Garden,
Recently I read that 26 state names have been derived from Native American speech. I know English is a diverse language, containing words with many different origins, so this did not surprise me. Still, it did pique my curiosity. I did a bit of research and yes, we’ve gotten a bunch of words from Native