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PORTLAND RECHARGE PRIMER

Walk down Broadway and you can feel the Portland pulse, the Portland recharge, which is no surprise when you see the volcano map. But, more than that, the city feels primed for a renaissance, a Portland Renaissance. And that means an Oregon Renaissancea?   . . . new growth of activity or interest in something, […]

BEST BUY TACTICAL COMMANDO

I made a birthday run to Best Buy for my wife’s birthday. Married people do this all the time. Maybe just husbands? The difference was, my trip was on the birthday, which some people call irresponsible, tactless, whatever. But I knew what I wanted and where to get it. And I knew the timeline. How […]

BEING USEFUL LIKE ROBERT FULGHUM

This isn’t Robert Fulghum, it’s me being useful in my Robert Fulghum beard which has gone the way of every beard that dared show itself on my face. He is probably a better beard steward than me. My enthusiasm for grooming an extra pet in the house lasts about six months. The last dog lived […]

A SECOND LOOK AT “THAT AIN’T RIGHT”

What’s a second look at this garage arrangement tell you? What’s missing: a fitness area with a treadmill, squat rack, work bench, maybe a couple of cars stacked on a lift, and a designated music area with guitars, drums, and amps all ready to go. Not to say this garage is lacking anything, but it […]

HISTORICAL FATHER’S DAYS 2026

Historical Father’s Days in the olde country where I watched my children roam like Vikings conquering a new land. Corfe Castle fell to my marauders. The locals didn’t like our style of exploration. The walkway through the ruins led to more investigation off the path. “How would you like it if we went to your […]

FARMING DISASTER DONE ON PURPOSE

So much of the awful results of the farming disaster in the old Soviet Union came from bad policy decisions. In the early 1930’s their main guy Stalin decided he knew more about science and farming than anyone. He also had advisers explaining it to him in a way he agreed with. Who doesn’t love […]

RESPECT PEOPLE WHO TRUST YOU, OR . . .

This is the shocking end to a man trusted to respect people in his country. It was all good until it wasn’t. Is there a lesson to learn? The people he governed had had enough and voted him out? Nooooo.

HISTORICAL ACCURACY? IMPORTANT, OR NOT

I’m a fan of historical accuracy, of a story that stands up to scrutiny not opinion, My feeling is that the people involved in historical events deserve the decency of applied history. How to apply history? It’s all about the sources.

RETIREMENT WARNINGS FOR BOOMERS IN THE FAST LANE

You’re in the fast lane and know it when you pull up on a Waymo car.   Waymo has named the Rose City as one of the next locations welcoming its own fleet of self-driving vehicles. As part of the announcement, the company revealed it will start manually operating the cars on Tuesday to “help […]

MAKING PROGRESS WITH GRAND DECKS

Making progress on a deck doesn’t look like this, but the ending does. Inspector dog agrees. Three picture framed sections? Check. Boards fastened without anything showing? Check. Railing is sturdy? Check. But what did it look like before?