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LOVE LETTER TO READERS AND SUBSCRIBERS

November 3, 2025 by

Who remembers the first love letter you wrote? Did you send it? Either way, it’s all about the intent. You were moved to express your feelings. I don’t know about you, but I remember my first.

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TIME MACHINE, OR ’66 CORVETTE

October 30, 2025 by

The usual time machine in movies is a box you walk into in one era and walk out of in another. It’s some kind of portal used to go back and fix something. Things go wrong when the fix starts a domino effect that changes everything else, so you have to go back for a […]

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EMPTY HANDS IN THE GETTY

October 29, 2025 by

The empty hands in the Getty Museum, or Getty Center, caught my eye more than the hands with cigarettes. Can’t you see a coffin nail, maybe a Phillip Morris Commander, in this guy’s hand, tipping ashes into the skull? The artist sees the whole picture and paints it; visitors see modern interpretations. I see a […]

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LONELY PEOPLE: FROM HEMINGWAY TO AMERICA

October 27, 2025 by

The answer: lonely people. The question: What does the band America have in common with Ernest Hemingway? Their bond comes from both ends of male adulthood, young man to old man. One sang about them, the other wrote about them. By now baby boomers are both.

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OREGON MAP: BEHIND THE SCENES

October 25, 2025 by

An Oregon map on a wall? Who doesn’t have one of those? But when they show up unexpectedly it’s a happy reminder. You see things and wonder, ‘What’s that look like from the air?

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STRONG PEOPLE: STAY STRONG

October 24, 2025 by

Do you come from strong people? Baby boomers can answer with a yes easier than others. Who’s going to correct them? Respect your elders, even if you know they might be confused. Besides, who’s to judge what strong means? I will.

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ONE TRICK PONY, MAYBE TWO

October 20, 2025 by

I rode this horse three times a week, sometimes more, for two months. Her name was Fancy and she let me know how important horses are. A retired Air Force sergeant owned Fancy and Roxy and he rented them on one condition: You had to ride them the way he wanted you to ride. It […]

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THE OTHER PORTLAND, NOT THAT ONE

October 12, 2025 by

The other Portland is not an event, a gathering, or a cause. It could have been anywhere, but Portland just so happens to be where I started my career, met my wife, had kids. It is where my kids got married. I’ve had the city on my mind all my life, from driving past as […]

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OREGON EMPATHY IN THE WILD WEST

October 5, 2025 by

Oregon empathy is all we’re asking for from our border states and beyond. Try and feel what it’s like to be in our shoes. We’re trying to stand up to the harsh words and divisive actions aimed directly at our way of life, but for how long? How many more pumpkins must go to rot […]

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COMMUNITY STORYTELLING: U.S. ARMY 1974-1976

September 30, 2025 by

The definition of community for Community Storytelling from Oregon Humanities:   When we say “community,” we mean any group of people who share a common experience thanks to where they live, the language they speak, their race, their religion, their age, or some other attribute. When we say “storytelling,” we mean nonfiction stories conveyed through […]

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