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Quote of the Day
“The letter I have written today is longer than usual because I lacked the time to make it shorter.”
— Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)
Howard Daniel, Pen-for-Rent Principal
The Unthinkable Happened … Now What Do We Do?
/0 Comments/in Current Events, History, Thoughts /by Howard DanielMob invades U.S. Capitol, Jan. 6, 2021 I am appalled. We should all be appalled. But regrettably, that feeling is not universal. What am I appalled at? Two big unthinkables. Unthinkable No. 1: The mob’s assault on the U.S. Capitol. Even worse — the fact that the mob’s Cheerleader-in-Chief was the guy in the White […]
2020 Hindsight
/2 Comments/in Coronavirus, Family, Recollections, Thoughts /by Howard DanielThe year still has a couple of weeks to go, so this may not be quite the most logical time to consider it in hindsight. However, if I’m to create the annual — or, in my case, “annual-if-I-ever-get-around-to-it” — holiday letter before Santa Claus squeezes down the chimney we don’t have … there’s no […]
Zooming in to a Special Celebration
/0 Comments/in Coronavirus, Recollections, Russia-USSR /by Howard DanielCoach Henry Harutunian Yesterday, at long last, about 160 alumni of Yale University’s fencing teams Zoomed together to honor my friend — our friend — Henry Harutunian, who had served as Yale’s fencing coach for nearly half a century. The celebration had originally been scheduled to take place in person in New York City on […]
Another Dad Story
/0 Comments/in Danelectro, Family, Humor, Recollections /by Howard DanielNat Daniel as a young married man, circa 1945 (years after the time of this story), with my mom, Mollie (photo taken on the boardwalk at Long Branch, N.J., where I was born) To mark my dad’s 108th birthday this week (he was born on Sept. 23, 1912), I’m retelling a funny story about him. […]
Update on the Wildfire Near Our Home
/1 Comment/in California, North Bay, Places I've lived, Santa Rosa, Sonoma County /by Howard DanielDry lightning over the Golden Gate Over the past several days, Sandra and I have been hearing from friends and extended family asking if we’re OK amid the wildfires currently burning all over California, and especially up here in Sonoma County Wine Country. YES. So far we’re OK. Thank you all very much for your […]
It’s a Miracle She’s Stuck With Me
/2 Comments/in Family, Hawaii, Humor, Recollections /by Howard DanielOur wedding, Santa Barbara, California, August 8, 1987 This coming Saturday, Sandra and I will be celebrating our 33rd wedding anniversary. It’s hard to fathom that by December, just four months from now, we’ll have completed a full 33 and a third passages around the sun together — married for a third of a century, […]
Dad Stories
/4 Comments/in Brazil, Danelectro, Family, Holidays, Humor, Places I've lived, Recollections /by Howard DanielDad with me, probably 1945, Long Branch, N.J. On Father’s Day I’m recalling a few more stories about my dad, Nathan Daniel. They’re mostly “short takes,” so I’m presenting them in bullet form. One day, when I was about eight, Dad brought home a chunk of dry ice, something I’d never seen or heard of […]
Rioting: The Light Side
/0 Comments/in Humor, Places I've lived, Recollections /by Howard DanielBladderball In this time of rioting and broad-brush condemnation of America’s police, both of which I find deeply troubling, I’d like to lighten the mood with a recollection of rioting as I witnessed it in “olden times.” When I was a student at Yale (1962–66), riots were a joyful tradition. Entirely apolitical, they were simply […]
Racism — A Few Things to Think About
/0 Comments/in Hawaii, India, Places I've lived, Recollections, Thoughts /by Howard DanielI’m 75 years old. As readers of this blog know, I’ve been around the block a time or two, and I’ve seen, read and learned a lot. What I’m seeing right now — America’s racial “conversation” (for some, our national yelling match) becoming ever more shrill and violent — deeply troubles me. I’m also deeply […]