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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
A Soviet Citizen’s Reaction to a Western Department Store
/0 Comments/in Places I've lived, Recollections /by Howard DanielStockmann, Helsinki Here’s a vignette from the time I was posted to the U.S. consulate-general in Leningrad, 1976-78. Sasha, one of our Soviet-citizen drivers,* had just been granted a passport, a privilege that very few Soviet citizens enjoyed. This allowed him to drive the consulate’s truck (a vehicle very much like a UPS delivery van) […]
What I Learned in Pennsylvania About Saving Hawaii’s Whales
/0 Comments/in Hawaii, History, Thoughts, Travel, Uncategorized /by Howard DanielWorld’s first oil well, drilled in 1859 by Edwin Drake in Titusville, Pennsylvania Reflecting on my visit to Pennsylvania1 last month, I had an epiphany — that there is a special connection (though of course not a geographical one) between the Keystone State2 and the Aloha State. Let me begin with the conclusion I’ve reached about the […]
What I Did on My Summer Vacation, Part One
/0 Comments/in Uncategorized /by Howard DanielThe “whole fan damily” — well, almost! Think back to your school days and a typical assignment on the first day back in the classroom — being asked to write that dreaded essay, “What I Did on My Summer Vacation.” Here’s mine. Sandra and I went traveling. No. Not to an exotic “garden spot” like […]
The Restaurant Review You’ve Always Been Tempted to Write
/0 Comments/in Humor, Recollections, Travel /by Howard DanielPierogi On Thursday evening (Aug. 8), Sandra and I celebrated our 32nd anniversary* at one of our favorite restaurants, Tisza Bistro, just two miles from our home. Yesterday, after getting a request to comment on our dining experience, I wrote a glowing review. I’m supplying a link to it here because I want to demonstrate […]
Cats!
/2 Comments/in Places I've lived, Recollections /by Howard DanielAmong the many criticisms leveled at Facebook and other social media is the amount of time so many of us spend watching cat videos. To human eyes (and brains), cats are wonderfully entertaining. Years ago I watched a feline performance, in person, that still makes me smile whenever I see a cat rub against someone’s […]
A Little-Heralded Footnote to Apollo 11
/0 Comments/in History, Places I've lived, Recollections /by Howard DanielAll the attention to the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969, reminds me of my own peculiar little footnote to this historic event. At the time, I was a Peace Corps volunteer living in the north-central Indian village of Rajnagar (rough translation: Kingston) where I was working, together with […]
From Bali to Timor — a Memorable Flight
/0 Comments/in Places I've lived, Recollections, Travel /by Howard DanielA DC-3 With the 50th anniversary of mankind’s first landing on the moon just days away, I’m reminded of a somewhat more down-to-earth flight that I experienced only a year or so after Apollo 11. It was on my trip home to the United States from India, where I’d been serving in the Peace Corps. […]
What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
/0 Comments/in Humor, Language, Travel /by Howard Daniel1965: The author of this blog in Zurich, after learning what could go wrong Have you ever looked at one of those ubiquitous signs in public places that display a laundry list of prohibited activities … NO Swimming NO Running NO Fingernail Biting NO Playing 3D Chess […]
National Doughnut Day — Did It Roll Right Past You?
/0 Comments/in Humor, Places I've lived, Recollections /by Howard DanielNaomi (here in a forest outside Leningrad, 1977 or 78) in the hooded snowsuit which, with its neck slightly unzipped, prompted a passerby to claim she was “naked” I hope you didn’t miss National Doughnut1 Day this past Friday. If Facebook had not brought it to my attention, I certainly would have. As it turned out, […]
Who Said History Is Boring?
/0 Comments/in History, Humor, Language, Places I've lived /by Howard DanielIlya Yefimovich Repin: Zaporozhian Cossacks Write a Letter to the Turkish Sultan Advisory: Despite this blog’s ordinarily being family-friendly, this post is not appropriate for readers under the age of 18 (no nudity, just language). The painting above is one of the strongest possible refutations of the notion that the study of history is dull […]