4915 - November 18, 2025 This is really not a problem. It is something that is terribly silly. So much in life is terribly silly and these days, I so appreciate them because they take my mind off of the international, national, and sometimes personal situations with which we are confronted on a daily basis. Yesterday, I went into my closet.

4914 - November 11, 2025 I want to put out my dad’s flag and yet I do not want to do that. Each time I see the American flag these days, it is with a bit of concern, wondering if the flag is being used by the MAGA people who have managed to change the meaning of the flag for most of us.

4913 - October 14, 2025 Sometimes we need a reset. I looked upon our European trip, more than certainly long overdue, as a reset. Back in the day, before my first trip to Europe in 1971, I felt spiritually and mentally, as if I needed a reset. I felt that I was becoming embroiled in a life of pressure and stress that was overwhelming.

4912 - October 13, 2025 Travel brings so many benefits. If only so many of the disenfranchised in our country had the benefit of more travel, I cannot help but think that we would all be better off. I cannot help but think that my woke ideas for education and healthcare would make the goal of travel more reachable for them, but that is a thought for another time.

4911 - October 12, 2025 Truth be known, I am a shopper with stamina, but with a male penchant for getting in there, doing what I need to do, and getting out of there. Done. The Rialto Bridge, a surprisingly good place to shop! MK always complains about shopping and with the advent of online shopping, she is a happy camper.

4910 - October 11, 2025 So fifty-three years ago, Venice was not top on my list. I liked seeing it and its beautiful art and landmarks, but it was less than pleasing to the eye from my view of its canals. Palazzo Paruta & Wellness Suites This current visit changed my mind completely and I truly began to appreciate the city for what it is: Italian, a cultural landmark on an island very low to the water, and a city built on hundreds of thousands of tree trunks that were inserted into the wet and became petrified.

4909 - October 9, 2025 Okay, Venice (Venezia), I am sorry! For fifty-three some years, I have said that you were not one of my favorite cities. I now stand corrected. Sadly, our trip to Italy is now over and we are safely ensconced in our home north of the city of Chicago. Our trip was magical, a word we came to realize best describes it.

4909 - September 21, 2025 Today, I had no idea that our youngest was coming over. He brought his dog and the dog of a friend of his for whom he was dogwatching. Hershey is a great dog, apparently a Cavapoo, and was great with Stewart and Mr. Wiener. At some point, we came in the house as they were tired of being outside.