Tag: History

  • Janus, the two-faced god

    Janus, the two-faced god

    Time has come to think ahead to the new year.  And that means resolutions.  But did you ever stop to wonder why?  If no, or if you simply can’t be bothered, you’re in luck!  That’s what you have me for.  I’ll do the wondering and write about it, and you can get on with whatever…

  • What is the magic of Christmas?

    What is the magic of Christmas?

    Whether you are Christian, and particularly if you are not, the Christmas season is hard to miss.  It generally runs from late November thru to early January.  Ostensibly, it recalls and celebrates the birth of Jesus of Nazareth in the town of Bethlehem, thought by his followers to be the long-awaited messiah or savior, prophesied…

  • A brief history of pink

    A brief history of pink

    We have a gentleman (ahem!, and I use the term loosely) that works here at my residence who is very enamored with the color pink.  I often taunt him about it.  And he retaliates by assaulting me with the color any chance he gets.  One December, I awoke to find that overnight he had filled…

  • Fruits and Nuts

    Fruits and Nuts

    The other day, someone asked me how I come up with the topics I write about. I answered honestly: I don’t know. Obviously, current events are a source. But ultimately, a topic must be interesting to me. I do this (blogging) for fun, the way some people play golf or collect stamps. If it was…

  • Enough!

    Enough!

    Ah, November.  It is the beginning of so much in the Coachella Valley.  It marks the official start of what we call “the season” here in Palm Springs – a period of six months, more or less, of heaven on earth:  highs in the mid-70s, rarely a cloud in the sky, maybe a raindrop or…

  • John and his Ajax

    John and his Ajax

    Is it a euphemism or slang?  I think it is both.  We are naturally averse to talking about bodily functions in polite company.  So we employ euphemisms that say what we need to say without coming right out and saying it.  Nowhere is this more true than with #1 and #2, or “wee wee” and…

  • The Reichstag is on fire!

    The Reichstag is on fire!

    February 27, 1933.  Monday.  It is exactly four weeks since the leader of Germany’s majority political party in the Reichstag (parliament), a man by the name of Adolf Hitler, was sworn in as Chancellor (prime minister) of Germany.  It is important to remember Hitler was elected.  In the beginning.  And it’s not like his campaign…

  • The Penguin Lessons

    The Penguin Lessons

    Last March, I wrote a movie review here.  I mentioned how I tend to steer clear of recommending movies (or tv shows, or albums, or books) because I realize that tastes vary and what I think is good you might regard as rubbish, and vice versa.  I could tell you my favorite tv show right…

  • Hundred

    Hundred

    Strike up the band.  Cue the fireworks.  This is the 100th post of my blog. Sunday, when I posted about ICE, I noticed it was the 99th post to my blog.  The wheels in my head started turning.  My first thought was the next post had better be something really special to mark this milestone. …

  • It’s déjà vu, all over again

    It’s déjà vu, all over again

    This is a sobering moment.  And where you come down on what happened yesterday, and over the last week in Iran, depends on how willing you are to suspend your disbelief and accept the narrative fed to you by the administration in Washington DC.  One only has to look to recent history.  A regime in…