It’s been more than 35 years since we toured the Hearst Castle. Still, our visit to William Randolph Heart’s estate instantly came to mind when I saw a story recently about a modern-day imitator. This four-level, 38,000-square-foot mansion is listed at a cool $250 million, making it the most expensive home in the United States.…
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Whether the rash of post-Christmas violence at shopping malls nationwide, increasing incidents of air rage, or other acts of irrational behavior, our society appears to have become unhinged. While I’m sure the causes and effects will be debated for years to come, I think the loss of simple words like “sin” and “blame” are behind…
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Eighteenth-century English poet Alexander Pope penned the phrase, “ To err is human, ” a truism that has occupied center stage internationally in recent weeks. First came the infamous mistake at the Academy Awards, when actor Faye Dunaway—partnered with Warren Beatty—announced that La La Land had won Best Picture. Moments later, the movie’s producer, Jordan Horowitz announced, “I’m…
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While those who favored Al Gore in 2000 are probably still mad at activist Ralph Nader for siphoning off enough votes to cost Gore the election, my memory of Nader goes deeper. In an article that year, he wrote about returning to Harvard University for a 20-year reunion of his law school class. Nader mentioned…
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After seeing a couple positive reviews last summer of Hillbilly Elegy, I made plans to read it. As so often happens when it comes to getting to sit down with a book, it takes a while to follow through with good intentions. I’m married to a woman from West Virginia. After twice leaving for other…
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Today, Friday, Feb. 17 marks the 38th anniversary of my wedding to a woman 13 years my senior. I’ve often said I would be a rich man if I had a dollar for everyone who said it would never last. For one, there was the age difference. Today, no one thinks a thing about an…
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It’s hard to believe that this summer will mark 12 years since I had my first two heart stents, which would be followed a couple years later by a double bypass. (You don’t know the meaning of pain until you’ve had your chest cracked open.) During the cardiac rehab program that followed my stents, I…
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With my wife managing our church’s food pantry and both of us serving twice a month at a dinner for the homeless, we have considerable experience working with the down-and-out. Repeated exposure to those who are “milking the system,” traveling about in search of handouts, or showing up at various occasions besotted or high on…
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One of our most pleasant discoveries in recent months was Ticket to Ride. This board game hearkens to childhood memories of riding trains and visiting our favorite aunt in Chicago. Going into the Windy City in pre-interstate days, we always passed over the historic (and rather smelly) stockyards, where the rails seemed to never end. “Ticket…
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