From the category archives:

PERSONAL

ARIA: an operatic solo sung with accompaniment

February 3, 2012

My favorite movie of all time is Philadelphia, starring Tom Hanks.  It hit the theaters in 1993, the story of a young attorney who contracts AIDS  and brings suit against his law firm when they fire him because of his illness.   At one point in the movie he is in his apartment with his lawyer, [...]

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PHYSIATRIST: an M.D. who specializes in spinal issues … without surgery

January 28, 2012

I have a serious back problem.   Local doctors and those at the clinic I attend in Boston are pretty consistent in terms of their analysis of the problem.   It was while I was being seen at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston that one of the doctors suggested I see a physiatrist. [phi-ZAHY-uh-trist] At first [...]

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THROWN UNDER THE BUS: to be abandoned by supporters

January 17, 2012

The first time I heard the term “thrown under the bus” I was confused and shocked.  It wasn’t that many years ago, either.   I now know that it was a figure of speech that had been around for some time; it just hadn’t made it into my circle of dialogue.   It is a very jarring, [...]

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INSOMNIA: an inability to sleep or stay asleep

January 13, 2012

Is there anything more frustrating than tossing and turning in bed, unable to sleep or get back to sleep?  Insomnia is the given name for the condition, whether it be transient/occasional or chronic.  Either way, it’s a bear. Clearly, there are known factors which can produce sleeplessness.  Caffeine is the most prominent among them, and [...]

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AULD LANG SYNE: “for old times’ sake”

January 1, 2012

I won’t pretend to be original on this information.  I captured it on the web  this morning, Wikipedia having done the research.  But it’s worth repeating, in case you haven’t looked it up. Written at the end of the 18th century by Scottish poet”Rabbie” Burns, the song-poem Auld Lang Syne is roughly translated as “for [...]

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A BIRTH

December 24, 2011

  As time has passed and years have tumbled one upon another, decade upon decade, memories have been merged and details become blurred. A snowy Christmas Eve in an almost-empty city, a young couple nearly clueless about the tribulations of life to come, yet the thrill of new life bundled in the anxiety of responsibility. [...]

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BIG APPLE: a nickname for New York City

December 18, 2011

In case there are typographical errors in this posting, let me be clear that it is 5:30 a.m. and we’re about to jump in the car and head for New York City for the day.  It’s about a three hour drive each way.  The magnet is working, however.  What’s a Christmas season without the chance [...]

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CREMATION: the act of incinerating the body of a deceased person

December 5, 2011

I read recently that cremation is fast becoming the method of preference in America for caring for the remains of deceased loved ones.   There are all kinds of speculations as to why this is happening, including environmental concerns, a rejection of elaborate ceremony, the expense of traditional burial, and the softening of religious inhibitions against [...]

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THANKSGIVING DAY IN PITTSBURGH

November 24, 2011

    There was a time when Pittsburgh was known as a foul, dirty city covered with coal dust.  Buildings were crusted with decay, industry was flat (nearing extinction) and the mindset of the people who lived there was just as dark.   Industry had left the city and there was an absence of hope. I [...]

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JFK: 48 years ago today

November 22, 2011

Forty-eight years ago today President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas.  The world changed that day. In the past month two publications have become available, a novel called 11/22/63  by Stephen King and a biography by Chris Matthews called Jack Kennedy: Elusive Hero.  I have reserved the King novel for reading over the holiday, but I’m [...]

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