The first glimmer of an idea for my book came from Diane Dorney, the founder of what was then called “The Kentlands Town Crier.” The early articles I submitted seemed awkward; I wasn’t comfortable about my writing. I hadn’t yet…
Last fall, I received the “save the date” notice of my second grandson’s and his fiancee’s wedding to be held in Vail, Colorado, in June 2014. It is a familiar place to the bridal pair who live in Denver and…
You are carrying a walking stick and hiking along an ancient wall in China. The Great Wall was built mostly during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), but some parts date back to the Qin Dynasty (221-206 B.C.). You stop briefly for…
About 10 years ago, I was browsing through the shelves in an airport bookstore. When I came to the travel section, I suddenly froze in disbelief. In bold type the word “Branson” caught my eyes. I picked up the book…
Learning that the Washington Monument is finally going to reopen May 12 this year brought back a host of my memories of the Aug. 23, 2011 earthquake that severely damaged the Monument and the National Cathedral. The quake was so…
More than a year ago, I began to notice the tall, thin young man who stood at the corner of Brooke Road and MD 108 in Sandy Spring. Each weekend in all kinds of weather, he waved a vertical sign…
The French have an expression, “bête noire,” that comes easily to me when I’m talking about a special fear of mine when I was young. The word “fear” takes on a deeper, more sinister meaning when I use bête noire…
After a three-hour delay at BWI Airport and a six-hour flight across the continental USA, our plane finally touched down in Los Angeles. We were tired and eager to deplane. But the pilot announced over the intercom that air traffic…
The young audience is seated on the floor, mesmerized by a row of Christmas tree lights that replicate footlights beneath a miniature stage. Two adults (the puppeteers) are seated on either side of what is called a “penny theater.” As…
I’m sorry to say that my experience on Amtrak just isn’t the same as the B&O and the Frisco trains were when I used to take them in the late l940s and early ‘50s. Part of my pleasure of being…