“The Coolest Thing I’ve Ever Done”

04 Sunday Dec 2011

Posted by in Escapes and Pleasures, Family and Friends

≈ 7 Comments

(When our younger daughter Elizabeth was in college, she called us to say, ‘Don’t kill me. I’ve got something to tell you.” We promised not to kill her, whereupon she told us she had pierced her tongue.

Only later did we learn that she had not done so at all but was just testing us out to see how upset we might get. And, of course, when we didn’t disown her, she then got her tongue pierced.

Well, it’s now ten years later, and Elizabeth called last night to tell us she was going skydiving today. I thought (silently) that she shouldn’t do it. But she’s 28, and I wasn’t going to start telling her what not to do now.

And so about 9:30 AM this morning, we got the following text message:

“I’m alive. Coolest thing I’ve ever done.”

Being not only a father but also the editor of MillersTime, I quickly (after I told her I was relieved), texted back saying, “I see a MillersTime post in the offing.”

And here it is:)

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35 Hot Stove League Predictions

03 Saturday Dec 2011

Posted by in Go Sox

≈ 2 Comments

In an attempt to add a bit of interest to this winter’s ‘Base Ball’ machinations, I added a new MillersTimeBaseball Contest:
this winter’s Stove League.

The prize: two tickets to a game in any stadium of the winner’s choosing for the 2012 season.

Here is the list of what folks predicted:

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Photos from Warsaw & Krakow

02 Friday Dec 2011

Posted by in Escapes and Pleasures

≈ 1 Comment

Below you will find a link to 40 of Ellen Miller’s photos from our recent trip to Warsaw and Krakow, including Ellen’s pix from Auschwitz-Birkenau.

First click on the link just below this paragraph. When the pictures appear, click on “Slideshow” at the bottom left of the page.

Click Here for Pix

(I previously posted nine pictures from Auschwitz by our traveling companion Maria Jesus Verdugo. If you haven’t seen those photos, click here.)

What Books Have You Most Enjoyed This Year?

01 Thursday Dec 2011

Posted by in Escapes and Pleasures

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As I have done for the past three years, I am asking for a list (anywhere from one to as many as you’d like) of the books you’ve most enjoyed reading in 2011.

There is no definition to the kind of book which you might add to this list. They can be fiction, non-fiction, science fiction, science, mystery, romance, hobbies, children’s books, etc. I am just looking for what you truly enjoyed this past year (old or new books) with the thought that others might get some ideas for their reading in 2012.

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If You Read or Plan to Read e-Books, Consider This

29 Tuesday Nov 2011

Posted by in Escapes and Pleasures

≈ 1 Comment

Long before the Kindle, iPad, Nook, etc., I started reading e-books (reading ‘electronically’) with what I think was the first quality device, a Sony Reader. For reasons not worth detailing, I moved on to the Kindle, and now I use the iPad for virtually all of my e-reading.

Probably about 70% of my reading is now on an e-reader. But what I want to highlight in this post is not the reason(s) why I am an advocate, but rather how it is now possible to use e-books and still support your local independent bookstore.

One of the concerns I always had about e-books was that I felt I was abandoning Politics and Prose, our local, wonderful independent bookstore that has grown from a small, one room store to one of the truly unique places in Washington, DC for folks interested in books, authors, and everything connected to them.

Yesterday, I took my iPad to P & P, and in about 20 minutes, I learned how to order books through P & P so that they would benefit from what I pay for my e-books (they get 40% of the cost of the e-book).

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Two Articles Worth Your Time

23 Wednesday Nov 2011

Posted by in The Outer Loop

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Linked here are two articles having to do with what is occurring in our country which I believe are worthy of your time. Both were printed in the current (Nov. 28) issue of New York Magazine.

The first one is by conservative writer David Frum, a former economic speech writer for President George W. Bush, a former contributing editor to the National Review, and the author of six books. Here he writes about a Republican Party he doesn’t recognize and one he fears is self destructing.

“When Did the GOP Lose Touch with Reality,” by David Frum – – Click Here

The second link is the latest article by Frank Rich. He draws some parallels between John Kennedy and Barack Obama, not ones that you might expect but ones having to do with the climate of hate both have encountered.

“How Obama’s Presidency Mirrors JFK’s, by Frank Rich — Click Here

And as always, please feel free to comment on one or both.

 

Steve Jobs’ Biography: My Favorite (NF) Read This Year

23 Wednesday Nov 2011

Posted by in Escapes and Pleasures

≈ 3 Comments

Those of you who have read this blog for some time now know that each year I post a list of favorite books recommended by readers of MillersTime. I will call for your best reads in the next few weeks and post the results in early January.

In the meantime, I don’t want to wait to write about the non fiction book I have enjoyed the most in 2011. I finished Walter Isaacson’s Steve Jobs just yesterday and have no doubt that this biography will stay with me long after 2011 passes.

Near the end of the 571 page book, Isaacson quotes Jobs’ wife Laurene Powell: “Like many great men whose gifts are extraordinary, he’s not extraordinary in every realm.”

That’s an understatement.

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Joan Didion’s “Blue Nights”

16 Wednesday Nov 2011

Posted by in Escapes and Pleasures

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(Note: If you have not read but plan to read Joan Didion’s newest memoir, “Blue Nights,” be warned that the posting below contains ‘spoilers,” and it might make sense to wait to read my thoughts until after you have read her book.)

Joan Didion, an icon to many, has followed up her The Year of Magical Thinking, the memoir about the year she struggled to exist following the sudden death of her husband, with a second memoir.

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J. Edgar, The Movie

16 Wednesday Nov 2011

Posted by in Escapes and Pleasures

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Walking out after viewing the film J. Edgar, I said to my wife that something seemed wrong about the movie. Despite it being captivating and worth seeing, I was bothered.

The early reviews have been mostly positive, particularly about the directing, by Clint Eastwood, a director I’ve come to admire, the acting, of Leonardo DiCaprio, an actor who I’ve grudgingly come to admire also, and the writing, of Dustin Black (Milk).

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‘It Even Happened to Joe Paterno”

10 Thursday Nov 2011

Posted by in Go Sox

≈ 4 Comments

As a follow up to the excellent column I linked to at this site the other day (The End of Everything at State College, Click Here if you haven’t read it), I add a column from this morning’s Washington Post, written by the wonderful sports columnist Thomas Boswell.

Boswell always seems to see clearly and say things well, often things we may be thinking but haven’t put words to yet.

Click Here to read Boswell’s column.