Monkeys grasp for the moon

Washington boasts many world-class museums, but some of the most impressive are not necessarily the most visited. The Freer Gallery of Art, part of the Smithsonian Institution, is an Italian Renaissance style building just east of the Smithsonian Institution “castle” on Continue reading Monkeys grasp for the moon

Wash your hands of it all

The leading cause of hospital infections is: staff not washing their hands. The leading cause of most common communicable diseases in the United States is: people not washing their hands. We use our hands for everything, be that taking out Continue reading Wash your hands of it all

Welcome to nothing

Pullman, WA to Snoqualmie Summit, Wa After attending Sasquan, the World Science Fiction Society convention in Spokane, Washington, we took a trip 75 miles south to Pullman, Washington, home of Washington State University. Along the way, we admired the huge Continue reading Welcome to nothing

Of Monsters and Men and Merriweather – and spotlights

Light tubes and monsters

Of Monsters and Men, an Icelandic rock group, visited Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland, in September. The name doesn’t really seem to describe the group all that well, though a few photos may help clarify things. The opening act Continue reading Of Monsters and Men and Merriweather – and spotlights

R2D2 found

R2D2 has been missing for several years, though allegedly it will return — officially — in December 2015. Don’t despair, however: R2D2 is not idle. Well, sometimes it is idle, but it is still working hard to thwart the Empire. Continue reading R2D2 found

Pain clinic

There is but one question: why? Don’t you go to hospitals and clinics to be free from pain? You don’t go to a clinic to suffer from more pain. Wouldn’t a “Pain Relief Clinic” or a “Pain Cessation Clinic” or Continue reading Pain clinic

Memorial to gun violence

The stark simplicity of the memorial is stilling: these are shirts that will not be filled, and in many cases the shirts are for victims many times too young to wear an adult T-shirt.

St. John Baptist Church in Columbia recently installed a powerful memorial to victims of gun violence in the greater Washington, DC, area. On an embankment behind the church are simple frames, and on each frame is the name (if known), age, and date of Continue reading Memorial to gun violence