Category: Uncategorized

There is an art to hanging out. I’m not saying I’m an expert, but I certainly know my way around an outdoor café on a lazy summer day, a steaming cup of strong coffee in one hand, a long, juicy novel in the other. In a world where everyone is rushing around, stressed, multi-tasking, trying […]

For time immemorial, kids have asked the question, “Why?” Most of the time, it’s about rules and limitations. “Why—do I have to eat these peas? Why—do I have to go to bed now? Why—can’t I throw mud at my sister?” The rest of the time, the why question seems to be about how things work, […]

As mentioned in my last post, I was definitely a TV kid. Especially on Saturday mornings, between cartoons there was this one commercial that got stuck in my mind from repeated viewing: “In the valley of the giant, ho, ho, ho…” If you’re “of a certain age,” you’ll recognize this as the jingle of the […]

Wow Place #182: Paley Center for Media, New York City If you’re a certain age and grew up in the States, you probably (like me) watched a lot of television as a kid. While young people these days have a lot more ways to distract themselves, ie. video games, social media, YouTube and Tiktok, for […]

Arthur C. Clark once wrote, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” This is pretty true, I think. If say, William Shakespeare, was transported in a time machine to the present day, what would he think of smart phones and TVs and elevators and, heck, electric toothbrushes? He’d no doubt think a magician was […]

I won’t lie that I was a bit nervous before going to Rio. My friends who’d been there had warned me, “Don’t carry anything of value on your person. You WILL be robbed.” How’s that for a warm welcome to a country! On my first day of sightseeing, I heeded their advice and emptied my […]

As my winter New Zealand vacation looms nearer, the thought occurs to me that maybe I should pay all my bills early so I don’t get dinged with late fees. Particularly when it comes to my biggest bill, my estimated quarterly taxes, a part of me is thinking, “Why not just pay them now so […]

For the most part, I try to write posts about places that still exist, locations you can actually visit. But occasionally, like today, I feel compelled to write about a Wow place that has, shall we say, bitten the dust. Call this, then, a “memorial” post for the Las Vegas Star Trek Experience. For a […]

Obviously, “skirt chasing” is not cool, but what about “kimono chasing”? I’m embarrassed to admit that this is exactly what I find myself doing when we arrive at Tenryuji. For some reason never fully explained to me, this stunning temple in Kyoto’s Arashiyama district is a supremely popular place for dressing up in traditional garb […]

One of the best ways to explore a city is by treasure hunt. I don’t say this idly or speculatively. For over 28 years, I’ve earned a large part of my living as a “treasure hunt master.” Even after all these years, it’s still amazing to me that organizations and corporations actually pay me (and […]