The summer of the “supermoon”

There’s something really neat about looking up in the sky and seeing vast, empty space that is illuminated by the moon and stars light years away.  It makes you think about how small our planet really is in the grand scheme of the things.  Personally, it also makes me think about the small joys in my own life: nighttime fires while camping as a kid, or summer walks at night – here, or in the woods of my family’s summer home in New Hampshire. Continue reading “The summer of the “supermoon”” →

Remembering Tom & Sandy: high school sweethearts together again

Thank God my mother reads the obituaries.  It’s something I really need to get into the habit of doing.  It was in the paper a few weeks ago that we learned our neighbor had passed away.  We hadn’t seen him in more than a year; he had been in a nursing home after suffering a fall.  During a walk around the block this weekend I saw his sister sitting on his front steps.  I walked up to express my condolences.  She told me it was pneumonia that got him in the end. It was quick, she said. Continue reading “Remembering Tom & Sandy: high school sweethearts together again” →

Wearable Tech

Apparently “wearable technology” is the next big thing in the world gizmos and gadgetry. It’s what all the big electronics companies are cooking up in their secret labs. Samsung was the first major player out of the gate with its “Galaxy Gear” smartwatch. Apple has been rumored to be working on one as well. There’s something else called “Pebble” (wasn’t that a failed Motorola phone after the Razr?). Anyway, most of the models released so far all have something in common: they’re ugly. Continue reading “Wearable Tech” →

More than a building for books

Rochester’s Rundel Library is one of those grand buildings that many people living in this city have seen or driven past, but may have never actually set foot inside it.  While nothing short of an in-person visit can do it justice, the Rochester Public Library has released a new video that provides a taste of Rundel’s many unique architectural features. Continue reading “More than a building for books” →

Exploring the world of Gatsby

A few weekends ago I finally took the plastic wrapping off my blu-ray copy of “The Great Gatsby” and popped it in.  It was one of several Christmas presents that I had yet to enjoy, along with the blu-ray player itself.  I had been meaning to watch this film for some time.  In fact, I wanted to see it in the theater but never got around to it.  I wish I hadn’t waited to see it.  Director Baz Luhrmann did an incredible job of bringing the story to life.  I say bringing the story to life, and not the book to life, because I wouldn’t be able to comment on that (I never read it – but it’s now on my summer reading list). Continue reading “Exploring the world of Gatsby” →