“A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away….”

Rick and Neil at MSP… What a couple of old codgers!

Well, actually, it was in this galaxy; and it was in about 1975, so it was not really that long ago.

After high school, I worked for a few years before attending college. One of my old friends from school (Neil) happened to be in town one day in the summer of 1975, home from university. He happened to look me up, and happened to find me at home. When he unexpectedly knocked on my door, he found that I was a miserable mess, having recently experienced some severe interpersonal relationship distress.

The rest, as they say, is history. Continue reading →

Enjoy the Corpus Christi Surf, at least five minutes worth!

My wife and I noticed that spring break for her teaching job coincided with our daughter’s break from graduate school. So we packed up the car and headed to Denton, Texas. While there (it was a WONDERFUL time, by the way) we drove a bit deeper into the heart of Texas, all the way to Corpus Christi, on the Gulf Coast.

Continue reading →

I was blessed to spend ten days in October, visiting my daughter Anna during her semester abroad in Florence, Italy. It was the ideal daddy-daughter date. (See selected photos here.)

Traversing Florence together with Anna

Although I had been there twice before, I leapt at the chance to see Florence through her eyes. She lived there all autumn, and offered to share her apartment for my accommodations (click for a video tour). Her roommates had all gone to explore other parts of the continent, and she alone would remain in Florence for the holiday. My yearning to return to Italy was kindled by my desire to enjoy the company of my daughter. (Sadly for me, my wife, as a teacher, was unable to get away from the rigors of the classroom to join me on my adventure.)

Continue reading →

Fall Color

Some who read this may not be in Minnesota. Whether you are or not, no doubt you recognize the change of seasons: It’s starting to be fall here. The trees are beginning to exhibit LOTS of color (AHHHHHHH!) and there is a chill in the air at night. This is absolutely my FAVORITE season of the year.

This past weekend, Judy and I experienced parents weekend at the University of Minnesota with our younger daughter Anna. We walked all over the campus and enjoyed seeing things, some old, some new, some gone. (The building in which I worked after attending the U, Wesbrook Hall, is simply no longer there.) Continue reading →

Well, I guess this is our summer to be on the water, because we did it again. All four of us this time, canoed another sixteen miles (according to the rental place; Google maps calculates the route as more like thirteen) down the Bois Brule river in northern Wisconsin. My grandfather has a cabin on the river, and it’s a marvelous (if completely primative) retreat full of the magic of childhood wonder in a fantastically beautiful setting. (Click here for the satellite view of the route we did.)

This time, Anna had a camera along, so I can give you a better idea of what we enjoyed. And enjoy it we did. This is a spring fed, meandering river that flows north from roughly Solon Springs, WI, out of Upper St. Croix Lake. (You can read about the river here.)

Before I recount the revelry on the water, I will point out that there is something a “tradition” in our family: When traveling to or from Duluth and environs, we WILL encounter bad weather. Continue reading →