Category Archives: Michael

Down at Fraggle Rock

By Michael The girls took us to see the Jim Henson exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry last week. It was a 35th anniversary present. Not the tickets, although we didn’t have to pay, but the day was the gift. Any day with Jill and the girls is priceless. We met for lunch…

Family Circle

By Michael Jill and I were driving into the city yesterday and talking about family. More specifically, we were talking about how little we really know about some of the people we consider closest to us. Cousins, aunts, nieces, even our parents, can sometimes be a blur. We think we know them, but suddenly we…

Better to Give…

By Michael Stephanie was packing up a box for Big Susan. Not Big Susan, her sister. That was just plain old Susan. Big Susan was the woman who came to clean the house every couple of weeks, at about the time the pile of dishes was scraping paint off the ceiling and the dust bunnies…

My children, Rex and Lassie

By Michael Okay, I have to say it. I hate to see children on leashes. Jill and I went with a friends on an Alaska cruise a few weeks ago and it was nice to be among the youngest people in a community again. Apparently, people go to Alaska at about the time they are…

The Road to Degradation

By Michael I think she was four, possibly a precocious three. She was up on the chair, playing on the touchscreen, trying to win a matching game and then a ring toss of sorts. Her mom came by to help her, instruct her and cheer her on. Of course, the chair was a bar stool…

But you can’t tell mom…..

By Michael Parents are supposed to be a team, working together, presenting a consistently united front. As we all know, that’s why parent and partner have exactly the same letters. So I was reminded last week about a question that challenges all of us at one point or another. Is it ever okay to have…

Chelsea Getting Married

By Michael President Obama was on The View last week, chatting up the ladies about all sorts of earthshaking issues, when he was asked about his attendance at Chelsea Clinton’s wedding. He indicated he had not been invited and, of course, the media were filled with other names of people who were excluded from the…

Pushing Them Away, But Always a Fan

By Michael I was watching a hummingbird feeding its young and I wondered when the clock would run out. At what point would the mamabird stop bringing nectar or nits or whatever to her brood and force them out on their own? Would she actually kick them out of their very tiny nest and hope…

Only the Souvenirs are Different

By Michael This morning, Susan dropped off her souvenirs from yesterday’s family adventure:: three $5 chips from the Indian casino down the road from our place in Arizona. Jill and the girls were in town to visit a high-school friend of Susan’s who just had a baby. i was here on a business trip. For…

Life in the Past Lane

By Michael I held up the photo and asked, “Who’s this?” Susan looked at me like I had just grown a second nose. “Who’s that?” “Yes, who is it?” “You really don’t know?” At which point, I’m taking one of those mental backpedals that sometimes save me from embarrassment but usually come much too late….