Another excellent story from the Washington Post, on a problem — the fate of urban trees — that seems not as well studied as that of wild forests. BERKELEY, Calif. — Everywhere he goes, Anthony Ambrose sees the dead and dying. They haunt this city’s streets, the browning yards of stylish homes, the scenic groundsContinue reading “Drought hits city trees too (not just wild forests)”
Category Archives: thinking out loud
Storm denial: what forecasters couldn’t mention
Coincidentally two stories this week focused on how in the past scientists were not allowed to name certain types of storms. Dr. Jeff Masters, of Weather Underground fame, writes about the Great Dust Bowl, and reveals that many attempts — and many successful attempts — were made to control the reporting of the news. WritingContinue reading “Storm denial: what forecasters couldn’t mention”
Have you seen the stars tonight? (paul kantner)
Rock star Paul Kantner died yesterday, news that made the front page of the New York Times,. Over the course of a career nearly fifty years long, Kantner came up with a ton of dazzling songs, many of which became 60’s classics (Wooden Ships, Today). At the same time he wasn’t a star likely toContinue reading “Have you seen the stars tonight? (paul kantner)”
Woody Guthrie on Trump: “Racial Hate”
Robert Reich, former Secretary of Labor and excellent Facebooker, quotes the fierce American folk singer, poet, and labor activist Woody Guthrie on an important man from the past who is still with us today. Donald Trump and his father Fred. Quote of the day: “I suppose Old Man Trump knows Just how much… Racial Hate heContinue reading “Woody Guthrie on Trump: “Racial Hate””
David Foster Wallace, loneliness, and the confusions of Eros
A poet named Nate Klug strikes to the heart in a recent Poetry Daily entry called Aporia: Aporia Not little by little, as concerto strings or doctrines like to disappear, leaving time to think. No—skin pulled taut around jaw and fierce cheek, seen from the side in the sea of the bed: none now thatContinue reading “David Foster Wallace, loneliness, and the confusions of Eros”
Be grateful, but stay away from the Permagrin
In the NYTimes, the estimable Arthur Brooks — the rare research-oriented conservative writer — makes a case for expressing gratitude this season, even if we do not feel it. This Thanksgiving, don’t express gratitude only when you feel it. Give thanks especially when you don’t feel it. Rebel against the emotional “authenticity” that holds youContinue reading “Be grateful, but stay away from the Permagrin”
Internet erodes the interview: Chuck Klosterman
Fascinating insight on the 21st century and the interview in reporting and writing from a Q & A with Chuck Klosterman: I feel like in general that the art of the interview has been eroded by the rise of the Internet. It’s taken away the necessity of [doing them] but it still seems to meContinue reading “Internet erodes the interview: Chuck Klosterman”
NYC writer meets nature: The Great Surrender
A young writer lays out what it is to fall into a relationship with nature — reluctantly. …if you had told me a decade earlier, when I was living in New York City working as a magazine editor, that I would someday move to Montana—and for a man—I would have scoffed: “What a hilarious idea.” IfContinue reading “NYC writer meets nature: The Great Surrender”
Why does the park service make wilderness visitors lie about camping next to water?
If you wish to obtain a permit to visit the Yosemite Wilderness, to hike perhaps on the PCT, one goes to the Wilderness Permit office labeled as such, off the main road (not the stone building near the campgrounds) and stands in line and picks up one’s reserved permit, or hopes that someone else does not,Continue reading “Why does the park service make wilderness visitors lie about camping next to water?”
The silence of the deniers: Toles
Besides being the best political cartoonist on the subject of climate and the environment, and actually funny as well, Tom Toles publishes almost as many sketches as he does full-fledged cartoons, plus he has a fiery but smart blog in the Washington Post which he often talks about, yes, climate. As in today’s The SoundContinue reading “The silence of the deniers: Toles”
Kit Stolz 