April 23 2021: Forty nine years ago today, Dave Molvik threw a switch at Itasca Community College putting a transmitter on the air. Three miles away Jon Newstrom took some transmitter readings, he had to be there because we discovered, … Continue reading 49 Years! Almost Half a Century!
As we walked through the cruise terminal, a repurposed warehouse on the waterfront, the taxi touts standing by the murals along the street tried to get us into a cab. “You will get lost.”“It is dangerous, I know the neighborhoods.”“Get … Continue reading Tramming in Rio
On this trip to Rio, I wanted to visit two different churches. We have tried to visit the Metropolitan Cathedral of St. Sebastian twice before but each time it was closed. It is a massive concrete brutalist cone standing 246 … Continue reading Two Churches in Rio
When we started going on cruises 10 years ago we always wanted to be first off the ship and last back on at any port of call. The problem is that at tender ports the “Four and Five Star” mariners … Continue reading Punta del Este, The Southernmost point in Uruguay.
I have been taken with rural wooden churches since I was a freshman at St. Olaf College. Before I realized that God really didn’t care if I continued to go to the Episcopal Church or if I went to Boe … Continue reading Chiloé’s Wooden Churches
At age 70 9PM becomes the new midnight. By that standard I have seen in the New Year every year since I reached the Biblical lifespan. The ball drops in New York, I sing “Happy Days are Here Again”, stay … Continue reading 2025!
Today we celebrated the 42nd Sitka counseling Christmas Bazaar. It was a clear and cold day. I don’t think I have ever had as much problem finding a parking place as I have today. That means having to walk about … Continue reading 2024 Sitka Counseling Christmas Bazaar
(July 2, 2024, 248 years later.) On an unseasonably cool July 2, 1776, Richard Henry Lee moved a resolution, before the second Continental Congress, declaring independence for the 13 American colonies. To get unanimous agreement Congress made changes during the … Continue reading 248 Years Ago
Raven Radio is about to discover the meaning of Life, the Universe and Everything tomorrow Feb 19, (with apologies to Douglas Adams and Hitchhikers Guide to the Universe) when it turns 42. At just before 5 PM, Pacific Time, on … Continue reading “42”
As a youth my grandfather spent every New Years Eve on his knees in St. Finian’s church, welcoming the new year with prayer as the bell in the tower tolled 12 times. When he left Ireland he preferred a different … Continue reading My Grandfather’s Church
(July 2, 2023, 127 years later.) On an unseasonably cool July 2, 1776, Richard Henry Lee moved a resolution, before the second Continental Congress, declaring independence for the 13 American colonies. To get unanimous agreement Congress made changes during the … Continue reading Almost Independence Day
After the deluge of political mail last cycle I vowed to count each piece of political mail I got this year and report back. This report is late because we’ve had incredibly beautiful winter weather. Walks and taking pics trump … Continue reading Political Junk.
The fall colors in a hardwood forest take me back decades. While we were primarily in New Jersey to enjoy being with family I took some time to explore places of memory. We started our drive on Paramus Road going … Continue reading Hardwood Fall
Last night I didn’t sleep well. I wasn’t restless, I didn’t toss and turn. I lay still in thought, contemplation, and prayer. Mikhail Gorbachev is dead. My Albanian friend Arben Kallamata posted on Facebook (Awkwardly translated from Albanian by Facebook): … Continue reading Gorbi
Two hundred and forty-six ago a resolution written by Thomas Jefferson and moved by John Adams passed the Continental Congress. It read, in part: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are … Continue reading Independence Day 2022
The “Blessing of the Fleet” is one of those small town Sitka rituals that mark our seasons. It is on Palm Sunday, a time to stop and remember all of those who our community has lost during the past year, … Continue reading Blessing of the Fleet, 2022
**Link to posts on different Christmas and Advent markets** When we lived in Central Europe and the Balkans, we were Christmas Market regulars. We have a collection of Gluhwein (glow wine) mugs to prove it. These gatherings featured hand-made crafts, … Continue reading A Virtual Tour of Europe’s Christmas Markets.
This is one of those “milestone” birthdays. 75. And I’m happy to still be here during this second year of the pandemic. Breakthrough COVID caught me. It landed me in the hospital but couldn’t hold me. I’m still hare and … Continue reading 3 Memorable Birthdays, Thoughts on Turning 75
Thirty two years ago our lives changed forever. The Berlin Wall fell. Our family had been in Berlin the summer before and the wall looked permanent. We went back the next summer in time to see streets opening in the … Continue reading Walking the Line Between Hope and Despair.
For one brief moment in time a wilderness outpost on the North Shore of Lake Superior in Northern Minnesota was the center of an international commodity trade. That commodity, Beaver pelts. And it was all done to make silly hats. … Continue reading Global Trade in the Wilderness
Psychedelic Deco. Nanioujou Club Lodge I go out of my way to find quirky old hotels. I collect them. In Slovakia there was the Hotel Junior, which was a satellite themed space aged Soviet Era fantasy with extremely hard beds. … Continue reading Psychedelic Deco. Naniboujou Club Lodge
Two hundred and forty-five ago a resolution written by Thomas Jefferson and moved by John Adams passed the Continental Congress. It read, in part: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are … Continue reading After 245 Years “Jefferson Still Lives!”
Ramadan is a movable fast/feast. Back in 2008 it was in August and September. Here is a letter that I wrote to my extended family back then, before I started blogging. I did not think it was appropriate to blog … Continue reading Ramadan Mubarak.
I have never been one to celebrate the New Year. It always seemed like an artificial construct. I celebrated my own new year, the start of the school year, which coincided with introduction of the new models of cars when … Continue reading Welcome To 2021