An Italian-American Writer & Poet with a Yankee Outsider Perspective
The Israeli film, “The Lemon Tree,” moves sedately and with scarcely any dialogue, but once it ends, the message is unmistakable: a huge concrete wall has slid into place, separating the Israeli Defense Minister’s fancy modern house from a West … Continued
My last stop in Italy was with my wonderful friends, the visual artist Patricia Glee Smith (born in Savannah, Illinois) * and her Italian husband Giangi Poli. Giangi used to create documentaries on science and politics for Italian public television; … Continued
Yesterday I read a startling article by Malcolm Gladwell in The New Yorker about “weak” and “strong” connections (Oct. 4, “Small Change”). According to Gladwell, the young African American students who started the wave of lunch counter sit-ins in 1960 … Continued
In 1988, the Twin Cities went six weeks without rain, from mid-May to the early July. Usually June is one of our wettest months. We had bought our 1912 house several years before; it was bare of greenery except for … Continued
That restroom paper towel: what do you do with it? I’ve been tracking trash. Since the flu scare last year, I try to put either glove or paper towel between my hand and a public door handle. Thus, after drying … Continued