“Young lady??”
I was waiting for the bus and struck up a conversation with one of those men who stands with a kiosk of brochures about God, life and whatever religion he is. He was an African-American gentleman who looked like he was in his late 50s or so, and he addressed me as...
Discouraged
In the fall I began a business that provides services to non-native English speakers who came to the U.S. as adults. I help with communication skills, American social skills and American business culture. It's going well, but any new business takes considerable...
Post-Holiday Peace
After my year of austerity (drastically reduced sugar, dairy and grains), I totally indulged last week when I visited familia in Houston, Texas. I ate cookies and cupcakes and pie. I also had grain-y foods like pancakes and tamales because I wanted to take a break...
Houston International Airport, 27 Dec 2015
I think what I like about being at an airport is that it's a kind of limbo. Right now I'm at IAH, where I was booked on a 7:28p flight back to Chicago O'Hare Airport. Instead, I'm now waiting for a 10:45p flight because my other one was canceled. So I sit, pace, eat a...
Review of The Lyric Opera’s Bel Canto
In 2012, work began on the impressive challenge of turning Ann Patchett's novel Bel Canto into a staged, modern opera. Now Bel Canto is playing at the Lyric Opera through January 17, 2016. I heard about it at the beginning of December and, even though I'd never been...
The Shine Is off Christmas for Me
Now that I spend more time with people who weren't born in the U.S, I see American culture differently. I'm fascinated by the things such people identify as being good and bad about us. I have new appreciation for our American never-say-die attitude and the way we're...
"Isn’t there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?"
[I originally posted this January 5, 2006.] What's Christmas without tradition? The Christmas tradition for my blog is the annual posting of my summary of the History Channel's Christmas Unwrapped: The History of Christmas. I find it extremely relevant to the annual...
U.S. Latinos – The Facts
During Chicago Ideas Week I attended Univision's seminar on "Marketing to Hispanics." This is what I learned from the data collected by Univision's marketing department. General facts There are 58 million Hispanics in the U.S. which is 18% of the total U.S....
This Is What I Have to Say about the Current State of Regular American Mass Shootings
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It’s Ugly In Here
It's ugly in Chicago. Between the police brutality that gunned down a Black teenager who stood several feet from the nearest officer to the police destroying evidence of Officer Jason Van Dyke's crime to State's Attorney Anita Alvarez refusing to see that there's been...
“No” Means “Yes” and “Yes” Means “No”
What is happening to the meanings of "yes" and "no?" I asked someone last night if he and his companion were old friends, and he said, "No, yeah we've been friends for years." On The Daily Show, Noah Trevor asked Gloria Steinem if she thought the women's movement...
Ever Lose a Pair of Diamond Earrings?
I lost a pair of custom-made diamond earrings about a year ago. They were a gift from my ex-husband (from back when we were married) and were created to my specifications. Of course, I went through all my drawers, pockets, bags, suitcases and tote bags and looked...