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Face Photos from Readers
Photo Memory of the Week
Posted: 2025 Apr 04
Poetry of the Week
The Rhodora
- Ralph Waldo EmersonRhodora! if the sages ask thee why
This charm is wasted on the earth and sky,
Tell them, dear, that if eyes were made for seeing,
Then Beauty is its own excuse for being:
Why thou wert there, O rival of the rose!
I never thought to ask, I never knew:
But, in my simple ignorance, suppose
The self-same Power that brought me there brought you.Posted: 2025 Apr 04
Tag Archives: Travel
The Fuzziness of Time Zones. Oh, Yeah, and Tiger Butter.
They took a Friday from us. I’m not sure where they put it. I’m not annoyed. Really, I’m not. Just a bit fuzzified. Continue reading
Working This Weekend?
Now, you can argue about the wisdom of messing with the environment on any scale. But what hit me was his sense of working on — of belonging to — a noble and enduring endeavour that would last well beyond his lifetime. Continue reading
Mind the Hole
Holes in the desert, ranging from the Grand Canyon to burrows for tiny rodents, inspire awe, albeit short-lived. Skunks, on the other hand, inspire a more focused mindfulness. Standing on the edge of a hole in the ground, I take … Continue reading
We Got a Few of My Favourite Things
The last of eight observations on a recent Caribbean cruise, with apologies to both Toby Keith and Oscar Hammerstein II. Favourite question and answer on an island tour: Fellow traveller: Are the roads always busy like this? Guide: Not sometimes. … Continue reading
We Got Buyers, We Got Accosters
As we move through the Caribbean, the view changes with the location, but two things stay the same. The wind keeps blowing, and the crew keeps selling. Continue reading
We Got Rich Folks, We Got Poor Folks
The sixth of eight observations on a recent Caribbean cruise. In my own mind, I’m not rich: I work for a living, I make trade-offs, I watch my budget. But the Caribbean islands make me feel as uncomfortably rich as … Continue reading
We Got Photo Takers, and Music Makers
The fifth of eight observations on a recent Caribbean cruise. Brring, brring. It’s oh-six-hundred and something-or-other. The automated wake-up phone call startles me awake, as it has every morning since we sailed. We always seem to be (over)eating at sunset, … Continue reading
We Got Shoppers, We Got Sellers
The fourth of eight observations on a recent Caribbean cruise. Making my still-uncertain way from cabin to, well, anywhere on this ship, I pass shops selling cruise line souvenirs, jewelry, fine timepieces (aka ‘watches’), specialty liquors, leather accessories, and modern … Continue reading
We Got Tipplers, We Got Boozers
The third of eight observations on a recent Caribbean cruise. On this first sea day, the schedule includes what seems an odd assortment of entertainment: two-hour glass-blowing demonstrations by Corning staff, live music sets by an a cappella group, and … Continue reading