-
Dept. of Miscellaneous
Various Things Make a List
1. There are several people out there who have had recent birthdays. and if I have any brainpower left over the next 24 hours, I'll wish them proper natal salutations.
2. My company is once again planning its traditional pre-holiday layoffs. This year they come with potential buyouts. I am talking seriously with Bob about ( Read more... ) -
Dept. of Life Is Fleeting
Cats Go to HeavenOne of the three little kittens born over the weekend at Tiny Kittens in Langley, B.C., died this afternoon of complications caused by a congenital heart defect. Tesla was her name, and no one had thought she had a problem. It was her sister, Allie, who everyone worried about. As everyone on the Tiny Kittens Youtube Channel chat ( Read more... ) -
Dept. of This World Is Too Much With Me
Enemies of the American People, That's Us
Yesterday sucked hard enough to make getting to sleep difficult; the Janus decision on the part of the no-longer-afraid-to-show-their-conservative-animus SCOTUS, their upholding of the Muslim ban; the announced retirement of Justice Kennedy, which puts other civil rights, like Roe V Wade, in direct peril ( Read more... ) -
Dept. of Goodbye
Jerry Minkkinen
One of my oldest and dearest union colleagues, Jerry Minkkinen, died Friday. I am still trying to come to grips with the news.
He was the first Newspaper Guild official I met when I was hired by Pioneer Press in 1983. He didn't introduce me to unionism; I'd been a union officer at my previous newspaper job, and I already believed in ( Read more... ) -
Dept. of Passages
One More Gone
I grew up with the Allman Brothers Band. I didn't know dick about rock and roll until I was a young adult, but I loved the sound of Duane Allman and Dickey Betts urging each other on on their guitars; I loved the non-stop double set of drummers; I loved Gregg Allman's raw-throated vocals. I didn't know their names at the time I fell in ( Read more... )