New View Askew

. . . You've Got to Have Friends You had to be careful not to get your necktie stuck in the ball return   Ah, the Dog Days of summer. These hot (smoke-filled) days are a great time to ponder the mysteries of life. For instance,  “How come my spouse (and let’s face it, usually the wife) cranks up the thermostat to 76 on cold winter days but complains that’s too warm on hot summer days?” or  “Why is it that the more golf I play the worse I get?”    Never mind, those are imponderable. Easier perhaps, we could also ponder this: What in the wide world of sports has happened to us. What? Oh no, I don’t mean That, not the present sad state of affairs with our government. No, l et’s ponder this instead (sorry, more statistics): a 2024 survey found that only 27% of American men reported having six or more close friends, compared to 55% in 1990. Women, especially younger women, also have fewer close friends - although more than men. Experts call it the “friendship recessi...

  . . . or Not Bluto - "7 Years of college down the drain - might as well have joined the Peace Corps!" I am working very hard at writing about things that have nothing to do with our current gloomy civic life but as John Lennon sang, “. . . you know it ain’t easy.” And it ain’t! Anyway, thanks to a couple articles in the Strib I have managed once again to avoid the slippery slope to despondency (mostly) with what is hopefully a vaguely interesting post about education in America. Actually, higher education.  (And yes, MDL made me promise not to look up stupid words for simple things - Bor-ing!) In the movie “The Graduate” there is a scene at Benjamin Braddock’s (Dustin Hoffman) college graduation party where one of the guests offers Ben career advice with one word – “plastics.” In the movie this scene has a lot of different meanings besides career, one of which was a metaphorical description of modern (60’s) American life. You know, cheap, ticky tacky, consumer-driven. (Ap...

  Of   Dads ... and  Brief Shining Moments        Like Brigadoon*, this is our magical moment. Unlike that mythological place, however, we don't have to wait a hundred years for it to return, it occurs every year. T hat moment  is  now. This is the peak of summer, those few wonderful days between the (nominally) popular Fathers Day and the 4th of July. This is that point in time here when night is in full retreat, when all of nature's bounty is in bloom and all is right in this northern paradise: Flip flops, tank tops, and sun dresses are di rigueur.  Allow me to share a short, vaguely interesting back story. Everyone that knows me knows that for many years I have had a weird dislike for the summer solstice - and a love of its winter alter ego. So much so that I couldn't enjoy these marvelous days like I should. Somehow gloom rather than joy would start creeping in on little cat's feet just about now. I know, it seems irra...

  W hat M akes  A merica G reat A price for greatness This is a special Memorial Day post dedicated to my oldest brother Gary Marvin who passed away earlier this month. He is the second older brother that we - my sister, baby brother and I - have lost. Like his other three brothers, he too was a retired AF vet. Also, a comedian, a great guy and yes, Gary, you were the best looking Pederson brother. (Thanks for leaving me as the remaining oldest - and best looking - brother. RIP)   As always, Memorial Day is a time for pensive reflection on the sacrifices that a tiny minority of Americans make for everyone else. Their commitment to the country can be summed up by the oath taken by military officers. It's v ery similar to the one our President and other constitutional officers take (but  perhaps  with more conviction by us?)  I, having been appointed a (rank) in the United States Air Force, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and d...