The Coronavirus Crisis Continues and Intensifies
The Coronavirus Crisis Continues and Intensifies
By: claycormany in Life in General
During the Vietnam War, Walter Cronkite and other anchormen* for the major networks would make weekly reports on the number of Americans killed in that tragic conflict. A similar ritual has unfolded in connection with the ongoing — and intensifying — crisis with the coronavirus. Now Nora O’Donnell and Lester Holt give us daily updates […]
Coronavirus Crisis Turns the World Upside Down
By: claycormany in Life in General
The message from my son had an undertone of alarm: Are you staying away from large crowds? This corona virus is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced in my life. Nationwide is asking us to work from home for the time being. I assured him his stepmother and I were taking all sensible precautions to avoid […]
Christmas 2019 Reflections
By: claycormany in Life in General
Christmas 2019 is almost here, prompting me to consider how this edition of “the most-wonderful time of the year” compares to previous ones. This Christmas season featured many of the same attractions and treats that have made previous ones special: The Bricker holiday party for children, the Huntington Holiday Train set-up at the Columbus Public […]
2019 “Cookiethon” Yields Delicious Results
By: claycormany in Life in General
Cookies have always been one of my guilty pleasures. As a kid, I was often caught both literally and figuratively with my “hand in the cookie jar.” Cookies of any type — Fig Newton, Oreo, brownie, macaroon, oatmeal, toll-house, vanilla wafer — were always welcome as a dessert or an after-school snack. Ginger snaps, however, […]
Return to Maple Grove
By: claycormany in Life in General
Several days ago, a friend I’ve known since high school invited me to attend a special service at Maple Grove Methodist Church in Clintonville (north Columbus). The service was “special” because of the recognition given to veterans who were in attendance. For me, the service was special in another way because Maple Grove was where […]
The Democratic Debate at Otterbein: Thoughts from a Public Speaking Instructor
By: claycormany in Life in General
There are many people inside and outside of Washington who will be analyzing the political outcomes of the recent Democratic debate at Otterbein University. As a contrast, I offer my view of each candidate’s performance as a public speaker, drawing on my 30+ years as a communication instructor and tutor. The comments below are based […]
Make Way for the Snowblower
By: claycormany in Life in General
I once vowed (to no one in particular) that I would never buy a snowblower. For one thing, all the models I’ve seen are awfully expensive. For another, given Ohio’s trend toward warmer winters, it wouldn’t be used often enough to justify its cost. And finally, I didn’t want to admit I might someday be […]
Is It Okay to Hide from the News?
By: claycormany in Life in General
Shortly after the 2016 Presidential Election, Erik Hagerman decided he’d had enough. The former Nike executive was so dismayed and disgusted by Donald Trump’s election that he moved to a remote pig farm near Glouster, Ohio and cut himself off from nearly every source of information about the world. He stayed away from radio, newspapers, […]
The Republic of Gilead: Could It Happen Here?
By: claycormany in Life in General
Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale paints a grim picture of a country under the iron fist of a theocratic dictatorship, which rigidly controls the lives of women and tolerates dissent from no one of either gender. The Republic of Gilead occupies New England and parts of New York, and may be trying to expand its […]
Return to Chautauqua
By: claycormany in Life in General
Where can you attend evening concerts, listen to stimulating lectures, go on nature walks, and participate in classes on yoga, creative writing, film, graphic arts, American history and myriad other subjects? Answer: Chautauqua, NY. Yesterday, my wife and I returned from a week-long visit there. It was our third trip to this centerpiece of cultural […]
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