WASHINGTON, D.C.–There was probably a time when the lines that formed outside Ford’s Theater were filled with eager show-goers waiting to catch the latest stage fashions. The line that we stood in just before 10 am on Sunday morning was filled with eager tourists, looking to sample one of the cities more infamous attractions. It…

FALLS CHRUCH–We have a centralized family calendar (via iCloud) in which we keep all of the events we have to know about. In addition to the things we add ourselves, we have links to the kids’ school calendar feed, the Little Man’s baseball calendar feed, and the Cub Scout troop calendar feed. It makes for…

[W]e named our youngest daughter Elizabeth. She will turn 9 months old later this month. She is absolutely adorable, and I say that with complete objectivity. Also, she makes me feel younger than I am. One of the reasons I like the name Elizabeth is because it has so many options: Liz, Lizzy, and Beth…

[M]y dad sent along a link to an article on the letter that New England Patriot’s quarterback Jacoby Brissett sent to President Barack Obama. In the letter, Brissett writes, “Honestly, I don’t know enough about politics to judge what was good or bad…” Breaking my own rule, I skimmed the comments on the article, and…

[R]ecently, Kelly observed that come April, I burn hot for baseball. As the spring wanes and summer begins, I cool, and stay cool through the summer. Then, as fall begins, the fire returns and I burn hot again. I suspect she is onto something. I’ve written four or fives posts on baseball since the season…

[L]ong before there were bloggers, there were columnists and essayists. Four of these writers had a particular influence on me and my writing: Isaac Asimov, Al Martinez, Andy Rooney, and Stephen Jay Gould. As a youngster learning composition in school, the essay never much stirred me. It was taught rigidly, as if the rules of…

[I]’m tired of social media. Nine years of it have taken a toll. I joined Facebook and Twitter in 2008, and for a long time, social media was a big part of my day. It was new, I could stay connected with friends and family. That was great. Over the years, however, social media became…

[E]very now and then, when I feel particularly out-of-shape, I try to remind myself of all of the baseball players who played into their mid-40s. Nolan Ryan did it. Frank Thomas, Jamie Moyers. It’s still possible, I tell myself, to play in the majors, but the clock is definitely ticking. I felt particularly out-of-shape when…

“God, I love baseball” –Roy Hobbs [I]t is spring, and spring means baseball! I watched the first Yankees/Red Sox matchup of the season, and it was wonderful to watch. It helped that the Yankees won the game. While in Florida a few weeks back, I read Tom Verducci’s new book, The Cubs Way: The Zen…

[W]hen I take a look around the house, I am amazed by all of the things we have designed to make our lives easier: Remote controls to turn on the television. Machines to wash and dry our clothes. Voice-activated bots that will play music or adjust the room temperature. Good plumbing. Machines to wash the…

[I] read recently that Derek Jeter is part of a group that might purchase the Miami Marlins. It is hard to imagine Jeter involved with a team that is not the New York Yankees, but if the report is true, then I wish him the best. But when he goes to watch a Marlins game,…

Down where the trade winds play, Down where you lose the day… [S]itting poolside one evening while in Florida last week, a breeze blew through the trees that reminded me of the trade winds. Never have I experienced a breeze as wonderful as the trade winds. My first encounter with these glorious winds came in…