Traveling with a purpose is the latest buzz-phrase in the travel business, and I always get kind of a kick out of it, because I can’t imagine any other kind of travel. It is a fairly broad category which includes traveling to learn, to provide public service to underprivileged parts… read more >
My library has a really cool feature. If you have read more than one Trail Talk, you may be surprised to learn that I spend very little time at the physical library, my visits being largely limited to dropping off books at the drive-through or a dash inside to pick… read more >
It is embarrassing to open a sentence with, “I was taught”. I like to think of myself as a free-thinker even in my developmental years, but a headline in today’s news triggered the phrase, and I just can’t shake it. With the commemorations last fall of the 100th Anniversary of… read more >
There is a sign on a shelf of my living room library bluntly stating that “Censorship is Obscene”. I’m guessing this may require a bit of explanation. My mother, a pioneer in developing and implementing remedial reading programs, took every book-banning PTA or edict-issuing school board as a personal challenge. … read more >
From all accounts it appears that everybody today has a bucket list, and travel is almost certainly on it. We even tout a few of our adventures as bucket list-worthy, often including states that – sadly – wind up as numbers 48, 49 or 50 of states visited. But the… read more >
Thomas Jefferson famously stated, “I cannot live without books”. In fact, this quote is so well-known that you can find it on tote bags and coffee mugs, and it is the motto of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Association. Unfortunately other lifestyle choices, including a proclivity for fine French wine and… read more >
Do you know what your curiosity quotient is? OK, I don’t either, but the very name intrigued me when I ran across a book with that title and was – well – curious. It seems this all started with author and journalist Thomas L. Friedman, who postulates an entirely unscientific… read more >
We have certainly come a long way from the days when American schools began to introduce media – ever so cautiously – into the curriculum to stimulate interest and enhance the learning experience. As a Boomer, I was constantly subjected to experimental instructional programs sparked by the launch of Sputnik,… read more >
