I keep thinking about my breathing — “you can’t breathe a past breath or a future breath, you can only breathe a current breath.” That’s relevant because my train is at least 90 minutes late getting to Emeryville tonight. I’m expecting to get to my hotel by 1145 PM — in the morning my train leaves at 825 AM. All I can think about is how I won’t sleep well tonight, and I will be tired all day tomorrow. That’s called catastrophizing. I have a knack for that sometimes. I gue

February 26, 2026 2PM (about 90 minutes behind schedule) Train stop here. Lordy, this city is beautiful. Lots of memories of staying near UCSB and seeing all the surfers in the ocean. I Googled “places like Santa Barbara” and got the following: Places similar to Santa Barbara offer a blend of Mediterranean-style architecture, coastal, and charming downtown areas, primarily along California's Central Coast. Top alternatives include Ventura, Carpinteria, Goleta, and San Luis

California Starlight February 26, 2026 The lead guitarist and singer of this band is Randy Wolf. He was the brother of Ken’s riding instructor, Janet, who I have become friends with riding with Ken. Randy had quite a life. From Wikipedia; Randy Craig Wolfe (February 20, 1951 – January 2, 1997), known as Randy California, was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, and one of the original members of the rock group Spirit, formed in 1967. Life and career California was

An unscheduled stop as a train in front of us hit a semi truck at a crossing ahead of us. Our conductor told us to expect a delay of at least an hour. Which means I get less sleep tonight! My schedule arrival time in Emeryville was 930 PM and my train in the morning is at 8 AM. At least we are at a train stop was we are allowed to get out and walk around.

On US 101 to the LA Amtrak Station February 26, 2026 Beginning my return trip to Charlottesville. Today I take Amtrak’s Coast Starlight from LA to Emeryville (San Francisco) where I catch the California Zephyr tomorrow morning. I leave LA at 951 am this morning ; scheduled arrival in Richmond is around 4 pm on Monday. So while not quite six days, I bet by the time I arrive in Richmond it will feel like six days! As a side note to this song, Ken drove Cindy and me through To

Hidden Hills February 24, 2026 Having a great time visiting my sister and brother-in-law. Lots of activity between horse riding, Lovi's, walking PD, visiting with nephews and nieces and their families, visiting places, and just hanging out in Paradise. We had a family get together on Saturday and there was so much love and joy -- WOW! Yesterday Ken drove us through the Las Flores and Topanga Canyons -- another WOW in terms of the views. The shots of the valleys and ocean b

Hidden Hills February 22, 2026 The Buc-ee's chain of combined gas stations and convenience stores currently has 50+ locations in Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia, including 36 in Texas. Buc-ee's was founded by Arch "Beaver" Aplin III and his business partner, Don Wasek. Aplin built his first convenience store in 1982 and partnered with Wasek, who had his own store nearby, in 1985. They are equal par

Hidden Hills February 16, 2026 Yesterday I flew to LA from the East Coast. It is a statement of the obvious but flying is stressful these days. From my Uber not showing up to get me to the airport to a tight connection to long walks in airport terminals -- much less the cattle car that is the inside of the planes. During the flight from IAD to LAX, I entertained myself with the interactive map to find the Paris' I visited near to the flight path. I found several -- in Kent

Richmond, Virginia Airport February 15, 2026 So the US EPA under Trump has found in its finite wisdom that greenhouse gases are not a threat to human health. What a crock of poop. The science of what CO2, methane and the other greenhouse gases do in terms of trapping heat in our atmosphere in my educated-mind is indisputable. The argument that we need more CO2 in our atmosphere because plants need CO2 is laughable. Sure they use CO2 but too much CO2 is net net harmful to h

February 5, 2026 Fun to know about this alternate version. Still prefer the rawness of the original — fits the raw (crude) lyrics better.

Charlottesville February 1, 2026 I don’t often think of myself as a leader. I think of leaders as being CEOs and such. But the following essay reminds us that we are all leaders, and because of that we have certain responsibilities. The essay: Whether we’re immersed in warmth and love or burdened by heartache and loss, each day starts the same. With every sunrise, we have a choice. Exactly one month ago, we ushered in a New Year with anticipation for what the next twelve mo

Charlottesville January 30, 2026 Well, this news is disappointing. I look forward to David Brooks’ insights each week in the NYT. His opinion pieces inspire me and make me think. They’ve made me better person. Granted, I do find that I often agree with his perspectives on issues. But it’s much more than that. It’s his humanity, his encouragement that we can do better, and his inspirational insights into these chaotic and often disappointing times. Time to Say Goodbye Ja

OPINION THE EDITORIAL BOARD Trump Is the Jan. 6 President By The Editorial Board The editorial board is a group of opinion journalists whose views are informed by expertise, research, debate and certain longstanding values. It is separate from the newsroom. Dec. 31, 2025 It was a day that should live in infamy. Instead, it was the day President Trump’s second term began to take shape. Five years ago, on Jan. 6, 2021, a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol, hoping to overturn the

Greenville, South Carolina December 20, 2025 It’s 8 AM. I am sitting in the waiting area of a Goodyear repair shop. I was going to call it a lounge, but that would be an overstatement. Yesterday I was driving from Charlottesville to Atlanta. I noticed a “whirling” sound coming from the front of the Sequoia early in the drive but it would last a few seconds and then stop for upward of two hours. However, when I got to Greenville, South Carolina the noise grew louder and mo

OPINION BRET STEPHENS Our Petty, Hollow, Squalid Ogre in Chief Dec. 16, 2025 Bret Stephens By Bret Stephens Opinion Columnist Though I tend to think it’s usually a waste of space to devote a column to President Trump’s personality — what more is there to say about the character of this petty, hollow, squalid, overstuffed man? — sometimes the point bears stressing: We are led by the most loathsome human being ever to occupy the White House. Markets will not be moved, or brigad

Charlottesville December 15, 2025 I recently came across the following analysis of “It’s A Wonderful Life.” It confounded me a bit as it challenged my perspectives on George Bailey — and criticized him for his niceness, his passivity, his sacrifices and his non-confronting others. Aren’t those the characteristics of George that make him such a relatable character? Aren’t those also some of the descriptions I have of myself? One reaction I have is that it wouldn’t have been

I85 Rest Stop Granville County, North Carolina November 23, 2025 From Gary Burnison: Regret and gratitude are two sides of the same coin. On one side are all the words left unspoken. On the other are all the opportunities to say what needs to be said. In every moment we have a choice. The colleague who feels isolated and unrecognized … If only we knew. The co-worker who is burdened by a loss, a diagnosis, a life-changing event … If only we knew. That someone who hides sufferi