Green Acres
Position: 45°42’18″N 121°30’38″W Oliver Wendell Douglas is a name that will strike merriment in the heart of anyone over the age of 50. As a lawyer Oliver was an unhappy man. As a farmer, he found his true calling and …
Bend, Oregon
Position: 44°03’32.6″N 121°18’54.6″W Compared with the Byzantine Empire, the city of Bend, Oregon, has had a short history. For millennia indigenous peoples lived, gathered and hunted the wide plains and foothills surrounding the “Towarnehiooks” river. They also fought each other …
Transitions
Position: 44°3’31.4″N, 121°18’43.1″W In films, a good transition heralds a change without confusing the audience or disrupting the narrative. Sometimes that’s a simple cut from one speaker to another. Sometimes it is a slow cross-dissolve, where one scene fades in …
Tucumcari
Position: 35°10’51.4″N 103°43’34.5″W America’s answer to Timbuktu is Tucumcari, a small town in eastern New Mexico. Before Route 66 was the main road west to California, Tucumcari had already gained notoriety. Founded as a construction camp for the Rock Island …
Bayesian’s Sunk Costs
Position: 38°05’11.3″N 13°32’23.8″E You may have heard of the Bayesian. She is, or rather was, a superyacht designed by legendary naval architect Ron Holland. Last August she sank in a freak storm off the north coast of Sicily. The storm …
Terms of Endearment
Position: 45°31’07.3″N 122°40’58.4″W Nautical terminology is highly specific. When the captain calls out, “Double the starboard bow line and tie it off on the starboard bow cleat, then release the port breast lines”, there isn’t room for interpretation. It is …
Putting the Fun in Fungi
Position: 46°11’37.5″N 123°58’28.5″W One of Oregon’s autumn fixtures is the annual Portland Book Festival. Hundreds of readers head downtown and take in the perspectives and wisdom of both local and internationally known writers. Staged interviews are congenial and leave plenty …
The Advantages of Being Foreign
Position: DRUG-INDUCED AMBULATORY COMA I have been a foreigner for much of my life. It has its advantages. Let me clarify. By the time my dad landed a decent job with tenure at the University of Chicago, he had dragged …
Schlitt’s Creak
This week we continue our occasional series about famous sea craptains. For our more sensitive readers please note this entry contains salty language, such as that typically employed by sailors – and plumbers… Position: 57°21’00.0″N 1°39’00.0″W April 1945 – off …