Monthly Archives: January 2019

Tuesdays With Morrie (And Everyday With My Wife)

Posted on January 30, 2019 by Roger Walck

Tuesdays With Morrie was a popular book about 10 years ago and was made into a movie. Mich Albom, the author, tells of seeing his old professor at Brandies, Morrie, on TV, interviewed by Ted Koppel. Morrie is dying of … Continue reading →

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Reading Or Listening? (Podcasts)

Posted on January 27, 2019 by Roger Walck

“Binge Listening,” by Rebecca Mead. The New Yorker, 11/19/2018. Okay, so I write this blog, but that just shows how far behind the times I am. If I was more up-to-date, I would record and post a podcast that everyone … Continue reading →

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Continuing Phone Scams

Posted on January 25, 2019 by Roger Walck

Most of the phone calls I get now are scams of varying degree, yet the calls could be important, so I still answer them. Besides, hanging up on a scam takes little time, and they are easy to recognize. Lately, … Continue reading →

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Tadaima!

Posted on January 23, 2019 by Roger Walck

The Japanese language has several words and phrases that would be useful in any language. One of them is Tadaima, said as you return to your home. Literally, it means, “just now,” but it has become the general announcement of … Continue reading →

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Signaling Power

Posted on January 20, 2019 by Roger Walck

“Doesn’t Add Up,” by John Lanchester. The New Yorker, 7/23/2018. (Book review of “The Elephant In the Brain” by Hanson and Simler.) Several years ago, I was discussing with a friend, a retired psychology professor, the recently discovered peccadilloes of … Continue reading →

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Edward Gorey

Posted on January 18, 2019 by Roger Walck

“Funny Peculiar,” by Joan Acocella. The New Yorker, 12/10/2018. This is about the cartoonist, Edward “Ted” Gorey. You will probably recognize his unique and spooky style from his illustrations introducing PBS’s Masterpiece Mystery. Gorey died in 2000 at age 75. … Continue reading →

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A Jimmy Durante Song

Posted on January 16, 2019 by Roger Walck

“Around the Bend In Eighty Days,” by S. J. Perelman. The New Yorker, 1/8/1972. Perelman claims Jimmy Durante was singing this in the old Parody Club in 1928 (Durante started out as a ragtime pianist and added funny comments to … Continue reading →

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Rinso

Posted on January 13, 2019 by Roger Walck

New Yorker cartoon, 12/30/1972: Two housewives are talking over a breakfast table. One says to the other, “And didn’t you love Rinso White, Rinso Bright, Happy Little Washday Song? They don’t write them like that anymore.” (This was in 1972.) … Continue reading →

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The Grandparent Scam

Posted on January 11, 2019 by Roger Walck

I find this scam so obvious, so well-known, I wouldn’t even write about it, but my kind-hearted wife was ready to fall for it, so I thought there are still some who need to be warned. Just Google “grandparent scam” … Continue reading →

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Getting Through Winter

Posted on January 9, 2019 by Roger Walck

For about 30 years, I walked to work everyday in all conditions, so the weather was important to me. I coped with winter by setting milestones. (I hated an early snowfall. It thawed and refroze on the streets in slippery, … Continue reading →

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