Around four o’clock yesterday afternoon, Gretchen told me she had a totally distraught, sobbing man on Line Two. When I answered, it turned out to be Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley. Daley: Hello, is this Tom Collins? Tom: Yes, Your Honor, it is I. Daley: Have you… heard what’s just happened? Tom: To tell the… Continue reading What Do They Do On a Rainy Night in Rio?
Category: Science and Technology
Walt Whitman Rises From Dead, Tells Press “No Relation!”
My eight o’clock telephone consultation today was a scheduled appointment, and I must say the hour certainly impressed me. That’s because my interlocutor, Meg Whitman, was calling from California, where it was only 5:00 a.m., and from the sound of her voice, she had obviously been up a while, too. Speaking with her, I had… Continue reading Walt Whitman Rises From Dead, Tells Press “No Relation!”
Tree of Liberty Contracts a Nasty Case of Astroturf Blight
I was enjoying a leisurely and authentic gourmet Italian lunch at Tosca on F Street when my Blackberry started vibrating. I hesitated before answering it, but then figured what the hell, my sister-in-law Katje has never, ever called me for a frivolous reason. My gut instinct was she needed my help with her husband, my… Continue reading Tree of Liberty Contracts a Nasty Case of Astroturf Blight
Denial Ain’t Just a River in Egypt
Thursday, as everyone on the planet (everyone, that is, who isn’t living off the grid in a yurt, cave, grass shack, mud hut or hand-built log cabin without their own source of electricity, a satellite dish or telephone line and/or just running around buck naked in a rain forest with a bone through their nose,… Continue reading Denial Ain’t Just a River in Egypt
O Ushalin Zhala Sar o Kam Mangela
“The shadow moves as the sun commands.” It’s a figure of speech in the Romany language, one I learned last week. That’s right, I was kidnapped by Gypsies, and that’s where I’ve been since two days after my last post. Now, Gypsies have been kidnapping people for centuries, and it could happen to anybody. Well,… Continue reading O Ushalin Zhala Sar o Kam Mangela