Ever since I was a teenager and had started to appreciate coffee, the highlight of a hot summer day in Germany came in the shape of a slim glass filled with ice coffee. We call it Eiskaffee (pronounce: ‘ice-kuh-fay) and you can order it at any Café, not just at an Eiscafé (pronounce: ‘ice-kuh-fay). At […]
To Ponder
Top Pot Doughnuts Restaurant Review
I had never heard of Top Pot Hand-Forged Doughnuts, but I attended a meeting there. Things are changing so fast in the Proctor District of Tacoma’s North end. Condos keep going up and new shops are coming in. Top Pot is located on the corner just across from Mason Middle School at 2724 North Proctor. […]
Westside Story – Mapping A Trip
An article, written by Ms. Susanne Bacon, titled Across the Fence: Planning a Trip, was published in The Suburban Times on July 5, 2019. Susanne’s article had a powerful influence on my thinker, ultimately inspiring me to write the travel column you see before you today. I began my travels at age 21 when I […]
Tears and Laughter Are Not that Far Apart – Historial Roasts
I love this albumen portrait of Abraham Lincoln, taken in Washington at Alexander Gardner’s studio on 9 August 1863. Although before his election as president he had a collection of quips and humorous stories that he would embroider or simplify depending upon his audience, once our nation was torn in two, Lincoln suffered personal tragedy […]
Letter: When the treasure finds you
If what you are after is in fact sought after as you would seek hidden treasure, then you’ll find it, loosely translates an ancient proverb. But what if the treasure finds you? On their special day, July 7, a tribute to our son, his wonderful family, his dear sweet wife who found him twelve years […]
Plant Trees and Stop Climate Change in Lakewood, Tacoma, Seattle, and the Rest of the World
Stan Eastberg was president of the Rotary Club of Tacoma #8 in 1992/93. To each new member in our Rotary club he presented a young fir tree for them to plant. When I was president in 1996/97 I gave each new member a hug. If Stan and I had combined our efforts all future Rotary […]
Letter: Stay off the tracks
Standing at the site of the macabre scene where once speeding Amtrak passenger cars tilted at contorted angles, the now oversized caskets dangling precariously from the bridge above to Interstate 5 below, Richard Anderson took out his cell phone and texted Ken Hylander with a simple message: ‘We need you.’ Hylander had developed the safety […]
No Longer a MAD, MAD, MAD World
In 1957 I would stop by the drug store on Gravelly Lake Drive (now closed, near the Original House of Donuts) on my way home from Park Lodge Elementary. I would look at the issues in the magazine rack and if I had enough money I would buy the latest copy of MAD Magazine. The […]
Letter: Glut and greed – Marijuana goes to seed
We told you so. Legalization has led to proliferation which is leading to liberalization. Imagine that. Connect the pot dots. Fourteen months ago, John Arbeeny, former deputy mayor of the City of Lakewood, WA, predicted what was then already happening but a portend of things to come: “a glut of pot in the market from […]