One year ago today I visited the Planetarium at the invitation of my grandson with his sixth-grade advanced math class. What an awesome spectacle, an incredible adventure, to lean back, gaze at the curved ceiling and be transported to the very edge of the universe. Thanks to the astronomical – literally – capabilities of the […]
Lakewood
Across the Fence: Layer by Layer
Now that the weather is more and more iffy again, we tend to dress ourselves in layers. How convenient to discard one or to don another layer just at a second’s whim. In my mother country it has even received a specific name: Zwiebel-Look (pronounce ‘tsvee-bul-look). Meaning onion look. And indeed, the onion, though so […]
Westside Story – 3 Note Charlie
Are you familiar with pianist Charlie Albright? Charlie, who grew up in Centralia, Washington, started playing the piano at age 3 1/2 and quickly became known as a child prodigy. Please allow me to do you a huge favor by providing two links to Charlie playing some fantastic piano. The first video is when Charlie, […]
Letter: Impervious
Unaffected by outside influence; unmoved by popular opinion, argument or suggestion; “standing sentinel” over the fray of insults hurled; secure despite accusations tossed and those with violence and vehemence. On a rock he stands, majestic, unperturbed as the chill winds assail the seas and torment into a wild frenzy the crashing and thundering waves below. […]
Across the Fence: Alhambra on the Neckar
Remember that I still owe you an article about the Zoological and Botanical Gardens in my German hometown of Stuttgart? Because I had been raving about the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle a while ago, which reminded me of this marvelous institution that was such a great destination during my childhood and teenage years. It […]
Westside Story – The Inventor – Part II
If you missed my previous column titled, Westside Story – The Inventor – Part I, click the link to be taken back in time. In 1967 I purchased a Charmglow natural gas grill which I have owned for over 50 years. I recently concluded allowing my son-in-law to grill with a BBQ that is older […]
Letter: Odds and ends
On my office desk at work there’s a tiny wooden box, open at the top, containing 13 “Forever” postage stamps, three safety pins, a ring I found, a single spacer for laying tile, a dime and a penny. There’s also a spare clicker – a duplicate of the one mounted in my truck – that […]
Westside Story – The Inventor – Part I
Have you ever asked yourself why Ben Sclair does not publish Westside Story articles more frequently? Let me try to explain the cause of the inordinate lulls between Westside Story columns. It is not Ben’s fault. A rock-solid reason that sounds fairly impressive is that I have engulfed myself in a whirlwind cycle of high […]
Across the Fence: A Time to Write
Have you made your annual Christmas card list already? Don’t think it’s too early for that; because if you are crafting yours and if some of them go overseas, you want to be ahead of the postal cut-off date. But I’m also talking of a different kind writing. Another long winter season lies ahead in […]