"The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter." —Mark Twain
You really never leave
Air-minded. Wow. There’s a phrase I haven’t heard since I was an air-minded kid. I ran into it again this morning in an online article at The Awl. “Are You Airminded?” The Slang Of War “Airmindedness” is a term that used to be everywhere and now it’s nowhere. The word, as defined by the OED, […]
Heading out to the air museum in an hour or so. I’m scheduled to lead two tours this morning, finishing up around lunch time. Most of yesterday was spent boning up on the history of the aircraft I’ll be talking about today, adding a few tidbits to my mental script … should I remember to […]
Well, that’s done. Your humble correspondent is the newest certified walking tour docent at the Pima Air & Space Museum. My certification tour yesterday went pretty well, except for the part where I blanked on who won the toss for first flight, Orville or Wilbur, but I finessed it by simply saying “they took turns” […]
Tomorrow morning I’ll guide another walking tour group through the Pima Air & Space Museum. It’ll be a red-letter day: the docent team leader and volunteer supervisor will evaluate my skills; if I do well I’ll become the museum’s newest certified walking tour docent. As you might imagine, boning up is the order of the […]
This is awkward. My daughter and I are Facebook friends. I have learned to read her Facebook updates the same way educated North Koreans have learned to read the propaganda articles in Rodong Sinmun, as an indication of where the Kim regime’s collective head is at. When my daughter starts posting intense rants, I know […]
Sunday morning I rode my motorcycle down to the corner cafe for breakfast, then took the twisties to the top of Mount Lemon, pretty much the only motorcycle destination in Tucson during the hot summer months. I arrived at my favorite mountaintop coffee shop at 9:30 AM only to find it still closed, but the […]
Guess I haven’t been paying attention. I thought the issue of unwanted religious proselytizing at the US Air Force Academy came up, and had been dealt with, during the first George W. Bush administration. But a friend sent me a link to a military-issues blog post that says it’s still going on and is as […]
So there’s a new book out: Area 51: an Uncensored History of America’s Top Secret Military Base, by Annie Jacobsen. On Tuesday, May 17, Annie discussed her book with Jon Stewart on The Daily Show. Naturally, I watched. You can watch too, if you wish: Most of what Annie had to say about Area 51 […]