Monthly Archives: March 2013

Gun Control on Easter

Posted on March 31, 2013 by Kathy

Nothing says “holiday” like a family discussion about gun control. After the dishes were cleared  and relatives had made their cases, I came home to the Cleveland Plain Dealer and a sobering op-ed by Leonard Pitts, Jr. Pitts writes that … Continue reading →

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Bliss

Posted on March 30, 2013 by Kathy

Today’s episode of “Radiolab” on National Public Radio, replayed from December of last year, related to happiness and its definition. The show explored the idea of bliss, including a fascinating story about a man named Bliss. Here’s the show, well worth listening to. While I … Continue reading →

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Ann Patchett’s “Run”

Posted on March 25, 2013 by Kathy

Novelist Ann Patchett was here in Cleveland last week. She’s a polished, funny speaker, and the crowd loved her. I got to ask her a question about her novel Run and decided to rerun my review of that book from … Continue reading →

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The Kindness of Strangers

Posted on March 24, 2013 by Kathy

I just returned from a quick visit to Boston and New York City–not a vacation or a whirlwind shopping trip, but an effort to keep my daughter company as she underwent fairly serious surgery. I rarely travel on my own. … Continue reading →

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Eclectically Bleak

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Kathy

I own a tee shirt which proclaims, “I survived Satantango.” Given to me by a sympathetic friend, it refers to a seven-hour, black-and-white film by Hungarian director Bela Tarr. Its tone is called “miserablist.” Yes, not only seven hours, but seven … Continue reading →

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Good Movies Galore

Posted on March 12, 2013 by Kathy

I have fond memories of Jean de Florette and its sequel, Manon of the Spring,which came out in 1986. The brilliant Yves Montand and Daniel Auteuil conspire against a thin, handsome (even with a hunchback!) Gerard Depardieu and, playing his daughter, the spectacularly beautiful … Continue reading →

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What We Talk about When We Talk about Education

Posted on March 11, 2013 by Kathy

  For about seven years, I have taught a seminar at Case Western Reserve on progressive education and school reform. (Its formal title, believe it or not, is “Schoolhouse Rocked.”) At the beginning, I hoped to introduce my students to … Continue reading →

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C’Est Finis

Posted on March 1, 2013 by Kathy

A period of my life has ended. At the beginning of Christmas break, around the second week of December, I began reading Les Miserables (1862), preparing to see the film (based on the musical, based on the book) over the … Continue reading →

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