Sunday
Scotland, photo by Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian:
Alexander Frater was born on what is now Vanuatu in the South Pacific. His grandfather and father were Scottish Presbyterian missionaries. He attended three colleges without graduating. Based in London, he wrote for magazines, including The New Yorker. He wrote six works of non-fiction, including Chasing the Monsoon: a Modern Pilgrimage Through India, a copy of which recently came my way. It follows the author’s 1987 journey through the rain. I’d always thought a monsoon was a negative experience on a par with a hurricane. Although they do cause many deaths and damage, they are vital to the area, which would otherwise become a wasteland. I suffered through the technical aspects of the book but enjoyed the accounts of the people the author encountered. He describes the locals and government with dry humor. From what I’ve read, India has been modernizing since it adopted free enterprise, so the conditions in the narrative may no longer apply, at least not on a wide scale. The author’s trek isn’t something I would want to experience myself, but it was fun reading about it. I learned one other thing. During WWII many Pacific islanders perished because of the diseases soldiers brought to them. I am always fascinated that there are still things to learn about the conflict. 233 users at Amazon have rated Chasing…, forging to a consensus of 4.2 on a scale of five. I’ll go with 3.25. Frater was the British Press Award Travel Writer of the Year three times and received several other honors. He passed away at 82 in 2020. Facts from Wiki, photo from Google Images:
Not Florida or Texas. According to an article by Daniella Genovese at foxbusiness.com: “…more people moved into the Green Mountain State (Vermont) than any other state in the country for the third year in a row…”
Ya know? Annoying headline from nypost.com: “Labor pains: Initial US employment reports overstated by 439,000 jobs in 2023.” Are the recent positive figures also inaccurate? WTF? How does anyone have any confidence in government?
More WTF? Headline from foxnews.com: “Pennsylvania man pays ransom to reclaim house from squatters: ‘The city is rewarding criminals’.” $1200.
RIP Super Bowl champion Jack Squirek, 64, cause of death not revealed. Born in Cleveland, he played collegiately at Illinois. He was drafted by the Raiders in the second round, the 35th pick overall, of the 1982 NFL draft. His career lasted only five years, his last season with the Dolphins, but it included a play football fans fantasize about. With twelve seconds left in the first half of Super Bowl XVIII, Squirek intercepted a Joe Theismann screen pass and returned it five yards for a TD. With the extra point, the score was 21–3. The final was 38–9. Squirek returned to Cleveland post football career and ran a cleaning and janitorial service. He was a father of two. What a moment in the sun! Facts from Wiki, photo from GI:
RIP actress/DJ Cindy Morgan (Cichorski), 69, death listed as natural causes. She was born in the vicinity of Wrigley Field and was the first in her family to earn a degree, majoring in Communications and English at Northern Illinois University, where she was a DJ. After graduation she worked as a TV weather girl, did the graveyard shift at a rock station in Rockford, then worked at a Windy City station. She moved to L.A. in ’78 and did commercials for Fiat, Irish Spring and other products while studying acting. Her second role was in the beloved comedy Caddyshack (1980). There are 37 titles under her name at IMDb, most in TV. She did 13 eisodes of Bring ’Em Back Alive, 16 of Falcon Crest, and many guest shots in prime time. She was also adept at voice-overs and has three credits as a producer. She accomplished all that while being legally blind. She had children but kept her family matters private. Awesome, Madam. Photo from GI:
The floating book shop was rained out. Since it wasn’t snow, there’s nothing to complain about. I filled time by working on a short story that’s been floating around my mind for a week or so. The theme is memory. Tentative tile: Mike and Marti. I’m trying to leave out thoughts on aging I’ve used in other works.
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