Convergence

This is a sample of columnular basalt in the Field Museum in Chicago: The famous place I’ve heard of this formation is the Giant’s Causeway, a cliff on the northern coast of Ireland. There’s a geological explanation and a legendary one, a tale I enjoy because the hero actually dodges the issue and defeats the

Small Town Views

I made a comment a while back that it turns out I need to clarify. I said that when I went off to college in the Big City, I didn’t know how to use an elevator, and apparently created a vision of a youth spent among cargo cults or the Amish. “We went into a

Turning Japan into Ireland: Life and Writing

Before reading Rain Fall, what my year in Japan reminded me of most was a year my family spent in England. Instead of an eighth-grade teacher, I was the student. Superficial things: the food is different, the language is different, the kids wear school uniforms. Deeper attitude things: both are island nations with a sense

My Ideal Office

Lately this is the kind of space that appeals to me. Fresh air, breezes, the twittering of birds . . . I think I could get a lot of thinking done in that hammock. It turns out that these aren’t just fantasy movie sets.