CREATIVE HEARING
AN EAR is a terrible thing to waste. In our family, we use the term “creative hearing” to describe our aural misunderstandings. Maybe your family experiences this communicational chaos too. … Continue reading
MINUTES OF KNOWLEDGE
WE’RE USED to sound bites, minutely clear and succinct, satisfying despite their brevity. Curiously, there have also been literary counterparts. And, wouldn’t you know, I have a modest collection of … Continue reading
CARS OF THE RAJ
OVERLOOKING FOR the moment the plight of a lesser populace, being a maharajah must have been grand—especially if one were a car enthusiast. Over the years, I’ve collected lore on … Continue reading
MEIJI-MURA
IT WAS during the Meiji era, 1868-1912, that Japan more than opened to western influence. The country, isolated by choice for the previous 300 years, enthusiastically assimilated western ways in … Continue reading
GIBRALTAR NEWS
GIBRALTAR HAS been in the news of late. And, with no modesty on my part, I admit this has nothing to do with my recent item on Peter Ustinov and … Continue reading
FORD MODEL T LORE
JOHN STEINBECK said it best in his book, Cannery Row. “Someone should write an erudite essay on the moral, physical, and esthetic effect of the Model T Ford on the … Continue reading
FROM POND SCUM TO RICHES
THE IDEA of turning algae, a smart version of pond scum, into automotive fuel is a tantalizing one. In its production of synthetic hydrocarbons, the process can use non-arable land … Continue reading
SAVOIA-MARCHETTI SM.55X
A WINGED armada of 24 Savoia-Marchetti SM.55X flying boats transported Italo Balbo and his 96 colleagues in their mass flight from Orbetello, Italy, to the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair (www.wp.me/p2ETap-1q1). One … Continue reading
ITALO BALBO’S CHICAGO VISIT
IMAGINE THE sight in Chicago at 5:45 p.m., July 15, 1933: To the east over Lake Michigan, an airplane comes into view, then another two droning just aft of its … Continue reading
WEEKENDS IN MONTEREY
AT ONE time or another, the most interesting cars in the world show up on the Monterey Peninsula. Given that the 2013 Monterey Weekend is taking place at the moment … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 