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Goldberg Variations
It was in one of William F. Buckley’s sailing books, I think, that I was first tantalized by his description (really, his praise) for Johann Sebastian Bach’s Goldberg Variations: The Goldberg Variations, BWV 988, is a work for harpsichord by Johann Sebastian Bach, consisting of an aria and a set of 30 variations. First published in […]
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Philadelphia Catholic philanthropy
It’s Giving Tuesday, the newish annual day of giving to your favorite charities. I’m sharing my perspective on one of Philadelphia’s newest and most interesting charities. Catholic Foundation of Greater Philadelphia made its debut in 2013 as a new, independent charitable vehicle for Catholics looking to sustain long-term charitable endeavors and support their communities. This is a great…
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Bronx, 1885
I came across this photo uploaded to Flickr by Doc Searls. His caption: 742 E. 142nd Street, Bronx New York. The Englert Family moved here when it was brand new. Florence Englert was born and lived here for 13 years. The whole block is now a parking lot next to the Bruckner Expressway. Nothing in this picture remains. So…
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Fidel Castro
Fidel Castro died on Friday at 90. When I heard the news, I prayed for him. We all need prayers; Fidel Castro needs them more than most. There’s a tendency when someone dies to get sentimental, especially when it comes after a full life. But Fidel’s full life came at the cost of how many…
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Discretion in little places
A thing I wrote in May 2013 while having a beer: I’m sitting here in The Queen Mary Pub in a small town deep in South Florida, on the fringes of the Everglades. It’s nearly midnight and I find myself alone at the bar reading C.S. Lewis’s “Perelandra.” A few inches away, my glass of London Pride finds…