By Mark | January 2, 2019
I’m not a big fan of New Year’s resolutions. I like the idea of being reflective, and giving serious thought as to how one might be able to do better in the year ahead, but, as a rule, I think they’re counterproductive, as they’re rarely kept, and just leave people feeling like shit. Perhaps more […]
Posted in Food, Health, Mark's Life | Also tagged aging, alcohol, anxiety, beer, beets, BMI, calories, cancer, cold turkey, colonoscopy, dietary reset, diets, elimination diet, fat, fat shaming, flour, GERD, gluten, Health, kale, losing weight, New Year's resolution, OCD, processed foods, smoothies, sugar, sweets, vegan, weight issues, wheat, Whole 30, wine |
By Mark | December 20, 2013
I’ve got another entry for our ever-growing Pencil Paparazzi file. This one comes from a young man in Ann Arbor by the name of Bryant. Accompanying his drawing of former Little House on the Prairie star Melissa Gilbert, was the following note: “Melissa Gilbert winked at me at the Gandy Dancer. Or maybe she was […]
Posted in Special Projects, Uncategorized | Also tagged alcoholism, Billy Idol, celebrity, celebrity sighting, Gandy Dancer, John Cusack, Little House on the Prairie, pencil paparazzi, Rob Lowe, scandal, Scott Baio, Timothy Busfield, Tom Cruise |
By Mark | February 27, 2012
My friend Pete and I eat lunch together a few times a month. Pete, who’s an academic, tells me of his travels to fascinating places like Malawi and Sweden, where he’s either conducting field research on the spread of parasitic diseases, or sharing his findings with leaders in the field of world health, and I […]
Posted in Mark's Life, Observations, Uncategorized | Also tagged American flag lapel pins, best places to live, Canada, Department of Education, education reform, environmental protection, Gini coefficient, growth, immigration, income inequality, infant mortality, investing in the future, life expectancy, Malawi, Mitt Romney, neo-feudalism, no child left behind, optimism, parasites, Pete Larson, Presidential politics, public education, republican primary, RIck Santorum, Stockholm, Sweden, tax the rich, teaching for the test, the future of American cities, The Greatest Canadian, the state of the world, Tim Hortons, Tommy Douglas, Toronto, urban development, Vancouver, wind power, windmills |
By Mark | August 18, 2011
This was said by Clementine shortly after I held her for this photo, which was taken outside Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry in Orlando, Florida. I think I must have shrieked in pain when leaning over to put her down. (Apparently roller coasters aren’t the best things for people who have sheets of peanut […]
Posted in Mark's Life | Also tagged aging, big news, Clementine, Harry Potter, Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, Linette, Mark's mating habits, news, Orlando, pregnancy, public service announcement, Rebeccah, the second kid, totally quotable Clementine, Universal Studios |
By Mark | September 3, 2009
Clementine said this to me as we were walking into a barbecue place tonight for dinner. I was imagining a big plate of ribs, and she just kind of blurted it out as I reached for the doorknob. Earlier, I’d been telling her how, because of my bad back, I had to exercise more and […]