Most of us have probably had an interesting job or two before we started our professional careers. For me, it was as an actor in an all-African-American theater group. Background: Later this month, my wife, Pat, and I will be traveling to New York City to visit our family and to take in a few plays on Broadway. One of them is a revival of Purlie Victorious, written and performed in the 1960s by Ossie Davis and his wife, Ruby …
Saturday, under the new lights at Michigan Stadium, from the field with my walker, I was thrilled to experience the full Michigan Football extravaganza. First, let me explain about the walker. I recently started using one, and you may be wondering why. The doctors aren’t sure, but they’ve determined that I have a nerve problem in my leg related to a spinal cord injury. When and how I got the injury is a mystery. It could have been at …
SPENCER FINCH’S “TRYING TO REMEMBER THE COLOR OF THE SKY ON THAT SEPTEMBER MORNING.” PHOTO BY JIN S. LEE This piece is comprised of 2,983 individual painted squares. Each represents a victim of the 2001 and 1993 attacks and symbolizes the idea of memory. I will never forget: On the afternoon of 9/11, my wife Pat and I were transfixed on the TV as we desperately tried to get through to our son. Adam was living in New York City …
Biggest Thrill: Katrina and Dan had a new baby, Joni James Pasick, born August 24, 2023. Music Artist Most Listened To: Joni Mitchell, of course. Books I’ve Been Reading: Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy 10/10 The Art Thief by Michael Finkel 6/10 My Search for Warren Harding by Robert Plunket 1/10 Most Enjoyable Day: My afternoon spent at the Motown Museum with my two sons and then dinner at Chartreuse Kitchen & Cocktails in Detroit. Biggest Struggle: Adapting to using a walker is a …
A few weeks ago, I wrote about how my grandfather, Izzie, taught me to love baseball. While the first Izzie and I described was fun and exuberant, there was another side that was not nearly as pleasant. One day Izzie could be delightful, and the next day he could be deeply depressed. His compulsive gambling often came close to destroying our family. Several times as I was growing up in the same house with him, I heard him threaten to …
My family at a Detroit Tigers game As far back as I can remember, I have loved baseball, especially the Detroit Tigers. It was my Grandpa Izzy, who introduced me to baseball and taught me to love it. Growing up, I lived with my parents and grandparents. I still remember Grandpa Izzy listening to every inning of every Tigers game. At first, it was on the tabletop radio, which he had brought home from the pawnshop where he worked. He’d …