Most family lawyers have probably seen the film “War of the Roses” starring Danny DeVito, Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone. This is a story about a romantic encounter, a marriage and a really nasty divorce. Recent real divorces have been similarly messy, even though they’ve not resulted in any deaths. Oh wait. More »

There are lots of reasons for taking vacations: nurturing relationships with loved ones, meeting new people, seeing beautiful and interesting places, experiencing different cultures, rest and relaxation, and even getting re-acquainted with warmth and sun. In the case of my recent vacation, all of these factors came into play. More »

When I first began going to the Wee House late at night to work on the computer, I always carried a light.

It was just something I did, without any real thought or planning. More »

In an unaired segment of Star Trek, there was a scene where Dr. Spock and his mother prepared a special treat passed down from generations to his earth-born mother, Grayson. More »

We live in a culture of explanation.

All the ancient problems are either solved or scorned,

and every obscurity of human life, every fog and every cloud,

is just a research paper away from satisfactory clarification. More »

From my perspective as a family caregiver, a newly published medical journal article reaffirms my decisions about all consultations with medical staff — that when my father, and later my mother, were hospitalized, consultations were to occur in a hallway or in a conference room, not at the bedside. More »

We’ve had beautiful days! In spite of early morning chilly temperatures (at least by provençal standards), the sky is clear and then sun is warm.

I just came back from depositing my recycle materials. I’ve written before about how extensive the recycling is here in France. Recycling is extensive and obligatory, and there is no such thing as door-to-door trash pick up. More »

One of the fun party foods I’ve played with is homemade crackers based on Alton Brown’s Seedy Crisps recipe.  The main thing I did differently than AB was use mustard seeds and granulated garlic in place of the poppy seeds.  Did I mess with it because I thought I knew better?  Nah.  More »

Just over one year into his presidency, Mr. Obama is finding that true leadership requires more than lofty ideals, eloquent words and rigid partisanship. Facing a deficit of political capital that rivals that of our own country, he must now decide to push forward in defiance or to begin the slow and inevitable crawl back from the furthest corners of leftist ideology. More »

Okay, stop reading. I know it’s a strange thing to say before you’ve really started, but humor me. Now look at the person next to you. You may not know this but she–or he–might be a Casual Nonconformist. You might even be one yourself. More »