T.V. and movies portray city dwellers as cultured and educated. Articles, like this one in Popular Science, support this stereotype. I’m guessing their authors live in large metropolitan areas, biasing their opinions. Just a hunch. I recently visited my daughter in Philadelphia and put this theory to the test. I saw some odd things that appeared to be art. For example, ceramic ornaments cover this signpost. Most seem to have the word Art. What’s that about? Here is something

I love parks and gardens, although I’m not patient enough to grow flowers or vegetables myself. I gave up on indoor plants years ago, saying I had enough living things to take care of. I didn’t need another one. The rowhouses in Philadelphia sit in the shadow of the skyscrapers, yet window boxes and potted plants abound. These displays take over most of the sidewalk. I’m not sure what to make of the mismatched tall plants flanking this door. In Philadelphia, they don’t need t

Due to unexpected circumstances, I spent a day at the laundromat near my daughter’s apartment in Philadelphia. Not in the suburbs, but in the city. I would say inner-city, but she assures me that her neighborhood isn’t sketchy, and it seemed alright to me. As a writer, I took pictures of everything. Someone checking the security camera footage would have found me suspicious. But the camera only served as a canvas for graffiti and place to drape extension cords. Nothing on the

Happy Thanksgiving. I couldn’t think of any fun Thanksgiving themed topics, so I’ve written this blog instead. Besides, sometimes you need a break from the hoopla and the family . . . and the expectations. In our orderly industrialized society, it is easiest to put everyone in the same little box. The assembly line forces conformity. I can’t tell you the number of times my son has had to scrape the cheese off of his hamburger because we left the drive-thru without checking th