Daily Blues & Views

  They don’t make ‘em like they used to I can’t buy them at the store The Levi’s that I once knew I can’t wear them any more The material is far thinner, It don’t last too long this way The blue jeans that were once a winner, Do not last from day to day.

In the early 1970s ethnic studies classes for high school students were less controversial than today. The term “critical race theory” wasn’t used yet and most of these classes were merely an attempt to tell the truth no matter how difficult or ugly. People were ready. Inclusion was long overdue.  Working in a school district with high percentages of black and brown students, I inherited a program called “Minority History.”  This was a one-year course divided into two semesters. The first was an entire semester devoted to black history. The second semester featured teaching units on Native American history,  Mexican American history, Asian American history, and units on Women’s history. Women, as a minority group, was an early attempt to develop and teach a curriculum that dealt with sexism as well as racism.  I found myself in charge of this program because it originally belonged to the woman I student taught under and because I was a recent College grad with an und...

 I need to leave her. Like many relationships it’s complicated. Still, the time has come and I know it. Like myself, we have both lost some of our attraction with age. Things weaken, they occasionally fail, slow down. She has, at times been good to me. The unexpected surprises and poignant moments have not been forgotten. They occasionally make me smile.  They sneak up on dark days and make me think it has all been worthwhile. But, times change. What was once solid begins to crumble. We adapt or we don’t last long. So, I’ll be heading out soon. My long attachment to horse racing has run its course. I need to leave the race track.  In the beginning, she lived up to the billing.  It begins with the horse. Always, the horse comes first. I have always had a visceral reaction to horses. As a thoroughbred trainer friend of mine always said, It’s in the blood.” It must be because it’s as if I can’t help myself in the presence of an equine athlete. The energy, the glossy coa...

 I have made the 12-hour drive from Portland to the Bay Area more times than I care to admit. The latest came last week.  This time of year, the weather plays a crucial role in determining how smoothly that drive goes. Fortunately, the roads over the mountain passes were clear this time. The rain and fog was ever-present. Though the landscape varies, some characteristics of this trip remain the same. The Oregon part of the trek is often beautiful with sweeping pastureland in the Willamette Valley, and fir and pine forests for hundreds of miles. Rivers are abundant. The Willamette, the McKenzie, the Umqua, the Klamath, and the Upper Sacramento are all visible from the car window.  In the last 5 years, we have not driven straight through, choosing to stop at the halfway point in Ashland, Oregon. Ashland offers a good place to eat and sleep with peaceful views, bookstores, pubs, outdoor stores, and a beautiful park. It is the home of Southern Oregon University, and, of cours...