I thought the trees were all cottonwoods, honestly. A band of trees crowd the banks of the creek that runs through the park behind our house. Cottonwoods, right? As I learned yesterday—in my mission to learn more about my bioregion—yes, there are cottonwoods. But there are also white willows and peachleaf willows and black poplar … Continue reading On how there are more types of trees out there than I thought
Category: Cultural Comment
On the Donner Party
A contender for the best book I've read this year is George R. Stewart's Ordeal by Hunger, which is considered the definitive account of the Donner Party tragedy. I came across this book as an admirer of Stewart's delightful treatise Names on the Land, a historical accounting of the US and its place names. I … Continue reading On the Donner Party
On Garden of the Gods and monotheism
Residents of the Denver metro area have our suspicions about Colorado Springs, our neighbor to the south. With its surfeit of megachurches, religious right advocacy organizations, and military bases, "the Springs" (as we call it) has a certain reputation. A recent news story only deepened the fringe perception: Garden of Gods signs vandalized — again … Continue reading On Garden of the Gods and monotheism
On stretching the meaning of “wedding”
At some point on the third day of the wedding weekend, the luster wore off. It was in the middle of what was scheduled as an 11-hour "pool party" that it no longer felt like a "wedding." It was hanging out on the beach with family I don't often see and a whole not of … Continue reading On stretching the meaning of “wedding”
On wherever you go, there you are
I finally finished reading Daniel Kahneman's Thinking, Fast and Slow this past weekend. It's a monumental read, dense with insight into how our minds don't work the way we think they do, and how much of the thinking we do is an uphill battle against biases that are hard (or impossible!) for us to see. … Continue reading On wherever you go, there you are
On surprise depositor fees and being a Post-It on someone’s desk
A few months ago, a check from my employer covering expenses bounced. Weird, but not a big deal, I thought. I called our business manager and she explained that there was an issue with how the checks had printed. She would just cut a new one for me. This all sounded fine—except for one thing. … Continue reading On surprise depositor fees and being a Post-It on someone’s desk
On USPS cities
When my wife and I were looking at houses, there was an odd detail that stuck with me. It had to do with a house we'd seen just north of Denver's Chaffee Park neighborhood. When we met our agent at the house, we expressed surprise that we were able to look at anything in Denver. … Continue reading On USPS cities
On what’s left of my CD collection
I recently came across my old CD case—27 CDs inside that past any point of use. I say that because I no longer possess a way to play them. No Walkman, no sound system with CD rack, no CD drive on any of the three computers in the house, no CD slot in either of … Continue reading On what’s left of my CD collection
On curiosity about bioregionalism (and living along a Rocky Mountain Lower Montane-Foothill Riparian Woodland and Shrubland system)
One of the most illuminating parts of Jenny Odell's book How to Do Nothing was her explanation of the value of bioregionalism. I'd encountered the idea elsewhere, but Odell's insistence on its importance, about the value of place and location—if we are to resist the powerful lure of the attention economy—was just the angle I … Continue reading On curiosity about bioregionalism (and living along a Rocky Mountain Lower Montane-Foothill Riparian Woodland and Shrubland system)
On the multiple narratives of Damar Hamlin
When the news about Damar Hamlin broke a few weeks ago, it felt seismic. Many, me included, wondered: Could this be it? Could this be enough to fracture the NFL's grip on America? The NFL's record for deaths of retired players, of course, is widely known, but unremarkable to the public. The ravages of the … Continue reading On the multiple narratives of Damar Hamlin
Taylor Coe 