by daniel | Jul 9, 2018 | Art, Civil Society, Climate Crisis, Democracy, Nature, Perception
I spent a half hour this morning in the company of a hummingbird. This is unusual. Mostly I see hummingbirds zipping past on their way somewhere, flitting and probing from one flower to the next, or performing grand sweeping dives, chattering in pursuit of mates. But...
by daniel | Apr 3, 2018 | Art, Civil Society, Design, First Nations/Aboriginal People, Indonesia, Perception
The town of Ubud is like ice cream: It is a rich and wonderful place, but take in too much of it, and the pleasure disappears. On Valentine’s Day, I arose early and cruised Ubud seeking flowers and a latte for my sweetheart. This marked a new phase in my use of...
by daniel | Mar 3, 2018 | Art, Civil Society, Education, Indonesia, Teaching
The final days of our time teaching English in Samasaman Village were quite enjoyable. We had developed a wonderful rapport with Intan, the resident teacher and a notably curious and bright individual. Having hired dozens of teachers over the years, I know what to...
by daniel | Feb 12, 2018 | Civil Society, Education, Education Policy, Indonesia, Nature, Parenting, Teaching, Working with youth
The girl pumping gas into our scooter couldn’t have been more than 10 or 11 years old, but she had a wonderful warm smile. And she actually pumped the gas using a hand-crank pump on a tiny stand that might have been made in the 1940’s. Nonetheless, we bought our two...
by daniel | Jan 9, 2018 | Civil Society, Education, Parenting, Storytelling
We’re well into January now, and most of us are falling into the routines that will characterize life in 2018. (Maybe they’re the exact same as our 2017 routines!) We call this the “New Year,” although for diversity’s sake, it’s worth noting that there are a variety...
by daniel | Dec 14, 2017 | Civil Society, Democracy
A new tax bill stumbles its way through our deeply-divided Congress, moving toward enactment despite minimal expert testimony, limited disclosure of its contents, and no bipartisan support. There are dozens of things one could challenge about the content of the tax...
