We were lucky about the weather, given the unsettled skies all weekend. Twenty-six years later, the event feels more like a street festival than a music and dance festival, which is fine. The audience is determining what the experience will be. Food from around the world, sidewalk entertainers, storefront buzz,…
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From the NYTimes: Meanwhile, back at the stadium, the Olympic flag was carried along the track by eight humanitarians, including Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations secretary general, and Leymah Gbowee, who shared the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize. Once they made a half-circuit of the stadium, they met a frail-looking Muhammad…
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“Where’s the outrage” cried US Sen. Bob Dole in 1996, asking voters to repudiate President Clinton. In today’s NYT, opinion writer Charles Blow asks, What’s the matter with Democrats in this election cycle? He cites polls that suggest that Republican voters are ready to run to the voting booth while…
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“Bridge Street Bridge” by Richard Marion (c) 2012 This painting is the cover image for Tom Sexton’s new book of Lowell poems, “Bridge Street at Dusk,” which is available now from www.loompress.com See more artwork at www.richardmarion.net
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I lived in Stockton, California, for about seven months in 1967. My father had taken a job grading wool for the Cal Wool Co-op; the move didn’t work out, and my family was back in the Lowell area by the end of the year. Stockton felt a lot like Lowell…
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“The Great Gatsby” often tops the list of the best American novels. It’s a strange choice, really, but then maybe not. You would think the best novel would play out on the western frontier or take place during the Civil War or involve the Mississippi River or Plymouth Rock somehow.…
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This will be a good day to stay above it all and catch a breeze if you can find one. “Commute” by Richard Marion (c) 2012 See more artwork at www.richardmarion.net
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Frank Bruni’s column for tomorrow’s NYTimes covers the encouraging trend of city greening, from New York City to places around the country. Read his thoughts here, and get the NYT at home or online if you want more of this kind of writing. This is “Flowering City” stuff in the…
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My wife and I enjoyed a sunny day in Boston this week and left the city convinced that it is looking as good as it ever has. Our destination was the waterfront, Fan Pier, where we expected to go to the Institute for Contemporary Art—but the weather was simply too…
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In honor of the gardens all over the city, a summer composition from the 1980s. “Tomatoes Box” by Richard Marion (c) 2012. See more artwork at www.richardmarion.net
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