(A slightly revised version of this post was published in the June 2024 issue of Against the Grain) I first stepped inside the Thomas Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress in April 1983. I was fresh out of library school and nervous, having flown… Read More »Forty Years at the Big Library
We have a maintenance contract with an HVAC company to service our air conditioning unit and furnace twice a year – in the spring and fall. During each of those visits, the technician removes the old system filter and replaces it with a clean one.… Read More »How is Your Filter?
I had just transferred from a managerial position to one in which I served as a special assistant to the head of a large directorate. My boss, Molly we’ll call her, was charismatic and mission-driven. My job was to support her in whatever way she… Read More »Listen Up
My wife Barbara and I recently made our first trip to Montréal – six nights, what a treat! In planning for this vacation, I never once gave a thought to music, let alone early Seventies Top Forty hits. Yet, an encounter with a local about… Read More »Learning about American Music from a French Canadian in Montréal
My mom, Ethel, was born in 1920 and raised in a 3-story North Philly row home that was inhabited by various members of her extended German-American family. As a young adult, she met my father when he threw a snowball at her. (And no, he… Read More »Mom Loved the Mummers
Right out of college, I worked at an oversized, four-story B. Dalton Bookseller in Center City Philadelphia – the largest bookstore in the city, situated in a repurposed old time bank building. That’s where I was mistaken for Sylvester Stallone! Despite a long commute to… Read More »You Don’t Want Me to Wrap Your Gift
Back in the 60s in Philly, we had limited television viewing choices – ABC, CBS, NBC and public broadcasting on channel 12, with UHF stations just being launched. I loved TV and thus watched a lot of shows that were not of the highest quality,… Read More »Wisdom from a ’63 LeSabre
Over the years, I have had nearly thirty different supervisors. As I shared in a previous post, they had varying impacts on my life and career. Luckily, my very first supervisor, Danny, displayed to me many of the characteristics that go into being a successful… Read More »What Makes a Great Supervisor
1983 was a big year for me. I completed my graduate work in library and information science, was selected for an internship at the Library of Congress, and with Barbara moved to the suburbs of Washington. 1983 was also a big year for Tom Cruise.… Read More »Splinters
1972/1973 was my senior year of high school, during which time I became a big fan of David Bowie. At that time, he was in his Ziggy Stardust phase, with spiky orange hair and an androgynous appearance. The one turntable in my home was part… Read More »Lou Reed Took My Money (and I Got Unlistenable Crap in Exchange)