“Hope lies in dreams, in imagination, and in the courage of those who dare to make dreams into reality.” - Jonas Salk Who among us has not dreamed of possessing the power of flight? Perhaps the most pervasive and enduring of dreams since my youth were of the ability to…

In an undergraduate sociology class, I was once told that altruism — the idea that selfless kindness has an intrinsic value — doesn’t really exist. The thinking here is that we don’t necessarily do anything entirely out of our hearts’ goodness. What seems selfless, is in fact, selfish. It is…

I was studying Spanish this morning before work. While practicing “¿De donde eres?”, or “Where are you from?”, I was reminded of the difficulty I sometimes have in answering this question, even in my native English. I grew up in a small town in North Alabama, but I have not…

Recall the cautionary tale from Greek mythology about Icarus and Daedalus. After being imprisoned on Crete by King Minos, Daedalus fashioned two pairs of wings out of wax and feathers so that he and his son, Icarus, could escape the island. Before the flight to freedom, Daedalus warned Icarus against…

Bottom line up front, if you are still a Trump supporter, you have motivations that escape me. If you didn’t like Obama or thought Clinton was just so objectionable that you had to vote for Trump, ok. I disagree with you, but that was an argument for four years ago…

“On the other hand, a cat’s love is like that of an aging, jaded, crack-addicted prostitute. It’s there for you when the cat needs it. It’s there with conditions. It’s there when there’s something in it for the cat.”

A few years back, I saw an interesting talk by astronomer Phil Plait about not being a dick when dealing with people of differing opinions. This talk resonated with me for several reasons. First, I have always preferred to treat everyone with a basic level of respect and dignity, at…

Military recruiters sometimes use a concept called TEAMS to understand individual motivations for joining the service. TEAMS is an acronym for training, education, adventure, money, and service (to country). What does this have to do with travel in general and Petra specifically? Well, the ability to travel is actually something…

Properly done, travel can be more than simply moving about physical locations, it can be a form of time travel. Seeing ancient sites gives me a feeling of connection to our shared history and humanity. The sites around Siep Reap, Cambodia is rich with such possiblities. From about 700 to…