Nov 22, 2016 | Random Musings
I’ve been using Google since the early 90s, when it was first conceived, and have been using it daily since. And yet, even I didn’t know some the shortcuts found below, brought to us by brightside.me. 1. Either this or that Sometimes we’re not sure of,...
Oct 3, 2016 | Random Musings
As some of you may remember, today is our anniversary, and I thought I’d share a special post. Some of you (yes, Debby, I’m looking at you) have been complaining it’s been a while since you saw our baby girl, so I’m happy to report that...
Aug 1, 2016 | Fun Historical Facts, Random Musings
Six-year-old Onfim stifled a yawn. His teacher was droning on and on about Old Russian alphabet, but Onfim had had enough scrawling letters onto his birchbark notebook. His mind wandered to the really exciting things that Novgorod in 1220 AD had to offer: brave...
Jul 26, 2016 | Fun Historical Facts, Random Musings
The year is 2099. A group of people is preparing to celebrate New Year’s Eve aboard the brand spaceship, Pearseus. Instead, they end up castaways on a remote planet. Three hundred years later, most of the original technology has disappeared. People have...
Jul 14, 2016 | Fun Historical Facts, Random Musings
I debated posting this for a while. I hate standing on a soap box, and this is a blog about books, not politics. But there’s so much going on worldwide at the moment that I’ve started feeling like an ostrich, hiding my head in the sand. What gave me the...
Jul 1, 2016 | Fun Historical Facts, Random Musings
Photo: Leiden, Bibliotheca Thysiana, Inv. nr. 2200 H. Photography Giulio Menna (@sexycodicology), courtesy of Erik Kwakkel May 31st, 1486 turned out to be an unseasonably hot day on the Rhine. Count Philip was holding court. A duke was droning on and on, and the Count...
Jun 29, 2016 | Fun Historical Facts, Random Musings
On January 8, 57 AD, Tibullus, a freed slave in London, promised to repay 105 denarii, a hefty sum, to another freed slave named Gratus. Meanwhile, one friend admonished another that he’s lent too much money and is being gossiped about. And a merchant was making a...
Jun 27, 2016 | Fun Historical Facts, Random Musings
Under the ancient oak, home to mighty Zeus, a priest holding a thin sheet of lead is waiting patiently for the widow before him to ask her question. She hesitates for a moment, listening to the rustling leaves over them. “It’s my job to interpret...
Jun 25, 2016 | Fun Historical Facts, My Publications, Random Musings
A few years ago, a forest fire ravaged the area where we live. A friend of mine was helping the firefighters when the ground gave way and his leg fell into a hole in the ground. A hole that turned out to be an ancient tomb, complete with offerings and bones. As this...
Jun 21, 2016 | Fun Historical Facts, Random Musings
Urvija Banerji of Atlas Obscura shared recently the unusual story of how a man’s desire to flaunt his wealth became a book of Psalms. Many people in the Middle Ages learned to read and worship by studying their psalters, or personal copies of the Book of Psalms,...
