This is a good idea — extending the protective netting at Dodger Stadium to reach the edge of both dugouts. Too many objects fly into the seats near home plate, both balls and bats or even shards of bats. Major League Baseball has recommended all of its teams extend the netting, and the Dodgers were […]

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Stefan Zweig. Know him? I thought not. Neither did I, until I expressed my interest in the history of Europe before the First World War while in the earshot of our friend Mary, who has an enormous library in her home in Paris. She later sent me the names of five authors, including Zweig, with […]

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After six years on the eastern side of the Atlantic Ocean, I can safely identify two additions to Sports Competitions I Follow. The English Premier League … which is a subdivision of the ultra elite European Champions League. This is where the world’s most famous sports teams come to play because, really, we must concede […]

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One of the many memorable moments in Steve Martin‘s 1991 film L.A. Story involves his portrayal of local TV weatherman  Harris K. Telemacher speaking with another Angeleno about a shocking drop in temperature … all the way down to 58 degrees! They talk about “closing the windows” and “letting the cats inside”. Martin’s character sums […]

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Three years ago, I wrote about this: How big a day December 7 was, for much of my life, as Americans remembered Pearl Harbor — the surprise attack in Hawaii that took the U.S. into World War II. And, mostly, I haven’t changed my outlook … how time and current events conspire to push notable […]

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We were at the Immigration Office in Abu Dhabi today to handle an administrative chore pertaining to passports. Eventually, pretty much everyone here spends hours at the Immigration Office. The office is in several buildings on 19th Street, near the church district. It may be one of the busiest government offices in the city, behind […]

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Is this just me, or does anyone else find a rooting interest in every sporting contest ever invented? Seems a bit odd, now that I think about it, but that’s how it works. And not just with teams I know. Within five minutes of watching a match between teams I do not know … I […]

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Muscat is one of those names that seems to say “exotic city”. A place quite unlike Main Street USA. The name does not quite reach the level of Timbuktu or Samarkand, in terms of connoting images of Old World trade, and caravans and spices, but it’s not just another town with a souq. It did […]

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On the map, driving to Muscat looks straightforward. Get from Abu Dhabi to Al Ain, cross over into Oman, go through the Oman “border” post about 30 clicks inside the country … and make a right turn at Sohar. Eventually Muscat; can’t miss it. “On the map”, however, gave us no indication of possible delays […]

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On November 13, it was Paris. Today it was San Bernardino, California. The past few years, I have spent more time in Paris — where 129 were killed in terror attacks on November 13 — than in California. And we had stayed, the week before, in Paris, on the very street where people were killed […]

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