TODAY'S RAMBLINGS Is this a rant about inflation? I don't think so. Complaints from a dinosaur? Maybe, but this impacts young and old alike. Because today is about how a lot of things I (probably you, too, if you're reading this) enjoy have gotten much more expensive, in some cases prohibitively so. OK, I can hear it now: "Cry me a riv...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS Happy Monday. Let me start your week with a suggestion, in case you're still deciding what to do this Fall. You're welcome, and with that out of the way . . . I was humbled (it's true) by the feedback I got regarding my post on gratitude, and the story behind it. That blog, the one about lowering my news and social me...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS Happy Friday. If you don't care about sports, you can safely blow off TODAY'S RAMBLINGS. But don't miss FROM THE UNWASHED MASSES or KLUF. My Giants finished in a .500 shade of gray, after 107 wins last year. Our beloved - and champion - Warriors are in turmoil. Yet - despite it all - we still have it very good here in...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS This is the first in a series of pointless - and I mean really f'ing pointless - posts. Pointless? Well, upcoming editions will be about the 13 most recent albums by a band few know of, and another, a complete list of the fake names that I've used in this blog since its inception. See what I mean? They are harmless di...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS Happy Monday. Long-time readers know that I 1) occasionally simply repeat an article or podcast from somebody smarter than I, on a subject in which I am (and hope you will be) interested, and 2) love the Freakonomics podcast. Well, what do you know? Today I'm combining the two and pushing a subject whose time I think ...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS Today's blog about wine tasting might be corked. You'll see. But you do have to first skim this PDF. It is a very useful list of what our local paper, The San Francisco Chronicle, deems "the most beautiful wineries in Napa and Sonoma". Wow - those are some bold words. But: the fact is, The Chronicle has always had a r...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS I am going to run with a complement - backhanded as it may have been - from the senior media critic Max "Madras" Ryder. In response to my recent tongue-in-cheek (but only kind of) essay about our travails in first class on a EuroCity train, Max was nothing but sweetness. “Oh, you don’t realize how amusing that little ...

Today's post is different. First and foremost, that is because I leave tomorrow for Boulder to attend a memorial for Scott Edwards, to be held this Sunday, October 2. There will be no post on Monday for that reason. A coincidence, but October 2 has taken on some significance for me in recent years. On October 2, 2019, I left TEECOM. On...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS WARNING: TODAY'S RAMBLINGS are nothing but a first-world whine. I hope you like it! As I referenced in a recent Travel Guide, there are few things about which I am more passionate than trains. Passenger trains. Especially, big, beautiful high-speed passenger trains, like the kind we're building all over the US as we s...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS Happy Monday. Here is some help for setting the right tone for the week. And beyond. One of the books I read whilst away on vacation was "24", which is subtitled "Life Stories and Lessons from The Say Hey Kid". For you non-sports fans out there, it is a kinda biography of the best baseball player of all time, Willie M...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS Yeah, yeah, I know: Portico, we thought you were going dark for 3 weeks, yet you rubbed our noses in your vacation glory. My apologies, but I'm hopeful you found the information useful. I will tell you we loved discovering Lake Garda and especially Hotel Val di Sogno, as well as really enjoying Innsbruck. And have I m...

(Editor's Note: by now, I hope you know the drill. There are a lot of photos, so if you have any trouble, you can view the post in a browser here.) OVERVIEW This borders on being just a Micro Travel Guide, as we were here for only a short time. But we were impressed enough by Innsbruck that I felt it deserves some attention. This is no...

(Editor's Note: again, this one has a lot of photos - it had to. So if it's slow to load on your device or if it seems like some pictures are missing, you may wish to read this post here.) OVERVIEW If you read this blog, you know I have several happy places. Places where even an obsessive like me can let go, and not grind and grind and...

(Editor's note: there are a ton of photos in this one. You might wish to read this here if it's slow to load and/or if it seems like some photos are missing). OVERVIEW Let me be clear right up front: I have no idea what the hell Lake Como is like, but I don't know how in the world it could be more absolutely stunning than Lake Garda, i...

(Editor's Note: I know I promised peace and quiet, but why hold back these treasure troves of valuable information?) OVERVIEW For years, I've never heard all that many great things about Milan, Italy. Sure, it's the fashion and financial capital of Italy, but its reputation is one of gritty urbanity, not of urban splendor. The reputati...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS My heart remains heavy, over the loss of Scott Edwards. Thanks to all of you that reached out. Life must go on, but this is an odd day, for sure. (Odd transition, too.) Because later today, Julie and I leave for a nearly 3 week trip to Europe. We're visiting Milan (our inbound gateway) for 3 nights, Lake Garda for 5 n...

There is no regular blog today. Yesterday, I received word that Scott Edwards died of a sudden heart attack, at home late Monday night. He was 63. After my own parents and wife, Scott had the biggest impact on me of anyone in my life, which is why I am sharing this here. Our relationship dates to the summer of 1985, when I went to work...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS OMG, is there a worse thing today than to be called "woke"? "The woke radical left is coming for your guns and want your children to hate themselves!" And then I saw this online, and I knew a post was going to be necessary. The problem, at least to this older white man of privilege, is that woke simply used be a form ...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS Like clockwork, out came the Republicans bitching about Papa Joe forgiving $10,000 ($20,000 for Pell Grant recipients) in student loan debt, for middle and lower income people. Shocker, I know. But also a shocker, they are completely wrong. And for a change, I have standing to say so. Here's the story. You see, by the...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS OK, I've had enough. I am ready to fight for the real America. In the streets, if necessary. This guy and every single other fucking white Christian nationalist can kiss my radical liberal commie pinko San Francisco ass. The photo above was taken recently at the Kentucky State Fair. In today's Republican party, this g...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS (Editor's Note: this is not an official Portico Darwin Travel Guide, as I must actually do the trip. But this one looks pretty f'ing good.) Our niece, the blossoming marcom empress Nicki Vale of Denver, is heading out for quite an adventure. As she was kind enough to share her plans with me, I thought I'd share them w...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS This one might not mean much to a lot of you. As I say, you can always start writing your own blog, or go read a book. But if you like baseball, especially of the San Francisco Giants variety, this might bring a smile to your face. The recent anniversary of my 2012 Giants winning their second of three World Series cha...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS I think for many, the real heartbreak over Trump being President and all that's come with that is not just what a complete slimeball of a person he is. Or that it may take us decades to recover from the damage he's wreaked. No, the heartbreak is because I thought we had really turned a corner as a nation in 2008, when...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS My Oceanside inspection complete, I winged it home yesterday. I would be remiss if I didn't thank my Killer hosts: suffice to say, you passed my rather stringent inspection with flying colors. And you're both so nice to invite me to come down each and every month from now on! And speaking of travel: now is the time I ...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS Yesterday afternoon, I winged it to the SoCal suburban paradise of Andy and Libby Jones. Their little tyke Dean Andrew Jones, Jr. is coming up on his first birthday, so I hand-delivered a gift, and then proceeded to inspect the new pergola that Andy has gone on and on about. Indeed, everything is wonderful, including ...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS I frequently complain about a lack of nuance in our public discourse. Here is an example of how two things can be true at once: I mostly love and am proud of what President Biden has accomplished, yet he needs to be a one-term president. Here is some nuanced thinking, from me, as well as another concerned citizen, on ...

This is the FBI entering the South Florida mansion of Al Capone. It popped into my mind yesterday for some reason. Tomorrow, I will be balanced. Today, I bask in an American rebirth, and our greatness. We remain a country of laws. I believe Trump is headed for what he deserves: total and utter disgrace. I will further predict history w...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS It would be hard to calculate, but I am not sure there's a place where I've ever spent more time in my life than in The Presidio, a part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, here in SF. Because since 2014, I've walked 5 miles most every day somewhere in its 1,500 acres of splendor. And before that, Julie and I...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS Last Friday, it was a history of concerts - at least my own. Today, I'm going to share some different history, yet keep the focus on my favorite subject: myself (shocker). Because I've found some great historical photos of my beloved SF, and specifically, our own neighborhood here, The Marina District. Sounds exciting...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS RIP Vin Sculley. Almost as legendary as Bill Russell. An American Treasure. OK: I look back on the World Trade Center being knocked down on 9/11 as a pretty bad day in American history. A subject that should be respected with the utmost gravity. I also feel the death of a loved one is a serious matter, and likewise, o...