Oak Ridge, Tennessee, played a critical part in building the atomic bomb and ending World War II. The 1943-1945 period chronicles one of the world’s most significant engineering feats. Oak Ridge also played a critical role in my life. My father, Paul Blakely, graduated from Washington & Lee as a chemist in 1943 and, along … Read more
I grew up in the 1960’s in Santa Clara and my memories of that time are vivid and full of wonder. It was such fun to play on our lawn of clover, and so interesting to see the bees buzzing among the blossoms of cherry, pear, plum, and prune trees in the orchard just across … Read more
My childhood growing up in Santa Clara was probably typical of many other innocent childhoods. At Pomeroy Elementary School, my classmates came in all shapes, sizes, and abilities: small, big, short, tall, skinny, fat, smart, dim, academic, artistic, and athletic. Among my schoolmates were boys and girls having family origins in Mexico, Canada, Ireland, Scotland, … Read more
We were waiting inside the boarding area, ready to walk onto our Alaska Airlines flight leaving the Big Island of Hawaii. An assisted service dog in a cage would also be flying home on our flight. The service dog owner was an older woman, sad but with a beautiful radiant smile. A little hunched over, … Read more
It was a warm sunny day during another summer month. School was out and I couldn’t help but notice the young boy, who looked to be about 11 years old, inside the Lucky Store looking suspicious. From experience I’d seen that look many times before and I knew what was about to happen. Sure enough, … Read more