Author Archives: Rich Freggiaro

From Still Life With Woodpecker by Tom Robbins: Albert Camus wrote that the only serious question is whether to kill yourself or not.Tom Robbins wrote that the only serious question is whether time has a beginning and an end. Camus clearly got up on the wrong side of bed, and Robbins must have forgotten toContinue reading “A Question, Partially Answered”

Someone suggested that I drop the subject of masks. I certainly aim to please my 10 readers, so how about opera? The one Jeopardy category I occasionally do well at. We’ll start with Un Ballo in Maschera… Only kidding folks. There was a time before we started tandem riding that Stoker and I spent quiteContinue reading “A Night at the Opera…”

On my first visit to Raley’s since Newsom’s new mask mandate, the store policy was clear. Not just a small sign posted on the door either; someone with very good chalk calligraphy skills had been at work. Remember the TV commercial you see every holiday season “Clap on (clap clap), Clap off (clap off), TheContinue reading “A Tale of Two Grocers”

Facebook can be like staring at the aftermath of a car crash. You are horrified at the tragic scene but you can’t look away… Still there are parts of FB I really like. Kid pictures, pet pictures, food pictures, travel pictures. There is a handy feature to block posts from political promoters, so you onlyContinue reading “Going Into the Dumper”

Economics was given the moniker “The Dismal Science” by Scottish essayist and historian Thomas Carlyle. Carlyle was said to have been inspired by T. R. Malthus’ gloomy prediction that population would always grow faster than food, dooming mankind to unending poverty and hardship. The accuracy of this prediction is typical of economic forecasts to thisContinue reading “The I Word…not Intervals”

Masks are required at all times on commercial airline flights. Our masters have so decreed, and apparently the Constitution and Bill of Rights do not apply to facial coverings on FAA regulated transportation. But liberal, African American members of Congress appear to be exempt: No air hostess dictator yelled at her, but she would haveContinue reading “Do as I Say…”

It’s me…remember I follow the rules and pay my taxes, and it is almost time for another installment. I’ve been getting some push back on my cavalier attitude toward the pandemic in general and masks in particular. And I’m really after the politicians and public health ‘officials’ (who are often politicians too) who are micromanagingContinue reading “Who Was that Masked Man?”

The state of California’s new mask mandate for indoor spaces goes into effect Wednesday. The guidance was announced by state health authorities on Monday and requires masks to be worn in all indoor public settings — regardless of an individual’s vaccine status — for the next four weeks. Anyone want to bet that four weeksContinue reading ” Déjà Voodoo: Masks Are Back”

Remember that I broke a spoke on my old HED Ardennes rear wheel? I happen to have spare spokes, because I have taken those wheels on trips and you never know if you can find a replacement far from home. I took the wheel to a bike shop to be repaired. I got it backContinue reading “Ping Part 2”

Long ago I paid for a life membership in the Cal Aggie Alumni Association. If I had known the direction my alma mater would take in subsequent years I would have saved my money. First some wisdom from American Musical Theater Classics, soon to be cancelled, from Annie Get Your Gun: My tiny baby brother,Continue reading “Add an X, Lose the Sex”