Author: RTNM

A Small (not TALL) Tale about a Chicken I remember reading about the story I am about to tell you.  I can’t quite remember when or where I first came across the adventures of this exceptional chicken, but I never forgot her.  She has to be one of the most extraordinary chickens that ever was. […]

That is One Strange Bunny Hole Over ten years ago, I wrote an essay called Breakfast at Tiffany’s.  The other day I decided to take a look at it.  I wanted to edit it so that I could include it in this blog.  The best-laid plans… On the first page, I referenced the “food service […]

The Unknown Opponent This is a post about playing tennis against an opponent you have never seen play.  This is a fairly common occurrence if you are a tournament player or play tennis socially on a ladder.  What are you supposed to do when you want to defeat such an opponent?  I have a few […]

We’re Going to State! My niece, Haley, is a freshman in high school.  She is a tennis player.  She is the first girl in the history of her school to win the sectional tournament.  The fantastic thing is that she beat every opponent 6-0, 6-0.  She was never in danger of dropping a single game. […]

Colin Powell I have long admired Colin Powell. I always wanted him to run for President of the United States. I wasn’t too concerned about his stance on specific issues; I knew he was a measured, intelligent man of great integrity, and that was enough for me. I was surprised and saddened to hear that […]

Watching Tennis Why would anyone care about how I watch a tennis match? That is an excellent question. That is about all I can say. I have no idea what the answer is. Of course, I hope that others might gain some insight into the game by reading about how I watch tennis matches on […]

Even More Collatz You know, the reason we have so much trouble trying to prove The Collatz Conjecture suggests to me that it might not be true. Buford Lister, personal communication How many posts can I write based on something as simple as The Collatz Conjecture?  Apparently, at least one more.  If you are unfamiliar […]

Three Lists People like to rank things.  Who are the top ten basketball players who ever lived?  Which rock group is the greatest?  Or how about the greatest pitcher or the best soccer player?  You get the picture.  This post is about three of my personal lists: my favorite actor, comedian, and drummer. I just […]

An Unusual Unit of Measurement About 35 years ago, I went for a run in Boston.  Sure, I ran a lot back then, but this day was special.  I started at my Somerville apartment, made my way to Harvard’s campus, turned left, and ran along the Charles River until I arrived at MIT.  There is […]

A Special Kind of Consciousness Come on, what have you got to lose?  The first stick is free.  Here, take it… Trust me, it is going to change your life.  You are going to love it.  One day you will thank me. Go on, go on… A short conversation (that I happened to overhear) between […]