Archive for the ‘Columns & Essays’ Category
Occupational Therapy
I hate winter, but in this Year of the Occupation, I found myself dreaming of a white Halloween. Mother Nature obliged on Saturday, October 29. Who says dreams don’t come true? I suppose the Occupy protesters think that by camping on public and private urban parks indefinitely, they are demonstrating their commitment to whatever cause […]
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Columbus: the Man and the Myth
Another holiday, another opportunity to vilify the United States. Actually, the upcoming Columbus Day holiday is just a warm-up for the Thanksgiving main event. We know the narrative by now. Christopher Columbus was not a heroic explorer who discovered a new world. He was a villain who set in motion the centuries-long American reign of […]
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Tags: America, Americans, Christopher Columbus, Columbus, Columbus Day, discovery, explorer, explorers, Genoa, holiday, holidays, Indians, Italian, Italians, Native Americans, United States
Teachable Moments
Last week, two things happened in Wakefield, Massachusetts that at least temporarily restored my hope for America’s self-image. First, Paul D. Wedge, a lacrosse coach at Wakefield High School, convinced the Board of Selectmen to let him mount a bronze cast with Big Jim Landrigan’s Silver Star Citation at Landrigan Field where future generations of […]
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Remember How We Felt on 9/11
Every generation has one of those “always remember where you were” dates. For the Greatest Generation, it was Pearl Harbor. For the Baby Boomers, it was the JFK assassination. September 11, 2001 is one of those dates. The 10th anniversary of 9/11 is upon us, and even more than any of the preceding anniversaries, the […]
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Tags: 9/11, 9/11 attacks, America, Daily Item, Ground Zero, Lorne Michaels, Mark Sardella, New York, New York City, Rudy Giuliani, Saturday Night Live, September 11 2011, SNL, terrorism, terrorist attack, terrorist attacks, terrorists, Twin Towers, United States, Wakefield Daily Item, Wakefield Item, World Trade Center
Lighten Up
The Boston Globe recently ran a front-page story about people who are hoarding incandescent light bulbs in anticipation of a coming federal restriction on the sale of Edison’s most important invention. Count me among the hoarders. I’m not ready yet for my close-up on reality TV, but I have managed to lay in a small […]
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Tags: banning light bulbs, bulb, bulbs, CFL, CFL light bulbs, CFLs, Compact flourescent light bulb, Daily Item, electric, electric light, electricity, household lighting, incandescent light bulb, Item, light, light bulb, light bulb ban, light bulb law, light bulbs, lighting, lights, Mark Sardella, Wakefield Daily Item, Wakefield Item
The Price of Redemption
Debt ceiling, we hardly knew ye. Now that the debt discussion that has held the national airwaves hostage for the past few months is over and the phony threat of default is in the rear view mirror, can we please get back to real issues – like littering? Expanding the Massachusetts bottle law is the […]
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Tags: bottle, Bottle Bill, bottle deposit, Bottle Law, bottles, can, cans, Massachusetts, recycle, recycling
Green and Mean
I’m all in favor of being green – if only when it comes to the lettering of my car’s license plate. In a sea of white plates with red lettering, the old “greenies” have become something of a treasure among the dwindling number of car owners who still have them. The green lettered Massachusetts tags […]
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Tags: auto, automobile, automobiles, autos, car, cars, Daily Item, green, license plate, Mark Sardella, Massachusetts, number plate, Registry of Motor Vehicles, tag, tags, vehicle, vehicles, Wakefield Daily Item, Wakefield Item
It takes the Wakefield Independence Day Committee many months to put together the annual July Fourth Parade, and Monday’s parade was no exception. But even for mere spectators, attending the parade involves a good deal of advance planning in order to stake out a prime viewing spot. As early as Sunday afternoon there were so […]
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Mark Sardella 