Our Socotra Legal Section said we had to run a disclaimer first thing this morning. Leon got all puffed up about it. So, there it is, first and foremost. What we are disclaiming, specifically, had to wait until Section Leader Miles had something like a quorum in the Conference Room up on the 4th Floor […]

Miles frowned as he set down his iPad. There was a time when a “rara avis”—rare bird in Latin—meant he would have to amble around outside in the parking lot looking for the slightly less expensive rental car. This was not that, exactly, but it was enough to make him move the mug of Flat […]

(Photo Socotra, 29 January 2026)“Waxing” is a term Rocket once applied to caring for his car. When the second word becomes Gibbous, the phrase usually refers to what’s happening up there in exo-space. The Moon. That’s also how the weather feels. The image above was taken yesterday morning—a cold, fanciful reminder that we’re spinning on […]

It is the National Holiday honoring the memory of Doctor King, one of our enduring national heroes. It is a cold, brilliant clear morning for the commemoration. Dawn was lovely as the polar vortex swirls around us. The chill brings back an echo of the tumultuous 1960s, and the brutal assassinations and riots that shaped […]

Well, it is a Sunday morning in Virginia. We have a new Governor here, the first woman to serve in that office. Abigale Spanberger is that remarkable woman, and her inauguration was impressive and steeped in history. We thought her moment in the spotlight might be eclipsed by one of the other simmering News Breaks […]

Photo: News Diaries You can see the issue this morning—and why Miles is sitting in Melissa’s seat at the north end of the Conference table. There’s a vortex of feminine power in motion today, and he’s content to watch it steered from our side by the senior women. That would be Melissa and Holly on […]

Legal told us to be careful about this, since we don’t want to disparage anyone going about their perfectly legal activities. There is, however, a great deal happening in that corner of our vibrant multi-trillion-dollar economy. Section Leader Miles thinks we need a clearer understanding of how the many red lines weave through a normal […]

Sundays at Socotra House are always a little unsettled between the breakfast pass through the Galley for a light wake-me-up before attending to holy services or a quick morning work-out at the Gym in the building Mezzanine. That meant the morning production meeting was segmented by who was munching, sipping Flat Yank coffee or leaving […]

That was the difference between this bed and the one back home. Not a theory. Not a metaphor. Just arithmetic. In Fairfax, the Trillium would be quiet now. Thermostat cycling. Coffee not yet made. The day still folded neatly ahead of itself. Here, the day had already been opened, inspected, and set in motion before […]

We got a got a note from a shipmate in Japan about the time we were wrestling the new bookcase in next to the recliner Miles has been using in an attempt to get the new year started in proper fashion. That is normally in keeping with the oriental signs of the Zodiac for all […]