The ghosts are legion in the fields around Culpeper, a long-suffering village that endured occupation by both armies in the first years of the war. The town hosted a couple hundred thousand troops from both sides over the winters of 1862-3 and 1863-64. Longstreet’s Corps wintered over in the vicinity of the hamlet of Winston, […]

(Natahsa’s first cauliflower of the season.) I stopped to talk to the Russians late in the afternoon in the forecourt of their 1910-vintage farmhouse. Bisquit the Wonder Spaniel had a new haircut for the Dog Days to come, and Sasha raced around from the front to bang the gong announcing a vistor. The skies could […]

It is not too soon in this muggy summer season to complete the gridiron disappointments to come. In that number, I naturally include my beloved Wolverines, the perennial disappointments of the Detroit Lions, and the abject failure of the Washington Redskins. Rather than a man in motion, it has been a decade for some, and […]

 no broken arrow, no broken fears. no broken sorrow. no broken years. each all gone at full strength. as the studied length of the day became its own measure of campaigning what was offered and gained, probing and writing history at every last step of the way, morning and night every day, laughing at […]

(General James Mattis, a tough Marine dismissed from his CENTCOM Command for his views on Iran. Photo AFP). “From his first months in office, President Obama secretly ordered increasingly sophisticated attacks on the computer systems that run Iran’s main nuclear enrichment facilities, significantly expanding America’s first sustained use of cyberweapons, according to participants in the […]

I heard my pal Joanie on the radio this morning, talking about the big Supreme Court decisions yesterday. She has been a point person for same-sex couples since she got out of the Navy, and I am happy for her and her partner. I was in the Panzer when I heard the recap of the […]

It is out, as of 0600 this morning, and the topics to be covered in the Big Climate Speech are no longer embargoed for distribution. This is good, since I have to be elsewhere due to The Big Meeting that will inform us of The Big Changes at the company, held conveniently in distant Chantilly, […]

(Somewhere in a foreign field with the troops of 1914-18). I don’t know if you’ve looked at what is happening in the Asian markets this morning. I have tried to stay away from looking at the balance in the 401K, which is headed south at an alarming rate. Apparently Wall Street began to panic after […]

(Legendary Child Star Jackie Coogan, eking out a living in his last great role as creepie Uncle Fester in The Addams Family.) I have been up at Refuge Farm this morning since way early. I discovered it is raining, to my vast surprise, since I had heard the weekend was going to be nice. Accordingly, […]

  (District Boundary Stone NE7, near the site of the disastrous Battle of Bladensburg, which set the stage for the burning of Washington by the British in 1814). It is funny how things come around. I feel several circles closing this morning. One has a certain claustrophobic aspect, and another a historical one. Both hark […]