A few random scribbles have been accumulating on my desk: <\/p>\n
• NBC foreign correspondent Richard Engel — for my money, as good as anyone in that business — said during a special on ISIS that we are living in “a world where war is ordinary.” He was referring specifically to Syria, but I fear he also could be talking about the United States … <\/p>\n
• Where, I wonder every time I’m cleaning window jalousies, does dust come from? Wind-blown dirt, road grit and dried organic matter (including dead skin), of course. But according to a story in the March 15 Star-Advertiser<\/em>, a lot of dust comes from outer space. One study reported that 60 tons of cosmic dust falls on Earth every day. Fine, but why so much on my house? … <\/p>\n • Thanks to the readers who wrote to offer regards after seeing the column about the hellish night the roof of my former residence blew off (fortunately in mid-move). Your thoughts are appreciated, and I love the new place …<\/p>\n • I might not have gotten through school if I were a student today. Just learned that peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are not allowed at most schools because so many kids have peanut allergies. Back in elementary school, PB&J was a basic staple in my Roy Rogers lunch box … <\/p>\n • With all the concerns about head injuries in football — star 49ers linebacker Chris Borland retired recently after just one season in the NFL, citing his concern about concussions — it puzzles me why players slap one another in the head after making a good play. I’m not saying it’s time to go back to celebrating with butt slaps, but … <\/p>\n • Did you know buttons originated as fashion accessories and only later developed into fastening devices? … <\/p>\n • And did you ever notice the only word you can spell from right to left on a typing keyboard is poi (unless you count rew, an archaic variant of rue)? … dchapman@midweek.com<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A few random scribbles have been accumulating on my desk: • NBC foreign correspondent Richard Engel — for my money,..<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[95],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-51035","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-column"],"yoast_head":"\n