[Ken Gray] This past week has been a horror show of personal technological challenges. I am normally pretty good at solving glitches, at creating digital workarounds, at reaching out to support systems when necessary. This past week, however, was different. In preparing for a funeral I needed to edit a Youtube video. Easy-peasy I thought.... Continue Reading →
Men on the moon, plus Caroline Leavitt โ A fantasy
[Ken Gray] For the record, I do not support human travel to the moon. I think itโs a waste of time and money. Sure, people enjoy what my generation witnessed in 1968-9 as the Apollo Program proved we had the technology and the expertise to land on the moon โ and we did it โ... Continue Reading →
Best assignment yet
By Hankookilbo - Published Apr 13, 2026 Hankook Ilbo, Korea Visitors crowd the Yeongnangho Cherry Blossom Festival around Yeongnangho Lake in Sokcho, Gangwon Province, April 11. Yonhap {Ken Gray - As a child growing up in Victoria on Harlow Drive my street was drenched in pink cherry blossoms every March of April. I have fond... Continue Reading →
Jazz, the Doctor of Democracy
Wynton Marsalis just stepped down as the managing and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, which he founded nearly 40 years ago. He shares his thoughts on the state of democracy in the US presently using the craft he knows so well, Jazz, to illustrate his points. TRANSCRIPT (Generated; check against delivery) [Wynton Marsalis]... Continue Reading →
If in doubt, make a plan
Another chapter in the series Stories from Somewhere, fictional reflections of an unidentified place at an unknown time. Other chapters are listed here. Our paths have not crossed for a couple of weeks now, so I am out of touch. Obviously, Ronni and a few others have been busy making plans, exactly for what, I... Continue Reading →
A Hymn of Praise โ For E-Bikes
By Bill McKibben โ This article appears in the January/February 2026 issue of Sojourners Magazine โ Subscribe A no sweat, no hills, planet-loving bicycle seems pretty heavenly to me. THERE ARE A few things that seem like magic to me. One is iceโwhen water freezes, suddenly you can glide across the surface of the earth.... Continue Reading →
Robot dogs? You must be joking โ by Juno
What will they think of next? Canโt people just let dogs be dogs? Oh no. For some folks itโs not enough to just select a breed, find a good breeder, and invite a new dog into a household. Worked for me, so very well, for many years, and still does. No need for imitations; just... Continue Reading →
Ashes to ashes
A short story by Ken Gray From a distance, the amber box on the shelf before me tells no story whatsoever. A beautifully crafted box of coloured strips is no mere bookend. Someone had taken a lot of time to assemble something beautiful for . . . God? Possibly hollow, I have no idea what... Continue Reading →
An American history lesson of interest to at least one Canadian, me
Posted by Heather Cox-Richardson In his newsletter, Krugman noted that renewables have grown explosively in the past decade, spurred by what he calls a virtuous circle of falling costs and increasing production. That circle is the result of subsidies that made renewable energy a going concern in the face of fossil fuels. Today, he points... Continue Reading →
Out of the mouth, of primates โ How Climate Change is Rewriting Our Future
https://youtu.be/2creIhQvRLw Political Primate on YoutubeTranscription and highlights, KJG The clock is tickingโand our planet is sounding the alarm louder than ever. From raging wildfires to devastating floods, climate change is no longer a distant threat; itโs a global emergency happening right now. Ah, climate change. Behold the great paradox of our age. Ours is the... Continue Reading →