Nic Rowan
Whenever I ride that long, flat stretch of Illinois between Chicago and Davenport, I can’t help but think of Ronald Reagan and the time that he hitchhiked the highway now named for him. It was the fall of 1932, and…
A few days ago, a friend at a dinner party posed a question to the crowded table: “Be honest,” he said. “Have any of you ever felt real generational animosity?” It didn’t take much thought to respond in the negative….
I suspect Joan Didion would be amused to learn that I keep her on my obituary watch. The 86-year-old essayist is the first person whom, a few years ago, I put on my list of heroes I expect to die…
One day after President Joe Biden’s inauguration, Congress hit thousands of National Guardsmen stationed in the Capitol with a gut punch. Several units stationed within congressional office buildings were abruptly told to leave on Thursday afternoon. Many had been sleeping…
Washington, D.C. — “I’m going to need to see some identification,” a National Guardsman told me as I pulled up to a downtown security checkpoint. I fumbled for my wallet and produced an expired, chipped driver’s license that has earned…
WILMINGTON, Del. — “Joseph R. Biden, America’s pride,” proclaims a billboard towering over the highway running through the city. Erected just after the election, it features a fluttering cartoon flag next to the president-elect’s name and a subtitle declaring Uncle…
Washington, D.C. Downtown has changed a lot since last week’s massive MAGA wave rolled up Capitol Hill and into the halls of Congress. More than 10,000 National Guardsmen this week were deployed to secure the city during President-elect Joe Biden’s…
New York I drove to Manhattan the other day, totally on a lark, just for a bag of bagels. It was a short trip. Well, a few hours anyway. But my bagelry of choice is the master of its craft,…
Few Christmas films merit a yearly watch. The ones that do are mostly children’s cartoons: How the Grinch Stole Christmas, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol — network broadcasts played and replayed until they became unquestioned tradition. There…
