Merlin’s favorite times of the year are the fall and spring, simply because that’s when windows can be open and he can watch (and smell) the birds and squirrels that he’d like to be outside chasing. Here, he peers intently at the back yard through the open window right next to my desk earlier this week. Merlin is the one who disappeared for a couple of days after an escape through a screen about two years ago. He doesn’t seem to eager to leave the comforts of home behind after that adventure.

Honesty, wisdom and insight teach that we have to live with uncertainty
‘Let’s Make a Deal’: How democracy is like a dumb old game show
Dems, GOP name Charlotte Clinton and future Bush baby for 2056
What makes good science fiction? Aya Katz and I discuss ‘Podkayne’
‘All animals are equal, but [deaf] animals are more equal than others’
Past feels like blurry watercolor, not like the history of real people
Seasons reveal a living nature that defies our efforts at control