Truth be told, I now give my mother many thanks that were left unsaid when she was alive. My mother died at 72, and she may have had a premonition. When I was on the faculty of the University of Houston, one day she visited me with the sole purpose of conveying a message. She said, “I am late in life, but you are not yet. If there is something you want to do, then do it now.” I sensed she had regrets and did not want me to someday feel the same. I had played guitar when in high school, mainly by myself or with my dad and sister. Being a poor musician trapped in the body of well-to-do economist, it was a no-brainer. I knew I wanted to be more involved with music. From the late 1970s to the mid-1990’s I wrote and recorded songs, and I managed the business side of a popular Houston band, in which I also played. I kept my economics profession intact, consulted, spent time with family, but one only has so much time. This was my glory music period, or my …
Post 14 – Some Poetry
Abram Van Engen, a professor of humanities at Washington University in St. Louis, once said in an interview that "What matters about poetry is which poems work for you… Not every poem will work for you. Keep pushing on until you find the poem that does work for you – when suddenly you read this turn of phrase in a poem and are moved or challenged or something really resonates.” I have been fortunate to be good friends since my early 20's with Douglas A. Sharp, I did not know he was a poet when I first met him at Texas A&M University in the basement of Nagle Hall, which housed some desks for graduate students in economics. He was sitting with his feet propped up on a desk reading the Lord of The Rings. Not long thereafter, Doug returned to his first love - mathematics - in which he earned his master's degree. Doug and I got together frequently, as we shared a great love for music. My recollection is that after I left Texas A&M in the fall of 1971 to go to …
Post 12 – Art for the Hagler Institute For Advanced Study
One of my favorite quotes about art is by Alberto Giocometti, a 20th century Swiss sculptor and painter. He said, "The object of art is not to reproduce reality, but to create a reality of the same intensity." One intense endeavor is the search for new knowledge. I never thought much about what kind of art would portray this search, but it "plopped in my lap", as the old saying goes. Three drawings now hang on a wall outside my office that capture the intensity of the quest for new knowledge. The art came from the A&M Foundation, that raises major donations and estate gifts for Texas A&M University. The drawings appeared in a feature story about the Hagler Institute for Advanced Study in the Foundation's magazine, Spirit. I have loved these pieces of art since I first saw them, and I want to share them with you in this post. They are best seen on a computer monitor. A little background is helpful. I am Associate Director of the Hagler Institute. The …
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