Category: Current events and social commentary
The birthday of our undemocratic democracy
When were kids, July 4 was a day to celebrate the nation that we learned in school was the world’s greatest democracy and a model for the rest. My mood on this July 4 is more mournful than celebratory in the wake of recent Supreme Court decisions about abortion, the authority of the Environmental Protection... Read more »
Viewing Atticus through today’s eyes
To Kill a Mockingbird has long been my favorite book. I’ve become less vocal about it, however, as Atticus Finch, the white lawyer who defends a Black man falsely accused of raping a white woman in 1930s Alabama, is reevaluated through modern sensibilities. The hero has been taken down from his pedestal. Critics on the... Read more »
Tired of the arguments against gun control
I had a different post written for today, but a personal focus felt crass after a week when 19 innocent fourth graders were gunned down in their classroom in Uvalde, Texas. That came 10 days after 10 African Americans were shot in a Buffalo grocery store. In both cases, the gunman was an 18-year-old male... Read more »
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Still riding the “L”
Taking the “L” home on a Sunday morning, I watched a woman give $10 to a man who was begging. The man noticed another $10 bill in her wallet and asked whether he could have it. She handed it over. Having just come from church, I remembered Mother Teresa’s famous statement about seeing Jesus in... Read more »
Where is the line between frugal and cheap?
A restaurant check showed a $7 upcharge for substituting fruit for meat. The server had said that we could substitute anything, not mentioning a charge. Although irritated, I wondered whether begrudging a few dollars when restaurants are hurting crosses the line from frugal into cheap. (I’m sidestepping the issue of feeling deceived.) But if it... Read more »
Shed the mask, get a cold
Illinois lifted its mask mandate on February 28. On March 9 I came down with a cold. Guess I’m being punished for support of lifting the mandate — although masks were intended as protection against COVID-19, not a cold. (A COVID test was negative.) Although scientists have not come to a consensus about masks’ effectiveness... Read more »
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The working class and higher education
This is a tale about class differences and higher education. My sister’s daughters are both business majors. The older one, 23, a finance major, just began her career at a major corporation. The younger, 22, will graduate next spring with a combined BS/MS in data analytics and go to work for a major consulting company. ... Read more »
The anxiety about misspeaking with people different from oneself
Recently a person I’d just met accused me of being intrusive when I asked where she lived and whether she’d returned to working in the office yet. Although I didn’t think the questions were too personal, she said I’d crossed a line and was interrogating her, soliciting information and not sharing anything about myself. I... Read more »
Criticize US, but don’t despair
A June Gallup poll found that only 43 percent of Americans, and just 31 percent of Democrats, are extremely proud to be American. This Democrat isn’t surprised. A pandemic rages, yet in some states only one-third of adults have been vaccinated. Most of the unvaccinated say they won’t be vaccinated, arguing for a right to... Read more »
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How much space do you need?
For those of us who live in small apartments or condos, our homes added to the challenges of the pandemic. We lacked a variety of rooms to offer a change of scene during isolation. Now that I’m going out again, I no longer feel cooped up in my 3½ rooms. But the experience of confinement... Read more »
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Meet The Blogger

Marianne Goss
A retired university publications editor and journalist, I live in the South Loop and volunteer as a Chicago Greeter. Getting the most out of retired life in the big city will be a recurrent theme of this blog, but I consider any topic fair game because the perspective will be that of a retiree.
Recent posts
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Thinking about a lost summer »
Marianne Goss on Retired in ChicagoPosted August 7, 2022 at 4:12 pm -
When actors land the accent but are hard to understand »
Marianne Goss on Retired in ChicagoPosted August 1, 2022 at 8:27 am -
Letting friends go »
Marianne Goss on Retired in ChicagoPosted July 25, 2022 at 1:43 pm -
Why New Yorkers should visit Chicago »
Marianne Goss on Retired in ChicagoPosted July 18, 2022 at 8:59 am -
Nail caps for a scratching cat »
Marianne Goss on Retired in ChicagoPosted July 11, 2022 at 7:40 am
Recent Comments
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Good luck, Marianne. Fear not. No one likes to go that route, but they perform miracles today. Keep the faith.
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Well put, Marianne, although I'm sorry you've had to write any of it. Best wishes for your doctor visit, and…
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Hi, Margaret. Yes, a glossary would be helpful for the idioms, but I think I could have figured out the…
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Thanks, Marianne. Your Shakespeare comparison made me think of how I have read what I've managed to read: with footnotes.…
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Yes, Shakespeare is a good comparison. Thanks for writing.
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