It takes a special kind of perversity to use a handshake, the symbol of connection and cooperation, as a tool in establishing control. Pecking orders are about establishing dominance and social hierarchy. Chickens do it by pecking, and Donald Trump does it with bone-crushing over-long handshakes. There have […]
When I was on a plane last week, the young man seated next to me struck up a conversation just as we were about to land. It began because I caught his iPad as it slipped off his knee, just before it hit the floor. In doing so, I […]
The other day I was chatting with an Uber driver and she told me that she had come to America from West Africa four years ago. When I asked her if she liked being here, she hesitated. Then she said that she is happy here now, but at […]
In North America, when you ask people how they are, most of the time they say “I’m good.” That has always slightly irritated me because that’s not what they mean. It’s the wrong word. They may, indeed, be good people, but what they really mean to say is […]
I am a snowbird who travels south for the winter. When I get there I have a bird of paradise plant on my patio.
