Corey Snipes

My 50th birthday is coming up in November 2021, so I'm already in my 50th year of life. I've been thinking about how to celebrate this milestone for a while now. Pre-COVID we were planning a trip to the UK to explore some family roots and the English countryside. That'll happen eventually, but not this year. I started 2021 without any real concrete goals or plans for this milestone. By late February, two had emerged as top contenders, achievable (with…

I believe my musical tastes are finally matured such that I can finally appreciate Tom Waits. I asked my friends where I should start. These are my notes from those comments. These albums were mentioned as good starting points for the Tom Waits newbie. These were mentioned as favorite albums (not necessarily best starting points, but could be). This film and soundtrack were recommended: Big Time For the other map nerds (not my work) https://tomwaitsmap.com

The Short Answer: Tanks all day. We needed to replace our aging hot water tank in 2020, so I discussed the tankless option with several plumbing professionals and homeowners. Over the last few years, I have experienced the transition from tank to tankless at my in-laws home. We confidently decided the tank was better. Tankless solves a problem we don't have (unlimited hot water) and creates two new problems: 1) Slightly longer delay in getting hot water at the taps,…

COVID has permanently shuttered many bars and venues, but the announcement from El Chapultapec in Denver really hits home for me. This unassuming little bar in downtown was a long-standing institution in the music scene, not just locally but nationally too. You could go and hear incredible musicians in this tiny joint any night of the week, most playing not for the patrons but for the love and joy of music. National touring performers have been stopping by El Chapultapec…

I love this building on Canal Road, below the Carnegie bridge and the Guardians of Transportation. Four floors of gently curved industrial brick facing the tracks. A long-disused loading dock hints at a bustle of warehouse activity and freight logistics. The building is just steps from Tower City, Progressive Field, and Collision Bend on the Cuyahoga River, but hardly a car to be seen and no foot traffic at all. (Cleveland, OH, USA - December 2020)

One of my all-time favorite TV shows is an Australian series called "Utopia" (in the US: "Dreamland" on Netflix). It's a comedy centered around a government infrastructure planning and development office (the Nation Building Authority), and the frustrations of bureaucracy and incompetent colleagues. Even if that doesn't sound like your cup of tea, I promise you the scenarios and characters are spot on, and the humor is quick, deadpan, hilarious. I am making my way through the recommendations, and here's…

I am interested in green burial (aka natural burial). Traditional cemeteries are arranged for the living. Traditional burial is expensive, wasteful, and weirdly permanent. Green burial (as defined by the Green Burial Council), is a way of "caring for the dead with minimal environmental impact that aids in the conservation of natural resources, reduction of carbon emissions, protection of worker health, and the restoration and/or preservation of habitat." That resonates strongly with me. Green burial uses non-toxic and biodegradable materials,…

Cleveland civic leaders are gaga for blockchain right now. Organizations are pulling together in an uncharacteristic way, in support of Bernie Moreno's moonshot "Blockland". This week, Noriel Roubini's delivered well-researched statements for the Senate banking committee, on why cryptocurrency is a scam ("the mother or father of all scams and bubbles"), and blockchain is massively overhyped ("In practice it is nothing better than a glorified spreadsheet or database"). Roubini is a professor at NYU, studies asset and credit bubbles, and…