Fr. Karol Józef Wojtyła drove an ancient Ford Escort with a 1.1 liter engine and a 4 on the floor manual shifter. He kept a small tin for mints on the dashboard with an image of Our Lady on the lid. In this most holy expression of unassuming transport, he completed the journey from Poland … More The Pope’s Old Ford: Lessons in Simplicity
Truckasaurus Rex is just the most recent manifestation of how a civilization memorializes its perceived heroism. Like the Colossus of Rhodes it too is doomed. Meanwhile life on the freeway is a bit like the science fiction film The Matrix. … More Truckasaurus Rex: The Colossus of Roads
Thesis: For self driving cars to work, everyone must use them such that the software can adequately predict the behavior of other vehicles. No exceptions. This requires a wholesale change of our American concept of Liberty, resembles the promises of a utopian world that always seems to degenerate into totalitarianism, and Americans are not … More Self Drive, Drive Self
My parents wed in 1956 and they went the distance; 62 years, until Mom died this spring. This is the story of the wedding. It is 1955. My parents announce their engagement and party is held in the house my grandparents built during the war. They set the date for July 14th, 1956, which is … More My Parents Big Fat Catholic Wedding
You my find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile. You may find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful wife. You may ask yourself, “Well, how did I get here?”- David Byrne My family has always owned Buicks. I remember my grandmother telling me the Roadmaster had been her favorite car, but … More There is Refuge in the Road: My Father’s Buick
There is refuge in the road, A diplomacy for the mind, A going to, and a getting away, A task and a respite. There is refuge in the road. The engine roars to life And we accelerate out of the ordinary. There is refuge in the road. The hills and valleys roll past, … More There is Refuge in the Road
I decided to drop my portable digital recorder into one of the Ford’s cup holders again and give a running commentary on my commute. Hey now, that’s entertaining; Pete Patterson drives to work; some fun, some serious events. One woman in an aging sedan honks at me as she speeds past. Her bumper sticker: “Co-exist.” … More The Pete Patterson Commute
I grew up in a village called Immaculate Conception Parish in the 1960’s. We had a fundamental narrative about how life was supposed to be, where your place in the universe was, and a sense of right and wrong. Ultimately this was shattered by a remarkably critical world that tossed that narrative aside without much thought and … More But it is 1978!
There’s a lady who’s sure Her car is too small And she’s buying a stairway to headroom When she gets the right car Her life will be right With the drive she can be who she should be Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh And she’s buying a stairway to headroom There’s a sign on the … More Stairway to Headroom
I have maintained for a long time there is a flaw in the First Amendment. Anyone can start a church. One day in my practice, years ago now, a woman blew into my office to ask me to draft a settlement between her and her boyfriend about the custody of their 2 year old. Sort … More I’m A “Full” Christian
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