Although I trained regularly for the last few years, this year I started a running streak. Beginning June 9, 2020, I did not miss a day. I kept my streak through a pandemic, a new job, and a move to a new city. Weather ranged from high humidity heat in Washington, D.C. to freezing-cold and… Continue reading A Year of Running Daily 2020-2021
Archival Images
This year is five years since I got my second masters degree. It makes seven since I started graduate studies. In that time I have been to archives in multiple countries, several states, and a number of different institutions. Some archives resulted in hundreds of photos that I have kept and categorized for future research.… Continue reading Archival Images
The End of Old Shanghai
In my conversation with James Carter, we talked about his new book Champions Day: The End of Old Shanghai. It was nice to have a historian of China on the Hour of History Podcast and interesting to learn about China in the 1930s. The Shanghai International Settlement is a fascinating example of twentieth century empire… Continue reading The End of Old Shanghai
Poland 1939 – The Outbreak of World War II
I will start looking back at all of the episodes I recorded for the Hour of History Podcast, so they are searchable not only on Youtube but also this website. Let’s start with my conversation with Roger Moorhouse about his book on the Nazi invasion of Poland and the start of World War II.
El Chino de la Charada
One of my smaller projects was the Hour of History Cities Podcast. I recorded short informational lectures based on items that defined important cities in the world. The most popular, it seems, is my discussion of El Chino de la Charada in Havana. There are some cool sources on this out there, but I haven’t… Continue reading El Chino de la Charada
Bach is the Best
A video for you on Good Friday, first performed 297 years ago: Bach proving, once again, that people were doing pretty extraordinary things a few hundred years ago.
Book and a Backpack: Belfast
In spring of my sophomore year in college, I found a cheap flight from Baton Rouge to London and spent a few days walking around the city. While I was in London, EasyJet had a promotional 0GPB fare from London to Belfast and back. I ended up paying something like ten pounds in taxes for… Continue reading Book and a Backpack: Belfast
St. Patrick’s Day
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! The first ever Hour of History episode was an experimental conversation about the origins and history of the patron saint of Ireland, who is the inspiration for the celebrations that take place all around the world on March 17. We came a long way from that first episode, and re-released it… Continue reading St. Patrick’s Day
A Book and a Backpack
I have written frequently in the past about books I’ve read and places to which I’ve traveled. In my upcoming posts, I will recount some of my favorite places and the books that accompanied me on my travels. This won’t be limited to places that I’ve been, but will also highlight places that I’d like… Continue reading A Book and a Backpack
“The Dig” and Sutton Hoo
Just watched “The Dig” on Netflix and it reminded me of a fun conversation I had with Dr. Courtnay Konshuh on the Hour of History Podcast. We talked about Anglo-Saxons and where archaeology meets history and art. I still haven’t read Beowulf, but I will someday!