Tales of an Absentee Dad: Redux (Redux)

Scene 1: It is July 5, and Jean and I have brought Sasha to our trendy neighborhood pediatrician for her 18-month checkup. The kid is in fine shape: 89th percentile for height, 49th for weight, and also screaming and crying with terror at the prospect of being examined. Then the nurse practitioner walks in, and …

Want!

When I arrived in Vienna, Austria, the other day, I had a horrible surprise at the airport: My suitcase, which had started the journey with two wheels, now had only one, courtesy of the fine baggage handlers at British Airways. Luckily, the airline rep inside Customs told me they’d replace it—that is, let me spend …