“The first problem for all of us is not to learn but to unlearn.” — Gloria Steinem

I see Sumner Elementary may introduce a school year where students will attend forty-five days to be followed by 15 days off; alternating the process throughout the year.

The other day I got to thinking about sending students to school on cloudy days and having them stay home and hang out on sunny days but then you might run into days that begin as cloudy and then the sun breaks through. I guess that could be a half-day of school and a half-day of play.

Gloria’s thought, not to learn but to unlearn, has a nice ring to it too. Maybe her suggestion could be applied to Sumner’s plan and give the unlearning a chance.

Looking back to Eugene McCarthy’s thoughts on Vietnam, which he opposed: “As it went on, you could tell people running it didn’t know what was going on.” And after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, McCarthy said the United States was partly to blame for ignoring the plight of Palestinians.

Plutarch said: “They are wrong who think that politics is like an ocean voyage or military campaign, something to be done with some particular end in view.” Perhaps Obama is beginning to feel that our efforts in this current war we find ourselves in are not exactly meaningful.

As for our Mello, she is quite amazed by the sparrows nesting next-door beneath the neighbor’s car in the driveway. They like to hide under the frame to stay warm at least until Mello passes by. It’s one of her highlights when they take flight when she spots them.

She still seems to favor sitting on the couch and barking at neighborhood people passing by or if she sees one of the neighborhood dogs trot by.

Fortunately January has passed us by; unfortunately February is carrying on the cold air, at least for now. The first ice that fell as slush early on is still embedded in the driveway.

The sad news is the passing of Keith Unruh this week.