Author Howard Weiner

It’s been almost a month since I’ve posted to the blog. I’ve been busy living life, like most of you, I’m sure. But I’m becoming restless. Again, like most of you. Our most recent trip took place last September. We spent a week in Key West. If you can stand the heat and humidity, early September is a good time to visit. We flew into Ft. Lauderdale and drove south through the Keys on the Overseas Highway. We met my wife’s brother and his son which provided an added good time. One year ago just this week, we returned from a nine-day hiking trip in Provence. Provence was a bit of a surprise. Even though we read about the area beforehand, and we mapped out an interesting town-to-town walk, we were surprised by what we found. Provence is semi-arid to arid. Lots of agriculture, but a ton of drip irrigation too. We walked through more cherry and olive groves than I can count. We walked up and down more hills than we did in the Cotswolds. The walking paths were not up to the Cotswold

Many, but not all, institutions of higher education will start their academic year by welcoming students back to campus this fall. For many reasons, colleges and universities have designed their buildings to foster a sense of community, facilitate group efforts, and improve communication and cooperation among students, faculty, and administrators. Arguably, a college or university’s physical plant works against efforts at social distancing. When indoors, the risk of community transmission exceeds that risk outdoors. Start with dormitories. Institutions of some age have a range of dorms each constructed with a different philosophy. Older buildings are (long) hallways connecting private and semi-private rooms and a limited number of shared restrooms. More recent buildings feature a pod concept where a series of private and semi-private rooms share a common living area, kitchens, and restrooms. Contemporary buildings are designed as a collection of private and semi-private apartments