Thursday, April 21, 2011

The Boston Globe...

I realize my Boston Marathon blogging was a little over the top so this is only a Boston 'blast from the past’ memory post. There will be no mention of races or running.

But I’m kind of a news junkie and my obsession with newspapers probably started with The Boston Globe when we lived in New England in the 1980’s. I used to get every penny’s worth from our subscription.

The writer, Ellen Goodman, syndicated Pulitzer prize winning columnist, was one of my favorite things about the Globe.

I was a devout follower of Ellen Goodman’s columns even though her views were more liberal than mine. I loved her writing and her candor. She was a native Bostonian, attended Radcliffe college, and after a stint at Newsweek began writing for the Boston Globe. In describing what her mother did, Goodman’s daughter, Katie, as a young girl, told people her Mom got paid for telling people what she thought. Ellen Goodman still thinks that is about as good a description for a columnist as any.

Devouring Ellen Goodman columns in The Boston Globe led to my love for the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, etc. The East Coast definitely beats the West Coast when it comes to newsprint. And the years we lived back east clearly instilled a love of reading the newspaper that never wavered even when we moved west. Spending a few days in Boston brought back memories of discovering good opinion editorial writing, especially from columnists like Ellen Goodman.

“I have never been especially impressed by the heroics of people convinced they are about to change the world. I am more awed by those who struggle to make one small difference.” -Ellen Goodman