I have been watching too much sports, but I have noticed something important. Whoever scores last in baseball, football, basketball, lacrosse, hockey, or soccer game does not necessarily win. But invariably in tennis whoever gets the last point is victorious. So, to be a good tennis player, just win the last point.

If the United States is to become more like Florida, expect more breathing difficulties. A recent report documents that air quality improved across much of the country from 2015 through 2021. It, however, got worse during this period in Florida.

The pope said that women could participate in a meeting of bishops that will help the pontiff determine the future of the church. Only twenty-one centuries for this tiny step. God does move in mysterious ways. The pope, however, according to the news article, “remains adamant in his opposition to ordaining women as priests and cautious about making women deacons.”

Parental rights. That is the cry to keep the mention of gender or same-sex relationships out of schools. Parents, it is said, should decide how their children should be introduced to such issues. States are also loosening child labor laws under the banner of parental rights. Parents, not the state, should determine whether a fourteen-year-old can work at night in a meatpacking plant. However, states have been banning transgender medical treatment even if the parents would consent to it. I might think it is matter of parental rights to educate children on religion, but Texas is moving to post a version of the Ten Commandments in all classrooms. Parental rights don’t always seem to matter.

Kansas has banned transgender girls from competing in high school athletics. A news report said that there are three transgender people competing in girls high school sports in that state among the over 41,000 girls involved in such sports. I guess every more pressing problem in Kansas has already been addressed and resolved.

New York City still fascinates because it still often mystifies me. We old guys had lunch at a small hot dog place. We decided to move on to another place after downing our food to let others have our places. To our surprise, in that neighborhood we had trouble finding a suitable coffee house. After wandering a few blocks, I peered into a coffee and tea place and saw three or four unoccupied tables. The server, a young woman, said it was all right if we hung out for a while but notified us that their credit card machine was not working.  No problem, I replied.  The four of us came in, and I announced that I was buying.  The server, the only visible employee, seemed inexperienced, and it took a long time to produce a large espresso, a latte, a macchiato, and a bubble tea. I then saw a sign that said that no bills larger than a twenty were permitted. I only had a few singles and a $50 bill. I told her that because I was paying for everybody, it should be all right for her to take my fifty. She was hesitant but consented. I then bought $7 worth of herbal tea to make the change for the fifty even less. The total bill was $31.25. She calculated the bill by noting on a pad the price of every ordered item and brought out a calculator to get the tally. I dug out two dimes and a nickel and the single, which I placed down with the fifty expecting a twenty back. I sat down, and she brought over my change, which turned out to be two fives, nine singles, and four quarters. I wondered what kind of place this was. It did not accept credit cards but did not have a twenty in the till. I looked around and did not see a cash register. She started making the coffee drinks and said that they were out of milk. Was almond-vanilla milk okay, or perhaps half and half? Again, I thought about what kind of coffee-tea place does not have milk. We were there for ninety minutes. During that time only one other customer came in and quickly left. Twenty minutes later an older Asian lady walked in and said something to the server. I could hear the server say, “She left a while ago.”  The Asian woman turned and left without replying. This could not really be a coffee-tea place, I thought, but if it were a front for something else, I could not figure out what it was.