I Get Letters!

It's time to re-read last year's mail. One of the best things about writing a column is hearing from readers. Most of your comments have been great--friendly, informative, funny or all of the above. Some, of course are in disagreement, which is fine too. But you can't please everybody. That's what makes it interesting. One of the mottoes hanging over my desk says, "If you can't annoy someone there is little point in writing."

I think the funniest email came from a man in Boulder. "If you were at CU in the early 30's that would make you -- holy Toledo! I well remember the school yard squabbles between the 'Hoovers' and the 'Roosevelts' in 1932." This was in response to an article in the Coloradan.

The You Said it Column has taken away part of my negative correspondence. People can let off steam anonymously and with little effort.

Last year the hot words were abortion and Hillary. This year most of the disagreement centered on Hillary. It is hard for me to understand how some people can hate so bitterly a woman they have never met and don't really understand and who is, at the moment, working quietly as a U. S. Senator. But -- One letter was quite expressive. "So you would vote for Hillary Clinton in the 2008 Election. Well, that certainly is your right and I respect that. However, I want you to know that this one senior who doesn't share your affection for Hillary I think she is a dangerous, evil woman and if she ever becomes President, I hope that I am 6 feet under." OK, I got the point.

Having spent a year with the most ferocious Freshman English teacher at CU, I really try to avoid grammatical errors. But they do slip through now and then. July 4 I wrote, "I laid there in my dentist's office on a big soft chair and watched the little white clouds." Sorry, Mrs. Hulley. An unsigned letter says, "As a role model for would-be harridans, you should watch your grammar. In your latest column you confused "lay" and "lie." Laid is transitive, as in 'laid an egg'". My son Dave also pointed it out, only somewhat more politely. The fact is, I realized when I wrote it that it was probably wrong, and did not take the time to check it out. Sorry.

A man from Alpine, Texas wanted to know where to get the article on the LaVeta Hotel in Gunnison. He is doing research. My family stayed there often when I was a kid .

In one column I mentioned the sense of wonder, which grows as we grow older. But one reader would take away the wonder. She wrote that the Bible explains all the questions of the universe and if I would read it I would not have to wonder any more.

On the other hand, a chaplain from Colorado Springs sent me a copy of a beautiful sermon about the mysteries of life and their emotional impact on us. He said in part, "The more we know about the universe, the more mysterious it is. Ah but what a mystery." I like his version best.

And the letters thanking me for last year's column on liberalism keep coming in. It was also printed in the Denver Post.

From Hawaii: "I am PROUD to be a liberal. Your column makes me feel so--oo--ooo --GOOD." Sounds like a teenager.

From Aurora; "I was at the Arapahoe County Democratic Meeting last night. Several people mentioned the article. You were certainly the hit and a note of encouragement at our meeting."

One thing I learned. There are a lot more liberals and Democrats in this area than you think. Trouble is, too many of them are in the closet.

Thanks to everyone who wrote. And let's all try to have a Happy 2004.