Letters to the editor

Editor as Muse

I just read the editor's note in the winter edition of Johns Hopkins Magazine and was overwhelmed with emotion. I have had the extreme pleasure and the deep despair of sharing the lives and deaths of many cats over the last 55 years. The fact that one of my current cats/family members, who was lying next to me while I was reading, is dying of liver cancer contributed greatly to my emotion. I love the name of your dog, and the fact that you said he was "hard-wired to love and be loved." I call that unconditional love between my cats and me. I believe your thoughts in the editor's note will inspire me to write another poem, a habit that has kept me (almost) sane during the pandemic.

Thank you. And I was also impressed by "A Life in Dog Years" [Winter 2020], the article about Jennifer Boylan.

William Reamy, Engr '76 (MS)
Towson, Maryland

A Southern Saga

What first prompted me to read "The Ballad of Herty & Petrie" [Winter 2020] was the title: a Western saga perhaps? When I saw it was about the origins of Southern college football, particularly Auburn and University of Georgia, I was thrilled. I attended Mount Holyoke College and was never interested in football until last year. My partner's grandson, JT Daniels, was the starting quarterback at USC and transferred to UGA in 2020. Although he missed this year's Auburn game while recovering from an injury, he started the last three games, which the Dawgs won. How wonderful to discover the JHU connection. Thank you for this fascinating historical insight.

Alison Grabell, SAIS '81 (MA)
Los Angeles

Hats Off

I'm writing regarding "The Man in the Panama Hat" [Winter 2020]. The story is great and the accompanying photographs are magnificent. Congratulations primarily to alum Brent Black but also to writer Ashley Stimpson and photographer Roff Smith for their excellent work, and to you for deciding to include this in your magazine. Well done.

Randolph Barton Jr., A&S '65, '68 (PhD)
Wilmington, Delaware

From the Web:

More kudos for the writer behind "The Man in the Panama Hat":

This is easily the best piece I have read in this magazine in 10 years. The author, Ashley Stimpson, did an excellent job.
—Edward Platia, comment on the Hub

An accidental bait-and-switch with "Research That's in the Weeds" [Winter 2020], about postdoc Ava Hoffman, whose research centers on common weeds such as dandelions:

Not gonna lie; with that headline I was kind of hoping this was research related to cannabis. But this is cool, too.
—Deborah Buffalin, comment on the Hub

It's a feedback loop of feelings for one reader of "Anxiety Fallout" [Winter 2020], about a looming mental health epidemic:

While I don't doubt the public health field needs to prepare to deal with mental health implications of #covid19 pandemic, all these warnings about anxiety fallout are anxiety provoking.
—@Breukelen299, on Twitter