Waiting in the Wings
I am a Jewish member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard who will be leaving for a short deployment to Baghdad International Airport this spring. Knowing that US Army Captain Andrew Shulman and others like him are in Baghdad ("In a Strange Land," January 13) has already made me a bit less anxious.
Eric J. Schwinder
Allston
Getting the Signal
I'm a single 40-something male, and you can count me among the ranks of those who do not own a television ("Perspective," January 13). About eight months ago, I read an article that said if you are single, living alone, and find yourself watching repeats of Friends, take your TV outside and throw a brick through it. That is basically what I did.
Am I completely television-free? No. I travel frequently for work and find myself mindlessly watching cable television in the hotel rooms. I have no idea what I watched last night. I am working on breaking myself of this habit. I had an easier time giving up cigarettes than TV! Am I happy that I got rid of the one at home? Yes. Now when I am home, I do things that I enjoy. At the moment, I am sitting at my kitchen table reading last Sunday's newspaper, listening to the radio, and having an intelligent thought while composing this e-mail.
David Mullen
Derry, New Hampshire
Your illustration of a TV in the trash can negated a lot of effort spent to educate the public about the importance of disposing of electronic wastes in an environmentally safe way. Television sets contain huge amounts of lead and other dangerous heavy metals and are currently banned from the waste stream by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. They must be handled as hazardous waste at special collections or kept in separate piles at town disposal areas for removal by licensed hazardous-waste haulers.
Virginia C. Gregg
Chairman, Solid Waste Advisory Committee
Falmouth
Lost at Sea
It's easy to be frustrated with Stephen and Asher Woods's ineptitude and lack of preparation ("I Couldn't Get Him. . ." January 13), but I imagine it's easier to find ourselves in a position like that than we realize.
Josh Fisher
Portland, Maine
Editor's Note
In the story about New Hampshire man Stephen Woods, who died at sea while boating with his son, some information was omitted: Woods's widow, Deborah Woods, 52, of Stratham, New Hampshire, has been charged with stealing more than $200,000 from her late husband's former law firm, Gage & Woods in Exeter, New Hampshire, and a second firm. A trial is scheduled for this summer.
