News & Views of Phillips Since 1976
Sunday December 21st 2025
RETURNING
CHAPTER 2
By PATRICK CABELLO HANSEL
Luz fell asleep on the 21 bus””again””and went several stops past 17th. She didn”™t realize it until she was just passing the Zapata statue. She yanked on the cord so hard it almost broke, and yelled, “Stop! Stop! Damn it, I said Stop!”, which is not a good thing to yell on the 21 during rush hour. Actually, it”™s not a good thing to yell anything on the 21 during rush hour, or most any other hour, period. People do it of course, but it almost always increases the tightness in the passenger”™s bodies, bodies that are tight enough to begin with.
The bus stopped just shy of the Dollar Store on 10th. Luz stomped down the three steps in her winter boots and stepped right into a slushy pile, made up of equal parts ice, snow and dirt. She yelled up to heaven, “You Stop too!”, but heaven was busy with wars and rumors of war and earthquakes and the like. Luz was tired, she was frustrated, she was mad. Mad at God, mad at herself, mad at this world that was so hard to live in.
Luz had been planning to surprise Angel and the kids with some of the fabulous chicken from the little kitchen in the gas station on 17th. Especially… Read the rest “RETURNING”
The World Opens Up.
Phillips Neighborhood Clinic
By HARRY LEEDS
By now you have probably heard about the global pandemic. If you haven”™t stepped outside your house in three months, then I”™ll tell you””oh, you know already.
In recent weeks, many states, including Minnesota, have been opening up businesses. Does this mean that it is safe to go back and interact with the public?
Well, it depends on what you mean by “safe.” On the one hand, our doctors are more experienced with coronavirus and we have more medical equipment to fight it. On the other, even though numbers of hospitalizations for COVID-19 in Minnesota have been declining, there are still many cases out in the community. With businesses reopening and people gathering for protests, getting infected is still possible and we still don”™t have a vaccine or very effective medicine. Many experts think we will soon see another increase in hospitalized cases.
People with cardiovascular disease and diabetes seem to be at higher risk for developing severe corona complications, so those people should weigh the risks of going into large groups heavily when thinking about how to spend their days.
If you are indeed ready to stretch your legs, I would recommend going for a walk over going to a bar. Sun… Read the rest “The World Opens Up.”
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