Odds and Ends
A handful of short takes and unexpected voices shapes this month’s Observer—more brief pieces, stray amusements, and the debut of our OLLI Sketchbook, where classic cartoons now have AI sidekicks. Scroll at your own delight.
Sniffles
— Russ Hochstetler
Russ Hostetler found his calling as a physician while working in Conflict Management and Crisis Intervention as a Special Police Officer in Dayton, Ohio after graduating from Ball State University with a degree in psychology. His medical career included faculty positions at two medical schools, directorships in three managed care settings and a consultative clinical practice in geriatrics. After retirement, he volunteered as a Senior Medical Officer in Marine Corp endurance events operations, is an active member of the Florida Department of Health Medical Reserve Corps, and is a Healthy Community Clinical Director for the Special Olympics. He enjoys building furniture, tennis, writing, cooking and baking, nursing his understanding of the German language, and being grandpa to several delightful children.
Letters to the Editor
To the Editor,
In times of rising tension with Iran, I am reminded that the greatest victories are those won without fighting. A nation that allows anger or pride to dictate its course walks willingly into the traps it fears most. Conflict is not a test of strength alone but of clarity, patience, and the ability to see the field whole.
Iran is a complex adversary—rooted in history, motivated by honor, and skilled in asymmetric warfare. To strike hastily is to enter terrain of their choosing. To threaten without purpose is to reveal one’s own uncertainty. The wise commander studies not only the enemy’s capabilities but also his incentives, fears, and internal divisions. Pressure applied without understanding becomes fuel for unity among one’s opponents.
America’s true advantage lies not in overwhelming force but in strategic flexibility. Use diplomacy to divide hardliners from pragmatists. Use economic leverage to shape choices rather than provoke defiance. Strength is most effective when it is quiet, disciplined, and unpredictable.
If conflict becomes unavoidable, let it be because every alternative has been exhausted—not because impatience has been mistaken for resolve. The nation that masters restraint wins long before the first blow is struck.
—Sun Tzu
Sun Tzu, a military thinker from China’s late Spring and Autumn period (5th Century BCE), is best known as the mind behind The Art of War. His influence is undeniable, even though his life remains mostly a mystery. Historians still debate whether he was a single strategist, a composite of several thinkers, or simply a name attached to a text that evolved over time. Copilot was used to compose this letter in the “voice” of Sun Tzu.
In reply to Critter Chronicles, The Observer — March 2026
Dear Pretzel,
We, Minette and Jeff, understand your longing. Our hooman mom is nice, she gives us catnip to chew on, but, by the Good Feline Lord!, how meowderful it will be to sink our claws in those fat and juicy pretty things!
Don’t give up; do us proud, and, stealthily, pounce on any chance you have to get your prey.
Bonne chasse,
Minette et Jeff
Minette and Jeff are under house arrest for the crimes of extreme cuteness and lovability. In their previous lives, mostly unknown, they are suspected of having engaged in loitering and vagabondage. Their custodians, or more precisely, their servants, are Lise and Randy who provide them with plenty of affection, games, catnip, and squirrel and lizard viewings.
The OLLI Sketchbook
A Cartoon by Art Henrikson
This 1970 cartoon depicts a House of Representatives tour guide informing gallery visitors, “This new glass protects the members from the visitors and protects the visitors from the members.” Visitors receive scorecards which identify where their representatives sit and what they do. The predominantly Democratic 91st Congress debated the legality of the Cambodian incursion and passed legislation to punish campus protesters and those burning draft cards. They rejected President Nixon’s Supreme Court nominees.
Younger House members sponsored the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970, which required open committee meetings, allowed for electronic voting, and required more transparent voting. Demonstrators in the gallery disrupted Congressional sessions by shouting grievances against the Vietnam War and government secrecy.
In 2026, gallery visitors may watch House members not taking any action unless the bill has the President’s stamp of approval.
Diane Henrikson Russell, Archive Curator, has been an OLLI Member since 2014. In addition to her ongoing role as Curator of the Henrikson Cartoon Archive, Diane has written over 35 stories for OLLI Connects since its inception and continues to be a frequent contributor. Diane volunteers as a proofreader for the OLLI catalog and for OLLI Connects. Diane was Co-chair of the Volunteer Management Committee from 2019 through early 2023.
A Contemporary Cartoon
While preparing this issue, we discovered a.i. tools that effectively create editorial cartoons. Those that appear in Bob Strozier’s article, “My New Year’s Resolutions,” were created by Adobe Firefly, and the cartoon above was generated with prompts suggested by Chat GPT and refined by Copilot. In the end, Copilot designed the most successful version. In future issues we will continue adding contemporary cartoon content on this page to contextualize the curated drawings made by Art Henrikson. — Editors
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