Let’s just come right out and say it: 2008 was a bummer.
Actually, that is one of the kindest things one might say about the not-so-dear departed year.
The welcome to 2009 is bound to be more subdued than usual.
The state of the world, the state of the economy, the state of just about everything […]
There is a sweet 1834 painting by Edward Hicks titled The Peaceable Kingdom showing animals of every description relaxing together, and I have a book by the same title, which is about the various animals at the Philadelphia Zoo.
In the preface to that book, a noted author wrote, “In a world older and more complete […]
Now the endless lists begin. What did we ever do BP — Before Post-its — because the list never happens to be where we are.
Or is it beneath the living-breathing (I’ll swear) pile of papers, envelopes, CDs, notes that remind us of something we were supposed to do yesterday that accumulates and grows at […]
October’s fabled bluebird weather has long since flown, but while blending into grey November left memories that will help us survive the looming winter.
One of my sweetest memories will be the morning of Nov. 8 when, to my absolute jaw-dropping disbelief, I saw, perched on the rim of my bird bath, a real, honest to […]
Reading the daily horoscope is always good for a laugh, especially when it predicts wonderful romantic encounters plus great wealth and adventurous travel.
Mine for Oct. 15 expounds on stress, noting, “You’ve probably heard that there is good stress and bad stress. However, just now, you’d be wise to avoid both kinds. Take the measures necessary […]
To paraphrase the famous lines from Robert Burns’ To a Mouse poem: The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.
(If you want the Scottish brogue version: The best laid schemes o’ mice and men gang a’ft agley.)
Today’s plans were to play outside after first writing the column, maybe getting some […]
In the column for the Sept. 11 edition, I wrote about all the scary storms everywhere else and hoped the other shoe would not drop.
Well, didn’t it drop! When our area received microbursts and wind gusts upward of 60 miles per hour (or more some say), it is really frightening. And the odd part was […]
With the scary hurricanes and scary tornadoes and scary severe thunderstorms swirling all around us, we keep waiting for the other shoe to drop, so to speak, and hopefully by the time you read this, we’ll still be waiting.
Amidst all of this, I found a lovely quotation that should give us pause, and to realize […]
They were such an unlikely pair, but pair they were. Playing together. Sleeping together. Eating together.
They were Hamilton, 70 lovable pounds of boxer mix, and Winston, maybe 8 pounds of Jack Russell terrier, a bundle of lovable, feisty, endless energy. Winston was boss. No one ate until Winston finished his meal, not even Jesse, the […]
Long before November, the television’s remote or its mute button or both will self-destruct. With my help.
Witness the gag reflex for the explicit commercials for what should be very personal problems for men and women, invariably aired at supper time. Hit the button.
And now pre-election political come-ons for both parties are repeated over and over, […]
