“What is your advice for new graduates?” asked a reporter friend who was writing a recent newspaper article. “Learn how to budget money and be kind to people,” I replied. On its face, that is really great advice. I know the value of this advice because, God knows, I’ve ignored the heck out of the

We are in the middle of a father shortage. Well, maybe I should re-phrase that. There are plenty of dads. Dads are everywhere. Unfortunately, one in three kids does not live with his/her biological father. This adds up to roughly 24-million kids who do not truly know, or have never met their fathers. These statistics

“Take a picture, it’ll last longer!” – Pee Wee Herman Once again, I am inspired by one of the great minds of my generation. I had to know if a picture indeed lasts longer than a lingering stare. Forget what you know about time, space, eternity, grandma’s photo albums, your horrible prom dress/date, or even

Whose brilliant idea was this whole Spring Cleaning thing, anyway? If you tell me to “Google” it, I’ll wash your mouth out with soap. Okay, I Googled. Spring Cleaning is a ritual created by people who spent winters in torment, isolated in their homes. When it finally got warm outside, swarms of dust mites descended

“Look at me! Look at me! Look at me now! It is fun to have fun, but you have to know how.” Oh, how my Grandpa Cam could bring that genius The Cat in the Hat to life. I did not even need to look at the book; he read the Dr. Seuss masterpiece to me

February is a month for hearts, flowers, and of course … groundhogs. Yes, you can be certain that everywhere you go until around the 15th of this month, the world will be awash with heart-shaped everything, and a whole lot of red and pink. Count on it. However, before St. Valentine or Cupid or whomever

Something I know how to do very well is spin my wheels. I’ve analyzed it every-which-way, and I think I finally figured out why I can get stuck or fail at a goal, or a New Year’s Resolution, for that matter. The revelation occurred after our most recent pre-Christmas snow storm. I was trying to

“… and another one gone! Another one bites the dust!” The music blared through the speakers at the funeral home, as I walked back inside the crowded room. Dawn’s memorial service was standing-room only, and I ended up listening to the tributes from outside the building. She was just 40 years old, the mother of

I can’t lie … I’ve never been much of a “mustache girl.” When I was a kid, I had a Ken doll. “Mod-haired Ken” they called him. He came with removable, reconfigurable facial hair. He became an increasingly bad character, the more facial hair I applied to him. Sporting a full beard and ‘stache, he

A new puppy! They are pretty irresistible – they have that puppy breath, which is why thousands of people visit animal shelters every day, and leave with a brand new, cuddly best buddy. There is no sweeter happy ending. Puppies who find fur-ever homes are often born to dogs that fall into the “less adoptable”

In the matter of a month, Baton Rouge, LA – the place where I grew up – went from a city divided, to a city, quite literally, under water. Heavy rains pushed the murky waters of nearby rivers over their banks, and into the homes of tens of thousands of people. The flood did not

“Breakfast. Gotta have it! Most important meal of the day, you know,” I say to a younger friend. “Legit,” he says. “Legit,” I nod in agreement. As I walk away, I’m thinking, It’s oatmeal. Assuming that “legit” is short for legitimate, then, yes, I guess that oatmeal, breakfast, my choice of breakfast foods … it’s