Mother’s Day has always been one of my favorite holidays, when my sons show their love and appreciation for me in special ways. It’s a day when I know how truly blessed I am.
Spring is in the air. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, people are venturing outdoors and flowers are blooming. For humans, it’s easy to know when spring has arrived. We feel the warm temperatures, we hear the birds, smell the flowers and see the changes all around us and it must be much the same for most animals. But, what of the plants? How do they know when it is time to emerge from the earth and bloom? What external or internal cues let them know when spring has arrived?
I’ve lived in Texas for about ten years – first in Austin and then, in and around Houston. And during the decade, I’ve only been to Dallas three times. Texas is a big place, after all, and traveling the distance between cities is daunting, especially considering it can take three hours to just get from one end of Houston to the other.
In December, I wrote about the ratcheting-up of our inflationary numbers. We had recently heard from our Federal Reserve Chairman, Jerome Powell, that we need not worry because the inflation created through our government’s money printing policies and its COVID restriction-induced supply chain debacle was going to be “transitory.” I assumed that “transitory” must be related to something close to having an enema, because in my opinion, that’s exactly what this inflation situation has felt like. Much to my surprise after looking up the definition, the word transitory meant that this inflationary spike was going to be temporary. I then started reviewing some of the past Federal Reserve meeting minutes and realized that this transitory inflation has now lasted for over nine months! *
Growing up in Illinois, I was blessed to have many educational opportunities outside of the classroom. You might say I was a nerd, but I absolutely devoured the big activity books my mom and dad bought for me and my sisters. I spent hours plowing through them, doing the word search, word scramble, crossword, connect-the-dot puzzles and more. I also loved coloring books of every description and my big box of Crayola Crayons.
Hopefully by the time this is published, the war will be over and peace will prevail in Eastern Europe. At the time of this column’s writing, the conflict is escalating. In addition to the horrific humanitarian crisis, the war threatens substantial harm to the U.S. economy.
Each of my neighbors within a five-house radius has a key to my house. I did not give any of them a key.
What’s your favorite color? Is it a primary like blue, red, yellow? Or something more exotic like cerulean, goldenrod, scarlet or the infamous (and now retired) yellow-green? Everyone has an answer to this question going as far back as they can remember and it’s all due to a pack of small wax sticks given to us as toddlers with the directive to “stay inside the lines.” As a society, the majority of our introduction to color and the myriad of shades and hues that exist came in the form of crayons and, once acquired, no blank piece of paper, wall, sibling or t-shirt was left unmarked. As the tool of choice for child artists everywhere, the crayon reigns supreme. And, even as an adult, I’ll bet you have a small box of crayons somewhere at home.
If you want to celebrate some Irish heritage for St. Patrick’s Day and mix it up from the traditional corned beef meal, meatballs are a delicious and versatile dish. You can serve them as an appetizer or as a main course over mashed potatoes.
“Reacher,” the new series on Amazon Prime Video was released in February. Played by Alan Ritchson, the title character is a 6’ 5”-250 lb powerhouse of a human and retired U.S. Army military policeman who roams around the country and finds trouble wherever he stops. The series begins in Margrave, GA as Jack Reacher is enjoying a slice of peach pie in a small diner when he is arrested and accused of a murder he didn’t commit.
