Halloween stuff starts showing up in stores before the back-to-school merchandise goes on clearance. If you haven’t been Halloween shopping, you are missing out, my friend.
Where do filmmakers get their story ideas? Sometimes, from places you might not know about.
As of July 2019, the national savings rate in the U.S. is approximately 7.7% of household income, down slightly from 8.0% in June.* The rate has been steadily increasing since hitting its all-time low of 2.2% in July 2005. I am excited to see that people are starting to make wiser decisions when it comes to their finances; but when we look at other developed countries, we start to see the greater picture of our spending relative to some of our global neighbors. The countrymen of Switzerland store away 13.5% of their monthly pay. The French manage to save 14.94%. Our Mexican neighbors sock away 21% of their earnings. When it comes to savings, though, Asian countries put the rest of us to shame. Japan saves 34%, South Korea comes in at 34.6% and China tops the list at 36.10% of monthly personal household income being saved.*
One truth I have learned through traveling is that a tourist’s impressions of a place are largely colored by the tourist, himself or herself. The same exact city through two different pairs of eyes can look unbelievably dissimilar.
“Alas! Neither by day nor by night knew I the blessing of Rest any more! During the former, the creature left me no moment alone; and, in the latter, I started, hourly, from dreams of unutterable fear, to find the hot breath of the thing upon my face, and its vast weight – an incarnate Night-Mare that I had no power to shake off – incumbent eternally upon my heart!” – from “The Black Cat” by Edgar Alan Poe
I love trick or treaters! Weeks before Halloween, I pick up bags of candy here and there (typically, the kinds I DON’T like so I won’t eat it all). I love watching the little kids, the ninjas, the super-heroes, the ballerinas and fairy princesses, and I even love the scary and ghoulish costumes, sometimes tossing extra candy into the bag of a kid whose costume I really like. I don’t mind the teenagers who bang on the door, shouting “Trick or Treat!” in their deep, tenor voices. It’s okay if they hang on to a childhood tradition for as long as they can, and it’s certainly better than some of the more mischievous things they could be doing on Halloween. BUT, is trick-or-treating becoming a thing of the past? I hope not.
On August 3, Greater Flint soccer enthusiasts turned out to support the Flint City Bucks as they squared off against Reading United (PA) for the USL2 National Championship. A record-breaking 7,200 fans cheered, sang, danced and celebrated as forward, Ayuke Tambe, scored the game’s only goal on a penalty kick in the second overtime. After a nervy ten minutes, the final whistle blew and Flint City had become champions. Fans stormed the pitch and crowded around the stage near midfield as the team and city were presented with the championship trophy.
President Trump recently escalated the trade dispute with China by imposing new tariffs and labeling China as a “currency manipulator.” It is unlikely that this escalation will be permanent, as President Trump has an incentive to bring the dispute to a speedy resolution.
National Grandparent’s Day is celebrated in the month of September. It originated in 1978 when President Jimmy Carter declared that it be observed on the first Sunday after Labor Day. The purpose is “to honor grandparents, to give grandparents an opportunity to show love for their children’s children, and to help children become aware of the strength, information and guidance older people can offer.” I have to say that being a grandparent has brought much joy to my life (as many of you already know because I write about my grandkids all the time). In honor of Grandparent’s Day, I would like to share a few of my favorite stories.
For my husband and me, Italy’s Amalfi Coast is our special place. We honeymooned there. And we have returned every other year since that honeymoon to recapture some of that early-days romance, some of that excitement of our younger selves, and to bask in the golden rays of the sun-soaked Coast.
In the words of the great Aerosmith, “Talk about things that nobody cares,” is precisely related to the title of this article and very aptly named after the band’s 1975 Top 40 hit, “Sweet Emotion.”
