So, it’s been several weeks since New Year’s. How are your resolutions coming? Did you make one involving exercise? Were you swayed by one of the latest fads such as sculpt workouts, Zumba, spinning (bicycling), shine dance (see my article…
What would you do if you found a half-grown pig looking sick and lost wandering your neighborhood on a blustery, cold day? It was on such a day, that a gentleman named Sam found an abandoned pig barely alive in…
Years ago I was at Ellison Bay’s folk school, “The Clearing,” for a weeklong class called “Touch the Earth; Love the Earth” when the director mentioned that we could sign up to spend the night in the Cliffhouse. Back in…
“When I was a freshman, one evening my date handed me the first violet of spring. I looked at it, told him its Latin name and then I ate it. It was our last date.” —Frances Hamerstrom, American ornithologist, Wild…
Traveling to Panama just weeks before New Year’s was a good reminder to cherish the old and embrace the new. Impressive pre-Columbian ruins are nestled between modern skyscrapers, some with amazing architectural designs. One soaring building was blueish and had…
Christmas is sights, especially the sights of Christmas reflected in the eyes of a child. William Sarayan, American novelist and playwright In planning for the holidays, I asked my daughter who lives in California if she’ll be bringing mandarins like…
My husband and I bought the matching brown velvety chairs the year after we married. They’ve been with us for forty-six years. The fabrics are worn, and the mechanisms, replaced twice, are grinding again, but, like dear friends, we can’t…
Thanksgiving is the perfect time to discuss the benefits of keeping a gratitude journal. I’ve done this since April. Although fancy journals are available, I didn’t invest in one. I simply use a small spiral notebook to jot down five…
While hiking along the Wisconsin River, I see raccoon tracks. They’re distinctive because they’re shaped like human hands. I’m near the same ridge where, earlier in the spring, I heard the frantic cries of a baby raccoon in distress. I…
I’m happily whipping about, my arms full of sheets, when I turn the tight corner into the laundry room. Crash! My mood plummets. I grumble as I dump the sheets in the washer, grab the waste basket, and drop down…