It was the best of times; it was the worst of times…and thus begins the famous Charles Dickens novel “A Tale of Two Cities”.  I remember having to read this book in high school, but since that’s been a few years I don’t really remember the story, but that opening line sure stuck.     But this opening did make me think about the time we live in.  Are we now living in the “best of times” or the “worst of times”, or is it possible that it is both?    Perhaps most every generatio

The age-old question - is the glass half-full or half-empty?  Are you an optimist or a pessimist?  I’m sure many of us know those people who are eternal optimists.  They are always happy, sometimes bubbly, and always seeing the good in other people.  What is wrong with those people? How are they so agreeable all the time?   And then there are the pessimists among us, and you know who you are. Often easy to spot and hard to avoid…you see them around the corner and try to diver

Happy New Year!  Now that January is here and those presents are opened, I wonder how many will last?  Often those shiny new toys opened on Christmas morning end up in a closet or collecting dust on a shelf in a short time.  The newness wears off and then all we have is a pile of junk and a credit card bill.  Are there any good gifts that will actually last through the coming weeks, months, or years?    As I’ve gotten older it seems to me that experiences matter more than thi

Time flies when you’re having fun, and it travels at warp speed the older you get!  Wow, here we are, the end of another year in sight.  We are close to completing the first quarter of the 21 st  century.  It seems like only yesterday we were worried that all of the computers and ATM’s in the world were going to shut down when Y2K rolled around…but here we are, we survived.    As we age some of us don’t like birthdays.  I like my birthday, it’s in the summer and I’ve always s

November can be a tough month with the days getting shorter and the weather getting colder.  I’ve always wondered if “Thanksgiving” was added to the calendar because too many people were complaining about winter coming and someone finally said, “hey, be thankful, it isn’t that bad!” Let’s eat some turkey and stuffing and be fat and happy.      I’m often impressed when I visit our communities and see our residents and our staff in action.  We have some amazing people.  Most of

Have you ever been caught doing something you should not have been doing before?  I’m sure we all have.  Maybe you took a cookie from the...

Do you remember as a child how slowly the month of December would pass?  If you celebrated Christmas and were lucky enough to have a...

I took a chemistry class when I was in college.  It was rough, I didn’t love it, and I’m not sure why I did it.  I suppose I was on a...

July is a good month, summer is here!  Well, this year it’s been cold and rainy so far, so hopefully by the time you read this summer...

Have you ever received a package in the mail with the label, “Fragile, please handle with care”?  When you do, you know that you need to...

I’m not sure if you like golf, but history was made in April when Rory McIlroy completed golf’s grand slam by winning The Masters golf...

Someday I hope to see more of this beautiful country.  Several years ago, my family and I visited the southwestern United States.  We saw...

March is a tough time of the year.  The holidays seem ages ago, February snow has been rampant, illnesses are spreading as we stay inside...

“Honey, did you hear what I just said, were you listening?”  Uh oh, is it obvious that I wasn’t listening…again…ummm, think quickly or...

Happy New Year!  Can you believe it?  2025!  It seems like just yesterday we were all waiting for the world to come crashing down when...

I’m sure we’ve all heard the saying, “it takes a village to raise a child.”  If you are a parent, I’m sure you can relate.  At some point...

The month of November is not always my favorite.  The dark mornings (and evenings) as the days grow shorter and the nights longer.  The...

Have you ever gotten lost while driving?  I remember the “old days” before Google maps or Waze when you either had a map or a road atlas...

5 years ago, I took my family on a trip to the Grand Canyon!  My four children still talk about this trip to the southwest and the...

August is here and the “dog days of summer” have arrived.  I always thought the dog days referred to the hot and humid time of year when...