commentaries

A couple of weeks ago, I spent five days in the hospital. Pneumonia. Not the contagious type but one that results from aspirating food. Instead of going where it was supposed to, whatever I ate, morsel or mouthful, missed its target and went into my lung. The nurses on the fifth...

When someone is oblivious to the obvious, unaware of something that’s been highly publicized or touted we might ask if the person has been living under a rock. That’s what I wondered about myself last Saturday after my husband and I finished watching the movie, “Goodfellas.”...

There is a movie coming out later this summer that prominently features some sort of tree creature and a talking space-raccoon. It’s called Guardians of the Galaxy, and it’s based on a comic book I’ve never read. One I’d never heard of until people started about making it...

Memorial Day weekend. Sweetness. A three-day weekend. Thirteen days left in the school year. Perhaps the weather will begin to feel like spring as we are now less than a month from the official start to summer. What does Memorial Day weekend bring for you in the way of memories...

Many years ago, I saw a sign that read, “If you can read this, thank a teacher.” I could read it but did nothing about it. In fact, I never gave it another thought. Until recently, that is, when I learned May is Teacher Appreciation Month. I attended Catholic grade schools...

Drum roll, please. Last week, I shared with you an important date from my past. This week, on March 14, a landmark day for two reasons. Reason number one: Trimester Two is ending today. This is a day normally intended JUST for teachers. Students were originally scheduled to...

Every year about this time, my boss put the salespeople on notice. There would be a mandatory meeting that afternoon at such-and-such a time. We all knew what that meant. He planned to get us enthused about the spring market. After a winter of cleaning snow off cars, scraping...

I look at things at a different way than most people. I constantly find myself asking the question: “why?” I don’t know if I tend to think of things more in depth than people or I just don’t know as much as other people but I am constantly wondering why things work,...

We all have events in our lives that shape who we become and where we go in life. The death of a parent usually is one of those moments that brings all of life to an abrupt halt. March 7 marks the 29th year of my mother’s passing. I’ve shared her multiple times here with you....

There has been no shortage of complaining about this winter we are currently experiencing. This winter that, it sometimes feels, will linger on into spring, elbow its way past summer and make itself comfortable on a bed of fall leaves right up to the point it laps itself like...

The big buildup to Sunday night’s Oscars began the Monday before when my husband and I planned the menu for the upcoming broadcast. It ended Sunday afternoon with the start of the red carpet show, the prelude to the television event I have said is as special to me as my birthday. ...

For 17 days this month some of the greatest athletes in the world gathered in Sochi, Russia to showcase their athletic abilities. To come together in the spirit of friendly competition and push to the very limits a human being’s ability to balance on slippery surfaces. The...

In honor of its 10th birthday, Facebook sent gifts to its members — a video tableau of photos and most-liked posts from the member’s page, the present is set to music and lasts a minute. Once the gift is opened, recipients can share it with their friends on the social media site. ...

About this time last year, when I was a junior in high school, I decided I was really interested in doing PSEO. PSEO stands for post-secondary enrollment option. A couple of my friends chose PSEO and loved it so I got a little more information and eventually decided to enroll. PSEO...

It’s finally February. I thought January would never end. In 32 years, I’ve never had to listen to talk of “adding student-contact” days. It’s been surreal on some levels. I’ve heard from some former students who are now freshmen in college, and they can’t believe school...