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‘The Media’? There Is No ‘The’ In ‘Media’

Those of us who write commentaries are just as prone to random acts of stupidity as are Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.An example? Arthur Schaper's headline.It reads, in part, "The media are biased."So what Mr. Schaper is saying is that he himself is biased.The problem arises with the phrase, "The media."It does not exist."Media" is a plural noun. The singular form, as we all know, is "medium."This newspaper is one medium for the spreading of news.Another medium is The Progress, our over-the-mountain sister newspaper in Clearfield.Put them together. We have two "media."But the noun is ...

Summer: A Warm Memory

I can't believe that soon it will be September, school will be starting in a few days and the leaves will soon be changing. I was driving around this weekend, looking at the world as it readies for the beginning of fall as summer comes to a close.It seems like it was barely a whisper.Here in the frozen tundra that is Western New York, we cling to the summer months not unlike a child clings to their mother on their very first day of school.I should know, because I've seen children grabbing at their mom's pantleg, wailing until they couldn't breathe on the first day of school.That's how I ...

How Am I Doing So Far?

In all walks of life, we have those moments when we have to make decisions - while plotting our courses, taking care of business, sometimes taking chances, assuming risks, making investments, and more, most of those times with a hope (but without a clue) how those things will turn out for us. Often times, life allows you to plan in some cases. Other times, life forces you to do things, or make decisions on the spur of the moment. Some may call those spur-of-the-moment times or decisions, "gut check" times, or "from the gut" decisions, where you have no choice but to act first without the ...

Those Aren’t My Tomatoes

Well, they looked just like tomato plants - and I knew I put some tomato seeds in my garden.The plants surprised me by being so happy to grow here, leaping up by the proverbial leaps and bounds. I anticipated a great harvest. An abundance of tomatoes and apples too - what a year indeed!Only why, when I went out later for a closer look (keeping an eye at the same time on my one and a half zucchinis), were all these tomatoes hollow? They look more like the Japanese lantern plant than anything I could imagine eating.Then, loading up on ripe tomatoes at a local grocers, I saw my "things" in ...

Harvest Your Peppers

If you did not plant peppers this year I am sorry, but it is too late. Peppers require a very specific climate and grow best when it is warm. The farmer's markets will soon be full of juicy ripe specimens.Last year I watched for peppers. I have several recipes that take peppers and I wanted to put some into the freezer. When I freeze peppers I cut them into pieces so they are ready to add to whatever I choose. I use them in my chili as well as in other soups such as stuffed pepper soup and red pepper soup. I bag them with just the right amount for each recipe, then, double bag those ...

On Burying The Dog

For a long time, I've had three dogs - a big red mutt named Rosie, a fancy little toy poodle named Pip and a handsome Shih Tzu named Toby. Toby came to me from a rescue group in Florida. He had had a rough start in life. For some reason, the 94-year-old woman who bought him from a puppy mill mistreated him, scared him and had him kenneled at her vet in a small cage for the most part of his first year of life. He developed seizures and she asked the vet to put the dog, still a puppy, down. The dog's name was Lucky.That vet said no. And he called a rescue group who came to take over ...