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What Sounds Better Than Hygge For The Holidays?

I think I’m a little bit behind on the trendy lifestyle buzzwords, so forgive me if you’ve heard the term before — but our household has recently embraced the Danish term “Hygge.” (The word, according to Dictionary.com, is pronounced “hoo-guh,” but every time I see it I think “High-gee.”) This beautiful concept is defined by the illustrious Dictionary.com as “the feeling of coziness and contentment evoked by simple comforts, as being wrapped in a blanket, having good conversations, enjoying food, etc.” What sounds better than that, especially on the cusp of ...

Watch Where Both Parties Go Next

After a presidential election, members of the major party whose candidate came up short often assess where they go next. After the 2020 election, members of both major parties may do that. Please don’t take the word of today’s column, which was deliberately written and submitted before Election Day, because the election results don’t affect today’s column. Instead, please watch the forces at play among both Democrats and Republicans. For one thing, each major party used to have a broader spectrum of supporters. It’s no secret that the number of conservative Democrats ...

My Bumbling Response After The Storm

The power went out and the discoveries commenced. The light on the garage wall is not on the “garage” circuit. It is on the laundry room/mud room circuit, which had been the back porch a half-century ago. Two electrical outlets are side-by-side in that garage. One is on the “garage” circuit. The other is on a circuit marked “front Electricity can kill people and burn down buildings, so those were cringe-inducing discoveries last week after a Paul Bunyan windstorm felled trees across power lines. That mish-mash kept Penelec and United Electric busy for days. Our own ...

A Dog’s Life: A Rich And Happy Experience

My dog seems to have a rich inner life and no one can convince me otherwise. My observations tell me he’s got a lot going on inside his head, and that my perceptions are not just coming from wishful thinking. I’d be just as happy with Buddy if he were merely a peaceful, hungry being sharing space with us. Peaceful and hungry don’t tell the whole story about this little poodle, and I doubt they tell the story about your pooch. Buddy has a rich inner life-one that he tries his best to communicate to us. For example, my husband has been away quite often working out of state. ...

The Old Debate Begins Yet Again

I had the same argument last year, resolved it then, but it’s back again now. It’s all about a Christmas tree: do I want one – or not? If my answer is affirmative, then I must continue: real or phony? Tall or short? So many questions. So much to think about. My mind still entertains images of dancing sugarplums, happy family Christmastimes of many, many years ago. Now we’re scattered, erasing any temptation to gather as COVID-19 continues to dictate so many of our choices. (Actually, am I the only one who finds the rules becoming increasingly stringent?) Of course that ...

The Story Of A Local Man Serving In World War II

At the eleventh hour on Monday, November 11, 1918, an armistice between Germany and the Allied powers went into effect. It was a temporary, later made permanent, cessation of hostilities in The Great War. It marked the end of what the world, including millions who had experienced it directly, ...