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Staying Mindful In Uncertain Times Is Beneficial

With the current state of the world, you may find yourself missing the way things used to be or wondering what things will look like in the future. Thinking of the past or of the future is normal, even when there isn’t a global pandemic going on. However, if you find yourself dwelling on these thoughts or feeling like you are spiraling, there are things you can do to focus on the present. According to the dictionary, mindfulness is the quality or state of being conscious or aware of something. For the purpose of this article, we can think of mindfulness as being aware of the present ...

Protect The DuBois Area From More Floods

I have not lived in or near DuBois for 18 years, but I was delighted by last week’s news that the city has received a $710,000 grant to modernize the flood control measures that were first put in in 1972, almost a half-century ago. During my 13 years in the DuBois area, the basement of our house along the Pentz Run creek just south of the city limits flooded twice, both times in 1996. In January, we heeded the advice of experienced neighbor Joe Woods. We pulled our sump pumps when the water outside our house covered the yard along three sides. Trying to keep a basement water-free ...

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. ...