The Millennials are Leading the Way….
A few years ago – well, 17 to be exact, Tom Brokaw published The Greatest Generation – a book which described the people born in the early part of the 20th century who grew up during the Depression of the 1930’s and went on to fight in World War II because it was “the right thing to do.” From his perspective, this generation was the greatest ever produced because they were raised in deprivation and yet, selflessly contributed to a war effort to stop aggression and genocide. No doubt their perseverance was a testament to their extraordinary character. Read more 
Why Every Individual Counts
On this very special day celebrating our nation’s birthday, I want to write about why every individual counts. There are nearly 320 million of us in this country – that’s a lot of people – enough to have made me think from time to time that what I do or don’t do really doesn’t matter. After all, I’m just one person – does it really matter if I eat a piece of grilled chicken, a slice of bacon, an ice cream cone or not think about the food chain in this country? Yes, it does and here’s why. Read more
42 Hours from Ithaca to West Palm Beach
I didn’t make any of this up. No one can make this stuff up.
Last week my husband picked up our daughter from college and together they drove to Watkins Glen, New York where she started an internship at Farm Sanctuary – a rescue, rehabilitation, and shelter for farm animals that also serves as an advocate for animal rights. On Sunday morning, my husband was scheduled to depart Ithaca Thompkins Regional Airport on a 10:20 am United Airlines flight to Newark connecting to West Palm Beach. Sounds easy? Turns out it was the trip from hell thanks to United and Delta. Read more
Tulip Time Festival 2015
Looking for something fun to do next weekend? If you happen to be in the Des Moines, Iowa area, consider attending the 80th annual Tulip Time Festival which takes May 7-9, 2015 in Pella, Iowa, a beautiful town in central Iowa, about 40 miles southeast of Des Moines. Established in 1847 by a group of 800 Dutch immigrants, Pella is known throughout Iowa for its Dutch heritage, which is celebrated every year in early May. Read more
Günter Grass: 1927-2015
Günter Grass, the German novelist, poet, playwright, artist, and recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature died yesterday at the age of 87. Last month, a story was posted about Gunter Grass and one of his most controversial poems: What Must Be Said, which is reprinted below:
Grass is best known for his novels including The Tin Drum (1959), Cat and Mouse (1963), Dog Years (1965), and his memoirs: Peeling the Onion (2007), The Box (2010), and Grimm’s Words: A Declaration of Love (2010) but he is also known as the author of the controversial poem What Must Be Said (2012) – which reveals the hypocrisy of the German military when they decided to sell and deliver a submarine that could be used to launch nuclear warheads against Iran. Read more
What A Woman Of A Certain Age Wonders About
Middle age comes upon us quickly. First, we’re teenagers on the cusp of adulthood and then we’re in our 20’s and can’t wait to be 30 so we have a bit of credibility. We slide into our 30’s full of confidence and life becomes so busy that we wonder how did we all of a sudden become 40?
50 is just a blink away which brings big changes: our kids are grown or almost grown and we’ve entered an age where many things don’t matter anymore (a friend of mine calls these years the “Fu#% you 50’s”) and some things matter more than ever (like comfort, patience, logic, and compassion). We also have time to think about issues more deeply, especially: Read more
Günter Grass and “What Must Be Said”
This past week, Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu on the invitation of US Representative, John Boehner, addressed the US Congress on nuclear weapons and specifically how dangerous Iran would be with these weapons of mass destruction. Few would dispute that point while others would go even further asserting that none of the countries in the Middle East should have nuclear weapons. But, no one has made this bold statement more eloquently than Günter Grass, the 87-year old Nobel Prize laureate, German writer (novelist, poet and playwright) and artist (illustrator, scepter, and graphic artist). Read more
Lamar Briggs: 1935 – 2015
My approach to art is to open myself visually to the world around me as much as possible—by reading, traveling, collecting and just plain “seeing.” Music and color ‘flow’ for me. I paint to music and the music and rhythm speak to me more than any external experience. ~Lamar Briggs
My friend, Lamar Briggs passed away on Sunday afternoon. Just last week, I was in his hospital room where he sat wearing his signature cap, giving me grief about the “bird nest” on my head (his description of my poof), asking if I was still driving that “old lady car” (his words for the Caddie I bought last year), and telling me about a new CD he just received (Frank Sinatra with the Red Norvo Quintet, Live In Australia 1959) and how great it is. Although Lamar had been in and out of the hospital for the past 3 months, I knew he was feeling better because he also asked me to put a pair of bright yellow, white, and grey socks on his feet. Ever the colorist, Lamar always had a signature moment and that was the last one I shared with him. Read more
Marriage and The Stupid Man Card
Every time my husband yells a few choice words from the kitchen, I can pretty much guess he opened our high-tech dishwasher in the middle of the cleaning cycle causing hot water to spurt out like a fountain all over him and the floor. Predictable, yes because he does this relatively often claiming he didn’t know the dishwasher was on. I tell him he has to listen and he says “men don’t listen.” This week, I told him he isn’t allowed to pull the “stupid man card” in 2015. For those of you who don’t know what the “stupid man card” is, allow me to briefly explain. Read more
The Christmas Tree Trucks
Highway 163 is a 4-lane highway that runs approximately 60 miles from the west side of Des Moines east to Oskaloosa. A heavily traveled road, Highway 163 doesn’t look like a conventional highway with big green signs announcing well-marked exits. Instead, Highway 163 has thoroughfares (both paved and dirt) that link directly to the highway allowing drivers to enter and exit onto roads that surround crop farms and those that raise livestock – particularly cattle, hogs, chickens, and turkeys. Read more
Paddock Post 