Columns

When our kids were small we took a few vacations, but not many. It was just way too difficult for several reasons. The first and obvious one was the amount of money it took. Then there was the planning involved. Things like pets, ball games, reservations, where to go, and the list goes on. Being an age of a higher number has its drawbacks. But it also has many privileges not offered to us in our younger years.

The Wagner Group. No, I’m not talking about the group of works by Germany’s famous opera composer Richard Wagner. This is about the most powerful private military company (PMC) in the world today. The Wagner Group is a corporation run by Yevgeny Prigozhin, sometimes referred to as “Putin’s Chef.” But in reality, PMC Wagner is Putin’s private army.

I almost threw away my old lace napkins.

The sport of American football is a curious pastime. And even though there are moments within the game of balance and delicacy, for the most part it is a study in brutality. Some parents won’t allow their school aged children to play, fearing they’ll be hurt. Others literally force their young men to play whether they want to or not. A few girls have made their high school football teams, but not many, mostly football is a proving ground for American manhood.

Welcome to 2023! I’m changing things up a bit this year. In addition to the in-depth columns I’ve been doing, I’m going to start sharing some tech news and tips that affect or can be used by all of us. Additionally, the frequency of this column will change. Instead of weekly, it’ll generally be every other week so the next column after this should be out in the Jan. 26 Times-Gazette.

The remarkable drama played out on the floor of the House of Representatives this past week was captured by the Wall Street Journal’s editorial board under the headline, “The Price for Speaker McCarthy,” and then their summarizing sentences, “Mr. McCarthy may regret the high price he paid for the honor of being called Speaker. The country may regret it too.”

“Aren’t you the cutest dog?” I asked the chubby brindle pit bull mix walking down the sidewalk.

Are you religious? A lot of people say they are. They like to think they are. But are they really? If you believe in God, does that make you religious? Do you have to go to church regularly to qualify? I have entertained these questions for many, many years.

My family discovered a huge new room in our house last week.

Resolutions, particularly those associated with the new year, often become “bridges too far,” hopelessly unattainable. I gave up on personal New Year’s resolutions a long time ago because if failures were, as some wise man once said, steps towards success I’d be ridiculously healthy, wealthy and wise. What follows are not personal aspirations for 2023, but hopes for humanity, hopes that against all odds might just be attainable.