Hello Fellow Readers, This is the time of year I attend manufacturer showcases premiering new products, mostly paver or block retaining wall systems, which are made of concrete. This is also the time of year that road salt and brine are being used to de-ice our roads. Road salt and br

Hello Fellow Readers, As the folklore goes if the groundhog sees his shadow, they’ll be six more weeks of winter. If he doesn’t, it will be an early spring. I’ve always wondered how we know what the groundhog sees. Low and behold I saw this year’s broadcast of Groundhog Day at Gobbler

Hello Fellow Readers, What a weather pattern we’ve just endured. From snow turned to sleet, followed by zero degrees that turned trees into glass. Then temps rose to the mid-fifties as deluges of rain rolled in. The Jacksonburg Creek, on which we live, became a roaring river overflowi

Hello Fellow Readers, I had a good laugh when I heard from my youngest brother who lives in Tennessee. Rick texted a photo of his cup of joe with a frothy smiley face smack dab in the middle. “Look at my message this morning in my coffee.” His suspicious sister writes back, “Come on.

Hello Fellow Readers, Happy 2019. I hope you all survived the fa la las and indulgences that can come along with ringing in the new year. I’ll admit our recycle bin is overflowing with many trendy colors. We hosted Christmas Eve so most of the bounty came from shared toasts, thank you

Hello Fellow Readers, One of the greatest gifts of Christmas is spending time with loved ones. I’ve just returned from visiting lifelong friends that live outside of Austin. First stop was Round Top Texas where Dorothy from my college days lives. She’s an artist with a gallery r

Hello fellow readers, Over the weekend I participated in a Family Holiday Program for Comfort Zone Camp (CZC), a bereavement camp for kids and young adults. It’s their twentieth anniversary of serving families who have lost loved ones too early in life. The holidays are especially dif

Hello fellow readers, Last week, I confess, I crumbled under the stress of racing to meet deadlines. It felt paralyzing with classic symptoms of anxiety… tight chest and labored breathing. It’s a good thing I’m in good shape, I thought to myself, so my heart can ride the race. I

Hello fellow readers, Over the weekend I enjoyed a hike along the Appalachian Trail with a longtime friend from Boonton NJ. While meandering the rocky terrain peppered with hemlock and spruce, Barbara asked why some trees are evergreen and others are not. Good question. Let’s ask the

Hello fellow readers, I just ordered 500 bulbs and am ramping up to dig them in. I confess that planting bulbs are not my favorite to-do and in truth, I haven’t planted them in many years. Maybe because the gratification comes months later, though beautiful things are well worth waiti