Sometimes I’m surprised by parade units in the Tournament of Roses Parade and Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade. It might be a band from the Upper Midwest, a new giant balloon, a colorful float or some other attraction. There’s usually at least one surprise each year. Earlier this month the ...

What are our personal rules that determine how we want other people to interact with us, and to treat us? What are the boundaries that we expect other people to recognize, accept, and respect? We all have those personal rules but we do not always think about them or put them into words. ...

I recently stopped at the post office to mail a few packets. This is something that would normally take only a few minutes, but it consumed nearly half an hour and caused my wife to suffer some undue alarm. It wasn’t the post office’s fault. As I approached its exit, a vaguely familiar ...

This series arises from a February 2025 interview with two Willard sisters, Verlane and Lois, and a subsequent visit to their former country school. Lois passed away recently, so we dedicate this series to her memory, grateful for her and her sister’s generosity in sharing their early life ...

We spent a weekend in the Cities in December. Pam’s family was celebrating Christmas at her niece’s house. We found a VRBO in Bloomington where we stayed. It was an apartment we rented in a larger building with mostly permanent residents. We had two evenings and mornings to lounge ...

We all know that housing has become less affordable in recent years, and there’s no easy answer for changing it. President Trump’s proposal for 50-year mortgages shows how there’s no easy answer. It sounds great because of the potential for lower monthly payments. It’s important, ...