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STICKING AROUND AND SETTLING DOWN

November 14, 2020 by

Sticking around is an art form. It’s not hanging around, it’s sticking. Sticky. Instead of a picture on a wall to walk past, sticking around goes with you. (I know you’re thinking of shoes and gum.) When you start feeling like a piece of furniture, a decoration in your own life, do the sensible thing […]

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FAMILY PLAN? FARM THE KIDS OUT FOR PEACE AND QUIET

September 16, 2020 by

For most, a family plan is making sure the kids are alright. Planned pregnancies and Tiger Mom tactics? What’s that? My parents had four kids and we always lived across from a sand dune and a forest. Smart move. When they said go out and play, we knew where to go. Forest play was more […]

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BEER DRINKING THE HARD WAY WITH A FAIR FATHER

September 8, 2020 by

Most times, when it comes to beer drinking, you need a plan. The easy part is when and where. Then it gets tougher. Which beer to drink has become an identity check. In a place like Portland Beer City, a beer identity means everything. Beer cred means never getting caught with a commercial light beer. […]

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FAKE LIFE: HOW TO KNOW IF YOU’RE BEING DEKED OUT

August 22, 2020 by

Living a fake life, a double life or more, comes with a few problems when you’re found out. And you will be found out since people like to talk. But what if you’re on the receiving end of a fake life scammer? Who do you blame? Not yourself.

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AGING PARENT PROTESTS GETTING OLD

July 22, 2020 by

An aging parent is the hardest part for kids growing up. We like them in their prime years, when they could do anything, and did. The part the kids never understand is how long we get to be an aging parent.

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NEEDY READERS? GIVE THEM WHAT THEY WANT

July 15, 2020 by

What do needy readers want? Tastes change, fads come and go, but the top selling book of all time is pretty clear. Across all platforms one book stands higher than all the rest. Do you need a hint? Think ‘Tale of Two Cities.’ Wait, that’s the title. Damn. The big question: Is it worthy? What […]

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LIME JUICE, LEMON JUICE, AND ORANGE JUICE

June 22, 2020 by

Juice comes from any fruit or vegetable that gets squeezed hard enough. But why not just eat the fruit or vegetable and call it good? Once you eat a grape, drink some grape juice, what’s next? Some might say wine, some might not, but wine is the answer.

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WRITERS WORK TO EXPLAIN WITHOUT BEING A JERK

May 29, 2020 by

Writers work, readers read, and somewhere between the two an agreement happens. Sometimes the agreement includes a reader who stops reading while the writer keeps writing. That’s what writers do. Readers look for the next story, something more worthy of their time. Then this happened:

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MOTHERS DAY STACK: ADD AN ANNIVERSARY AND NEW CUP

May 10, 2020 by

Mothers Day some years includes a wedding anniversary. But not every year. It’s always close on the calendar, real close. When it’s the deuce, and on a Sunday, it feels like a home run, and the important thing is touching all of the bases and sliding in home.

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SADNESS AND THE ONLY CHILD ALONE ON THEIR DAY

April 12, 2020 by

The Smothers Brothers comedy team had a routine that fit every family, except only child families, when one said to the other, “Mom always liked you best.” Every brother or sister who hasn’t said that missed a golden opportunity for a guilt ridden jab, deserved or not. In some homes it has to go unsaid […]

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