Nothing much of note happened on August 1, 1967. Except that it was the first day Minnesota started collecting a state sales tax. The tax was three percent and that was huge. Suddenly, you had to pay three more cents for every dollar you spent on a lot of goods and some services. Pennies meant … Continue reading "Gaming That Pesky State Sales Tax"

Maybe it was the aroma of pine and the view of snow-capped mountains. It could have been the sound of the ocean or the sight of majestic canyons. It could have simply been the thought of eating that day’s catch of sunfish. There was always something in our thoughts and dreams that beckoned us to … Continue reading "Camping Reality Is Not The Stuff Of Dreams"

The pile of magazines on the coffee table needed straightening. It was cleaning day. As I squared up the edges of the three piles, I remembered reading that when magazines (periodicals) were becoming popular in the 1800s, wealthy people placed them neatly on their coffee tables so guests would think they were sophisticated. It didn’t … Continue reading "The Dilemma of the Modern Coffee Table"

It’s June, my favorite month. My fondness for June is because that’s when school ended and we kids were free to play all day, stay up late, and sleep in the next morning. I could also start earning money again mowing yards.  The days are their longest and the weather is usually the best combination … Continue reading "Remove Your Mask and Share Your Smile"

We could barely contain ourselves. No one was talking but all of our squirming and desk drumming still made it noisy in the fifth-grade classroom. Even a stern around-the-room glare from Miss Schlegelmilch only quieted us down for a few minutes. We had finally reached the biggest day of the year. It was that special … Continue reading "The Learning Experience We Called Play Day"

Are we reaching the end of the pandemic? Maybe not quite yet, but we’re definitely getting to the point where those that have been immunized are not as concerned or cautious. We’re still wearing masks in stores but not outside.  Even Catherine, who usually has to remind me to wear a mask when we go … Continue reading "Contests Could Calm Vaccination Procrastination"

The screens were brushed clean and reinstalled allowing fresh air to clear the house of winter’s stale air. The echoes from the gun range filled our ears once again. Spring had arrived – for a very short visit. That was a couple weeks ago. Since those heady two days of 70-80 degrees, we’ve gone back … Continue reading "Looking for the Exits from a Strange Spring"

The optician heated the left temple tip of my glasses in the hot sand to try adjusting it for about the fifth time. And we still had the right temple tip to adjust. That’s a process I have endured countless times over my 60 years of wearing glasses and it’s still done pretty much the … Continue reading "Good Eyesight Is A Lifelong Vision"

We’re treading for our lives in a sea of data. So, how can we find what what we really need? It’s there, somewhere. You just have to know how to search for it. As I started to ponder what to write about for this column, I laughed when I thought that I should just ask … Continue reading "Searching the Depths of Too Much Information"

“I’ve got nothin’ to do and all day to do it.” I smiled when I heard that old phrase recently when the song “Too Much Time on My Hands” by rock band Styx was playing on the radio. How true it is today for a lot of people. It’s especially true for retired people like … Continue reading "Doing Nothing Is a Lot of Work"