Life Style & Travel

UNITED STATES—Which exotic super car did you post proudly on your bedroom wall during your adolescence? Was it some Italian masterpiece capable of draining a gas tank almost as fast it drained the average flash-in-the-pan celebrity’s wallet? Was it a quirky German engineering marvel designed to showcase why the Autobahn is where it is? Maybe it wasn’t a car at...

UNITED STATES—Stormy winter weather always reminds some of us that our trees need some attention. Wind can break limbs. If the weather gets really nasty, trees can be destabilized by strong wind, particularly if the soil is moistened by rain. However, the truth is that arboriculture, which is the horticulture of trees, is important throughout the year. We just...

SAN FRANCISCO—“Pizza” is one of those words that countries around the world all recognize as decadent oven-baked bread slathered in tomato sauce and tossed with all sorts of wonderful toppings. In fact, according to Google Translate, the only languages that stray from the word “Pizza” are the languages that do not write with Roman letters. With word origins of...

UNITED STATES—The are many veggies that we eat, that Americans know so little about, heck we sometimes forget the veggie is even in the dish that we’re consuming. Any thoughts on what vegetable I’m referring to?  Let me give you a hint, it’s a root vegetable. It’s the radish!  Some may be surprised to discover that it doesn’t take...

UNITED STATES—In light of the unspeakable terrorist attacks in Paris, it is important for Americans to recognize that these senseless acts of violence were perpetrated on a country that fought shoulder to shoulder with our founding fathers to ensure the ideals we live by today were upheld. Whether you learned the slogan, “Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”,...

UNITED STATES—There is a difference. Hybrid tea and grandiflora roses were bred to be excellent cut flowers for the home. They bloom on long stems, and last well once cut. However, the rigid and thorny plants that produce these excellent blooms are realistically not much to look at. Floribunda, polyantha and climbing roses are more of a compromise with...

UNITED STATES—On Thursday, July 23, The Federal Communications Commision approved a shorter number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline to be used in 2022. The Suicide Prevention Lifeline, currently reachable at 1-800-273-8255, will additionally use 988 starting on July 16, 2022. Prior to the vote which approved this measure, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai stated: “My hope is that by establishing...

UNITED STATES—Even without significant cool weather, the garden knows that it is now autumn. Most of the late summer blooming flowers are finishing their last bloom phases. Leaves of some of the deciduous trees, shrubs and vines are already changing color, and some are already falling. Perennials that are dormant through winter are already starting to deteriorate.One of the...

UNITED STATES—Get ready for another life-enhancer that will raise the quality of your existence and add grace and harmony to your days. Learn to proceed with the unshakable belief that there is always enough. This in the Hannukah effect, which takes it a notch further demonstrating there is more than enough. I took the name for this concept from the...

SACRAMENTO—The California State Assembly was silent as they watched Assemblyman James Gallagher, R-Yuba City, present Senate Bill 210 simultaneously in American Sign Language (ASL) and English at the September 3 meeting.  “I’m a little rusty in my ASL, so bear with me,” Gallagher began with a laugh. “This bill will help establish language benchmarks for Deaf kids from birth through five years old,”...