The Dow is down more than 500 points.The unemployment rate will almost certainly stay above 9 percent when the new numbers come out tomorrow.A double dip recession may be on the way.And I've just retired. Not sure whether that's a good thing or a bad thing in this economy. I have to say, I was smart in one respect: In ... Continue Reading

The Tea Party has won. That seems pretty clear.What began as a grass roots movement a couple of years ago has been transformed into an institutionalized political force that has set the agenda in Congress.The agenda, of course, is cut the budget and reduce the size of government. Both political parties are now singing that ... Continue Reading

It's still a little hard for me to comprehend, because I still feel hopelessly immature (say, about 28 years old), but retirement is right around the bend for me.It happens in three weeks.I've chosen to do it, maybe a little earlier than I should and earlier than I had planned, because I'm tired of the routine. Every ... Continue Reading

Kind of scary news from a health survey yesterday. Turns out that more than 30 percent of us in Michigan are now considered obese.Yikes. Just 15 years ago, fewer than 20 percent of us were obeseI used to be a skinny kid--6'2", 140 pounds as a sophomore in high school, 6'3", 175 in college--but then I seemed to gain a couple ... Continue Reading

Marquette recently held a celebrity golf benefit, complete with a banquet, auction and tournament at Greywalls.Great golf, delicious food, companionship and of course, most important, it all goes for a wonderful cause--the Beacon House, which houses patients and their families when they come to Marquette General Hospital.It ... Continue Reading

I had a rare treat over the weekend--I saw a baby born.The mom, a free spirit who has embraced everything about motherhood, invited her extended family to come into the birthing room at Marquette General Hospital and, together, experience a miracle.A miracle. That's certainly what it was, regardless of your religious ... Continue Reading

We ran into a disappointing development this week with the funeral services for Specialist Robert Voakes who died in action in Afghanistan earlier this month.It seems needless to say that his death was "tragic" but it was. Voakes was from L'Anse, a graduate of Baraga High School just two years ago, a good, young man by all ... Continue Reading

It's that time of year again. I get out my golf clubs, stick them in the back of my car, and listen to them rattle back there for about a month or two before I finally summon the courage to bring them out to the golf course.Where I proceed to embarrass myself time and time again.I've taken lessons from three instructors ... Continue Reading

I'll admit it up front--I enjoy gardening. Adore gardening.Yeah, yeah, I know, it's silly, it can be time-consuming and expensive, it's bourgeois. Who are you trying to impress with your garden? Yourself? Your neighbors? Either way, it's a form of vanity.Well, I choose to think of it as so much more.First, it's therapeutic. ... Continue Reading

I took a trip downstate this last weekend and found myself in a shopping mall in Troy on Saturday afternoon. I hadn't been to a genuine mall with more than 100 stores and a food court in several months.It's funny because that used to be a regular part of my suburban life in Atlanta. Now, when I enter these wondrous palaces ... Continue Reading