People of a certain age will recall a lyric from the Tennessee Ernie Ford song "Sixteen Tons": "Another day older and deeper in debt." I thought of that song as Secretary of War Pete Hegseth asked Congress to approve a $1.5 trillion budget for fiscal year 2027 to put the military on what he ...

What is “happy” art? Is it art that makes the artist happy? The audience? Throughout my years displaying and reading pieces, I’ve learned that a lot of people have very strong feelings about this, and they’re not afraid to voice it. When developing the ideas for artwork and poems ...

I met with a new client the other day who told me she had never tried yoga because she thought she was incapable, only because of her size. It broke my heart in half. She had fallen victim to the stereotype of a yogi: slender, beautiful, poised, and able to bend in ways that would make your ...

At the end of the day, successfully playing the political game comes down to the "R" word. It's all about relationships. Office seekers need to have one with the citizens to get elected. Nothing gets done in the legislature until and unless there are relationships and hopefully across ...

I vividly remember when Michael Jackson's signature "Thriller" album exploded in 1983 with the release of Billboard No. 1 hits "Billie Jean" and "Beat It," as well as Top 10 singles like "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and "Human Nature." These songs were the soundtrack of my eighth- and ...

In every school, work or personal gathering, you need at least one grump for the group to thrive. Grumps do the work that no one else will. When everyone else is being mercilessly upbeat, they swim against the tide and complain. The grump may follow your inane rules -- but grudgingly, oh, ...