I am proud to be a Minnesotan.  Our state really gets out the vote and values education.  Minnesota is first in the nation on the ACT tests!  When I read that fact, my mind wandered back to my school days.  I started thinking about former teachers, classmates and hot lunch. Some students think of lunch and recess as the best parts of the day.  I didn’t start eating school … [Read more...]

“Chatty Kathy” was my name in high school for obvious reasons!  There aren’t many people who have a doll named after them.  Well, of course there is my sister Barbie.  She  is a real life doll who everyone one loves because of her fun nature and generous heart. I guess no one gets to choose their nickname.  If I could have chosen , I would be called “Crafty Kathy.”  My hands … [Read more...]

CONFESSION!  I am an addict.  I got hooked early on.  My grandmother was my first supplier.  While eating homemade donuts with a side of chocolate kisses and a glass of milk, grandma showed me a McCall’s magazine.  I was not interested.  Then she turned to the page with Betsy McCall, the paper doll with great clothes.  We cut out the doll and clothes and I was hooked! My … [Read more...]

I am not a “Jill of all trades.”  Machines sense my fear and love intimidating me or worse yet - break down when I touch them!  My husband thinks it is all my fault.  He scoffs when I explain that machines hate me.  Sometimes he even insinuates I am making excuses to avoid work He showed me how to start the lawn mower and explained the RIGHT WAY (his way) to mow the lawn.  … [Read more...]

I hope you have been laughing during Mother Nature’s crying jags (the ones that bring May flowers) because April is National Humor Month.  Remember the first day of the month?  The day when  people delight in playing practical jokes on each other and acting like fools. Some jokes are funnier than others, but they do distract us from bad news on TV, real or fake! “Laughter is … [Read more...]

Bring on the bunny.  Be it dark, milk or white chocolate I will bite its ears off!  And I am not alone.  Eighty-nine percent of us nibble the bunny’s ears first.  I have no idea what the other 11% eat first!  I bring you this bit of trivia because I researched Easter Candy on the internet. Did you know that in the 1800s the Europeans perfected the chocolate mold and created … [Read more...]

I love weeping willow trees.  On a windy day I watch them whipping their branches wildly, showing off their flexibility!  Because the branches bend, they don’t break.  Flexibility is needed when traveling because often times expectations are not met.  Either you deal with the disappointment or you go home.  For instance, my sister, Barb and I recently traveled to visit my … [Read more...]

I have never been a trendsetter, but I used to read about them. Then I would follow some of them in fashions, furnishings and even paint colors. Remember lime green and harvest gold appliances? Remember miniskirts, bell-bottoms and tie-dyed everything? What about shag carpeting, the kind that you raked rather than vacuumed? No longer young and impressionable, my choices are … [Read more...]

Put your money where your mouth is. Talk is cheap, but it takes money to buy whiskey! Being Irish, my favorite of the former sayings is the last one, and I don’t even like whiskey. All of these sayings are talking about “actions speaking louder than words.” I believe this. Since I have talked about appreciating others in recent columns, I have made a resolution to do just … [Read more...]