Tag Archive | opinion

Longer Days Ahead

Feb16

This year we once again start Daylight Savings Time some what early this year, believe me I’m not complaining.  I have always been a huge fan of Daylight Savings Time, so I don’t mind losing just one hour of sleep in return for an extra hour of daylight in the afternoons. Daylight Savings Time, or DST, always begins on the second Sunday of March (this year it’s March 10th) and ends on the first Sunday of November (which is November 3rd). I have no problem with the loss of sleep rather quickly, because then I can enjoy some late afternoons out in one of my gardens or on my yard swing with any or all of the critters that we have here at the house. Weather permitting of course.

I wish that they would consider to keep all the clocks around the world on Daylights Savings Time. It must be so confusing to live in counties and/or states and/or territories and the like that don’t participate in this crazy, twice yearly, ritual that was started so long ago. It wasn’t until a few years ago that I found out that not everyone everywhere was utilizing all that Daylight Savings Time has to offer.

Brochure Printing Services Available

Dec26

Even though I am pretty hand dandy on the computer and there are so many things that a computer can do today, I still think that my sister needs to use a professional Brochure Printing Services that will do a bang up job for what she and her manager are looking for. They are putting together a Grand Opening for a book store in the old town mall, which is something that in my opinion we need more of. It is very difficult to find a bookstore these days. I’m assuming because of the Internet and other technology that are making real books unnecessary.  If I want to go to a book store I have to drive a minimum of 50 minutes, that’s a lot of time and gas to buy a book!

Coming from a family of avid readers I’m not surprised that one of us hasn’t worked/managed or owned a bookstore. I’ll only have to drive 20 minutes to get to their selection of new and used books, which I’m excited about. I don’t think I’ll ever own a Kindle, holding a good book in your hands, well there just isn’t anything like it in the world. Plus I like to read in the bath tub, it would suck to drop something in the tub that could get ruined and possibly electrocute myself in the process.

 

A Numbers Game

Dec24

A few years ago I was chatting online with a couple who were considering a move to Tennessee. They were in Southern California and they were all about how Tennessee is a big attraction to people in California for two reasons: You can buy six times the house plus acreage here for the same money as a cookie cutter house in the suburbs in California. There is no state income tax in Tennessee, so a paycheck in Tennessee gets an immediate boost of 6%, 8% or even 10%, depending upon the state tax brackets where you used to live and pay taxes.

The people moving into Tennessee from California are the second largest group of expats from another state. However, there are more people moving there from Michigan than from any other state. The difference is that the people from Michigan are typically young and middle aged blue collar workers chasing jobs in the automotive industry and the people from California are mature, white collar executives moving to corporate headquarters or starting their own businesses.

I always find it interesting to follow the trends and then learn exactly how they come up with the numbers that they do and for what reason. As we all know you can make numbers do anything you want with them. Life is nothing but a numbers game after all!

A Simple Smile

Nov16

It can be amazing how much a simple smile can change something, such as an encounter on the sidewalk or talking with a counter clerk or in a store standing in line or just passing by somebody. If you approach someone with a smile, it helps put them at ease. Smiles are contagious – if you give (yes I said give, it’s free) a smile you will most often get a smile from the other person back. My mother always told us that it is a good idea to enter a crowded room with a smile and your head held high. Even if you don’t know anyone there, if you are smiling, they will greet you with a much better attitude.

I love to smile and see the reactions that I get from people. I am also a door opener and enjoy seeing if the person will smile back, or look me in the eye, or even say thank you. For the most part people are nice back, in their own way, but of course there are the ones that just ignore me or act like it is to be expected and to them I say to them loud and clear “You’re Welcome!” the reactions to this just blow me away and keep me coming back time and time again holding the door for them with a big smile on my face!

Love Those Holiday Leftovers

Nov11

There is no such thing as too much turkey in my house. We love turkey – hot with all the trimmings as well as cold in a sandwich. There just isn’t anything like a real turkey sandwich with swiss cheese on rye or even pumpernickel bread. Plain white bread will work as well, but I try to keep other types of bread around that is much better for us to eat, taste bud wise and health wise. Anyway to get some much needed fiber in our diet makes me happy. I’m so glad that they are willing to try new things, they may not always like it but at least they aren’t shy about trying.

Something that I have noticed in the past couple of years is that people that come to big family dinners, such as Thanksgiving and Christmas, are bringing their own plastic containers to help themselves to some of the leftovers to take home with them. For some reason that just strikes me as weird. I understand, believe me, there is nothing better than holiday leftovers and there is always plenty left over for folks to enjoy later, but to bring your own containers just seems a bit forward, but it does save the hostess of the trouble of rounding up her own containers to give out or the expense of buying enough to dole out for folks to use.