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Why Are You Bashing Florida? I couldn't pedal my six miles fast enough on the stationary bike this morning. I was rarin' to write this article...I was ticked. I live in a beautiful retirement resort community. It is a paradise located in Florida but most of the community is... ( added 21 days 10 hours ago.)

Thinking of Mike this 4th of July I knew Mother would be preparing at least two red foods for dinner. That was because Mike was coming to dinner. Four- year old Mike would only eat red "things." Ironically, he had bright red hair. Mother would prepare red jello or strawberries... ( added 26 days 15 hours ago.)

What Happens to Children When Parents are Deployed to Afghanistan? I look out the window and see my neighbor, Norma pushing the stroller on the sidewalks of our subdivision. The stroller passenger is curiously looking at his surroundings. His depthless dark brown eyes captured my heart the first time I saw him.... ( added 39 days 15 hours ago.)

Should We Stop Supporting Celebrity Tell All Books? Maybe I am just jealous, but there are so many of us knocking ourselves out to write good literature, only to be passed up for the latest "tell all" book. There are many writers far talented than myself who have honed their skills throughout the... ( added 39 days 15 hours ago.)

How Trish Dealt with Life's Unfair Challenges (The Courage of Trish) "Just pull the plug if I have been in a coma for 30 days. That is my limit. After 30 days, that means I am resting and do not wake me. Let me rest." I was in earshot of Trish talking on the phone. I continued measuring the Cinnamon Plum Tea to... ( added 61 days 13 hours ago.)

What Should We Call Senior Citizens? We all have things to do, people to see and places to go. We're busy as bees; we are like the lightning bugs that dart everywhere and emit their beautiful lights in the darkest night. We can be seen everywhere volunteering, gardening, teaching... ( added 91 days 16 hours ago.)

Why I Made My Funeral Plans We said we were going to do it, then we just didn't. We again said we were going to do it and just plain procrastinated. Then just the other day, we said we were going to do it and just forgot? Maybe down deep inside, we wanted to forget about it... ( added 91 days 16 hours ago.)

Where are the Lightning Bugs? I overheard someone say that their grandchildren referred to the Highlands my subdivision) as "Granny Camp." I want to include the men, so I'm going to go a step furthur and suggest "Grandparent's Camp." Thank about it. In a child's mind and even... ( added 116 days 4 hours ago.)

What If You Could be Reincarnated As a Dog? A few weeks ago, as I was returning from my daily walk, I saw a neighbor with his faithful dog, Sassy. We chatted a minute about how dogs are royally treated here at the Highlands. Moe revealed to me that if he could be reincarnated, he would love... ( added 116 days 9 hours ago.)

Why It Is OK to Grow Old or Getting Real A few years ago I was in Publix with my young granddaughter. We went to the bakery section to get her the "free cookie" that publix advocates. After finding out that the "free cookie" did not include her cherished "Gingerbread Boy," I murmured to... ( added 116 days 9 hours ago.)

How You Can Stop Worrying About the Future "Our lives can change with every breath we take." From the movie, Where the Heart Is. This phrase comes to my mind often. The verb change carries with it so much power, so much mystery and most of all, so much truth. How many of us have said "one... ( added 145 days 10 hours ago.)

Gift Giving From the Heart Even When It's Not Christmas When my daughter relayed to me what had happened when she took her son with her to see the doctor, I just had to tell about it. I tried to put it in words and thoughts of my then 5-year-old Grandson, Zach. Here it is: (Zach and the Wishing Well).... ( added 229 days 14 hours ago.)

How You Can Save Money On Your Power Bill It's on everyone's mind. It is frustrating, degrading, disappointing, worrisome and just plain "the pits." Yes, I am talking about the economythat word that sends us searching for answers and yet knowing it is all beyond our control. We are... ( added 241 days 6 hours ago.)

How We Made Hard Economic Times the Best Time of Our Lives Are Bad Times Really Good Times? Henry Ward Beecher: Wealth Quotes It is not what we take up, but what we give up, that makes us rich. All of our plans and dreams are broken now. If everything had happened the way we planned, we would be taking... ( added 338 days 6 hours ago.)

Weight Watchers and Me or 3 Sure-Fire Rules that Result in Losing Weight We are like soldiers going to battle. Each with determined looks and clutched fists reaching out...reaching out to power and confidence. I hear our feet in sync as we march up the hill. We are a force together fighting the enemy. It all... ( added 363 days 6 hours ago.)

Taking the Sting Away from Teen Issues such as Peer Pressure or Bullying As I was reading the wonderful articles on teaching teens and children about such issues as bullying, self esteem and peer pressure, I thought to myself, If only this had been available for me when I was in school. I wonder if my life... ( added 2 years 9 days ago.)

Teaching Children Colors or Color Me Happy A couple of summers ago, my two granddaughters, six and eight years old, came for a week’s visit. I told them how great they both looked in their aqua tee shirts. The six year old, Alayna replied, “aqua is only for people over 60 years old, so... ( added 2 years 120 days ago.)

Valentine Gifts that are Priceless but have no Price It is so much fun to watch your child get excited about exchanging Valentines. Those little candy hearts with “Valentine sayings" have been around for a long time. You may want to help your child or student make a Valentine mail box. Just click on... ( added 2 years 144 days ago.)

How I Came Out of the Scrooge Syndrome Let's take a break from shopping, baking, decorating and all those holiday things we are expected to do and just breathe. That's right, in the middle of all our bustling, let's allow ourselves to truly experience the peace and love that Christmas... ( added 2 years 201 days ago.)

A Mother's Day Story: or Is Good Character Taught or Caught? Actually, I think Good Character and thoughtful deeds are both caught and taught. These two verbs are inseparable. Our children are watching what we do, so in essence, we are teaching them without explaining constantly. We all know that but... ( added 2 years 231 days ago.)

Julie, My Thanksgiving Blessing I was sitting by the fireplace wrapped in my afghan sipping tea. Chills were running up and down my spine and my head felt as if someone had loaded bricks on it. It was Monday, about ten years ago. Thanksgiving lurked around the corner. I knew I... ( added 2 years 243 days ago.)

How to Get Past the Boredom of Exercise Living in Florida, I knew I had to start my 2 mile walk just as the sun was coming up. If I waited a moment later, the heat would steal my energy. I had tried taking late evening walks but by then, it was really hard because I was settled in with... ( added 2 years 288 days ago.)

Daddy's Shoes - the Shoes That Carried Us Both Down the Aisle It seemed so strange. They were slightly scuffed and worn but now lay unmoving and silent. They were placed on the closet floor just the way Daddy had left them, as if they were waiting for him. My heart heavy and searching for peace, I stared... ( added 2 years 359 days ago.)

Easter, a New Life Within or Walk in the Newness of Life Easter seems to have two different meanings in the mind of most people. There is the spiritual meaning of Jesus Christ rising from the dead, thus showing the world that death should not be feared if we believe in Him. Then, there is the other side... ( added 3 years 97 days ago.)

My Good Goody Drawer I listened to my husband, Jim lamenting the fact that he needed another gift for his friend, Don. Yes, he had already shopped and bought a nice Christmas gift for him, but just wanted another gift to give him. He wanted Don to have two presents to... ( added 3 years 172 days ago.)