Columns 2013, pictures

This is where I came from

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6 North Mississippi Ave. The heart of Ducktown in Atlantic City. It’s painted blue now. Dad had it painted green. Upstairs the windows on the left were our living room. The windows on the right, mom and dad’s bedroom. All of downstairs, dad’s Italian grocery store.  Walk down the block and get a sub at the White House Sub Shop, still the best in the world. But the bakery is gone. And so is Katy’s little store. And Letizia’s grocery store. And Petrillo’s Shoe Repair. And Catanese’s Swimming Pool chemicals building. But St. Mike’s is still there. And considering how

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Scribblings

Every once in a while

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Every once in a while I wonder what it would be like to be rich enough to actually buy a politician. It’s been so long since there has been anyone in DC who represents me and not their moneyed overlords that I really do forget what it feels like to actually be part of representative government.

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Scribblings

Did you hear that deafening yawn?

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I didn’t think a deafening silence could get much quieter than the one that greeted Mitt Romney’s statement that he’s might make another presidential run. The lack of anyone actually excited by the announcement seemed truly monumental. Then Sarah Palin goes to Vegas and hints she might run. And lo and behold, the silence greeting this news nationally was even more deafening than the one that greeted Romney. For Hillary’s sake, I’d like to see either one of them run. 

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Scribblings

It occurs to me

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It occurs to me that Penny will be to Kaley Cuoco as Rachel is to Jennifer Aniston.

And those are the thoughts that will sneak up on you as you try to go to sleep sometimes.

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Scribblings

Gassing up

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Filled my tank today. Had 60 cents off per gallon from Safeway thanks to the vast quantities of medication I take each day. Brought the cost of a gallon of gas to $1.97/gallon. Wow. I know this hurts Alaska’s economy buy it felt good!

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Columns 2015

Senior citizens are a valuable resource

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I was a bit taken aback at the vehemence expressed by some commenters on my column last week towards seniors in this state. Who knew some viewed us with such dislike? According to these commenters, cutting senior benefits will cause us to leave the state, thus saving the state enormous amounts of money spent on our pensions and tax exemptions. Before kicking us all to the curb, however, let’s review some of the things seniors provide that would be hard to replace.

As I wrote last week, we should all share the pain of budget reductions. Seniors are not exempt

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pictures, Scribblings

I think my dog is part cat

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BuddhaBubba gets up in the morning long enough to get her pain pill. I turn the heating blanket on under her bed and she goes right back to sleep. About two hours later, after everyone else has gone downstairs to my office to get some work done, I hear her race madly across the floor upstairs. She doesn’t go anywhere. Just apparently jumps up off the bed and runs through the kitchen and living room. If I go upstairs to see what’s happening, I usually find her standing by the counter in the kitchen looking shocked, shocked I say, that

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Scribblings

State of the Union

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Do you have your beer chilling and your nachos melting? Are you ready for tonight, the annual Superbowl of presidential speeches?  I do hope you’re planning to watch. After all, where else would you get to watch a man who deliberately makes himself orange preside over a house full of sound and fury and signifying nothing more really than the failure of today’s education system to produce anything that even resembles a statesman… or woman.

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