Letters, We Get Letters We get lots and lots of letters Dear, Perry, would you be so kind To fill a request and sing the songs we love best   Geezers will recognize the lyrics above as a theme song for the Perry Como Show where he sang requested songs. Perry got lots and lots of letters, but us? Not so much. Recently, there has been a rash of thievery, mostly … [Read more...]

Hostas are hardy perennials that require almost no special attention and are perfect for a garden that doesn’t get too much sun. Reliable and easy to grow, hostas are long-lived—and may even outlive the gardener. Except. Hostas are a favorite target of deer and rabbits, and with all the deer around, hostas very seldom get the opportunity to bloom. They get eaten, first. But not our … [Read more...]

  Buying a cantaloupe is like playing blackjack at Vegas. Sometimes you win, but more often you lose. Your store-bought cantaloupe sucks. Steve Caylor says you can ripen any cantaloupe by putting it in a paper bag for a few days, but I can never plan that far ahead. Recently, however, I have been on a hot streak as far as picking out tasty melons. I have found that the gnarly-looking … [Read more...]

I happened to be in the parking lot behind Bodo’s on Preston Avenue this week and could see in the back of the restaurant where all the workers were busy assembling and serving up the famous Bodo’s Bagels. It was like watching a symphony. Each worker moved quickly and precisely to and from their stations. One delivered a fresh batch of bagels from the oven while another sliced the bagels and … [Read more...]

  Remember the old Aesop’s Fable, “The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs”? To refresh your memory, there was once a goose that laid a solid gold egg every day for a peasant man and his wife, which made them quite wealthy. But the couple got greedy and killed the goose to get all the eggs inside at once. There were none, of course, and now the Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs was dead. If … [Read more...]

It hit the grocery store fans on January 1. There is now a 5-cent fee on those little brown plastic bags, and many customers were caught off guard. Some though the grocery stores were simply gouging while others argued with store cashiers about the fairness of it all. A few remembered the county had so decreed nearly a year ago. And now customers must pay a nickel for every bag they stuff their … [Read more...]

  There is another scam now on the Internet. The scam is designed as a customer survey from a major retailer such as Lowe’s, Home Depot or Dick’s Sporting Goods. They ask you to answer a few questions about your last visit and then say you may be eligible for a special gift for completing the survey. After you finish the survey, they say you are indeed eligible for an amazing prize for … [Read more...]

I heard those words the other day coming from my neighbor’s yard. There were kids in the next yard playing ball. Liam, age 7 or so, was the catcher, with a mask, a mitt and everything. Another kid stood at the plate, Casey at the bat. There was an actual baseball game going on, and there wasn’t a single adult out there. They were just kids, playing ball. These days, you’re more likely to see … [Read more...]

Ta da! It’s me. The Inflation Fighter: Able to leap over steep prices with a single bound, faster than a speeding Visa credit card check. I am the Inflation Fighter! At least in the grocery store. I seriously believe that I am spending less now, even after the crazy inflation going on at grocery stores. I am spending less because inflation ticks me off and I’m not going to take it lying down. I … [Read more...]