9835038 - cartoon image of a boy in school taking a test. Many of the secondary schools are adding to their curriculum, classes that would make graduates in tune with the real world. Things like filling out a tax return, writing a resume, balancing a checkbook, applying for a home loan. I can’t argue with … Continue reading Doug’s Standardized Test →

https://images.clipartof.com/small/441587-Royalty-Free-RF-Clip-Art-Illustration-Of-A-Cartoon-Businessman-Standing-On-A-Ladder-And-Reaching.jpg Brunhilda and I had a move to accommodate her new job as an English teacher in Bismarck, ND. So we went looking for houses, which is a man’s second least favorite thing to do. The least favorite thing is going shopping for a dress and holding your purse while you are in the dressing … Continue reading Wallpaper Caper →

One of the most refreshing two weeks four times a year is when all Cleopatra, Bathsheba and Chipper, my stepchildren, go to Minneapolis to spend time with their father. I don’t know who looks forward these trip more, I know that the kids are excited, but I am ecstatic about the chance to have a … Continue reading The Trip →

I was once a stepfather to three children. This is an onerous duty. It came about because I also took on the mission of a second wife. My friends all said that I was a glutton for punishment, but I guess loneliness and the solitary life didn’t agree with me at the time. I wasn’t … Continue reading The Stepfamily →

I was looking at some very old pictures the other day and uncovered one that showed me standing beside a 1959 DeSoto and on the back Mother had written, “Doug, the day he got his driver’s license.” That was a pretty big day for me, it is one of those passages that you go through … Continue reading Layin’ a Patch →

There is a book called THE DARWINS, and it is loosely based on Charles Darwin's work on evolution. It is based on the act that the slowest or least intelligent will perish leaving the fastest or most intelligent to survive. This is kind of like a pack of wolves on the hunt. The slowest ones … Continue reading The Darwin Awards →

A modern Orthodox Jewish couple, preparing for a religious wedding, meets with their rabbi for counseling. The man asks, “Rabbi, we realize it’s tradition for men to dance with men and women to dance with women at the reception, but we’d like your permission to dance together, like the rest of the world.” “Absolutely not,” … Continue reading A Modern Jewish Couple →