I want to take a few moments to talk about the elephant in the room, or – more importantly, in the restaurant, café, or coffee shop. Yes, I’m talking about tipping. For some reason, the tipping culture in this country has seemingly run off of the rails, and I’m not quite sure why. Now, I’ll be the first person to admit that servers and bartenders deserve to be tipped for good service. Lord knows, a competent waiter/waitress/bartender is hard to…
Officially, fall is almost upon us. Unofficially, your local fast-food outlet has already gone into full “pumpkin crazy” mode, flooding the market with cinnamon, nutmeg, and other fall spices which now make up the bulk of their autumnal offerings. That being said, most of these drinks, while they may be delicious (I wouldn’t know because I don’t drink this expensive garbage) – are certainly not good for one’s overall health. The sheer amount of calories and sugar in many of…
Over the past few months, It has been a never-ending period of milestones for me. My youngest daughter turned twenty, I celebrated my twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, and early next month, I’ll turn fifty-six (although in my mind, I’m still just a stupid teenager, but my body would totally disagree with that sentiment). This week also marks a milestone for this blog. This is the 400th post of this writing endeavor, and for those of you keeping score, that’s around eight…
If there’s one thing I do not miss about living in Florida, it’s all the damn hurricanes. As we saw just last week, it doesn’t take long for these storms to come barreling out of the Caribbean to wreak havoc on the Florida peninsula (as well as other southern states). Hurricane season runs from June 1st to November 30 each year, and if you live in a coastal area down south (or literally anywhere in the Sunshine State), you pay…
Ahhhhh, youth. I remember those care-free days when I was in my early twenties. Days when I could eat whatever I wanted with seemingly no consequences. I’d get two quarter-pounders with cheese from ‘McDonald’s’, wash that down with three slices of pizza from ‘Papa John’s’, and still never move an inch in my waistline. You know, back in the days when – as a younger man – I had the metabolism of a blast furnace. Alas, those days are over. …
You can’t pick up a newspaper or magazine these days and NOT see some article about the economy, interest rates, or some other force that may impact your home finances. Many of us have learned about personal finance the hard way (me included) – through trial and error. I’m still amazed that we don’t teach the basic concepts of personal finance to high school students before we unleash them into the wide, wide world of credit cards, home and car…
I’ll admit it – I’m a planner by nature. I like things orderly and organized. That’s just how I roll. The same rules apply when I’m going on vacation. I like to be prepared. Now before you roll your eyes and say “boy, I bet this guy is a blast on holiday”, let me explain. Just because I’m organized and prepared doesn’t mean I don’t like to relax and have a good time. Let me be clear – I’m not…
I know, I know. Another article preaching the platitudes of healthy eating and a healthier lifestyle, but let’s face it – none of us are getting any younger. I’m at the age where I’m routinely hearing about friends, co-workers, or acquaintances who are experiencing major health scares or even worse, I’ll read their obituary in the local paper. I don’t know about you, but I’m on the cusp of retirement, and I’m not ready to cash in my chips just…
With the summer heat reaching record-breaking temperatures, wouldn’t it be nice to step out of the back of the house and take a refreshing dip in your very own swimming pool? It’s the dream of a lot of homeowners, right? Be careful what you wish for. I know quite a few friends who happen to have swimming pools in their backyards (both “above ground” and “in ground”), and to a man (or woman), whenever I pose the comment “it must…
There’s nothing like a short summer getaway to recharge one’s batteries and to enjoy time with friends. My wife and I recently did both, taking in a long weekend in Philadelphia, PA, where there’s more to the city than just the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, and the ‘Rocky’ statue. We headed north on Friday from our home in MD, making the short three hour-plus trip up I-95, passing through northeastern Maryland and Delaware before arriving at our lodgings for the…