If you’re a regular reader, you know that our dog Charlie has been in a years-long feud with a possum that often sits on top of our back fence. Charlie is our elderly Beagle mix… Night of the incident

As Halloween creeps closer, we should talk about that ugly, four-lettered F-word — fear. I’m not proud of it, but fear and I spend a lot of time together. It’s the longest, most toxic relationship… The F word

I don’t know how old I was when my parents let me answer our family’s phone, but I was younger than most. In the early 1980s, my dad was a landscaper and tree trimmer, so… Coming of phone-age

Early in September, just in time for the Labor Day weekend, Covid crashed our party. Two of our three kids had come home for the long weekend, and one of them had what looked like… Truth in the drive-thru

Hold your head up. Not just because you’re a fine, upstanding human being. Not just because it makes you look better in photos. Do it because, if you don’t stop staring down at your phone… Tummy Time for Grown-ups

Last Thursday, I sat in a packed parking lot on a college campus teeming with people in a city of more than 100,000. But I might as well have been alone on a leaky raft… One-eyed, no good, very bad day

I hear voices. There, I admitted it. And I’d bet good money you hear them, too.  Here’s how it usually works: About one percent of the time, I hear the voice when I’m at my… American Idle

My mom and I have joint custody of a fancy vacuum cleaner. A few years ago when we both needed a new one, we decided to pool our money because we live just a few… Hair hair everywhere

People are a mystery. Sometimes I’m convinced we’re all just a bunch of intricate puzzles who happen to be wearing pants. To have a decent shot at comprehending human behavior, we need to better understand… Dopamine’s double life

There’s a baby in the house. A tiny, orange, fuzzy baby with two green eyes, 18 pink toes, and 24 whiskers that are too long for his body. His name is Beanie.  Our 18-year-old daughter… Beanie baby