Home and Shopping

Margaret Cullison writes: Other than my two grandmothers, we didn’t have any relatives living nearby. Most of my parents’ families had moved away from Iowa. This was not the norm in our small town of Danish and German families whose gatherings ran to thirty or forty family members. It made me feel slightly deprived not to enjoy the closeness of a large family like my friends did. But my parents had developed a circle of friends with whom we got together for family dinners. more »

Rose Mula writes: This morning, starting on yet another health kick, I figured I'd forego my usual breakfast of a humongous blueberry muffin dripping with butter or an automobile-tire-sized bagel slathered with cream cheese or a stack of pancakes swimming in syrup. Feeling noble, I decided to have a much less lethal boiled egg on whole wheat toast. But instead of simply boiling some water and tossing in an egg for three minutes, as I normally would have done, for some reason, I consulted Chef Google. Big mistake. more »

Julia Sneden wrote: This morning was a bright, brisk, autumn day in North Carolina, which is in itself enough to make anyone thankful. As I took my morning walk, I was enjoying scuffling through the leaves when I heard it: the sound of a basketball being dribbled. There was a small ping! in my heart, which is what sometimes happens when I hear or see something that reminds me of my sons, long grown and gone from home. more »

"We were surprised that so many students at Cal had a need for a place to spend Thanksgiving and to eat a traditional holiday meal at a time when the rest of us can be with family and eat more than we should," said Gary Kohler, director of sales and marketing for Hotel Durant and Henry’s, who estimated that it cost $12,000 to provide staffing and food for the students and volunteers. "It's a population we didn't realize was there. We wanted to help." more »