WHAT ROLE DO ANIMALS HAVE IN THIS WORLD, or in the next? I started thinking about dogs today when my husband and I were enjoying some R & R at the beach.  We were people watching from a sidewalk cafe table, and many of the sunburned couples, families and singles strolling by had their pets with them.  One golden-retriever/Irish setter mix turned her silky,...

IF YOU’RE HOSTING A SATURDAY SALON TONIGHT, keep your set up simple.  My sister-in-law gave me these great catering plates, which come in stacked racks, just like those pie displays they have in diners.  Easy access, works in tight spaces, and are generous enough to hold all the wonderful food you made and your guests brought to share. Look for creative...

WE ALL HAVE OUR WORLD VIEWS…religion, politics, but also little world views or perceptions-realities that seem very real to us:  who does more housework or childcare, whose fault it is when some silly thing goes wrong.  I recently learned how powerful those perceptions can be when listening to some neighbors argue.   It’s summer and all of our windows...

A SOUTHERN TRADITION AT ANY MEAL, grits shine at your weekend breakfast table. I first tasted grits in Virginia, along with other dishes new to me, like hush puppies, rabbit, and okra (not all at once…).  It came with thick slices of bacon, a couple of golden, sunny-side up eggs and a glass or fresh-squeezed orange juice.  I slathered mine in butter and brown...

HAVE YOU EVER GOTTEN A PHONE CALL FROM YOUR SON OR DAUGHTER, in extreme panic because they might miss the family Boggle tournament?  Any of your children ever complain that they want to spend less time with their friends because they just aren’t getting enough “quality time” with Mom and Dad? I think not. My son claims there’s a reason they...

NOT AN ELEGANT NAME FOR A DESSERT, I MUST ADMIT, but it’s absolutely delicious.  If you’re limiting calorie intake, pass this one by, or starve yourself all day and indulge.  Trust me, it will be worth it! I first experienced this rich concoction while on a tour of the Colorado River Aqueduct.  On the last night of the tour, we were treated to a sample...

WHEN WE DIE AND GO TO HEAVEN, ARE WE GRADED ON A PERCENTAGE OR A CURVE?  Linus once asked this profound question of Charlie Brown, who did not have an answer, and neither do I.  What do you think? Are we going to be lumped in with the rest of humanity, given a handicap, like they do in golf, or is it just a Pass/Fail system?   Pass and you get to enter the pearly...