SUNRISE ON AN ANGRY SEA According to a recent article in The New York Times, falling in love with A.I. is no longer science fiction. One cited study found that one in five American adults has had an intimate encounter

According to Pet Spending Statistics, Americans are expected to spend a total of $157 billion on their pets by the end of 2025. The average dog costs its owner $143 per month in 2024, while a cat costs $90.50 per

WHAT! You might wonder, as I did, whether gambling increases or decreases when the economy tanks. My assumption was that more people would risk their money chasing a magical profit; that stress, low self-esteem, and anxiety would push them toward

PARENTING: Rope them in and keep them tight The Wall Street Journal recently featured an article that made me laugh. Every Friday and Saturday morning, hundreds of parents gather in a hilltop park in Chongqing, in southwestern China. In English,

During COVID, I took out my frustrations on canvas. Replanting the Garden was painted in May, when people were using their gardens as an escape from isolation, hoping the pandemic would be short-lived. Flying High was painted in June, when

Static intermission is about finding order in chaos. It’s what many of us crave during turbulent times. According to the Pew Research Center, Americans today are split on the meaning of family. People are more pessimistic than optimistic about the

Over the Fence: From Rags to Riches was painted to convey the difficulty of overcoming barriers to success and financial security. The drive to create is a defining quality of being human. From the time we are born, there is

I THOUGHT I KNEW YOU With most people not what you think they are, so you may as well have a good laugh! Years ago, while at a convention, I passed a room where people stood on chairs laughing. It

                          Western Red Cedar                            Birch Trees                                   The phrase “the end justifies the means” is often attributed to Niccolò Machiavelli, but it actually originated with the Roman poet Ovid in his Heroides (The Heroines). Still, Machiavelli came close

ACCESS TO CLEAN WATER IS ON A SLIPPERY SLOPE Access to clean, inexpensive water is on a slippery slope as governments give up management of their water systems to for-profit corporations. Last week, I took a Bull Run Watershed Tour