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Resolutions

Someone recently challenged me to come up with some New Year’s resolutions. I have a couple of problems with that particular idea. First of all, how can you resolve to become a better person when you’re already so good that there’s nearly no room for improvement? If you are, as Mary Poppins reckoned in her own self-assessment, “practically perfect in every way”? You can bet that my wife has a radically different opinion regarding this. I would normally dismiss that as mere second guessing except for, dang it, she’s almost always right. Another issue is that the future ...

We all can be targets in a mean world

Just in time for Christmas, I looked like a freak. How festive. I came home from town, and wife Pam made a face at me. “What’s wrong with your eye?” Nothing that I knew about till I looked in the mirror. My left eye was red where white was supposed to be. It was what your teenager would call “gross.” I looked like the guy in a horror movie who knifes everybody in the basement. My eye doc Jim Hutchins said it was bad, but he’s seen worse. I think that was supposed to make me feel better. It was a burst blood vessel, a big one, the mother of all blood vessels. It should ...

Dealing with difficult exes

Dear Annie: How do I convey to my adult married children that I do not like being around my ex for the holidays? My son lives several states away, and he invited my daughter and her family, my ex, and my wife and me for Thanksgiving together. This will be the first time in close to seven years that I will see both of my children together for a holiday. My daughter has had Christmas at her home every year since my granddaughter was born. We are invited, but my ex is always there. I think holidays should be happy occasions, at a minimum, so maybe we could rotate years. But that does not ...

Try these tips for shaving leg hair

Dear Heloise: For several years, I modeled hosiery for magazines and learned some great tricks on how to keep my legs looking good and how to remove hair. It was especially important when we were shooting a close-up where our legs needed to look flawless and toned. Here are some hints: -- Always shave your legs in the morning when your legs aren’t puffy from walking and standing all day. -- Rinse your legs under a hot shower before you shave to allow the follicles to open up before you start shaving. -- I always used hair conditioner rather than soap. This gave me a smoother ...

A new mission awaits

Making the transition from service member to veteran can be daunting. In an instant, you leave behind a community of brothers and sisters bound by a noble purpose. Then, there’s the more practical aspect of exiting military service, as many are left to find their next mission. The attributes that made us successful in service — being driven, calm under pressure and efficient problem solvers — transfer well into the world of entrepreneurship. Despite these key characteristics, the barriers to launching, sustaining and growing a business can appear insurmountable. However, one ...

Living without my wife

Dear Annie: My wife of 44 years passed away after a nine-day bout with cancer. We started dating at 16, went to college together, married at 20 and graduated at 21, when we started our life together for real. “Sally” passed away two months after her 65th birthday. I will turn 65 in a month. I was to retire in three months, while Sally was already retired. Our house is paid for and sits by a beautiful creek in small-town Georgia, and moving has been suggested. I like it here. All our plans for traveling and having a life together in retirement disappeared in a matter of ...