Marg-Ins - May I Ask You A Question?

If you have been a regular reader of the paper for any length of time, you are probably familiar with our feature that has been called a number of things, from 'Street Beat' to 'Question of the Week' to our latest moniker 'People Poll.' It typically occupies a space here on the 'Perspective' page but that, too, has changed over the years, from the bottom of the page a decade ago to the more recent right side of the page.

With this week's issue, we suspend the 'People Poll' column as a regular feature. It will appear occasionally, most ...

Ramblings – Slip Sliding Away

Words slip and slide. I discovered that a long time ago. In writing essays for high school, papers for college, accounts of trips and adventures, I found the words take over and dictate the story, not the other way around, and the story doesn't turn out the way you intended it even when you sometimes, almost by accident, choose the right word. Much is the same with life itself.

Stuff ‘N Nonsense – Homeownership: An Education In Economics

As previously mentioned, you might remember that we purchased our first home last year. It's been about six months now and we're still settling in but we've managed to unpack most of the important boxes even if we aren't entirely sure where everything ended up (I still can't find certain items that once resided in the kitchen).

Dawn’s Column - On To Something ‘Big’

A couple years ago around this time, I wrote a column about going to see the Sex And The City movie on opening night. I drove three hours to meet up with one of my partner-in-crime girlfriends from college and some of her girlfriends who held a 'Big' bash, complete with cosmopolitans (and champagne and kamikazes and…) and a limo to drive all 10 of us to the theater. It was memorable.

Mommy Musings - Not-So Common Sense

Knowledge is not always power.

Marg-Ins - Through The Raindrops

May has given way to June and junior high has given way to - yes, that noise was me gasping - having a high school freshman daughter. Of course, she won't actually be considered a freshman until school starts in August but the simple fact of the matter is my daughter is now an eighth grade graduate, has completed her elementary and junior high school years and, I am afraid, the next four years are going to be even more of a blur than the ones since she was sitting on the couch all smiles with her Sesame Street lunch box ...

Stuff ‘N Nonsense - A Few Words…

The school year is winding down. My teenage boys are moving into their junior and sophomore years respectively and my daughter is moving onto kindergarten.

It's hard not to sit back and reflect when everything has gone by in such a blur. This past year my oldest son traveled to New York with his drama club and collected priceless memories to treasure forever; my youngest son played three sports and earned his block "O;" my daughter's speech has improved immeasurably and her self-esteem is soaring.

Mommy Musings – More Than Smart … Pure Genius

It's a whole new world out there.

Dawn’s Column - The Merger

My fiancé and I are in the process of planning the final details for our wedding, it's nerve wracking. But I can tell you something else that's equally stressful - getting his house ready for me to move in.

Mommy Musings – It Takes A Village

What makes a good mother?

Marg-Ins - It’s A Wrap

One of the luxuries of being the editor - at least on some days - is that since I am the last one that reads stories, captions and columns before they go to press, I can tinker with my own deadlines. For instance, reporters have to turn their columns in by mid afternoon Friday before the Wednesday it is published, since the 'Perspective' page is laid out over the weekend. But here I am, about 3:45 p.m. Saturday, just getting it started. Time has once again gotten away from me and the week, like the entire month of April, has ...

Stuff ‘N Nonsense - Things That Go Bump

I've always been fascinated by the paranormal. I embrace the theory that there is something beyond the life that we experience in the here and now for I cannot imagine that this is it. Throughout my life I've encountered a number of experiences that may qualify as paranormal from a phantom touch on my shoulder to noises that don't belong and while I may have been a bit freaked out at the moment, it only served to whip up my enthusiasm and interest in the subject later.

Dawn’s Column - Sparkly Shoes And Ham

My fiancé and I recently hosted Easter dinner at his house for our families and have done this for the past few years, as his place is centrally located. We made the plan to drive to Stockton the day before Easter to pick up a Honeybaked Ham for the family gathering. He ordered the ham and I proposed that we arrive at the store early, before the line got too long.

Then my wheels began to turn.

Mommy Musings - Navigating Diplomacy

For those who follow Mommy Musings - be warned, the Hammond Family has enrolled a student in the Oakdale Joint Unified School District system. This is a precarious time for me, personally. It is a time when I will now be tested on how well I can balance my personal and professional life and not have it come at the expense of my children.

Marg-Ins - Keeping It Simple

Amazing as it seems, we are already a quarter of the way in to 2010. Time literally seems to be flying by – yet again – this year and, before we know it, we'll be looking at Halloween candy and Christmas decorations.

RICH IN THOUGHT – Being Papa For Grayson

After the excitement wore off when I first heard I was going to be a grandfather, I wondered if I was destined to be a loveable old man who wore a little fedora with a feather and plaid Bermuda shorts with calf-high dark socks in sandals. Or, if taking after my family lineage, it was time for me to get in the role of 'Papa' and eventually start having a garden with zucchini, fava beans, tomato plants and other vegetables like both my grandfathers had when I was young.

Marg-Ins No Rest For Weary

By definition, 'vacation' means an 'extended period of recreation' either at home or in travel. The word has also gained the reputation of meaning you get some rest while you are on vacation but that particular four-letter word did not seem to be on the itinerary for this trip.

Confessions Of A Jersey Junkie

Recently, one of my favorite websites, Uni-Watch.com, had a piece written titled "One Fan's Experience with Jersey Addiction" and it got me thinking of my own special closet that houses over 40 jerseys of past and present MLB, NFL, and NHL teams.

Dawn’s Column - The Final Countdown

It's been a while since I've written a column for The Leader, and this is my last one before saying goodbye to my coworkers and colleagues in the community.

Marg-Ins - Weighing The Options

Sometimes writing a monthly column seems like putting together my life, chapter by chapter. I have even had more than one person suggest all the columns be put together into a book but who knows if that will ever happen.