Long Life, Meet Smart Money Strategies
One of the most common and most important financial questions is simple: Will my money last? It’s a reasonable question, and it carries far more weight today than it did for previous generations. People are living longer and trying to stay healthier than ever, yet that creates a new challenge in preparing for the future. How long those resources may...
Want Some Lettuce On That Burrito?
Well, maybe, if it’s deep-fried. Or not. Looks like the origin of the cyclosporiasis outbreak has been spotted, so-to-speak. Being found in, of all things, shredded lettuce, frequently found in vegetarian or Mexican eateries (We’re lookin’ at you, Taco Bell.). Turns out that if you prepare the leafy stuff yourself–properly–it’s more likely to be safe but if you purchase the...
How Are You Feelin’?
Thinking of joining the “Plague of the Month”Club? Get in line. The latest dread disease is a parasite apparently commonly found on fresh produce (That’ll teach you to eat your veggies.). The stuff is known to scientists who study such health issues as cyclosporiasis. Guess that it’s been around before, usually appearing between May and August, but so far the CDC(Center...
I’m Just A Little Guy
Have you heard about the data center controversy? Probably, it’s been one of the hottest topics in recent local history. Weekly Villager, The Portager, Record Courier, and even USA Today reporters have been seen all over the county covering the trustee and town council meetings. A statewide group, Conserve Ohio, has been created, and members are circulating a petition...
The Crazy Behind Us, The Crazy Still Ahead
Now that the fireworks have faded and America’s 250th anniversary is behind us, there’s a familiar feeling in the air, like the quiet after a party or reunion. Next comes the cleanup, the exhale, and the welcome realization that the time together was worth it. Even if the gathering wasn’t perfect, or not everyone got along, it still leaves...
This Land, That Dream
Happy Semiquincentennial America! For 250 years, the American Dream has endured because it speaks to something fundamental: the freedom to build a better life. It has never belonged to just one kind of person or taken just one form. For some, it means stability. For others, it is fierce independence, entrepreneurial opportunity, or the chance to create something better for future...
Heckuva Horticulture
Things are actually growing in my ersatz garden by the side of the house–a bunch of pots, one raised bed contraption a little more than four feet off the ground, a potting shelf/table and two barely-tamed hoses. Ve gots flowers (I seem to be in a pink/purple phase right now), at least two types of peppers (none hot)--could be...
Hotsy-Totsy–Scenes from SummerFest
Got my annual corn dog–sometimes it’s semi-annual, depending on however many fairs/festivals I get to. It’s one of the things about “fair food” that makes it so seductive; it’s stuff that one would seldom make at home. Forget the freezer case at the grocery. Not that you could not make it, it’s just that it’s a whole lot more...
Be A Guest — America Through Fresh Eyes
It’s been said that travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer. And summer is when we can test that theory out. Vacations, family reunions, road trips, summer camp, and holiday weekends all show us that some of life’s best returns come from experience, not accumulation. With the World Cup in North America this summer, it has...
What’s Going On Out There?
Okay. Okay. I understand that the internet is a way for folks to make connections and get information and learn stuff but I seem to have been plugged in to some weird social media groups. In the first place, I have mentioned before that, apparently, somebody thinks that my real name is “Ivan” and that I am a guy...
Rocket Man: Father’s Day Wisdom in a Trillion-Dollar World
A thousand seconds is about 17 minutes. A million = nearly 12 days. A billion seconds is more than 31 years. And a trillion? More than 31,000 years. At that scale, numbers stop feeling like something we can picture and start seeming out of this world. That came to mind with the recent buzz around SpaceX, Elon Musk and the broader...
Why This World Cup Feels Bigger Than Sports
Even if soccer isn’t your thing, it is hard not to notice the excitement surrounding the World Cup. Traditionally, Americans have been skeptical of soccer compared with football or basketball because it’s not as high scoring, the pace seems slower, and a lot of complexity happens on the field. But that’s also part of why it can be worth watching....
A Curmudgeon’s Lament
Always something to be gained by attending an alumni gathering. Sometimes it’s just the satisfaction of realizing that you’re still alive and kicking–plenty of others aren’t, ya know. Anyway, I went to the Alumni Days up at Hiram College and only spotted four people that I knew; I think that was the fewest in recent memory–of course, my memory is...
Horticulture Part II
“The farmer in the dell, the farmer in the dell, Hi Ho, the Dairy-O, The farmer in the dell.” Anybody else remember that one? Isn’t there a chorus or something? Or is that the chorus? “Chick chick here and a chick chick there” is “Old MacDonald’ isn’t it? Well, anyway, I’m planting things again (There are chickens across the street. Does that count?)...
Your “Once in a Lifetime” Summer
When The Talking Heads released “Once in a Lifetime” in 1980, the world backdrop was anything but calm. Inflation was high, recession fears were real, and uncertainty seemed to be everywhere. More than four decades later, the feeling is familiar — and it has us singing, same as it ever was. And you may ask yourself, “Well, how did I...
Rummage Around
Rummage is one of those interesting words that can be both a noun and a verb–and two kinds of a verb, at that, both transitive and intransitive (and even a sort of an adjective, as in a “rummage sale”). All of you grammarians out there got that, right? All of you non-grammarians don’t give two hoots in a hot...
On Uncertainty, Extremes,
One easy way to spot AI in writing is through something called contrastive framing: it’s not x, it’s y. For example, “It’s not me, it’s you.” That formula can force ideas into opposition, and lately it mirrors the way many people are discussing world events. More and more, topics are framed in extremes — danger or opportunity, loss or gain,...
A Holiday Reminder About an Overlooked Asset
Some of the most important investments in life never appear on a statement. As Memorial Day reminds us, life is shaped not only by what we build, but by the people we share it with. While we often focus on growing financial assets, it is just as important to invest in the relationships that give life meaning, support, and resilience. For...
Spring into Summer knowing your Air Conditioning is Working Properly!
Homeowners interested in making home improvements often consider their project in terms of its long-term investments - will this increase my home's value if I decide to sell? Kitchen upgrades are a good bet, as are bathroom improvements. But there's one investment that's always a wise move, no matter where you live and what the climate is: central air...
Cat Walk
The kitties–Rusty and Nipper–and I tried to go for a walk the other day–not a real big success in any terms that I might use in a family paper. See, I had been taking them, intermittently, to yoga on Saturday mornings, not when it was too cold for any of us to be out, not when it was so miserable...
Local Highlights
Step right up ! Bargains galore ! OOPS. Cover everything. Garage Sale weekend had its moments–some of them rather damp. Lots of stuff out there to be checked out, maybe bargained over. Lots of evidence of families outgrowing all sorts of things. Lots of families growing into new fashions and looking for a bargain or two. Clothes…toys… appliances…you name it,...
Some Surprisingly Super Financial News
For all the headlines telling us people are burned out, overspending, under-saving, distracted, anxious, and financially behind… there’s actually some good news emerging underneath the surface. Last week, reports showed that the number of Americans with “super prime” credit scores — generally considered 780 and above — is growing, especially among younger adults. Even amid inflation, talk of AI taking...
Living Longer Is Easy. Affording It Can Be The Harder Part
We’re living longer than any previous generation. The real measure, though, has never been the length of a life but the quality of it. And that raises a question that doesn’t get asked often enough: is your financial life structured to support the kind of life you actually want to sustain? Graduations, Mother’s Day, summer plans, and climbing healthcare costs...
May is National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month
If you have asthma, allergies, or any respiratory symptoms while in your home, you may want to consider this special national Asthma and Allergy Month offer. You may not realize this, but poor indoor air quality (IAQ) is a health risk according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The air in your home is typically more polluted than the air outside! ...
Oh, To Know What You Don’t Know
It sounds like a page out of Dr. Seuss: Oh, to know what you don’t know. But playful as that sounds, it captures a familiar impulse for investors in both the U.S. and Canada right now. If we could anticipate every policy shift, market reaction, trade impact, or economic turn before it arrived, decision-making ahead of summer 2026 would...
Your Financial Countdown to Summer 2026
“Money is like gas in the car — you need to pay attention or you’ll end up on the side of the road — but a well-lived life is not a tour of gas stations.” Author Tim O’Reilly’s observation feels especially relevant this week as inflation and conflict with Iran add pressure to summer travel costs and everyday expenses. It’s...
Aww… Take A Hike Folks
The 28th Annual Portage County Park District Foundation Awards Dinner and Auction on April 25, was a full-grown success. The evening featured a celebration of fifty years of the county’s original park, Towner’s Woods –and its not-well-known-enough features of a Hopewell Indian Burial Ground, a historic Railroad Switch Tower, a pristine Glacial Kettle Hole Lake, woodlands, wetlands and meadows....
April Showers….?
Nothing was said about April snows, was it? Earth Day coming up on the 22nd is about it for celebrations this month but maybe someone can rustle up a snow sculpture contest. Heaven only knows that after having the warmest March ever recorded (since dinosaur days when nothing was being recorded anyway) and one of the latest cold snaps anyone...
Let’s Start With What’s Annoying You
April is both National Stress Awareness Month and Financial Literacy Month, which feels like a contradiction, since for many people, finances are the stress right now. We’re just days past the April 15 tax deadline, AI FOMO is everywhere (because apparently we should all have digital agents running our lives by now), and oil tensions in the Middle East are...
Chasing a Magic Number and Other Ways To Fool Ourselves in April
April has a way of encouraging magical thinking. Some are convinced there’s still plenty of time before the April 15th tax deadline. Others imagine a refund check or a raise will solve more than it actually will. And according to a new survey, Americans now believe they’ll need $1.46 million to retire comfortably, up $200,000 from just a year...
