Coming This Summer….
So, vacation time is here. What to do? Where to go? How about museums--educational, right?--of culinary phenomena? You could start with the National Mustard Museum( formerly the Mt. Horeb Mustard Museum) in Middleton, Wisconsin, found on the National Registry of Hysterical Places, perched atop the Condimental Divide. It features over five thousand various mustard-filled items from some sixty countries and...
Speaking of Graduation….
And speaking of graduation…. Well, isn’t everyone? High schools…colleges…pre-schools& kindergartens…wait…pre-schools & kindergartens? Yup. Saw it in the R-C picture congrats. All very well and good, I suppose, and grandparents like to get in encouragement wherever they can but what’s the kid have to look forward to if they’ve already done graduation at age four? Little tykes are going to...
Is a Home Equity Loan Right for Me?
Taxes are becoming an ever-increasing burden to Americans. Through the Tax Reform Act of 1986, Congress reduced or eliminated many of the ways that taxpayers can lower their taxes. Interest deduction is one of the areas that has been strongly affected by this tax reform legislation. Since tax year 1991, interest on consumer debt has not been deductible for income...
Garden Fun…
So… I’m out playing caretaker here at the Manse and I’m deciding that what we’re running at this location is the animal equivalent of the food court at the mall when a whole cohort of teenagers--boys mostly--shows up to attempt to fill their hollow legs. The “water feature” is bubbling its little heart out and any creature passing by can...
Will Social Security Retire Before I Do?
People have traditionally seen Social Security benefits as the foundation of their retirement planning programs. The Social Security contributions deducted from your paycheck have, in effect, served as a government-enforced retirement savings plan. However, the Social Security system is under increasing strain. Better health care and longer life spans have resulted in an increasing number of people drawing Social...
No Pun Intended
There are funny things out there, folks. A radio program the other day had on it a gentleman who had just had a new book published; its title was : The Pun Also Rises… a great play on words itself. I’ll have to get it and treat you to some real groaners. The late, great Donn Olin would have...
Game On!
Now that the baseball has officially started--with a few fits and starts as well as a false spring heat wave--you might notice a few things different from last season. Sure, sure, there are new players; that happens every year, more or less. No. Look at what they’re playing WITH…new bats. Not just new, as in “We bought these this...
Law & Government
The primary election is over. Except for the Presidential campaign, some of you may not have known there were elections. Let’s be honest. Many of us realized for the first time at the poll that we had LOTS of decisions to make. For those of us who voted a partisan ballot, whether Democrat or Republican, we voted for several...
Busy Week! Heckuva weekend.
Lots of it was just stuff. You know, things that have to be done but really not planned for except in a sort of fly-by-night fashion--medical events, grocery shopping, yard work-- that kind of stuff. Then there were actually scheduled activities --lunch with the Nelson Literary Musical Club (All decked out in green they were; I wasn’t), choir practice,...
How Can I Better Manage My Short-Term Cash?
For the vast majority of people, it is essential to keep a portion of their assets in liquid form in order to meet monthly commitments. For example, most families have to meet their mortgage or rent payments, grocery, utility, and transportation bills out of their monthly paychecks. There is a host of other expenses that arise from month to...
1031 Exchanges: Deferring Gains on the Sale of Real Property
For investors who seek to defer capital gains on the sale of investment property, one complex yet effective option is a 1031 exchange (also known as a Starker exchange). Named after Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code, 1031 exchanges became more popular and accessible after a key ruling by the IRS in 2002, which for the first time allowed...
Election Red, White and Blues
Can we please have a rest until closer to November? Good Grief! It got so that I was seriously thinking of just letting the phone ring--I never do that--until the machine picked up or the caller got tired--no caller I.D. here, Chatty Kathy, no screening of calls. In the end, I did not do that; I’m always worried that I...
Vernal Pools: Murky Puddles of Fascinating Life
The word vernal is Latin from “vernus,” meaning “belonging to spring.” Vernal pools refer to any wetland that fills annually from snow melt, spring rains and rising groundwater. They usually do not have an outlet stream and therefore most years dry out during the hot summer months or early fall. But don’t let these vanishing pools fool you. Vernal pools...
I also love seed catalogs!
I also love seed catalogs. They’re coming in now and probably will continue until Memorial Day; Hope springs eternal! I used to get lots more. That was before somebody apparently tipped off Burpee’s Seeds and Plants, Stark Bros, Gurney’s, Johnny’s Selected Seeds, Park Seeds, et al. that I had a particularly virulent “black thumb”. Yes, sadly, for green things large...
IRA Rollovers: Helping Retirement Savers Defer Taxes, Avoid Penalties
If you participate in an employer-sponsored retirement plan, you may have concluded that you don’t need a traditional IRA. Many people see the IRA as unnecessary because they don’t exhaust the contribution limits on their employer plans. But don’t be fooled into thinking that an IRA can’t help you reach your retirement saving goals. Chances are actually pretty good...
Law & Government
Many friends and neighbors are talking about drilling leases. I have had several clients bring them to me and have had dozens of people ask in general terms what they should say. My best advice is to get an attorney and ask him or her to review your lease. Even before you speak to an attorney, however, here are...
Nearby Nature
Finally some snow! How does the old song go “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, everywhere you go”….well something like that. Since we discussed the Christmas tree in our last article, we thought it would be fitting to discuss two other traditional botanical icons of the season, the poinsettia and holly. Sorry mistletoe…maybe next year. Did you Know! • ...
Christmas Shopping
I sure hope that I get the hang of this “Christmas shopping” thing soon. I always think that I will get a head start on it --August, say--and have gifts all wrapped and ready, tucked away somewhere (Attic? Basement?) so that the holiday rush will be a thing of the past. Well, so far what’s...
When Investing, Make The Best Use Of Time
When you’re investing for retirement, it’s best to have time on your side. The sooner you begin investing, the more time your retirement fund has to potentially grow. Case in point Jill begins investing in a retirement account when she’s 30.* She invests $200 a month in the account for 35 years, until she’s 65, for a total investment of $84,000....
“What makes a rock maple table different from a regular maple table?”
“What makes a rock maple table different from a regular maple table?” The Newton Falls Public Library staff began their investigation in the library’s woodworking books. We found a complete list of various woods with photographs and descriptions in The Complete Manual of Woodworking by Albert Jackson, David Dan and Simon Jennings, p. 26. There are two kinds of...
Nearby Nature: Holiday Edition
As we prepare for the upcoming holiday seasons much of what we enjoy in Nearby Nature has either migrated, gone dormant, burrowed into the mud, or found a warm place to overwinter. So we thought we would get into the holiday spirit with topics relating to Thanksgiving and Christmas. Sorry, Aunt Bee, no stuffing, cranberries, pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes, or...
Winter Prep
So…I missed the Rotary meeting on the 24th. They were working away at their Reverse Raffle and Silent Auction…as they have been for some time; get your tickets now. The array of donated items and services should make for spirited bidding and a good time for all. It’s a regular social event around these parts, starts off the holiday...
THE OLD ROAD…. A Shoebox Ford On A Budget
Kevin Autry is a new and much younger member of the 1949-’53 Ford Mercury Club. He is the forty one year old new blood that each and every antique car club in this country is in desperate need of these days. How often have you heard it said that the young people aren’t interested in the old cars like...
My Kind of Month
October is my kind of month. It’s interesting. The harvest is winding down; those shocks of corn so prized by decorators are actually passe’ . Nobody uses them any more, unless they’re Amish, of course. Corn pickers are where it’s at as far as harvesting corn is concerned. They’re also one of the reasons why farming has always ranked as...
“I really enjoy audio books, but my CD player broke. I would like to try something other than a CD one. Is there another portable way to listen to...
Our caller said, “I really enjoy audio books, but my CD player broke. I would like to try something other than a CD one. Is there another portable way to listen to books?” Many members of the Newton Falls Public Library staff also enjoy listening to works by their favorite authors while driving or doing chores. Many of us listen...
Choosing The Right Caregiver
As medical science continues to find ways to help Americans live longer, it also requires us to examine some of the challenges of people living longer lives. The biggest, from both an emotional and financial point of view, may be providing ongoing care for a disabled adult. By the numbers According to the Family Caregivers Alliance National Center on Caregiving, 34...
Delightful and Sometimes Dangerous Decomposers
Since mushrooms have been in the news of late, we thought we would try to enlighten our readers about one of the most unusual and extremely important organisms in nature. Ominous sounding names like Destroying Angel, Deadly Galerina, and Poision Pie, are obviously poisonous; but Sulfer Tuft, Jack O’Lantern, and Fly Agaric are equally as dangerous. However Morels, Meadow...
Your Kind of Retirement
How do you picture your retirement? Do you envision visiting old friends and traveling to new places? Do you plan to take up a new hobby or pursue an old interest? If you have high hopes for your retirement, you aren’t alone. The retirement script is being rewritten by today’s generation who don’t plan to spend their retirement days...
Forsooth!
The Settlers “Ye Old” State Renaissance Faire has shuffled off into history once again, leaving bags of gold for the Middlefield “Shop With a Cop” program and the “Middlefield Cares! Food Cupboard”. Generous supporters included the Nauvoo Family Market, White House Chocolates, Alley’s Grille, Mary Yoder’s Kitchen, Zeppe’s Pizzaria, EarthLight Art Source, Mangia! Mangia! and The Ghosts of Burton...
“My husband and I enjoy feeding the squirrels peanuts in the shell…”
“My husband and I enjoy feeding the squirrels peanuts in the shell. We recently bought salted ones and my niece told me it wasn’t safe to give them salted ones. Is that true?” The Newton Falls Public Library staff understands people wanting to make sure they are giving animals proper foods. The library’s copy of Squirrels: a wildlife handbook by...
