Make no mistake, love is in the air. Jewelers have stepped up their ads for diamond-crusted tokens of tenderness (“Every kiss begins with Kay!”) and the candy aisles of local grocers are overflowing with chocolate wrapped in red and pink (the only time of year, as far as I know, that these colors appear together on purpose). […]
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This departure from the regular column is in response to the recent record-setting cold the National Weather Service described as “life threatening.” Our resident expert, Good Natured writer Pam Otto, answers some questions about the super-cold. […]
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You have a cavity.” For many of us, delivery of this statement evokes feelings of disappointment and maybe even gloom. Our dental hygiene regimen–all that brushing, flossing and rinsing–has somehow failed, and now there’s a hole that doesn’t belong. […]
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Every family has one. You know what I’m talking about – that one relative who is gifted beyond belief with agility and coordination. In our family, it’s my nephew Caleb. You should see him on his backyard playset. He can flip and spin; he can hang upside down; he can fly down the slide, face first, and stick the landing every time. […]
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I guess you could say I have a history with frogs. For as far back as I can remember, I’ve chased after these guys, stalking them in ponds and streams, reveling in their frogginess. When I was five my Uncle Lyman caught me an enormous bullfrog […]
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Citizens of Kane, beware: The butcher birds are back! That’s right folks-Lanius excubitor has returned to our fair land. But instead of running for cover, you might instead want to gear up and go outside.. […]
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The day began pretty much like any other. We opened the building, we began some ecological restoration tasks, we found a skull. It sounds a bit macabre, I know. But every day the circles of life play out around us, and more often than not they leave a trace-sometimes even a mound!-of evidence. […]
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If you’ve ever hosted a holiday feast, you know that leftovers are part of the deal. Some go gracefully, packed up in containers and sent home with family or friends. Others take on new identities inside inventive casseroles. A select few might, with the best of intentions, get tossed in the freezer for “later,” a day that may or may not ever come. […]
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It seemed like such a good idea at the time. For years I’ve touted the benefits of winter water sources for wildlife. And while we’ve got plenty at various locations throughout the St. Charles Park District, I personally had none. But that changed – make that started to change – in December 2016. […]
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The snow swirled down in big, heavy flakes-like the kind you see in a snow globe, only real. As I walked through the Hickory Knolls Natural Area, I couldn’t help but become immersed in the tranquility of nature in winter. A stroll in the woods is one of the best ways I know to clear my head, and that particular day I surrendered to the free association of words that lilted through my tired brain. […]
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