Opinion Archives - Page 13 of 40

(Not So) Common Sense | An apple a day…

March 27, 2018

When I was a kid, we learned a rhyme in school that, I suspect, was aimed at encouraging us to eat fruits and vegetables instead of candy and gum. “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” For some reason, I was terrified of doctors when I was a little girl, so I never forgot this little gem. I think in my young mind, I pictured myself throwing the apple at the guy in the white coat, so great was my fear. Ah, the minds of children.

(Not So) Common Sense | Let’s go streaking!

March 22, 2018

No, no. I don’t mean that literally. Not now, anyway. I mean “Let’s go streaking,” as in that 1970s craze that, in hindsight, was one of the very few memorable things about that decade – well that, polyester and platform shoes. Come to think of it, I’m not sure streaking wasn’t the crowning glory of the 70s. The fad blazed through college campuses back then, with students brazenly and unabashedly ditching their clothes and running from Point A to Point B, just because they could.

Hey Y’all | Bad Stuff Travels in Threes

March 21, 2018

I have always heard that bad things happen in threes. I think the expression began with World War I and the prohibition for a third person to light a cigarette on one match. Never three on a match. In the amount of time it takes for three people to light their cigarettes, the enemy can find and focus on you and, “Boom,” you’re dead.

(Not So) Common Sense | A kinder, gentler generation

March 11, 2018

I’m a parent. In fact, my husband and I are the parents of four children, ranging in age from 26 – 32. I think that means that all of our children are millennials, though opinions and definitions of what, exactly, a “millennial” is differ greatly. I don’t suppose it matters all that much, anyway. While several generations have been given names (starting with the Greatest Generation), those designations aren’t what I hope to address today.

(Not So) Common Sense | Don’t like the weather in Georgia? Stick around for a few minutes.

March 4, 2018

Seventy-three degrees and sunny. Sunroof open, short sleeves on. Grills fired up, tulips and daffodils making a welcome appearance. Welcome to February in Georgia. Ah, you say such unseasonably warm weather doesn’t quite agree with you? Stick around for a few minutes.

(Not So) Common Sense | A swimsuit? In February?

February 19, 2018

How many of you out there have ever received those skimpy clothing catalogs in your mailboxes during this, the coldest month of the year? You know the ones I mean; emaciated but somehow lovely models grace the pages, lounging and posing in swimsuits that look like Band-aids, filmy, flowy, see-through dresses, and skin-tight shorty-shorts.

Hey Y’all | The Fur Ball of Death

February 19, 2018

We have four cats, all were rescues, and none are touchy-feely. I really wanted a cat that was like my little Ramona. She loved to be held and combed or to just sit with you. She wrapped herself around my neck and rode on my shoulders wherever I was walking.These four in residence now were never truly socialized as babies, so they have made up their own rules.

Equine Therapy- A Legacy of The First Southerners

February 17, 2018

As Gwinnett county’s population approaches one million, it’s difficult to picture the landscape as it existed in the early 19th century, when there were no paved roads, no subdivisions and, believe it or not, no traffic. At that time, the county was occupied primarily by the Creek and Cherokee tribes, which are referred to by many archaeologists as, “The First Southerners.”

Hey Ya’ll | Tasteful Native Costumes

February 17, 2018

Shortly after Snell and I got married, we decided we would chaperone the graduating class of Duluth High School on a cruise to Nassau and Free Port. We had a stop in Puerto Rico for the evening, and a bunch of the boys wanted to go into Puerto Rico. They didn’t feel comfortable enough to go by themselves, so they approached us about going with them.