GUEST BLOG ENTRY January 8, 2017 Another Whack-A-Mole Ralph has generously yielded this space to me since he has been a bit indisposed this week…to say the least. A sudden pesky little bout of kidney failure has him sitting in a hospital bed with tubes sticking out of his neck, wiggling to get comfortable around the injection site from his kidney biopsy. The tubes lead to a port for temporary...

“Mangia!!!  C’mon, Eat Something!” My mother had a saying, “His eyes are bigger than his stomach.” This was directed at people who loaded their plates but left the dish full, a criticism usually aimed at ravenous politicians as well as gluttonous diners.  When I mentally return to my boyhood holidays, my nostalgia is often “bigger than my stomach.”  Or so I think.  When I become objective again,...

Christmas Day 201 I am spending the day with my oldest daughter, Christie, my son-in-law Ted, and my wonderful grandchildren, Sofia and Daniel.  I hope you are enjoying your family as well.  Have a very Merry Christmas!  Ralph

A Christmas Moment Tis the season.  As my mind thumbs through an old rolodex of holidays past, it always stops at one very special and unique moment in time.  If other civilizations in other galaxies are ever capable of capturing our singular most crystalline events in our human lives, this personal moment would be a highlight of mine. It had been a week of dismal failures and self-deprecation...

One Man’s Guide for Men Shopping for Women’s Gifts Okay, Men.  You have decided to man up and shop for your wife’s holiday gift.  This is a daunting task---no doubt about it.  But with this guide, the mission will be easier and, hopefully, successful.  First of all, congratulations!  You have eschewed our fathers’ cowardly tactic of giving their daughters some cash and commanding them to...