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Perfume musk and animals
When I first learned about ambergris some decades ago, scientists thought it was whale puke. Hold that thought, readers, if you think you can stand it. Ambergris, an odorous substance, has been used in perfumes since fairly ancient times to help the good scent of …
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Fooling myself into thinking I’m not one of those people
I like to think I’m one of those people who is not attached to her phone, someone who can live without it and doesn’t need to check it every five minutes. Secretly, I look at people who can’t get off the phone long enough to …
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Star’s decision comes with responsibility
A preventive double mastectomy after learning she carried a gene that made it extremely likely she would get breast cancer has actress Angelina Jolie in the news and I can’t help but wonder when the flack’s going to hit the fan from those with an …
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Study finds college may not be worth it
A recent study says going to college isn’t always worth it. I’m sure it’s the last thing recent college graduates want to hear. After all, they have just spent the last two years or more working hard to be able to better provide for themselves …
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Science fiction comes to life with plastic guns
It’s right out of science fiction, but it’s not fiction — a plastic gun printed out on a 3-D printer was test-fired a few days ago in Texas, and it successfully fired real ammunition made for the more common steel weapons. This not only opens …
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The sweetest Mother’s Day yet
Gary and I had an enjoyable Mother’s Day weekend, to say the least. We took Kaylee to his cousin’s house (she’s a professional photographer) and got family pictures made, just in time for Kaylee’s first birthday party. Yes, she’s about to turn 1. It goes …
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Some things shouldn’t become commonplace
In a world tormented by hurt and fear, is the news of mass shootings, bombings, kidnappings becoming less shocking? Are we becoming less sensitive to the fact these things happen since it seems they happen more often? Are there more instances or is it just …
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What my mom taught me
When we were kids my mother handed out her own kind of cruel and unusable punishment — lectures. I never recall her ever spanking me — not once. My mother was a lecturer and to us kids, it was worse than a spanking. With five …
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Moving Cleopatra’s Needles
Cleopatra’s Needle is the popular name for each of three ancient Egyptian obelisks which were moved in the 1800s and re-erected in New York City, London and Paris. A fourth, a twin to the one in Paris, remains in its original site at Luxor and …
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Already bored with ‘news’ about Jason Collins
Is anyone else tired of hearing about NBA player Jason Collins’ being gay? When the news broke that he is gay, I think the world kind of said, “OK,” then went about their normal day-to-day business. Or at least we tried. The national media keep …
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Daddy never stopped loving her
When news broke more than a week ago of George Jones’ passing, my editor asked if I was going to write about it. I hadn’t planned to and then I went and tuned in to his memorial service last Thursday, left recalling my own memories …
