I found an interesting surprise this past week in one of the paperback books at my house, a surprise that truly shows how much the world has changed. It’s a 1976 motel receipt for a room at the Fresno Hilton. It’s from a complete stranger, but the interesting part was the bill. It came to ...

I took a photography class in college. On the first day, Brother Zarr informed us that he didn’t want to see any photos of old people or kids. Anyone can shoot a picture of an old guy on a corner or a kid on a swing. It doesn’t take any creativity. Writing about spring is like that. ...

Of all the essential infrastructure that we take for granted — I’m including Taylor Swift here — perhaps none is more important than soft water. I’m among those who says a prayer of thanks every time I turn the tap and water comes out. This is because running water wasn’t always a ...

You can save a life in just a few seconds, by being ready to respond if a stroke occurs. Nearly 800,000 Americans experience stroke each year. Strokes cause 140,000 deaths each year and are a leading cause of serious long-term disability. May is National Stroke Awareness Month. Act quickly ...

I was at Mass Sunday evening at New Ulm Cathedral. As usual at church, thoughts swirled in my head. The act of stilling myself for worship and letting the busyness of life come to a stop is like braking suddenly in a car. It takes a while to go from sixty to zero. The Second Reading from 1 ...

May is the month is which we observe mental health awareness, an issue that has strong personal resonance with me. I’ve had two instances in my life when I suffered from delusional thoughts. One occurred in 2004 when I had to make a decision about giving up my job and going to graduate ...