MY GIRLFRIEND AND I HAVE MADE A PACT. We have agreed to support each other in exploring our region to satisfy our curiosity in simply...

RED DELICIOUS APPLES AREN’T PARTICULARLY TASTY . At least that was the conclusion my youngest son and I had in the late 1990s when we sampled them fresh from our neighbor’s hilltop orchard in Lake Leelanau during the mid-October harvest. The dark red orbs we were handed produced that famous crunch that we all associate with biting into a fresh apple, but my son quickly frowned and whispered, “Dad, these are awful.” I shushed him, thinking his reaction was a bit over the top.

I HAD AN EPIPHANY IN EARLY DECEMBER. It came to me after I saw the strong winds jostle leaves and seed heads here and there on a...

IT’S BEEN TWO YEARS since I put my cat Tigger down for good. It was a final act of our togetherness. He was ready. I was not. Tigger...

ANOTHER SEASON COMES TO A CLOSE. My cherry tomatoes hung in there until late October. During the month I planted spring bulbs, moved a...

IN MY MINDFULNESS PUSH where stress in my world is minimized, I’m learning to focus on the contentment found in the here and now. I so...

THERE IS SOMETHING MAGICAL about the views we get along the shoreline in greater Frankfort. In fact, the entire length of the western...

I HAVE NOT WATCHED a movie in about five years. I know it has something to do with my opinion of actors and my confusion about our...

WHAT A PLEASANT SURPRISE that came my way this past week during my drive along M-22 from Manistee to Frankfort. Just past the parking lot...

HERE IT IS LATE AUGUST and I have been enjoying weeks of fresh corn, tomatoes, and peaches. I am very thankful for the local producers...

I WATCH WITH INTEREST ECONOMIC indicators that are all coming in suggesting we are in an inflationary period. This is not welcomed news...

SUCH A NICE RETURN for the rock and jazz group Chicago, appearing live and on stage this first week in August at Interlochen. The group...

This photo of daisies I took with the sun behind me on my walk into downtown Traverse City. IT WAS THE LAST DAY of the Cherry Festival....

HOW FUN IS IT TO GET THE WHEELS turning in planning a nine-hole golf course with a year-round rental cottage complex in greater...

ONE OF THE IRONIES IN MY LIFE happens to be my newest venture managing a specialty property on the bluffs of Lake Michigan outside of...

I PLAY GOLF WEEKLY WITH MY BUDDY GENE. His brother Joe happened to join us this week. I don’t usually look at other player’s clubs but on...

LEARNING TO SAY “NO” was one of my great turning points that came to me in my forties. I had gone down many dead-ends in business...

IT WAS A TOSS UP either I offer a recipe detailing my Aunt Betty’s molasses baked beans with smoked bacon or her famous chili sauce. I...

IN EARLY JANUARY MY NEWEST GRANDBOY was born in Hinsdale, Illinois. George was the third boy in my youngest son Dave’s expanding family...

THIS PARTICULAR CORN CHOWDER RECIPE has evolved nicely over the years. During this time I have used many types of smoked fish and seafood...