I have been sitting here, pondering all of the ways life goes wrong. I have been thinking of all of the things that have happened to me, dozens of injuries, dozens of broken bones (ostensibly more than a dozen broken noses alone), love life that is ridiculous to the point of stupidity, loneliness, no retirement…

As we all know, the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. During the aging process we sometimes take the “long way ‘round” to go places and do things. If you are with the love of your life, that might work out OK because to alter the age old expression just a little,…

My girlish interest in the Academy Awards is surely fairly obvious to frequent readers of this column, given the truly embarrassing number of times I’ve written here about the Oscars (including last week, in what was, upon reflection, possibly least coherent column in the history of my Mountain Times career—a serious achievement). Even so, I’ve…

By Marguerite Jill Dye I’ve considered trying my hand at writing fiction for a change, but who needs fiction when each day brings a stranger-than-life, unimaginable reality? A Russian spy ship is just offshore and our democratic election and computers were hacked by our arch enemy from the Cold War. Whether we’re uncovering Russiagate or…

By Susan Shea Driving to town on a winter day, I occasionally see flocks of white birds where the wind sweeps across fields, blowing snow across the road and exposing the grass. Rising and falling, the birds look like giant snowflakes tossed about by a storm. A closer look reveals that these birds, though mostly…

By Kevin Theissen Ahh, the Big Mac. Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions – on a sesame seed bun. The special sauce actually is not a secret and has been available for years – it consists of mayonnaise, sweet pickle relish and yellow mustard whisked together with vinegar, garlic powder, onion powder…

Three months have passed since Bernie Sanders infamously remarked that, in order to win future elections, the Democratic Party would have to “move beyond identity politics.” In a response to a young woman who had asked for his advice regarding her goal to become the second Latina senator in U.S. history, Sanders began by emphasizing…

What a week of skiing, and what a terrible time to be out with a back injury! Fresh powder every day for a week! I would never, ever be the kind of guy who would ski injured. But to get first tracks in Growler, Devils Den, Pins, Low Rider, Outer Limits, Devil’s Fiddle, or the…

I'm fortunate to be able to call Duane Carleton and Rick Redington good friends. We've shared many a stage and many good times together. I've written articles on each of them but this one is special. Why? Most of my interviews are one-on-one, but the three of us shared a conference call that was filled…

By Dom Cioffi Just about seven months ago, an ear, nose and throat specialist slid a tiny camera down my esophagus to investigate a persistent sore throat. Within less than a minute he pulled it out and began the one conversation that no one wants to have. “I’m 95 percent sure that you have a…

By Cal Garrison, a.k.a. Mother of the Skye This week’s Horoscopes are coming out under the light of Virgo Moon. Starting at 7:30 a.m. (EST), it will turn Void-of-Course and remain in that mode until it enters Libra, at 3:30 p.m. (EST). With Valentine’s Day at hand, instead of dwelling too much on the aspects,…

By Declan McCabe An email chirped in my inbox, “Check out the cute face on this insect we found.” I opened the attachment (yes, from a reliable source). My colleague Professor Peter Hope had taken a spectacular photograph through his microscope. The larva in question had fallen into a pit trap set by our first-year…

By Marguerite Jill Dye “This is not reality TV we’re watching,” a homemade sign from the Women’s March read. “Men of quality do not fear equality,” another sign said. We were duped, though some of us were wary from the start. We’ve been on a fast, bumpy rollercoaster ride since the inauguration. It isn’t the…

By Kevin Theissen Healthcare. Retirement. Those may be two of the most stressful words in the English language today. Especially when you include them both in the same sentence. For instance, a married couple that saves $326,000 has a 90 percent chance of having enough money to pay healthcare expenses in retirement. A single man…

Well, campers, the skiing has been outrageously good. With a series of Nor-Inchers, we continue to get nearly nightly refreshers in the woods and on the trails, and the skiing is delightful. That is the good news. Here is the bad news: I am not able to take much advantage of it, because it turns…