Browsing: Lifestyle

This aunt’s Christmas Eve tradition is long-standing, and because your sons choose to attend it, I think you should accept that – for them – this is an important aspect of their Christmas celebration. And so, you should let them have it, and instead of hosting a competing event – you and your wife should scale back your own Christmas Eve and consider the way you celebrate it (with her sons) to be … what you do. Develop your own intimate traditions with the smaller group.

The obvious solution – at least to me – is for you to bring a (male or female) friend as your date, with the expressed intent that this person should serve as your wing-person. Their role would be to ward off random singletons, and if necessary, to use a serving platter from the buffet table as a shield to protect you from nosey aunties.

I have told him that I’m not responsible for how he lived his life after we parted, but he simply says that he’s sad, and then we move forward, only to have the same outburst (all caps, as though he is shouting) happen within the next day or two.

If I am invited somewhere and the person says that they need to know my vaccination status first, I would like to tell them that it is none of their business and I’m not comfortable with their questions, so let’s not get together now. I’d like to say, “Let’s get together when you feel comfortable issuing invitations without the medical questionnaire.”

Carla Hayden was sworn in as the 14th librarian of Congress on Sept. 14, 2016. Hayden is the first woman and the first African American to lead the national library. She was nominated to the position by President Barack Obama on Feb. 24, 2016, and her nomination was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on July 13. (Shawn Miller/Library of Congress)

In the coming gardening year, resolve to pay attention to the weather and your plants when deciding when to undertake gardening tasks, rather than following old calendar dates that don’t account for the changing climate. (Beth Botts/Morton Arboretum)

Her son, “Cliff,” is like a son to me, and I love him very much. The problem is that my wife’s family, who all live locally, seem to think of Cliff as something other than being immediate family. Cliff is a real estate agent. He is part-owner of a company, and a real estate broker.

Deer browsing is common in many areas, including Highland Park. Hanging soap or hair in branches will not work as a deterrent for deer browsing. Use physical barriers such as wire or plastic netting to protect plants from deer. Yews and arborvitae are deer favorites and will likely be browsed in areas where deer are active. Repellents can be applied when temperatures are above 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Rain will wash off the repellents over time, so one application in the fall may not provide protection for the entire winter.

In Mexico, their families await the norteños with excitement, their favorite dish, banda music and hugs. There’s posadas for Christmas, and fiestas patronales — celebrations of a town’s saints. There are also quinceañeras, weddings, confirmations and with all the celebrations, many bailes — or dances. The quiet small towns are suddenly filled with laughter and music.

Then we just wandered around chatting with people, prayed for a few people, offered people what we had. Since then, that has been our Christmas. The warmth, fellowship, camaraderie with fellow citizens … wouldn’t trade it for any gift in the world.