(This post is dedicated to my sister-in-law Anne, who passed from this life on 10/22/2011 at 57 years old.) As I write this I am sitting in a plane heading home from California, the day after attending the funeral of my sister-in-law Anne. She was diagnosed with cancer in July and, three months later, on [...] Read more »
She Left to Study Abroad
Yesterday my wife and I took our eldest daughter to the airport to study abroad for a semester in Ireland. She is now a junior in college and it was almost exactly two years ago that I wrote this post about leaving her off at college for the first time and the separation anxiety we [...] Read more »
Do your Relationships Pass the Sanding Test?
Sanding test? What’s that? Never heard of the sanding test? And what does it have to do with relationships? Well, now that I’ve got your attention, let me elaborate. I love to work with wood. I’m not an expert woodworker but I really love it. The big benefit to me is that I sit at [...] Read more »
A college tour review; College of the Atlantic
Doesn’t this place look inviting? Are these pictures from an ocean-edge resort, Newport castle, or oceanfront wedding reception center? Nope on all three counts. It’s a college. Yes, a college! It’s called the College of the Atlantic and if you are looking for a unique experience for your four years at college you may want [...] Read more »
5 Student Tips to a Successful College Tour
OK, I’m a parent of a college student so I do have some experience with going through the college process and have taken many a college tour. I’ve also been through the process multiple times as a student myself. I only say this to let you, the future college student know, that there are some [...] Read more »
5 Parental Tips to a Successful College Tour
If you have ever had to coordinate a college tour trip, it is important that you plan ahead. I’ve had the pleasure (yes, I actually enjoy it) of doing this on a number of occasions with my eldest child, who is now attending her first choice college, and now we are embarking on the same [...] Read more »
A Whimsical Depiction of Student Life
I have two daughters, one is a sophomore in high school and the other is a sophomore in college. Needless to say, they both work hard and live the student life. My youngest daughter sent me the image seen below. I would like to cite the source but I don’t have one. If anyone does [...] Read more »
Combating alarming anxiety levels in college students
In late January of 2011 the NY Times published an article entitled “Record Level of Stress Found in College Freshmen”. They cite a number of factors including more pressure to perform in the later years of high school as well as the state of the economy. The study involved responses from more than 200,000 incoming [...] Read more »
Leasing may benefit both money and time management
It’s that presidential time of the year again in the US where the car dealers brush off (this snowy winter has been brutal), shine up, and line up another year of new vehicle inventory in hopes of starting the year off to a financially rousing start. When the days get a little longer and the [...] Read more »
5 Tips to Deal with the Post Holiday Winter Blues
After the presents have been opened, the New Year’s celebration is over, and your vacation break from work is done, the post holiday blues may take over your life. The snow has piled up outside and the temperatures have plummeted to all-time lows. Maybe you have gained a few pounds eating uncontrollably during the holiday [...] Read more »