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View from Hickory Heights: A great way to spend your money!

“A little reminder that in a few years you won’t remember how much that trip cost, but you will remember the moments you experienced.” Learning and Exploring Through Play Now, years later I realize what a wise move I made taking the grandchildren to New York City. First, I took the girls. I planned the whole trip through a group from Sheffield. Tom and Sue did many trips but the only ones I participated in were the New York City adventures. Now that I think about it, I also went with them on a cruise that boarded in Boston. That was my first trip after I lost my husband. It was ...

Budget season offers hope for a new energy future

We know Pennsylvania’s budget season doesn’t quite get the same buzz as other seasons of the year. But this year, there’s reason to get excited about the state budget. Pennsylvanians have a real opportunity to see dramatic new investments in our commonwealth’s energy economy. Gov. Josh Shapiro’s proposed budget includes a plan to jumpstart economic growth through the energy sector, following federal commitments of up to $2 billion for clean hydrogen production and industrial decarbonization. While there may be differences in the details, one thing is clear: Democrats and ...

Left again fails to find balance

In the 1990s President Bill Clinton laid off and or fired over 377,000 federal employees in an attempt to balance the budget (which he did) and to reduce government. He had bipartisan support and was not referred to as a dictator, a wanna be king, a racist and so on. The Republicans didn’t boohoo or bellyache because they didn’t get their way, they supported the president of the United States in what he was doing for the better of the country! In President Barack Obama’s time in office, he relieved 197 military officers in an attempt to align the Pentagon with his way of ...

View from Hickory Heights: Anxiously waiting

As March came in like a lion, I anxiously wait for the signs of Spring that are so familiar. When the grandchildren were young, we went outside as soon as it was comfortable. By comfortable I mean we had to wear jackets, but we could comfortably sit outside to eat our lunch. Many lunches were enjoyed by the little café table that sits on the upper side of my porch. There were only two chairs, but we could pull up extra ones depending on who was there. Yes, we ate with our jackets on, but it was so nice to be outdoors enjoying sandwiches and chips. First, we would have a snack out ...

Always running just a little bit behind

We finished undressing the Christmas tree on Friday. Today, Monday, a kind friend helped us take it apart and bag it. Yes, I know. It’s March 10th as I write this. I hear this echo in my head, “You’re just getting your Christmas tree down? It’s Lent already!” I was annoyed when I heard on January 6th that “today is ‘official’ tree-taking-down day.” Who decided this? OK, OK, I remember Epiphany, the 12th day of Christmas from my childhood. It is the church’s end of the Christmas season, a nice tradition. My mother and I always tried to get our tree down and out ...

A staple for meals

Rice is not only a whole grain but it is easily digested. I remember my grandmother who had stomach issues choosing rice to eat. It is not only inexpensive, but it is nutritious and tasty. For those of you who are watching your food budget, you can mix rice with many things to enhance the taste. When Dick and I were married he told me the only way to eat rice was as rice pudding or rice cooked with milk. We lived on a dairy farm so milk was plentiful. I often cooked rice with milk in a double boiler with a cinnamon stick and a little sugar. I also added some extra ground cinnamon. ...