A parent is the first and often the most important teacher of the child. Whenever the parents inadequately nurture or label their child, the youngster gets more opportunities in life to become whole. ...more

October 30, 2009

Tony "Fatso" Siciliano waxes poetic about the mystique and flavor of chili. ...more

January 22, 2009

How much red coloring goes into a red velvet cake? This recipe just says "1 bottle," but not the size of the bottle. ...more

December 14, 2008

Kitchen advice on how to make calamondin jelly, how much red food coloring for a red velvet cake, how to cook winter squash and to pluck a turkey. ...more

December 12, 2008

Imagine a President McCain or a President Obama receiving the following top-secret briefing from his national security adviser: "Iran has successfully developed a nuclear warhead and may have already mated it with a medium-range Shahab-3 missile targeted at Israel. A preemptive strike could trigger a nuclear exchange. What do we do, Mr. President?" ...more

July 6, 2008

QUESTION: Why is it that children are often the most obnoxious and irritating on vacations and at other times when parents specifically try to please them? On those special days, you'd think the kids would say to themselves, "Wow! Mom and Dad are doing something really nice for us, taking us on this great vacation. We're going to give them a break and be really good kids today." Isn't that reasonable? ...more

December 4, 2007

A long while back, one of the finest teachers I have ever encountered described life as "an inexorable march to the junk heap." He was referring specifically to the physical and economic tenure of material things, noting that their lives couldn't be extended forever, but could be lengthened by attention to proper maintenance. ...more

November 14, 2007