New year, new budget

Something I didn't do very well in 2010 was managing my family's personal finances.

Boomers, embrace your inner grouch

We baby boomers begin to turn 65 this year, which gives us a new excuse to be grumpy.

Is there a vaccine for that?

Good morning, and please step into my office. I'm Dr. Tucker. Are you feeling bummed out by the colder-than-normal temperatures? Left shivering by nights in the teens and days that don't get out of the 40s? Weary of winter and ready for spring? Not so fast. You're not just weary of winter; you're sick. As in "ill." What's that, you say? You might have Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), which ...

Good teen pals equal good politics

Of all the scientific studies that came out this past year, the most intriguing to me confirms an old theory: Adult politics are really an extension of which clique you joined in high school.

Out with resolutions, in with bucket list

I refuse to make a New Year's Resolution this year. They never work. For the past several years, I always ran to the gym and ate healthy during the first two weeks in January -- three weeks, tops -- only to then get complacent with how healthy, frugal and "grown-up" I'd become. But then I got so complacent that I eventually slacked off on my resolutions, felt guilty about slacking off, ...

Crushing the winds

In part two, I continue to recount my trek through Wyoming's Wind River Range. If you didn't catch part one, I will briefly get you up to speed: This past August, while looking to recharge mental strength and energy, I connected with the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) and its Rocky Mountain Light and Fast Backpacking Course. Our team, eight students and two instructors, hiked 140 miles in 13 days through the remote Wind ...

Save us from our devices

WASHINGTON -- Mr. Speaker, please don't. Go ahead, if you must, and cut taxes. Slash spending. Repeal health care. I understand. Elections have consequences. But BlackBerrys and iPads and laptops on the House floor? Reconsider, before it's too late. The current House rules bar the use of a "wireless telephone or personal computer on the floor of the House." The new rules, unveiled recently, add three dangerous words. They prohibit any device ...

A resolution for all times

NEW YORK -- It befalls the columnist this time of year to look back and recap; to assign blame and shame, while offering the obligatory mea culpa; and, of course, to resolve.

Don't speak, write

My voice bothers me. Hearing my intonation on an answering machine or a message makes me wince. But there's not really a thing I can do to change this, is there? Sure, I often enjoy cigars, and think perhaps this will give my pipes a deeper, raspier tone, but I don't honestly trust it'll Barry White my inflection.

Sometimes, crime makes you laugh

About this time last year, I started a new tradition: looking back at the year in crime -- but from a funny point of view.

A stutter unfit for a king

At last, somebody has made an epic, triumphant movie about a hero with which I am personally familiar: a recovering stutterer.

Touches of history and 'Heaven'

On a recent November morning after the General Election, I set out from my home in Columbia to go to my 64th high school reunion. All graduation classes from Midway High School have been meeting together annually for several years. This year the reunion was being held in a church at Shepard.

Uncle Sam will help you buy an alpaca

I often bash government. I say it can't do anything better than people in a free market.

Cash life experiences into maturity

Apparently, there is not much of a correlation between a person's age and level of maturity.

Tips, tricks and news

As 2010 turns to dust, a smattering of things I found in my mailbox: • Simple home remedies from my friend Waylon Fortenberry of Chesterfield County: 1. Avoid cutting yourself when slicing vegetables by getting someone else to hold the vegetables while you chop. 2. If you have a bad cough, take a large dose of laxatives. Then you'll be afraid to cough. 3. If you can't fix it with ...

Not such strange bedfellows

WASHINGTON -- Breaking news: Conservative organizations suddenly have found common cause with one of their favorite objects of contempt -- the benighted Mainstream Media.

Seniors reflect

I meet with a lot of groups and committees over the course of the year, and I think it's important for me to do so. One of my favorite groups is Student Cabinet, which is comprised of student government leaders from each of our high schools. We meet four times a year over lunch. What I love and value about students is that they don't hesitate to tell you what's ...

A matter of conscience:

In 1929, my family moved from Chesterfield County to a farm adjoining the farm of Donald Holland's parents in the Cassatt community. I was a year old at the time but before many years passed, Donald and I established a friendship lasting until Donald's passing in 2003.

When DOJ targets press, we all lose

To say I was stunned was putting it mildly. I was shocked to learn about the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) decision to seize phone records belonging to the Associated Press (AP). The C-I does not belong to the AP; I have never written for the service. That doesn't negate my outrage at DOJ's actions.

Fredericksburg Township explored

Our grand city of Camden is a beautifully preserved town laid out in an 18th century plan devised by Joseph Kershaw. We are proud of our historic homes and buildings, carefully placed public parks, wide streets, and beautiful trees. So it is easy to forget that this was not the original plan for the "town" that was to develop in this area of South Carolina. The original plan was a part of the "Township ...

What was the IRS thinking?

Well, this is a fine mess.

Are we willing to pay for increased public safety?

Kershaw County public safety is at a crossroads. The sheriff's office is greatly understaffed and deputies are compensated for their mandatory overtime work by an antiquated and grossly unfair payment system. The solicitor's office is working with half the staff it needs to properly prosecute the cases it receives every month and the jail is barely able to keep sufficient staff to meet state standards. <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: ...

Benghazi redacted

Gatsby? What Gatsby?