Sometimes, when you’re all bound-up from studying, or teaching, or from eating too many burritos, it’s good to get out, get some fresh air and enjoy nature. On a built-up campus like Michigan’s however, sometimes you need some help to find native species (beyond the stately trees in the Diag, ...
You’re enjoying a nice walk in a rich woods, or along its edge, taking note of the asters and goldenrods starting to bloom, maybe even finding a bundle of bright red Jack-in-the-Pulpit seeds, when, all of a sudden, out of nowhere, you come face to face with a green behemoth. ...
DEAR ABBY: I'm a 14-year-old girl in my first year of high school. I'm not sure what to do about boys or how to make friends. All I ever learned at home was what not to do.
I'm not allowed to date until I'm 16, but I really like this boy in my math class. What should I do? I'm so confused. My parents have protected me against things for so long, and I've had to learn from my friends' and my mistakes. I wonder sometimes if I have to be obedient to my parents or if I should make my own choices. Help! -- DATELESS AND CLUELESS IN NEVADA
DEAR DATELESS: At 14 it's normal to have a crush on a classmate. It's also normal for your parents to want to protect you. You say you have had to learn from your friends' and your own mistakes. That's normal, too. It's how we all learn about life.
Until you're old enough to date, become active in events at school. It's a healthy way to make friends and learn social skills. And continue being obedient to your parents. That's how teens build enough trust so that their parents gain the confidence to give them more freedom.
Carl doesn't have a physically demanding job, so he can't blame it on being tired. I always make the plans for entertainment because if I didn't, we'd never go anywhere or do anything. When we go out, I feel like he's just along for the ride and would rather be home in front of the TV.
I can see he tries to enjoy himself when we're with friends, but when I ask him afterward, he says, "It was OK," or, "They're not my favorite people." When I ask if he'd like to plan the next outing, he says he's happy just staying home.
I work, go to school and have a busy life, but I need more in it and I'd like to include my husband. My friends are all couples so, naturally, I'd like to have Carl at my side. Whatever I suggest for fun, he's never enthusiastic about any of it. If I have to stay home one more Friday night and watch a movie on pay-per-view, I'll scream! Please help. -- TIRED OF FRIDAY NIGHT BLUES
DEAR TIRED: You say "lately" your husband is boring. What was he like before that? A man who is listless, lethargic and disengaged should see his doctor to make sure there is nothing physically wrong and if he could be suffering from a mild depression. Suggest he have a physical and, if possible, go with him so you can voice your concerns.
If nothing is wrong with Carl, you two need to find some activity you can do together that you both will enjoy -- something that doesn't involve either television or people your husband doesn't particularly relate to.
The wedding will be in September in the afternoon. It should be warm then. They have chosen bright green and bright baby blue as their colors. I don't want to wear either one.
Would an ivory or champagne dress be appropriate? I was raised "old school" and need to know. -- MOTHER OF THE GROOM
DEAR MOTHER OF THE GROOM: Wearing ivory might not be advisable because it is so close to white. However, a dress in a champagne color or pale blue or pale green would be acceptable.
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Right now, growing in a woods near you, is a native wildflower, not terribly showy, but interesting to say the least. And, also growing in what may the same woods is an imposter, trying to look like the first, but whose showy flower gives it away. Both have poise, both ...
The Ypsilanti school board approved more than $595,000 in bids for renovation work at the New Tech High School, anticipated to be finished before the next school year. The funds for the project will be paid out of the district’s 2007 building and site fund. Trustees approved the bids by ...
In the days of yore, the wilds were a terrifying place, full of wolves, bears and cougars that could threaten a homeowner at his or her doorstep. Well, in these parts, anyway, we’ve pretty well removed that threat. A more real threat is the chance of losing many of the ...
We started off with the king, Eastern White Pine (Pinus strobus), then we worked down the chain to Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis) and Eastern Redcedar (Juniperus virginiana), and last time talked about the charmingly balding conifer, the Tamarack (Larix laricina). This week we move almost all the way down to the ...
Not all great board games are fun. Not all fun board games are great. While I wouldn’t say that today’s game, Betrayal at House on the Hill, is a game worthy of greatness, it certainly is a lot of fun. If you wanted to pick apart some of its design ...
They’re gone! The leaves, they’re gone, from pretty much all but the non-natives! Michigan’s deciduous trees, shrubs and wildflowers have pretty well settled in for winter in their naked state. But, we do have some great native evergreen plants that keep their greenery and in so doing, help out our ...
No, an oak opening is not a wooden door. An oak opening, or some other similar oak savanna-type habitat along the prairie to oak forest continuum, was a cross between a prairie and an oak woodland. Prior to their development by settlers from the Eastern United States, Ann Arbor, and ...
I know we’ve hit on asters a couple of times this fall, but the appreciation I have for the late, ongoing color they provide makes me want to sing praises to them one more time. While most of the rest of my native (and non-native) plantings have given up the ...
Newsflash: making hummus at home is ridiculously easy, and it almost invariably tastes better than packaged hummus from the grocery store. Maybe you already knew this, but it is an exciting recent revelation for me. Hummus has been a staple of Middle Eastern food for hundreds — and possibly ...
Imagine that you have to write about something going on in Washtenaw County every single day. (It's easy if you try.) Then imagine that you have, at times, a hard time figuring out what to write about. If you are like me, you want to turn to some element of ...
Angela J. Cesere | AnnArbor.com AnnArbor.com's partner news site MLive.com is on a quest to find the best barbecue in ......
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