I’m ready – finally ready for Christmas. And it’s not because my shopping is pretty much done. Or the family get-together is settled. Or that I found the courage to purchase the prime rib roast at a price that usually covers an entire week of groceries. I’m ready because, somewhere in the still of a [...]

The older I get, the more I like to buy gifts that will surprise family members and friends. In other words, don’t tell me you need socks, or new cookware. I’m won’t pitch in for new skis or add to your Denver Bronco football collection. And I’m certainly not giving you a gift card or [...]

On the first day of Christmas, my gift list sent me to a Market at Main Street Square.   On the second day of Christmas, my wine glass sent me to tastes at Fezziwig; and a Market at a Main Street Square.   On the third day of Christmas,  my tin ear sent me to [...]

I’m standing in a crowd of perhaps 40 people in the commons area of Sturgis Brown High School, and it’s a rather industrial scene. It’s the official kick-off for the 2013 Student Build Challenge “an innovative high school program designed to empower students and promote technical education in the state of South Dakota,” according to [...]

I’m driving along Hwy. 16 towards Hill City and thinking how, on this early November day, I’m surprisingly in synch with Mother Nature. There are a few fitful flakes of snow in the air – the remnants of an unexpected 10-minute snow deluge that managed to give the pine forest enough coverage to hint at [...]

  I recently spent most of a day at Crazy Horse Memorial and devoted several hours to a careful inspection of the art and artifacts on display in its Indian Museum of North America. And while I certainly appreciated the craftsmanship and skillful artistry of the Native American displays, I stood the longest in front [...]

So, I’m driving into work on Monday and I’m thinking about Art Alley. Actually, I’m thinking about Art Alley, the Emerging Artists Showcase I attended Friday night and Main Street Square. It’s the “butterfly effect” in action in downtown Rapid City – a term used in Chaos Theory to describe how tiny variations can affect [...]

Yosemite, San Francisco, Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks, hours of gorgeous drive-by scenery on Highway 1 along the California coast and Highway 12 through Utah. It was 4,500 miles in 14 days – the ultimate road-trip vacation. Here’s a few stand-out observations: * Gasoline prices: Despite fears of $5 [...]

Airports are peculiar places, I think, as I watch a young Asian man with two huge rolling suitcases pause in his rather random amble across an expanse of industrial carpet at Rapid City Regional Airport. For example, I haven’t flown anywhere for decades, yet I’m feeling rootless and slightly anxious through what I take to [...]