I swear, yesterday I saw summer poking its head around the corner. That means our summer weekends are filling up fast. First stop: family reunion. Whooee, do I have mixed […]
Judith Ritschard
Overcoming long-hauler symptoms
I’m back. Did you miss me? I’ve been laying low recovering from long-haul COVID and certainly lacking any creative mojo. I read my last column in quarantine, while eating soup […]
Thanksgiving with a Latin twist
Bits & Pieces By Judith Ritschard There’s an old adage my mamá always said: “Pansa llena, corazón contento,” or full belly, happy heart. It’s a pearl of wisdom that I […]
Bits & Pieces: Proximity doesn’t cut it
We’ve all been in a situation where someone made a racist joke or comment. Remember how some people cheered on the joker by laughing? While others stood there awkwardly staring […]
Bits & Pieces: The good, the bad and the weird
“How are you guys holding up?” I asked a friend. She groaned and told me how her marriage was strained after months of unemployment, not to mention the stress of […]
Bits & Pieces: Eight ways it’s weird to be Mexican
I don’t care what culture you identify with the most, or how amazing or superior you may think your culture is to others. Every single group has its eyebrow-raising, kooky, […]
Immigrants and our food
Even though we’d been going to the same restaurant for years, I hadn’t noticed a little message at the bottom that read: “Today’s menu was made possible by immigrants.” I […]
Ten years in town — a love letter
Dear Carbondale: Cheers, sweetheart, on our ten year anniversary! Last month marks a decade since I spent my first night on the floor in our new townhome. As you may […]
Bits & Pieces: Becoming a fermentista
This new book I have assures me that, “fermenting vegetables is a simple, inexpensive process that was used reliably for a few thousand years.” Okay, so if it’s so simple […]
Getting the most out of an exchange
“Isn’t your life already too busy to host an exchange student?” is a question we heard over and over. I don’t know? Aren’t all our lives eternally busy in some […]