I was raised by parents who were serious gardeners. Each winter we awaited the arrival of the spring seed catalogues when pages and pages of brilliant looking flowers and vegetables were scrutinized and seed packets ordered. While winter raged outside, plants placed inside our makeshift basement greenhouse thrived. As a child, it was fun to watch the seedlings grow into plants which were transplanted into the garden as the weather grew warmer and the days longer.

If you have a digital camera and you’re like me, you have hundreds, if not thousands, of photos trapped in your computer. One of the selling points of digital photography is that you don’t have to print out all those pictures. No more paying for fuzzy, thumb-filled and crooked prints. The problem is that because we don’t have to print them all, we often don’t print any!

If you are fed up with winter, the Foo Fighters are sure to rock you out of it. The band, formed by Nirvana's drummer Dave Grohl, appears at the John Labatt Centre Thursday, March 20. My favourite Foo Fighter CD is Skin and Bones. I saw them open for the enigmatic Bob Dylan at the JLC in 2006, and was impressed by their acoustic arrangements.

Our everlasting gloomy skies, cold temperatures and grouchy temperaments have me thinking about happiness these days.

Have you ever noticed how much we are encouraged to be happy? Magazines at the grocery store counter advertise articles such as "The Secret to Happiness" and "How to Find Happiness". A quick search of our library's catalogue for books on the subject of "happiness" reveals that we have 101 books on the topic!

I used to obsess about my counter tops. The smell of lemons would need to waft off my kitchen floors to prove my competence as a woman and a mother; and should I have gone a day or two without cleaning the toilet with one of those handy flushable wipes, I would be convinced rotavirus and e-coli were threatening the very lives of those I loved.

If you ask your child anything about school, sports or even what they'd like to do on Saturday... Don't you find that the conversation eventually shifts towards friends?  My Preteen is very social and having friends in his life is extremely important to him. My oldest is very comfortable with himself and a  small circle of selected friends. 

LPL is celebrating Black history Month with a reading from award-winning, Jamaican-Canadian author Horane Smith. Join us at the Central library on Tuesday, Feb.26 at 6:30pm for this event. Horane is the winner of the BURLA award for Outstanding Contribution to African-Canadian and Caribbean Literature. He will be reading from Underground to Freedom and Dawn at Lover's Leap - two of his most popular novels. A book sale and signing will follow. All are welcome and no registration is required.

Have you ever caught something funny on tape and wanted to share it? Are you a budding rock star? Do you have a rant about politics or how bad the Leafs are doing this year? Or maybe you're a student who needs to create a video for a school assignment? Ever thought of posting your video on YouTube?

I have heard that statement a number of times, but only from people 'over 45' who find themselves unexpectedly looking for work.  In the past, it was not unusual to find work from within a network of friends and get hired based on a simple handshake.   Many people have had one primary job and have held it for several years.  Even if they had a resume then, they likely do not have a current up-to-date one now.

Now that the midwinter blahs have descended in earnest I have turned for solace to that time-honoured winter escape (for those of us who cannot actually fly away) of armchair travel. With all the prerequisites checked off: snuggled up in my favourite chair, comforter firmly wrapped around me, fire in the hearth,