Used to be I could spend an entire day, sun up to sun down: gardening, hiking, biking. My eyes were keen at any distance. My legs were like pistons. I'd forget to eat I was so into my day.

Being 53 isn't like that, for me. Oh sure, I can go out and power walk my three miles with the others. But then I am down for the rest of the morning.

Strangely, slow walking is harder -- oh my aching back.

I used to laugh at my older friends and family members. I was so...

Last week was tough on mortgage rates. Mortgage backed securities lost almost 200 basis points since last Friday(7/31) which moved the par interest rate from 4.875% up to 5.375% by week’s end. Better than expected economic data highlighted by a much better employment situation report caused market participants to liquate safe low yielding treasuries and MBS to fund the stock market rally. On Friday, lenders issued rate sheets when MBS were at the lows of the day/week/month immediately following...

I don't have a clunker. No discount for me on a new car. I don't have children. No tax breaks for me. I pick up my current ad from Lowe's. Well look: "Find hundreds of New Lower Prices in store". What about all the times I bought those same items at regular price? At a local department store, I can get an extra 15% if I use their credit card. I don't want their card; just the discount please.
Could we find a way to give equal opportunity discounts, hmmm?

I'm not sure how to feel about that. I resigned voluntarily; I can't log on from work (darned firewalls!), and it felt too much like "work" to monitor things from home. I'd keep forgetting to check the forum, etc. Since I wasn't doing C-D any good, I resigned.

I had been a moderator here for 2 1/2 years, and I was asked to be one after only two months, so you can imagine how weird this is! I can't even remember what the non-mod screens looked like! Well, I guess...

For more than thirty four years, Effort, Pa. was home to a very special manufacturing firm that emloyed as many as 60 people in this small, rural community. The Better Made Manufacturing Co., founded in 1949, made blouses that were sold in many stores locally, including K-Mart.

The blouse factory was owned and operated by Lawrence "Larry" C. Liero, Sr., better known to those around the village as "The Mayor of Effort". The son of Italian immigrants, Mr. Liero was...