By The Chicago Tribune “How to Talk to Children About Art” (Chicago Review Press, $16.95 paper) tackles what might be some highbrow stuff for children age 5 to 10. However, the book broaches the topic in a simple, smart way.“An interest in art – and particularly in paintings -is not instinctive in children,” writes art […]

By Eric Adler,Knight Ridder Newspapers Psychologists call it “emotional contagion.” But you can think of it as Scroogeology or Grinchonomics.Better yet, think of it as the woeful friend, the crabby boss, the depressed party guest whose moods are so melancholy that, despite your good cheer, they suck the joy from the season.The effect is far […]

DEAR ABBY: I have been married for seven years. I was looking for a document on my computer recently and found some pornography my husband had downloaded. What was most shocking was that he had done some computer artwork on some of it, and superimposed my 15-year-old niece’s face onto the girl in the picture.I […]

By Jeff Herring,Knight Ridder Newspapers Here are a few tips to help you approach life with an attitude of gratitude:• It is so easy to focus on the negative. In most situations, there is something good to be found, even if the only good thing is the situation cannot last forever. Practice asking, “What is […]

By Dean Foskick,For AP Weekly Features Many of the best home gardens are planned around the kitchen table on unhurried winter nights as families gather to page through the seed catalogs arriving now in stacks as deep as snowdrifts.More than 24.2 million American households will spend an estimated $128 each on mail order seeds, plants, […]

By Pamela Sitt,The Seattle Times If Wendy Diamond were a character on “Sex and the City,” she’d have Carrie’s wit, Samantha’s black book and Charlotte’s affection for a pampered pooch. And she’d still be looking for Mr. Right, natch. “When I broke up with my boyfriend 2 1/2 years ago, everyone started setting me up […]

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Ami Dolenz, 37; R. Kelly, 39; David Bowie, 59; Ryan Francis, 29Happy Birthday: You can make many changes that will help you improve your life this year but you have to stop thinking about it and start following through. A chance to open up doors to new prospects will come […]

The year that drew its last breath just a few days ago has been a difficult one. It seems as if the human race has been besieged from every possible angle – natural disasters, war, growing evidence of pollution capable of destroying the earth’s inhabitants.If these grim realities aren’t enough, the Christmas just barely over […]

By Judi Light Hopson, Emma H. Hopson and Ted Hagen, Ph. D.,Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service Most of us would like to have a few perfect relationships. Wouldn’t that make life easier?The truth is, however, there aren’t any perfect relationships. None.All relationships, however wonderful, are full of flaws. Even seemingly perfect relationships are simply flawed relationships […]

Augusta: Exhibits of Maine’s natural environment, prehistory, social history and manufacturing heritage are featured year round; and “The Child in All of Us,” will be featured through Jan. 7, all at the Maine State Museum, State House Complex. Gallery hours: Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, 1 […]