Not so long ago (this year), in a land not so far away (this one), a debate roiled fiercely about free speech on college campuses.

On one side, students, faculty and interested observers advocated for safe spaces for marginalized groups and trigger warnings on certain materials and protested loudly when speakers whose ideas they abhorred were ...Read more

When its mid-November and your geraniums are still electrifying on the porch or patio you know you are talking about one of the Boldly varieties. Boldly Coral made its debut in 2022 and as such I had the opportunity to trial it in 2021. Since then it has been my go-to geranium because of its dazzling color and incredible longevity.

Boldly Coral...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — For nearly a century, a swashbuckling-style pair of gloves rested in a reliquary in the University of Pennsylvania library. Far from lost, but largely forgotten, the mystical gauntlets were disturbed over the decades only by the awestruck scholars and devotees who came to ponder, "What if?"

After all, it couldn't be true. They...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS -- Dariia Misko sounded remarkably calm as she described her life in Kyiv, Ukraine, where she frequently hears what sounds like popcorn popping in the distance.

The sound is attacks by military drones from Russia.

“I have repeatedly heard explosions and the work of air defense,” said Misko, a 26-year-old Ukrainian studying for ...Read more

Dear Anna,

I’ve been seeing this girl for about two months, and while things have been fun, I’m struggling with how close she still is to her ex. They were together for seven years and broke up six months ago, but it feels like he’s still very present in her life. He even comes over frequently. She has photos of them all over, and her ...Read more

You can’t “create” chemistry, either online or in person, but you can do a few tangible things to increase your odds a bit. I want to share 7 dating mistakes that you can fix right now:

1. Using unflattering profile pictures.

You say, “Does it really matter?” The answer is yes. Yes, it does. You get one chance to make a first ...Read more

‘Tis the season to be thankful, which is why I am hanging tight to the fourth Thursday in November. I may be hanging on by the greasy tip of a wishbone swinging dangerously low over scalding hot gravy, but I refuse to let go of Thanksgiving, the only holiday that has not been grossly commercialized.

For starters, I am thankful there is no ...Read more

Money isn’t just a financial issue — it’s also an emotional one.

For half of Americans, financial stress is taking a serious toll on their mental health, according to a recent survey by Jenius Bank. A striking 50% of respondents reported battling anxiety, stress or depression tied to their finances, while 53% admitted to thinking of ...Read more

CHICAGO -- Customers flocked to the bright red and yellow awning of Mac’s Deli on a cloudy Thursday afternoon, walking away with foil-wrapped workday lunches of warm Italian beef sandwiches and hot dogs.

Inside the new restaurant on Sangamon Street in the West Loop, the grills, fryers and registers were all manned by workers currently in ...Read more

Dear Kid Whisperer,

I teach fourth-grade math. I have rarely had any significant behavior issues in my 32 years of teaching. My question is about helping kids stay focused. I have a few students who drift off even though I am animated, high energy and have good lesson plans.

Answer: I’m going to show you how to effectively prevent, mitigate ...Read more

Q. I have been dating my boyfriend for 6 months. We do not live together but see each other or talk almost every day. His ex died three years ago. They had a daughter, who is 6, who lives with my boyfriend. The problem is my boyfriend has a very large tattoo of both his ex and his daughter’s names on his chest right above his heart. This makes...Read more

LOS ANGELES -- In March 1998, Ben Decter drove from Los Angeles to Tijuana to get medicine for his 17-month-old daughter, Addie. She had "catastrophic childhood epilepsy," the neurologist had told him, and a drug not yet available in the U.S. was their best bet to treat her nonstop seizures.

That terrifying moment is currently revisited five ...Read more

BODEGA BAY, Calif. — For the first time since the 13-year-old San Jose boy woke up shivering and alone on a deserted stretch of beach two weeks ago, covered in salt and sand after clinging for hours to a floating ice chest, he returned Saturday to pray.

Jude Khammoungkhoune’s father had clutched the cooler beside him as long as he could ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Australian researchers, who spent years towing seal-shaped decoys through waters infested with great white sharks, have determined that wrapping the lures in very bright lights — sort of like aquatic Christmas trees — seems to turn sharks away.

That's because, from below, sharks are accustomed to seeing the dark silhouettes ...Read more

My mother was the life of her 100th birthday party.

She also was the star in our little family band — three children, one daughter-in-law, five grandchildren, three grandchildren’s spouses and five great-grandchildren — who gathered at Zody’s 19th Hole, a popular restaurant at the E. Gaynor Brennan Municipal Golf Course in our hometown ...Read more

Most baby boomers — those born between 1946 and 1964 — are now in retirement. While many have enjoyed successful careers and comfortable lifestyles, others find themselves in a less-than-ideal financial situation. A common regret among this generation is not saving more for their golden years.

According to Bankrate’s 2024 Financial ...Read more

Donald Hammen, 80, and his longtime next-door neighbor in south Minneapolis, Julie McMahon, have an understanding. Every morning, she checks to see whether he’s raised the blinds in his dining room window. If not, she’ll call Hammen or let herself into his house to see what’s going on.

Should McMahon find Hammen in a bad way, she plans to...Read more

150 million years ago, Laurasia

The massive neck dips, casting a curving shadow on the mossy ground. The dinosaur's jaws close around its prize. The creature lifts its head, nearly dainty in scale, and contentedly gnaws a mouthful of ferns.

It's the late Jurassic Period in the super continent of Laurasia, some 85 million years into the reign ...Read more

CHICAGO — Maggie Fischer leads her brown miniature horse Eve out of her pasture and begins her training with a walk through her backyard in Sycamore in DeKalb County. The horse, known for her voluminous mane that reminds her owners of Tina Turner, shoves as many fallen leaves in her mouth as she can fit. Moving at a slow walk at first, she ...Read more