Now, before you panic (like I did), keep in mind that this dire prediction has been made before. I even wrote about it in a past column:

https://markrhunter.blogspot.com/2014/03/a-chocolate-lovers-worst-nightmare.html

The prediction: a chocolate shortage.

Okay, you can go ahead and panic now.


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 Thanksgiving in America continues to be one of the most traditional holidays. It still features the original four hundred year old activities of overeating, football, and complaining about Black Friday ( Read more... )

I don't talk much about politics, but just to show I've always paid attention, I uncovered this piece from way back in 2012. I think you'll find me on the cutting edge of activism:

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New York City Mayor Bloomberg wants to ban supersized sugary drinks, as a way to combat malnutrition ( Read more... )

 It's been a few weeks now since we got together for my father's birthday, but Emily and I have been sick most of the time since then and I've just now gotten around to putting up the pictures.


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While my wife recovered from surgery a few years ago, I did most of the cooking. I learned something about myself during that time:

I hate cooking.

Oh, who am I kidding? I already knew that.

That is to say, I hate doing the cooking; I do enjoy eating the cooking of others.

Ordinarily she cooks and I clean the kitchen, which has the benefit of us ( Read more... )

When I had my newspaper column, I regularly wrote about two things: My family, and things I screwed up.

My family asked that I stopped writing about them. Luckily, I screw up plenty.

But there are times when I do something so stupid that I hesitate to admit it to anyone. (This is what I don't like about the proliferation of cell phone cameras. I' ( Read more... )

117 people came to our annual family gathering Saturday at the home of the ever-welcoming cousin Mike Triplett, who encourages the invasion every year. Emily and I were only able to stay a couple of hours due to work schedules, but boy ... those were a tasty couple of hours. Thanks to cousin Vickie Martin for letting me use a few of her photos for ( Read more... )

I went out hunting mushrooms, a spore-t even I could succeed at.

Kidding--I just stumbled across them by happy accident. (Literally stumbled across them, in one case.)


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For Valentines Day, Emily said she would make me some brownies. That's about all I need in life.

But what she ended up making--shown here fresh out of the oven--was not just a brownie. It was a three layer heart shaped brownie, with chocolate frosting between each layer, and chocolate chips on top.


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I've learned in the last 24 hours that I can no longer eat whatever I want, whenever I want .. and also that if I'm exhausted enough, I can sleep in a sitting up position.

I've also learned some things about home heating systems. Neither discovery was particularly pleasant.