We now take them for granted. But not so long ago, a washer and dryer were a luxury.

Actually, a washer was a luxury. A dryer was for rich people.

The small, red brick house we lived in on Beech Street when I was young had a clothesline. Most post-World War II homes had a clothesline. It was located behind our laundry room, which was in the back of our freestanding garage.

The family who owned the property before we had it had ...

How is it that we’ve managed to cram virtually every necessity we need into one single cell phone, but I still have seven TV remotes on the table next to my chair?

I remember the first time I saw a television set that had a remote. It was the early 1970s, and our new next-door neighbors had a black and white TV that had a remote.

The television looked just like ours. There was a knob to change channels, a volume knob, ...

My dad and grandfathers taught me that if there’s a way to help someone, and you have a skill set that allows you to assist them, you should use it.

There’s an Internet app that’s become quite popular called, “Nextdoor.” It is a way for those who live in a specified, smaller neighborhood area to connect and communicate about everything from where to find toilet paper to sharing information about a military veteran who is struggling.

Recently, a good friend and I ...

There are two, true tests for how solid your marriage is – Covid-19 and hanging wallpaper together.

As I awoke from 9 ½ hours of sleep, all rested and ready for another day of hand sanitizer and staring out the window, I thought about how many scenarios there could possibly be that would force two people into close quarters for days on end.

After eliminating the age range of 18 through 29, I was able to narrow it down to two things: ...

Linus had his blanket. I had a rabbit. His name was Harvey.

Most children have a favorite stuffed animal. Recently, my mother came across two that belonged to me when I was quite young. One was a clown I don’t remember much about, but it was obviously one with which I snuggled so tightly that his plastic face disintegrated.

My grandmother sewed a new cloth face on the clown to keep me going.

From the clown, I graduated to a monkey. I’d seriously ...

Why?

That one-word question that’s always asked when life’s apple cart is upended.

People do not like change. When fear is added to change, it creates behavior and attitudes that manifest in folks who otherwise are levelheaded.

Throughout history, change and fear have joined forces many times.

The Plague, smallpox, polio, Ebola, and other diseases threatened and took lives.

Wars throughout history affected and changed families forever. Just in my lifetime, I saw those who served in Vietnam come home suffering the effects of Agent ...

Photo courtesy of John Moore: Columnist John Moore’s grandmother, Leona Pickett, with three of her six children, circa 1949.

When I still lived at home with my parents, I went to see my grandparents often. After I moved away from my hometown, I made it a point to call my grandparents at least weekly.

This was when long distance phone calls could cost as much as a few dollars a minute.

I never thought much about it until one day one of my ...

Photo credit: DanielJHalePhotography.com.

Columnist John Moore’s friend Daniel’s dog Kirby, in a photo taken in August 2014 on Pacific Beach. San Diego, California.

The price you pay when you lose a beloved animal is so steep that every time I lose one, I always say, “Never again.”

I’ve written about this topic before, but after following the adventures of a friend of mine’s dog on Facebook for a number of years, the news of the pup’s passing brought a tear and the need for an ...