Craig Ruvere

12Feb 2011 by CJ

Twilight now a required read in the classroom?

Sometimes I stumble upon a news headline that truly leaves me scratching my head. Take the book Twilight for instance. I opened my email the other day to find an article entitled, “Twilight Is Now Required College Reading.” My first immediate reaction was, “Twilight? The vampire book series for teenagers?” A little further digging online confirmed what I found utterly unbelievable. Apparently the book is being featured in an Introduction to Fiction course at Ohio State University – where “Twilight” is in fact on the syllabus. Could you image strapping yourself with student loans in excess of $20,000 a year for an undergraduate education only to find out that some teenage fiction novel is part of your required reading? Needless to say, I’d be over at the registrations office dropping…

11Feb 2011 by CJ

Valentine’s Day should be 365 days a year not just one

Love & Relationships

This Monday is Valentine’s Day - the supposed day of love according to the greeting card companies. It’s a time of year when ordinary husbands and wives pay as much as a 75% premium for such items as flowers, candy, jewelry and dining, and those who’ve lost or never found their true loves lament. Years ago, when I was first married, I used to feel the pressures of society when it came to this over commercialized holiday – buying into the hype even though I didn’t fully support its premise. I remember someone once said to me, “Don’t you love your wife? You have to get her something for Valentine’s Day!” As I’m learning, people really have no concept of the word “boundaries”. It’s a pretty sad day when the…

10Feb 2011 by CJ

Date night can be a costly proposition in society today

Love & Relationships

Once you’ve been married for several years and things start becoming somewhat ordinary from day to day, a new phrase becomes part of your vernacular whenever you find yourself going out to eat or doing anything you used to do before you got hitched – date night. Such was the case one Friday evening when my wife and I decided to go out to dinner and a movie – uncharacteristic for us at the close of a busy work week. We started with dinner at a local chain restaurant, which thanks to a $25 gift certificate, only wound up costing us $15 out of pocket. Not too shabby. The movie was even better as I still had two free passes saved up from a few Christmas’ ago. All in all…

08Feb 2011 by CJ

Giving someone’s life a little purpose is a sign of character

Generosity & Kindness, Love & Relationships

“The purpose of life is not to be happy—but to matter, to be productive, to be useful, to have it make some difference that you lived at all.”― Leo Rosten This morning while rummaging through a catch-all drawer in one of my spare bedrooms, I came across an old black and white photograph I wasn’t looking for. Staring back at me was my grandmother, standing in a large grassy field, her arm wrapped around the shoulder of her father in law - my great grandfather. She appeared to be in her early 30’s – a beautiful young woman with a pouting smile, curly dark hair and skin, smooth and creamy. Always conscious of her physical appearance, she looked as though she was posing for a photo shoot rather than for my…

08Feb 2011 by CJ

Happy Life #1 Rule is to Be Slow to Anger

Life & Living, Love & Relationships

What's the best way to gain sixty seconds of peace of mind and a happy life? Keep on reading. As any homeowner will corroborate, there’s never an end to the laundry list of projects needing attention around the house. From mysterious water leaks, to ceilings and walls needing a fresh coat of paint, to outdoor maintenance such as shoveling snow or manicuring shrubbery. While owning a home is a rewarding experience, it can often feel like a second, full-time job – the difference being it costs you money to work there. I’ve resided in my current dwelling for the last nine years and during that time I’ve gained a vast amount of knowledge and experience in the art of household repairs. After all, in today's challenging economic environment you almost…