Out and About Blog by Norm Stutesman

Thanks to COVID, you might be interested in knowing that in the 2019-2020 school year, 5.4% of the children in the United States were home-schooled. During the 2020-2021 school year, 11% were home-schooled. There are some parents who choose to home-school their children even without the pandemic, and there are some parents who have no choice in the matter. Just …

Since the Covid-19 breakout, we are all looking forward to getting Out and About and traveling again. Being able to travel throughout the USA is something we used to take for granted. Now we are all more cautious when planning our travel adventures. I doubt I’ll ever see Disney World or Disneyland again, because of having to deal with air …

“Men make history and not the other way around. In periods where there is no leadership, society stands still. Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change things for the better.” ~ Harry S. Truman St. Joseph County is experiencing a strong need of blood. Actually, the entire country is experiencing a blood shortage. This is why …

Do you have trouble hearing? Here are some of the causes of the loss of that valuable sense: Damage to the inner ear. Aging and exposure to loud noise may cause wear and tear on the hairs or nerve cells in the cochlea that send sound signals to the brain. When these hairs or nerve cells are damaged or missing, …

Last week, I shared some information on Hearing Loss. As promised, here are some “signs” and “symptoms” of hearing loss: Muffling of speech and other sounds. Difficulty understanding words, especially against background noise or in a crowd. Trouble hearing consonants. Frequently having to ask others to speak slower, clearer and louder. Needing to turn up the volume of the television …

We just celebrated our New Year ten days ago. The Chinese New Year will be celebrated at the Oaks Enrichment Center, in Sturgis, on Wednesday, January 26. All are invited to come and enjoy a catered meal of Chinese food. The Oaks Enrichment Center is located at 306 North Franks Avenue in Sturgis. There will be a 50/50 drawing and …

“We generate fears while we sit. We overcome them by action.” ~ Dr. Henry Link Welcome to 2022. We are starting our third year of Covid-19, with no end in sight. I have visions of wearing a mask out in public for the rest of my life. We are right now at another peak of Covid cases and the hits …

Christmas 2021 is now in the history books. The Christmas season is probably the nicest of all the seasons. It seems that everyone is nicer to be around, unless you happen to be in one of the department stores, where everyone has their eyes on that one special gift and everybody wants it. Kudos to those sales clerks and cashiers. …

Unless you are Santa Claus, it is too late to send gifts to family and friends via the US Postal System. To all you men, you still have two full days to do your Christmas shopping. No need to worry. Growing up here in Three Rivers, it was always fun to go with my parents and drive all over Three …

A warning to all men. You only have just a few more days left to do your Christmas shopping. Most men will probably do their shopping one or two days before Christmas. Believe it or not, there are some men that will have their wives do the shopping for them. After all, we all know that women are better shoppers …