Vacation Inflation
Florida by the numbers
August 19, 2008
Article and Illustration By Jim Burger
I love waking up drunk in a lounge chair next to a pool. I had better love it; I do it often enough. This happens every time I come down here to Florida. It’s the combination of the heat and the easy access to well-made cocktails. Read more »
My Father the Go-To-Ghost
July 29, 2008
Article and Illustration by Jim Burger
I’ve been thinking about starting a neighborhood ghost tour. Tourists love those things and I figure it would be a good way to bring in some extra cash. The problem is we have only one ghost — Mr. Gunning, an old man who lived a block over from my house and passed away in the summer of 2006. I really miss him. Read more »
A Toast for the Host
April 28, 2008
Article and Illustration by Jim Burger
This past year I dismissed more than four decades of tradition with a wave of my hand. Way before I was born, family and friends gathered at my grandmother’s house for Thanksgiving dinner. Read more »
A Tale of a Trail of TVs
January 26, 2008
Article and Illustration by Jim Burger
When you get to be my age, new experiences become increasingly rare. Still, this past weekend I did something I’ve never done before — I bought a brand-new television set. For me televisions were always something that just sort of showed up. I hadn’t given any thought as to where they actually came from. I mean like from a store or something. Read more »
A Magazine for Misogynists
November 12, 2007
Article and Illustration by Jim Burger
Whenever I feel the need to laugh out loud, I run straight to the newsstand and buy a copy of Men’s Health magazine. Men’s Health is for men who haven’t figured out they hate women yet. Yes, each issue is crammed with exercises to attain those elusive “six-pack abs” that women are supposed to love. But the exercises are so intense and nonstop that, by the time you’re done, the only people who could possibly have seen you in a month are the other guys at the gym. Read more »
Babes, Beaches & Books
October 7, 2007
Article and Illustration By Jim Burger
Mrs. Burger is in one of those women-only book clubs that are all the rage these days. The idea sounds wonderful — sharp women sitting together, intelligently discussing great literature. The reality, though, is every few weeks a truckload of hens shows up at my house and they immediately start screeching at each other. Read more »
In Marriage, Two’s a Charm
July 17, 2007
Article and Illustration By Jim Burger
“It takes two.” Were truer words ever spoken?
I recall a motorcycle trip with my girlfriend/future wife to Revel Grove, Oxfordshire, England. The motorcycle and girlfriend were real enough, but Revel Grove is fictional Read more »
Lessons from My Grandmothers
June 28, 2007
Article and Illustration by Jim Burger
I’m back! It is I, Jim Burger, recipient of the “Jayson Blair Excellence in Journalism Award.” Many of you no doubt remember me from the days when I penned the Alonsoville column for the Baltimore Messenger. I got fired. Still others, I’m sure, will recall my Town Crier musings for Style magazine. Read more »
SmartTalk Q&A: Danitra Bell
Holiday Entertaining on a Budget
Messages from an Entrepreneur
Port Woman of the Year
Smart Tastes: Cooking with Wine
Competing to Lower the Odds
SmartTalk: Ellen Moore
Mothers Who Hover
Ins & Outs of Auto Interior Design
Smart Women Ride Horses
GEMs in the Rough