By JIM NICHOLS From 1951 to 2008 one of the best known and most quickly recognized Americans was radio broadcaster Paul Harvey. On national radio his news and comment six days a week is estimated to have reached 24 million listeners every week. Like other popular personalities, he developed some trademark phrases and speaking mannerisms that made him instantly recognizable

By JIM NICHOLS Ribbons of concrete stretch from city to city and from coast to coast, but those ribbons are a relatively new addition to the country. Although the exact stimulus for the interstate highway system is unclear, President Dwight Eisenhower is generally credited with using his influence to promote and fund the concept in 1956.  Early in the twentieth

By JIM NICHOLS A report from the German Society of Ophthalmology includes the following item resulting from a large review of the scientific data. The average woman cries 30-64 times/year and an average man cries 6-17 times/year. Furthermore, women cry an average of 6 minutes each time whereas men cry 2-4 minutes. This might fit in the “trivia” category for

By JIM NICHOLS Sometimes the best ministry involves omitting one activity and emphasizing two others. What we can often omit is our talking so much; just keep my mouth shut more. What we can add is using our eyes and our ears more. What are we seeing and hearing? I find it hard to believe that it was 1968 when

By JIM NICHOLS The university purchasing office occasionally phoned me to question some purchase order from the Biology Department. They were not suspicious as much as they were curious. Why would we order a dozen pig hearts? Five dozen meal worms? Owl pellets? And what exactly are owl pellets? It made for interesting conversations with the purchasing office. With all

By JIM NICHOLS Every human activity or discipline has a set of words or concepts that operate to shorten communication. Using this jargon is efficient; users of it can communicate in a shorter time with more clarity. Plumbers have such a set of words and elementary teachers have another set; it is common in life. Sometimes, the jargon can be

By JIM NICHOLS If one advertised a church class series titled “Religion, Spirituality, and the Aging Person,” one would logically draw a limited audience. Besides the obvious age distinction expected, one might also sense hesitancy for more pure reasons. “Aging” implies an interest in a human future and yet scripture clearly promotes that we should avoid being overly concerned about

By JIM NICHOLS It would be impossible to find any human who has only one set of skills and interests. Although each of us certainly develops certain aspects of our lives as basic, we each have latent secondary or tertiary topics that drive us. These additional areas of our lives are unpredictable to others, but quite real to each of

By JIM NICHOLS One of the charming results of our religious plurality is that different groups have varied emphases and include traditions that can surprise someone from another group. Once I was to speak for a group different from my own and I intended to begin my comments as I often do by quoting from Psalm 118:24. I began by