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Brigitte Bowers: Sports mantra -- just don't be the worst

The holiday season, which begins in August at Costco, is finally over. This means it is January, the month when basketball begins.

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Brigitte Bowers: Taking a stand against consumerism

Footage of the pepper-spraying incident at a Los Angeles Wal-Mart on Black Friday reminded me of the

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Brigitte Bowers: Online references no match for hard copy

The demise of the hard copy Encyclopedia Britannica -- first printed in 1768 and today containing about 45 million words -- brought back memories of my childhood friend Nick, who is probably...

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Brigitte Bowers: Lack of school bus service hits some harder

When I was in high school, I took the bus every day. Walking was impossible, as my school was located 35 miles from my home. Our bus driver, Clint, was a former Marine with a ruddy complexion and crew...

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Brigitte Bowers: Birthday sleepover -- The pain is short-lived

Having a sleepover is a little like giving birth. While you are going through it, you swear there is nothing that could convince you to ever do it again, but once it's over the pain fades from your...

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Brigitte Bowers: Cynicism takes a back seat for the night

The last time I left Merced for the day, I didn't want to come back.

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Brigitte Bowers: Summer camp should be fun, nothing more

There is something luxurious, almost delightfully self-indulgent, about a long summer day with nothing to do. It's also true that sooner or later boredom -- especially when kids are involved -- will...

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Brigitte Bowers: Taking a back seat to son's iPhone

When my eldest son Casey was an infant, I couldn't wait for him to learn to speak, but when he finally began to talk I found that the ideas of a 2-year old were not really all that riveting.

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Brigitte Bowers: Remembering the victims

In a few weeks, we will have lost interest in the lunatic who opened fire in a movie theater on July 20, shooting 70 strangers who had never done him any harm.

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Brigitte Bowers: Enjoying an authentic vacation

Summer is almost over, and I am happy to say that once again I have avoided that most dreaded of vacations, the theme park adventure.

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Brigitte Bowers: Nothing funny about seventh grade

As I said goodnight to my 12-year-old son recently, I asked him if he was excited about starting seventh grade the next day. He sighed heavily and replied, "Well, at least I can see my friends again."

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Brigitte Bowers: Egret infestation -- Noise, feathers, guano causing...

It is evening in late August and the sun has dipped below the horizon. People in South Merced are coming out of their houses, venturing into the cool evening air.

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Brigitte Bowers: Egrets might make mess, but they're amazing

Editor's note: The second in a series of articles about the effects of egrets in South Merced

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Brigitte Bowers: Egrets depart, but questions remain

It is quiet at the Gonzalez home on U Street, between 8th and 9th. In the back yard, high in a pine tree, a lone egret perches, studying something in the distance. It will leave soon.

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Brigitte Bowers: In Pakistan, dreams can be deadly

In a column a few weeks ago, I wrote about my son's reluctance to return to school after summer vacation.

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Brigitte Bowers: My first vote for president a memorable one

In 1976, my family lived outside a small town in the Sierra Nevada. There was not much to get excited about there. An occasional bear needing relocation, a fire now and then, a tarantula in my boot:...

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Brigitte Bowers: Pop culture as seen through an aging mind

Recently, I assigned an essay to my students that required them to define a problem in their community. A discussion of possible topics inevitably turned to the lament that there is nothing to do in...

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Brigett Bowers: Shopping -- and prices -- great outside the big box

EDITOR'S NOTE: First of a two-part series about locally owned businesses.

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Brigitte Bowers: Atwater shop a great place to shop local

Editor's note: The last in a two-part series

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Brigitte Bowers: Who really keeps their resolutions?

In a few days it will be time to once again make New Year's resolutions we know we will not keep even as we utter them. Still, it's nice to deceive ourselves, at least once a year, into believing that...

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