Justin Maresh, Brent Eubank and Patrick Erwin are three young men who will be working this summer and fall in the wilderness of Alaska along the Tsiu River at a fishing camp owned and operated by a Denison company, the Alaska Expedition Co.

Most people know Justin Maresh as one of the young waitstaff at Angela’s Cafe, or as a promising high school and college baseball player. I know him as “Boss Maresh of Ryan Hills.” The Grayson County College student is going away to camp this summer along with his buds Brent Eubank and Patrick Erwin.

Any seasoned gardener can give you a list of what won’t last long in Texomaland and tell you why, citing grasshoppers, spider mites, drought, flood, wind and hail, cold and heat, black soil, white soil, and the plain old rotten terrior in their own back yards. But who cares? For every delicate northern beauty they lament, I can show them a tough, sophisticated Texas charmer that will laugh at their fears.

From the approaching drive off Gallagher Drive in Sherman, the complex looks like a series of pavilions linked one after another, each standing proud. Its elaborate composition may not be instantly meaningful to the passer-by, but upon touring the building one gains an understanding that this school, unlike many of its predecessors, has lofty intentions.

Our homes are the nests that we must keep warm and cozy for our families. As a mother, grandmother and wife, I consider it an honor to make our surroundings as beautiful as possible. Our homes seem to sparkle and take on new life during the holidays. Families come together in anticipation of the celebration—the excitement grows with each day.

Does Barbara Bush smell better than Barbra Streisand?

If you are an aficionado of new rose varieties, then you know that Streisand has the edge on scent.

It was the star herself who supervised the details as a rose was born. She tested a number of candidates and settled on a highly fragrant lavender hybrid tea as her namesake.