Speaking with my son Brett last night, we discussed how this Mother's Day was going to be difficult for his wife, Kris, whose mother died a couple of months ago. | Full Story

Actor Jason Segel, mostly known for his role on "How I Met Your Mother," is steadily making a name for himself as a screenwriter. In "The Five Year Engagement," he teams back up with director Nicholas Stoller; the two collaborated on Segel's first writing credit, the 2008 romantic-comedy "Forgetting Sarah Marshall." This collaboration falls a little short, although admittedly "Marshall" set the bar pretty high. Luckily for them the problem here is a lengthy 124 minutes running time rather than something more problematic like a sappy plot. To its credit is a stellar cast led by Segel as a San Francisco-based up-and-coming chef and Emily Blunt as his British fiancée, a psychology student applying for her doctorate. | Full Story

Readers may remember my column awhile back on the smartphone I bought at the urging of my children. I wrote that I wasn't sure if my new phone would bring me happiness or grief. | Full Story

"It's May, it's May, the merry month of May" is a lyric Julie Andrews sang in the musical Camelot. For Los Banos, it means the fair, and we are right in the middle of it with the big parade Saturday. My car will carry retiring princess Trinity Meza. My stomach is anticipating cinnamon rolls, onion rings, corn dogs, barbecue ... a taste-bud frenzy! Experience the fair! | Full Story

FFor the past few centuries it has been presumed that humans control the animal world. Not true. | Full Story

Some people reading this column are in Los Banos for the May Day Fair, and they've purchased the Enterprise to find out what's happening here. | Full Story

When I read that John Cusack had been cast to play Edgar Allen Poe in "The Raven," I thought it a wise choice. John Cusack has a face that is able to express utter joy and absolute sorrow simultaneously. Anyone in doubt should revisit "High Fidelity." | Full Story

What happened then? | Full Story