Seizing inspiration for innovative ideas is tough enough for upstart entrepreneurs. Throw in the isolation of working from home, jockeying for coffeehouse plug-ins, and talking shop over hissing espresso machines, and it’s no wonder lightbulbs take time to flicker on.

As I type this, snow is snarling commutes for thousands of folks. Not 24 hours ago, most of us were comfortably walking outside in short sleeves.

Yep, it’s three-seasons-in-a-week territory for North Central Indiana right now. Provided March’s lion remains tame, there will soon be plenty of opportunities to get outside amid more predictable weather.

Here’s a pair of low-cost outdoor options to enjoy as the sun lingers longer and into spring, summer, and autumn!

You can tell me the entryway floor mat at Mama Ines Mexican Bakery’s flagship Lafayette location is just a place to shake off snow. What I believe: It’s a pillow to cushion your jaw dropping upon the sight you behold.

It’s hard to believe the holiday season is already here. I hope all of you have enjoyed reading this column as much as I have writing it – and that it has helped you discover exciting, entertaining experiences to savor and share.

For its 2016-17 season, the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra is embracing a foundational theme that helped start the orchestra in 1950 — placing a spotlight on a wide spectrum of community talent.

“If you don’t pick a good concept, don’t call me wondering why it didn’t work out.”

A food-industry friend’s advice regularly rolled through Lee Stanish’s mind as he weighed how to turn his weekend-warrior BBQ expertise into a (nearly) 24/7 endeavor of running a restaurant.

Q: “I’m putting a team together for a trivia night this week. Wanna go?”

A: “Oh, I’m not a trivia person.”

Christopher Short has found folks’ underestimation of knowledge they tote in their brains to be, as they say in trivia circles, the MCWA … or Most Common Wrong Answer.

A sign at the edge of Hillsboro says it’s home to “600 happy people and a few old soreheads.” In a week, the Myers Dinner Theatre could host the entire town and send even the soreheads home smiling.

With the game on the line, Evan Warden pitched his own way out of a top-ninth, bases-loaded jam. But the fired-up crowd of about 1,500 cheering Warden on surely offered him a competitive advantage.