.....Advertisement.....
.....Advertisement.....

Columns

  • Sing a song of happiness

    “The sun is finally out, the weather is warming up, I’m definitely heading home and putting on my Beach Boy records,” a friend once told me one bright, sun-shiny spring day, back when people still played records.

    I now know why she was thinking about those good vibrations: We tend to invoke music that parallels the circumstances of our lives.

    Click here to read more...
  • Then I’ll be happy

    ‘Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be.’
    - Abraham Lincoln

    Probably one of the greatest traps that I ever fell into as a young man was deciding that I would be happy if and when some predetermined event took place in the future. I would think “If this happens, then I’ll be happy. If that happens, then I’ll be happy.

    People do this all the time.

    Click here to read more...
  • Newspapers let the sun shine light on government

    There’s a lot of information out there, and you have the right to almost all of it, especially when it comes to your government.

    This week is Sunshine Week in the news industry, and it’s a time to recognize the importance of letting light shine on open government and freedom of information, thus the name.

    We are often asked why we publish some things in our paper, like property transfers, food service inspections and other items of public record. The answer is an easy one; you have the right to know.

    Click here to read more...
  • The Bible’s message is not just in words

    If you were to insist that what makes the Bible a special book is not its outward appearance—whether it’s bound in leather or cloth, colored bright pink or plain brown — but what’s inside — its message, meaning, and purpose, I would heartily agree.

    But then again, the very presence of the Good Book can not only speak to the soul, it can even save a life.

    Click here to read more...
  • The shoe story

    I owned three pairs of shoes when this story began.

    A pair of shoes showed up at my house a few years back. That’s not all that unusual, except these showed up by themselves with no one attached.

    I was coming up the drive to the garage one day when I saw a plastic Wal-Mart bag with something in it lying against the house. There’s always something laying around our house, mostly kids, so my curiosity wasn’t peaked until a couple of days later. The bag was still there.

    Click here to read more...
  • Motherly love

    I’ve spoken before about finding “hidden gems” in Washington County; places that unless you’ve lived here your entire life, you may not have had a clue existed.

    Last week, I was introduced to the St. Catharine Motherhouse, and though it’s certainly not hidden, it may best be described as an “underappreciated gem.”

    Click here to read more...
  • Let’s just fist bump

    John Lennon and Paul McCartney couldn’t have known the danger in the words they wrote with the Beatles first major hit, “I Want to Hold Your Hand.”

    “And please say to me, you’ll let me hold your hand.”

    In case you haven’t heard, holding and shaking hands can be hazardous to your health.

    Click here to read more...
  • The young ambassadors say buy local

    My 11-year-old daughter, Belle, is one of several young people in elementary and high school called “Young Ambassadors” for Washington County. It’s a neat program that gets these leaders of tomorrow to focus on what they can do to promote our community.

    One of the programs they are working on right now is a “Buy Local” campaign.

    Belle gave me a big list of reasons the young ambassadors came up with as to why you should buy local at our own small businesses for all your needs.

    It’s interesting.

    Click here to read more...
  • A little on the culture of sports

    By Harry Toder

    Yesterday (Saturday, Feb. 22) I heard what I thought represented a very ugly side of sports. A caller called in to the Wildcats’ Men’s Basketball pre-game show, saying in so many words that the fans of Kentucky would only put up with Calipari’s record for a couple of more years (before there was trouble).

    Click here to read more...
  • The coalition needs you

    During my time in Springfield, the Washington County Heartland Youth Coalition has stuck out to me as one of the most impactful organizations in the area.

    It’s been a way for adults to reach teenagers about the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse, while also allowing the teens to lead the charge themselves.

    Plenty of other counties have programs such as D.A.R.E. and other anti-drug campaigns, but the hands-on approach that the youth coalition has taken with students is what sets it apart from other organizations.

    Click here to read more...