“Wait, my hands are full, I can’t talk right now,” the woman said into a cell phone. Leaning over a cart full of groceries, she dropped a couple of boxes of cereal on top of the precarious pile. She still was able to hold her phone and resume her conversation,[Read More…]
Columns
Kaye’s Corner: New Year’s Resolutions
2022, here we are. I’ve been thinking about choices I plan to make for the year ahead. Frankly, “resolutions” seem a promise, so I’m calling them plans. They’re not a firm commitment but more slight re-direction to this year’s activities. At the same time of trying to be resolute, I[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: Free speech
It’s not “Groundhog Day” (referring to the movie, not the weather forecasting rodent’s holiday), but I keep finding myself coming across the same conversation in different settings: What is “freedom of speech”? The topic tends to come up after someone says something rude, cruel or threatening and someone else calls[Read More…]
Genealogy 101
WELCOME TO GENEALOGY 101. Doesn’t that sound dry and college like! Lucky for you this course is not graded and you get no credit for it. Almost nobody in your family will care if you succeed. As a matter of fact, if you get good at this, your spouse will[Read More…]
Alternatives to bigger jails aren’t a partisan issue
If you know someone is a Republican or Democrat, then you might assume you know exactly where they stand on whether local jails need to be expanded. But if recent experience in the rural, southwest Oregon county where I live is any guide, it’s not that simple. The economy in[Read More…]
Facebook jail
In the 15 years since Facebook opened its services to the general public, the site has grown massively, today boasting more than 2 billion active monthly users. Its sheer scale, reach and cultural significance makes it all but a necessity for business owners, community organizers and government entities alike. Public[Read More…]
VETERAN VOICE: Identify the enemy correctly
Any veteran can tell you that your odds of getting killed are significantly increased if you are unable to identify the bad guys. The Commander in Chief is not the enemy, he is the elected President of the United States of America. Unfortunately his position is being used by very[Read More…]
Loose Ends: Best laid plans
This is the best beginning after a terrible year I have ever experienced. I decided not to clutter up 2022 with New Year’s resolutions. Prior experience has finally knocked some sense into me. If I resolve to do something I am overthinking things. The key word here is resolve. That[Read More…]
Kaye’s Corner: Donations for Marshall Fire victims
I’m changing my article last minute to share with you the awesome heart and generosity of the Town of Meeker. In an effort to help in some way, a small group of us initiated a donation drive for victims of the Marshall fire. The Meeker United Methodist Church provided space[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: What we lose when we lose local
The news that Meeker was losing its independent, family-owned pharmacy, saddened me. I’m old enough to remember being able to call my family doctor at home late at night or on the weekends when we had a medical crisis and getting personal “telemedicine” the old-fashioned way. And there was rarely[Read More…]
Responsible gun owners need to be heard
I own a closet full of guns. But nowhere in that closet is ammunition. That is locked up elsewhere, reflecting a rule I was taught in childhood. Guns are powerful, even deadly, tools. If you own one, it’s on you to keep it safe. That is what the parents of[Read More…]
Loose Ends: Extra, extra
Growing up in a small town, we always got a newspaper delivered to our front door. It was the main way that we got our news. Most everyone supported the local newspaper by subscribing, as well as advertising their businesses in it as well. The dailies or “big newspapers”, as[Read More…]