National parks have been getting a lot of love since the pandemic, so much that this summer you need reservations at many. For example, you must make a reservation just to drive Montana’s legendary Going-To-The-Sun Road in Glacier National Park, and passes can sell out within hours of release. That’s[Read More…]
Tag: Column
“Great Grandma claimed we had an Indian princess in our family tree!”
Of course, that legend always comes with the Indian princess falling madly in love with a handsome frontiersman. Today’s DNA testing can give some weight to those stories passed down in the family. If I confused you enough last week with a discussion of DNA, let me just add to[Read More…]
DNA, in Ed’s Dictionary, stands for Don’t know Ancestors
Ok, maybe Webster doesn’t agree with me. On the other hand, Daniel Webster in 1806 didn’t know what DNA was either. Today the common tests used in genealogy are available by mail order. These tests don’t unravel your whole DNA, just the segments pointing to ethnicity or parentage. Don’t strain[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…]
Support law enforcement
Regardless of which war, or branch of service, all veterans learn early that their survival depends on their ability to ask three critical questions: No. 1) What could go wrong? No. 2) How bad could it get? No. 3) What are they going to do if it does happen? New[Read More…]
Kaye’s Corner: Good manners
Here we are in the holiday season with gobs of entertaining. Good manners are always in style and even more important at holiday gatherings. You really can’t go wrong when you’re a thoughtful guest. BE ON TIME If you’re attending a large gathering or open house, you can show up[Read More…]
Loose Ends: Christmas traditions
While every family celebrates the yuletide differently, there are cultural traditions that some families continue to keep passing on over the years. They can be centered around food, gift-giving, or participating in once-a-year family activities. These traditions were originally passed down from their ancestors and shaped into a version of[Read More…]
What happens after election day?
Ten returned ballots are randomly selected and set aside to be opened eighth days after Election Day. This is called the “Eight Day Hold” procedure. These ballots, along with any out of country residents’ ballots and any Provisional ballots are then processed and counted on the ninth day after the[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: Here we go again
We’re apparently very slow learners. A year and a half into a global pandemic we’re circling around into another wave of illness thanks to a variant of COVID-19. This shouldn’t come as a surprise. We were warned, and we’ve watched it unfold with heartbreaking devastation around the world. If we[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: Inconceivable!
Words have definitions. Over time and use sometimes those definitions change. Sometimes they get twisted, or overused, or misapplied, and the “new” definition sticks. In our modern culture of soundbites and buzzwords and trying to win arguments in 140 characters, this phenomenon has become rampant. Words that spark fear or[Read More…]
Editor’s Column: The duck test
Years ago I sat in a leadership meeting where the instructor admonished the group with the following words of advice: “if everyone you encounter says you’re a jackass, instead of blaming them and whining about how mean they are, it’s probably a good time to take a look in the[Read More…]
