Columns
Pink cloud dissipating
I need help. The pink cloud I was swept up in has since dissipated. For the uninitiated, I’ll explain what a pink cloud is. It’s what happens when many individuals first get sober. Abandoning substance abuse and engaging in the real world can bring forth a surge of...
Tragedy, or comedy that writes itself?
Well, the pendulum swings to and fro, and some things just keep cropping up like weeds. One in particular in the patch definitely merits mentioning on my trip down memory lane. In fact, he was in the headlines again just recently. Surprise, surprise! A federal judge...
Letters to grads and their parents
Dear Reader, my parents were born in Appalachia in 1922. Dad completed eighth grade. He fought in Guam with the Marine Corps. Mom graduated from high school and riveted airplanes in Akron, Ohio. They married in March 1945. Thanks to the G.I. Bill, Dad earned his...
Question is ‘now what?’
You have a problem. You can't deny it anymore. You can't hide it anymore. Your life is completely unmanageable. Now what? You've boosted electronics from big box retailers. You've stolen from your loved ones. Hell, you've sold your own body. Now what? Now you get...
After graduation, then and now…
This weekend's commencement ceremonies planned at the four school districts in our coverage area has me tripping down memory lane. I know that these grads—members of the Class of 2019—aren't thinking about reminiscing over the experience as the years fly by ('cause to...
Spread the good news
In perfect timing, the word processor appeared on the market when I launched my journalism career in 1993. Dyslexic, I'm a miserable typist and correct every line several times before advancing to the next. While I praised the blessed cursor, the Internet romanced the...
Reaching into bag–er–shelf of tricks
It's an old but useful trick. Well, not a trick, really, as in a deception to fool someone. It's more like magic. Like a tool. A tool that, for me right now, is in the shape of a crutch. I don't mind grabbing for the crutch, though, because it's like a ladder. A...
Reaching into bag–er–shelf of tricks
It's an old but useful trick. Well, not a trick, really, as in a deception to fool someone. It's more like magic. Like a tool. A tool that, for me right now, is in the shape of a crutch. I don't mind grabbing for the crutch, though, because it's like a ladder. A...
Lasting fulfillment in life
"Man searches for his own fulfillment in life in many ways, but where is lasting fulfillment to be found? A career comes to an end; attaining to a great position of wealth or power fails to satisfy one's deepest longings. Surely there must be something more to life!...
Seeing truth with new eyes
For a week now I've been mulling over something that seemed so crystal clear at the outset but has gotten more and more elusive. I wrote it once and thought I needed to preface it with another story I'd been reading, but that made it too long. Trying to split it into...
