Local Voices

If you have been reading this column for a while, you will know that I draw many moments of inspiration from time spent digging in the dirt. Over the weekend we were tilling up the gardens to prepare for sowing seeds in just a few short months. Luckily, we live in a world where tractors do most of the heavy lifting, yet still, there is much action on our part that must be executed. The tilling process is important for loosing up the hard soil and rock, it disrupts grass and weeds that can smother the plants, makes soil available for added nutrients and allows for a more effective drainage system needed for plants to thrive. What kind of inspiration could possibly flow from running a tractor through the dirt? It reminded me of a verse, “Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till He come and rain righteousness upon you.” Hosea 10:12.

You know what they say: “Deaths always happen in threes.” So it was, recently with three of my longtime audiovideo pals. I said goodbye to my compact disc recorder, my DVD recorder, and my cassette player. Cause of death? A combination of outdated parts, and dirty, scratched heads. Sure, I could send them off to some mysterious repair service to be patched and cleaned, but at what cost? As every customer service rep is trained to say, occasionally in English, “It would be cheaper to just buy a new one. And I have a deal for you!”

I've interviewed many celebrities in my career, and one of the first was among my most memorable.

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NEWS Photos by Bob Murray.

It’s pop quiz time! Quick: tell me who was the first president. Did you say George Washington? Not so fast. Some historians say John Hanson. John who? That’s what I said! This makes absolutely no sense. All those textbooks and history teachers couldn’t have been wrong, right?

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