Opinion

It is a story from decades ago that I’ve retold countless times. Its punchline--wadded up into a few words--sums up the conundrums that hit us daily with tornadic force.

Allow me, please, to set it up: At a country shack--one that could easily be a “poster house” for poverty--a government guy knocks on the door.

A “mountain man” (or woman) responds with a curt, “Whadda ya want?” greeting. (After all, the ramshackle residence far out in the woods is not easily accessed. No one passes it on the way to town.)…

Russia has been in the news just about every day this year.

The top news story recently involves Russia’s involvement in the 2016 Presidential elections, which was highlighted in a Jan. 6 report issued by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

The declassified version of the report, entitled “Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in Recent U.S. Elections,” included an analytic assessment drafted and coordinated among the Central Intelligence Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the National Security Agency.

Here it is summer time and the yard is green and lush as spring time.  The rains have made for cooler weather but summer is here now with rising temperatures.  Those 100 degree days will dry things out quickly.

The cats have been lazy and sleep during the warm part of the day and wait to play until it gets cooler in the early evening.  I’m like the cats and would rather work or play in the cool of the evening.

Finders, keepers. At least most of the time.

That simple premise brought about one of the more bizarre legal cases in Texas history and certainly the strangest court proceeding ever in lightly populated Sterling County. 

The Gladys Johnson Ritchie Public Library is a 501(c)3 which makes it unique among public libraries in Texas.  There are only 14 libraries in Texas that have the distinction of serving cities and counties without being owned by those entities.  You might ask why we are such -the answer is simple.  In 1979 some forward thinking citizens, including Ms. Ritchie, wanted Jacksboro to have a larger, more modern library than the city or county alone could build.  So several, including Ed Henry Stewart, Ralph Hammond, Leigh McGee, Ms.

Summer is a time of relaxing, vacationing, picnicking, and celebrating holidays!  Many start counting down to summer as soon as Spring Break ends, with great anticipation.  But, there is a “dark” side of summer that most are unaware.  Last year, Domestic Violence incidences increased by 33 percent in the summer months for Jack and Wise Counties!

Last week, my sister and I returned from a trip to The West where we visited family, did a little adventuring (zip lining), and partook in our favorite part of traveling: shopping at thrift stores, junk stores, and “antique” stores. 

Not so many years ago, when children were asked to do household chores, they might register resistance with beginning letters of four words--“TNMJ.” (That’s Not My Job.)

Such requests made these days might just as well be directed to telephone poles, since most children have “buds” in their ears, choosing to listen to sounds more soothing or entertaining than parental verbiage.

Even though the average price for a gallon of gasoline in Texas averaged $2.11 for the week ending June 19, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gasoline prices dropped below $2 in many locations across Texas.

The national average was $2.318, a decrease of $0.048. California had the highest price at $2.996.

Diesel prices averaged $2.489 in the U.S. with the highest prices on the West Coast at $2.782, and the lowest on the Gulf Coast at $2.329.

What with tight security, computer glitches, unruly passengers and fees for what used to be free, airline travel is more trying these days than it used to be.

But anyone facing a long trip can at least be thankful that public transportation has advanced considerably since the 19th century.