On my day off...

VALERIE CLOSE, EDITOR
August 8, 2011 11:37 am

...I went to my Great Aunt Ruth's funeral.  She lived in the metropolis of Marathon. A 3 hour drive away.  I'm a wimp. After an hour my brother-in-law with started hearing, "Are we there yet?" "I'm thirsty!" "Can we stop, I need a bathroom.

Pastor's Blog - DEATH -- NO!

PASTOR LANETTE S. VAN
August 8, 2011 11:33 am

  DEATH -- NO!   Romans 8:31-39 Some of my church folks and I were standing around talking at a wedding reception.

The 'first', 'best' and 'only' in the age of Internet-first news

VINTON TODAY
August 8, 2011 9:33 am

     "How did they write that story?"      "Where did they get that information?"      "To whom did they speak?"      "What sources did they use?"     Long before I became a journalist, I was asking those questions, especially when reading a long or complex story.

Understanding that far away look

JOANNE DIETER
August 8, 2011 8:51 am

  I often used to find my mother sitting outside on her swing. It was a sturdy white swing that hung from the tree just outside the back door of the house.

IRS: 2 + 1 = 4

VINTON TODAY
August 4, 2011 9:36 am

       I am, I guess, perhaps the only American who goes to the mailbox every day, hoping for a letter from the IRS.      I hope that this time, the IRS employee who writes me knows that 2 + 2 = 4.

Tweets from Walden Pond

VINTON TODAY
August 2, 2011 12:30 pm

       Anyone who lives in this world where the number of  phones in America (cell phones and land lines outnumbers actual Americans by a 5:3 ratio can understand Nate's statement.

It's time to make 'truth in advertising' laws apply to politicians, too

VINTON TODAY
August 1, 2011 11:29 am

         If the Federal Trade Commission really wanted to protect Americans from the harmful effects of false advertisements, it would start with Congress and the White House.

The Fright before Publishing

VALERIE CLOSE, EDITOR
July 29, 2011 11:35 am

Twas an hour before publishing, and all through the house All the creatures were stirring, maybe even a mouse. The Veggie Tales playing in the player so dear, In hopes that the Sand Man soon might appear.

Pastor's Blog - HOPE IN OLD STUMPS

PASTOR LANETTE S. VAN
July 29, 2011 11:02 am

  The country will look like pine and oak forest  with every tree cut down— Every tree a stump, a huge field of stumps.

Country life: from turtles to tighty whities

VALERIE CLOSE, EDITOR
July 26, 2011 12:00 pm

The other day, Dean and I were discussing country life.   Yes, it still fascinates us.  While driving to town the other day, Dean suddenly hit the brakes and said,  "Did you see that?" I of course was looking for something van sized.