A simpler time in ’60s

March 24, 2023

This week I want you to think back to the 1960s with me. If you were not around, you just may learn a thing or two about that era. If you lived through them, I hope they bring good memories. A couple weeks ago a quiz show that I watch had all things from the 1960s as their questions. It sure got me to thinking. I lived through them in fact I graduated from high school in 1961. We had our sixtieth class, reunion a couple years ago. It was a treat to see old friends and acquaintances. My husband and I attended. He was a good sport although he knew no one. Of course, I attended his ...

Life membership in The Clean Plate Club

March 23, 2023

All my life I’ve joined clubs: book clubs, card clubs, even going all the way back to the Girl Scouts. Early on, my mother enrolled me in one club offering lifetime membership. If she hadn’t insisted so loudly, I probably would not have joined the Clean Plate Club. I was forced to participate daily. The Clean Plate Club was an informal nation-wide group organized and administered by parents who survived the Depression. “You don’t know what it’s like to go without. You must be grateful for this wonderful food. Eat your dinner. All of it.” Now that was OK if the meal ...

Bad boundaries are hampering county school efficiency

March 21, 2023

If all the students in Warren County attended the closest high school to where they live, Youngsville would be, or close to or be the largest school in the county. Around 50 years ago the Warren School District had no choice but to change the boundary lines — let’s call the lines walls — to send Youngsville students to another high school because Pittsfield Elementary was maxed out. In the last 50 years Warren County has lost around 50% of its students. Would it be reasonable to evaluate school boundaries every half century considering such a dramatic change in the district ...

Yesterday’s GOP was one of ‘principle’

March 18, 2023

By Dr. KAREN L. BLACK I have been a Democrat ever since I was old enough to know better, but I miss the Republicans. Not today’s party, mind you, but the Republicans I grew up with and remember from the time before the Former Occupant and the onslaught of the Crazy People. We used to be able to have reasonable conversations with Republicans, usually without death threats or too much yelling. But I grieve because we need a functioning Republican Party. I know that the Reasonable Republicans are still out there; they must be bothered by a former president who seems to be edging ...

Salute farmers every day

March 17, 2023

March is the time for Agriculture Week. There are getting to be fewer and fewer farmers and that is alarming. What are we to do for food if all of the little farmers are gone? For thirty-four years I was a farmer’s wife. Life in the country was hard. We had little free time. Going out to eat was a luxury. Going shopping together was reserved for Christmas when we spent a day looking for gifts for each other. That day we always ate our supper out as well. One of the favorite places to eat was Arthur Treacher’s in Brooklyn Square. Life in the country was an excellent way to ...

Childhood heroes are not forgotten

March 16, 2023

Most kids’ heroes are their Dad, or Grandpa, or sometimes, Spiderman. But sometimes, the hero is an athlete. Today’s sports heroes with nationally recognizable names come mostly from team sports – the Steelers, the Bruins, the Lakers – you get the picture. When I was in elementary school, most of our heroes were the movie cowboys we watched every Saturday afternoon. But I had another one – an idol that most 4th grade girls didn’t know much about. My hero was a nationally known athlete, born in Brockton, Mass., the next town over. The locals bragged about “their” Rocky ...