Starting the new year off right with a visit to the recycling center is a good thing. In fact, any visit to the recycling center is good because you are doing your part to help save the earth…even in a small way. Lots of little ways can add up to big results when they are done right. more

How well do you know Polk County? more

Whether or not a groundhog can predict weather is questionable, but this animal has other characteristics that make it an interesting member of Missouri’s wildlife world. more

The first day of spring is three months away as I pen these lines with the season’s first seed catalog in hand. more

Don’t be such a hagfish more

Last week I wrote about “Mean Girls” and the problem of having seen a version of the movie more

A friend called a few days ago asking if I had a lantern she could borrow, not an unusual request from someone needing a light, but she had another purpose. more

How the jingle jangle can mangle the mind more

Key points from the Aldermen Meeting on Jan. 23: more

Of all the pop culture institutions to be canceled, ended, or otherwise shut down by the pandemic in 2020, the permanent closure of the “Mean Girls” Broadway musical was perhaps the one that disappointed me the most. I’m not sure why it wasn’t brought back post-pandemic – ticket sales had clearly been healthy enough to keep me from scoring cheap seats during its two-year run – all I knew was that the show was gone and I had missed all 833 chances to see it live. more

Writer turns to a life of crime more

I’ve come across the word “anachronism” often in reading, but I was never exactly sure what it meant. Context usually hinted it was something out of place, but I wanted to be sure; so, as a last resort I looked it up in the dictionary. more