Preparing For The Big Storm
As I write this, Hurricane Irma is winding down in the southeast while Jose is sizing up the Atlantic Coast for a possible strike. After Harvey and all the horrendous flooding in Texas, we pray for a quick and quiet end to this year’s hurricane season. Like millions of other…
Learning From A Sand Cat
Imagine an animal so elusive that it hasn’t been spotted in ten years. Imagine further that it appears unexpectedly on a trail camera in the dark of night and in the middle of the desert. Such was the case with the secretive Arabian Sand Cat. Although it appears very similar…
Show Sheep or Market Lambs?
Another Shenandoah County Fair has come and almost gone. It’s nearly over except for the packing up, cleaning up, and the resting up. If you haven’t yet attended this 100thanniversary year, you’d better hurry before all the hullabaloo concludes. Fair time is a highlight for many in the county and…
The Time To Say Thank You: The Story of Dad’s Pocket Watch
Next Thursday, August 31, would be my father’s 95th birthday. Although he passed from this life in 2009 at the age of 86, he could have done so much sooner and you would be not be reading my column today. When he was in his early teens, his father, Beecher Bowers,…
Schools, Bombs, and The Big Bang
It’s hard to believe that Shenandoah County School students already have two weeks under their belts and it’s not even Fair week yet. Having spent 17 years in front of a classroom myself, my sympathies are with those teachers who have already gotten their classes rolling. What started as a…
Undercover Boss
One of the more popular reality TV series of late is CBS’s Undercover Boss. This engaging program originated in Great Britain but has now found its way into the nightly lineup of many nations, including our own. This show features typical workplace environments with actual lower level employees performing their…
An Unlikely Need of Tomatoes And People
Tomato month is here! Although imported and hothouse varieties have teased us for a month or more, August has finally arrived when we can enjoy local homegrown tomatoes! Gardeners throughout the valley have been tending plants since April or May in anticipation of the fruit that is now ripening! They…
Consider The Daylilies!
The cool nights and clear days of spring have given way to the hot and humid days of summer, and along with those changes have come different flowers. The hyacinths and daffodils of March and April are a distance memory as the daylilies have now taken center stage. These showy…
Conquering the Tour de Life
Each summer, the world watches as some of the toughest athletes in the world gather in Europe for the Tour de France. This grueling test of endurance stretches over 2,200 miles in just 21 days and covers some of the steepest terrain on the continent. This year’s contest will conclude…
We Need An Aerial Perspective
If you ever have a hankering for a story, just say the word, “snake.” Everyone has their own favorite tale about these legless creatures that strike fear in the hearts of all humanity and most are anxious to share them with anyone who will listen. My friend, Benny, shared a…