Columns & Editorials

Honor the Break

News Staff
Thu, 05/02/2019 - 05:00
The Teachers’ Lounge I like to share these bits of humor adapted from previous articles I have written as a lighthearted way to honor educators everywhere. With Summer right around the corner, teachers and students are bidding their collective adieus as they head into the longawaited Summer Break.

What’s More Important?

News Staff
Thu, 04/25/2019 - 05:00
The Teachers’ Lounge Fox News reported a significant addition, actually a return, to academics in Texas.

Stuffocation, No Breathing

News Staff
Thu, 04/25/2019 - 05:00
I live in an old house. By Salem, MA standards, she’s a spring chicken. By our standards, however, she’s 109 years old and the first bungalow built in Forney. As a town, we’d only changed our name from Brooklyn a scant 37 years before she was built.

The Older I Get, the More I Watch Stigmas Steal Others’ Joy

News Staff
Thu, 04/25/2019 - 05:00
Merriam-Webster defines the word stigma as “a mark of disgrace . . .a stain or reproach, as on one’s reputation.” Look again and you’ll see that the dictionary further describes disgrace as “the loss of respect, honor or esteem; shame.

Volunteer Victim?

News Staff
Thu, 04/18/2019 - 05:00
The recent “Operation Varsity Blues” college admission scandal highlights the perception of the value of higher education and how unscrupulous some people are to get there. Using wealth and privilege to get access to the best schools, internships and jobs is not new.

The Older I Get, the More Valuable Easter Becomes

News Staff
Thu, 04/18/2019 - 05:00
I grew up in Forney south of I-20 just off a Farm-to-Market road that splintered off 740 South. When we moved to Forney in 1983, land could still be purchased in Forney at tolerable per-acre prices, and back then, there was still plenty to go around.

The Shiny Things

News Staff
Thu, 04/18/2019 - 05:00
Oh, Give Me a Home Where the Buffalo Roam I’m an eccentric person. My life is full of zany characters, mostly relatives, who provide me with several lifetimes of cuckoo anecdotes and mostly legal shenanigans. I like telling these redneck Lake Wobegon tales to anyone who’ll listen.

Three Rights Make a Left

News Staff
Thu, 04/11/2019 - 05:00
The next day Kelly came back to Mr. Destiny’s flat and spent the entire day reading. Although she wanted to skip ahead, she followed her mentor’s nudge and read accounts from Carthage in Africa that took place miles and centuries away from the events surrounding the reign of King Manasseh.

Let Them Eat Cake

News Staff
Thu, 04/04/2019 - 05:00
By the time you read this article, I will be 227 miles away from Forney, road weary from the drive, probably hungry - I am generally always hungry - and preparing for a costume party.