Sometimes the well runs dry for a columnist. That happens every so often when I did reporting in Barstow, California. When that happened, I would take a stroll in the downtown area. Besides checking out businesses that might be closing or opening up, I’d talk to homeless people with ...

When it comes to daily market news, most coverage focuses on familiar U.S. benchmarks like the S&P 500 or the Dow Jones Industrial Average. That emphasis can make it easy to overlook opportunities beyond our borders — but doing so can mean missing a meaningful portion of the global ...

The social news or gossip columns in the old newspapers are always fascinating to read. A special section in the newspaper was devoted to the social media of the day. The whereabouts of local people and events were often featured in these columns. Here are a few from The News Messenger of Lyon ...

We have been learning about David Hansvick, who grew up in the small town of Vesta during the 1950s and ‘60s. He described Vesta’s businesses during those years. “Vesta had a lively downtown. We had three (automobile) garages. Main Street had two hardware stores; Marquardt’s Hardware, ...

Our youngest daughter, and last child at home, graduated high school, and moved away from us, all within the span of two hours this past week. Twenty-eight years of raising children, and in the span of minutes … “POOF!” … Shelley and I found ourselves staring at each other across our ...

A while ago I read a book that has always flowed through me. The name of the book is “A River Runs Through It” by Norman Maclean. It's a story about the author's growing up in rural Montana, and his relationship with his brother. Although different in some ways, they usually bonded over ...