The Del Norte High School Band was selling chocolate bars as a way to raise funds for one event or another. I must have purchased at least one of the candy bars. While I don’t remember having done so, I have the proof. After all these years, a wrapper from one of those chocolate bars…

Connie Craig-Horn, a friend I grew up with in Klamath and now who lives in Red Bluff, sent me a message saying her cousin Kenneth Allen Romine passed away yesterday, May 25, 2011. Kenny, Connie and I all grew up in Klamath. Kenny, as he was known to us, was born August 12, 1961 and…

Nevada lawmakers adjourned after wrapping up a four-month session. In the end, both sides got a little of what they wanted, thanks to a Supreme Court ruling and late-session negotiations that led to a $6.2 billion general fund budget and the extension of $620 million in temporary taxes that were set to expire. Democrats who…

It was a stupid thing to have done. Adam and I were playing with matches, lighting spider-webs on fire. We burned down a shed and part of a fence. And we came pretty damned close to torching two homes. It was the first and only time I got four whippings in one afternoon.

Nevada has entered the anti-cell phone nanny-state after lawmakers in the Assembly approved a measure banning cell phone calling or texting while driving beginning July 1. The vote was 24-17 without debate on Senate Bill 140. Disgusting! Under the bill, drivers will be allowed to make calls if they use a “hands-free” system while keeping…

In recent years, school district’s everywhere have gone into the politically correct zone by applying disciplinary measures to everybody involved. There seems to be few opportunities for both parents and students to appeal the rules which are written on paper — but set in stone. And sometimes, you have to wonder, who the real bully is in…

Former California state senator and Del Norte County Superior Court Judge Frank Petersen died May 23, 2011, in Fort Bragg from complications of a stroke. Petersen represented the 4th Senate District from 1962 to 1966 as a Democrat before being appointed by Gov. Edmund G. Brown as a judge for Del Norte. Frank was born…

“We’re still twelve nautical miles out,” said the pilot, adding, “Besides with all that cloud cover, your probably couldn’t see a thing.” The pilot was looking out the left side of the plane as spoke. So I looked too, hoping to catch a glimpse of the mountain turned volcano that hat been in the news for the past 30 days.…

The Israeli government is not happy with President Barack Obama after he suggested Israel return to pre-1967 borders. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the original border when Israel was only about eight miles wide, is indefensible considering today’s technologies. Then while at the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee meeting in Washington, D.C., Netanyahu was joined by…

As children we battle with our parents when they want us to take a nap. As adults we tend to relish the moments when we can lay down and take a short siesta. Finally, as we grow older — approaching the elderly years — we discover a real need to get an extra half hour of sleep during…