Opinion

As with most things, this holiday has evolved over the years. My research turned up some interesting facts which I had never heard before.

LITTLE ROCK – A sixmonth survey of Internet access in Arkansas has been completed, and state officials now have a more accurate roadmap of which regions need more investment in broadband technologies.

It’s May...well, tomorrow it will be. May used to be a happy time with a lot of elementary students walking around so filled with self-importance that it was hard to concentrate on such things as lessons.

We have been through a passionate five- or sixyears discussing politics. This Saturday provides a free opportunity for Clay County residents to actually engage in local politics. It’s a chance to turn our concerns about county issues into stewardship. If we want things to change, we have to put action to the issues we care about in peaceful, constructive ways. It’s a futile exercise for us to sit around hashing and rehashing the issues we want addressed unless we take positive action.

I think I’ve finally figured it out. Superman stands for truth, justice and the American way, all of which are lovely, but what are We the People really looking for? We’re on a journey and not, we tell ourselves, to the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

From online homework assignments to scheduling telehealth visits, we live in a digital world where highspeed access is no longer a luxury. Unfortunately, too many households across Arkansas are still unable to access high-quality broadband internet.

It’s been a few years and memories fuzz and fade, but I recall a history professor who seemed to think part of his calling was to get his students to prepare for “the cosmic cocktail party.” That’s not a euphemism for drugs or a four-figure weekend retreat of enlightenment at a spa. What he meant was, what if you found yourself at the ultimate cocktail party, surrounded by the smartest and most creative and successful people you could think of? Could you hold your own? This is not the time to drop the pig-with-the wooden-leg joke.

It’s not going to make any difference how many times I watch those cooking shows on television, I could never make it as a cook. Oh, I can survive, by not being too particular, but I just hope I never have to depend on my cooking skills to make a living. As long as I live, I will never figure out how anyone can successfully operate a cafe because I wouldn’t have the foggiest idea of how to cook dinner whin I didn’t even know who and how many would be eating. However, I like to try new recipes and, once in a great while, I do pretty good. The other Sunday afternoon I was piddling around the house and decided to try one of those new cake mixes that in six to eight minutes. They come pre-mixed and all I had to do was add three ingredients. I stirred up the batter, placed it in the oven and watched until I was convinced it was going to turn into a cake, then I set about cleaning up my mess. That’s also when I discovered that I had forgotten to add the egg...it was still right there on the table. Can you believe it, three ingredients and I forgot one of them? I really don’t have any business in the kitchen to begin with.

It takes courage and a strong sense of self to put your hat in the ring and run for any office. I admire anyone who feels passionately about their community and is willing to work to make it a better place to live and work. It’s often a thankless job.