Advertiser
Childhood memories recall green 'Garden of Eden'
Our hills are alive in a green world today; green grass stretches to the wooded green hills and even the drizzly rain has a greenish cast. Tendrils of fog clinging to the side of the hills tell us that "fog on the hill brings water to the mill." The rain is not over yet.
Nothing can match joy, heartache of motherhood
Sunday is set aside to honor mothers, although motherhood is not just a one-day event. It is a chronic condition that lasts a lifetime. It begins with the first faint symptoms of pregnancy, intensifies throughout the days of active mothering, and plagues the mother until the end of her days.
Spring feels like autumn, too beautiful to bear
All up and down Elk River, redbud bushes flaunt their lavender blossoms up and down the hillsides, while the dogwood trees are blooming with their white crosses. Sarvis bloom still dots the hillsides, and golden forsythia bushes rim the roadways. Fruit trees are full to overflowing with white pear and cherry, pink peach and misty plum blossoms. There is nothing lovelier than our Mountain State in the springtime- unless it is our hills in autumn!
No Bragg column
Alyce Faye Bragg will not have a column today. She fell over the weekend and broke her hip. Her e-mail address is: alycef...@citlink.net and home address is: HC 72 Box 1-F, Ovapa, WV 24150.
Signs of the political times
Last week, I was on the phone with a friend who lives on the West Coast. "Do California politicians stand on street corners, holding up signs and waving at traffic?" I asked.
Oh, to be the best of two mothers
Although it isn't the strangest gift I've ever assembled, the box I filled for my mother-in-law, Louise Lamar Fuller, was certainly odd.
Lobbyist spending explored
Lobbyists spent upward of $200,000 during the 2008 legislative session, according to the expense disclosures filed with the state Ethics Commission.
Best and worst of campaign
Best statewide campaign: Margaret Workman, Supreme Court. Workman ran a clean, positive campaign without having to resort to negative attacks.
Policies cited for workers quitting
Last week's column on the number of unfilled vacancies in state government (3,419 out of 38,460 total budgeted full-time positions) drew a flurry of responses.
15 former lawmakers attempting to return
Going into the primary election, it occurred (or was pointed out) to me that an unusually high number of former legislators are running to get back into the Legislature.
Worker shortage raising concerns
When a group of environmentalists and union workers rallied at the Capitol recently to decry a manpower shortage at the Department of Environmental Protection - which they said hurts the department's ability to enforce the Clean Water Act - it occurred to me I've heard this tune before.
State lives down to low expectations
Some random thoughts from a scattered brain: Last week's primary election proved, among other things, that in West Virginia, there is no shortage of lame reasons for not voting for a particular presidential candidate.
'Amoeba' under the microscope once again
As West Virginia moves into the political limelight with the approach of Tuesday's Democratic primary, the state is becoming subject to a level of national media scrutiny exceeding that which has been focused on our colorful, self-destructive Powerball winners and runaway football coaches.
Teacher's honor evokes hometown memories
As an alumnus of his school, I took special pride last week in reading that this year's national teacher of the year award went to Mike Geisen, a seventh-grade science teacher at Crook County Middle School in Prineville, Ore.
A hitch in driver expression regulation
Decorating one's car or truck with tasteless decals and bumper stickers has been has long been considered an inalienable right of the American driver.
Fifty years later, 83-year-old DuPont graduate earns another tribute from his alma mater
In 1958, the graduating class at DuPont High School paid homage to a favorite teacher by dedicating the yearbook to him. Fifty years later, he finds himself back in the school's laudatory limelight. This weekend, at their annual all-comers reunion, DuPont graduates will honor 83-year-old Bill Gardner with their first Alum of the Year award.
Innerviews: Former coalfields welder rises to the top at Smith Company Motor Cars
Growing up in the Fayetteville coalfields, he dreamed of playing professional baseball. He settled for welding. End of story? Not by a long shot. Today, he's president and chief operating officer of Smith Company Motor Cars, home of Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar, Volvo and Land Rover, the swankiest dealership in town. Quite a leap, right? Brian Bailes can hardly believe it himself.
Joseph J. Mazzella
"Does life ever make sense?" A friend asked me this question the other day.
Evelyn R. Smith
In the book of Acts, we read about Dorcas, a disciple of our Lord. She was a seamstress known for her charitable works. When she became ill and died, widows stood by weeping, showing garments Dorcas had made for them. Their grief touched the Apostle Peter's heart, and he raised Dorcas to life again.
Advertiser
