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Humanity first

It has crept, slowly but surely, into our everyday lives. Audio. Video. Text. Disguised as hands-free convenience, promising what seems more and more like necessary shortcuts to answers, planning and solutions. Artificial intelligence and its future standing in our society has become a main, often-polarizing topic of conversation – especially over the course of the past year. More and more, we see posts, emails, pictures, posters, music and other previously-handled human tasks now being authored by programs like ChatGPT, Gemini, Grok, Claude, Muse, Suno and others. I’m not ...

Reassessing my own age

There are advantages to being the oldest child in the family and I am one. About 18 months after my father returned from Europe after World War II, I came along. One of the advantages of being the oldest is being able to remember when your younger siblings came along. My mother gave birth to six more babies after I was born. I was only 2 ½ when the first, Duane, was born. Sadly he died shortly after birth and I have only the dimmest of memories from that time. When I was 3 ½ Brother Gerald was born. After years of effectively being the only child you remember when that ...

Midwest Fishing: Outdoor observations

Yogi Berra is a baseball Hall of Famer who played for the New York Yankees. Mr. Berra is mostly known for his baseball skills, but his “Yogism’s” are also part of his legacy. A “Yogism” is something that he said that sounds silly at first, but makes sense if you think about it for ...

Learn to be grateful and lift your hearts and spirit

This week, we began publishing a short thought for the day from the Webster City Ministerial Association. Coordinated by Barb Wollan, the ministers are creating a list of things to be grateful for throughout the month of November. It’s a great idea, and something maybe each of us should do each day. I’ve seen others who have done it through different social media avenues. But it’s a quick glimpse, and then gone. But regardless of the format, everyone should have something to be grateful for. It can be simple, like never having to go to bed hungry, or for today only, I ...

Grateful to be Grateful!

"Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” -James 1:17 Hello dear friends and neighbors, November is a very special month for our community. If you’re wondering ...

School pictures: Smile pretty kids

Each school year most American children participate in an annual rite known as “school pictures.” I’m guessing many school pictures have already been shot, printed and delivered by early November. It’s a familiar process. Notes are sent home to parents alerting them to the day school photographs will be taken. Most mothers take extra care on the appointed day to be sure little Johnnie and Susie look just right for their school pictures. Early on I was enthused about school pictures. As I grew older and realized my looks had peaked at age three I grew to dread the annual ...