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Saying goodbye to old technology

Local Columns

We had to say goodbye to an old family friend last week. Our VHS recorder/player died. I’ve owned a VHS unit for more than 40 years. The dearly departed VHS machine was number three. The first VHS player came at great expense. I purchased it from an advertising client who operated a large appliance and electronics store. I never asked for a discount but Bill always gave me one. The technology was relatively new at the time, early 1980s, and a major purchase for our young family. With the discount, it cost approximately $400. This was a good VHS player but not top of the line. I ...

Finding gratitude in every season

Local Columns

Living in rural Iowa teaches us a lot about seasons. We watch the fields turn from brown to green, then green to gold. We celebrate the rain when it’s needed and pray for it when it doesn’t come. We know what it’s like to endure long winters, muddy springs, hot summers, and busy harvests. Life has a way of reminding us that every season eventually changes. The same is true in our personal lives. Some seasons are filled with joy—weddings, new babies, family gatherings, good health, and answered prayers. Other seasons feel much harder. We may be carrying the weight of a ...

Questions Webster City ordinances as Home Owners Association

Letters to Editor

Letter to the editor: I am sure that when I bought my property that Richard D. Gregory was the only name on the title and that pays the taxes and the bank. I was not informed that Webster City had a Home Owners Association. I thought I could use the property for hobbies, storing wood for my fireplace and parking trailers for that purpose. Suddenly administrators and councilmen think that they and their anonymous big nose friend should decide what happens on a property that they don’t own. If I park a trailer on my land whether it’s grass, gravel, cement or asphalt, if it kills ...

Iowa nice or Iowa ice?

Letters to Editor

Letter to the editor: Funny how Republicans are all for the Second Amendment. Then boom, all the sudden it’s, “He’s got a gun, he’s got a gun!” Like it’s a bad thing. I’m asking, “Which is it?” Of the two white U.S. citizens murdered in Minnesota, one was an unarmed woman and one was a man with a gun. The man had the gun legally and was not brandishing it like they LIED ABOUT! You can clearly see that with your own eyes. The man was protecting a woman the ICE agents ASSAULTED and shoved down into the snow. Of the two victims, the woman was shot four times and the ...

Work the weedline

Local Columns

For many of us, the 2026 open water fishing season is in full swing. As in previous open water seasons, some anglers are promising themselves that they’re going to add a technique to their fishing in an effort to catch more fish. Versatility is a quality the most successful anglers ...

The first freshman class 60 years later

Local Columns

Members of my Northeast Hamilton Community High School Class of 1966 are making plans for a 60th class reunion. Sixty years — can you believe it? We have enjoyed class reunions every five years since 1971 when we all thought we were getting old. We stand corrected. The distinction that sets apart the Class of ’66 is the fact we were the first freshman class of a newly reorganized school district. Beginning in the 1950s the state put pressure on Iowa’s smaller school districts to buddy up with neighboring districts. Located in north central Iowa, the Blairsburg, Kamrar ...