One reason I take such delight in the Christmas season comes from the pleasure I derive from Christmas music. “Joy to the World,” “Silent Night,” “Away in a Manager,” and “Angels We Have Heard on High” spring immediately to mind.
All in Columns
Cooking with Tammy: Food gifts to make and take
The Holidays are a terrific time to say a big thanks and of course Merry Christmas to friends, family and co-workers. What better way than to give the gift of food! Here are several ideas, some are a bit healthier than others, but all are fun and will be enjoyed by those special to you!
Neuse Regional Libraries: Ending 2021 on a Good Note
The Neuse Regional Libraries (NRL) are excited to announce that they have been awarded three out of five awards for the medium-sized library category as part of the 2021 North Carolina Public Library Directors Association (NCPLDA) Awards as well as recognition for the Pink Hill Public Library facility refresh project.
Mike Parker: Unwrapped presents bless grandparents’ hearts
We held our annual “Thanksmas” celebration on Thanksgiving Day. I cannot remember when we first started this tradition, but I doubt any of the grandchildren can recall a time when we did not do Christmas on Thanksgiving.
Cooking with Tammy: Healthier Holiday Breakfasts
During leisurely Holiday mornings, breakfast often has a chance to take center stage. Most of these recipes can be made ahead and all of them have been redesigned to include healthier ingredients!
John Hood: Racial Preferences Are Ending Soon
The state of Washington has it. California has it. Michigan has it. Oklahoma has it. Nebraska has it. Arizona has it. Florida, New Hampshire, and Idaho have a version of it.
Mike Parker: Make ‘Uncle Gabe’ proud and support the Interpretative Center
On Saturday, October 16, craftsmen began building a 14-foot skiff as part of the CSS Neuse Interpretative Center’s “Shipbuilding Saturday.” The program ran from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. that Saturday as builders worked to construct an example of “Uncle Gabe’s Flattie Skiff,” a type of boat built by the thousands in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
John Hood: Cawthorn’s handlers got it wrong
When Carolina Journal first reported first-term U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn’s intention to abandon his current district next year to run in an adjacent one, CJ quoted Cawthorn as saying his decision was part of “a strategy to increase conservativism in North Carolina.”
Dr. Travis Towne: Thankfulness is a choice
My social studies students at the Lenoir County Early College High School often hear me provide an affectionately titled “Dr. T Rant” when I feel strongly about a particular topic or situation
Reece Gardner: We need freedom of choice in education
In recent years this effort has grown, leading many to believe that we should enact a voucher program that would give parents throughout the state a choice in how and where their children are educated. This could lead to freedom of choice in education, putting education in the market place and requiring educational outlets to compete with each other to attract students to their facilities. Schools would have to be competitive, and most of us will probably agree that competition tends to bring out the best in all of us.
Mike Parker: Take time to be truly thankful
As Thanksgiving Day approaches, I am wondering just how thankful we truly are. We know not everything is perfect, but we live in a nation and in an age where we enjoy benefits in our lives that few have ever known.
Mike Parker: Take time to be truly thankful
As Thanksgiving Day approaches, I am wondering just how thankful we truly are. We know not everything is perfect, but we live in a nation and in an age where we enjoy benefits in our lives that few have ever known.
Cooking with Tammy Kelly: Plan your holiday pies
With Thanksgiving just around the corner, it is time to start making out menus and deciding on which pie recipes to use. As you cook for Thanksgiving, remember Buy Local produce whenever possible!! All of these recipes are traditional favorites with a slightly lighter twist!! The recipes promise not to skimp on flavor!
Reece Gardner: Count your blessings
With Thanksgiving Day coming up next week we would all benefit by recognizing the many blessings that come our way and by being thankful for those blessings. For example, just this past week I had the good fortune of being included in the festivities surrounding the celebration of the birthday of my two identical grandsons, Patrick Robert Nix and Davis
Adkin students strike early blow for Civil Rights in N.C.
Roughly three years before the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education on May 17, 1954, ordered the end of segregation in U.S. public schools, students at Adkin High School demonstrated their disgust with inadequate educational facilities and materials by planning and executing the Adkin Walkout of November 20, 1951.
Dan E. Perry: Change will not happen if you do not vote!
Recently I heard a conversation between a talk show host and his guest. In discussing the present run-away inflation and the many failed policies of the present administration, the guest observed that, “I can’t think of anything positive about the Biden administration. It’s all going in the wrong direction. Even those who hate Trump must admit that at least we had a lot of good things going our way.”
Library offers State-of-the-Art Media Lab
This month Neuse Regional Libraries are unveiling exciting new resources to our library users that will help them make 21st century digital content and explore new potential hobbies and career paths.Staff have been hard at work preparing our new Digital Media Lab at the Kinston-Lenoir County Public Library and we are now ready to start helping library users create their own digital media projects such as music, video, 3D animation, and podcasts.
Reece Gardner: We often overlook the good
It seems that every day we are reminded of the evil in our world, so much so that we might overlook the goodness all around us. In that spirit, I decided to look for some acts of kindness on display, and I found that they are in abundance.
John Hood: Don’t buy myth about voter turnout
Republicans in much of the country enjoyed significant success during the 2021 election cycle. They elected a GOP governor in Virginia, almost elected one in New Jersey, won several important judicial races in Pennsylvania, and even elected their first Republican candidate to local office in Seattle (city attorney) since the 1980s.
Mike Parker: Reader poses a pertinent question about phone scammers
I had several readers comment about my Oct. 4 column concerning the latest Medicare scam. The caller asks if the older person on Medicare has received the latest Medicare chip-enabled green Medicare card. Of course, the scammer needs to verify the information to get the new secure card to the person.