Funny Papers Again Column | Diagonals and Rounds and Painted Walls
As reported in last weekās edition of the Rustler, the City of King has altered the direction of parking on a section of Broadway as a means of providing a safer downtown environment. All the ins and outs of this trial run can be...
Funny Papers Again Column | Allās Fair in Loveān the Fair War
(NOTE: After completing this column, I was informed there will not be a talent show at this yearās Salinas Valley Fair, but Iām going with this anyhoo. āSCW)
If the title of this weekās Funny Papers Again confuses or confounds you, then think how I...
Letter to the Editor | September Is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and Itās Time to Talk About It
To the Editor:
Suicide is one of the most challenging societal issues of our time, claiming more lives than war, murder and natural disasters combined. Per the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), suicide rates increased approximately 36% between 2000 and 2021. Suicide was...
Funny Papers Again Column | The Gradual Waning of American Shock
Saturday afternoon around 4:30 I was 410 words into my column for this week when my cell phone rang. The choice to interrupt a train of thought while writing usually falls to the ālet it ring and go to voicemailā protocol, but in this...
Adventure Abounds Column: A chance to reflect
Garden serenity is getting difficult in the afternoons with the dual challenge of ever-rising temperatures and afternoon winds that seem like theyāre powerful enough to give Dorothy another trip to Oz. The morning and evening calms, however, make it all worth it.
For those who...
Guest Column | How Farmworkers Outlawed āEl Cortitoā 50 Years Ago
For decades in the Salinas Valley, the short-handle hoe, known as āEl Cortito,ā was used for weeding and thinning rows of crops that kept farmworkers stooped over for long hours each day. Workers were only able to stand and stretch when they reached the...
Funny Papers Again Column | One Attraction Not Seen at the Fair: The Horse Chase
Well, folks, I finally, after two aborted attempts in past years, made it to Dealy Plaza to visit the place where President Kennedy was murdered way back in November of 1963. Named for George Bannerman Dealy (1859-1946), a newspaper man who rose to civic...
Worthy to Print Column | Itās Not Fair
Boy oh boy! How many times did I say that as a youth? I was third of four boys. It seemed that my Dad always favored the older two boys in almost every area as a youth. My oldest brother would get a new...
Worthy to Print Column: What might have been
I would like to tell you that we can come out of hiding from the virus. Iād like to tell you that we can walk around without a mask; that we can fling open the doors and play with our kids, come out of...






















