Opinion

Nearly 1 in 5 Americans (an estimated 57 million people) live in rural communities throughout our vast country. And while access to healthcare services is critical to everyone, those living in rural areas face a variety of barriers that can adversely affect their overall...

Good morning and Happy New Year! Here is hoping that you had a Merry Christmas and that you received everything you wished for. This morning as I sat down at the desk, I just stared at the screen for a moment hoping for an...

My wife is pretty much the center of my life. She is constantly giving me gifts of items that I may have mentioned in a casual conversation weeks or even months ago. Oftentimes it is a great surprise and something that I would treasure...

Something just crept up inside my tiny brain and said, “Oh, you have vacation coming up next month with a lot of moving parts. Maybe you should check on some of those pieces?” I do listen these days when the female intuition kicks in,...

Have you bought any gas lately? I was driving my car yesterday in Salinas when I thought I may as well get gas at the Arco station, where you pull off 101 to Market Street. That station has the cheapest gas, but boy oh...

About this time of year — February blending into March — I can get really sick and tired of winter. Folks back home might have a chortle at that; because, yeah, I know, we don’t really have “winter” per se in our neck of...

I’ve been digging rather deeply recently to try and find the good stuff in the world. I’m sure I’m not the only person to say that life is currently pretty tough. Coupled with my husband’s illness and our financial stress, the wide open spaces...

I am a reader. I would not venture to estimate how many books I have read since I was a lad in Greenfield, but I dare say it is in the thousands. Since July 28, I have read five books, two on the long...

Are you still saying “Happy New Year?” I suppose that you are tired of saying that to your friends or neighbors. I always say it for the first few days of the New Year. I don’t know why, just something to say while the ticking...

Do you have a favorite TV channel? I have just about given up on the major stations and news from anyone. I happen to like the Fox channel. I started watching Fox back when Bill O’Reilly was on and then he got kicked off...