.....Advertisement.....
.....Advertisement.....

Guest Columns

  • Bad week, good news

    The other day a co-worker posted on Facebook that it had been the week from hell.

    We had all felt it. It was as if a black cloud hovered over us, raining down all kinds of bad.
    We had made mistakes. Tempers flared. Fingers pointed.

    Cranky people called, which didn’t help our own crankiness.

    We scowled. We skulked. We wished we were anywhere but here.

    It was one b-a-d week.

    Click here to read more...
  • Tourism plays major role in Kentucky’s economy

    When it comes to tourism, Kentucky has not one but two major factors in its favor: We have dozens of destinations that all but sell themselves, and we’re home to the nation’s population center east of the Rockies, meaning no state is closer to more Americans.

    Click here to read more...
  • Nancy celebrates ‘Hooray!’ days

    Cleaning out my email this morning I found one I had written to a friend.

    It started out: “So it was a nice, calm day at work yesterday. By the afternoon I was sitting at my desk thinking, ‘Hooray!’

    “It just felt like a good day to say, ‘Hooray!’ I even posted it as my Facebook status. Hooray!”

    I went on to write about how my phone rang and it was my husband: “I didn’t do it. It’s not my fault,” he said, which is never a good sign.

    Click here to read more...
  • Kentucky seeing beginnings of lasting growth

    Earlier this year, as the General Assembly was putting together the budget to run state government, it was becoming increasingly clear that the state was finally beginning to see some lasting growth.

    That was further confirmed several weeks ago, when one of the state’s economists said that “all signs are pointing to the likelihood that the recovery is here to stay.”

    Click here to read more...
  • Good things still happen

    Click here to read more...
  • The worth of a bird

    I’m not a huge fan of birds.

    One time I told someone birds are the reason God created BB guns and sling shots.

    Kidding. Just kidding. Don’t send me letters.

    Click here to read more...
  • Legislative session included several high-profile issues

    Each legislative session is inevitably remembered for a key issue or two, and this year’s will undoubtedly be recalled for the toughest budget most of us have seen in our lifetime and for taking a comprehensive approach on drug abuse.

    There were several other high-profile issues as well, including the legislature’s latest effort to crack down on copper thefts and making sure that the interest on the sizeable federal loan for the state’s unemployment insurance fund is covered so businesses wouldn’t lose a much-needed tax credit.

    Click here to read more...
  • Which way should I go?

    I am notorious for my lack of a sense of direction.

    Just the other day one of our photographers at the newspaper caught me going south when I should’ve been going north to an assignment.

    He laughed about it, as did I. But there have been many times I’ve given him wrong directions to an assignment and he hasn’t laughed.

    Even with a GPS and written directions I still get it wrong six out of 10 times.

    Click here to read more...
  • Special session ends with passage of key legislation

    It took a little longer than anyone wanted, but the General Assembly took two major steps forward for the state on Friday when it finalized the funding for the $4.5 billion road plan and approved a far-reaching measure to combat the prescription drug abuse epidemic.

    Click here to read more...
  • Implementing the skill of listening

    Have you ever met someone who seems to enjoy talking just for the joy of hearing themselves speak? They go on and on and don’t seem to need a response, or allow time for one. It is as though they are filling the space around themselves with their own words. Time goes by and you find yourself wanting to get away from them. Perhaps this person just never learned good conversational skills which are based on listening. Everyone wants an opportunity to have their say and to be validated.

    Click here to read more...