Commentary

Wherwe were you on the night of May 29, 2008?
If you were in or around Aurora on that fateful night you likely remember exactly what you were doing when a destructive force blew threw our community, shredding millions of dollars worth of property in a few minutes time. Though a decade has past, the images of damage amongst our friends and neighbors are forever etched into our collective memories.
Thankfully, no lives were lost in that storm, though there was a great deal of anguish left in the wake of what was later described as a series of tornadoes and straight-line winds. A story in this week’s edition takes a look back to that day through the eyes of some of the many storm victims.

At our age over the years we’ve witnessed the change where many national holidays are now saluted either on a Friday or a Monday.
The change has come about because the majority of the working public is subjected to a five-day work week with weekends “off.” This meant it was logical to add a Friday or Monday date to the already off-days of Saturday and Sunday and thus allow for a three-day weekend.
Date changes became particularly noticeable to me this week when I looked at my May calendar and Monday, May 28 was shaded and marked “Memorial Day.” A closer look drew a smile. In addition I also observed the midweek non-shaded Wednesday, May 30, square with the words, “Memorial Day (True)” also marked on my calendar.

America turned the page toward summer Monday, pausing to honor the men and women who fought and died for our country while also cherishing the memories of lost loved ones.
Memorial Day has become a traditional day of transition, marking the end of another school year and the beginning of summer. It’s a welcome change of pace for many, and a breath of fresh air no matter what your age or occupation.
At its core, however, this day is intended to focus our thoughts on the heroic men and women who have worn a military uniform. The day invites us to remember the cost of making America what it is, while also reminding us to acknowledge that the price is not yet paid in full.

The Betterhalf is a very good housekeeper, but a year ago she told me she was going to purchase an “IRobotic Roomba.” At first I thought I misunderstood her and she had decided to take dance lessons. However, deeper into the conversation I realized she wasn’t talking about Rumba dancing, she had in mind a robotic vacuum cleaner.
Over the year I became accustomed to the robot moving throughout the family room while I was in the easy chair reading the newspaper. I even found some amusement as it randomly bounced from wall to wall; went under the coffee table; and even worked its way out after momentarily getting trapped in corners or among furniture legs. Several times I found myself distracted; put down my reading of the newspaper; and caught myself being entertained by the antics of the robot.

The Lady Hornets wrote a chapter in Nebraska sports lore this weekend, posting a mark few other teams in any sport ever have.
For the fourth consecutive year, the Giltner girls won the Class D state track and field championship, and this one wasn’t even close. When Reagan Janzen crossed the line as the anchor leg in the 4x400 relay, the Lady Hornets added another gold medal to finish with 89.5 points, 49 more than runner-up Elm Creek.
The Hornets finished with 13 total medals, led by seniors Reagan Janzen, Alexa Preissler and Jordan Hansen. This dynamic trio put a lot of points on the board at the state meet throughout their high school careers, and they left no doubt Saturday that they fully expected to do as well as they did.

Recently cleaning out a closet I came across an old portable Smith Corona electric typewriter. That old typewriter got me thinking about my past when I experienced not only our near dozen manual typewriters at the newspaper, but the earlier years in high school when the new innovation of an electric typewriter came on the scene and our class shared the chance to type on a keyboard that required just a light touch.
Well, as I assume L. C. Smith, Remington and a host of other manuals have been lost in history. Still, memories exist and I hope I don’t bore you with sharing a few of those memories.
On the old manuals, newspaper people had time to allow their thoughts to flow from the brain to the fingertips. Not like today, when a light touch of the computer keyboard expressed a passing thought that disappeared with the quick push of a “delete” instead of the old past of allowing time for cooling our thoughts by punching a bunch of “XXX’s on the manual keyboard.

The tone of a Friday teleconference announcing the formation of Blueprint Nebraska hints that this may well be one of the most significant endeavors our great state has taken on in years.
A story in this week’s edition explains that the statewide coalition will begin working soon to develop a plan for economic growth, competitiveness and prosperity in Nebraska for the next 150 years and beyond. With low commodity prices rippling across our state’s economy, and low unemployment making it difficult to hire employees when and where needed, the timing of this project could not be better.

A few weeks ago we reported we added a second dog to our household . . . a southern dog from Tennessee named “Oscar.” Little did we know, even as a dog lover, such a critter could change our lifestyle . . . and that of our 10-year household dog companion “Missy.”
You see Pug Oscar came in a little over weight. To be exact he weighed 36 pounds when he should have tipped the scales at 22-26 pounds, according to the dog guides. But, we not only inherited the dog, we inherited an animal that made our whole household weight conscious.
“Ol’ Fatty,” as I call him has over the last month dropped about 6 pounds and is really impressive. Well, I guess we say “impressive” since his owners didn’t skinny-down at the same pace. Just how has a dog got us in a position to think about weight at our age?

A primary election with far more contested races than normal in Aurora and Hamilton County has finally arrived, giving voters choices and a real say in their local leadership.
Election day is Tuesday in Hamilton County and throughout Nebraska, though many area voters may have already done their civic duty with early voting and mail-in ballots now a popular option. Regardless of how or when you vote, the most important thing is that you cast your ballot, participating in an election process that lies at the core of our democratic form of government.
There are some interesting races in the 2018 primary. The recent candidate forum offered distinctive contrasts in the views and leadership style for Aurora mayor as well as county board districts 1 and 5. Hopefully you have tuned in to those races and are ready to let your voice heard.

Found it a little difficult to kick back a week ago and enjoy a couple warm sunny days with pleasant springtime thoughts coming to mind. A couple of newspaper headlines and related stories dampened my attitude.
The theme of the feature stories pointed out spring doesn’t just brighten up the weather. Spring also signals the time is here for all those home fix-it jobs that during the winter months I had rationalized I was going to do “next spring.”
As I thumbed through the spring cleanup-fixup suggestions I found the writers’ list of chores covered way more than I planned during the winter months and entailed a lengthy process, as well as many chores I had overlooked.