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What’s not to love about autumn?

Local Columns

I can remember a time when autumn was simply amazing. Cool breezes on amber days. Fallen leaves in colors one could only imagine. Yet, here they were … a mix of hues intertwined. Yellows, oranges, reds and browns … each a masterpiece all its own, appearing as if strategically placed by the author, himself, who created them. And every time the wind blew, you could somehow detect a faint glimpse of what heaven must smell like. Hints of pumpkin, apple, cinnamon ... collectively filling the air. Autumn used to be a beautiful time. At least in my mind. But all ...

History in the Hills: Ghosts of the past

Local Columns

This week is Halloween, and usually around this time of year, I get in the mood to read a good spooky tale or ghost story. I guess this is to prepare me to write a good local history tale of my own. Believe it or not, it is hard to find honest-to-goodness ghost stories from our area. They are just not written down. Rather, they are spread by word of mouth and passed down. I have heard of a few and many of those I have related in these columns during the past six years, but I am always on the hunt. For me, just because a story doesn’t have a “ghost” component, doesn’t mean it ...

Just enjoy the holiday

Letters to the Editor

To the Editor, Autumn deepens, temperatures cool; Halloween draws nigh. Like vampires at dusk, the religious dogmatists begin stirring. Internet posts appear from these cheerless killjoys, warning spooky merrymakers of dangers presented to their eternal souls by All Hallow’s E’en, having nothing to do with ghosts, ghouls or monsters. “Satanism!” they charge, in baleful warning. “Pagan celebration! If it doesn’t glorify God,” they scowl, “…it glorifies Satan! Witchcraft!” From that perspective, they’re absolutely right. Our Halloween indeed draws its origins ...

Can Halloween and football coexist?

Local Columns

The youth of our area, no doubt, are looking forward to their opportunity to roam around their neighborhoods (with parental supervision) to seek their fill of candy as part of the trick-or-treating tradition. We’ve published a list of local times in several editions in recent days to help our readership know when their local trick-or-treating has been scheduled. I know this year has probably been a little more confusing than usual when it comes to the practice. In recent years, we’ve noticed many of our communities have begun to communicate with each other when planning their ...

Guest Opinion: Electricity prices are soaring — and coal is a key solution

Local Columns

Electricity bills are climbing almost everywhere, and the reasons have little to do with ideology. Three forces are driving prices higher: Massive new utility spending on infrastructure, rising natural gas costs and growing capacity shortages in electricity markets as power demand soars from the AI revolution. In some states, prices have jumped more than 60 percent since 2022. The Trump administration inherited this mess and now has its work cut out for it. The strategy the administration has embraced is built around reinforcing dispatchable power—the generating resources that run ...

Properly dispose of your old medications

Editorials

Looking for an extra way to be productive and make a difference on Saturday? How about clearing out your drawers and cabinets of any unused or expired prescription drugs that should be thrown away? Saturday is National Prescription Drug Takeback Day, during which law enforcement agencies provide a safe way to anonymously dispose of medications as a means to prevent drug misuse and abuse. “When each of us takes responsibility for safely disposing of medications, we take a meaningful step toward ending the cycle of addiction,” said Jonathan Board, West Virginia First Foundation ...