We don't write papers, we build scrapbooks
We don't write papers, we build scrapbooks
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Over the past few weeks, the Illinois Democrats currently in charge of the State’s redistricting process have been holding mostly virtual, and a few hybrid and in-person, hearings throughout Illinois to garner resident feedback on the redistricting process following the decennial census. Many of the narrative testimonies provided by groups representing ethnic minority populations protected by the federal and state Voting Rights Acts have focused on the need for better representation of m...
Sometimes things happen in a person’s life that are difficult to understand, difficult to process, and difficult to resolve. Everyone reacts to adversity in different ways. Sometimes one’s burdens become more than they can bear. I believe that’s what happened last week with Dave Determan. I knew Dave as a friend. He worked on our family dairy farm for several years and we worked together on a daily basis milking cows in close quarters. We stayed in touch when he and Connie moved to Darli...
We all have to do them, and quite often they are just a simple task calling for attention - empty the dishwasher, take out the garbage, do the laundry ... but on Monday I realized why some of those simple tasks have earned the title of "chores". Now, as many people know, my one day off in the week is Monday. Aside from sending over captions for the photos Thomas has chosen to include in the paper, I only need to make a postal run, maybe stop off at the bank, but otherwise - I am free for the day...
While session isn’t scheduled to resume until April 13, Republican lawmakers continued to raise their concerns about Illinois’ legislative map drawing process during remote redistricting hearings held throughout the week. In other news, Senate Republicans are reminding motorists to move over for emergency vehicles as instances of Scott’s Law violations increase. Meanwhile, after weeks of continued calls from Republican lawmakers to improve vaccination access, Illinois is finally seeing signi...
When you fly on an airplane the flight attendants come by with their little cart wanting to sell you snacks and drinks. My wife and I don’t buy any because we figure seven bucks for a bag of Cheetos and a Diet Coke is simply not money well spent - not to mention the unhealthy aspect of it. But that doesn’t mean the guy next to me feels the same way. He went ahead and bought the snack pack. To be completely honest, those Cheetos looked good - real good. He must have noticed me eying them bec...
I can’t begin to count how many times I used to look at my wife or friend of mine in a room and ask, “When did we get old?” It is a question that countless people across several generations have asked – but it was never fully answered … until now! I have made the discovery of exactly when teenagers suddenly become “old”. First a little history. As we all know, it is often impossible to cross the generation gap between teenagers and adults because they do not share the same cultural history with...
State legislative leaders took a stand this week against Illinois’ longstanding history of gerrymandering, arguing that lawmakers have no business being involved in the drawing of legislative district boundaries. State Sen. Brian Stewart (R-Freeport) says Senate and House Republican leaders came together March 30 to introduce the People’s Independent Maps Act, a proposal to allow Illinois’ legislative redistricting maps to be determined by an Independent Redistricting Commission. Also durin...
A key ring is a handy little gadget that allows you to lose all your keys at once. Everybody likes donuts. When our children were small, we would enjoy an occasional box of donuts from the day old bakery. We don’t do that anymore for a couple of reasons: 1) Whereas when we were younger we could eat all the donuts we wanted and it made no difference on our waistlines, that is no longer the case. 2) The day old bakery closed its doors for good not long ago. So we don’t eat donuts like we used to,...
Most of you know that I often listen to the SCORE when driving in my car, and the other day Dan Bernstein was on a rant about how stupid people who do special “reveal parties” were. Now, a “reveal party” is when people do something special to let friends know whether the baby, they are expecting is going to be a boy or a girl. Typically, they use blue or pink balloons, or cake with food coloring, but the rant that Bernstein was going on about was how many of these parties have become dangero...
Only a few issues get under my skin more than animal misuse, abuse and neglect. I believe our Northwest Illinois values recognize it is a moral imperative for Illinoisans to demand an end to puppy mills in favor of driving the pet market to more humane sources like shelters, and RESPONSIBLE breeders. I am the Chief Sponsor and fighting to pass House Bill 1711 in the Illinois House to end the market for puppy mills by ending the sale of commercially bred puppies in retail outlets. Many retailers...
Dear Lena, My name is Steve Buss, and it is with great pleasure that I am writing to share my experience as a business owner, father, and resident of Lena that has led me to run for Village President. Despite knowing a vast majority of the constituents who are likely reading this, I thought this was an optimal time to shed some light on my background and passion for this position that make me not only qualified but also the right fit. First, I was raised in this wonderful town. I attended Lena-Winslow High School, graduating in 1990. My wife, L...
“When Jesus’ followers saw what was going to happen, they said, ‘Lord, should we strike with our swords?’ And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear. But Jesus answered, ‘No more of this!’ And He touched the man’s ear and healed him,” (Luke 22:49-51). It’s’ midnight in Gethsemane. Jesus has been praying alone. In the distance one can see the flickering lights as a group of soldiers led by Judas crosses the Kidron Valley. Everything happened so quickly...
“Daniel Lewis Stevens you should be smacked!” I would typically get that greeting on the phone about once a month or so. “You do not run “bear” naked. You run “bare” naked. I swear you make more mistakes with your synonyms …” Having a mother who held a PhD had its’ moments. Basically, I had a genius watching over my every move in print so that even spell-check was never good enough to catch every error … but my mom sure could. Growing up, my mom and dad didn’t usually attend any of my sporting e...
I’m frustrated. My frustration has been deepening for at least a year. No, I’m not becoming jaded, I am becoming disheartened. The tragedy of George Floyd created the death of a city, namely, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Mayor Jacob Frey ordered the Minneapolis Police Department to “Stand Down” and allow protestors to burn a police precinct to the ground. Nowhere in my 30 years in law enforcement did I learn how to understand that. Had I been one of those officers ordered to “Stand Down”, I...
No one will ever win the battle of the sexes. There's too much fraternizing with the enemy. Sometimes I just sit down at the keyboard and a blank screen and start typing to see what develops. Today is one of those days. I watched a movie with my wife the other day that was rather touching. Usually Hollywood doesn’t move me much, but this one did. Morgan Freeman was the main character. It was about an old, grumpy author who was confined to a wheelchair. His wife had died six years prior and he w...
I got a phone call from Deb Hamilton the other week asking me if I could be a reader for the IHSA Regional Academic Bowl Tournament held at Pearl City. I’m pretty sure I was asked because she knows my wife ropes me into reading for the Panther team, and she also knows I’m a pretty soft touch when it comes to volunteering – if I’m free, I like to help. But after spending a day reading questions to an assortment of teams, I came away with the same impression I always get when watching one of thei...
After months of planning, I was pleased to join the Illinois House Republican caucus in announcing our comprehensive Reimagine Illinois public policy platform. In the same way the Contract with America helped Congressional Republicans communicate a leading vision of conservative values in 1994, the Reimagine Illinois platform makes it clear the Illinois House Republicans will not simply be the party of “no”, but rather we are turning words into action with over 80 plus meaningful reform bil...
The story is told of the Irishman who went to his local priest for help regarding his marriage. He told the priest that his wife was a holy terror at home. She was incorrigible. She was like a volcano ready to explode at any moment. She would fly off the handle and curse up a storm. The parishioner asked the priest if he would be willing to come home with him, and give his wife a stern talk. Although the priest was at first very reluctant to wedge himself into the middle of a domestic dispute...
"What did you do?" Now, when you answer the phone at work, and are instantly greeted by this stern question coming from your wife, it usually triggers an instant reaction - which isn't always a good one. "Okay, I’m sorry. I ate the cookies last night." "That's not what I'm talking about ... wait a minute, YOU ate the cookies?" "I was hungry." "But they had nuts in them. You hate nuts in your chocolate chip cookies." "Well, starving men eat insects." "We'll deal with that later." "You mean t...
Editor; There have been some rumblings lately about the censure of some individuals on Facebook, Twitter, You Tube, etc. These social media platforms were developed by individuals and became popular to massive thousands, so I am assuming if they desire to censure some individuals, they have that right. Back in my day in the 70s, 80s and 90s social sites did not exist (neither did smart phones) so if I wanted to complain or provide my point of view, I would write a letter to the newspaper as I am doing now. Not all of my letters would become pub...
Our first cell phone was a bag phone for the car. At that time our kids were little and we were taking a cross country trip and it just seemed like a good idea to have a phone in the car. I remember the first call I received. It was from our hired man. He was calling just for the fun of it to see if worked. We talked for three minutes and when the bill came, it was five dollars per minute. It was a big deal having a phone in the car. A couple years later we traded the bag phone for a full...
We’ve all had a lot of time to ourselves and our own thoughts during this pandemic. Whether it’s being alone in the bathroom doing our business, or sitting in a car for a drive when there is nothing good to listen to on the radio. For me, it is late at night after I have posted that evening’s story on the internet and have the house to myself for an hour or so when my wife and dog have already gone up to bed. Maybe it’s just because I tend to think differently, or maybe it’s some of my old st...
People who wonder if the glass is half empty or half full miss the point. The glass is refillable. Today’s column is dedicated to the characters who stand out in my life. When I was a kid, for reasons I never inquired about, my parents befriended a criminal. His name was Jim. I remember we prayed for him on a regular basis. He was in jail at the time and when he got released, the whole family rode in our station wagon to the jailhouse to pick him up. Dad went in the front door of the jail and r...
The other night, my wife and I had some time to ourselves, and a Texas Roadhouse gift card to use, so we made our way into Rockford to enjoy a meal together. We’ve never been to the Rockford restaurant, for a variety of reasons, but enjoyed the meal, and I was touched by how the wait staff all seemed to be friends as they covered for each other and shared smiles in passing. So I made it a point to ask to see the manager. When she came over, I told her that I wanted to make it a point to c...
Dan; I read your column and couldn't read it well because I couldn't see the page for the tears welling up in my eyes......and then my friend called and asked if I had read it and we both laughed over it again. Well, later in the day I was doing my Bible reading of five chapters a day in the Old Testament and five chapters in the New Testament in the LIVING version this year. You need to read Deuteronomy 23:13. That is where I was reading, no lie, that day and couldn't help but think of your article. Too funny... check it out …. Love to r...
