Browsing: From the Editor

Thank you, Kiwanis, for our welcome home Dear Editor: I want to publicly express my thanks to Dr. Joe Hillier and the Kiwanis Club of Chester for their Welcome Home Vietnam War Era Celebration Event held at the Chesterfield County fairgrounds on October 4. It was a very public welcome home to many of us who served during that tumultuous time in our history. From the entrance to the fairgrounds with all the youngsters holding signs of welcome, to the warm reception by members of the Kiwanis Club and those with various support services such as the American Legion, the…

To the Editor, Southern Chesterfield County could one day be home to a facility engaged in heavy manufacturing. Residents learned this significant development not from our county leaders, but from the governor announcing the exciting news as a done deal. Six similar industrial properties dot the Commonwealth, and four of them stand empty. The only activities going on at those industrial centers are engineering studies, utility upgrades, and roadwork. Who is paying for that, one might wonder? Citizens across the country are paying for grants and subsidies from Washington, D.C. Virginians, too, are paying through a variety of state agencies…

You might get your wish if the New Year’s weekend is any indication. Clear skies blessed us and the soggy ground could have dry if the sun would give us a break. There are some interesting statistics offered by NOAA out of their Wakefield satellite station concerning our latest wacky weather. It’s no surprise that December was one of the wettest on record. The region had just short of six inches of rain (5.94), twice the normal amount, which was 2.7 above normal, .888 over last year. The most we had. On Dec. 23 – 24 we had a whopping…

How much do you love Christmas? When we were kids we just couldn’t wait until the day came. It seemed as if it took forever until the big day finally arrived. As the clock ticked, the anticipation increased to a crescendo, passion plays, practicing Christmas songs in chorus, games at school, decorating the tree, stringing lights, mom wrapping presents, making cookies and then the glow of Christmas eve. And, then it arrived; the happiest day of the year, even better than the last day of school in the spring. But the Christian aspect of the Holiday has taken a back…

You really do not know how far you can go until you go there. Maybe some of you know how to inoculate for foot in mouth disease. I’ve had my flu shot this year but not the much needed FIM vaccine. Sometimes we need to get angry to begin thinking about something. You can either slam your fist on the table or swear not to pick up this paper again or you ask your neighbor what he thinks and then you light your torches together. The castle is not that far away. For a newspaper, daisies or torches are welcome…

Did you know that Paris was laid out 60 to 70 years after Washington D.C. Early urban planners knew that it was important that living spaces should be vibrant places where citizens could enjoy every bit of the environment. Andrés Duany, architect, urban designer, planner and author, has dedicated over three decades to pioneering a vision for sustainable urban development and its implementation. He has influenced planners and designers worldwide, redirected government policies in the U.S. and abroad, and produced plans for hundreds of new and renewed communities of enduring value. His protégés or those who study his work call…

Did you have turkey, stuffing and all the trimmings on Thanksgiving? A friend said she thought my family would of had roasted duck. I have eaten duck; what does it taste like? Chicken. While duck or turkey or tofurkey would have worked for me, I had to eat crow – crow sure ain’t chicken. A couple of months ago I wrote about the newly built bike lanes on West Hundred Roadthe title of my introduction to the paper that week was called “Great Idea Poor Execution.” I had my opinion which was welcomed by the naysayers but frowned upon by…

The more keys you have, the more important you are. That’s why I have so many keys, although I have no idea what most of them fit. But I am surely important. Let’s see, I have one for my truck, one for my house, one for the office and one for the lock on my shed. The rest are just random keys. I got the key to the highway Billed out and bound to go I’m gonna leave here running Walking goes too slow The original Charlie Segar tune, made famous by Eric Clapton, makes reference to walking away from…

Transportation by foot, bicycle, automobile, public transit are options, which some are available and some are not. We know that most of us can jump in our car and go just about anywhere. Bicycling is exceedingly tougher but is coming around in small pieces; travel by foot is gaining steam through the construction of sidewalks. Some sections of sidewalk have been constructed recently in both Bermuda and Dale districts in Southeastern Chesterfield. Supervisor Dorothy Jaeckle has come a long way in her support of pedestrian right-of-ways and is now pushing for the concrete paths across her district. Supervisor Holland is…

I read on an arrest report last week that a man had been arrested for making annoying phone calls. You cannot help but wonder what those calls were about. I can understand threatening phone calls being a problem, maybe overzealous sales calls, political robo-calls or the survey calls that “will only take a few minutes of your time.” How about the join in on our town hall conference calls, should they be considered annoying? I think so. Then there are the relative wanting to borrow money, poor pitiful me, can’t get a word in edgewise calls, they all are definitely…