Columns

The Memorial Day program at Grant’s Canal Park every year feels like the start of summer to me. I’ve already taken my kids to the beach for a couple of days, but still, standing there with everyone decked out in red, white, and blue, singing the songs, saying the pledge, hearing the stories and then eating a deli sandwich out of a brown paper bag– that is when the break officially starts.

Last week I was hitting golf balls in my yard, and upon extensively pursuing a particularly evasive ball, I stumbled upon a set of very large tracks. Tracks so large I initially thought a person in large boots had trudged through after the rain. After my recent close encounter with unwanted visitors, I stopped what I was doing to investigate this further. Upon closer inspection, the tracks appeared to be equine in nature, meandering through the center of my yard, down through my pecan orchard, and out through Tom Edd’s field. “Great,” I thought to myself, “first burglars, now I have someone using my yard as a riding trail!” To my utter surprise however, I later learned that during the Levee Fest race, a horse had broken loose from someone’s pasture and took part in the event. Riderless, it was free to go where it pleased, and a quick lap around my house must have seemed appealing.

Despite receiving less sales taxes than in recent years, the East Carroll Parish School Board was able to grant each of its employees the highest supplement that has ever been granted by the school system. School superintendent Meagan Brown said that one reason that the school system was able to give its employees a $5500.00 supplement is because the school has fewer employees than it has had in the past. Brown added that they were expecting sales tax collections from Concordia Parish the next day, and that if the amount was significant, that it could increase the amount of the supplement. Brown said that the supplement was considered a part of the school employees’ salary.

Yes, it’s a woman driver! Have you ever been driving behind an eighteen-wheeler and seen the bumper sticker, “How’s my driving?” and a telephone number? Imagine if we all had that bumper sticker with a telephone number on it? I suspect the wireless service would not be able to handle the strain on the towers from the number of calls that would be received. I mean, let’s face it, my driving alone would burn those lines up.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there. I reached out to a number of friends asking for memories of their mother, and received some interesting replies.

Allergy season in the Delta isn’t for the faint of heart. Between pollen, dust, and changing weather, many folks are dealing with constant sneezing, itchy eyes, and that miserable “stopped up” feeling. Our office is full of the fine folks of the Carrolls suffering to no end with the symptoms. The good news? There are a few simple ways to get better control using both tried-and-true medications and a few supportive options.

I attended a conference last week in Memphis on creative placemaking. The concept is nebulous, and I can imagine some eye rolls, have already seen some, because it’s hard to define and sounds like something a bunch of hippie liberals dreamt up in order to make themselves feel better.

This has been a tough year. We’ve struggled with a winter storm the likes of which hasn’t occurred in our small town in decades, and some are still suffering from the repercussions of this event.

Party primary primer: Candidates will square off for control of Congress and key state-level offices in Louisiana next month in the state’s switch to closed party primaries. Voters can opt for the party ballot that aligns with their registration or switch parties to vote in the primary of their choice, which leads some to label the new system a “semi-closed” primary.

Springtime in Louisiana marks an important season for students—school testing. Along with sharpened pencils and encouragement, healthy routines at home can help children feel calm, focused, and ready to do their best.