Breaking News

Local Commentaries

Chautauqua picks a new president

I must admit, upfront, that I am a bit biased in this matter... but I was delighted with the decision of Chautauqua Institution to hire Mark Johnson as its new President. He will be undertaking these new duties in the coming year. I first knew Mark as a kid growing up in Jamestown when we lived on Chestnut Street...he lived right down the street from us. We were good friends with his parents and, one summer, went with their family on a canoe trip to the Adirondacks. And, aside from that, how can you be against a “Johnson” from Jamestown...especially, this one? His grandfather ...

A lesson in men’s mental health battles

Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month makes me think about how much stigma I carried for a long time. I believed what a lot of men are taught — that you’re supposed to be tough, suck it up, push through, and handle everything on your own. That needing help meant you were weak somehow. So I kept trying to force my way through depression instead of actually dealing with it. I thought if I just kept moving forward, eventually things would get better on their own. They didn’t. Depression has a way of slowly draining everything out of you while you try to pretend you’re okay. ...

Just A Bunch Of Nuts

A sudden blast, like a shotgun, shattered the silence of the night, crickets included. With my heart racing, my mind—and likely those of any neighbors—rushed to the extremes. Who is out there? Is this a threat? As the minutes ticked by, I spiraled through “what-ifs” and worst-case scenarios, debating the next steps. Bang…..Bang! There it was again. Already pounding, my heart leaped as the sound seemed to draw closer and grow louder. Fear attempted to take hold, only to be instantly dissolved by my father’s voice outside the room: “You up? You hear those walnuts falling ...

Last Tuesday was hit-the-road time!

Every May I drive to Lexington, Massachusetts to celebrate my grandson’s birthday and decorate our family graves. This year was special. Malcolm was also graduating from high school and the family gathered – even more of us than usual. His grandfather drove up from New York City with Malcolm’s aunt visiting from Chile. His uncle flew in from Annapolis and his godmother from Los Angeles. This kid has drawing power! But regardless of the dozens of times I’ve traveled the 534 miles to Lexington, it is still a long day. In the early years, I prided myself on my one-day trip ...

Visit Chautauqua Institution this summer

CHAUTAUQUA—Progress often comes in steps rather than all at once. One encouraging step at Chautauqua Institution is particularly worth applauding. A few years ago a visitor came to Chautauqua other than by being invited by the institution. Shortly thereafter, the visitor was critical of the institution in a national forum. Never mind who the visitor was, what the visitor said, or what the forum was. None of those is important here. What is not only important but also noteworthy here is that the institution—the institution itself—has invited the visitor to give a ...

Just One More Memorial Day Remembrance

Editor’s note: Marcy O’Brien is in New England with family graduation festivities. Parts of this column have appeared previously. Memorial Day was a particularly important day of remembrance for my mother. Every year, she made sure we wore commemorative red poppies to honor her youngest brother, the family hero. Kenneth Arthur MacMillan was the youngest of four children. When their mother died, my mother, Alberta, was 6 and the siblings were 4, 2 and baby Kenny was months old. He never knew his mother who spent the last months of her life in a tuberculosis sanitorium. Alberta ...