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Oklahoma Performance Is Extraordinary

CLYMER—A few weeks ago there came an opportunity to go to Oklahoma. Not the state, beautiful place though it is, but the musical. Yes, the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, Oklahoma! That’s the state with an exclamation point, performed by Cast and Company in Clymer Central School in May. With this 2025 production, Cast and Company renewed its tradition of community musicals that began in 1989 with Tulip Time, and continued—biannually, with a few exceptions—with South Pacific, Bye Bye Birdie, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Lil’ Abner, the Pajama Game, the Wizard of Oz, ...

Studying Can Be Fun!

Last week I reminded my grandson to take God with him to his exam. I always said a prayer before an exam. Usually, I asked God to help me remember what I studied. I did not go into an exam without the work. I knew that he worked hard. He was proud of his average with all “A”s. This professor was tough. In his mind she was very smart but not a great teacher. In my day that last week of school we only went to school on the days that we had an exam scheduled. Of course, I lived in town and could walk to school. Regents were scheduled the week after regular exams. I did my praying on ...

Let Me Thank You For Your Time

The other day, as I was sitting in a dentist’s chair having my teeth cleaned, it reminded me of the reality that there are some jobs that physically have to be done by people. There are jobs that cannot be done at home using only a computer and an internet connection. It is not just dental work; it is most medical work. Patients have to be seen; the sick have to be taken care of. As to teaching, effective education requires that teachers be in a classroom. In the winter, snowplows actually must be operated by snowplow drivers, etc. As to manufacturing, you can’t produce truck ...

Republicans Have Abandoned Common Sense

A recent letter in these pages suggested that we, the patriotic opposition, shut up and give Trump a chance. We gave him, and a Republican Congress, a chance four years ago. All we got was a tax cut for the rich, $5 trillion added to our debt, fewer Americans employed than when he took office, one million dead Americans from a bungled response to a pandemic, and lots and lots of meaningless chaos. This time the results will be much worse; they already are. The First Amendment gives us the right to speak out against this tyrannical government, at least for now. I am certain that ...

Patriotism In All Forms Is True Blue

We all probably believe we are good citizens. We pay our taxes, well at least most of us do. Celebrations are arranged throughout the year, and many are rooted in patriotism. Some people display the flag daily or mostly on special days like Memorial Day, or Flag Day and we enjoy the festivities of the Fourth of July with fireworks and picnic meals. Some of us decide that within our love of country, which is what we really mean by the nomenclature of Patriot, is to serve our country in the Armed Forces. Young men and women join the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, or Coast ...

Charging Into The Future

There’s no stopping the march of time. Making this more difficult for some is the increasingly rapid pace of change. In many cases, people and businesses are having to adapt much faster than ever before. Think back to how quickly many of us were forced to change the way we did things a mere five years ago during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. A lot of people and businesses struggled miserably in the beginning, but the most adaptable survived. Ultimately, some of those adaptations ended and we reverted to the way things were before. However, other modifications appear to ...