Yarbrough: Santa Claus joins the information age

I visited this topic some years ago, but things don’t seem to have changed.RING! RING! RING! “Beep! Beep! You have reached the offices of Santa Claus and Associates at the North Pole.”“Hi, my name is Dick Yarbrough, and I would like ...

Stone: The Glad Game

When you look for the bad in people expecting to find it, you surely will.Abraham LincolnAs I write this (Dec. 8), rain has been falling for five days as the relentless gloom of December drags on.The days continue to get shorter. By Dec. 21, the night will last four more hours than the day.

Rich: The South’s American queen

A reader from Minnesota recently wrote and, in her email, she mentioned that she lives near where the Mississippi River begins.There is no greater, more besotted fan of the Mississippi than I. Of course, I had questions.Where does it start?How deep and wide is it?

Crane: Are we becoming pirates now?

Back around 2012, off the coast of West Africa, a combination of poverty, weak governments ashore, and lightly regulated traffic on international waters led to a rash of acts of piracy against cargo, leisure, and cruise lines.

Yarbrough: Turning down all those dukedoms

I got a lot of mail encouraging me to take the job as Duke of York, which I appreciated. I thought long and hard about it, but decided to take my name out of the running. I hope you aren’t disappointed, but looking back, I believe it was the right decision.

Stone: Holiday horse or holiday ham?

That time of year thou mayst in me behold When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang Upon those boughs which shake against the cold, Bare ruin’d choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.Sonnet 73, William ShakespeareDecember sure got here fast, didn’t it? Did we skip a couple of months?

Crane: Cryptocurrency’s kryptonite

Here’s a story of the high-flying funny money that flew too close to the sun … and then ...There are times in life when a moment crystallizes in your mind, and increasingly, at least for me, you can anticipate when the latest hot topic is about to jump the Shark.

Letter to the Editor: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it

Dear Editor,I urge residents of Putnam County to pay close attention to the proposed agenda policy changes scheduled for discussion at the Board of Commissioners meeting this Friday, Dec. 10, at 10 a.m.

Rich: Dill and me

It was in the Springtime, some 20-odd years ago, that I was headed to the Georgia coast for a speaking engagement.My phone rang. This was in the glorious days before texting had rudely invaded our lives.The most beautiful, lilting voice replied to my “Hello?

Smith: I’m Thankful

I’m constantly reminded at Thanksgiving that we should first be thankful for Thanksgiving itself, because it gets us in the mood for Christmas.