Columnists
Habitual Problems
I don’t want Mary Ellen and me to end up like our friends the Rodmans, who, up until their 40th wedding anniversary, couldn’t keep their mitts off each other, but after returning from celebrating in the Bahamas, they sued each other for divorce. They were so happy they didn’t realize how miserable they were. My…
Read MoreAn Architect of This Country Almost Forgotten in Corn field
Photos courtesy Andy Chandler “Resolved, That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved. That it is expedient forthwith to…
Read MoreAsk Rusty – If Either Die, Will Other Get a Survivor Benefit?
Dear Rusty: I am 79. My husband is also 79 and we both receive Social Security benefits. We were both married before, and we married each other at the age of 58. Am I to understand correctly that when either of us dies, the surviving spouse is not eligible to collect the deceased spouse’s Social Security benefits?…
Read MoreEvery Eligible Scholarship Player Returns to Purdue, Painter
For many years, the sign “Defense Lives Here” has been displayed in Mackey Arena. Maybe there also should be a placard declaring “Loyalty Lives Here.” Do not underestimate the fact that every eligible scholarship player is returning to Purdue for the 2026-27 season. Whether or not Purdue adds a player or two from the transfer…
Read MoreThe Ignorant, But Vicious Town Cow and Other Weirdness
From Time to Thyme By Paula Dunn I didn’t have anything in particular planned for this week, so I dug into my files and pulled out a few of the odd and/or funny items I’ve run across in the old newspapers. Some, like this warning from the Sept. 19, 1890 Hamilton County Ledger, really need to…
Read MoreTimmons Ripped for Ripping on Trump
4-22-26 From the reaction to my questioning the actions of one Donald J. Trump last week, I may well be back down to three or four readers. Some folks were pretty ticked off that a lowly vagabond newspaperman would dare question the Don. What is it about this guy that inflames us so much? By…
Read MoreMUGGED ON MY BIRTHDAY!
Last month, I celebrated my 79th birthday. My wife and son tried to find me the perfect gift. But I am a very difficult person to shop for. I know this because my mother started telling me this when I was three years old. To help them, I Googled “Gifts for men in their 80s.” I…
Read MoreIf You Don’t Have A Photo to Prove It . . .
Photos courtesy Andy Chandler Combat photographer Dickey Chappelle advised journalists that: If you can’t prove it happened with a picture, it didn’t happen. Fall is a fun time to be a photographer; it’s as if nature is a canvas backdrop for a cornucopia of colors. It was into that backdrop that I found myself at Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield, Ill. The rolling hills and fall foliage during Lincoln’s time…
Read MorePurdue Senior Trio Finish Atop Boilermaker Record Book
Photos courtesy Purdue Athletics In addition to helping Purdue end a 44-year Final Four drought during their careers, Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer and Trey Kaufman-Renn depart as the highest scoring senior trio in Boilermaker men’s basketball history. Smith (1,932 points), Loyer (1,829) and Kaufman-Renn (1,655) combined for 5,416 points to finish eighth, 11th and 19th on the…
Read MoreBen Goldsmith’s Brother Was Aptly Named
From Time to Thyme By Paula Dun When I began working on this column, I I thought it was just going to be about a bizarre tale I found in the April 26, 1906 Hamilton County Times involving a former Noblesville resident, Benjamin “Ben” Goldsmith. As I did the background research, however, I realized he…
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