By Larry Whiteley more

The kids have one week of school behind them, and I am hearing happy kids and a few not there yet. It will get better! I haven't heard any reports of problems with "The no phone in classrooms". No one can say they use their phones in other schools. more

In a weekend that I could have sworn would be dominated by family-friendly franchise fare, “Freakier Friday,” it was the R-rated horror movie “Weapons” pulling off the upset. What happened here? I know stars Julia Garner and Josh Brolin have important roles in the MCU, but were they such draws without Garner in silver polymer, or Brolin with an oversized chin? Did horror fans flock to the film because of writer/director Zach Cregger? His last film, 2022’s “Barbarian,” has already had its entire domestic box office run eclipsed by “Weapons” in its first weekend alone. An inundation of advertising? I knew the film was coming, but I’d had “Freakier Friday” shoved down my throat for months thanks to the Disney promotional machine. more

Pete was a good friend of mine. He cooked for himself, did all his household chores, and drove his car. No nursing home for Pete. He still went dancing withthe ladies. He had more energy than men half his age. more

Congratulations to our own Jaren Van Houden, who is now teaching in the Ag Department at Columbia University while working to extend his degree. We are so proud of another of our Chadwick graduates. more

New college freshmen parents grab the tissues and Ben Gay: Moving-in day is here or looming near. more

I have spent many years enjoying all the outdoors has to offer anyone who seeks peace, adventure, quiet, solitude, and fun. I have fished, hunted, camped, and hiked all over America and have made several trips to Canada. more

Sixty years ago, I was in the summer of my first and only “bonus year” before life got serious. more

August has baggage. And I'm not just talking about the oppressive heat and the swamp-level humidity. The month begins with the last dregs of summer and ends with an espresso shot of back-to-school busyness. If August were a movie, I'd fast-forward the unpleasant parts until I reached September's milder temps and football games. more

Happy Birthday to all you August folks. There seems to be a lot in my family. more

I once wanted to write Western fiction. more

There’s an easy way to tell whether or not you have an unhealthy attachment to your computer: How do you react when it might be broken? more

I wish I had their energy. I wish I had many things kids have. I think I will officially give my resignation as an adult. I have decided I want to be a kid again. more

Welcome to a new month of a summer that has gone much too quickly. We sometimes complained about getting too much rain in the Springtime. Now, we could use a good shower, just not a flood! more

I have fond memories of “The Bad Guys” from 2022. The opening scene was an extended “Pulp Fiction” reference, which I was not expecting to see in an animated kids’ movie. It put me in a good mood for the rest of the movie, which was standard “villains eventually learn to be good” fare, albeit with a slick style and nary an irritating Minion in sight. “The Bad Guys 2” doesn’t have the cushion of an extended reference to one of my favorite very-R-rated movies, so it has to get by on style and humor alone. It succeeds, but to a lesser degree. more

I grew up in the small Webster County town of Elkland, but I never saw an elk anywhere near there. more

A LIFE WELL-LIVED more

I wish I’d known years ago that my ability to sleep well might have an expiration date. I used to be so good at it. In those early years, I could drop off within minutes, stay asleep all night, and snooze for a 10 to 12-hour stretch any time I had the chance. It was easy. more

There were some very successful Bible schools this summer. This week will begin the one for the Baptist Temple in Chadwick. I hear they have come up with some new projects for the kids. more

The “First Steps” part of the title of the new “Fantastic Four” movie is misleading. We don’t see the superhero quartet take their first steps, not as changed individuals and not as a team. The movie takes place four years after a space anomaly altered the DNA of astronauts Reed “Mister Fantastic” Richards (Pedro Pascal), Ben “Thing” Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), Johnny “Human Torch” Storm (Joseph Quinn), and his sister, Sue “Invisible Woman” Storm (Vanessa Kirby). Fortunately, the alterations turned out to be mostly positive, and the team uses their newfound gifts to better the planet of Earth-828. more

Sometimes, I get angry emails. It doesn't happen often, which is good because I don't try to inspire irritation. But when you write for the public every week for more than 20 years, you're bound to tick off a few people now and then. Want to know what topic has most often sparked unhappy responses? It's not politics. Not religion. It's snakes. more

I’ve never seen 1997’s “I Know What You Did Last Summer” all the way through. 11-year-old me was too young to see the R-rated slasher in theaters, which was just as well because I did see a trailer and lost many nights’ sleep over the killer’s deadly fishing hook. I eventually got caught up via highlights and recaps, to the point where I feel like watching the movie now would just be a redundant bore. This is all to say that I don’t have much loyalty to the original, outside of a begrudging respect for its ability to give me nightmares with something sharp. Once again, this is probably for the best, since without loyalty to the original, I don’t have to worry about betrayal on the part of the same-titled reboot. more

Gov. Kehoe's decision to reduce State Transit Assistance funding by 42 percent is a significant setback for public transit. Per capita transit spending has dropped from $1.89 to $1.08, putting Missouri back in its long-standing position near the bottom in a national ranking of state support. more

Little things remind me I am not of this century. more

We were just hot more