Quibbles And Bits: World Cup Edition

by Kevin Burton    How to wrap one’s heart and empathetic mind around the heartbreak for England as it coughed up a late lead to lose 2-1 to Argentina in the World Cup semi-finals Wednesday?    Think of a Cleveland basketball fan watching Michael Jordan sink a jumper over Craig Ehlo in the 1989 playoffs …

Quibbles And Bits: Hey Taylor Swift, I Tried

by Kevin Burton    I’ve tried twice now, and I won’t be back here again, to “get” the whole Taylor Swift thing.    The first time around came when Swift started dating Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and started getting mega-coverage by watching Chiefs games from luxury suites.    I said, Oh my …

FedEx Sued For Employment Discrimination

by Sydney Haulenbeek Courthouse News Service    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued FedEx Corp. on June 30, claiming the shipping company discriminated against four blind package handlers.    FedEx has discriminated against blind employees who worked at its Kernersville facility, outside of Winston-Salem, the EEOC said in its suit, by not providing reasonable …

Seeking The American Dream In Other Places

by Blake Bachelor CNN     Drawn by sunshine or a lower cost of living, a growing number of Americans are choosing to live their golden years outside the US, in the hope that it will better suit their financial or lifestyle needs and wants.    While official numbers aren’t available, companies and organizations that specialize …

Long Live The Frontiersman And Print News

by Kevin Burton    On the morning of my first day as a full-time honest-to-God newspaper reporter, a game of musical chairs broke out.    Musical desks too.    I had been hired by The Frontiersman in Wasilla, Alaska, to replace a local government reporter. I was a second choice. The person they hired first …

Is Ringo’s New Record Better Than Paul’s

by Kevin Burton    I’ve had a ton of fun writing about pop music on Page 7. But I have juuuuust about talked myself out of the notion that I am any kind of knowledgeable, creditable music critic.    And I’m getting close to swearing off all music critics. I mean, we like what we …

Missing My Mom And Defining “Carry On”

by Kevin Burton “And when one of us is gone, and one of us is left to carry on, then remembering will have to do..” “You and Me Against The World” Helen Reddy    The first song I played after learning of my mother’s death on May 4, was “First Morning In Heaven,” by The …

Meet the 98-year-old ‘Angel of Route 66’

by Rebecca Treon BBC    On a dusty stretch of northern Arizona, about an hour west of Flagstaff, the neon glow of Angel and Vilma Delgadillo’s Original Route 66 Gift Shop still flickers to life each morning.    Inside, 98-year-old Angel Delgadillo greets the stream of visitors pouring in from tour buses with a handshake and …

Alberta To Vote On Separation From Canada

by Nadine Yousif and Sareen Habeshian BBC    Alberta will hold a referendum on whether the province should remain in Canada or move ahead with a second binding vote on separation, marking the first significant test of the country’s unity in decades.    Thursday’s announcement by Alberta Premier Danielle Smith comes after a citizen-led petition …

My Friend, “Prepaid” Is The Only Way To Go

by Kevin Burton    I called the cemetery where my mother will be buried next week and told the clerk that the time had come.    The clerk was actually en route to work. She said she would look up our family’s records once she got there, and call me back.    “Everything is paid …