Gray Matters

Vacation homes might be a warm place

Many of us have taken a vacation and found an idyllic spot where we’d love to retire, spend the weekend or telecommute. Some people have actually bought property spontaneously while on vacation — and while that’s not always a horrible...

From their vantage point as international travelers, the world and what it has to offer belongs as much to Maurice and Antonia Ecung as it does to anyone. A military family, one of PortervilleÂ’s most prominent couples has had access to a host of...

Forgiveness can work as medicine for healing

Dr. Dwight James Medical Opinion Whether it is in a private medical office, the emergency room, the local blood drive or the hospital, we have all had to complete medical questionnaires. Sometimes the forms are very short and sometimes...

Hope for carpal tunnel doesn

Patients with severe carpal tunnel symptoms often become desperate in their search for a cure. Most patients with chronic diseases fall prey to this, looking for the one answer, the one magic pill or magic bullet that will rid them of all their...

Teachers had to teach and clean rooms back then

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following correspondence between father and son has historical value. John Carl Gauger wrote letters to his son, Robert “Bob” Gauger until his death in 1969. The letters were passed on to his daughter-in-law, Mona Gauger,...

There

Terri Cheney was very, very afraid. She knew she was depressed. She knew she was manic. She knew she was going to kill herself on Christmas Eve. “I forced myself to stand up straight and start swallowing, handful after handful of pills, tossed...

Old planes and the Palm Springs museum

Anyone wishing to travel back in time to touch the planes of World War II and meet people who made the history must visit the Palm Springs Air Museum. The museum is quite unique in that it has the largest collection of World War II planes in the...

Digital TV is here

For the past few months, my wife and I have been considering getting a new television set. Our present 24-inch Zenith console has served us well for more than 32 years and thatÂ’s without needing a new picture tube. Even so, we felt it was time for a...

When recession fears surface, check your plan

ItÂ’s been a wild week on Wall Street. When trading reopened on Tuesday after the Martin Luther King holiday, the Federal Reserve Board responded to world pressure and swooped in with a rate cut to put a floor on Dow losses that were approaching 20 percent...

Warner loves and appreciates life

No John Williams movie theme music announces his presence, but local Renaissance Man Bill Warner has proven that you donÂ’t have to be Indiana Jones to lead of life of adventure. You know youÂ’ve been adventurous when you have difficulty attempting...