Columns

By Scott SullivanEditorRoad ChatterOnboarding freeway to Saugatuck, goose gas, shoot gap, tuck in behind truck, patient, read plates, speculate-state-to-state, there’s a space, swing left, boost speed to 80, patient, bottleneck clears past where M-6 scissors inAway to the shining sea,…

Trouble might come with this rant, but I’ve about had it with United States Postal Service.They just recently raised the price of a postage stamp to 71 cents. It seems every year the price goes up another 5 cents. I’m…

Pat and I have been to Paris several times, so we were eager to watch the opening of the Summer Olympics there.  We knew we would see familiar haunts, which excited us. The creativity and style of Parisians appealed to…

By Scott SullivanEditorColorsWhy do the Summer Olympic Games seem to come in the nick of time?I was 13 when the ’68 Games arrived, fresh from seeing assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy play over and on…

I’ve been an avid fan of the Olympics since I was a pre-teen. I was glued to the TV set in my teenage years, watching the opening ceremony and most of the events. It was a tradition I have always…

I get up in the morning. Take a shower. Lift some weights and do some exercises, then take a bicycle ride. Take a shower. Work in the garden and yard. Take a shower. Work in my shop and get covered…

It will be all over again tomorrow so if you want some fun to liven up your summer, there’s still time to catch a bit of it at the fairgrounds in Harrison where the 141st Clare County Fair has been…

Marion, Michigan has a mystical hold on those who come from here, no matter where they may be. I’ve spent considerable time thinking about the Marion phenomena, trying to understand. I’ve written about it more than once and I still…

When I read these words, I was reminded that in many evangelical churches, members give their “testimony” as a witness to their faith in Jesus. It has been a long time since I heard anyone give a personal testimony, sharing…

    On Saturday the thirteen of this month, Pat and I were out along the lakeshore for beautiful evening at Ox-Bow School of the Arts.  There is not cell phone service there, so we missed hearing the news of the…

What a week for the history books. First a former president, now the leading candidate for president, survived an assassination attempt, then his opponent, the current president announced he would no longer be running for a second term.I’m still confused…

NuclearLast week’s “STR cap may go nuclea’ anyway” story already has. Then came the shooting in Pennsylvania.I applaud Saugatuck City Council for trying to protect peace, quiet and safety in Community Residential neighborhoods. That’s what R-1 zoning is meant to…

Like many of you I was in shock when I heard there was an assassination attempt on former president Trump’s life while he was speaking at a rally in Pennsylvania. It had been 43 years since the barbaric act of…

Another “Old” in the grocery checkout lane ahead of me asked the clerk, “Is this the airport?”“What do you mean?” she asked, baffled.“I’d expect to pay this much for a bottle of water there, but not here,” he said.She rolled…

Every year, in early May, Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky is the place to be if you’re a fan of horse racing. The Kentucky Derby is definitely a race like no other. Horses are beautiful animals and a thoroughbred racehorse…

Now that July 4th has come and gone, Marion’s Old Fashioned Days is rising fast on the horizon. Almost before we can turn around, we’ll be off to the Friday night Main Street Cruise, the Saturday morning parade and visiting…

Another summer week has flown by.We spent part of the holiday weekend (the 4th of July) enjoying time with family. It was my brother Jim’s 92nd birthday – quite a milestone. He told me afterwards that there were 45 and…

It’s no secret! All the churches are in desperate need of vocations! While we generally focus on vocations to the ministry, as priests, ministers, consecrated life (nuns and brothers and lay ministers), we are also desperately in need of baptisms,…

By Scott SullivanEditorChinatown“Let’s go to the Asian shop,” said Flannery.“Which Asian shop?” I asked.“The one I went to when I was 16.” That was eight years ago. “They had seaweed,” my daughter said.“I didn’t know you liked seaweed.”“I don’t,” she…

   In many ways, Jimmy Carter was a good President.  He was decent, honest, free from personal scandals, and along with his wife, Rosalind, set the example of a good long-term marriage.  A good man, but it turned out he…