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This is my most unfavorite time of the year. To my way of thinking, the months of January and February are without a single redeeming quality. We can look at seed catalogs, but it’s too early to start planting a garden. Shopping is no fun. Where’s the incentive? We’re not going anywhere to show off our new clothes. Add to that the fact that what the stores are showing have been picked over until they are practically worn out. Seeking a relief from boredom, I spent the better part of January culling my wardrobe, helping Good Will to line their coffers. I made at least six trips back and forth, back...

Is fat a bad word? Not necessarily. Simply put, fat is just the body’s storage form for energy. If an animal consumes more energy than it uses, its body will store the excess calories as fat - like money in the bank they can use in an energy shortage (think cows calving in late winter). Fat imparts flavor to food (like a T-bone steak), but it also adds calories. So managing fat can be a delicate issue in the cattle business. Presently, the quality of beef is estimated to a large degree by the amount of marbling (intramuscular fat) that it contains. Tenderness is also important but is generally a...

The new dietary guidelines were released in January and encourage all of us to make healthy eating choices throughout our lives to minimize our risks of becoming overweight or obese or developing a chronic disease like heart disease or diabetes. These conditions are often linked to poor diets and physical inactivity. These guidelines serve as a tool for public health professionals and food service program managers to help individuals two years old and older to get on a path to healthier living. They also serve to guide policy makers. The U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services work together to update and revise them every five years. The latest...

Why do so many people seem to think it’s the funniest thing in the world to witness another person fall? First, allow me to fill you in a on a little personal history. There are moments in your life that, while they may seem inconsequential to some, shape your attitude about things forever. I remember vividly my first day of seventh grade. I was going to a new school and full of the nerves and concerns that sort of change in life entails for a young person. All students would congregate in the gymnasium if they arrived before the first bell. On this day, the gym was packed. I got to school via...

Did you know we are having a presidential caucus in March? What is a presidential caucus? For some odd reason, I got these questions multiple times from multiple people Thursday. So, for those that don't know, there is a presidential caucus next month and there are a few very notable differences between a caucus and a primary election for president, which I will try to explain below. • Why are we having a Republican Presidential Caucus on March 5 but a Democratic Primary Election on May 17? - In a nutshell, the answer to this question is U.S. Senator Rand Paul, one of Kentucky's two senators. Paul is one of several people...

Blister beetles belong to a family of plant-feeding insects (Meloidae) that produce cantharidin, a toxic defensive chemical. Contact with it in the blood of live or dead beetles causes blistering of the skin or mucous membranes of sensitive mammals, especially horses. Cantharidin is stable and remains toxic in dead beetles for a long time, so animals can be poisoned by eating crushed beetles in cured hay. The severity of the reaction depends upon the amount of cantharidin ingested and the size and health of the animal. The lethal dose for livestock is estimated to be 0.45 to 1.0 mg of the chemical per kilogram of body weight. Clinical signs associated with...

Back in January, Greg McKenna, using the name Lacey Noonan, received media attention for his novel featuring New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski. The Patriots objected, but Amazon.com only pulled the self-published e-book off the market because of an Ohio couple’s lawsuit regarding an image on the book’s cover. The plaintiffs claim that the cover photo is one of their engagement pictures from their Facebook page. They say the author did not ask the couple for permission to use the photo, and they call the author’s work “offensive.” The couple is also suing the companies that sold digital formats of the book without their permission. This case is now...

I am always pleased to hear from readers whether by a phone call or a letter, or as was the case when I received an e-mail from a former Corbinite, now in Seattle, WA. I never cease to be amazed at the wide area this newspaper reaches when you write or call me. Just recently, I received a thank you card from a lady in California thanking me for writing a book. I find it heartwarming when readers from the four corners of the U.S. take time to get in touch. The former Corbinite made some observations about cooking in this area that I completely agree with. When he alluded...

I know it’s not always the most popular profession, but I can promise you that those of us in the news media are constantly fighting to keep people informed. A vital part of that is access to public records that tell us what our government is up to. Back in 2012, a sneaky maneuver was pulled in the Kentucky General Assembly that provided a loophole to the states Open Records Act. Essentially, it allowed private entities that were performing traditional government functions, and receiving taxpayer money to do so, to shield their records from public inspection. Quite simply, this was wrong. The real impact was felt when a former Pike County magistrate...

I’ve been asked this probably 100 times over the last few years, so here it is. The manager of The Corbin Arena is paid a salary of $96,900 annually. That’s right. $96,900. So now, you know. No one has to speculate or guess. Just let it sink in. Bask in the pure opulence of that figure like a lizard lying on concrete in the hot summer sun. $96,900. It’s pleasant to think about, isn’t it. That’s a nice pile of cheddar. Allow your mind to marinate for a moment over the absurdity of it. Chew slowly on the fact that it’s more money than probably 99 percent of people who live in this area...