If you know my kids, please do not share the contents of this column with them.
My wife, Jena, and I have entered the early discussion period which could ultimately end up in our family acquiring a Wii. Or perhaps a DS. Or maybe two DS’s. Or maybe nothing at all. And therein lies the discussion.
The Wii, as well as the DS, are both gaming systems, for those of you not hip on the latest in gaming trends. The Wii is a home-based game that runs off your television. It’s unique in that it features a wireless platform, with a control you use to mimic the actual motion of activities like bowling or baseball, or whatever game you are playing. The DS, apparently short for “dual screen,” is a smaller, handheld, portable gaming system.
We’re just in the beginning stages of talks about entering the world of such things, but there’s a couple of birthdays coming up this summer, and we’re weighing our options.
Part of me is not sure either is such a good idea. Though the Wii does require some actual physical activity, I’m sure there are endeavors that are more healthy physically than video games. Besides that, when I was a kid, my parents never got me gaming systems, so it almost doesn’t seem fair that my children would have them.
Then again, whether it’s at home or at a friend’s house, my kids are going to play video games. And in an era dominated by technological gadgetry, it’s not the worst thing in the world to have children who are accustomed to electronic gadgets in all their various forms. (Besides that, there’s no rule that says parents aren’t allowed to say “turn that off and go outside and play,” when need be.)
As I mentioned above, I never had a gaming system of my own growing up. But I had friends who did. So whether it was the Atari 2600 or the Commodore 64, I spent some time playing video games as a kid. I remember being awed at such games as Space Invaders and Breakout, which seemed brilliant at the time, though now they seem like the video game equivalent of drawings on a cave wall.
By the time I got to college, Nintendo was king of the industry. The NES was as common to the male dormitory as the laundry basket and the backpack, and video games were a great stress reliever and time-killer between classes. In fact, in my first semester of college, I probably learned more about the invisible boxes and hidden warp zones in Super Mario Brothers than I did about English Comp or College Algebra.
But after college, I pretty much lost touch with the gaming world. Sure, I’d hear occasional rumors of things like the “Game Cube,” the “PlayStation” or the “X-Box,” but I couldn’t tell you much about them. I probably even played one or more of them at a friend’s house somewhere along the line, but I couldn’t even tell you which one.
So, a couple of years ago, when my kids started coming home from school with tales of video games, I obviously had some catching up to do. A couple of Christmases ago, my daughter Katie got her heart set on a Gameboy, so we broke down at got one. And it has sure gotten a lot of use. Though, interestingly enough, Katie is probably a distant third as far as the Gameboy’s most frequent user. That honor probably goes to her little brother, Drew, who doesn’t even seem to care that the Gameboy is pink. Same goes for me, and I’ve probably logged the second highest number of hours on the toy. Even Jena has played a couple of times.
But the Gameboy is starting to wear out. A couple of its buttons no longer work well, and, quite frankly, it’s outdated. The arrival of the DS has made it more difficult to buy games for the older Gameboy.
If we do decide to invest in a new gaming system, I hope it’s something that can provide enjoyment for the whole family. The idea of a single kid holed up in their room playing video games all weekend is less appealing than the idea of two or three or four family members having fun together, with an assist from modern technology, if need be. So that will play a role as we continue our discussions.
Just don’t tell the kids.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Time for Council to push Ctrl-Alt-Delete
When it comes to the efforts to put Carol White on the Blytheville City Council, it's time for all involved to push Ctrl-Alt-Delete.
White, of course, is the Blytheville/Minnesota resident who was recently appointed to fill the term of James Sanders, who resigned from the Council after being appointed Mississippi County Sheriff. White has been embattled in controversy since the night she was appointed in a 3-2 vote of the Council. From being labeled a "troublemaker" the night of her appointment by one city councilwoman, to the revelation that she never got local car tags and failed to register to vote until after her appointment, it's pretty clear that this was not a selection that was meant to be.
When your computer goes haywire, locks up, or it becomes clear that it's just not working, it's time to reboot. You hold down the Ctrl-Alt-Delete keys, shut down, and start over. And that's what the City Council needs to do.
Mayor Barrett Harrison took a step in that direction Friday, when he declared that since White had not been a legal candidate, that her appointment was null and void, and the seat was vacant. City Council members should follow suit, and support the mayor. Likewise, White has a chance to show her commitment to community by quietly accepting the decision and stepping away, at least for now.
There should be no shame for those who initially supported White. She had a resume that included an assortment of public service activities, and on paper, she seemed well-qualified. Could the three City Council members who voted in favor of her appointment have known she was not even a registered voter in Arkansas? Probably not.
That said, there have been plenty of "d'oh" moments to go around among City Council members through this entire ordeal. From Councilman Mylas Jeffers' insistence that the nominee be a "person of color," to the mayor's failure to properly vet the applicants to ensure their legal qualifications, to Councilwoman Connealy's "troublemaker" barb, there has been a clear shortage of leadership from our city elders these past few weeks. These aren't the acts of community statesmen, loyally serving their constituents. They are the acts of lawmakers bent on their own petty political self-interest.
And any move by White or her backers (on the Council and off) to prolong this mess would only be more of the same.
In short, it's a mess that needs to end. It's time to reboot.
If you look around Blytheville, there are plenty of worthwhile things for our City Council to worry about. We've got police and fire departments to run. We've got streets to repair. We've got a recycling program to kick off. We've got ice storm reimbursements to track down. We've got parks that need to be rejuvenated. We've got businesses and citizens reeling from the recession that need attention. We've got visitors coming to town for car shows and baseball tournaments. We have a need to remain vigilant in our economic development efforts.
We simply don't have time to spend weeks slogging it out over a council seat. Our city has spent far too much time mired in the muck through the years. We need to be moving forward, and political fights like this can only hold us back.
Besides that, there's nothing stopping Carol White from reapplying for the still-vacant seat. Or, she can get on the City Council the old fashioned way, and run when the seat comes open for election. Perhaps that would be best — let the people of Ward 1 decide, rather the whims of five people, four of whom don't even live in that ward.
Either way, at the present, it's time for this community escapade to end. With blame to be shared by pretty much every player involved, all we can do is wipe the slate clean and start over.
Ctrl-Alt-Delete.
White, of course, is the Blytheville/Minnesota resident who was recently appointed to fill the term of James Sanders, who resigned from the Council after being appointed Mississippi County Sheriff. White has been embattled in controversy since the night she was appointed in a 3-2 vote of the Council. From being labeled a "troublemaker" the night of her appointment by one city councilwoman, to the revelation that she never got local car tags and failed to register to vote until after her appointment, it's pretty clear that this was not a selection that was meant to be.
When your computer goes haywire, locks up, or it becomes clear that it's just not working, it's time to reboot. You hold down the Ctrl-Alt-Delete keys, shut down, and start over. And that's what the City Council needs to do.
Mayor Barrett Harrison took a step in that direction Friday, when he declared that since White had not been a legal candidate, that her appointment was null and void, and the seat was vacant. City Council members should follow suit, and support the mayor. Likewise, White has a chance to show her commitment to community by quietly accepting the decision and stepping away, at least for now.
There should be no shame for those who initially supported White. She had a resume that included an assortment of public service activities, and on paper, she seemed well-qualified. Could the three City Council members who voted in favor of her appointment have known she was not even a registered voter in Arkansas? Probably not.
That said, there have been plenty of "d'oh" moments to go around among City Council members through this entire ordeal. From Councilman Mylas Jeffers' insistence that the nominee be a "person of color," to the mayor's failure to properly vet the applicants to ensure their legal qualifications, to Councilwoman Connealy's "troublemaker" barb, there has been a clear shortage of leadership from our city elders these past few weeks. These aren't the acts of community statesmen, loyally serving their constituents. They are the acts of lawmakers bent on their own petty political self-interest.
And any move by White or her backers (on the Council and off) to prolong this mess would only be more of the same.
In short, it's a mess that needs to end. It's time to reboot.
If you look around Blytheville, there are plenty of worthwhile things for our City Council to worry about. We've got police and fire departments to run. We've got streets to repair. We've got a recycling program to kick off. We've got ice storm reimbursements to track down. We've got parks that need to be rejuvenated. We've got businesses and citizens reeling from the recession that need attention. We've got visitors coming to town for car shows and baseball tournaments. We have a need to remain vigilant in our economic development efforts.
We simply don't have time to spend weeks slogging it out over a council seat. Our city has spent far too much time mired in the muck through the years. We need to be moving forward, and political fights like this can only hold us back.
Besides that, there's nothing stopping Carol White from reapplying for the still-vacant seat. Or, she can get on the City Council the old fashioned way, and run when the seat comes open for election. Perhaps that would be best — let the people of Ward 1 decide, rather the whims of five people, four of whom don't even live in that ward.
Either way, at the present, it's time for this community escapade to end. With blame to be shared by pretty much every player involved, all we can do is wipe the slate clean and start over.
Ctrl-Alt-Delete.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
A new look, Twitter ... the changes around us
It seems like an appropriate time to take a few moments to talk about some of the changes we’ve had here at the Courier News over the past few weeks, and then some.
Perhaps the most notable, at least recently, has been our new look. The redesign debuted April 14, and has generally been received very well.
We’d been wanting to launch a redesign for a few years. Like any product, newspapers get a little stale if they don’t change their look every now and then. You see the same thing in everything from cars to telephones to fast-food restaurants — if you don’t modernize, you’re going to start losing customers. And newspapers are no different.
There’s two parts of the redesign that I’m most excited about. One is our new community events listing, which appears daily on Page 3. Back with the old look, we’d run three to five “briefs” down the side of Page 1 each day. Our new approach allows us to list nearly 20 events each day. And now, they’re in chronological order, which I think provides a better context for people who are trying to find out what’s going on. The Courier News has always been the premier place to go to find out what’s happening around town, and I think we’re now doing a better job of doing this.
The second new component I really like is our new stock market modules, which appear daily on Page 7. This is something we have access to via our membership in The Associated Press. Our market modules provide and in-depth glance at what is happening in the world of money, with special emphasis on stocks of local interest. The modules are customized by AP for our readers. In these days of uncertain economic fortunes, I think this is vital information to provide for the community.
And, of course, as many readers have noticed, the paper is a little narrower these days. This is something that is becoming the industry standard. Paper costs more money these days, and newspapers are looking to cut costs by buying narrower rolls. Many papers have already made the switch; those who haven’t will likely soon. Personally, I like the narrower paper. It’s easier to hold and more reader-friendly. Besides that, here at the Courier News, we’ve expanded the number of pages in our base paper from 14 to 16 pages, so there’s more or less a net gain in the amount of news in each edition.
But the changes around here go beyond the redesign. Most recently, the Courier News has entered the world of online social networking via a Facebook site. The plan for now is to use Facebook as a way to connect with our readers. We’ll post occasional news about the paper, and promote a few upcoming projects. If you’re on Facebook, we’d love to have you on board as a fan.
And your truly is now experimenting with a Twitter account. I’m not too sure what to think of this service, but if you’re on Twitter, I’d love to have you as a follower. We’ll have to see where this one leads us.
One change that is now months old that has not been real popular has been our decision to drop the Monday edition. And let me say that I empathize with those who are disappointed. A wise person once told me that a daily newspaper is like a friend, who comes to visit you in your home every afternoon. So naturally, when your friend stops visiting every Monday, it’s hard not to be a little disappointed. But the Courier News has not been immune to the financial difficulties that have affected everyone from the local steel mills to the Main Street merchants, and difficult decisions sometimes have to be made. Honestly, the Monday paper was never a strong edition, in terms of advertising or news content; and though it might not be obvious, I am confident that our remaining daily editions are now stronger with the added attention we are able to give them.
One of our goals here at the Courier News is to one day publish the perfect paper. We haven’t done it yet, but we try every day. We have a small, but devoted and hard-working staff that is striving every day to meet our readers' information and advertising needs. Maybe we’ll get that perfect paper someday.
Until then, I’d love to hear from you. Check us out on Facebook, head to Twitter and follow @andy_weld, or visit my blog at thefasttalker.blogspot.com. For that matter, a good old letter to the editor is also still welcome any day.
I thank you for reading this column, and for reading the Courier News.
Perhaps the most notable, at least recently, has been our new look. The redesign debuted April 14, and has generally been received very well.
We’d been wanting to launch a redesign for a few years. Like any product, newspapers get a little stale if they don’t change their look every now and then. You see the same thing in everything from cars to telephones to fast-food restaurants — if you don’t modernize, you’re going to start losing customers. And newspapers are no different.
There’s two parts of the redesign that I’m most excited about. One is our new community events listing, which appears daily on Page 3. Back with the old look, we’d run three to five “briefs” down the side of Page 1 each day. Our new approach allows us to list nearly 20 events each day. And now, they’re in chronological order, which I think provides a better context for people who are trying to find out what’s going on. The Courier News has always been the premier place to go to find out what’s happening around town, and I think we’re now doing a better job of doing this.
The second new component I really like is our new stock market modules, which appear daily on Page 7. This is something we have access to via our membership in The Associated Press. Our market modules provide and in-depth glance at what is happening in the world of money, with special emphasis on stocks of local interest. The modules are customized by AP for our readers. In these days of uncertain economic fortunes, I think this is vital information to provide for the community.
And, of course, as many readers have noticed, the paper is a little narrower these days. This is something that is becoming the industry standard. Paper costs more money these days, and newspapers are looking to cut costs by buying narrower rolls. Many papers have already made the switch; those who haven’t will likely soon. Personally, I like the narrower paper. It’s easier to hold and more reader-friendly. Besides that, here at the Courier News, we’ve expanded the number of pages in our base paper from 14 to 16 pages, so there’s more or less a net gain in the amount of news in each edition.
But the changes around here go beyond the redesign. Most recently, the Courier News has entered the world of online social networking via a Facebook site. The plan for now is to use Facebook as a way to connect with our readers. We’ll post occasional news about the paper, and promote a few upcoming projects. If you’re on Facebook, we’d love to have you on board as a fan.
And your truly is now experimenting with a Twitter account. I’m not too sure what to think of this service, but if you’re on Twitter, I’d love to have you as a follower. We’ll have to see where this one leads us.
One change that is now months old that has not been real popular has been our decision to drop the Monday edition. And let me say that I empathize with those who are disappointed. A wise person once told me that a daily newspaper is like a friend, who comes to visit you in your home every afternoon. So naturally, when your friend stops visiting every Monday, it’s hard not to be a little disappointed. But the Courier News has not been immune to the financial difficulties that have affected everyone from the local steel mills to the Main Street merchants, and difficult decisions sometimes have to be made. Honestly, the Monday paper was never a strong edition, in terms of advertising or news content; and though it might not be obvious, I am confident that our remaining daily editions are now stronger with the added attention we are able to give them.
One of our goals here at the Courier News is to one day publish the perfect paper. We haven’t done it yet, but we try every day. We have a small, but devoted and hard-working staff that is striving every day to meet our readers' information and advertising needs. Maybe we’ll get that perfect paper someday.
Until then, I’d love to hear from you. Check us out on Facebook, head to Twitter and follow @andy_weld, or visit my blog at thefasttalker.blogspot.com. For that matter, a good old letter to the editor is also still welcome any day.
I thank you for reading this column, and for reading the Courier News.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
CN recognized for General Excellence
MOUNT MAGAZINE — The Blytheville Courier News received 16 total awards — including first place for General Excellence — at Saturday's annual awards ceremony conducted by the Arkansas Associated Press Managing Editors.
The ceremony took place during the organization's annual meeting, held at The Lodge at Mount Magazine in Mount Magazine State Park.
The Courier News edged out the Searcy Daily Citizen for the top award, earning the General Excellence win for the fifth time in nine years.
Contest judges had high marks for the newspaper's news content.
"Blytheville felt like a good reflection and partner with the community," judges said. "Stories were written so that a non-local reader understood the consequences of the big news. There was a nice mix of commentary. Headlines are clear, with good specifics in a few."
In addition, the Courier News received five other first place awards. Last year's special edition, "Snapshots," which spotlighted the community's rich history, took first place in the Special Project/Community Service category. Judges praised the use of photos, as well as the project's use of new media.
Other first place nods went to Managing Editor Mark Brasfield, who took first in Sports Column for a piece on Blytheville basketball coach David Hixson, and first in Column-Lifestyles/Human Interest for a column about positive aspects of Blytheville.
Staff writer Donna Loyd Hilton took first place in Non-Traditional News Item for a tongue-in-cheek mock interview with "Tom Turkey."
And editor Andy Weld won first place in Graphics for a Blytheville timeline project, which appeared in the "Snapshots" special section.
Other award winners are as follows:
— Hilton and staff writer Rick Harris shared a second place win in Spot News Story for coverage of the fire and shooting at Ace Glass.
— Harris, Brasfield and former staff writer Christie Zolman won second place in News Coverage for stories about last year's Holiday Inn fire.
— Brasfield won second place in Beat Reporting for articles about Blytheville police officers' salaries.
— Hilton won second place in Education Reporting for an article about the decline in use of chalkboards in area schools.
— Brasfield won second place in Sports Story for an article about last year's playoff run by the Blytheville girls basketball team.
— Weld won second place for Page Design for a collection of editions.
— Harris won third place in Spot News Story for coverage of the Holiday Inn fire last year.
— Harris won third place in Spot News Photo for a photo of a burning home.
— Weld won third place in Column-Hard News for a piece critical of the YMCA for pulling out of Blytheville.
— Former staff writer Jenni Betts Deming won third place in Business Reporting for a feature story on crop dusters.
"I hope Blytheville citizens realize what a good job our news staff does on a day-to-day basis," noted Courier News publisher David Tennyson. "It's easy to take things for granted sometimes, but first place in General Excellence five years out of nine pretty much says it all to me."
The Courier News competes in Division I, which includes the state's small daily newspapers.
Also Saturday, Weld was elected as APME president for 2009-10. Weld replaces David Bailey of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Rick Fahr of the Log Cabin Democrat in Conway was elected the group's vice president.
The ceremony took place during the organization's annual meeting, held at The Lodge at Mount Magazine in Mount Magazine State Park.
The Courier News edged out the Searcy Daily Citizen for the top award, earning the General Excellence win for the fifth time in nine years.
Contest judges had high marks for the newspaper's news content.
"Blytheville felt like a good reflection and partner with the community," judges said. "Stories were written so that a non-local reader understood the consequences of the big news. There was a nice mix of commentary. Headlines are clear, with good specifics in a few."
In addition, the Courier News received five other first place awards. Last year's special edition, "Snapshots," which spotlighted the community's rich history, took first place in the Special Project/Community Service category. Judges praised the use of photos, as well as the project's use of new media.
Other first place nods went to Managing Editor Mark Brasfield, who took first in Sports Column for a piece on Blytheville basketball coach David Hixson, and first in Column-Lifestyles/Human Interest for a column about positive aspects of Blytheville.
Staff writer Donna Loyd Hilton took first place in Non-Traditional News Item for a tongue-in-cheek mock interview with "Tom Turkey."
And editor Andy Weld won first place in Graphics for a Blytheville timeline project, which appeared in the "Snapshots" special section.
Other award winners are as follows:
— Hilton and staff writer Rick Harris shared a second place win in Spot News Story for coverage of the fire and shooting at Ace Glass.
— Harris, Brasfield and former staff writer Christie Zolman won second place in News Coverage for stories about last year's Holiday Inn fire.
— Brasfield won second place in Beat Reporting for articles about Blytheville police officers' salaries.
— Hilton won second place in Education Reporting for an article about the decline in use of chalkboards in area schools.
— Brasfield won second place in Sports Story for an article about last year's playoff run by the Blytheville girls basketball team.
— Weld won second place for Page Design for a collection of editions.
— Harris won third place in Spot News Story for coverage of the Holiday Inn fire last year.
— Harris won third place in Spot News Photo for a photo of a burning home.
— Weld won third place in Column-Hard News for a piece critical of the YMCA for pulling out of Blytheville.
— Former staff writer Jenni Betts Deming won third place in Business Reporting for a feature story on crop dusters.
"I hope Blytheville citizens realize what a good job our news staff does on a day-to-day basis," noted Courier News publisher David Tennyson. "It's easy to take things for granted sometimes, but first place in General Excellence five years out of nine pretty much says it all to me."
The Courier News competes in Division I, which includes the state's small daily newspapers.
Also Saturday, Weld was elected as APME president for 2009-10. Weld replaces David Bailey of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Rick Fahr of the Log Cabin Democrat in Conway was elected the group's vice president.
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