Opinion

Stephen King’s 1982 novella, “The Body,” was adapted into the award-winning 1986 film, “Stand by Me.” There are significant differences between the two versions of the story, but both are primarily about friendship. It is a tale about Gordie LaChance, his friend, Chris Chambers, and two other 12-year-old friends, who go on a journey to find the dead body of a missing boy near Castle Rock, Oregon, on Labor Day Weekend, 1959.

Libraries are for everyone.

Some days we get busy with this or that, and it is not until later in the evening that Becky and I remember we haven’t yet played the daily Wordle. A new game starts at midnight each 24 hours, so if we don’t play within that time frame, we lose a day. This shows up on our daily score summary. We always check our score summary because we are somewhat competitive and our stats matter to us.

Many across the United States will have spent this week watching coverage of the British monarchy. Millions of Americans from all walks of life will read, watch and listen to coverage of the Queen’s funeral. This is quite a stunning turn of events, after all we endured considerable discomfort to rid ourselves of that crown. There are two important lessons in her life and position that merit consideration.

I don’t usually give Congress credit for passing useful legislation. Bills that run to a thousand pages or more just can’t prove beneficial, especially when our elected representatives admit to or even brag about not reading them. An exception to my cynical appraisal of congressional mischief is it’s designating every September 17 as Constitution Day.

The school librarian leaned close and whispered in my ear.

My column this week has been prompted by two events. First was the recent 20th anniversary of the passing of my beagle, Barney, who accompanied me on more than 2,500 TV segments between 1991 and 2002. And second, that I have finally agreed with my wife (and all my friends) that I need to invest in a good pair of hearing aids.

The guys were on their own this week in the Trares household.

An economist at IU Bloomington was often heard to say, “He who has a number is ahead of he who does not.” George Wilson then would apply pencil to any available piece of paper and rapidly produce a number. Most often they were remarkably consistent with the best estimates available.

A song comes on the radio that we haven’t heard for decades. Yet, we sing along, somehow remembering all the words. That experience tells us something important about the power of music, a power that religions have always known.