Give them a gift greater than money

Dear Editor,

A number of years ago I heard about a prison with 1,500 inmates that told them for Mother’s Day they would give them a card to send their mothers. All they had to do was give them their names and they’d buy one and mail it for them free. The demand was so great that they had to reorder. The cards were sent, and Mother’s Day was a success.

The next month was Father’s Day, and the same offer was made. Not one request for a card.

Men who have children need to take time to be with their child or children. No guarantee they’ll

When my Uncle Jack was a very little boy, he’d get out of bed very early in the morning and toddle barefoot out to the stables, carrying his bottle with him.

Once there, he’d grip the nipple of his bottle between his teeth and crawl up Queen’s foreleg until he could grab her mane and pull himself up onto her back.

He was a wizard with animals and completely fearless.

Queen was Granddaddy’s special pet. She competed on the racetrack in sulky racing. A sulky is a two-wheeled, one-seat lightweight cart, and Queen won a lot of races.

Racehorse though she was, she was amazingly gentle and patient with Uncle Jack. He was a towhead with curls so light they looked white. Although he looked

First, I’d like to thank all of you who have been praying for my wife, Kathy, as she has been struggling with the aftermath of a near-fatal bout of sepsis, with other complications. She’s getting better but still has a lot to deal with, so if you’re inclined, please continue to pray.

I’m going to be taking some time off from writing a regular weekly column, but I felt compelled to weigh in on the controversy that has stirred protests across the country recently.

I don’t think it’s possible to really know what it feels like to be a black man in a nation dominated by white people — unless you are a black man in such a nation, as America is.

But I’ve come closer, perhaps, than most to getting a taste of what it must be like.

For a time in the late 1970s, I was the only white guy in an

Not so proud of Pickens

Dear Editor,

Normally, I am very proud to say that I am from Pickens, a peaceful little town in the upper corner of South Carolina. Today, though, not so much. Let me tell you why.

Last Monday night, there was a demonstration — a peaceful protest, if you will — marking righteous outrage over the murder of George Floyd at the hands of a man who betrayed the trust we place in

Many of us haven’t been eating right lately. Sometimes the stores are out of what we want; sometimes we can’t get an available pickup time. But there are a few other safe options for getting what we need.

Community Supported Agriculture: Farmers near you like to know in advance if their crops will have a market once it’s time to harvest, and they sell “subscriptions” that allow you, as a shareholder, to pick up fresh food once a week. Do an internet search for “community supported agriculture” in your area. Look for ones that sell more

Examining Clary stance on Trump

Dear Editor:

I am writing in response to the article that appeared on the Courier’s front page on May 27, titled “Rep. Clary joins GOP effort to beat Trump.” I know Mr. Clary served as a judge and in the State House. I would think he would have a better grasp of facts.

Rep. Clary, where have you been and where do you get your news? Mr. Clary said he “doesn’t like Trump’s method of simply bullying, criticizing, ridiculing, attack mode.” That begs the question … then why doesn’t Mr. Clary oppose the bullying, criticizing, ridiculing, attack mode that has been directed at the president since day one?

The mainstream media produces the “fake news” Clary has attributed to the president. Mr. Clary complained about the president’s use of Twitter to communicate. What choice has the media given him? He doesn’t get a front-page story to defend himself. The New York Times, the Washington Post, CNN, NBC, CBS, ABC, MSNBC have all done a great injustice to the American people by false reporting or negligent coverage of his accomplishments.

The corruption, such as Russia collusion, the fake dossier, lies to the FISA court and an impeachment attempt all amount to an attempted coup to unseat our elected president. All of this has been proven untrue at great expense to the American taxpayer.

The president has been working night and day, yet there remains no effort by the Democrats and RINOs to help govern the country. Instead, they continue to obstruct his administration at every turn. A list of the president’s accomplishments shows that he has done more for minorities, women, veterans and the disabled than any president before him (Google it.).

Mr. Clary seems proud to be on a committee of “fellow Republicans looking to defeat President Donald Trump this year.” Noteworthy that he was “encouraged to join the committee” by Bob Orr, a former associate justice on the North Carolina Supreme Court and gubernatorial candidate. Dallas Woodhouse, executive director of the N.C. state GOP, stated in the Charlotte Observer on June 25, 2018, that “Bob Orr’s largely detested within our party. He used Republican money to get elected to the Supreme Court. … He’s as revolting of a political figure as you can have.”

Mr. Clary falsely stated that “over the past three and a half years, we’ve alienated allies and cozied up to dictators and communists and folks like that.” Actually, Trump stopped cozying up to Iran, stopped sending money to our enemies, reversed unfair trade practices and got tough with North Korea. Other presidents let it go. Nothing was done — until Trump got tough.

Since my research turned up all the above, I wonder about Mr. Clary’s perceptions. Has he signed on to the resistance to Republican Trump based on these perceptions? My goal is to expose fake Republicans (RINO), fake news and money-grabbing politicians. MAGA!

Dennis L. Bauknight

Easley

Rolling the dice

Dear Editor,

Although I don’t gamble, there are games that use dice to play. I was cleaning house not long ago when I found a couple of dice.

I realized something about dice that had never dawned on me. Each opposite side adds up to be the same number. Seven. If it’s four, the opposite side will be three. If it’s two, the opposite side will be five. One, it will be six. Doubt it? Look for yourself.

Trivia about dice. When thrown and the top numbers are five on both, it’s called box cars. It looks like the doors on a box car.

When thrown and it’s one on both dice, it’s known as snake eyes. People over the years have figured out ways to mess with dice. There’s shaved dice. One side is sanded down to make the weight uneven.

Then there are what is known as loaded or trick dice.

The black dots are drilled out on one side and lead is poured in. Then the dots are painted over to cover up. In both cases it gives the user the advantage. Yes, it is illegal, but some do it anyway.

I’ve heard of gamblers who would use hair tonic to stick the dice together so they could mess with their landing on the numbers they wanted. What they’d do is pretend to smooth their hair out, only to get grease on the dice. I once heard about a man who would put a wrinkle in the blanket he was on the floor throwing dice on. He’d bounce the dice off the wrinkle to get the number he wanted.

No end to what people will do, is there? No one knows just who or even when dice were invented.

In the Bible, it tells about the soldiers who crucified Jesus shooting dice for his coat. Casting lots, as it was called then, was nothing new. They had a cylinder-shaped jar which they put the dice in and shook up then poured out. Seven dice were used instead of two like today.

Archeologists have found dice as old as 6,000 B.C. Back then, they were carved from bone. Animal, I hope. Actually, sheep knuckles were said to be the start, followed by wood, stone and even brass. Just something to think about.

Eddie Boggs

Westminster

Have your food expenses gone up recently? Even if your local grocery isn’t spiking the prices, it’s now costing more to get what we need.

Grocery delivery: Delivery prices are running to $10 and more in most places. Usually those involve a personal shopper who selects your items from your list and delivers them to your door. Sometimes they’ll call while shopping

We are not even halfway into the year and our nation is going through a tremendous amount of stress and tribulation. As if the pandemic was not enough, we are now seeing an insurrection of hatred and violence, and we still have an election ahead of us.

I would imagine that most of you watch the news, and to be honest, I probably absorb a little too much. Some evenings when I try to sleep, my mind is so hyped-up and distressed with worry that I end up turning and tossing.

Thank God I can ask Him to forgive me and to please flood my mind and heart with His peace,

While restaurants across America are struggling to survive in this pandemic, Easley’s dining-out scene is continuing to grow: A Chipotle Mexican Grill is in the works.

That’s what’s going to be in half of the new building going up in front of the Town ‘n Country shopping center, according to Easley building official Tommy Holcombe.

What’s going in the other half of the building has yet to be determined.

So let me be among the first to say to Chipotle, welcome to Easley! Next to Southern food, Mexican is my favorite.

It’s clear to me that the company, which operates more than 2,600 restaurants, did its research: Folks around Easley eat out a lot.

During this stretch of time when eateries have been

A trip down memory lane

Dear Editor,

Lot of stress going on now. How about we go down that precious lane called “memory lane,” to happier times? To a time when we older people were young.

Anyone remember soft drinks when they were in glass bottles and cost only a dime? Remember they had to be opened with a bottle opener? Cork, not plastic, lined the cap. Three swallows and you had to stop, because they would burn like fire!

Ever put salted peanuts in your drink? Remember when potato chips were in wax paper? Remember