Terre Haute and the Wabash River were like strangers living next door to each other.

February 12, 2012 5 Photos  

I’ve learned to take a Seinfeld approach to Super Bowls.
In a flash of clairvoyance, Jerry excitedly reminded buddy George Costanza that “if every instinct you have is wrong, then the opposite would have to be right.”

February 2, 2012 1 Photo  

In the minds of many adults, the most upstanding generation of young people was, ironically, their own.

January 29, 2012  

Paul Dresser remembered his hometown at its best. Terre Haute should remember him the same way.

January 26, 2012 1 Photo  

In the rear-view mirror of our lives, some days loom larger than we expected.
For many Hoosiers, the date Nov. 2, 2010, probably fits that category.

January 19, 2012 1 Photo  

Steve Witt fielded a jarring phone call in October 2007.

January 15, 2012  

A logjam of kids swelled behind the first-base dugout in Riverfront Stadium.

January 12, 2012 1 Photo  

Sentimentality seems alien in a discussion of Bill Polian.
That emotion rarely influenced his decisions in 14 seasons as the day-to-day boss of the Indianapolis Colts. He surely felt it, but seldom submitted to it. The NFL is a business, after all, with winning as its bottom line. Polian knew how to make that happen, and did. Anyone or anything threatening to divert the Colts from title contention could not linger. When it came to that mission, Polian functioned with all of the sentimentality of Joe Friday.

January 5, 2012 1 Photo  

It’s hard to emulate JFK — this JFK, at least.

December 18, 2011  

Most of us see a bit of ourselves in “A Christmas Story.” Mike Kukral does so, literally. The 1983 movie grew into a holiday classic because so many of its poignant, awkward and hilarious moments seem to have been pulled straight from our childhood memories.

December 15, 2011 6 Photos  

Will Ferrell didn’t walk through traffic at Seventh and Wabash for nothing.
Well, actually it might have been for nothing. Apparently, the comedian just likes Old Milwaukee so much that he came to Terre Haute, unannounced, one morning last September to film wacky commercials for the beer.

December 8, 2011 2 Photos  

Ants decided to set up a colony in our family’s mailbox last summer.

December 1, 2011 1 Photo  

The town should blush.

November 27, 2011  

The new Thanksgiving dinner tradition?
Turkey, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie served at a family tailgating party in a big-box store parking lot on Black Thursday.

November 24, 2011 1 Photo  

Young steelworkers, like Robert Bruno’s dad, often took dates to the railroad yards, watching train cars rumble past in blue-collar Youngstown, Ohio.

November 20, 2011 1 Photo  

Fred Massey loved to talk about his family.
His wife and daughters, his parents, his brothers and sisters. And, his great-uncle, Mort. Mordecai “Three Finger” Brown, that is, the Hall of Fame pitcher who led the Chicago Cubs to their last World Series title in 1908 with an amazing curveball and without an index finger.

November 17, 2011 1 Photo  

The city election involved lots of debate over a new headquarters for the Terre Haute Police Department.
But is Raleigh, N.C., really a fitting location? The 750-mile commute for the cops would be dreadful.
 

November 11, 2011 3 Photos  

Going backward rarely works as a leadership strategy.
Political groups often insist they’re primed to “take back America.” While their intent is to reclaim lost turf, the ultimate goal is to go backward — to a different time. Life isn’t “Back to the Future” or any other movie, though. The best policy for worthwhile living is to do things right today that make tomorrow better.

November 10, 2011 3 Photos  

Let’s avoid the P-word today.
Just for some clarity, we’ll offer its dictionary definition: “The state or condition of having little or no money, goods, or means of support; condition of being poor.”

November 3, 2011 1 Photo  

Once in a lifetime. The phrase gets uttered often. Sometimes, it’s an assumption, as in traveling to Europe or getting tickets to see the Cubs play in the World Series. Occasionally, it’s definite.

October 27, 2011 3 Photos  

The Wabash River inspired the state song. That’s impressive.

October 20, 2011 1 Photo  

Our nerves buzz with anxiety for different reasons.

October 16, 2011 2 Photos  

For three summers, I had the good fortune to watch and listen to Tony Dungy day after day.

October 13, 2011 1 Photo  

Deep down, millions of Hoosiers would wear the label “advocate for public schools.”
Yes, many have their complaints, criticisms and a few “you-know-what-they-really-need-is” suggestions. But, in their heart of hearts, they want to see their alma maters and hometown public schools succeed and progress.

October 6, 2011  

There wasn’t much leg room in that Radio Flyer wagon.
Our sons — two years apart but squashed together inside its fading wooden rails — always fidgeted until the black wheels started rumbling over the uneven WPA-era sidewalks running through Prairieton.

September 29, 2011 4 Photos  

Mark Twain probably would grin at the sight of John Cornell, Jim Foster, Dan Remaly and their raft.

September 22, 2011 4 Photos  

At some point, this stuff becomes routine.

September 14, 2011 1 Photo  

We stood atop a hill in rural southwestern Pennsylvania, and I do mean rural. Cars, trucks, SUVs and RVs kept pulling into the parking area. Groups of people climbed out of their vehicles and into the suffocating July heat. Then, they too stood on the hilltop, staring down at a grassy clearing in front of a woods.

September 8, 2011 4 Photos 1 Video  

Hoosiers exhibit generosity.
Terre Hauteans, in particular, displayed that virtue after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the local flooding in 2008. They donated blood, money, food, clothes and — most significantly — their own sweat and time.

August 25, 2011 1 Photo  

Pretend it’s the year 2111.

August 14, 2011 3 Photos