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The wife who wanted a floor

There was a wife who wanted a floor. I asked her what for, she wanted a floor. “I want a new floor ‘cause the carpet is ratty. It’s driving me batty, the carpet’s so ratty. The carpet is ratty ‘cause your boots were all muddy. We’re not poor and I want a new floor.” “New flooring is silly when rain willy-nilly comes through the holes in the roof,” said I. “So hire then some roof men, we’ll have a new roof then,” said the wife who wanted a floor. “I know we have money,” I told my wife Honey, “but I’ll not hire it done. I was the young man who ...

DeWine regrets he signed sports gambling legislation

While Frank Sinatra sang about “regrets, I’ve had a few, but then again, too few to mention,” Mike DeWine was quick to mention his biggest regret during his seven years as governor: signing the bill to legalize sports gambling. In a 60-minute interview earlier this week, DeWine said: “On the negative side, I’ve been pretty open about saying that if I had to do it over again I would not have signed the gaming bill. I don’t think I fully appreciated how many millions of dollars these gaming companies would spend coming into the state of Ohio to get more and more people ...

A four-cat night

It is five o’clock in the morning. The temperature on the more reliable of my several outside thermometers (I collect thermometers like I collect everything else) reads 18 degrees below zero. (Son Seed claimed 22 below at his house.) We have central heating but we don’t turn it on. The temperature inside our dome home was 63 when I first got up at 3 a.m. to toss a couple more logs into our venerable Brunco woodstove. After 40-some years, we still heat with firewood. But we supplement with cats. Sleeping in our recliners is a habit Honey and I gradually acquired because laying ...

Can the U.S. solve its electricity crisis?

As America moves into 2026, consumers are looking for relief from an ongoing “affordability crisis.” While prices for some key items have mercifully held steady—or even come down—other costs such as rent, dining out, and hospital visits continue to climb unabated. U.S. electricity—the one sector that affects all consumer industries in some way—is also racing upward. America’s electricity costs have jumped 32% in just the past five years. That’s a major problem for our new digital economy. Why are electricity prices rising so rapidly? Soaring power demand—particularly ...

Communities keep momentum in fight against addiction

As we begin 2026, I am filled with optimism for the progress Ohio is making in the fight against addiction. Across our state, communities are working together to save lives, support families, and restore hope. This year, we have both the responsibility and the opportunity to build on that momentum. This past year marked a turning point for the OneOhio Recovery Foundation, the nonprofit organization created by our state’s leaders to manage and invest 55 percent of the funds received from the national opioid settlements. Through its first cycle of regional grants, the Foundation awarded ...

Acton, Ramaswamy running mates play vital campaign role

In Ohio, the lieutenant governor doesn’t have many responsibilities. The lieutenant governor becomes governor if the latter leaves office. Also, the second-in-charge is usually a sounding board for the governor and if the governor chooses to, that person can be appointed as an administrative department head. If the governor doesn’t want anything to do with the lieutenant governor, the latter can spend most of his or her time collecting a paycheck and nothing more. But selecting a lieutenant governor running mate is always a big deal even though the most important quality that ...