Being in the newspaper business in a somewhat small town, I’m greeted by readers pretty much everywhere I go. They are my customers. I am theirs. And since I’m a creature of habit, I see many of these folks on a regular basis. My shopping trips typically involve conversations about issues in the community and questions such as “why don’t you find out about or do so-in-so or write about xyz.”

I’m grateful for the suggestions and feedback. Quite frankly, mining for fresh material each week isn’t always easy. Fifty-two weeks in a year and I typically miss two – maybe three – columns ...