Historically, Harrisonville has a reputation of being a hard place for builders to do business. Whether it is residential or commercial properties, the list of projects that have been killed or over-regulated is lengthy.

It took me until the very end of the summer, but I finally completed a task that has been haunting me for nearly a year: I finally saw a baseball game while I was on a baseball trip.

I remember a couple years back a banner at a local high school football game proclaimed something to the effect of “There are two seasons: football season and getting ready for football season.”

On Monday, as I was driving to work, I saw some kids standing by the street waiting for their buses on the first day of school. These were young ones, a couple with mom nearby, and you could see the eagerness and excitement in those kid’s eyes.

I can’t speak for other places, but I will say with some confidence that after watching the procedures in Cass County last week, I feel pretty confident that the safeguards in place seem to make our elections about as secure as possible.

I was in good company over the weekend as I shopped for clothes. Although Missouri has offered a “tax-free weekend” for several years, I never paid much attention to it, after all it’s designed for back-to-school shopping and the like.

I assume many of you are like me and very happy the primary elections are next Tuesday, if for no other reason than we can end the continuous assault on our senses by politicians pleading their case for why they should be elected.

One thing we all have in common is as we go through life we have to make behavior modifications, which is really complex way of saying we have to change or habits or in some cases, break bad habits.

I won’t say I watched with horror, but I did watch in amazement as the story surrounding the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump developed Saturday evening.

As odd as it may sound, I am glad the holiday is over and we can get somewhat back to normal. I love July 4, which is immediately preceded by the anniversary of my occupation of the earth as it makes its annual trek around the sun.

Thinking about growing up, one of my favorite holiday treats always came on July 4, which is homemade ice cream.

For the second time this year, I took a special trip to see a baseball game where I did a bunch of stuff, except see a baseball game.

Happy Summer everybody. June 20 is the day we can officially declare the summer has begun.

I’m sure you’ve seen those TV commercials mocking “young homeowners turning into their parents.” Mostly they are good for a chuckle, but it does serve as a reminder of how much of what we learn and act are based on what we learn from those who raise us.

As I prepare to turn another year older this week, I keep battling how to keep myself youthful. Or at least attempt to do so. Or at least attempt to feel youthful at times, especially physically.

If you were playing “Jeopardy” would you know the answer to the following question: “Ina Garten’s show was called this, also an Ava Gardner title role?” I sure didn’t and that really annoys me.

I am not exactly sure where the line is between fandom and geekdom, but apparently, I have managed to cross it.

School is out, summer is on the horizon and I ponder the fact we are just seven months away from Christmas. While reflecting on that reality, some other assorted thoughts come to mind.

The delight right now is the greening of the grass and trees, the flowers out in bloom and one of my personal favorite parts of spring – bird watching.

There are a lot of things I don’t do well, however, there is one skill which I think I am better than the average bear in performing: buying gifts.

We got our first taste of tornado season over the weekend. Reports were one or more funnels may have blown by or touched down in Bates County, but fortunately, there didn’t appear to be any major damage or injuries.

The great debate seems unending: what is your favorite season? No, I’m not trying to choose between baseball or football season nor duck or deer hunting; no, I refer to spring, summer, fall and winter.

I sometimes think there should be a narrator making commentary on my life. I watch TV shows like “The Wonder Years” and “The Goldbergs” and there is that voice opening and closing episodes summarizing the points of life learned during the previous half hour.

As “Field of Dreams” taught us, if you build it, he will come. The often misquoted line of “If you build it, they will come,” makes more sense when it comes to girls or women’s sports.

It is our birthday. This week’s paper marks our 365th issue, which means it marks our seventh anniversary.