Opinion

A hot time in the old town

Tuesday, July 20, 2004

Musicians and music lovers around the area will be glad to hear that Evie Caldwell in McCook was back at the keyboard for a few songs Sunday at Memorial United Methodist Church, and hopes to be at full speed in time for the start of school this August.

The leader of the Midland Pride Chorus of Sweet Adelines, Evie missed out on the group's main performance in Washington D.C. over the Memorial Day weekend at the dedication of the World War II memorial.

She injured both shoulders after collapsing from an apparent combination dehydration, fatigue and perhaps other factors after her plane arrived in Baltimore for the big weekend.

But anyone who knows Evie knows she wouldn't let a little thing like the need for surgery keep her from sing-ing.

She had to turn directing duties over to her assistant director, but Evie, her arm in a sling, rejoined the women's chorus on stage for a number of other performances a-round Washington before she returned to Nebraska for surgery in Omaha.

It's only a few weeks until school starts, but I'm betting my neighbor will be back to full speed in plenty of time.


McCook is now "Nebraska's Hot Spot," thanks to a recent "slogo" contest, but a local booster thinks heat is a great way to bake cookies.

Keying off the old CB radio moniker, "Cookie Town," this creative entrepreneur thinks "all we need is a big cookie to help out with our identity."

He thinks a large cookie, or several cookies on poles at Norris and D Street would help promote that identity. Perhaps, he says, some of our leading local companies could use the cookie platforms to promote their products, say a sprinkler system going around on one, another with a train, perhaps cattle on another.

"Below the cookies, the smaller merchants could advertise their products and locations on a hanging cookie," he said.

Other suggestions including an electronic account of the day's headlines, American and Nebraska flags and other symbols.

"We need to make space to accommodate the shoe stores, music stores, phone companies, bakeries, liquor store, food establishments and car dealers --now there is another idea, a new car from each of the car companies traveling around in one layer of the cookies.

"We might need eye glasses to focus the sun and moon on a special spot that spells 'McCook.' This could be on a large emblem of Nebraska. You know, we are the heart of Southwest Nebraska."

And, his ideas don't stop there:

"I can imagine all kinds of possiblities for the Cookie Town symbol. We could fasten swings or seats to the bottom of the moving cookies and give rides on Saturday night while a street dance was going on underneath."

Calling himself "a dreamer," the idea-guy allows that "there will probably be some of your readers who come up with dumb ideas and they will have to be screened out, but I'm sure we can work out most of the details over cookies and coffee."


It won't be long until Friday nights around the Gazette are abuzz with calls, faxes and e-mails with fall sports reports, but last Friday night, dropping off photos from the McCook Football League games, I was the only one in the building.

I have one of the faster Macintosh computers on the market, but it seems that any electronic procedure takes longer than it should.

While I was waiting for the photos to download, I vaguely remember hearing someone rattling around in the back room.

I didn't think much about it until I shut down the computer and prepared to leave, expecting to chat with whoever was in the back shop on my way out.

No one was there.

Monday, one of my co-workers said she was busy preparing an ad one night, alone, about 11:30 when she heard the unmistakable sound, coming from the newsroom or publisher's office, of someone turning pages, as if they were reading a newspaper.


But I guess noises aren't so bad -- I've heard of one other newspaper in the state where the staff has received calls to come down to the paper late at night and shut off the press.

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