It can be a harsh world out there. I don’t know about you all, but there are days when I’ve just had too much. I do not want to watch the news anymore. I do not want to think about one more problem or how to solve it. I just want some comfort. And in those times, do I turn to a bar? No…I turn to burgers. A great cheeseburger is the ultimate comfort food. So this week, I sought to drown my sorrows in the ultimate cheeseburger. I found the perfect place. Bluff Burgers & Brews, affectionately known to locals as “Triple B’s”. I chose to eat lunch there because I really didn’t want to deal with people. I

Poplar Bluff High School senior Zain Siddiqui was awarded the $1,000 Michael D. Laseter Memorial Scholarship, which is limited to a senior planning to major in the medical field. Siddiqui, 18, has been accepted into the pre-med program at Washington University in St. Louis. Dr. Laseter was a physician specializing in internal medicine at Kneibert Clinic for over 20 years. After retiring from medicine in 1994, he taught physiology at PBHS on a voluntary basis for five years. Since 2008, the memorial scholarship in his name has been awarded to a student each year.

Poplar Bluff High School senior Lydia Keller has been awarded $2,300 in scholarships for her achievements both in and outside of the classroom. Keller, 18, received the Mary Lynn Wolpers Scholarship, which was established in 2007 for graduating seniors. She also received the Poplar Bluff School Foundation Scholarship reserved for a past or present graduate planning to become a teacher. Keller will study early childhood education at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro.

UPDATE: The state-ranked Bears move to 15-0 after a 7-4 win over Neelyville Tigers and secure the OFC Title unless a make-up game is scheduled with East Carter. It was not hard to notice a man with a blue VC baseball cap holding a radar gun at the games. The Greenville pitchers and team was being scouted during the game by Valle Catholic. Trey McDaniel pitched 6 innings, striking out 10 batters, 6 hits and 4 walks on 3 earned runs. Blakeney Kearbey (who had pitched 7 innings in Monday's game versus Clearwater) came in as the closer in the last inning facing only 3 batters with a strikeout and two ground outs. According to the radar gun, Kearbey's fastball

Duane Lester, of the Missouri Torch, has written an excellent article exposing an exchange between a citizen and Missouri State Board of Education member, Michael W. Jones, during a hearing on April 20th, in Jefferson City. The hearing was mandated by HB 1490 which calls for the state board to hear testimony on the progress of the 1490 state standards work groups, as well as public comment. Parent and Common Core State Standard Initiative opponent John Beckett is seen on the video screen as he testifies before the state board in the adjacent room. The Common Core opponents were put in the room next to the actual hearing room where they had to watch the testimony on a big screen while waiting to be led

Anytime there is a lot of buzz about a new business, especially a restaurant, I get curious. I’m always wondering if the buzz is being created because it is brand new? Or is the food really that good? Any new restaurant, especially in a fairly small community like Poplar Bluff, is going to get heavy traffic at first. The question is, once people have tried it out, will they keep coming back? So I had to try out Taco Taco Fast Fresh Mex, a new restaurant opened close to the intersection of Highway 53 and Highway 142. One of the first things to intrigue me was the location. There aren’t a whole lot of restaurant choices on that side of