by JEN BIUNDO Javier Archuleta (left) and his friend Robert Ramon, both 18, exchange snowball fire in front of Kyle City Hall. Though the temperatures hovered just above freezing and the snow melted as soon as it hit the ground, the boys were able to scrape up ammunition that accumulated on car wind...

Buda Bits by SANDRA GRIZZLE In late 1983, a group of residents from Buda and the surrounding area began making plans for a non-profit association that might benefit the community and older citizens in particular. An organizational meeting was held Jan. 24, 1984, at the Buda Primary School. A nine-me...

STAFF REPORTS Sherri Tibbe, Beth Smith and Ray Bryant dish out food last weekend at the “Empty Bowls” fundraiser in Buda. (Courtesy photo) The “Empty Bowls Project” in Buda last weekend raised $1,900 for the Hays County Food Bank, with about 100 local residents turning out to the event. Casa Alde wa...

Check it out by NEVA LOCKETT Whodunit? The vicar is found stabbed in the locked library with only the African parrot as a witness. Whether your fancy is tickled by the cozy village mystery with a wonderful cross section of English or American eccentrics trailing red herrings, gritty urban police pro...

It’s About Thyme by CHRIS WINSLOW This has been a week of frequently asked questions about tomatoes. Gardeners are anxious to get started, but as we know from the chilly conditions this week, Mr. Winter hasn’t released his grip quite yet. When is it safe to plant tomatoes? The simple answer is: when...

This Week in Texas History by BARTEE HAILE Austinites packed the opera house on Mar. 1, 1890 to debate the pros and cons of the most ambitious public-works project in the history of the state capital – turning the Colorado River into a source of cheap electricity. The bright idea of damming the Colo...

Mountain City Montage by PAULINE TOM Nancy Waddell sends word to all Mountain Cityians who paw’sd to help PAWS: Whew! After making seven trips to PAWS with the car/truck loaded down - we ended up donating over 700 lbs of cat and dog food and over 250 lbs of litter and way too many “extras” to even m...

Odds & Ends by MYRTLE HEIDEMAN What a beautiful Sunday afternoon. Almost makes you want to go outside and wash windows. Who am I kidding? Anything but that! Monday was the 22nd of Feb. If my father were still here and the soil was dry enough, he would hitch Kate and Beck (his mules) to the one row p...

by JIM CULLEN Putting technology to work to do their talking were (left to right) Hays High School’s Kristen Salazar and Tobias Elementary’s Chris Segura, assisted by Simon Middle School student teacher Amber Green. Kristen’s Voice Output communication device is a Chat MS and Chris was introducing h...

STAFF REPORTS The Lehman High School Band will have five soloists and a woodwind quintet competing at the State Solo and Ensemble Contest later this year. (back, left to right) trumpet soloists James Vera, Blake Vajgert, Edwin Guadarrama, Cecilia Ortiz; (front, left to right) multiple percussion sol...