While we all know that nothing is better for a sport or business than competition, it’s the one thing that makes everyone work harder. Competition creates diversity and allows for people or an organization to get better. If you want to see what diversity looks like, look no further than the options available for bass tournament anglers in the state of Texas. Today we’ll look at the many options anglers have to pick from.

While competition is great, it’s not always what’s best for everyone. Bass anglers in this part of the Ark-La-Tex are spoiled and offered a lot of different options to fish especially when it comes to team tournament trails.

The question is: “How do anglers decide what they want to fish?” Is it about the cost to enter, the payback or is it more about what lakes the circuit is going to? The answer is…. all the above! Anglers today have a plethora of circuits to fish with the big three being the Texas Team Trail, Bass Champs and the Brandon Belt Team Trail. Also available are the ABA Solo 150’s, along with the ABA Pro League.

The big three listed above are all team trails while the two ABA circuits are professional style events as anglers fish solo in both. In 2024, ABA eliminated all co-anglers in order to offer anglers an affordable pro-style tournament trail with low entry fees of $325 for the single day Pro League and $625 for the Solo 150’s which are two-day events.

ABA also offers the opportunity for anglers to advance to a national championship event called The Ray Scott, named after the man who was a huge supporter of ABA and started professional bass fishing. The Ray Scott National Championship will draw up to 200 boats on average each year and is held on some of the best lakes in the country.

For 2025, Texas Team Trail has increased its payback with the intent to draw more anglers. Of the big three, Brandon Belt has become the top dog with huge paybacks of $100,000 going to the winners of each event. Bass Champs continues to cater to its angler base with great paybacks as well.

So, with so many great tournament trails available, anglers are sitting down and looking at what trail best fits their needs. The lakes selected by the circuit are a huge factor because anglers want to fish bodies of water they are familiar with. They want to fish lakes that give them the best chance to not only win but get a check.

The other problem with too many circuits is the fact that there are basically only 4 weekends in a month and anglers can’t financially afford to fish every weekend. This is why most anglers will only choose to follow two circuits.

This means some tournament trails will and are experiencing lower participation numbers. The next question is, “ Can they all survive?” So far, the answer has been yes, but as we prepare to elect a new President, there is a lot of uncertainty with regards to the economy and what direction our country is headed.

From an angler’s perspective, we better hope and pray that the American people are not being fooled by a candidate who is feeding us a “word salad” and trying to sound intelligent while trying to convince the American public they can do the job. Because the choice we make this time will have a lasting affect that could have grave consequences and end our days of enjoying the sport we all love so much.

Till next time, good luck, good fishing and just because the hot summer days are behind us, protecting your skin is still important. Wear your sunscreen and good protective clothing every time you head out to your favorite lake.

Steve Graf

Angler’s Perspective

Southern Spirit Transmission plans a 324-mile transmission line across North Louisiana to Mississippi to Texas. Louisiana will not get any electricity from the line. A new state law protects landowners from expropriation in cases like this. For More Information, contact Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell at 318-676-7464

By Doug De Graffenried

Picture the Exxon logo. A Greyhound bus. The Coca-Cola bottle. The blue nose of the
President’s plane, Air Force One.

What do they have in common?

Only one thing: an industrial designer named Raymond Loewy.

Loewy was an immigrant who arrived in Manhattan in 1919, dreaming that New York
would be an elegant and stylish place. When he arrived, he was disappointed. What Loewy
found was a grungy product of the industrial age — “bulky, noisy and complicated.”

Loewy decided to change things, designing products that ranged from Lucky Strike
cigarette packs to International Harvester tractors. He did “more than almost any person in the
20th century to shape the aesthetic of American culture.”

During the Kennedy administration, Loewy complained to a friend in the White House
that the commander in chief’s airplane looked “gaudy.” Determined to improve it, he spent hours
on the floor of the Oval Office, cutting up shapes of blue paper along with President Kennedy.
Finally, he settled on a design for the nose of the plane that has been in place ever since.

So, what was Raymond Loewy’s secret? He sensed that consumers are torn between
two opposing forces: a curiosity about things that are new and a fear of anything that is too new.
As a result, consumers are attracted to products that are bold but also instantly comprehensible.
Loewy believed that people want things that are “Most Advanced, Yet Acceptable,” a phrase
which can be shortened to MAYA.

Think about how MAYA works in your own life. You probably find yourself drawn to the
joy of a new discovery. But at the same time, you want something familiar, because it makes
you feel safe. Think of the iPhone. When it was introduced in 2007, it was a thrilling new
discovery, and it launched a new era of smartphones. At the same time, it was not too radical for
customers to accept. The iPhone was familiar to people who had been introduced to iPod music
players back in 2001. Over the course of six years, consumers had become accustomed to their
distinctive shape, size and design. 

When the iPhone appeared, it was advanced. And yet, the iPod made it acceptable. It
was Most Advanced, Yet Acceptable. MAYA.

Raymond Loewy believed that people are torn between a curiosity about new things and
a fear of anything too new.

How is MAYA at work in your faith community? How is MAYA at work in your own life? As
you think about the ministry of Jesus, you discern a certain level of MAYA in the way He kept the
faith while pushing the envelope. 

Maybe a little MAYA in our community and in our churches would bring about a world
changing experience.

By Brad Dison

On November 10, 1951, Hugh Beaver, the managing director of a brewery, was part of an elite shooting party in Wexford County, in southeastern Ireland. Strict gun laws and expensive licensing in Ireland made owning firearms something of a status symbol. Hugh’s target on this hunt was the golden plover. They were not hunting the golden plover for food—it weighs only about seven ounces—they were hunting the birds purely for sport. The birds were about ten inches tall and flew really quickly which made them a difficult target.

As the shooting party walked slowly through the mud flats of the Slaney River, an area known as the North Slob, Hugh flushed out a golden plover. The bird shot into the air. There was no time to take careful aim. Hugh raised his shotgun to his shoulder and pulled the trigger. Blam!!! The bird did not fall but continued to appear as little more than a streak in the sky. Hugh had missed. The others in the shooting party playfully teased him for missing the shot, but Hugh reasoned that he missed the shot because the golden plover was the fastest game bird in Europe. Another member of the shooting party disagreed and said the red grouse was the fastest game bird in Europe. Despite their best arguments, there was no way to settle the good-natured dispute during the hunt.

Later that evening, the shooting party returned to their host’s house in the small town of Castlebridge. Their discussion over which was the fastest game bird in Europe continued. Hugh was certain that they would find some sort of reference book to settle the dispute. He and the other members of the shooting party searched all of the books they could locate but none contained the information they sought. The debate remained unresolved.

Two years later, Hugh was searching for a new way to promote the brewery that he managed when he remembered the unsolved debate from the shooting party. He was sure that there were other people who had similar questions which could be answered if only there was an authoritative reference book. He enlisted the help of twin brothers Norris and Ross McWhirter, who were running a fact-finding agency in London, to compile a reference book to solve such questions. In August 1954, Hugh distributed 1,000 free copies of the reference book to pubs in England and Ireland. The reference book was immensely popular. In 1955, the first commercially available copies of the reference book became available. By Christmas, the reference book topped the bestseller list in Britain. In 1956, the reference book became available in America where it sold approximately 70,000 copies. Since its inception, the reference book has sold more than 150 million copies in 100 countries and in 40 languages.

When Hugh joined that shooting party in the winter of 1951 there was no way he could have known that a good-natured dispute over which was the fastest game bird in Europe would lead to the creation of one of the best-selling books in publishing history. Since Hugh used the reference book as a promotional item for the brewery he managed, he named it after the brewery. He called it Guinness Book of World Records. The question that spawned the reference book, which is the fastest game bird in Europe, has never been included in any edition of the book because it focuses not on regional records, but on world records.

Sources:

1. Dan Lewis, “The Bird That Set the Record Straight,” Now I Know, October 21, 2019, accessed October 13, 2024, nowiknow.com/the-bird-that-set-the-record-straight/.

2. Eleonora Pilastro, “Why was the first Guinness World Records book first published?”, Guinness World Records, accessed October 13, 2024, guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2022/9/why-was-the-guinness-world-records-book-first-published-714607.

3. “Fastest Game Bird,” Guinness World Records, accessed October 13, 2024, guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/691273-fastest-game-bird.

None

This will be my final Observations. I have decided to hang up my pen, put away the typewriter and step away from the internet after 68 years of writing columns. The last almost-seven decades have been a great experience overall. I made a lot of people happy, a few not so happy, and some will be even happier still to learn this writes finis.

I am told I hold the state journalism record as the journalist who has written a column for the longest number of years.

The first column I wrote was while a Sophomore at Marthaville High School. That was October 1956, and the column was titled “‘Round Marthaville High School.” It appeared in The Natchitoches Times and the Natchitoches Enterprise. The column ran through March 13, 1958, when I graduated from high school.

While a student at Northwestern State College, I wrote a column in The Natchitoches Times titled “Notes of a Roving Reporter.” The first one appeared on the front page of The Times on June 20, 1963, and it continued regularly until July 25. It was then I changed the name to “Ballyhoo” and began writing about politics. I continued the column until Nov. 5, 1964.

As editor of the Northwestern newspaper, The Current Sauce, in 1963-64, I wrote a column entitled “From the Editor’s Easy Chair.”

I came to Many to run The Sabine Index and on Nov. 13, 1964, wrote my first column for the weekly parish newspaper I would eventually own. That column was also called “From the Editor’s Easy Chair.”

The title “Observations” was first used on Jan. 15, 1965. I changed how the heading looked over the years and eventually added a tagline, “News, Views, Facts and Opinions.”

After I sold The Index to the now-deceased Lovan Thomas who owned The Natchitoches Times and other papers, Tedd Dumas was nice enough to invite me to occupy an office in his radio station building. For several years, I wrote Observations for the BDC website and at that time, started an Observations Facebook page as well. When Tedd first urged me to write it for the BDC site, he said, “You write what you want.” I always did, and I appreciate the opportunity he gave me. We have been friends for many years, and that friendship continues today.

Sometime afterwards, Lovan approached me and asked if I would return to the pages of the Index and once again write Observations for the newspaper. We worked out an arrangement where each column published online would be published in the Index one week later, which seemed to work well. The first Observations column that ran in the Index again after my sale of the newspaper appeared on July 8, 2020. I want to thank Editor Daniel Jones and Jeremy Cheatwood at The Index for always being so helpful and going out of their way to do whatever needed to be done to assist in publication.

A few years ago, I started my own Observations site on the internet. Ryan Roberson, a native of Zwolle, was kind enough to always promote and run articles on his popular news aggregate Facebook page, The Cenla Report. He has always been there for us, and there are not words enough to tell him how much we appreciate all his efforts.

When my good friend, Valmore Byles, died some years back, I published a special issue of Observations about his life. It was posted on a Friday, and more than 7,000 persons read it. That was a record at the time, but after The Cenla Report started sharing Observations each week, readership rapidly increased, and persons from all over the world started reading. It was just amazing. Also, not long after The Cenla Report started posting the column, Observations was recognized by a premier news media and broadcasting platform service as “a shining example of excellence in the industry,” which we appreciated very much.

I am most grateful to the many persons who have read and supported Observations through the years. So many people supplied stories and photos, gave us tips on interesting happenings and provided encouragement. I will never forget all the folks who mentioned to me through the years what the column meant to them and how much they enjoyed it. I am deeply appreciative of each and every one. In many ways, writing the column has been a fun, enjoyable task and has brought a lot of fulfillment.

One of the added benefits to writing a column for such a long time are the wonderful letters, phone calls and, more recently, messages and texts I have received over the years. Only this week I received the following from Max Teasley Jr., son of one of the best friends I ever had, the late Max Teasley of Zwolle.

“Mr. Gentry, I retired at the ripe old age of 70 this June. I live on 23 acres outside of Mena, AR. My sister, Connie Leone of Zwolle, came to visit me this weekend. She told me she had talked to your wife, and she said your wife mentioned that my dad was in one of your recent columns. I quickly looked you up.

“While reading many of your postings, my mind was flooded with wonderful memories of growing up following my dad around and all his friends. Some of my fondest memories involved you, like the time you gave me my first and only ride in a Rolls Royce, the time we took a trip to Nashville, my first and only time I was backstage at the Ryman, and then we went to the Ernest Tubb Midnite Jamboree, and then on to WSM where we were interviewed by Ralph Emery. I don’t remember if it was you or Daddy that got locked out of the motel room in their underwear.

“That trip was a once in a lifetime experience, and I thank you so very much.

“As I’m sure you are aware, the older you get, the more you reflect on the past. I’m now going to be an avid reader of Observations, for they remind me of my raising and all the great men (such as yourself) who influenced me.

“Thanks, Max Jr.”

Throughout the last 68 years, I have attempted to always be a person of integrity and tell the truth. Any failures have been of mind, not of heart. I have always strived to keep the public good at heart while understanding that different people sometimes have very different approaches to address the situations and circumstances of life.

It takes a lot of work each week to do the necessary research, attend meetings and other functions, take photos and do all the things involved in putting a column together. At this stage in my life, I do not choose to devote that much time to the matter.

I would be remiss if I did not mention my wife, Laurie. I couldn’t have done it without her. After the column went online, for over 10 years she spent about a day of each week putting Observations together to be published electronically. Several times, we also published special lagniappe columns on Fridays, in addition to the usual Wednesday offerings. Whenever I needed her to, she would attend an event for me, cover it, take photos and write an article. After online publication each week, she would spend more time making sure the content got updated as appropriate and forwarded to the Index with all the photos for the following week’s newspaper. In the last six years, she did all that while fighting and by God’s grace, overcoming, two unrelated bouts of cancer. I can never thank Laurie enough. She is a jewel.

There are several things that stand out in my mind about writing a column. First of all, I tried to make it interesting to readers and tried to be a reliable, truthful disseminator of news and events. I included many, many items I hoped would serve to encourage people along life’s way.

Often my columns had to do with politics. I have always felt everyone has a duty and obligation to know what is going on in politics and in their government so they can make sound decisions when it is time to vote.

Thirdly, I deliberately used the column to help a lot of people in a lot of different ways. I did my best to always lend a helping hand to anyone who approached me with a worthy cause needing help. I cannot recall ever telling anyone “No.”

Observations has been an effective doorway to meet a lot of interesting people I would not have had the opportunity to meet otherwise, including a few who became treasured friends along the way. I owe to Observations my friendships with Country music legend Roy Acuff, Louisiana Governors Jimmie Davis and Edwin Edwards, and more recently, “Bridges of Madison County” author Robert James Waller, who stood beside me as Best Man when Laurie and I were married 18 years ago. There are many more, but time and space prevent them from being remembered just now.

For these and many more reasons too numerous to mention, I am blessed to have been lucky enough to write Observations and other columns for all these 68 years. There were weeks I missed writing a column, but in all those years, I figure I wrote somewhere north of 25,000 columns. I hope I helped some people along life’s highway. I hope I provided folks with useful and helpful information. I hope I provided a few laughs, and I hope I stimulated some thought. Most of all, I hope I have shared things that might have led someone to have a closer walk with God. A personal relationship with the Almighty is all that matters in this life, and all that will get you into the next one.

Back in the day, we old-time journalists were taught to use -30- to indicate the end of a story. I have used it all my journalistic life. And with this, I offer my final

— 30 —

Courtesy of Robert Gentry’s Observations newsletter, Sabine Parish, Louisiana

Sheriff Jayson Richardson will open the DeSoto Parish Sheriff’s Office Rifle Range to public residents in October. Saturday, Oct. 26 from 9 am – 4 pm will be reserved for DeSoto Parish hunters to have an opportunity to sight in their rifles for hunting season. Sheriff Richardson is pleased to offer this service to our residents free of charge in a safe environment. The service is designed to allow proper sighting without the worry of disturbing neighbors in nearby areas.

The Range will have shooting lanes open with targets at 100 yards. All stations will be equipped with a shooting bench and lead sled to assist hunters. Basic targets will be available at the range, but shooters are allowed to bring their own targets. You will need to bring your own weapons, ammunition, hearing and eye protection. Limited hearing and eye protection may be available at the range if needed. A Range Instructor as well as other deputies will be on site and available to assist citizens to ensure safety. Registration is not required, however the range will only be open to DeSoto Parish residents.

Location:
DeSoto Parish Training Facility
120 Sprocket Ln., Grand Cane, LA

Well, the day has arrived when one of the professional bass fishing organizations has made a major decision that will impact a lot of professional anglers both young and old. This decision was to ban forward-facing sonar. Finally, someone has grown a set and decided to level the playing field….or have they, and will it?

Let’s first look at who has decided to step up and save the sport of bass fishing as so many legendary pros think needs to be done. The NPFL (National Professional Fishing League) recently announced that forward-facing sonar will NOT be allowed for official practice or tournaments in 2025.

It will not be allowed for scouting (practice) or at any other time. It must be removed from your boat, along with the black box and the transducer. As one joyful pro angler said, “Time to go back to old school fishing!” No longer will anglers be able to look at bass on a screen like a version of Xbox and catch fish.

Is this good for the sport or is this decision holding the sport back? Well, the answer you get will depend upon what angler you ask. Majority of the old school guys will defend this decision and say “yes” it is good for the sport. Most compare this decision to the banning of the A-Rig (or umbrella rig) which many of the pros thought was an unethical way to catch bass by using more than one bait or hook. Old school anglers feel the same about forward-facing sonar in that it’s an unfair advantage for the anglers versus the fish.

I tend to agree with the old school anglers now that I’ve been a user of forward-facing sonar for the last two years and understand how it works. With this device, no fish is safe anywhere on any body of water. It allows anglers to select and zero in on the bigger bass in a school or swimming solo. This is not good for any fishery and could have lasting consequences as anglers do what I would call selective fishing by targeting larger bass.

Let’s face the facts with this electronic device. It has made champions out of anglers who have never won a tournament in their life. It’s become an equalizer or advantage for the younger or less experienced anglers that are fishing on the professional level. It has allowed them to not only compete but win with little to no experience compared to the guys that have paid their dues and taken years to acquire the knowledge they possess.

Nothing has leveled the playing field quicker for the younger generation of anglers more than forward-facing sonar. Anglers competing on the NPFL will have to rely on finding fish with more traditional ways by locating fish either by catching them or using side scan or down-imaging. No longer will they be able to just ride around on a body of water with three or more transducers and locate bass in real time.

While all organizations will not ban this new technology, there will be others that will follow. It’s still hard to understand how the three major electronic companies (Garmin, Humminbird and Lowrance) will move forward.

These companies will not sit on their hands and stop developing new technology. So, what’s next? Will the next advancement be banned as well? If so, how will these companies continue to survive without innovation and advancements in technology?

Here’s my perspective…. we can’t just continue to ban every new piece of technology that comes out! Tournament organizations need to adapt by altering the rules presently in place; rules that work for both boaters and co-anglers. At some point, they will have to figure out how to make forward-facing sonar and any future innovations work for the benefit of everyone.

But understand this, just because it’s banned on the professional level, does not mean it will be banned for the everyday angler or anglers fishing on the lower levels of competition.

I do agree that anglers on the professional level should be held to a higher standard; that’s why they’re called professionals. It’s the same reason Major League Baseball does not allow aluminum bats. Hitters would have too much of an advantage over pitchers and it would completely change the game.

But with regards to forward-facing sonar, only time will tell if it is doomed or if it will return. I personally think at some point, it will once again be allowed. Till next time, good luck, good fishing and take the time to enjoy some great fall fishing as lakes are less crowded now that hunting season is upon us.

Steve Graf

Angler’s Perspective

MANDEVILLE, La. – Keep Louisiana Beautiful (KLB) and Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser are pleased to announce the 29 Community Affiliates meeting the requirements for the 2024 KLB Circle of Excellence: Abbeville, Abita, Algiers, Ascension, Baker, Bossier, Calcasieu, Covington, Desoto, DeRidder, Eunice, French Quarter, Hammond, Jefferson, Lacombe, Lafayette, Livingston, Mandeville, Monroe, Ouachita, Shreveport, Slidell, St. James, St. John, St. Mary, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, West Baton Rouge, and West Monroe.

At the KLB State Conference, held October 23-24 at the Crowne Plaza Executive Center in Baton Rouge, each qualifying Affiliate will receive a Circle of Excellence plaque. They also received a $500 check at Affiliate regional meetings over the summer.

Annually, KLB honors Community Affiliates who meet specific benchmarks grounded in professional development, commitment to the Affiliate network, and the implementation of programming resulting in long-term community improvement.

“These communities are putting in the work necessary to clean up Louisiana,” said Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser. “I’m proud of their commitment and passion for litter prevention and community beautification.”

“These Affiliates are an inspiration and the backbone of KLB,” said Cabell Mouton, KLB Community Engagement and Affiliate Services Director. “Each and every day, they carry out our shared mission to fight litter in Louisiana and beautify our communities for an improved environment and better quality of life.”

There are 40 Community Affiliates in the KLB network, along with 12 University Affiliates. Being an Affiliate is a special mark of distinction and represents a commitment to improving community appearance, promoting citizen engagement and environmental stewardship, and implementing outcomes-based programs. Affiliation offers state recognition and sends a strong message to Louisiana citizens, as well as city and state leaders.

Information about the KLB State Conference and a link to register can be found online at KeepLouisianaBeautiful.org. This annual conference is the only forum for state leaders and those working in community improvement to discuss ways to resolve Louisiana’s litter problem and beautify our public spaces. Attendees will hear from over 40 experts on best practices for litter prevention, recycling, beautification, and sustainability efforts in Louisiana.

Those interested in becoming a KLB Affiliate can take a readiness assessment at KeepLouisianaBeautiful.org or contact Cabell Mouton at cmouton@keeplouisianabeautiful.org.

About Keep Louisiana Beautiful
Keep Louisiana Beautiful (KLB) is a state program under the Office of the Lieutenant Governor and the Department of Culture, Recreation, & Tourism promoting personal, corporate, and community responsibility for a clean and beautiful Louisiana. KLB supports local communities through programs and resources for litter education, prevention, removal, enforcement, beautification, recycling, waste reduction, and sustainability initiatives. KLB is affiliated with the national organization, Keep America Beautiful, and is supported by a robust statewide network of Community Affiliates and University Affiliates. Learn more at KeepLouisianaBeautiful.org.

By Doug De Graffenried

Over a decade ago, I flew to Kansas City for a preacher’s meeting. I had to rent a
car.

I had reserved the car months before the trip. I was expecting a mid-sized car. It
is funny that rental agencies have categories one step above the actual size of a car. A
mini-Cooper is described in their literature at a “mid-sized” car. By their logic, a go-cart
would be an “economy car.” I had reserved a “mid-sized” car. I was not expecting much.

When I arrived at the counter, my rental counter expert was “Karen.” Karen was
from Baton Rouge, and we at once began speaking Louisiana to each other. She could
even spell, “Natchitoches” and knew the proper pronunciation. It is always good to find
home folks when you are on the road. Karen pulled up my reservation and started
giggling. I asked her what was so funny.  She said that the car I was assigned was a
Mercury Grand Marquis. Now if you drive one of those, that is your choice, and I mean
no disrespect to your proper conservative car. I made an audible sigh at the rental
counter. She said, “Yeah, you don’t look like that kind of guy.”

I guess since she was from Baton Rouge and we were speaking Louisiana to
each other, she decided to do something nice.  She said, “Let me fix this reservation.”  A
couple of keystrokes on her computer and she said, “You reservation is in space 31.
Have a nice day.” She made sure I had a map to my destination and the name of the
best BBQ in Kansas City. I was certainly going to take that recommendation!

I walked out of the rental terminal to the parking lot. I found space 31. Karen had
change to Mercury Grand Marquis to a Ford Mustang! The Mustang was a convertible!
There is nothing like pulling up to a preacher’s meeting in a black Mustang convertible. I
enjoyed all three days of my workshop and driving that Mustang convertible.

When you are traveling, and you meet someone who understands” lagniappe”
isn’t it a blessing?

I think of heaven in those terms. Our faith in Christ gives us an abundant joy-filled
life here on earth and when we finally wear out these old bodies, God has lagniappe
planned. Heaven is one serious “upgrade.” I think Jesus takes pride in showing each of
us that place He has gone to prepare for us.

Think of the greatest experience you have had in life, and you have not even
touched the joy that is ours in Heaven. It is way better than a convertible Mustang at a
preacher’s meeting!

By Jeanni Ritchie

In Diary of a Wimpy Kid, the social pariah was one that had the “cheese touch” which originated from a piece of moldy Swiss cheese that lay on the Westmore Middle School basketball court for months.

It was the perfect hook for a 3rd grade science lesson on the ripening and bacteria growth of cheese.

First we created a poll chart for our favorite-tasting cheese with American and Cheddar taking the lead. Every cheese but blue cheese got at least one vote with the penicillium-ripened milk receiving a unanimous yuck from the classroom, teacher included.

Then we put each cheese sample in a separate sealed Ziploc bag and taped to one of the classroom’s windows receiving direct sunlight.

We charted their moldy process daily with the blue cheese turning a putrid green almost immediately. Much as a class excitedly checks on a class pet each morning, these 9-years excitedly checked on their cheese samples each day!

While we never sampled the cheeses once they went onto the window, October 9 is a day to celebrate #moldycheese with safe to eat varieties like Maytag blue, Roquefort, bleu, camembert, gorgonzola, and Stilton.

Just maybe don’t let anyone see you lest they accuse you of having the Cheese Touch!

Jeanni Ritchie is a cheese-loving contributing journalist from Central Louisiana who is not quite daring enough to try cheese with green on it. But you’re welcome to share your moldy
cheese experiences at jeanniritchie54@gmail.com.

Wednesday, October 02, 2024 1:23 PM

LANE CLOSURE: US 171 southbound near Mansfield, DeSoto Parish

The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development advises motorists that beginning on Monday, October 7, 2024 at 7:00 a.m., the outside (right) lane of US 171 southbound south of the City of Mansfield in DeSoto Parish will be closed.

This closure is scheduled to remain in place for approximately 21 days, and is necessary to allow a contractor for the DeSoto Parish Police Jury to conduct improvements at CSJ Private Drive.

The lane closure will be located just south of Bedsole Lane, about a mile south of the City of Mansfield.

Restrictions/Permits: N/A

Alternate Route: N/A

This work will be performed WEATHER PERMITTING.

Safety reminder:

DOTD appreciates your patience and reminds you to please drive with caution through the construction site and be on the lookout for work crews and their equipment. Remember to leave plenty of room between you and the vehicle in front of you.

Area residents should exercise caution when driving, walking, or biking near an active construction zone.

Additional information:

Call 511, visit 511la.org, or download the Louisiana 511 mobile app for additional information. Out-of-state travelers may call 1-888-ROAD-511 (1-888-762-3511). Motorists may also monitor the LA DOTD website at dotd.la.gov, by selecting MyDOTD, or by visiting the DOTD Facebook and Twitter pages.

By Brad Dison

In 1962, 24-year-old junk dealer Luigi Lo Rosso was clearing out the cellar of a villa on the southern Italian island of Capri. As with anyone who is tasked with this sort of cleaning, Luigi had three basic categories of items; things to keep, things to throw away, and, most difficult of all, things he was unsure of. Luigi usually took only a few seconds to decide where to place each item. Then, Luigi found a rolled-up canvas. He quickly unrolled the painting and glanced at a distorted image of a woman. Luigi noticed a signature in the top left corner but did not recognize the artist’s name. As quickly as he had unrolled it, he rolled it back up. He placed it in the keep pile and kept sifting through the items in the cellar. Once finished with the task, Luigi returned to his home in Pompeii with the items he had deemed good enough to keep. He sold some of the items, usually “for next to nothing,” but not the distorted paining. He bought a cheap frame to hold the painting and mounted it to the wall. Luigi’s wife was less than impressed.

Two years later, Luigi and his wife had a son they named Andrea. As the boy grew up, he was always aware of the painting because his parents argued about it regularly. There were times when the family considered getting rid of the hideous painting. They considered throwing the painting away. “My mother didn’t want to keep it,” Andrea explained. “She kept saying it was horrible.” For some reason, the painting remained there on the wall of the Lo Rosso home. One day, Andrea’s aunt gave Andrea an encyclopedia of art history. Andrea immediately thought about the horrible painting on their wall. He flipped through the book and found a similar painting of a distorted lady. It appeared that the painting shown in the encyclopedia was of the same lady in the painting that had hung on their wall for decades. The paintings were not identical but had noticeable differences. The title of the painting in the book was “The Buste de Femme.” Andrea learned that the painting was a distorted image of the artist’s mistress, a French photographer and painter named Dora Maar. Andrea looked at the top left corner and realized that the signatures were almost identical. Andrea kept telling his father that the paintings were similar, and the signatures were similar, but Luigi remained unconvinced.

As the years turned into decades, Andrea remained curious about the painting. In 1999, the painting Andrea saw in the book, “the Buste de Femme,” was stolen from a luxury yacht belonging to Saudi billionaire Sheikh Abdul Mohsen Abdulmalik Al-Sheikh. Andrea thought about the painting that still hung on his family’s wall. Twenty years passed. Then, in March 2019, after a four-year search, Arthur Brand, known as the “Indiana Jones of the art world,” found and returned the stolen painting. Again, Andrea thought of the painting that his father had found all those years ago.

Andrea took the reins and sought the advice of the experts at the Arcadia Foundation, a company which specializes in attributions, restorations, and valuations of art works. Cinzia Altieri, a handwriting expert working at the Arcadia Foundation, confirmed the signature on the painting. After an intense investigation, Luca Marcante, president of the Arcadia Foundation, concluded that the painting that Luigi found amongst the junk in that cellar in 1962, which hung on Luigi’s wall in a cheap frame for more than six decades, is an original, authentic painting by Pablo Picasso. Its value has yet to be determined.

Sources:

1. Angela Giuffrida, “Painting found by junk dealer in cellar is original Picasso, experts claim,” The Guardian, October 1, 2024, accessed October 2, 2024, theguardian.com/artanddesign/2024/oct/01/painting-found-by-junk-dealer-in-cellar-is-original-picasso-experts-claim.

2. “Stolen Picasso portrait of Dora Maar found after 20 years,” BBC, March 26, 2019, Accessed October 2, 2024, bbc.com/news/world-europe-47704194.

Kenneth Lee Mitchell
October 23, 1949 — September 30, 2024
Service: Thursday, October 10 at 2 pm at Bethel Cemetery in Logansport

UPDATED 9:10AM on OCT. 01st

Regarding the missing persons post on James Bradburry: Mr. Bradburry was safely located late last night and is now home. As per usual, the previous post containing personal information has been removed as to respect the individuals privacy. We thank our community for widely sharing the post in an effort to help investigators in this case.

The attached report displays all individuals booked into the DeSoto Detention Center between the dates of SEPT. 23 – SEPT. 29 (1 week) and includes arrests made by DeSoto Parish Sheriff’s Office (DPSO), Mansfield Police Department (MPD), and Louisiana State Police (LSP.) All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Booking photos for each, unless they have bonded out, are readily available in the DeSoto Parish Sheriff App on iPhone or Android. The attached image(s) can be clicked and enlarged for view.

*With regard to the booking on 02/02/24, this individual was transferred into our facility from another due to charges earlier in the year.

By Doug De Graffenried

Back “in the day” I was a small boy attending Vacation Bible School. I remember one of the thrills was learning how to say the name of the book, “Deuteronomy.” When you can say, “Deuteronomy” you are a big boy! I also remember making crafts for my mother. If you take four small boxes of matches, put them in a square pattern, glue two old fashion school bathroom tiles to them, you have a matchbook holder, and your mom will be pleased. We made that on Monday and then on Tuesday, we actually made “ash trays” for our parents. Remember this was Vacation Bible School, 1960’s style.

Fortunately, we don’t make ashtrays in Vacation Bible School anymore. Come to think of it, we don’t even sell ashtrays in stores anymore. That was one whole “section” of the W.T. Grant stores. Ashtrays and cigarette lighters have vanished from cars too. Things have changed for the better I suppose. I do have memories of filling my dad’s cigarette lighter with fluid and then testing the lighter. Do you know what happens to flannel pajamas soaked in lighter fluid? I do!

I wanted to make the point that it isn’t a long journey from ubiquitous to extinct. (I wrote that sentence just to prove I actually attended graduate school.) Think of all the things we used to have around all the time that are gone. Rotary dial phones, cars without shoulder belts, typewriters, mimeograph machines, chalkboards, hymnals (they are vanishing), pure heroes and heroines, and Sunday mornings with nothing happening but church.

Even the mysterious thing called a relationship has changed as “perfumed loved letters” have given way to “text messaging.” Keeping up in a changing world has become ever more challenging, especially in church life. One of the great mantras of church life is, “we have never done it that way before.” I think we should say over some of the things we do, “we should never do it that way AGAIN.”

So, what do you miss that is gone? Do you really miss outhouses or restaurants where there were smoking and non-smoking sections? Do you really miss a humid non air conditioned living room and sitting by the old Victrola. I didn’t think so.

Change is the only constant in life. You are either changing (metabolism) or you are dead. My hope for you is that you are always changing in God’s direction!

Doug de Graffenried is Pastor of Trinity Methodist Church in Ruston.

You can contact Doug at dougsponderings@gmail.com

There is absolutely no better feeling for an angler than when he puts a plan together and it becomes reality. Tournament bass fishermen spend countless hours fishing and scouting in order to try and formulate a game plan that he hopes comes to fruition. Hopefully this plan will either put him in the winner’s circle or in position to cash a check. Today we’ll wrap up and put a bow on the 2024 Texas ABA Pro League Series. 

This time of year (September & October) is when so many bass tournament organizations schedule their championships. ABA (American Bass Anglers) held their two-day championship on Lake Sam Rayburn on September 14th & 15th. This is a tournament where only anglers that qualified could fish this event.  

Let’s first start with how practice went and took place on Thursday and Friday before the tournament began on Saturday. Thursday and Friday’s practice was not too bad but was pretty much hit and miss as it was difficult to put any kind of pattern together. But one thing I felt I could count on was where I was catching most of my fish, which was on main lake points. 

The lake level was pretty much pool level or about 3 inches low while the bass were very shallow and could be caught with a couple of techniques….flipping a soft plastic trickworm or casting a spinnerbait. Turns out, every fish I weighed for both days actually came on one particular spinnerbait. Now this played right into my hands as I would consider myself a shallow water angler.

I was able to catch a lot of bass on the trickworm, but catching quality was an issue. I just wasn’t able to get a big bite when flipping cypress trees or anything else. They were good solid keeper fish (2 pounders), but not fish that would get me a check. Then on day 2 of practice I spent most of the day with one specific spinnerbait in my hand.

My blade of choice (as some anglers call a spinnerbait) was one that I have had great success with especially on the Red River and Sam Rayburn. This is a quarter ounce white Hummdinger with a small gold willow leaf blade and a small silver Colorado blade. But I think the real magnet for this spinnerbait was the 3-inch paddle tail trailer I used in a ghost shad color. Turns out, it matched the baitfish the bass were feeding on perfectly.

Not only did it catch fish, but every bass I brought to the scales both days came on this one spinnerbait. So many fish were caught on it, that I had to put on a new one for day 2. Twice I had to replace the back blade on this spinnerbait because they were breaking off as the wire just got so weak from all the fish I caught on it. 

I finished 7th overall with over 28 pounds of bass during the two-day event, with 16 lbs. on day one and 13 lbs. on day two. Of course, there’s always the one that got away as I broke off a bass over 5 pounds on day one on of all things, a topwater bait called a Zara Spook. 

Turns out, it was my own fault as the line on this reel was over a year old. This is why fresh line is so important on tournament day! This one mistake cost me leading the tournament on day one and left me with a day two deficit of just over 2 pounds.  

But in the end, it was all good as I wrapped up the 2024 ABA Pro League as runner-up for Angler of the Year. Just the fact that at the age of 63, I proved that even without being a forward-facing sonar expert, you can still compete with those that are. Chalk one up for the older guys! 

Till next time, good luck, good fishing, and take the time to enjoy some of the best fishing of the year as bass start their fall migration feeding period. 

Steve Graf

Angler’s Perspective