Showing posts with label Paintsville. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Paintsville. Show all posts

Thursday, January 9, 2020

Oh, Kentucky

Bad jobs news from Shelbyville. Here was the best of the good from last year.


OK, now that the Christmas19 hustle and bustle are behind us, it's time to take it easy. For example, it's a perfect time to start thinking about your 2020 vacations, because this year's visitor's guide is out!

Per Angela Turner's reporting in the local Times-Tribune, there are at least three good reasons that Corbin is excited about its upcoming third World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) event in the last three years: One, the 2018 bash broke attendance records for The Corbin Arena; two, some wrestling fans reportedly say the scheduled card is more appealing than what Rupp Arena gets for Monday Night Raw, and, three, there's the building's improved sound quality.

Living in these troubled times demands creativity sometimes, and Marshall County got some, and now it has a Caring Community Center. Good play by play from Channel 6's Chris Yu.


Ready for the times to get better? Well, Danville's Advocate-Messenger says Kentucky's waiving testing fees for the General Education Diploma (GED) portends positively: "If just 50 more people earn their GEDs over the next two years as a result of this change, that could mean $420,000 more in annual income for some of Boyle County’s poorest residents."

Hallelujah, these people seem to love Burnside so! Christopher Harris on Somerset's Commonwealth Journal has a happy, fun story from the first city council meeting of the new year.

It's like we never said goodbye to Michael Scott and all of the gang. The Office! is coming to The Kentucky Center.

Thursday, December 19, 2019

Oh, Kentucky




And, actually, we might be up to 94 parades, if this Daily Mail story--"Decline of the town that coal built ..."--is correct that Lynch was hosting one this month. But the town Facebook page that Ann Schmidt mentions appears to be on the fritz, and there is no specific date for the parade provided.

So, for now, I'm saying 93 confirmed Christmas19 parades: Sharpsburg, Nov. 9; Owensboro, Nov. 23; Central City, Nov. 24; Lebanon and Louisville, Nov. 29;  Greensburg, Guthrie and Pikeville, Nov. 30; Boyce, Dawson Springs, Murray, Salem and Sebree, Dec. 1; Bardstown, Dec. 5; Clay, Fredonia, Harrodsburg, Irvine/Ravenna, London, Maysville, Monticello, Pineville, Richmond, Smiths Grove, Stanton and Trenton, Dec. 6; Arlington, Barbourville, Beattyville, Berea, Bloomfield, Bowling Green, Bromley/Ludlow, Brownsville, Cadiz, Calvert City, Carlisle, Clinton, Columbia, Corbin, Cynthiana, Danville, East Bernstadt, Frankfort, Glasgow, Grayson, Greenville, Hawesville, Henderson, Horse Cave, Inez, Lawrenceburg, Leitchfield, Lexington, Madisonville, Marion, Middlesboro, Morgantown, Munfordville, Murray, Owingsville, Paducah, Paintsville, Prestonsburg, Rabbit Hash, Raceland, Russell Springs, Salyersville, Scottsville, Shelbyville, Somerset ("highlighted by football team's appearance"), Trenton, Versailles, Whitley City and Winchester, Dec. 7; Auburn, Georgetown and New Haven, Dec. 8; Augusta, Benton, Burkesville, Burnside, Campbellsville, Cave City, Edmonton, Elkton, Franklin, Hopkinsville, Louisa, Mayfield, Providence, Tollesboro, Williamsburg and Woodburn, Dec. 14, and Cerulean, Dec. 21!

In Prospect, they discovered gold--in a Salvation Army red kettle outside the Kroger.








Elizabethtown's News-Enterprise weighs in on Vine Grove's city-hall crisis.

Cory Claxon in The Morehead News looks back on the busy first fourth months of the local Laughlin Health Building.

Sunday, December 15, 2019

Final Kentucky High School Football Rankings

So here's what happened in the State Finals last week:

In Class 1A, Pikeville crushed Paintsville 43 to 0.

In Class 2A, Mayfield was called for pass interference on the last play of the game.  I thought it was a terrible call.  Somerset was given an untimed down, and threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to beat the Cardinals, 34 to 31.

In Class 3A, Belfry beat Bell County 30 to 20 -- thereby giving Pike County two state titles on the same day.  (In case you are wondering, Pikeville beat Belfry 22-21 in the regular season.

In Class 4A, Johnson Central made Boyle County pay for its charge that folks in Johnson County couldn't count to 100.  Johnson Central won the Game of the Year, 21 to 20.  According to MaxPreps, Johnson Central is also the best public high school football team not in Louisville.  So good for them.

In Class 5A, Covington Catholic had a harder time than I expected, but beat Lexington Douglass 14 to 7.

In Class 6A, no one -- except for Male fans and reporters who cover high school football in Kentucky -- was surprised that Louisville Trinity crushed Louisville Male 28 to 6.  The Shamrocks can put their 2019 football trophy next to their 2019 basketball trophy.  On behalf of everyone who cares about KHSAA athletics, I hereby concede all future championships in both football and boys' basketball to the Shamrocks.  I only ask that instead of actually playing in the events, they put the trophies on their shelf and then spend their time trying to beat teams from other states.  Meanwhile, the rest of the KHSAA can play out the football and basketball seasons without interference from the Shamrocks to see who is the second-best team in the state.  That would have to be more exciting than what we do now, which is play for months to prove something that everyone knows -- that Trinity has built an athletic program that no one else in the KHSAA can match.

Ironically, Trinity did not come in first place in the MaxPrep rankings.  The Shamrocks did lose to Male (in the regular season), and Indianapolis Cathedral crushed them 28-7.  So MaxPreps ranked them second behind Covington Catholic.  Here is the final top 20 for 2019 (private schools in italics) (state champions in bold):

1.  Covington Catholic:  15-0
2.  Louisville Trinity:  13-2
3.  Louisville Male:  14-1
4.  Johnson Central:  15-0
5.  Boyle County:  14-1
6.  Lexington Douglass:  14-1
7.  Pikeville:  14-0
8.  North Hardin:  13-1
9.  Belfry:  11-3
10.  Louisville St. Xavier:  8-5
11.  Somerset:  14-1
12.  Bowling Green:  9-4
13.  Louisville Manual:  9-3
14.  Lexington Christian:  10-2
15.  Louisville Fern Creek:  8-4
16.  Louisville DeSales:  10-4
17.  Mayfield:  13-2
18.  Bell County:  14-1
19.  Ashland Blazer:  10-3
20.  Owensboro:  12-2

Monday, December 9, 2019

Oh, Kentucky

Catching up from the weekend ...

















Christmas parades: Sharpsburg, Nov. 9; Owensboro, Nov. 23; Central City, Nov. 24; Lebanon and Louisville, Nov. 29;  Greensburg, Guthrie and Pikeville, Nov. 30; Boyce, Dawson Springs, Murray, Salem and Sebree, Dec. 1; Bardstown, Dec. 5; Clay, Fredonia, Harrodsburg, Hopkinsville, Irvine/Ravenna, London, Maysville, Monticello, Pineville, Richmond, Smiths Grove, Stanton and Trenton, Dec. 6; Arlington, Barbourville, Beattyville, Berea, Bloomfield, Bowling Green, Bromley/Ludlow, Brownsville, Cadiz, Calvert City, Carlisle, Clinton, Columbia, Corbin, Cynthiana, Danville, Frankfort, Glasgow, Grayson, Hawesville, Henderson, Horse Cave, Inez, Lawrenceburg, Leitchfield, Lexington, Madisonville, Marion, Middlesboro, Morgantown, Munfordville, Murray, Owingsville, Paducah, Rabbit Hash, Russell Springs, Salyersville, Scottsville, Shelbyville, Somerset, Trenton, Versailles, Whitley City and Winchester, Dec. 7; Auburn, Georgetown and New Haven, Dec. 8; Augusta, Burkesville, Burnside, Cave City, Elkton, Franklin, Mayfield, Providence, Williamsburg and Woodburn, Dec. 14, and Tollesboro, Dec. 15.


Friday, December 6, 2019

Oh, Kentucky


The state's fastest internet speeds are found in Jackson and Owsley counties. "It is a gamble that has paid off," writes Kim Kobersmith in The Daily Yonder. "Residents are harnessing the power of the network to improve their lives by accessing well-paying jobs, opening new educational doors, and virtually visiting their doctors for health consultations."

"What's Next EKY?"

And how about for Daviess County's old Airport Fire Station?



Kentucky’s housing market in October: 8.4 percent more homes sold than in October 2018 at a median closing price that was 8.3 percent greater.

Bad jobs news from Paducah.




Christmas parades: Sharpsburg, Nov. 9; Owensboro, Nov. 23; Central City, Nov. 24; Lebanon and Louisville, Nov. 29;  Greensburg, Guthrie and Pikeville, Nov. 30; Boyce, Dawson Springs, Murray, Salem and Sebree, Dec. 1; Bardstown, Dec. 5; Clay, Fredonia, Harrodsburg, Hopkinsville, London, Monticello, Pineville, Richmond, Smiths Grove and Trenton, Dec. 6; Arlington, Barbourville, Berea, Bloomfield, Bowling Green, Bromley/Ludlow, Brownsville, Cadiz, Calvert City, Clinton, Columbia, Corbin, Cynthiana, Danville, Frankfort, Glasgow, Grayson, Hawesville, Henderson, Horse Cave, Lawrenceburg, Leitchfield, Lexington, Madisonville, Marion, Middlesboro, Morgantown, Munfordville, Murray, Owingsville, Paducah, Rabbit Hash, Russell Springs, Salyersville, Scottsville, Shelbyville, Somerset, Trenton, Versailles, Whitley City and Winchester, Dec. 7; Auburn, Georgetown and New Haven, Dec. 8; Augusta, Burkesville, Burnside, Cave City, Elkton, Franklin, Mayfield, Providence, Williamsburg and Woodburn, Dec. 14, and Tollesboro, Dec. 15.

Thursday, December 5, 2019

Finally, the State Football Finals

As expected, we had a lot of blowouts in the state semi-finals last week.  Trinity beat North Hardin 54-7.  Male beat Tates Creek 48-18.  Covington Catholic beat Bowling Green 28-0.  Johnson Central beat Madisonville 52-14.  The only really good game was Belfry's 15-14 win over DeSales in double overtime.  None of the 11 other state semi-finals was closer than 11 points at the end of the game.  In eight of the 12 semi-finals, the final margin was greater than 24 points or greater.  As we have pointed out before, Kentucky does not have good high school football teams to support six classes of football.  But obviously the KHSAA has some goal that I don't understand, because they keep having these blowouts year after year.

Anyway, now there are only 12 teams left, and we may finally get some competitive games.  Here are your match-ups for this weekend at Kroger Field in Lexington, along with the MaxPreps ranking (all times Central) (private schools in italics):

Class 6A (1 P.M., Sunday, December 8):
(2) Lou. Male (14-0) v. (3) Lou. Trinity (12-2)

Now this should be a great game.  These teams met in the regular season, and Male won 20-17 in double overtime.  I always assume Trinity is going to win any sports contest, but Male is the only school in the state that would have a chance against the Shamrocks.

Class 5A (7 P.M., Saturday, December 7):
(1) Covington Catholic (14-0) v. (6) Lex. Douglass (14-0)

It's been a great year for Douglass, but Male is the only public school in the state that can really give Cov. Cath. a game.

Class 4A (3:30 P.M., Saturday, December 7):
(5) Boyle Co. (14-0) v. (4) Johnson Central (14-0)

On paper, this should be a great game.  Neither team has played a close game all year, and it's very difficult to pick between them.

Class 3A (6 P.M., Friday, December 6):
(10) Belfry (10-3) v. (18) Bell Co. (14-0)

Two mountain teams that did not meet in the regular season.  Belfry has more of a history in the state finals, and they just pulled out a huge win over DeSales, so they would be my pick.

Class 2A (Noon, Saturday, December 7):
(11) Somerset (13-1) v. (13) Mayfield (13-1)

This should be a very good game -- both teams have been dominant in the playoffs.  Mayfield is the only team west of Louisville that's still playing.

Class 1A (1 P.M., Friday, December 6):
(9) Pikeville (13-0) v. (34) Paintsville (11-3)

I give Paintsville a lot of credit for making it this far.  It's particularly impressive when you consider that Johnson Central also has a great team, and that Paintsville dominated a private school -- Kentucky Country Day -- in the semi-finals.  But Pikeville is just too good for anyone in Class 1A.  Pikeville beat Belfry 22-21 earlier in the season, and Belfry is favored to win the Class 3A title.  So it looks as though Pike County will get two state titles, which would be a spectacular accomplishment.

Monday, December 2, 2019

Oh, Kentucky

Catching up from the long weekend ...






















Christmas parades: Sharpsburg, Nov. 9; Owensboro, Nov. 23; Central City, Nov. 24; Lebanon and Louisville, Nov. 29;  Greensburg, Guthrie and Pikeville, Nov. 30; Boyce, Dawson Springs, Murray, Salem and Sebree, Dec. 1; Bardstown, Dec. 5; Fredonia, Harrodsburg, Hopkinsville, London, Monticello, Pineville, Richmond and Trenton, Dec. 6; Barbourville, Berea, Bowling Green, Brownsville, Cadiz, Calvert City, Columbia, Corbin, Cynthiana, Danville, Frankfort, Glasgow, Grayson, Hawesville, Henderson, Lawrenceburg, Lexington, Madisonville, Marion, Middlesboro, Morgantown, Murray, Owingsville, Paducah, Rabbit Hash, Scottsville, Shelbyville, Somerset, Trenton, Versailles, Whitley City and Winchester, Dec. 7; Georgetown, Dec. 8; Cave City, Dec. 10; Burkesville, Burnside, Elkton, Mayfield, Providence, Williamsburg, Dec. 14, and Tollesboro, Dec. 15.

Monday, November 25, 2019

Oh, Kentucky

Catching up from the weekend ...





























Christmas parades: Sharpsburg, Nov. 9; Owensboro, Nov. 23; Lebanon and Louisville, Nov. 29; Guthrie, Mayfield and Pikeville, Nov. 30; Boyce, Dawson Springs and Murray, Dec. 1; Bardstown, Dec. 5; Fredonia, Harrodsburg, Hopkinsville, London, Monticello, Pineville, Richmond and Trenton, Dec. 6; Barbourville, Berea, Bowling Green, Cadiz, Calvert City, Columbia, Corbin, Cynthiana, Danville, Frankfort, Glasgow, Grayson, Hawesville, Henderson, Lawrenceburg, Lexington, Madisonville, Marion, Middlesboro, Murray, Owingsville, Paducah, Rabbit Hash, Scottsville, Shelbyville, Somerset, Trenton, Versailles, Whitley City and Winchester, Dec. 7; Georgetown, Dec. 8; Cave City, Dec. 10; Burkesville, Burnside, Elkton, and Williamsburg, Dec. 14, and Tollesboro, Dec. 15.


Thursday, July 18, 2019

Oh, Kentucky


Winchester Sun columnist/Lexington IT-professional Pete Koutoulas: "As long as we have families living in our streets, hungry and sick, there are battles to be won. As long as there are people among us who lack access to health care, there are battles to be won. As long as we continue to treat families seeking refuge within our borders as criminals, there are battles to be won. As long as there are any in this land who are not sharing in the blessings of liberty, there are battles to be won."

"Chant for Peace," etc., for free, in Louisville.

The co-convener of the Northern Kentucky Poor People's Campaign reports in from the Moral Action Congress.

It's almost back-to-school time, and that means grind time for the Kentucky Refugees Ministries Summer Youth Program. 

Madisonville's 75-year-old bed-building, football-and-cheerleading-boosting and scholarship-providing Rotary Club is on the grow.

Two-year state study ending last year: Heroin, opioids and cocaine, down; methamphetamine and fentanyl, up.

Meanwhile, in Floyd County, "the drugs have took over." And, in Martin County, it'll be a sheriff's office of one, starting next month.

Jennifer P. Brown reports in The Hoptown Chronicle on an Iraq war veteran has opened a barber shop in downtown Hopkinsville. He plans to put in a putting green, and, in addition to $24 per, he's offering two years of once-every-three-weeks haircuts for $1,000.

Julianna Leach in the Grayson Journal-Enquirer has a feature on a Carter County native who studied dance at Morehead State, got a gig on a Carnival Cruise and then felt an urge to come home and open her own studio. "If there is a girl or boy that wants to dance, I want to make sure they can."

Keith Lawrence in The Messenger-Inquirer tells the story of "Chef Red," who as a single mom at age 20 learned healthcare wasn't for her, moved off to go to culinary school and has come back to Owensboro to open a healthy-meals-to-go provider. "The reason we eat fast food is because it's convenient. So, healthy food should be too."

The spirit(s) of the Graham Nighthawks live on.

And the animal-rendering stench in Metcalfe County ...?

Thursday, June 20, 2019

Oh, Kentucky

On the Monday after Father's Day, Madisonville took a pass on Sunday alcohol sales. Opines Bro. Bill Adcock at SurfKY.com, "Isn’t it ironic that the day after Father's Day of honoring our earthly father, the Madisonville City Council was faced with honoring or dishonoring our Heavenly Father? ... My verdict is ya'll 'Done Good' fellas."

Resetting in Columbus.

Sheltering in Tompkinsville.

Restructuring in Glasgow.

"Not much remains of the home, except the UK sign, which was untouched by the slide. Now Bowen will have to start over, and the family is asking the community for help." Garrett Wyler of Lexington's WDKY Fox 56 heads to Powell County and comes back with a very gripping story.

"This megabuck competition may be Louisville’s to lose." There's millions in it, reports Dianne Timmering at The Lane Report--"it," being them thar aging people.


Sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders from Floyd, Johnson and Pike counties are STEM-ing it up this month at Big Sandy Community and Technical College in Prestonsburg.

New deals with Mattress Firm and Big Lots mean lots of hiring for Lexington-based Temper Sealy International.

Rest in peace, Mr. Kenny ("KY," "Shorty" or "Shortman") Short of Robards, friendly mentor to fellow millwrights, Henderson Moose Lodge 732 cards enthusiast, U.S. Army sharpshooter, Poole Missionary Baptist Church magi portrayer and hunting and fishing buddy of Sterling's. "To know Kenny," reads the beautiful obituary, "was to love him."

Monday, June 17, 2019

Oh, Kentucky


The Kentucky Department of Health says more than 60 county health departments are in jeopardy of closing within the next two years. Clark County's is one of them, and Whitney Liggett with The Winchester Sun has a very thorough report on how local officials are adapting to the crisis.

Facilities in Elsmere, Louisville, Owensboro, Paducah and Paintsville show up on a federal list of 400 problem nursing homes.

Here's the updated list of Need Line needed items in Murray, per the Murray Ledger & Times: mustard, potatoes, tea bags, bread, saltine crackers, pancake mix, pancake syrup, catsup, onions, Kool Aid, buns, peanut butter, pickle relish, pork and beans, sugar, Jiffy Mix, eggs, margarine, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, ground beef, hot dogs, chicken, toilet paper, dish liquid, laundry detergent, soap, plastic storage bags (1- and 2-gallon sizes), hotel or travel-size shampoo, lotions, soap and large brown bags.

Kentucky for sale:




Good jobs news from (Dave Cowens Drive in) Newport, (and between) New Haven and New Hope.

The guys opening the Alley on Main restaurant hope to capture some of Paintsville's history, and, with good Kentucky names like Estep and Pelphrey, that seems like a fitting plan.

A new Master of Science in Global Business with Blockchain Technology will be available this summer from the University of Cumberlands--and nowhere else in the state.

Rest in peace, "King" Kelly Coleman, "truly the greatest basketball player Kentucky has ever had." Great tribute from Josh Moore in the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Thursday, March 7, 2019

Oh, Kentucky




Turning to sports, the Kentucky High School Athletic Association boys' basketball state tournament got going yesterday. This and the girls' tournament have turned into an annual exercise in fun with Google Maps for me. Seriously, I'm not denying all of the privacy, surveillance, security fears that Google Maps casts light on, but--man, oh, man--is it ever fun to be able to draw maps of the routes between two competing high schools to Rupp Arena! 



I got a late start on doing these yesterday, and, by the time I did, Saint Matthews Trinity had already swamped over Paintsville Johnson Central, 70-28. Jason Frakes with The Courier-Journal seems pretty convinced that this tournament is going to end up Trinity against Scott County, and Jason certainly knows what he’s talking about. And this would be my best guess, anyway, and I know almost nothing about what I'm talking about. But, whatever, Wednesday and Thursday is no time to be get all no fun and smart about foregone conclusions at the Sweet Sixteen.



Wednesday’s other winners were Walton-Verona, 76-54, over Knox Central; Campbell County, 61-60 over Elizabethtown John Hardin, and Ashland Paul Blazer, 58-50, over Owensboro. John Hardin was undefeated, and that game apparently came down to a deal where the coach had called a timeout right before his own player hit what would’ve been a game-winning shot. And I read that Owensboro had been several points ahead in its game before losing. (Like I said, I know next to nothing about what’s going on.)





So, today, we have Louisville Butler vs. Perry County Central at 11 a.m. Central, …



… Covington Catholic vs. Scott County at 12:30 p.m., …


… Madisonville-North Hopkins vs. Lincoln County at 5:30 (GO! BIG! M!) …






… and Warren Central vs. Mayfield at 7 p.m. ...


Here's where you can get links to everything official at the KHSAA. Have fun. Comments flow!


Wednesday, February 13, 2019

Oh, Kentucky