16 Teams Left

Actually, now it's 15, as Magoffin Co. kicks off the KHSAA Boys' Basketball Tournament with a 54 to 47 win over Perry Co. Central.  Next up:  Ashland Blazer v. Lyon Co. at 12:30 P.M. Central.

Oh, Kentucky

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, Irvine/Ravenna, London, Maysville, Monticello, Pineville, Richmond, Smiths Grove, Stanton and Trenton, Dec. 6; Arlington, Barbourville, Beattyville, Berea, Bloomfield, Bowling Green,  romley/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, Prestonsburg, Rabbit Hash, Raceland, Russell Springs, Salyersville, Scottsville, Shelbyville, Somerset, Trenton, Versailles, Whitley City and Winchester, Dec. 7; Auburn, Georgetown and New Haven, Dec. 8, and Augusta, Benton, Burkesville, Burnside, Campbellsville, Cave City, Edmonton, Elkton, Franklin, Hopkinsville, Louisa, Mayfield, Providence, Tollesboro, Williamsburg and Woodburn, Dec. 14.

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.

Oh, Kentucky

Unemployment as of October: highest in Magoffin, lowest in Fayette and Oldham.

The governor-elect is getting a lot of his AG squad back together again.

Lake Barkley State Resort Park has landed another "Restoring the Finest" round.

Thanks, Jeff Bezos!

Rest in peace, Owensboro's Gabe Tower (1963-TBD)?

What's Kentucky's top export industry? Wrong. It's aerospace.

Eating local on campus, at UK.

Classical music on WEKU's 102.1 FM, signing off.

At Grayson County High School in Leitchfield, twin seniors notched perfect ACT-reading scores. One is headed to Kentucky Wesleyan, but it appears from this WKHG dispatch that WKU might be in the running for the other!

At First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Winchester, “Take what you need. Leave what you can. Little becomes much in the Maker’s hand.”

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 and Trenton, Dec. 6; Barbourville, Berea, Bowling Green, Cadiz, Calvert City, Columbia, Corbin, Cynthiana, Danville, Frankfort, Glasgow, Grayson, Henderson, Lawrenceburg, Lexington, Madisonville, Middlesboro, Murray, Owingsville, Paducah, Rabbit Hash, Scottsville, Shelbyville, 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.

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 ...?

Oh, Kentucky

4.0 at 83.

"Justice by geography:" 99 percent of defendants in Hopkins County have the money to post bail; 17 percent do so in Wolfe County. Eye-opening Kentucky Center for Economic Policy study--as recapped by Danielle Grady in LEO Weekly.

The great-great-great-grandson of Hopkinsville's founder is investing anew in the town's future.

"'Is that a threat?,' Stapleton asked. 'It's a promise,' Malone retorted." More fantastic meeting coverage--this time from the Carter County Emergency Management Services board, by Jeremy D. Wells in the Grayson Journal-Enquirer.

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.

Oh, Kentucky

Stay in a covered wagon, in Louisa.

Winchester Municipal Utilities is out of the recycling business.

Oak Grove's oldest restaurant, Foxx's Restaurant, is closing May 25. It started as an A&W in 1956, reports Jimmy Settle in The Leaf Chronicle of Clarksville, Tennessee. "We've just decided to enjoy life a little," the owners told him.

After more than 50 years, Gordon's Photo Service will be no more in Hazard after May 24. "I was just ready to retire and take it easy and not have to report to work every day and have a schedule," Paul Gordon tells the Hazard Herald's Destiny Caldwell. “I’m glad I got to sell my building and it not sit here and fall down like a lot of these businesses in Hazard. I’m just so happy the building is going to be used because I live in Hazard and I love Hazard."

Age wasn't the candidate's problem, argues Oldham County Police.

Good jobs news from Bardstown, Hebron and Louisville.

Just a remarkable, miraculous rescue story from Magoffin and Floyd counties.

Oh, Kentucky

"For people who are traveling through our area in their EV (electric vehicle), this will be a convenient opportunity to stop and charge for free. And it will make a good impression of Danville." https://t.co/eiuidVsvBL

— Advocate Messenger (@amnewsonline) April 4, 2019

Hugs accepted today, in Cadiz and newsrooms nationally.

Five years of live-elk shipments from Kentucky to Wisconsin successfully wrapped Wednesday.

"The business model simply doesn't work." Will Wright in the Lexington Herald-Leader delivers a sobering overview of the child-care shortage in eastern Kentucky.

Turning to sports, "he's been everything to Barren County." Nice Will Perkins feature in the Glasgow Daily Times on Terry Reed, who coached the County High Trojans to the 1990 state cross-country championship and was inducted to the Kentucky Track and Cross Country Coaches Association hall of fame.

Oh, Kentucky

Bevin said they were "miserable for a few days" but "they all turned out fine." https://t.co/gEcArIJEAg

— KFVS News (@kfvsnews) March 20, 2019

25 of 30 for WKU photojournalism.

Edmonson County Middle School's victims en route to the KAAC quick-recall state championship: Butler Phillip Sharp, Hebron Conner, Pikeville, Lexington Winburn, Henderson Holy Name, Rockcastle County and, finally, Louisville Meyzeek. And none of the matches were close.

Here's a coloring book distributed to fifth-graders in Madisonville before a field trip to a coal mine last week:

Good (hemp-related) jobs news from Murray.

Madisonville's Ferrell's is on the comeback trail.

Fiscal-court magistrates in Oldham County have a base salary of nearly $20,000.

They're planning a meeting Monday night at Magoffin County High to talk about the plans for the Dawkins Line Rail Trail, and they really do sound exciting. I wish the #ohky desk could be there to provide Kentucky Minute play by play.

Oh, Kentucky

Good jobs news from Louisville.

Statistically Kentucky's lowest rate of unemployment? Woodford. Highest? Magoffin.

Reportedly Kentucky's healthiest county? Oldham. Least-healthy? Owsley.

The publisher of Shepherdsville's Pioneer News takes in the State of Bullitt County.

For the record, in Barren County, it's still the Glasgow Daily Times.

From the opinion page of Bardstown's Kentucky Standard:

-- "But like I said, Trump and company don’t have a monopoly on hate and violence. Islamist extremists, modern-day Khajarites, have been swimming in hate-based violence for the better part of four decades."

-- "I’m grateful that the Democratic Party elected people like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar. They will be the “gift that keeps on giving” for the Republicans in 2020."

Meanwhile, a local salon joins its industry's "Green Circle."

Laundry Love, in Murray.

Literacy Celebration, across Hopkins County.

Thank you, Lord, that it wasn't any worse than it was in West Paducah last week.

Via a University of Cumberlands service project, free tutoring is available to students of any age and in any subject Mondays and Wednesdays at the Whitley County Public Library.

LaRue County middle- and high-school students come back from KUNA with plenty to tell Ron Benningfield for a detailed report in Hodgenville's Herald News.

10 years and counting of independent pro wrestling in Muhlenberg County.

Lexington's "Thriller" parade may be done.

Oh, Kentucky

Robin Hart in Danville's Advocate-Messenger reports the state auditor's gripping tale of losing his vehicle but finding plenty of helpful people in the flooding near Salyersville.

Buffet on Kentucky (indirectly): "If I were relocating into some state that had a huge unfunded pension plan, I am walking into liabilities. Because I mean, who knows whether they’re gonna get it from the corporate income tax or my employees–you know, with personal income taxes or what. But that–that liability isn’t gonna–you can’t ship it offshore or anything like that. And those are big numbers, really big numbers."

Bevin on trade: "Ultimately, when the dust settles, I am confident that we will have a deal that is a significant improvement over NAFTA, that will benefit all interested parties in my home state of Kentucky and that will be a win for the entire Western Hemisphere. The USMCA is that deal, and the sooner each of our nations ratify it, the better it will be for all of us."

The back story, perhaps, on EnerBlu's pullout from Pikeville.

Hiring in Fulton (for drivers for the county transit authority) and Irvine (for a general laborer "essential to providing safe drinking water to the community").

Kentucky's safest cities? In order, they are Madisonville, Independence, Fort Thomas, Lawrenceburg and Mount Washington, per the National Council for Home Safety and Security and its analysis of FBI Uniform Crime Report statistics.

"Combatting Homelessness" is the agenda for tomorrow's Greater Louisville Reentry Coalition meeting.

Average student-loan debt among Kentucky college students is up 100 percent since 2004, reports Nicole Ziege in WKU's College Heights Herald.

Oh, Kentucky

Whose medals are these?

Is the "war on coal" still a thing?

Most everyone appears to think Kentucky's cash-bail system needs an overhaul, and so now we wait for Real Legislature to see what's next.

In other study news, the numbers around retirement in Kentucky are simply brutal.

OTD in 1842, the Kentucky Institution for Education of the Blind was chartered by the state legislature & opened in May. Today, the @ksbwildcats continues to provide comprehensive educational services to all Kentucky students who are blind and visually impaired from birth to 21. pic.twitter.com/xrqPFfTF5o

— KY State Archives (@KYStateArchives) February 5, 2019

The accolades for Lily's Silas House and his Southernmost keep rolling in. Here's the end of an Angela Turner report in Corbin's Times-Tribune: "Maurice Manning, professor of English and Transylvania writer in residence, said the novel 'asks a brave question: Is there a limit to love or to faith? Quietly and in beautiful prose the novel answers the question. This is simply the kind of writer Silas is—courageous, open, curious. His novels are sources of discovery and wisdom.'"

Meanwhile, Kentucky Monthly's annual "Penned" winners are in--from Amburgey, Bowling Green, Brandenburg, Frankfort, Lexington, Madisonville, Owingsville and Wellington.

Oh, Kentucky

Clarence Glover Court!

Will twin bridges both survive, or be tolled? Hearings coming up https://t.co/KLO6EjnITl pic.twitter.com/7o68cYyGZ5

— The Gleaner (@TheGleanerNews) January 4, 2019

Beware of bears in Dwale.

Unemployment is highest in Magoffin, lowest in Woodford and below 10 percent in all 120 Kentucky counties.

Bad jobs news for Pikeville/good for Morehead.

The sale of Marion's hospital is complete, and The Crittenden Press reports that the deal stipulates that 36 services must continue to be offered locally for at least three years.

Christmas18 parades: Owensboro, Nov. 17; Ashland, Nov. 20; Brownsville, Nov. 24; Cumberland and Fredonia, Nov. 30; Arlington, Barbourville, Berea, Cadiz, Calvert City, Carlisle, Clinton, Columbia, Hawesville, Jenkins, Lawrenceburg, Leitchfield, Lewisport, Madisonville, Marion, Murray, Paducah, Somerset and Whitley City, Dec. 1; Bowling Green, Dawson Springs (great play-by-play here on the planning and execution from the local Progress), Glasgow and Salyersville, Dec. 2; Lexington, Dec. 4; Bardstown and Greenup, Dec. 6; Frankfort, Maysville, Monticello, Perryville, Richmond and Smiths Grove, Dec. 7; Benton, Elkton, Eubank, Harlan, Hopkinsville, Horse Cave, Loretto, Louisa, Middlesboro, Munfordville, Quality, Pikeville, Prestonsburg and Stamping Ground, Dec. 8; Grayson, Dec. 11; Whitesburg, Dec. 14; Burnside, La Center, Manchester, Neon and Rabbit Hash, Dec. 15.

Oh, Kentucky

Some ... um, interesting numbers in this Associated Press report on Braidy Industries' progress toward an aluminum plant in South Shore: $15 million from the state in 2017 ... $15.7 million spent so far (leaving about $1.66 billion to go ... right?) ... "full commercial operation in 2021" ... about 600 jobs ... three-month extension to the deadline for investors. (And, once again, an interesting last sentence from a report in Forbes last summer: "Kentucky is Braidy's second-largest shareholder.")

Hiring in Brownsville (for the county road department).

Rachel Keller Collins in the Marshall County Tribune-Courier reports on a Draffenville gun shop's heavily booked schedule of "de-escalation" trainings for church security teams.

Randy Patrick in The Kentucky Standard surveys the hemp-oil landscape from the Bardstown point of view.

Kentucky produced lots of Emmas and Williams in 2017.

Might the Special Olympics be coming to Magoffin County?

Oh, Kentucky

Christmas parades: Owensboro, Nov. 17; Ashland, Nov. 20; Brownsville, Nov. 24; Cumberland and Fredonia, Nov. 30; Arlington, Berea, Cadiz, Calvert City, Clinton, Columbia, Hawesville, Jenkins, Lawrenceburg, Leitchfield ("A Very Candy Christmas"), Lewisport, Madisonville, Marion, Murray ("there will be no marked detour; however, motorists may self-detour around this section of KY 94 via KY 2594/Industrial Road, US 641-Business/Chestnut Street, and US 641/12th Street"), Paducah, Somerset and Whitley City, Dec. 1; Bowling Green, Dawson Springs, Glasgow and Salyersville (rescheduled because of expected bad weather), Dec. 2; Lexington, Dec. 4; Greenup, Dec. 6; Frankfort, Monticello and Richmond, Dec. 7; Benton, Elkton, Eubank, Harlan ("after consulting with meteorologists and officials, we feel like this is the best choice for our celebration"), Hopkinsville, Horse Cave, Louisa, Munfordville and Stamping Ground, Dec. 8; Whitesburg, Dec. 14; Burnside, La Center and Neon, Dec. 15.

I (heart) expungement fairs.

10 years and about 400 students and counting for the exchange program between Bowling Green's Warren Central High and the Anne Frank School in Werne, Germany.

"In this era of extreme political division in our nation, we reflect on the promise of our democracy, as well as the ongoing struggle to live up to its unrealized potential. We honor the long history of social justice work through small networks, largely unseen and unrecognized, often led by women of color, to secure voting rights for women and access to full participation in our democracy.  We also recognize that this struggle is far from over. This moment provides an opportunity for feminist artists to use an intersectional lens to imagine a world where all women and girls and gender-nonconforming people can engage equitably. With this grant, we invite you to imagine how your art (visual, performing, media or literary) can inspire action towards building power for women and girls, sharing power among and within your communities and wielding power towards fulfilling the promise of an equitable democracy. Individual artists and nonprofit organizations based in Kentucky who are using arts-based activities to address democracy and power for women and girls may apply.  Deadline to apply is March 1, 2019."

"The first-ever, peer-to-peer site for handcrafted hunting, fishing, and camping gear, as well other outdoor apparel and accessories."

Oh, Kentucky

Hiring in Fulton: full-time midnight-shift dispatcher for the Fulton County Transit Authority ("Going & Coming Your Way").

"Historic Russellville's goal to promote awareness of Russellville native, Alice Dunnigan, is so important because the example of her life is one that all Logan Countians need to be aware of."

Prayers for legendary San Francisco broadcaster Ray Taliaferro, reportedly last seen at the Paducah Mellow Mushroom.

Black Lives Matter, in Louisville's West End.

Christmas parades: Owensboro, Nov. 17; Ashland, Nov. 20; Brownsville ("You can watch the entire 2018 Edmonson County Lions Club Christmas Parade below!"), Nov. 24; Arlington, Berea, Bowling Green, Cadiz, Columbia, Lawrenceburg, Madisonville, Paducah, Salyersville ("Toys will be given out by Santa and Mrs. Claus at Salyersville Fire Department following the parade"), Somerset and Whitley City, Dec. 1; Dawson Springs, Dec. 2; Frankfort, Monticello and Richmond, Dec. 7; Eubank and Hopkinsville, Dec. 8, and Burnside and La Center, Dec. 15.

Oh, Kentucky

Toward improving Corbin appeal.

Billy Kobin of The Courier-Journal, excellent on the good guy with a gun in the Jtown Kroger parking lot and on the locked doors of First Baptist Church.

Beautiful, from Transylvania's prez: "An essential component of a liberal education is to cultivate perceptual skills to see the depth of what is not immediately revealed and the virtue to welcome it. This cultivation is how we continue to pass on the light and resist the darkness that threatens our democracy."

Magoffin County turns out for the president's daughter and the governor.

Kentucky's first-year Airbnb tax revenues doubled projections.

Oh, Kentucky

Bevin: Judge is terrible https://t.co/W8rqdGkdQS

— WNKY TV (@wnkytv) June 21, 2018

Joseph Gerth in The Courier-Journal has an interesting column on Kentucky's 2020 vice-presidential candidate from New Hampshire and tariffs.

Kentucky's cut of the proposed $716 billion National Defense Authorization Act is more than $150 million.

"There comes a point in time where you have to answer."

Unemployment is down most everywhere in Kentucky--lowest in Woodford and highest in Magoffin.

Good jobs news from Bowling Green, Covington, Russellville and Wilder.

New shoes and new owners for Madisonville's Melody Lanes--most everything else, though, is about the same, reports Laura Harvey in The Messenger.

Weird and sad story developing out of Lawrenceburg: Anderson County High's baseball and football field houses were ransacked last month, and, this week, two recent grads who starred for the baseball, football and basketball teams were among those charged, per The Anderson News.