Columns

There are fly by night pipe dreams, and then there are golden opportunities that are too good to pass up.

The redevelopment of a one-time industrial zinc-smelting giant into a sustainable high tech office park in Palmerton certainly appears to be the real McCoy.

On the surface, the conversion of the former New Jersey Zinc Co. into a state-of-the-art business park would seem to be a win-win scenario for all parties involved.

Earlier this week it was difficult to believe winter was ever going to give up its hold even though spring has been here for over a week and a half. While this last snowstorm was nothing more than some slush, it caught many people including me by surprise on Tuesday afternoon. I was reading while the rain hit the window pane until Katie called me to the kitchen telling me that it was sleeting. Sure enough, there were ice pellets piling up on the window sill as the rain got stronger and temperatures slightly fell.

No matter where we live or where we go, the weather is usually a favorite topic.

No wonder. Weather controls what we can do. And, for many people, weather influences their mood.

Sit in the sunshine for even a few minutes and you feel warm all over, and I just don't mean physically. Sunshine invigorates us and elevates our sense of well-being.

Year-round balmy weather is probably the big reason why I moved to Florida. I liked the fact that perpetually pleasant weather means I can enjoy outdoor activities year-round instead of only a few months a year.

This week so far has been one that has been quite interesting and to some degrees frustrating for me. It amazes me how little some remember about government and its basic forms. Indulge me as I relate some definitions from the Random House Dictionary.

A republic is "a state in which the supreme power rests in the body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by representatives chosen directly or indirectly by them."