Columns

I watched her stop at the edge of the yard beneath the tree. The rabbit, perched at the edge of the woods nibbling clover, wasn't aware of Maggie's presence ... yet.

But it wasn't long before the rabbit realized something new was near, and it hopped quickly back into the woods.

With the different sizes of rabbits making their appearance in the past couple of weeks, it didn't take long for us to realize there must be a family of rabbits making their home in our woods. It also didn't take our border collie, Maggie, long to realize it either.

Given all I know about food and the food system as an adult, it seems slightly funny that as a child, with parents who diligently packed me a brown bag lunch every day, I was jealous of the kids who ate school lunch. I wanted the pizza, the sloppy joes and the tater tots ... and not my crummy turkey sandwich on whole grain bread.

I suppose that's because I, along with many Americans, had yet to learn the real impact of unhealthy food on children.

At a special City Council meeting a couple of weekends ago, Campbellsville resident Tonya Young expressed surprise that she was the only resident at the meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to give final approval to the creation and implementation of a 1 percent occupational tax. Young was opposed to it. She thought others would be too.

And I'm sure others are opposed to the new tax. But Young hit the nail on the head when she asked, "Do citizens just believe it would do no good to come?"

Finances. That has become my least favorite word of late. It's never accompanied by anything good.

Like many Kentuckians, I'll be watching closely as our legislators return to Frankfort today to tackle Gov. Steve Beshear's proposed budget, among other things.

I have to commend Beshear for his budget. It's lean, but spares the most crucial areas, like education, from drastic cuts.