Karl's Kolumn

IS THIS OUR SWAN SONG? I knew it had to come some day.

STAMPS… have gone up again! When we first bought the Tri-City Record in 1984 a U.S. Postage Stamp was $.20. The stamp remained the same price until February 1985. The price for a first class stamp is now $.82, granted they now offer the Forever Stamp, which will work forever if you want to buy enough stamps to get you through a lifetime! That is a 310% increase in 42 years.

WOW WBA… This past weekend’s Watervliet Independence Day Weekend Celebration was by far the best I’ve seen in the 43 years I’ve been attending.

RIP ANGIE SHOWERMAN… Recently we heard of the passing of Angie Showerman. Angie and her husband Dick were longtime Tri-City Record employees. Back in the day, they were the advertising sales team and delivered the newspapers to some 30 stands each week. You can bet that Dick was driving and Angie was directing and we knew every week where they had been and what newsstand sold the most papers. They were quite a team!

RIP ANGIE SHOWERMAN… Recently we heard of the passing of Angie Showerman. Angie and her husband Dick were longtime Tri-City Record employees. Back in the day, they were the advertising sales team and delivered the newspapers to some 30 stands each week. You can bet that Dick was driving and Angie was directing and we knew every week where they had been and what newsstand sold the most papers. They were quite a team!

SEE YOU AT THE HARTFORD STRAWBERRY FESTIVAL… this weekend. A sweet time can be had this weekend in Hartford. Make sure you stop by for this happy hometown event. See the story in this week’s Record for details of the many attractions. JUNE 6, 1944… is a special day in our history. It is the day that Americans, with their allies, stormed the beaches of Normandy, France to drive Hitler back to his hole in Germany. Tens of thousands died that day, as just as many were wounded.

A VISIT BACK IN TIME TO 1976… Anne and I, with daughter Amy, son-in-law Bill, and grandsons Ben and Eli, were on hand to attend the opening of a time capsule sealed 50 years ago. We were the special guests of the Capac Historical Society in Capac, Michigan.

TCR MASS MAILING… Wow, this week is so full of stories about the Tri-City area, thank you to the whole Tri-City Record crew for making this happen again for the whole community. This special edition will go out to all postal addresses in the Watervliet, Coloma and Hartford area. Thank you to our advertisers for always supporting the newspaper and helping us bring the “Welcome to Summer” issue to all the readers. Some of the features and special events advertised this week in

LAST SATURDAY… May 16, 2026 celebrated Armed Forces Day, the day all Americans salute the active members of the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marines, Space Force, and the Coast Guard. The Army National Guard and the Air National Guard are reserve components of their services and operate in part under state authority.

CONGRATULATIONS… to the 2026 Tri-City Record Best Mom, Connie Lamplot. Thank you to granddaughter Autymn Haney for nominating Connie and thank you to all the other letter writers in the 2026 contest.

THIRD ATTEMPT… at the assassination of President Donald Trump shocked the world last weekend at the White House Correspondents Dinner in Washington D.C. Thirty-one-year-old Cole Tomas Allen allegedly carrying multiple weapons, fired shots causing immediate lock down. President Trump was evacuated without injury. Allen was taken into custody. When will this madness end?

WHEN WILL THEY EVER LEARN… Isn’t it remarkable that so many members of the United Nations cannot come together to solve the wars that are killing all the men, women, and children of our beautiful planet. What can be done with all the religions, religious, and the holy, there should be enough across the globe to say the prayers needed to resolve all our troubles.

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY POLINA… On April 5, our dearest Polly now wishing to be called Polina turned 20 years old. Where has the time gone?

HOORAY ARTEMIS II… on its rocket launch last week that had the world on its edge. We will be on the edge of our seats as well when the crew and rocket returns on April 10. On Monday evening news agencies reported on the 45-minute communication blackout. This is when the Moon physically blocks radio signals between spaceship Orion and Earth, there is no direct line of sight to antennas on Earth. It was expected and planned and mission control just had to wait until the spacesh

HAPPY EASTER…one and all!

SCAMMERS BEWARE… Anne and I found ourselves with an individual at our front door claiming to be there because we had emailed them. He supposedly was from a water company and was there to test our water. We let him in and after a few minutes Anne said, “I’m gonna call our son-in-law Bill just to ask him if this is something we should do.”

FINALLY HERE… Spring will “officially” arrive this Friday, March 20, at 10:46 EDT. I’ve been anxiously awaiting the momentous day for some time.

SUNDAY AFTERNOON… Fish Fry! Sunday felt like spring already but when Grandson Willy called and asked if he could bring some fish and fries over for an afternoon fish fry it was even better. Topping it all was a Wiffle ball game of Loshboughs vs. Loshboughs, seniors and minors, batters, hitters, runners and pitchers. Definitely a good time for all!

CUTEST COUPLE… Congratulations to Jake and Brandy Atherton of Watervliet for winning our annual Cutest Couple Contest.

DID THE GROUNDHOG SEE HIS SHADOW MONDAY? I know there were 20-some inches of snow on the ground February 1 & 2. Tuesday, Feb. 3 had misting rain and icy snow to add on to the mess the rest of the week. We look forward to spring and the visiting birds at the bird feeder gives us hope it won’t be long.