L&T Publisher Earl Watt

As the legislative session begins to wind down, this could possibly be one of the most consequential sessions in recent memory or be the biggest letdown in the past 25 years.

There are some victories so far, and most recently it has to be noted that the bipartisan passage of removing cell phones form classrooms was a monumental success.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR, Reita Isaacs, Liberal

Just sitting here at the Senior Citizens Center staring at our designated puzzle table, which is now empty except for the 1,000- piece multiple-bird one Gerald sneaked in and finished this morning. Beautiful thing to admire until we either move it aside or box it back up.

I still think my 1,000-piece octopus puzzle is the most vibrant and beautiful of all; not bragging, of course.

Things are just not as active as they’ve been over years, such as: road trips out of town, dinner-movies here, early morning exercises with video, a place where you could come early in the morning (8 a.m.) and find something to do if you choose to stay until closing, knowing you were comfortable and safe. Just having another human around to visit and interact with accomplished more than a case full of medications.

THE POSTSCRIPT, Carrie Classon

I had a really good ice-cream cone this week.

I suppose this does not qualify as news, but I try not to eat too much ice cream, and I don’t usually keep ice cream in my freezer because I have a tendency to eat it all right away.

I love ice cream. I have always loved ice cream. But I have noticed my tendency to eat it until my face goes numb and have avoided it. When I’m in Mexico, I walk by an ice-cream shop every night, where I have bought ice cream before. It is good. So almost every night, when I get to the ice-cream shop, I pause, and I ask myself, “Should I get ice cream tonight?”

GUEST COLUMN, Sally C. Pipes

Affordability is on the lips of lawmakers these days -- and with good reason. Nearly half of Americans say they're struggling to pay for basic necessities like rent, groceries, and health care.

The good news is that Congress is weighing several reforms that could help make health care in particular more affordable.

Many of the drivers of today's sky-high healthcare costs are a direct result of Obamacare. The 2010 law made it all but impossible -- and in some cases illegal -- for insurers to offer low-cost plans. Predictably, individual-market premiums have tripled since the law's exchanges went online more than a decade ago.