Single-handedly making a difference
Usually finishing on a positive note of people making a difference, CBS ended last night’s newscast with an interview of Harriet Glickman, a name I had not previously heard. She’s the impetus behind the integration of the “Peanuts” comic strip 50 years ago. In 1968, Glickman was a 42-year-old former teacher and mother of three children. Her entire family was a fan of “Peanuts” and had paraphernalia throughout their home. When riots and protests broke out across the country following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4 that year, she...
Read MoreWhen disasters strike
The flooding last week in the Northeast was heart-breaking. And the still raging wildfires out West gut-wrenching. Horrendous disasters. Such destruction and us humans with little if any control. Mother Nature can be a bear. Seems like the universe, or whoever is in charge, could have sent some of the torrential rain causing the flooding to where it was needed most. But that’s obviously not the way things work. I keep thinking about the aftermath of these disasters. Once the dangers pass and people are able to return to their homes and businesses, what are they facing? No amount of...
Read MoreRecycling fever
My garbage receptacle (the blue one on the left) being much smaller than my recycling one makes me smile every time I see it. It’s like an affirmation of what I value right there in plain view. I’m not sure when, why or how I developed such a fervor for recycling. But it’s undeniably in my DNA now and I can’t NOT do it. Not only do I personally have to recycle, I often feel compelled to make sure others do as well. My son once accused me of being a “recycling nazi.” He said it in jest, of course, after he caught me pulling things out of his trash can that should have been put in the...
Read MoreMinding my own business – or not
Minding my own business is not always such a great idea. And sometimes, it is. As I sat at an intersection a few days ago, waiting to turn left, I noticed a woman on the opposite sidewalk. She was pushing a stroller with a small infant inside, carrying a toddler on one hip and had a slightly older toddler walking along beside her. As they approached the busy crossing, she put the hip toddler down next to the other one. But the little girl kept reaching out, crying to be carried again. The woman slapped the child’s hands away and started to walk on but eventually turned around and picked her...
Read MoreHonoring parents on Parents Day
The fourth Sunday of July (the 22nd this year) is Parents Day, a relatively young holiday to commemorate parents. President Bill Clinton signed it into law in 1994, based on a resolution introduced by Sen. Trent Lott (R-Mississippi). Though it’s young in the United States, this commemoration is rooted in a national holiday established by South Korea in 1956. At any rate, it’s another excuse to honor our parents, which is always a good thing to do. If they’re still alive, gifts and cards are in order. If not, a nice tribute will do. A favorite story about my parents is how they met. The...
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Jane Self, PhD, was assistant features editor for the Macon Telegraph and features editor for The Tuscaloosa News. She received her master's degree in secondary education from Louisiana State University in New Orleans and her PhD in education administration from the University of Alabama. 
Jane Self was features editor at The Tuscaloosa News when the Fallen Warriors series began. Although she left the paper, she continued to write these profiles on a freelance basis for The News until the series was stopped in May 2009. Jane has since updated and published them as an E-book. 
In 1991 "60 Minutes" aired a story that attempted to destroy the life and work of EST founder Werner Erhard. Award-winning journalist Jane Self suspected there was more to these allegations than being reported. She discovered an amazing plot of espionage, conspiracy, and sabotage.