By Ron Humphries | Guest Opinion Humphries North Carolina's school calendar law, established in 2004, required public schools to start the academic year no earlier than the Monday closest to August 26. The original aim was to support tourism in the coastal counties. However, as time has passed, it has generated much debate about its adverse effects on education and community needs across the state, particularly in economically challenged rural counties with greater workforce

Why does the oven light never burn out?

The Sunday Column, by Chuck Thompson OPINION / HUMOR — I can tell it’s almost Christmas because that’s when I almost get kidnapped (or man-napped) on a daily basis. Y’all women need to please stop asking Santa Claus for the perfect man… I go through this every year. I ain’t got time to elude and evade little elf-looking kidnappers all the time. I’m not as fast as I used to be. I’m 47 now. Ladies, wheres the age limit??? I gotta be aged out of this thing by now… I’m not even t

By Lauren Becatti | The Shelby Independent Tacos featured on Chipotle's menu OPINION – I heard rumors about a Chipotle coming to Shelby, so I decided to get to the bottom of it. After contacting the Chipotle media relations representative, I have confirmed that the rumor is true. Sometime next year we will be getting a Chipotle! However, the location was not confirmed at this time. Chipotle is a personal favorite of mine (and I certainly prefer it over another notable chain).

Veterans’ Day salute to my pawpaw

The Sunday Column OPINION / HUMOR – I hate daylight savings, and I don’t care which is the real one. Actually, let me rephrase that because I’ll take some hate from the usual suspects for using the word hate, even though it’s referring to an event and they use it all the time, but – I .. no, nevermind, I hate daylight savings time. I don’t feel like looking up which is the original and which isn’t. Just pick one and let’s move on. We obviously don’t really need it… regardless

It's amazing how people embellish their LinkedIn profiles OPINION / HUMOR — I don’t get on LinkedIn much, so when I do it’s just to post an update for my latest book or update my resume, whatever, if that even happens. Usually not. Some people use it as often as Instagram, TikTok, Snap or Facebook, others only have it as a way to keep their professional work portfolio up to date. But the other night, as I logged onto LinkedIn to update my resume, I did something I hardly ever

By Jimmy Boheler | guest opinion Recently, while filming in my hometown of Kings Mountain, I was told it was not a good idea for me to fly my drone in a certain area. As a licensed and responsible drone operator who follows FAA safety guidelines, I could not help but wonder why. The area was safe, open, and completely legal to fly in as long as I was not flying directly over people. That moment made me stop and think about something bigger than just a flight. Why are some of

Read it every week, only in The Shelby Independent

English ain't easy, but I prefer it, mostly because I speak it OPINION / HUMOR – At one point in my life (maybe almost 20 years ago) I seriously considered going to South Korea to teach English.   But then, my brain did what it does best, and I started thinking about the silent “G” and silent “K” and I just didn’t have the energy, nor the knowledge, to explain that.  I could just imagine the confusion on the faces of Koreans when learning the spelling of English words, taught

OPINION / HUMOR

OPINION – On Wednesday afternoon, a little before 3 p.m., Sarah Queen, volunteering her time at the Fairgrounds, helping the Cleveland...

Romance will never be the same

By Brandt Young Sports Columnist Brandt Young Do me a favor – Google the top 25 high school football teams in America right now. Is there...

I remember the first time I gave a girl I liked a giant Hershey kiss. I was in the 6 th  or 7 th  or 8 th grade – maybe I was in high school? I could just lie and pick a grade, but the girl involved in this opening paragraph memory might read this column, and then accuse me of spreading misinformation, so instead I just mentioned them all. Anyway – It was the size of my fist and in a box, a giant Hershey’s Kiss wrapped in tinfoil just like the regular sized ones – or wait a

I promise I’m not trying to be an old man yelling at clouds, and this doesn’t stem from my time in print media. Even before that, I saw this shift. Newspapers are dying for many reasons, and the general lack of interest is one of them.

Where’s the lie? In the wake of the political assassination (words / phrases used by the governor of Utah and federal authorities) of...

The names of restaurants have always annoyed me. I don’t know why, that’s just how I’m wired.

When I was a kid, maybe early teens, I had a soccer coach tell me that when I’m 40 I’ll feel all the aches and pains from playing sports one day. 40? I didn’t care. That was a thousand years from now. Whatever, maybe — I believed him, but when I pictured a 40 something year old they looked the same as a 75 year old. “I’ll worry about it then,” I shrugged. Tonight was one of those rare nights I wanted to go to bed earlier than usual. I was taking a step to get into bed and m

While I was in South Dakota, I learned a lot I didn’t know about the eagle. Mostly what it represented to the Lakota people, one steeped in history, bravery and wisdom.