My brothers and I have, over the years, enjoyed camping at Fort Richardson State Park. As I'm sure you know, that is only a short drive slightly NW of Paradise. BTW, I have just Googled Paradise and was amazed at how beautiful the rivers and lakes in close proximity are. That is, of course, assuming the drought hasn't dried much of it up. Since my wife & I retired to Lake Whitney about 10 years ago, we rarely go RV-ing for camping purposes, unless it is available on our drives across country for visits to Family and friends.

Anytime we head to Childress to visit my sister, I will make efforts to notify you in hopes of at least a short visit with you and your husband. However, we aren't big on Childress as a destination...except for seeing my kid sister. She, at 64, is no kid, but a wonderful hostess.

There are a lot of people who believe that a technical education is more needed than any other academic degree. We DO need more trades-people, like plumbers, steam fitters, construction and carpentry, seamstresses, electricians, and others. Generally speaking, trade students are not from the same families as academic students. They do apprentice work for their qualifications. Tech schools don't cost as much as academic schools.

Moving towards a future with a balanced workforce is good for society. Tech education is the only way to balance the workforce.

I'm happy that more students can follow their goals without racking up a ton of debt. Giving young people a chance to start their lives with something constructive will keep them out of trouble. It really comes down to, do you want to help carry students without an enormous debt load, or do you want to pay for private prisons that have no accountability?