On this day in 1606, in Westminster Hall, eight men stood trial for their participation in the Gunpowder Plot. These men, and a number of other religious extremists, sought to blow up Parliament, kill King James I, Queen Anne, and Prince Charles, and place 9-year-old Princess Elizabeth on the throne in an attempt to gain support and undo laws that all but outlawed Roman Catholicism in the country.

When the pandemic arrived in Michigan last March, paramedics and other emergency medical technicians braced themselves for an onslaught of calls to bring individuals battling COVID-19 to the hospital. And while there was certainly a flood of COVID-19 patients to some hospitals, mostly in metro Detroit, calls to 911 dropped dramatically across Michigan as out-of-hospital deaths soared. Michiganders, including those facing serious illnesses, were avoiding the medical system.

Doug and Alek are joined by Malachi “A+scribe” Carter(The Unapologetics Podcast) who shares his thoughts on Lady Gaga’s Hunger Games-esque Inauguration outfit, President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party’s lengthy track record of exploiting Black people for political gain, and why Hamilton is problematic. The trio also gush over the powerful performance and presence of National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman, and share the biggest holes in their respective cinematic repertoires.

At a monthly work session this past Wednesday morning, St. Joseph County Road Commission (SJCRC) staff brought board members up to speed on the status of several pending projects, including a statewide “bridge bundling” project that will see a bridge replaced on Nottawa Road. Board members also addressed a few standard procedural items for the beginning of the new year, continuing a series of several such items addressed at a board meeting on January 6.

With the help of his sister Barbara Humes, who is retired after 31 years with IAC Mendon and has been baking and catering just as long, Ralph Humes resurrected R. Stanley’s, which used to call 618 South Main Street home some 20 years ago as a dine-in and takeout spot. R. Stanley’s returned this week in the form of a pop-up diner, operating out of Venue 45 in downtown Three Rivers, making family meals to-go.

“From the toddler stage we moved into the little boy stage. The stage where Nathan was learning to become independent. Learning about things he liked and disliked, and teaching us to accommodate his needs as they came along. We were working diligently to help him navigate life with Autism, and he started to be able to do more things for himself. But he still needed some help. He still needed me. He still needed that Happy Meal.”