The words in the above headline were advice I heard from a business owner during the COVID-19 pandemic. She was partially jesting and partially being honest. As with the pandemic, and most things in general, the truth is often somewhere in between. 

Setting the COVID-19  debate aside, if there was any good that came out of the pandemic, it was that we all may be washing our hands more frequently. But how often? How many times per day should we be washing our hands? And how many is too many? 

The answers come from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and the most obvious one is to wash your hands after touching surfaces with lots of contact from others such as door knobs, railings, telephones, etc. The CDC gives additional advice that also makes sense, including before, during and after preparing food and before consuming food. Additional advice from the CDC is to wash your hands before and after caring for someone who is sick, or before and after treating a cut or a wound. 

Most of us are likely washing our hands after using the toilet to avoid exposure to bodily fluids that can contain viruses and germs. With that in mind, the CDC says it is also important to wash your hands after changing diapers. In a nod to Captain Obvious, we should also wash our hands after sneezing, coughing or blowing our nose. 

And finally, we are told that we should wash our hands after handling garbage, as it can ferment at room temperature, leading to the formation of dangerous germs.

But can you wash your hands too much? According to healthspectra.com, the answer is yes — or at least a maybe. The site says there are possible risks of an affected immune system, as over-washing your hands can strip your skin of the good bacteria that are necessary for a healthy immune response.

Over-washing can also lead to constant drying of the skin, which is comprised of numerous sebaceous glands that are responsible for secreting sebum and oils that help keep our skin soft and supple naturally. Chemical-induced antibacterial soap can strip the skin of these natural oils, resulting in cracking of the skin that can act as an open passage for the germs to enter the body and cause disease. And finally, over-washing your hands can lead to a heightened risk of bacterial resistance, as antibacterial soaps and sanitizers make the bad bacteria immune to those.

Again, the truth is likely somewhere in the middle. While you all debate this, I am going to wash my hands and get back to work. 

Have a terrific Tuesday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707

We had a great event Tuesday night that most of you on this subscriber list of 1,587 did not attend. To be fair, most of you didn’t know about it, as it was an invitation-only program to recognize the winners of our 2025 Best of Guthrie County readers’ poll.

Who was invited? We welcomed the top three vote-getters in each of the 82 categories that were featured in the poll and encouraged them to bring coworkers, friends and family members to share in the celebration. And they did. Nearly 300 people attended this first-time event that we held at the Guthrie County Fairgrounds. The event center was packed many of the top movers and shakers of the county who are working relentlessly to make this area a great place to work, live — and play, too. 

The maximum-capacity crowded cheered each other in recognition of the great work that so many people have done throughout the county. Titles were awarded. Certificates were presented. A bit of playful bragging was even heard, along with a whole lot of hooting and hollering. It was what we hoped it would be.

To be clear, the winners of the Best of Guthrie County poll were not chosen by us. They were chosen by you, or at least the 642 of you who cast your votes in the poll. That’s important, as it ensures that nobody can buy their way into winning. All the winners earned the incredible honor of being voted in the top three.

This was our first event, but it was our second year hosting the poll, and numerous changes occurred from last year’s results. I expect there will be numerous changes in the results next year, too, and, overall, that’s a good thing. Sometimes our advertising customers win. Sometimes they don’t. Sometimes our event sponsors win. Sometimes they don’t. That can create awkward situations for us, at times, but the votes are our readers, and they are what they are. I assure you of this: We will not do anything to compromise the validity of this poll or your trust. 

So, what does it mean to be “the best”? Certainly, the answer is a matter of opinion. In fact, it is 100% opinion. Even so, being “the best,” by definition, means “excelling above all others in a particular area, offering the greatest advantage or satisfaction.” It often refers to “achieving the highest level of quality or performance compared to others.”

I can’t argue with that. 

We are pleased to share the results with each of you now, too. They will publish as our cover stories in the September issues of Lake Panorama Times, Guthrie Center Times and Panora Times, and you can view them online right now from this link as well.

When you get a chance, I ask that you not only congratulate the winners of our 2025 Best of Guthrie County poll but also seek out their products or services and buy locally whenever you can. Then, you, too, will understand why they are the best.

Have a fantastic Friday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707

Have you noticed how most everything seems to have an expiration date these days? Some are certainly for good reason. Meat. Dairy. Bread. I don’t want to eat or drink those things when they have gone bad. Even so, I am not sure I need a date stamp to help me out. Nature has a way of letting know when meat is rotten, milk is sour or bread is moldy. I doubt if my grandmother ever felt a need for expiration dates on her food items. 

Well, times have changed, and maybe our senses are not as good as generations prior. Maybe. If I do check the expiration date on the carton of milk, I still smell it before I decide whether to pour it on my cereal or down the drain. My olfactory seems to be working just fine. And if I am in doubt, I throw it out.

But, alas, the marketers of the world have discovered our apparent fears of consuming anything that might be considered “old.” We now have expiration dates for beer and soda and even bottled water. Yes, bottled water can expire.  

I had this discussion with some co-workers the other day. I searched up and down a bottle of water for this so-called expiration date, and I proudly showed the bottle and pointed out that it wasn’t there. An observant co-worker then succinctly showed me the fine print that my expiring eyes couldn’t see. I chugged down that bottle of water out of pure vengeance. 

OK, so maybe you agree with the need for expiration dates on bottled or canned drinks, but prepare yourself for these non-food items that we are to believe can also expire and should be replaced:

Toothbrush? Just in case you can’t tell when the bristles fall out in your mouth, the American Dental Association suggests you replace this every three to four months. 

Bath towels? Home health experts say you should replace your towels at least once every two years or when they lose their fluffiness, start to smell or stop absorbing.

Pillows or mattress? Experts recommend replacing your pillows every two years or when they begin to lose shape. And plan to buy a new mattress in six to eight years, or if you notice it is sagging, or if it begins to squeak or make other noises. If you suffer from allergies, you may want to do this even sooner.

Sunscreen? Three years. Sunscreens are required by the FDA to remain at their original strengths for at least that long. Many sunscreens now have an expiration date on the bottle.

Slippers? Six months to a year, depending on how much you wear them. They apparently may be a breeding ground for bacteria, especially if you wear them outside at all and don’t wash them. 

So, my motto of “If in doubt, throw it out” still seems to apply. Meanwhile, let me know of other products with expiration dates that I failed to mention. 

Have a terrific Tuesday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707

Professional football season will soon be upon, and there’s nothing like getting cozy on the couch with a pillow and a blanket and watching my favorite football team — the Minnesota Vikings. I usually stay awake through the first quarter and then wake up in the fourth quarter, and I don’t really feel like I missed much in between, especially since the important plays are shown more times than I can count anyway. 

There is no doubt that today’s NFL players are bigger, stronger and faster than they have ever been. We may all have theories as to why this is, but there is no denying it. There is also no denying the size of the players’ gargantuan egos.

Maybe the egos were always large. Maybe. But if any NFL player wants to know how to act, he should just review clips of Barry Sanders when he scored countless touchdowns and simply handed the ball over to the referee. No dancing. No singing. No spiking. No taunting.  He simply acted in a way that said, “I’ve done this before, and I will do it again.” 

Today’s players should also watch Walter Payton, one of the greatest running backs of all time, who also knew how to be humble — other than that truly awkward “Super Bowl Shuffle” thing. 

I don’t know if legendary Vikings quarterback Fran Tarkenton could have been cocky, even if he wanted to. It simply wasn’t part of who he, or many other NFL players of years gone by, were. 

Listen, I understand the emotion of scoring a touchdown and wanting to celebrate, but the outreached arms of Joe Montana said all that needed to be said. What I don’t understand are the celebrations after seemingly every play. Does every tackle warrant a chest thump? Does every first down require a forward hand motion from the runner? Does every deflected pass have to be followed by comments to the defender or the sidelines or the fans? And I haven’t even mentioned the way today’s players treat the referees — and even their coaches. The egos are out of control and need to be put in check somehow, some way. 

I realize the NFL has struggled with how to deal with this — how to determine what is excessive celebration, what is taunting, what is unsportsmanlike conduct. It seems to me that each of these things now happen after nearly every play. Unfortunately, when young people see this, they act in similar ways on the elementary playgrounds and the high school fields — and that behavior perpetuates. 

Fans seem to like this behavior — and the ratings might prove it — but all this commotion can be quite disruptive not only to our general society but also to my Sunday afternoon nap. 

Have a fantastic Friday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707

Today’s topic is on a little something we all know called repetition. The more we do something, the better we get at it, or so the saying goes. If we are being honest, the whole “practice makes perfect” theory really isn’t true, though. If we continue to do something incorrectly, it will never become perfect. The better saying is “perfect practice makes perfect.” Meanwhile, we keep doing things. Repetition. And it adds up.

My mother had me making my bed every morning at an early age. By 5 years old, this was a daily habit. With me now at age 57, I estimate that I have made my bed more nearly 19,000 times. Sleep on that.

I take a shower or bath every day, whether I need to or not. (That’s a joke.) When I am in a cycle of exercising, that number increases. Based on once per day since my birth, I have showered or bathed more than 20,800 times. That’s a lot of soap and water.

I have been brushing my teeth on my own since I was about 5. Doing so twice per day, I have used a toothbrush somewhere in the neighborhood of 38,000 times. Flossing? Not so much. 

Like most of you, I have been driving a vehicle since I was 16 years old. On average, I would guess that I start and drive a car about five times per day — maybe more. Even at five times, I have operated a vehicle nearly 75,000 times. 

According to one poll, about 40 percent of us check our email between six and 20 times per day. If you are reading this via newsletter email, you can relate. I am on the higher end of the range, but let’s go with an average of 10 times per day. I’ve been using email regularly since about 1995, which is 27 years. When I do the math, I learn that I have checked my email more than 110,000 times — and I discovered that I won an international lottery in about one-third of those emails! 

The good news is, I think I am getting better at these and the other tasks I continue to repeat — but I am still not perfect. When my mother used to visit, she would find a wrinkle in my bedspread, and my dentist seems to locate an occasional cavity. And even with all my driving practice, I have still garnered a few speeding tickets. Meanwhile, the practicing for perfection continues. Here we go again.

Have a terrific Tuesday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707

When you work with words every day, they tend to be important — much like a mechanic’s tools or a farmer’s machinery. Every industry has its jargon, and the publishing industry is no different. Those outside of our industry may write off these distinctions as simple semantics or splitting hairs, but they are meaningful — and distinct. 

I have written in the past about the importance of keeping news and advertising separate, both in our physical office and in our staff duties. Meanwhile, many of our readers still ask to pay to “get an article in the paper.” Our response is that the news isn’t for sale, but we can certainly help them with advertising. Their reply? “You know what I mean.” 

Back in the days when we published paid subscription newspapers, we would get a chuckle when subscribers would call in to pay for their “prescription.” We don’t offer hydrocodone, lisinopril or amoxicillin, but we can make sure our publications are delivered.   

Another important distinction that is often overlooked, especially in today’s growing world of slanted news coverage, is the difference between reporters and columnists. In the heyday of newspapers, the opinion page was reserved for opinions written by columnists. The news pages were reserved for news stories written by reporters. Those lines — and duties — rarely crossed. Although some would argue that news was slanted even decades ago, it is not comparable to what we see today, especially in electronic media. Most folks without even the slightest interest in politics know which way Fox News or MSNBC lean. The social media giants’ impact on news — and elections — is also now becoming abundantly clear. 

Meanwhile, some bloggers who post scathing commentaries online try to pass themselves off as reporters. That’s unfortunate for the news media, for the viewers and for the general public, as it creates an even deeper distrust of media. 

In this column in the Times Vedette, I try, more often than not, to entertain rather than irritate. It’s not that I don’t have opinions; I just don’t think that my opinions make me right and those who disagree with me wrong. I do enjoy a good debate, as it would be a sad world if we all agreed with each other on everything, but I am fully convinced that our world would be better if we focused more on how we are all alike instead of constantly dwelling on how we are different. That goes for news coverage, too. 

Of course, if you don’t agree, you can cancel your prescription. 

Have a fantastic Friday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
Times Vedette digital editions
shane@gctimesnews.com
641-332-2707