Today's Opinions

The Luster family made its way into the wilderness that was Fayette County before statehood. At the head of the clan was Archibald Luster, who with his wife, Malinda Yarbrough, lived in the southwestern part of the county.

Some of their sons moved across the Kaskaskia River and settled in the Pinhook area, about four miles southeast of Vandalia. Archibald and Malinda were parents of nine children: Henry, born in 1778, Chana, William, Josiah, Malinda, Catherine, Mary, David and Philip, the youngest, born in 1801.

Helen Luster, of the Pinhook community, and I have corresponded for several years now. In her occasional letters, she has shared with me old stories passed down through the Luster family, several of which I have repeated in this column.

Last week, I received a note from Helen, accompanied by two pictures. She wrote about a mild controversy in the Luster family over the identification of a couple in an old photo.

Okay, I'll admit it. I'm a hopeless addict. I get like this every four years.

I mean, I can't make it even a couple hours without a fix.

Maybe I need a support group where I could stand up and say: "My name is Dave, and I'm an Olympic junkie."

In most sporting events, I've gotten sufficiently cynical that I can hit the remote after a quick progress check. I have too many things on my "to do" list to just sit in front of the tube for hours.