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Now the time to expand Utica Shale usage

In a time of grinding inflation, increasing energy costs and continuing global instability, we Ohioans are lucky to live on top of the Utica Shale oil and gas basin. Stretching across Appalachian Ohio and into our neighboring states, the Utica Shale is a vast, underground reserve of energy containing an estimated 38 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, 940 million barrels of oil and 208 million barrels of natural gas liquids. While it would traditionally be impossible to access these energy deposits buried deep underground, new technologies like horizontal drilling and hydraulic ...

We are not alone; Mariettas abound around the country

If you travel out of the area and someone asks you where you are from, you of course tell them Marietta. Shortly after that you begin the game of explaining where Marietta is. Ohio they normally get, then the person inevitably starts naming Ohio big cities. Are you near Columbus? No. How about Cincinnati? Nope. Cleveland? No, we are not near there either. I normally tell people to draw a line due south from Cleveland or due east from Cincinnati until they run out of state and that is where we are from. We are not alone in being from Marietta. There are 13 communities around the ...

Know Before You Grow: ‘Bring One Take One’ Plant and Seed Exchange this Saturday

Since becoming the county coordinator for the Washington County Master Gardner Volunteers, one of my favorite OSU programs is our annual Bring One Take One Plant and Seed exchange. In my opinion, this is one of the most fun events we implement at OSU Extension, and not just within the Master Gardener program. The weather is always great, the selection is wonderful, the atmosphere is full of excitement, and the entire event only last around 20 minutes, which is great because participants have plenty of time to properly care for your new vegetative companions when you return ...

Pray and keep praying

Luke 11:1(NIV) begins, “One day Jesus was praying in a certain place.” What place? In Jesus’ life, it could have been anywhere! In Luke 5:16, Jesus goes to a “desolate place” to pray. In 6:12 and 9:28, Jesus prays on a mountain. In Luke 22:41, Jesus prayed just outside Jerusalem, on the Mount of Olives. Jesus’ own prayer life demonstrates that there is not a “best” place to pray; prayer can be offered from anywhere. From everywhere. What should we pray about? In the next verses of Luke 11, Jesus teaches his followers to recognize the honor and power of God, to ask ...

Rufus Putnam ingenuity ousts British from Boston

Rufus Putnam is considered the founder of Marietta, Ohio. He had a distinguished Revolutionary War record; his specialty was fortifications. In March 1776, George Washington was planning a campaign to force the British army out of Boston. Rather than a risky frontal assault, he and his staff ...

Find a new family favorite in the newspaper cookbook

Everyone has that one dish in mind that completes the holidays and without it, Christmas or Thanksgiving wouldn’t be the same. This year, we’re asking people to share theirs when they submit recipes for the Parkersburg News and Sentinel and Marietta Times 69th Cookbook Contest. For me, ...