HUNTINGTON — The sounds of blues and soul — plus a little bit of local flavor — rang out from Joan C. Edwards Stadium on Friday as “Mountain Stage” took place in front of a live audience for the first time in more than a year.

“Because there’s nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the shoreline, no matter how many times it’s sent away.” — Sarah Kay

Though cooking and preparing meals can be a highly personal and intimate work of art — or love, as I like to describe it — pleasing the palate of others requires the one who labors to reach far into the abyss of research if one’s goal is to impress and make the ones you love well, feel loved.

DEAR JILL: A pharmacy chain has bottles of acetaminophen on sale for $1.49 each or four for $4. Obviously the best move here is to buy four, but every time they have this sale, it goes fast. When I get to the store, inevitably I see two or three bottles there instead of four, so I can’t get …

John Stamos in a feel-good Disney sports story sounds like a complete no-brainer, so you have to wonder why no one ever thought of it before. Fortunately for us, someone finally did with the new Disney+ series “Big Shot,” giving us the opportunity to see Stamos in a role custom made for him …

AN ANSWERED PRAYER: Louisa, Kentucky, native Ricky Skaggs recently shared some positive news that actually happened in 2020. On June 1 of last year, he finished a journey that started more than 50 years ago. He received his high school diploma. Ricky was supposed to originally get the docume…

CHARLESTON — The following events happened on these dates in West Virginia history. To read more, go to e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia at www.wvencyclopedia.org.

HUNTINGTON — Shemekia Copeland took the stage for the first time when she was nearly 10 years old. She couldn’t have predicted that 30 years later, she would be known as one of the great blues voices of our time.

HUNTINGTON — Kayla Morris, branch manager of Gallaher Village Library, has been selected to join in the Association for Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL) Outstanding in Their Field Leadership Institute as part of the 2021-22 cohort, according to a news release from the Cabell County Public Library.

ASHLAND — If ever houses need to be blessed, it’s now.

Have you ever had a dream that you could fly?

NAME, SIZE AND BREED: McCleod is a 3- to 5-year-old, 43-pound dog. He was found as a stray on March 25.

HUNTINGTON — After a long COVID absence, theater returns to Huntington this month as First Stage Theatre presents a drive-in production that’s two shows in one.

I’ve spent countless hours watching Gilligan’s Island, thinking I would have loved to have known Bob Denver. I always thought he was probably one of the sweetest and funniest humans and it would be amazing to know him. Well, thanks to his wife Dreama, we can all do just that.

HURRICANE, W.Va. — The Miss West Virginia Elementary, Jr. High, High School and Collegiate America Pageant was held in Hurricane on Feb. 20 at the Valley Park Conference Center. Thirty-four participants from around the state competed for state titles.

“I cannot do all the good that the world needs. But the world needs all the good that I can do.” — Jana Stanfield

CHARLESTON — West Virginia’s annual celebration of the state’s traditional arts and culture is returning in 2021, albeit in a highly condensed form.

There is absolutely nothing about the vague, bland premise of ABC’s new comedy, “Home Economics,” that would make you think the show would be funny. So, you’d be forgiven for skipping it, as I almost did. But if you don’t watch, you’ll miss a great show that’s as heartwarming as it is hilari…

DEAR JILL: I read your recent columns on preparedness with interest. Unlike what I suspect are most of your regular readers, I am not a coupon user. Between the coronavirus lockdowns and the winter freeze and disasters, I now realize that, moving forward, I must be far more prepared than I was.

TOP OF THE CHART: Congrats to Florida Georgia Line, as their song “Long Live” is in the top spot on the country music airplay chart. This is the 18th career No. 1 hit for Brian Kelley and Tyler Hubbard. The guys shared, “Having our fans and Country radio support us all of these years has bee…

CHARLESTON — The following events happened on these dates in West Virginia history. To read more, go to e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia at www.wvencyclopedia.org.

If your vocabulary for colors is limited to the primaries — to simply red, yellow or blue — you’ll have a hard time describing the hundreds of elegant gowns that were trucked in from New York to Sissonville on a dreary, overcast day last week.

It’s difficult to revisit Stephen King’s “The Shining” without picturing Jack Nicholson’s menacingly arched eyebrows and famously ad-libbed line “Here’s Johnny!” in Stanley Kubrick’s film, but after a third reading, I’ve come to appreciate how deftly King uses horror as a metaphor for addict…

Movies & More reviewer John Gillispie shares his thoughts on the movie “Greenland,” which is rated PG-13 and available on DVD.

NAME, SIZE AND BREED: Meet Freya! This playful, 74-pound, 1- to 2-year-old girl was surrendered to the shelter when her owner could no longer care for her.

PHILIPPI, W.Va. — Adam Starks’ three children are in the midst of happy, active childhoods sharply different from his own.

My favorite class of herbs are called adaptogens. You might be wondering what makes these herbs so special to me. Adaptogens are considered “normalizing” herbs. These herbs are traditionally used to support the very overlooked adrenal glands. Our adrenal glands help keep our stress and energ…

Paul and Susan Helo are seniors living in Ashland doing what they have waited on for many years — and that’s to retire. However, their definition of retirement following their working years is far from the explanation in Webster’s Dictionary. They now live in a world of volunteering their ti…

It is a familiar story.

“No matter when you start, a diet that is focused on plant foods will help you work toward the prevention of many illnesses and feeling better overall.” — Julia Zumpano, RD, LD

As more light seeps in from the tunnel of not knowing what’s coming next with the pandemic, I continue to wrap myself in gratitude for what we have and comfort myself with a gentleness that speaks to the pressure I feel — pressure to perform or constantly feel enthusiastic.

HUNTINGTON — Blues singer Shemekia Copeland is the latest act announced for the April 16 edition of “Mountain Stage.”

HUNTINGTON — Multi-Dove Award-winning and Grammy-nominated recording artist The Nelons will be featured Sunday, April 4, at the Trinity Church of God, located at 2688 3rd Ave. in Huntington, during the 10:30 a.m. Easter Sunday service.

NEW ALBUM RELEASE DATE: As his song “Minimum Wage” climbs the chart, Blake Shelton announced that he’s releasing his next album May 21! “Body Language” is Blake’s 12th studio album, and will feature, “Minimum Wage,” his No. 1 hit with Gwen Stefani, “Happy Anywhere” and 10 additional tracks. …

Has Chuck Lorre's 15-year string of hits finally come to an end?

Last week, I shared a sampling of the many emails I received from readers who lived through the Texas freeze in February. So many people wrote with excellent and surprising tips that I wanted to devote one more column to sharing their experiences, as I feel that we can all learn from this si…