[Editor’s note: Last week, we here at The Citizen said goodbye to one of our family members, Michael Boylan. He is taking over responsibility for producing the content of several local magazines stretching across north Georgia. This is Mike’s last column for The Citizen.]

To the new guy at my (very big) desk:

Over the past week and a half I have been trying to tell you everything I learned in my 14 years at The Citizen. Read More»

Rick Ryckeley’s column will return next week.

He’s been a little under the weather but I’ll leave him to tell you the details. I would hate to rob him of several weeks of column material because I know that writing a weekly column is hard to do.

I’ve been at the newspaper for a long time and I’ve written columns sporadically during my tenure. I would generally write one when I had something to say or when space demanded it. Last week I wrote about my friend joining the unofficial club of parenthood. This week...I’ve got nothing. Read More»

My best friend and his wife are having a baby this spring. I am excited for them because being a parent has been an amazing and eye-opening experience for me. I am also excited because he now gets to join the club. The club of parents is an unofficial club. There are no dues - aside from the ones you pay during those seemingly endless nights during the first year of the child’s life and the thousands of diapers you change until you can finally convince your child to use the potty. Read More»

One of my favorite events of the year returns this weekend. The Line Creek Civitan Great Chili Challenge will take place Saturday, Nov. 10 from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at Shakerag Knoll (you know, right by “The Fred”) and will feature raffles, entertainment and a silent auction as well as a whole lot of chili. Read More»

I remember hearing ads for DragonCon on the radio several years ago and thinking, “Nerds!!” It conjured up images in my head of Trekkies giving each other the “Live long and prosper” hand signal and middle-aged men hovering over old comic books. It just didn’t sound like my type of party. Read More»

Philosophizing can be fun. Who doesn’t like thinking and arguing, pontificating and theorizing, debating and discussing? It’s good activity for the brain, if not for one’s stress levels.

There’s a time and a place for philosophy though. It’s called college. Or it can be a dinner party with other people who enjoy that kind of thing.

The one place it needs to vacate though — at least for the time being — is government. Read More»

I wrote a book. Read More»

Ten years ago, when I was just a fresh-faced lad of 27, I was approached in my duties as Names and Faces Editor by a boy who wanted to write movie reviews. I thought it was a great idea. It would be something cute for the readers and a badge of honor for this little guy who had dreams of becoming a movie critic. I didn’t expect that Kevin Thomas would harbor those dreams for very long. Read More»

I had the unenviable task of writing a Mother’s Day column for this week’s paper. I say unenviable because I just didn’t want to write about how much I love my Mom (lots) or what a good mother Sabine, my wife, is (a great one). I feel like I’ve been there and done that.

Instead, I decided to create playlist on Spotify (it’s public - you can find it on there under Mother’s Day by Mike). Some of these songs are nice, some of them aren’t - but they all have Ma, Mama, Mom, Mother or Mommy in the title. Aren’t I clever?

Let’s take a look at the list before you take a listen. Read More»

Back in the day - we’re talking before I had kids, so at least eight years ago, if not more, I was fairly involved with the local arts scene. I was handling the Names and Faces section, like I am today, and I knew the heads of the local community theaters and the players that were trying to get a theater built in Fayette County. I attended meetings, talked with people on the Endowment Committee for the Cultural Arts, and really wanted to help make a push for Fayette County to recognize the efforts of these groups and individuals. Read More»