Headlights cut into the darkness, two bright, bulbous eyes illuminating Krista Webber’s silhouette as she crouches and coos, tossing herring into a wooden crate. It’s the first morning of spring break, and in a few hours, this place will quite literally be a zoo. But at this chilly, predawn moment, all eyes – including the […]
Maggie Gordon / Columnist
Maggie Gordon is a columnist who has worked at newspapers across the country, including the Stamford Advocate and the Houston Chronicle. She has covered everything from the hedge fund industry and education to craft beer and alligator hunting. No matter the topic, Maggie’s favorite stories combine quirky characters, adventure and humanity. Bonus points if she can find a love story. Maggie grew up on a cow farm in upstate New York, and graduated from nearby Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. These days you can find her at her home in Houston’s East End – or on Twitter.
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Houston’s water department overcharged a widow by $6,000. We decided to find out why.
For 50 years, Bev Edelman’s husband, Ken, was dutiful about ensuring accounts were paid on time. Bev never had to worry. But when Ken died five years ago at the age of 73, Bev’s world went topsy-turvy. She had to teach herself all the things she’d relied on Ken for since they were married in […]
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Stopped trains are plaguing Houston. It’s time to make Union Pacific pay.
It happened again this morning. I was less than a mile from home, on my way to the Houston Landing’s office to write this column about stopped trains, when I saw the flashing lights pinging in front of a long mass of gray and black train cars. Yet another Union Pacific train had stopped in […]
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Abbott says ‘we must empower parents.’ So why is Texas stripping their rights in Houston ISD?
The state is poised to take over the Houston Independent School District, a threat that has set the community into action. Texas Education Agency officials appear ready to install a board of managers to govern the district under a 2015 state law that mandates punishment of any district in which a single campus received five […]
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Two-day walk along Buffalo Bayou East reveals need for community connection
This is the first in our occasional “Boots On The Ground” series, in which columnist Maggie Gordon explores local issues by walking through our changing communities. Google Maps swore that a pedestrian could cross Buffalo Bayou between Lockwood Drive and Hidalgo Park in Houston’s East End. Google Maps is a liar. I’m two hours into […]
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This recipe has 12 simple ingredients. Good luck finding them in Houston’s food deserts.
Four or five times a week, Lakisha Collins and her 4-year-old son Benji set out on a trip to the new H-E-B MacGregor Market. The errand takes them at least two hours — often, three. It’s not that they live far. Collins resides inside the loop, near the beating heart of the fourth largest city […]
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‘Twas the Night Before Rodeo: A Very Houston Poem
‘Twas the night before Rodeo, when all throughout Houston Not a cowboy was rustling, not a lasso was loopin’; The boots were all lined up next to Wranglers and buckles, (And medical tape, for the bull riders’ knuckles); MagEGordon · ‘Twas The Night Before Rodeo: A Very Houston Poem MagEGordon · ‘Twas The Night Before […]
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Jumping off course: In Houston’s suburbs, golf carts are king.
Jane Beene was walking her dog, Bojangles, when a neighbor cruising by in a golf cart with her children stopped her. “Can we pet your dog?” the neighbor asked. Bojangles loved when kids came up for a pet. So as he basked in canine bliss, Beene and her neighbor chatted. “I love your golf cart,” […]
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EGGONOMICS: Rising egg prices bring uncertainty to small family farm
SANTA FE – Bernadette Clements is what her parents call a “Chicken Whisperer.” The youngest of five siblings responsible for running Clements Family Farm in Santa Fe, 11-year-old Bernadette can nurse any chicken back to health, no matter how close it’s pecking to death’s door. And keeping chickens alive isn’t always easy. Here in Texas, […]
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Hospitals are supposed to make us healthier. But their carbon footprints are doing the opposite.
Hospitals should never harm patients from care that is intended to help them. That’s the definition of patient safety. But a growing body of research shows that the very way hospitals operate is causing preventable harm to patients every day. Globally, 5 percent of greenhouse gas emissions can be attributed to health care, and in […]