For the last time on Friday afternoon at 3:00, our office logged off from the only computer system we have known since 1989. It was the program that officially got us started down the electronic freeway and since that day we've never looked back. A few years ago the State introduced their 'own' system and slowly started getting other counties to join that system. Some counties had never been on a computer system at all, so this was a welcome sight to them! While others, (like ours) wasn't too sure and just wasn't ready to change. Why fix something that wasn't broken in the first place? Our system was meeting the courts needs as well as the needs of the public. Unfortunately the State Courts Administrator's Office did not agree.

After several years of fighting against joining the rest of the counties, our former clerk finally agreed to let the State have their way. We had been hearing horror stories from other counties about the inefficiency of the system; how hard it was to learn, etc. Why would we want to join them? I think our waiting paid off however, for most of those early 'bugs' have now been worked out. I'm sure it's still not perfect, but our system wasn't either.

Monday morning at approximately 8AM, we will all log on to this new adventure. I'm looking at it as that, just because I don't handle other people's stress very well!! Eventually our records will be available at a site called "CaseNet" along with all the other counties in Missouri. It will definitely look different, but we'll get used to it.

Last night was "Jazz Night" at the BSU and featured brothers Jacob and Kane Hiser. You can visit their website at: http://www.thehiserbrothers.com/home.htm

They are 2 very talented young men and we enjoyed almost 4hrs of very sweet jazz music. They were joined by Paul McKee who played the saxophone and tenor sax and drummer whose name I can't remember!! I have a feeling they will be famous one day. They know me, don't they??