Most of our readers know we blog live Friday night to keep up with football. Our reporters at the games text or Tweet in their game highlights, and we keep a running conversation going.

Overall, this season, the blogs have been successful. We have a few regulars — Tn Murdock, Nina, JScott. Murdock graduated from Selma High and lives in Tennessee. Nina is a hometown girl, who loves music. Ms. Scott has a son who coaches for one of the teams and keeps up.

It’s hard to keep play-by-play going all the time, so the conversation sometimes drifts to things like music and why Selma is special and why we love her and anything anybody wants to talk about within reason. Meanwhile, the updates come in.

Toward the end of the evening, along about 9 p.m., folks pop in and out to ask scores. The blog sees a lot of folks along about 10:30 or so.

That’s what happened last Friday night. Tyrone Lumpkin logged in and wanted to know about the Keith High School score. Then he asked about Southside and Selma.

“Just trying 2 keep n touch with all of the local schools from iraq. Thanks,” Lumpkin wrote.

Wow.

We asked him how he was holding up. He said OK.

Turns out he’s Army. National Guard.

His MOS, or his job is motor sarge.

He especially wanted to know about Keith High School football.

Tyrone Lumpkin, a soldier in Iraq, is the father of Damarquis Lumpkin, a fullback for the Keith High School Bears. Damarquis is No. 6.

He had checked into the blog to get an update on his son before 7 a.m. Iraqi time; before he had to go to work.

The brief conversation with Lumpkin via Iraq reminded me of Desert Storm and being an embedded reporter in Saudi Arabia. In those days, we still didn’t have access to the Internet there.

How fortunate we are our families can connect with us through bits and bytes; how Lumpkin can keep up with his son’s progress through a blog from his hometown.

But it also reminds me that hometown folk are still over there and continue to do their jobs as representatives of the U.S. military. There are many families apart this football season, and I imagine a lot of moms and dads who are missing portions of football seasons, not to mention first words, first report cards, first dates, soccer games and a host of other family events.

When you read this, think for a moment of the Lumpkins and all other families who are separated because of the war. Hold them close in your hearts.

Oh, and Lumpkin family, we blog every Friday night. If you can, join us. I’m sure our audience wouldn’t mind if you guys wanted to exchange a few real-time hellos. After all, that’s what your hometown newspaper website is for — to bring you closer to home.

Leesha Faulkner is director of digital media for The Selma Times-Journal. You may reach her at 410-1742 or e-mail her at leesha.faulkner@selmatimesjournal.com