A Guy I Once Knew

I first noticed him early one morning on the side of the road. He was sitting outside a fence that surrounded a small building.

You’ve seen those buildings. They’re one of those small, remote buildings that utility companies use for maintenance. Every now and then, you’ll see the gate and building door open and a company truck parked out front while the maintenance man or woman is inside doing whatever it is they do.

But this day, there was no open gate ...

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Cousins – Times Two

I opened my Facebook app on my phone and saw that I had three private messages.

Two were the typical, “Please forward this before a worldwide virus overtakes everyone on Facebook,” kind of thing. But one was a message from someone I don’t hear from often – my cousin, Randy.

Randy is the middle child of my mom’s oldest sister. He and his older brother, Doug, and I would hang out during holidays when we were growing up, but I also used ...

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Mel Blanc

I waited six months to talk to him. That’s what his receptionist told me the wait time was for an interview when I called his Beverly Hills office in early 1984.

Since he was my childhood idol, I was willing to wait the required one-half year to have him on my radio show. And wait, I did.

“Alright,” I said. “Six months from today is August 8th. What time should I call?”

“Noon,” she answered.

“Noon it is,” I responded. And then I ...

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I’ll Take The Fall

One of my most vivid memories of fall happened during junior high. I was standing in the end zone prior to the start of a game. I could barely feel my fingers and toes.

It was October, but it was unusually cold (Al Gore had yet to invent global warming). My shoulder pads, helmet, and other gear typically made me sweat profusely in the Arkansas heat and humidity. But a cold front, and the rain that pushed it through, had arrived.

I ...

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