I sat near the front of the auditorium. I was the fourth to speak, so I wanted to be as near the podium as possible. But, I sat in the section to the left. The center area was for the Veterans.
There were only two.
It was the 74th memorial service for the Camp Fannin Association, and it was held at UT Health Northeast, which now occupies the site of one of the largest military training facilities of the Second World War. ...
Continue Reading →
I read something recently that was a bit disconcerting. Someone was offering a class to teach children how to tell time.
Think about that.
We’ve simplified the most basic things to the point where children, the very group of people that we will all rely on to run the country and our nursing homes when we reach old age, can’t read a watch or a clock.
Sure, kids, or anyone else for that matter, can look at a cellphone or a digital device ...
Continue Reading →
Some men do things they aren’t supposed to when their wife leaves town. I’m no exception.
I kissed her goodbye and told her that I loved her, I would miss her, and to tell her mother hello. The first chance I got after her departure, I did a rapid, cursory inspection of the refrigerator.
Just as I suspected. It was full of healthy food.
I toppled the stacks of fat-free yogurt as I parted them like the Red Sea, looking for something that ...
Continue Reading →
My mom and her mother saved 7 1/2 books to get us that swing set. Just three years before in 1966, my parents had saved to buy their first house. Money was tight, so, if my sister and I were going to have that new addition to the backyard, Green Stamps would be the key.
For families in America in the 60s and 70s, Green Stamps were part of life.
S&H Green Stamps are no longer available, but at their zenith, moms, ...
Continue Reading →
My sister and I would make a beeline for the cereal aisle at the Piggly Wiggly while my mom did the shopping.
Decisions, decisions. Did we want to roll the dice and pick the cereal that promised the possibility of getting the coolest toy, or did we want to go with cereal we liked since, either way, we’d have to eat the whole box?
They were called product premiums, and you don’t see them much anymore.
The marketers of American products used to ...
Continue Reading →
“Where the heck is Tyler, Texas?”
My question didn’t surprise the guy on the other end of the line, and he chuckled.
It was early 1987. I was a 24-year-old disc jockey with a young family, and the job I had at the time just wasn’t working out. Shockingly, six months into the gig, the manager at the station reneged on my compensation package and cut my salary.
If you aren’t familiar with the radio business, being lied to and underpaid are hallmarks ...
Continue Reading →
After living in the city my entire life, in 2003, we decided to give country living a try.
The transition wasn’t too different from Eddie Albert’s Manhattan to Hooterville move on the TV show, “Green Acres.” The only difference was that I wasn’t a wealthy New York attorney and our move was from Tyler to South of Whitehouse. Other than that, it was exactly the same.
I grew up in rural Arkansas, so I’d been around country settings in my youth, but ...
Continue Reading →
Most old-school celebrities are just regular folks.
There are very few celebrities I’ll spend money to see, but Jay Leno made the list.
We sat in the audience waiting for him to take the stage, and when he did, he didn’t disappoint. He’s one of the few comedians left who can be non-stop funny for 90 minutes without being vulgar.
We didn’t get to meet Jay, but he seems like a nice guy. He has that reputation in the show ...
Continue Reading →
It was the car I’d always wanted. A 1971 Oldsmobile Cutlass 442 Convertible.
I found it one morning while cruising (pun intended) on eBay. The guy who owned it and had it for sale lived just east of me, a few miles across the Louisiana line.
It was red, with large white stripes on the hood. From the photos, it looked to be in great condition for a 32-year-old car. I stared at it on the computer screen.
I wanted this car.
My love ...
Continue Reading →
I don’t understand the new TV shows.
Well, maybe that’s a bit of an overstatement. Shows such as “Cops,” “World’s Wildest Police Chases,” and “Judge Judy,” are fairly straightforward. Some of those programs even remind me of family members. But, I’m getting off track.
We’ve come a long way from “The Andy Griffith Show,” “Happy Days,” and “Touched By An Angel.”
I often wake up early and sometimes spend a few hours alone, which gives me complete control of the TV remote. This ...
Continue Reading →