The TV Guide

The TV Guide

There were three TV channels when I was a kid. The signals of two of them were reliable. The third was iffy. If there was a storm, CBS probably wasn’t going to have a picture.

Nestled in the southwest corner of Arkansas, my hometown was not near any of the television towers. Radio stations were plentiful, but the closest television stations were in Shreveport. Little Rock and Dallas had stations, but the signals didn’t reach us.

So, we subsisted ...

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Uncategorized

Old Man’s Winter

Old Man’s Winter

During global warming’s recent vacation to the arctic, record-low temps were set and kids and grownups got a few days off of school and work.

My wife and I have lived in an empty nest for a number of years now, but it was fun seeing pictures and video of our grandchildren on the east coast sliding on their sleds from the top to the bottom of the hill in their front yard, and then trek back up to repeat until ...

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Family

Doobie Brothers Still Rock

Doobie Brothers Still Rock

 

When I first picked up a guitar in 1970, my fingers didn’t make the sounds I wanted to hear. But I knew that if I kept trying, I could learn to play the songs I heard on the radio.

I was eight.

My teacher’s name was Mike and it was in his room in his parent’s home that I learned the foundations of what makes the guitar an amazing instrument.

At first, it was daunting. I was forming the chords with my left ...

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Music

Andy Griffith

 

I’ve been thinking about Andy Griffith a lot lately. And I have Danny Thomas to thank for it.

I spend a lot of time trolling YouTube – the Internet website that allows anyone from large corporations to the average guy like me to upload videos.

Recently, I came across an Andy Griffith episode I’d never seen. For those of us who grew up watching the goings on of The Andy Griffith Show, finding an episode that we didn’t know existed is comparable ...

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Family, Home

The Axing Price

The Axing Price

The stack of split wood lined much of the back wall of the house on Locust Street. That wood burned hot during many 1970s Arkansas winters.

My father would have the wood delivered cut lengthwise, but not split. That’s what I was for.

Each spring and summer, I would head to the backyard, grabbing the single-blade axe, sledgehammer and two steel wedges, and get to work. I was in my teens and could plow through a rick in short order and then ...

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Family, Home, Life

A Tabled Matter

A Tabled Matter

I was supposed to head straight to the store and back. The garage sale sign I saw not long after leaving home altered my trip just a tad.

I steered my Prius left into the housing addition and followed the arrows. I easily spotted the house. One, because it sat at the top of a small hill and two, because there were a lot of vehicles in front of it.

It was actually a moving sale, but I use garage sale as ...

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Family

Christmas Past

Christmas Past

The sound of passing cars was constant. The small, rented, pier and beam house sat just a few dozen feet from the highway.

Across the street, a manufacturing plant provided jobs for the locals. They made clothing.

He would sometimes sit on the front porch with his legs dangling over the edge, barefoot and shirtless during the warm months, and watch them come and go. He was free to be outside and enjoy life until shift change at the end of the ...

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Faith, Family, Holidays

The Gift That Keeps On Giving

 

If you’ve ever been to a Southern Baptist Sunday School Christmas party, it is likely that you have been a participant in what is called, “A White Elephant Gift Exchange.”

It was years ago that I was part of this holiday party game, but during that time I was never able to determine why it was named such, as I never saw a pachyderm, white or otherwise.

And now, thanks to the Internet, you and I both know more.

For those who aren’t ...

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Faith, Holidays

Old News

 

Person 1: “Hey. Remember me? You were in my class.”

Person 2: “No, I’m sorry. I’m afraid I don’t. What did you teach?”

As we get older, we see aging in others, but we never age.

At least, we don’t see ourselves aging.

I remember going to my 35th high school class reunion a few years ago. A classmate was kind enough to host a gathering at his home for the handful who could make it. Around 30 of my graduating class of about ...

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Life

Vintage Bowls

Vintage Bowls

We were watching one of my wife’s favorite cooking shows when she noticed a set of colored bowls the woman on the television was using.

“My mother used to have a set of bowls just like that!” she said. “I always loved those bowls. I wonder whatever happened to them? I wonder if she still has them? I’d love to have a set of those. They bring back so may memories!”

Before she had finished the last two sentences, I was already ...

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Family, Home, Home Cooking

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