Category: Americana
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Living Southern – When Your Wife Is Not
Any Southern man worth his grits can spot a woman not native to the Southland. Her dress, her demeanor, or her dialogue will give her away. I considered it a gift from God to have grown up in the American South. Needless to say, when I started dating again after being a widower for several…
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Mr. Aye-Aye-Aye
Passing down the family name may be tradition, but it’s a tradition fraught with complications. When naming a son after his father, it is a common practice to add a Junior or Jr. The next generation becomes the 3rd or III. And so on. Sounds simple, but it’s not. Comes across as downright honorary and…
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This Thing Called Prayer
The American reality television series called American Pickers has popularized the little known past-time of “picking.” This captivating show of exploring barns, sheds, workshops, and attics in hopes of discovering unique, collectible, and sometimes valuable items of Americana vaulted the program to the History Channel’s highest-rated show. In my case, I don’t have to go…
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Grandkids are Good Medicine
As you may have noticed by now, my blog posts vary widely in topic and tone. For my last post of January 2020, I think it’s time to enjoy a chuckle. It is a common saying for grandparents that if they knew grandchildren would be this much fun, they would have had them first. I…
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Cracker Jack Gospel
It all started with a box of Cracker Jacks. I don’t remember much from my fourth-grade year at Toney Elementary in 1960. I recall Mrs. Jakes was my teacher. And I remember a box of Cracker Jacks. Our principal, Mr. Grady, announced over the speaker one Friday afternoon that anyone who came to Sunday School…
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A Mouse Named Noel
My son and daughter-in-law had to put down their fifteen-year-old poodle this week. Every dog lover understands the heartache that comes when its time to say goodbye to a loyal, lovable, and forever-a-part-of-the-family pooch. It’s especially tough when you have to explain such a loss to your two young daughters. My son shared how he…
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If It’s Eggrolls, It Must Be Christmas
Christmas is a time to make memories, and hopefully, the kind of memories that still make you laugh, giggle and smile sixty years later. Unless it was the Christmas of 1986, when “Santa” had the bright idea to leave all his Christmas gifts in one 10 foot long black plastic bag so that our family…
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The Simple Joys of Christmas
The headlining theme of last year’s December 2018 edition of Southern Living magazine was one of the “Simple Joys” of Christmas. I always chuckle a hearty HO-HO-HO at such teasing titles. While offering readers the hope of a simple Christmas, the magazine proceeded to unload a Santa sleigh-full of ideas on decorating, wreaths, cooking,…
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What This Grandfather Wants for Christmas
My adult children struggle to buy Christmas gifts for me. It’s not really as bad as it sounds. They have just run out of gift ideas for their dad. Usually, in early November, the pleading starts, “Dad, we need your list of what you want for Christmas!” I have a problem answering that question. As…
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Living Southern: Clean Old-Fashioned Hate
College football rivalries in the Southland resemble a Hatfield-McCoy feud. They are intense, long-lasting, sometimes bitter, and always passionate. Think Auburn vs. Alabama, USC vs. Clemson, Florida vs. Florida State, Ole Miss vs. Mississippi State, and, of course, my favorite, Georgia vs. Georgia Tech. It may sound like a random collection of words, but Clean…
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