Columns

My son decided he wanted to farm a little and since he likes hot peppers, he obtained seed for several kinds of hot peppers; hot, hotter, hotter still, and good Lord Jesus have Mercy.
He planted each tiny seed in small peat containers. I told him he was at least a month early since it was just the first day of February, but his Mother insisted I let him do as he wished. “Let him make his own mistakes,” she said. “He will learn from them.” [Full Story »] 

“I’ll wait for you right here,” Larry told me as he sat down in a lawn chair in front of Bed, Bath, and Beyond. He opened his Harry Turtledove novel and got ready to read. “There’s a nice breeze so take your time. I really don’t mind.” [Full Story »] 

When we were dating, my wife used to scratch my head a lot. I liked this better than back scratchin’, not that back scratchin’ is bad, but head scratchin’ is better. There isn’t anything I would rather have for Father’s Day or a birthday than a good head scratchin’. One of those where I go off into a deep sleep while being scratched and come to about four hours later. Now that is what I call a good head scratchin’. [Full Story »] 

We had, as is customary in our commemorations, begun celebrating our fifty-first wedding anniversary on Sunday of the previous week. We had eaten out a couple of times, rambled around the neighborhood where we spent our honeymoon in 1960 on St. Simons Island and sauntered along “our” beach. [Full Story »] 

He sat on the front steps when I opened the door that Monday morning and looked up at me with lively dark eyes. His black coat and eyes shone in the morning sun, his pink tongue hung out, and his tail wagged good morning as if he belonged there. Actually his whole body seemed to be wagging. A blue collar encircled his neck, giving me a glimmer of hope. This beautiful dog belonged to somebody and had obviously been well cared for. He was sleek, but not skinny, and his coat was healthy. Maybe the collar had a name on it. The puppy came right to me when I called him, but the collar was blank. I had no idea where to start looking for a lost owner. [Full Story »] 

My wife insisted I accompany her to the Honors Program at Coffee High School recently. We were seated in the auditorium along with maybe a hundred other parents, many of whom I thought were as disinterested as I was, at least at first. Not that I don’t care, mind you, but I had already been to several of these programs in the past and didn’t think my presence was required at this one. My wife did, however, and that was that. [Full Story »] 

(This is for all you critics that have accused me of being too serious lately.)

Have you ever noticed how children made from the same gene pool can be total opposites? Take my two boys for instance. Cole, my oldest son at age 11, is somewhat reserved. He likes to stay inside, watch television and play video games. Jacob, the youngest, age 6, is very outspoken and prefers the outdoors. [Full Story »] 

As a member of the Baby Boomer Generation, I realize that we have a bad reputation as wastrels. If it doesn’t work anymore, we throw it away and replace it with a brand new model, never thinking of repair, the environment, or the coming generations. We’re talking cars, computers, toasters, irons, refrigerators, etc. I do not fit that category. My spouse has a marvelous knack for repairing broken machinery. Our car is a 2001 model with 240,000 miles on it. Larry has at one time or other repaired the washer, dryer, vacuum cleaner, water heater, and our various old vehicles. The lawn mower is torn apart in the back yard right now being repaired. We do believe in repairing when we can, but there comes a time when the big green trash can is the only solution. If it’s not big enough, we know the way to the landfill. Too many folks just can’t bear to throw things away, even when they should. But when the stores try to sell junk to the public, it’s time to yell. [Full Story »] 

Here I am, with one foot stuck in the Civil War thanks to having heard stories about it from one who was there, and one foot in this crazy, light speed modern world. It seems foreign to my children when I tell them that when I was a boy there was no TV or computers or indoor plumbing in many homes, and no telephones. What we did have, however, that my children or yours have never had the pleasure of, is listening to radio shows as a family group. Mr. and Mrs. North, The Squeaking Door, The Lone Ranger, Amos & Andy, Peter Pan and a litany of others. Those old radio actors could make our whole family sit in rapt silence staring at the radio and hanging on every word of their story. [Full Story »] 

A few weeks ago it was so dry that I caught a catfish with a tick on him. Brother, that’s dry. I guess it is this dry weather that has made the gnats so plentiful. The Bible says there is a time and season for everything and I guess this applies to gnats as well. They may be aggravating to us but if you observe nature you will see some of the best fed, fattest, mosquito hawks ever. They don’t even have to fly around to catch the little buggers, they just sit still on the Nandinas with their mouth open and before you know it, they have a gut full. And the swallows and bats are well fed, also. [Full Story »]