-
This old truck
About seven years ago I was at a family get-together at my parents’ house. When everybody else had left, and it was my folks and I at the kitchen table,…
-
Paid in full
A few days ago I did something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time. I made the last payment on my car. How I got here was an…
-
Time capsule: December 26, 1982
At Christmas 1982 I got a very special present. The year before, Santa had brought my brother a Sears stereo that had a cassette recorder with microphone jacks. I’d driven…
-
My time in Eden
Music and I have had a strange relationship. I’ve always loved it, but music hasn’t always loved me back. For one, I have no musical ability of my own. I’ve…
-
Take a break, Driver 8
For those of us in the teaching business, so many things not related to teaching have to wait until the summer months. Even then, some things we do have some…
-
In the bleak mid-winter cold
It was a strange week. Sunday was deceptively calm. Old movies (including one with a hilarious supporting role played by my spiritual godmother Eve Arden), watching the football playoffs and…
-
Reality
The new week begins with an event we’ve been anticipating for a while. Since November, there has been an endless array of think pieces about what it all means, what…
-
What might have been
January 2, 2025 As I write this, I’m in a hotel room in Athens, Georgia, a stone’s throw from the University of Georgia’s main campus. Tomorrow morning, I’m meeting with…
-
That was the year
As I began writing this, the last hours of 2024 were ticking away. I’m facing the weird feeling I always get when a year ends and a new one begins.…
-
The Christmas that was
When I was a kid, I couldn’t wait for Christmas to get here. There was so much anticipation and excitement, hoping that Santa would make good on the items I’d…