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When Lynyrd Skynyrd Came to Town.
In early 1974, an unknown band from Florida became famous almost overnight when “Free Bird” became an instant southern anthem. With a monster hit song, the album “Pronounced Len-nerd Skin-nerd” kept selling out everywhere. Word quickly spread through Jonesboro that Lynyrd Skynyrd had been booked to play at the Strand theater and there were less… Read more »
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The Coast
It is in the dead of winter that my mind wanders during household chores. While doing something in the bed room, my eye caught sight of something that sent me back in time. On my night stand there stands a small, lonely trophy. It is from the Broadwater Beach Hotel in Biloxi, Mississippi. It is… Read more »
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Things Worth Remembering
There are things worth remembering about growing up in small towns. I remember the oddest of things. I remember pimento cheese. A small grocery store on Flint Street called Lundy’s used to have the finest piminto cheese on the face of the earth. Lundy’s was a neighborhood grocery store right across Flint Street from the… Read more »
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Waffle House #393
Waffle House at 8:00AM is a microcosm of America. The counter and the booths are full. You’ve got the elderly Marine Corp veteran eating alone, looking through the window at memories of rice fields and triple canopy jungles. You’ve got the two debutante wannabes eating in a booth. Four brothers are laughing and eating a… Read more »
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White Dog
There was a time many years ago when exploring new albums meant going to TG&Y at Indian mall, or perhaps KATZ at Caraway Plaza and perusing the bins containing albums. The tiny and sparse inventory was selected and creatively managed by some middle aged clerk in a back room who enjoyed listening to regional classics… Read more »
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In Search of Open Water
Years ago, a friend, let’s call him JD, and I used to hunt at every opportunity. We were young, so getting up at 4:00AM after drinking and chasing girls until midnight was not a problem. We just got up, loaded up and went. I remember one year we had tons of snow. I woke up… Read more »
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My Favorite Uncle
I hope everyone has a favorite uncle. Kids need favorite uncles. Mine was my father’s brother, Randy. Uncle Randy is 12 years younger than dad was, and he’s 12 years older than Sweet Pea. He’s an impressive character even before you know much about him. He was a college football player at Northwest Mississippi Jr…. Read more »
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The Road Less Traveled
Once the ‘new’ highway to Harrisburg was completed, and liquor stores popped up in rice fields on the country line, Highway 63 became the road less traveled. Ever since Craighead Country had gone dry, Highway 63 had been the path to liquor. The liquor stores in Truman had struck gold. Craighead Country going dry didn’t… Read more »
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Under the Dogwood Tree
My first dog was a German Shepherd named Duchess Ann, but pronounced ‘Duchess-zann’. I was probably 25 years old when I realized that the name was actually “Duchess Ann”. I had always heard it and said it as one word. I am told she was named for a friend of my parents who lived in… Read more »
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Darlin’
Late one night many years ago after spending some quality time drinking beer, laughing, and listening to music in an Oxford bar called The Gin, three friends and I meandered our way back to an apartment at the Round houses. Katherine and Allyssa lived there. We all staggered into the apartment and flopped into various… Read more »