Where In The World Is Jimmy Stegall?

In the fall of 1970, the Oakshire Raiders football team went undefeated. Coached by Coach Doug Daniels (full time postman and part time coach), the Raiders won the Whitehaven Elementary Athletic Association Football Championship. Oakshire Elementary is still located on Holmes Rd, near where it crosses I-55. In the late 60s and early 70s, Oakshire… Read more »

The Day The Music Died

In the early 1960s, just as the The Beatles brought a new sound to America, he brought rock and roll to Birdland. He taught every kid in Birdland to sing Herman Hermit songs with a “proper English accent”. Ponder that for a minute. He saw doing what he did as something of a public service…. Read more »

The ‘Cup’

Photo Credit Jeff Presley

Cajun Greenbeans

My son recently asked for my recipe for cajun green beans. He and his girlfriend Laura are spending Thanksgiving at Laura’s parent’s home. Ratboy is a pretty good cook. He understands that he has to bring something really good, and this is it. This isn’t a completely original recipe. I got the bones of it… Read more »

A True Story

In the July of 1976, I had just got my truck out of the shop after I hit a deer with it. A deer will do significant damage to a 1975 Toyota Hi-Lux pickup truck. I must say, Dad was not amused. The truck was in the shop for about two weeks while it was… Read more »

Aunt Lottie

Sometimes in quite moments, just out of the clear blue sky, a random thought brings a memory back to life. I just thought of my Aunt Lottie. Aunt Lottie was a tiny woman with a big laugh. She had an exasperated way of saying “Randy!” She broke it into three syllables: “RAY-AN-DEE!” She was right… Read more »

The Witches of Shrewsbury – the Wives of Richard and Thomas Garner

In 1636, a woman in Shrewsbury, England was accused of witchcraft and sorcery. In a trial by water, her death established her innocence. She died by drowning in the dunking stool in the pool at the Square in Shrewsbury. Her name was Katharn, wife of Richard and mother of John, and she is buried in the Old Churchyard at St. Chad’s Church in Shrewsbury, England. From this family, my branch of the Garner family was born.

Remembering Rocket

When I was a child, the 4th of July was always a special time to me. It wasn’t special because that’s the day the Declaration of Independence was signed in Philadelphia, or because it is the day Vicksburg fell in the Civil War. No, as a small child, I didn’t know about any of that…. Read more »

At Least I Can Sing

Fifty-some-odd years ago, a friend of mine, Jimmy Bolin, decided he wanted to open a guitar store. It didn’t matter that he was in high school or that he didn’t have any money to work with. He loved playing guitar and he wanted to open a guitar store. He taught private guitar lessons until he… Read more »

These Boots Weren’t Made For Walking

At lunch yesterday, I received a call that was a survey checking attitudes about smokeless pouches and vaping. Landi and I were at lunch with friends, so I stepped away from the table to take the survey. It was long and extensive. In our exchanges, I learned a lot about legislation and the positions various… Read more »

◀ ▶
Latest

  • An Afternoon Movie

    Many years ago, I took my daughters, ages 3 and 4, to see a movie. I remembered going to movies with my mom when I was a kid. Mom always picked stuff like “The Sound of Music” or “Mary Poppins”. Though ‘The Sound of Music’ eventually became one of my favorite movies of all time,… Read more »

  • Abby’s Irish Rose

    As we progress through Catfish’s final semester, I sometimes reminisce some about my final semester before graduation at Ole Miss some 39 years ago. Catfish seems to be approaching graduation in a much more controlled and reasoned manner than I did. He goes out to pubs with friends. They drink beer and talk about job… Read more »

  • The Gift

    When we were kids, my brother, my sister and I were always very eager to open a gift on Christmas Eve. It was our family tradition that we could each open one gift after dinner on Christmas Eve. We usually had to wait for a pretty good while after dinner to do it. We just… Read more »

  • The Great Quail Hunt

    Once I got my driver’s license, every Christmas Eve it was my job to go pick Ralph up, and after dinner, to take Ralph home.  Ralph was an old guy, and he was a Gentleman’s Gentleman, of sorts.  If you ever had a question about manners, Ralph was the guy to ask.  He helped my… Read more »

  • Old Friends and Holidays

    As the holidays approach, we are planning a visit to Jonesboro, Arkansas, my hometown. I always look forward to visiting home. With each visit, some friend of mine sees fit to tell my wife, Landi, yet another ‘Bill Story.  Some are quite entertaining and many are grossly exaggerated. Let’s just say there are few things… Read more »

  • Black Bart’s RV Park, Steak House and Saloon

    Last year, Landi and I drove from Pensacola florida to Las Vegas, and then on to Los Angles for Thanksgiving dinner with her brother, David.  It’s a long drive, but it is 100% something you ought to do.  If you wonder what has happened to America, drive across it.  You’ll meet wonderful people of all… Read more »

  • Tips for Frying a Turkey

    A fried turkey is a wonderful thing. It is moist. It is flavorful, and it’s not hard to do. There are some things that only experience can teach you, and toward this end, I have some advice to offer. First, brine the bird. A brined bird is a juicy bird. Google Alton Brown’s Turkey brine… Read more »

  • On Being An Author

    When I first set out to write a book, it was to be a technical book on Information Technology, the Unix Operating System, and professional Systems Administration.  In thirty years, I have learned a lot of practical things that I thought I should share.  Some, I have learned from others, and some I have discerned… Read more »

  • The Worst Place Ever

    Perhaps the worst job I ever had was at the same time the best job I ever had. I was working for a ‘call center’ company. That’s a nice way of saying ‘Collections Company’. The place I worked was the 3rd largest ‘call center’ company in the world. It was run by a man who,… Read more »

  • First Love

    She was my very first love and it was late afternoon when she called. It had been a long, hard day, but I knew she would call, and I knew that I would answer. We had spoken earlier, and agreed that it would be a good thing to meet later. This was that call. I… Read more »