Clinton, South Carolina, Wednesday, January 1, 2020, 8:48 a.m. Most mornings I awaken thoughtful. This is, in part, because there is no sports on TV yet. I’ve thought about capitalism a lot lately, but it’s not really capitalism because I don’t completely mean the economic angle, and, I think, to be accurate, there is no …
Tag: politics
A Weary Saturday with Ballgames on
Clinton, South Carolina, Saturday, November 2, 3:50 p.m. I don’t get out much. The last time I spent a night in a motel room was in March. My road trips are to places like Piedmont (twice!), Simpsonville, and Greer, where the Piedmont Municipal Power Agency resides. A commute to Greenville after four hours’ sleep is …
Writers Need Love, Too
Clinton, South Carolina, Wednesday, October 23, 2019, 9:22 a.m. It’s going to be one of those days, crashing down on another one like white water over rocks. Seldom is it good when one notices that the answering machine is beeping at the crack of dawn. I seldom was called a moron before Trump got elected …
Monday Morning Coming Down
Clinton, South Carolina, Monday, October 21, 2019, 12:57 p.m. Let’s just say I’ve been in a pensive mood since I got home from Greenville Saturday. It was windy and rainy enough at Furman for me to feel cold all night, and the football game was even colder. By this morning, I was down to one …
Suddenly a Song
Clinton, South Carolina, Tuesday, July 2, 2019, 11:20 a.m. For about a month now, I’ve thought that next year, when I vote for the first time, it will also be the first time I walk into a poll unsure of my choice. The more I think about, this is natural. It’s likely that if I …
Taking It All with a Pound of Salt
Clinton, South Carolina, Thursday, June 20, 2019, 10:47 a.m. Advertising has never been particularly important to me. I’ve spent most of my life working for newspapers, but I have my own small role in their decline. I’ve never paid any attention to the ads. Apparently, I was not alone. In a very small way, I …
Up the Down Staircase
Clinton, South Carolina, Tuesday, June 4, 2019, 11:07 a.m. I am, under normal circumstances, annoyingly punctual, a legacy of my grandmother and my football coach. Most of my acquaintances are fashionably late. Many are the times I get antsy, complete my work in a hurry and go somewhere 45 minutes early. It makes me frantic …
Pick My Fiction Up on Your Way Down
Clinton, South Carolina, Tuesday, May 7, 2019, 12:23 p.m. It would probably be easier to write a song. A song can be quick and clever. A blog requires a bit more wisdom. It has to be more than clever. It’s not as complicated, but there’s more heft in its thoughts. Not that I’m an expert …
‘The Storms of Life Are Washing Me Awaaaayyy’
Clinton, South Carolina, Friday, April 19, 2019, 12:19 p.m. When I was a boy, one of my grandmothers was prone to say “it’s about to come up a cloud.” Another line of those storms is about to roll through, flinging out lightning. It sure seems like this happens more often than it used to. Mama …
Continue reading ‘The Storms of Life Are Washing Me Awaaaayyy’
A Long Line of Pistols and Sons of Guns
Clinton, South Carolina, Tuesday, April 16, 2019, 11:45 a.m. When my mother told me Notre Dame was burning, at first I thought she meant the football stadium. I switched to a news channel. Pete Buttigieg was talking. He’s the mayor of South Bend. It all made sense. Not. I’ve never been to Paris, but I’ve …
Nightrider's Lament 