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NOVEMBER 8, 2010
When my wife and I went to the basement this morning to begin our exercise routine for the week, Miss Chicka turned over the calendar and announced that it was November 8th. I wrestled with that thought about why this date seemed significant. Quite soon I came to realize that on November 8, 1945, I…
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RAMPANT NOSTALGIA
This may be a twice-told tale in that in 2005 I may have dictated an essay on the same subject matter. But I have always held that the fun in story-telling belongs to the story teller. It is a lot like prayer. The person who prays feels good about himself when his prayer is finished. …
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STUPIDO, STUPIDO, STUPIDO
Last week, which would have been the early part of June 2010, there was an announcement by two high-level vice presidents of the General Motors Corporation, that they were going to get rid of the “Chevy” trademark. As most Americans would do, I interpreted that to mean that General Motors was going to rid itself…
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UPON BEING CUCKOLDED
I do not pretend to be an expert on the subject of being cuckolded. While my expertise is negligible or almost non-existent, I must say that when an example of cuckoldedness takes place and is confirmed by one of the participants, I am obliged to pay attention. The incident in question took place in two…
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IT AIN’T NATURAL
My father, who was a taciturn man, didn’t have much to say while he was alive. He has been a resident of the Oakhill Cemetery in Kirkwood, Missouri for 52 years and, one way or another, in recent essays he has turned up a good bit more than he did when he was alive. In…
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TALKING IN TONGUES
Browsing through The New York Times yesterday, August 17th, Miss Chicka read to me a story that was datelined Accra, Ghana. Furthermore, it had to do with talking in tongues, which is a hallmark of the Pentecostal faith which is one of the Christian Protestant churches. This story had two attractions for me. In the…
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RED (OR BLUE) BANDANNAS
Those of you who were raised in the precincts of America’s great cities may well have missed out on an article of men’s wear that is usually associated with hard work and/or country ways. Again, if I may use my father as an example, I would like to cite one article of his clothing that…
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LAMENTATIONS ON “I WISH”
I keep two identical dictating machines on my desk. The left one is for dictations that I turn over to Mrs. Eva Baker for transcription. The right one is for notes about future essays. Recently I recorded some notes on the subject of lamentations which was a subject I wanted to do an essay on. …
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OBSCENITIES NATURALLY
As I was growing up, there was one article of faith that had to be observed by my mother and by myself. It had to do with the St. Louis Post Dispatch. The Post Dispatch was an afternoon paper, of which there are very few left. When one of the older children appeared after work…
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POSOLE
I am writing this essay in the hopes that it will prove to Tom Scandlyn, Howard Davis and Jim Reese that this old country boy’s tastes have gone to new heights. As a public service, I will try to save you a trip to your dictionary because the word “posole” is another upscale word for…