Tag: Column

The words “Batteries not included” are found on many of the things we purchase these days. If we had to buy enough batteries at...

At first glance, it wasn’t much of a gift, just a cheap pocket knife made of flimsy metal and plastic. It probably came from...

At the risk of sounding like an old man, I have realized there is a great difference in how the youth of today entertain...

We’ve all seen the commercials that gave birth to the catchphrase, “Help! I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!” Since the 1980s, it has...

Yes, I am a country boy, but one of my favorite places to visit in this world is a city. No, I do not...

I need to vent, so please don’t judge me — just listen. I’ve got a problem with time. And yes, I know some of...

You may have that friend, or a strange cousin named Booger Ray, who has more miscellaneous junk than a neighborhood hardware store, all piled...

The plane trip began in Tuscaloosa, and stopped in Jackson, before it finally reached Dallas. Later in life, taking this hopscotch flight was as...

“Laughter is the best medicine” is a cliché everyone knows. And it is based on the truth. Studies have shown that laughter relieves stress,...

I wrote a song a couple of years ago that said, “I’m going to have a good day, anyway – no matter what comes...

Back when I was growing up, if Mama said, “Let’s go out to eat,” we did not head for the car.  We weren’t going...

Jean and I are frequent visitors at antiques shops and malls. We often find treasures there that end up either in our house or...

Well, it’s official and it feels weird. So weird, that I dug up my old fraternity jacket to see if it fits. Not even...

Continued from www.cullmantribune.com/2025/07/20/column-from-dinosaurs-to-devils Have you ever seen one of our presidents? On June 6, 1991, on the 47th anniversary of D-Day, I saw and heard...

Everybody has a birthday and everybody has one every year. Well, except for those individuals who were born on Feb. 29. Recently, I think...

Excuse me, but did you ask me if I had ever been on Broadway? Well, yes, as a matter of fact I have. I...

It all started with the best of intentions. My sister had a small, ornate, antique table with a broken leg, and since she knew...

Continued from www.cullmantribune.com/2025/07/14/column-we-made-it-to-north-dakota We visited two dinosaur museums on our trip. My favorite was Montana’s Glendive Dinosaur and Fossil Museum, which presents the dinosaur from...

Hey Joe! This is your dog, Roscoe. It’s hard to believe it’s been over six years since you picked us up from the side of...

Continued from www.cullmantribune.com/2025/07/06/column-south-dakota-is-amazing Almost 221 years ago, in 1804, Lewis and Clark headed west under the commission of President Thomas Jefferson, to see what we...

Continued from www.cullmantribune.com/2025/06/29/column-we-made-it-to-rapid-city-but-not-rapidly After a few hours of sleep in Rapid City, we began our journey at the drug store…Wall Drug Store. Wall Drug is...

Jean and I had planned a mega road trip for the summer of 2020. The few remaining states on our bucket list of setting...

Since I had knee surgery earlier this year, I’ve been looking for a low impact method of exercise. Actually, my wife has been looking...

By this point in my life, I have been on quite a few journeys. I do love to travel and experience new things.  I’m...

It happened 50 years ago, on Saturday, June 14, 1975. I remember that day so well that it almost seems like it was last...

It was a big day. Especially if you were one of the 150 or so 5-year-olds in color-coded T-shirts marching down the aisle of...

I have heard it said that real painters don’t need a drop cloth. One person who had told me that, later that same day...

Jennifer Garner must have asked me a thousand times, “What’s in your wallet?” The answer is always the same, “Nothing, absolutely nothing!” I keep...

At my age, the time has come. One of the last parts of my body that was still working properly finally needs help, and...

Chances are I am not from where you live, but I may have been there. I may have even lived there at one time...

You remember your first girlfriend or boyfriend. The one that was going to last forever. The one that made you stop eating - which...

Who was the first person in this world I ever laid eyes on? Okay, yes, the very first one may have been the doctor...

She said, “What do you not do? You write, you sing, you play instruments and you even build instruments. Do you paint?” I grinned and...

Wait for a rainy, cold, black-and-white movie kind of afternoon. Have a box of tissues handy, then grab a pint of Ben and Jerry’s....

Editor’s note: This column was written last week. I am a Baby Boomer. There, I said it, and I’m not ashamed of it. I was...

Sports fans, especially college basketball fans, can tell you that March Madness is the nickname of the NCAA Championship Tournament. Basketball, however, is not...

Jean and I just spent three days on a magnificent mountain that has, or is near, beautiful bluffs, gorgeous gorges, carved canyons, cavernous caves,...

As I look back on the life I’ve lived, I seem to focus a lot on my childhood. I think most anyone does. As...

Well, I hear that mailman coming, he’s rolling around the bend, and I ain’t seen a letter, since 2010. That’s because the mail doesn’t...

I think I may have surely come to that stage and age in life where I can’t…I can’t…well, now I can’t remember what I...

I pulled a couple of boxes of photos down from my closet the other day. These photographs were mostly black and white relics made...

My first drinks of choice were either a Sun-Rise Orange, Nehi Grape or NuGrape. When I was a little older, my favorite became Coca-Cola....

What is as sweet as sugar, purple, gold and green all over and has a baby inside? A king cake! A king cake is...

I own a red Chevrolet pick-up truck. When I bought it a few years ago, I decided that it would be a good idea...

How do you have a reunion with a group of people when you have never met most of them? You can do that when...

Editor’s note: Written prior to Valentine’s Day You probably won’t get the day off from work, or school, on Valentine’s Day. You will be hard...

I am most thankful to have had the opportunity to get a college and seminary education. There was a time in my younger life...

I heard a rumbling noise coming from the second floor of my house. Since we almost never go up there, I thought that one...

The late Johnny Cash had a hit song back in 1996 in which he claimed to have been everywhere, man! He mentioned 92 cities...

The first time I went to their home was for a family Thanksgiving dinner. Actually, it was the midday meal, but down here we...

These drone sightings over New Jersey remind me of a time years ago when mysterious lights were spotted over Birmingham, Alabama. I know because...

Once upon a time, long, long ago, there lived a young lady named Mary. Mary was engaged to be married to a man named...

“Heaven goes by favor. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in.” Mark Twain I read where author...

I’ve noticed in recent years, even though I’ve paid for a motel/hotel room in advance, the check-in clerk always wants my credit card for...

I was born in the South. And I live in the South. That means I eat fried food – me and about everybody else...

When I saw the handwriting on the wall, I knew we were no longer in Kansas; excuse me, I meant Alabama. As a matter...

I was talking to a friend’s daughter at a high school football game. When I asked her if they had any special Homecoming activities...

People can say some strange things. Some of these statements are quite annoying, while others may be funny and enjoyable. Some of the things...

Mama had a mysterious situation. Her dried apples kept disappearing. Each day their number seemed to be less than it had been the day...

I’m sitting in my favorite chair, TV remote in hand, shaking my head in disbelief. There’s nothing good to watch on television. Unless, of course,...

One of the most memorable lines I ever heard in high school was delivered to my friend Randy when he got into a heated...

October will be here before we know it, and we all know what that means, bow season opener. July is a great time to...

Since It was my fourth trip to the watch repair shop, I didn’t have high hopes. I’m sure the little Russian man who owned...

I just read an article about a man who was disqualified from a fishing tournament for cheating. Y’all, I think Jesus is coming soon....

Dear Coach Saban, Since I wrote a letter to Kalen DeBoer a few weeks ago and gave him some pointers about the South, I thought...

From my personal perspective, one of the most wonderful things about having grandchildren (besides being able to give them back) is that we get...

It was a horrible, sickening phone call. Within a few seconds, my hopes and dreams were crushed like someone stepping on a Coke can....

My wife Carol has been strongly suggesting (I call it nagging) that I visit my doctor and get the once over. I told her...

I recently went to see singer Jackson Browne perform at the Alabama Theatre in downtown Birmingham, and a curious thing happened. After the first...

CULTIVATE CULLMAN: The Countywide Arts & Gardening Celebration, which includes “Culinary Cullman” and musicians with Cullman County roots, grew from a seed of an...

I drove by our community ballpark the other day and saw that the All-Star baseball games were well underway. It’s hard to believe that...

ARTS IN THE GARDEN is a new way to enjoy the natural beauty of Sportsman Lake, the 70-year old,  Cullman County Parks and Recreation,...

The 1870s founders of Cullman County in the “Hill Country” of north Alabama traditionally celebrated the area’s birth year as 1873. So, 2023 is...

“Every storm, no matter how big and strong, passes eventually. Just know and remember that your spirit is much bigger and stronger than any...

The collector’s edition of “WUNDERGARTEN,” the folktale I set in 1870s Colonial Cullman, was birthed this week. (Signed copies available at Leldon’s in the...

What Cullman needs now is love, sweet love…and a DEAR GARDEN. This would be a gathering place embracing things we hold dear: tradition plus...

A Calm Week Turns Chaotic. In a week that gave us no ranked vs ranked matchups it seemed this would would be a cake walk,...

Back in Business: Alabama blows out Bulldogs. Despite a slow start offensively Alabama was able to turn a 21-6 halftime lead into a 49-9 blowout....

-Get Your Popcorn Ready. It would be easy to look at the Alabama v. Ole Miss game and think no. 1 Alabama just dominated,...

One turkey hunter was extremely grateful that the Alabama Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries (WFF) Law Enforcement Section has a K9 unit, although there is...

Cheaha State Park's Callie Thornton takes in the vista at Bald Rock. (Photo by David Rainer) By David Rainer, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural...

  This is the true story of heartache, physical, sexual and alcohol abuse, love, hate, financial burdens and finally, finding joy, happiness and hope.   We trust...

  This is the true story of heartache, physical, sexual and alcohol abuse, love, hate, financial burdens and finally, finding joy, happiness and hope. We trust...

  This is the true story of heartache, physical, sexual and alcohol abuse, love, hate, financial burdens and finally, finding joy, happiness and hope. We trust...

Perhaps you had milk with your cereal this morning; if so, you can thank a farmer. Or maybe, if you buttered your whole wheat...

They say that one of the strongest memory triggers is the sense of smell. That must be true because whenever I smell chalk or...