Doo never actually made moonshine, but he hauled about an ocean of it. ~Loretta Lynn The South has long been given more credit than is due for an industry that achieved great notoriety in the 1920s. That would be manufacturing a beverage for pleasure and profit—making moonshine. This type of distilling operation actually began in […]
A Taste of the Moonshine Story Read More »
English is not logical, it’s expressive. ~ A.D. Aliwat, In Limbo Speakers fortunate enough to live in their native country are often unaware of the idiosyncrasies of their own language. Of course you use the rules correctly, because they are deeply ingrained by hearing English from birth. By the time you become rebellious, it doesn’t occur
English: What you don’t know you know Read More »
Children need the freedom and time to play. Play is not a luxury. Play is a necessity. ~ Kay Redfield Jamison I had a wonderful childhood. I’m sure there was some not-so-good stuff in there, but my brain prefers to retain the positive. One of the pleasant aspects of my early life was the time
Thoughts about an unplugged childhood Read More »
What lasts forever? It’s not our worries that last. After all, one worry will be displaced by another worry and another and another. There is no end to them. That devilish cycle. But being silent in God’s presence. That’s the chance of a lifetime. And lasts your whole life long. As you do it, again and
Mary and Martha & the rest of the story Read More »
Listen with curiosity. Speak with honesty. Act with integrity. The greatest problem with communication is we don’t listen to understand. We listen to reply. When we listen with curiosity, we don’t listen with the intent to reply. We listen for what’s behind the words. ~ Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart Peacocks are one
Acting with Integrity, Encouraging the Quality Read More »
It’s weird how the mind remembers the silly details. I still can’t remember the colour of my wife’s eyes, but I can remember that we were arguing about mayonnaise. ~ Matthew Munson, Shoal: A Thanet Writers Anthology Survey results Clearly, I am some sort of masochist. I know this, since I once again sought to confirm my
Forget brand squabbles – Mayonnaise or Miracle Whip? Read More »
Logic, Like whiskey, loses its beneficial effect when taken in too large quantities. ~ Lord Dunsany A Dram of Whiskey history As I’m sure you’ve heard, necessity is the mother of invention, and 1,000 years ago Scotland and Ireland needed a little help on the brewing side. In case you’ve never been to either of
Whiskey history (in brief) & a shot of specifics Read More »
I’m always sketchy of people who don’t like grits. ~ Jaycee Ford Well, not always sketchy, but I did think that quote was funny. Also, in the interest of fairness, I did include a quote with an alternate opinion; you’ll find it below. Way down below the “fold.” Seriously, though, the love of, or aversion to,
Too gritty to be good? Read More »
The less you talk, the more you’re listened to. ~ Abigail Van Buren I began my first non-babysitting job when I was 16, and that was a number of years ago. I’m sharing the timeline so you will grasp the great number of managers I’ve dealt with during my workforce experience. Yes, some of these
The more you say, the less I hear Read More »
I don’t know where my ideas come from. I will admit, however, that one key ingredient is caffeine. I get a couple cups of coffee into me and weird things just start to happen. ~ Gary Larson Sadly, coffee doesn’t transform me into the creative genius that is Gary Larson, but I do find comfort
Good to the last drop, but how did we get the first one? Read More »
The game of Chess is not merely an idle amusement. Several very valuable qualities of the mind, useful in the course of human life, are to be acquired or strengthened by it, so as to become habits, ready on all occasions. ~Benjamin Franklin I won’t lie. Up until a few months ago I hardly thought
Chess: pastime or innovative learning tool? Read More »
Things that are too perfect for us don’t attract us. They are like a slippery floor having no friction at all. We desire some friction… some flaws… something to work upon.~ Shunya Some of us avoid people and things that are too perfect. As a society, we only seem to actively pursue stellar when there’s
Too perfect to be tolerated? Read More »
“She turned to the sunlight And shook her yellow head,And whispered to her neighbor: “Winter is dead.”~ A.A. Milne, When We Were Very Young Most of the world calls these lovely blooms daffodils. To me, they will always be buttercups. Whatever you call them, they are symbols of the easing of cold weather and, very often, markers of
Daffodils say, “spring is on the way & Winter is dead.” Read More »
The past beats inside me like a second heart. ~ John Banville, The Sea Heads up: I’m raising a question here that isn’t easily answered and I’m just talking through my thought process. Manage your expectations. The first memory I recall is from an age of about three. I was standing in my grandmother’s kitchen, looking out
Total recall of many years past, but why? Read More »
A man may plant a tree for a number of reasons. Perhaps he likes trees. Perhaps he wants shelter. Or perhaps he knows that someday he may need the firewood. ~Joanne Harris, Runemarks Some dear friends recently introduced me to the board game, Catan. It requires quite a lot of strategy, and I would have already
Hey! Settle down there, but where? Read More »
In a few seconds, we judge another person and think we know them. When the person we’ve lived with the longest, we still don’t know very well—ourselves. ~ Charles F. Glassman, Brain Drain The Breakthrough That Will Change Your Life How many roles do you fill? Child, sibling, cousin, employee, or spouse. We could go down
Who do you think you are, anyway? Read More »
Under a spreading chestnut-tree The village smithy stands;The smith, a mighty man is he, With large and sinewy hands,And the muscles of his brawny arms Are strong as iron bands. Excerpt from The Village Blacksmith by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow I recognize that I have not begun to plumb the depths of my ignorance on commonplace topics. This is
The Smith, A Brief History Read More »
Advice is one thing that is freely given away, but watch that you only take what is worth having. ~ George Clason, The Richest Man in Babylon NOTE: I received several responses this week and decided to include them all. Consequently, this post is a bit long; feel free to cherry-pick. Or read a few sections a
Sound advice – are you listening? Read More »
I know all those words, but that sentence makes no sense to me. ~ Matt Groening If you have had the opportunity to travel from sea to shining sea and from the Canadian border down to the Gulf of Mexico, you may have encountered a comprehension issue. In this country. With English speakers. Obviously this isn’t
Making sense–discrepancies in american speech Read More »
Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won’t come in. ~ Isaac Asimov This is going to be a bit of a rant on both sides of the argument. Feel free to play along. You have likely experienced similar challenges. Comments and [rhetorical]
Do your Assumptions empower you to be offended? Read More »
At one time a badge of shame, hallmark of the lazy lady and the careless wife, today the can opener is fast becoming a magic wand, especially in the hands of those brave, young women, nine million of them (give or take a few thousand here and there), who are engaged in frying as well
Can openers – cutting edge kitchen appliances Read More »
So many sounds do come close to our ears each moment. What we allow into our mind and how we interpret what we listen to is what propels our thought and actions”― Ernest Agyemang Yeboah, The Untapped Wonderer In You: dare to do the undone How often have you sat back into your theater seat (or your
Do you hear what I hear? Are you sure? Read More »
Do you find yourself thinking about errors in judgment that resulted in less than stellar results? Agonizing over a task left undone or emails you wish were unsent? I do. I would go so far as to say that almost everything bad that’s happened to me has been rooted in my own decisions. However, my
Whatcha thinking when you see the light? Read More »
The mountain music… is compelling music in its own right, harking back to a time when music was a part of everyday life and not something performed by celebrities. ~ Ethan Coen My favorite places to relax are in the Smoky Mountains. This may well be because my most pleasurable childhood vacations were there. We
Music that soothes the spirit – the Mountain dulcimer Read More »