By Radley West August is a fascinating month. Children are mourning the end of summer. Teachers are mentally preparing for a brand-new school year. Meanwhile, parents are standing in the school supply aisle trying very hard not to look too excited. It’s one of the greatest examples of mixed emotionsContinue Reading
Bottled in Meridian, Mississippi — A long-distance winner. By Tom Poland, A Southern WriterTomPoland.net I didn’t call them pop. I didn’t call them sodas. I called them Cokes. Cokes could be Pepsis, Fantas (remember those?), Orange Crush, or RC Colas. Tossed out windows, Coke bottles waited along dirt roads, gravelContinue Reading
By Sarah Ostergaard Another tax-free weekend has passed. Every August, families spend significant amounts preparing children for a new school year. And there is real value in that preparation. A new backpack, fresh notebooks, sharpened pencils, and other supplies create excitement or ease nervousness about a new school year. AcquiringContinue Reading
By Tom Poland, A Southern WriterTomPoland.net Each August I think of my father’s service in Japan, specifically Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Recently I came across one of his base passes that had been hiding from me all these years. Dad was stationed in Yokohama. The date on his pass is AugustContinue Reading
By Radley West Let’s be honest. Exercise is hard. Getting up early is hard. Choosing a salad when everyone else ordered fries is hard. Doing one more squat when your legs are already complaining is hard. But here’s something I’ve learned after years of coaching: Everything is hard. Life isContinue Reading
By Tom Poland, A Southern WriterTomPoland.net When I see photographs of Colorado’s Great Sand Dunes National Park I want to explore a desert right then. Until I do, the fragile deserts along the Atlantic Ocean will do just fine. Wind, it shapes the earth, yet we never see it, justContinue Reading
Photo: Cool, comfy, and a tad literary. That’s seersucker. By Tom Poland, A Southern WriterTomPoland.net Seersucker. A cool word, and cool is the word. Before AC came along, a Southern gentleman worth his salt wouldn’t be caught without a seersucker suit. Just one gentleman back home wore seersucker. With hisContinue Reading
By Radley West When most people hear the word “chiropractor,” they think of one thing: back pain. And while chiropractic care can be incredibly effective for helping people who are experiencing neck pain, back pain, headaches, and joint discomfort, that’s only part of the story. In fact, one of theContinue Reading
By Radley West A few years ago, if you had told me that one of the most freeing lessons I would ever learn was that nobody was coming to save me, I probably would have rolled my eyes. But it’s true. We spend a lot of time waiting. Waiting forContinue Reading
Photo: A stack of 1964 Reader’s Digests, a trip back in time. Courtesy of Brenda Bancroft. By Tom Poland, A Southern WriterTomPoland.net I read my mother’s Reader’s Digests from cover to cover. It’s hard find one today, but if you do, it will take you back to another era. And itContinue Reading
For the past 18 years, I have unlocked the doors to the same gym. I’ve watched members walk through those doors as nervous beginners and transform into confident, healthier versions of themselves. I’ve celebrated weight loss victories, strength gains, new friendships, weddings, retirements, and even a few grandbabies along theContinue Reading