by Gary | Nov 17, 2015 |
Slightly over fifty-one years ago I was standing stiffly at a church altar in a small Southern Baptist church in Waco, Texas. I was resplendent in my $29.00 black H.I.S. suit adorned by a drooping white corsage. Yes, of course, my beautiful bride-to-be was there as well. We were there together at the departure point for a marital journey of unknown character and duration. My pulse rate was in in the red zone, and the preacher might as well have been speaking in tongues. Presumably, I did repeat after him the marriage vows and did not drop the cheap wedding band that we had bought on layaway at Nathan’s Jewelers in San Angelo. Thus our marriage was...
by Gary | Aug 15, 2015 |
Given that those who trouble to read these blogs are of inordinately high intellect, I’m sure that you not only know the definition of the key word in this title, but also could easily suss out to whom I refer. However, in the off chance there are some small few for whom the word does not ring a bell, I offer the following definitions: BLOVIATOR 1. A public figure, such as a politician or an actor, who makes outlandish, strident statements on issues, thinking that the average man will care about their opinions. 2. Someone who pontificates about issues of which they are uninformed, yet pretend to be expert. 3. A pompous blowhard who uses their...
by Gary | Jul 3, 2015 |
Did you know that racism was not a recognized word until the early part of the 20th century? Of course, you didn’t. But, in fact, the word ”racism” was derived from the word “racialism,” which first appeared in the Oxford English Dictionary in 1907. The fact of racism, depending upon the degree to which you subscribe to the literalism of the Bible, first arises in the time of Noah when one of his three sons, Ham, “was cursed by being black.” Further, the offspring of Ham, of which there were many, were likewise considered, in addition to their blackness, to be both sinful and degenerate due to their blackness. Hmmm. Is it possible to be...
by Gary | Jun 5, 2015 |
Public speaking is everyone’s nightmare, but giving a commencement address whether at Harvard or your granddaughter’s pre-k, is a special form of torture. Yes, I know it’s an honor and all that, but you know, in your heart of hearts, it’s a no win situation. First of all, no one is really interested in what you might choose to say. And if you come up with something really clever, I can assure you, it’s already been done. The best you can do is to make them laugh a couple of times and stay in their seats until it’s over. For some obscure reason, those of us who are asked to risk this form of public humiliation take our...
by Gary | Apr 9, 2015 |
Preamble: This may seem an odd subject that’s out of character for my typical blog posting, but, as I may have mentioned, I’m sifting through my past blogs with a view toward publishing them in book form. While reviewing old files, I came across this piece which, upon reading today, might seem a little ghoulish, yet still accurately reflects my views on life and death…at least to date. Although this was originally slotted for after my “graduation”, I decided to include it here to get some completeness, more or less. Reading it side by side with my piece “On Turning Seventy”, one might think that I’m...
