As many of you are aware, Mark Twain visits me late at night and offers tips on creative writing. I try my best, but I’m a poor student when it comes to matching my mentor’s talent. You may not know that Mark has also been my financial adviser throughout much of my life. …
Without paying a dime, I saw a bare-knuckle fight last week. It was a classic road rage event. Both cars were backing out of their parking spaces at the same time. Their bumpers met. One man, about 40 years old, jumped out of his car and approached the other driver, who …
The older I get, the more my head is packed with wonderful memories of my childhood. From age 4 until 6 (1950 to 1952), I lived on Highway 30 in Ames, Iowa. My whole world drove past me on that 3,000-mile road. I owned about 40 yards of it. My greatest memory was of caravans …
Who is this guy? At age 26, I’m managing a Ramada Inn in Coralville, Iowa. My boss, Rueben Drieling, calls and says he’s sending out Dewey Birdsall to put in new carpeting. “Take good care of Dewey.” So the next day, Dewey Birdsall shows up ready to start work on …
I was pretty ill for a week or so. I won’t bore you with the details, but I thought I was a goner for the first few days. I’ve never had a fear of death. However, I would feel a tinge of sadness about missing out on friends, family and stuff happening tomorrow. Since I …
This week, I’ve been reminiscing about past Julys. What has made the month memorable for you over the years? Here’s one of mine: It was a muggy July night in 1958 when I learned my life was about to change in a big way. I was walking back from playing basketball …
I was about seven years old. I traveled with my dad, Vern, as he made sales calls to farmers in Indiana. Several nights, we watched minor league baseball games with a nice lady, Martha. I got to eat popcorn and Coney dogs and sleep on Martha’s couch with her dog, …
Some memories hang on. This one does. I was in West Bend, Wisconsin, at a popular coffee spot maybe 40 years ago. A dad was there with two kids, around five and seven years old. He just sat there, sipping his coffee and staring at the wall. His two kids were going nuts, …
Oh my goodness! Just what I don’t need. Another addiction to mess with. It’s koi fish for our pond. I can’t go by the PetSmart store without pulling in, going to the fish section and selecting six more koi at twelve bucks a pop while I’m quietly whispering the Serenity …
While the National Institutes of Health spent $465,339 teaching pigeons how to use slot machines, the Hiram Scott College Research Institute was getting no bucks, hanging around public bathrooms for good reasons. I don’t mean to brag, but I did a scientific study on …
