One day at lunch, I ran into a beautiful older woman, a friend from years past, whom I hadn’t seen in quite a while. She had changed very little since I first met her when I was in college. Read More

The tulip magnolia (M. X soulangiana) never learns. Again it has impatiently bloomed in late winter and Sunday’s temperature in the 20’s killed the flowers. So today what we have is a tree with limp brown petals instead of the wonderful display of white, pink or purple saucer-shaped blossoms that were evident Saturday. Dr. Michal Dirr of UGA says this happens sometimes two out of three years. Read More

Barrow County, I wish I could see your faces. Read More

One day in 1965, a Longhorn left a field in Texas headed to Atlanta. During this journey, horns were transformed into wings and a very special bird landed in Atlanta. It was a Falcon, an Atlanta Falcon. To be precise, it was the first Atlanta Falcon. Read More

When I get together with my friend Jeanine, we enjoy doing projects around the house. The last time she visited it was a beautiful weekend with temperatures nearing 70 degrees. Since we both would rather be outdoors than stuck inside, we decided to thin out my iris bed. The ground was wet from recent rains and the bulbs could be pulled out mostly by hand. Read More

A couple of years ago when I deemed it absolutely necessary to cross the big pond and investigate my heritage that had been seeded in Northern Ireland, I had the good fortune of being introduced to a renowned historian who, through greater good fortune, has become a friend. Read More

If you want something flowering in your shade garden in February, plant hellebores, H. x hybridus. Read More

I rarely go to the movie theatre to view a new release. Few productions interest me enough to spend the money it costs to buy tickets and snacks at a theatre. Read More

There’s always the traditional Valentine’s Day paraphernalia. A dozen red roses, a box of chocolates, that sweet little plush toy. Read More

Recently I received an email from a friend. There was an attachment that contained a beautiful drawing of an American Eagle with tears dripping from its eyes. It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words and in regards to this drawing, truer words were never spoken. Read More

Someone wrote to complain about my grammar. Read More

Gardening isn’t all that complicated. Dig a hole, put a plant in it. If it dies, pull it up. If it lives, water it. Read More

Every year when the jonquils pop out of the soil and begin to show their brilliant yellow heads, I think it’s too early. January is a time in Georgia that can be really cold and can even bring snow and ice. I remember several years that the jonquil blooms drooped over, totally encased in ice. But as soon as it melted, they would pop back up proudly displaying their canary-colored trumpet for a few more weeks. Read More

Several years ago, I was in Talladega for the NASCAR race and had stopped by the Number 3 truck to see Richard Childress and Dale Earnhardt. Read More

I love Google. Like most of the Silicon Valley companies, Google was started by a couple of kids – that is college students. Now the most widely used search engine on the world-wide web, Google’s rise to success was due in large part to a patented algorithm, which is the same to me as Charlie Brown’s teacher speaking. In other words, blah, blah, blah or I don’t understand much in the computer programing world. Read More

A winter daphne, D. adora, is blooming in my garden now. The little clusters of buds began forming in December, braved the morning freezes of January, and now cover the whole plant with clusters of small, trumpet-shaped red blooms with pink centers. Read More

When Nix, the unpredictable, funniest kid in our family, was four years old, he found himself in some bit of trouble, though we’ve now all forgotten what it was. Only the punch line lingers in our minds. Read More

I’m sure by now everyone has heard of the phase out of incandescent light bulbs. The plan was signed into law five years ago by President George W. Bush and designed to reduce energy usage nationally from lighting by some 30 percent overall within three years. The benefits of the phase-out will be a savings of between $100 and $200 annually on electric bills in each American household—a total energy savings equivalent to the ... Read More

The eastern bluebirds are in our area now looking for appropriate nesting sites. You may see them in small flocks of five or six frequenting the highest perches they can find or examining nesting boxes in our yards. Read More

We all need to be worried about the health of the postal service and, as good neighbors, we all need to pitch in and do what we can to keep the mail comin’. Read More

"Froggy went a courtin’ and he did ride uhhuh…. Read More

When I was growing up the symbol "#" meant "number sign," not "hashtag." Read More

Someone wrote to complain about my grammar. This isn’t new, though it doesn’t particularly irritate me. This gentleman was especially kind in his admonishments, noting first and foremost how much he enjoys my writings. Read More

I must hold the record here at the Barrow County News and the former Winder News for having the most mug shots. A mug shot is newspaper jargon for a head shot used with a column. It seems every six months I am hitting John (Kelley, our photographer) up to ‘shoot’ me again. It’s not vanity. It’s hair. Read More

When we pass the post office, city hall or the fire station we know it is there. Old Glory is the anchor for these buildings and a symbol of our freedom. We cannot see our flag without hearing the words, "Oh say, does that Star - Spangled Banner yet wave, O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave." Read More

Let’s agree: This will be a new year unlike any other in recent time. Read More

"Swan Song" is defined as a final gesture, effort, or performance. According to ancient Greek belief, the Mute Swan lived silently until it sang one beautiful song just before death. At risk of seeming dramatic, this is my Swan Song column. Read More

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A friend of mine who has a penchant for sending along lovely, thoughtful gifts out did himself a while back. Read More

On Christmas Eve, I said goodbye to one of my best friends. Read More