This coaster has been on my office desk for as long as I can remember – the office has been in five different homes over the past twenty-three years, but the coaster lingers on. Clearly worse for the wear, and not nearly as clever as Marla Wood’s images, but I remember how “Big” Dear Abbey was back in the day and still get a chuckle whenever I take time to digest the sentiment.
Totally unrelated to Pride
– except the pride Pretty and I have for our granddaughters four-year-old Ella and two-year-old Molly. We were at their house this past week, and the girls love to pretend to be Princesses in their dresses so their dog Sadie stands guard while Ella directs the play. The role of the Prince is often assigned to yours truly; Ella continues to believe I was born for the part. Bless her heart.
This card was sent to us at Christmas years ago by our friends Cindy and Sandy who immigrated to Tennessee and became Lady Volunteer basketball fans during the Summit era. Pretty had saved it somewhere in the deep recesses of her treasures and recently retrieved it. I had to laugh again.
another Christmas card from our past – this is pure Pride
Happy Father’s Day to all proud dads everywhere!! Hope your weekend is festive and filled with pride in your children, their children, and all children to come.
Thanks to Pretty for establishing our annual Memorial Day weekend tradition and to our favorite daughter-in-law Caroline for collaborating with Pretty on invites, venues, food, fun, festivities every year when we pack our bags for a vacation in the upstate of South Carolina in the Blue Ridge Province of the Southern Appalachian mountain range. Guaranteed good times, but never forget there is a Chief Worrier in the group, and that would be me.
This year we had two major worries: the oven from hell in the kitchen of our Airbnb that refused to turn off Saturday afternoon when I placed Pretty’s vegetarian lasagna on the top rack of its preheated 350 degrees to cook for 25 minutes. To my horror the oven door refused to open at the end of 25 minutes or for the next twelve hours, the oven continued to bake throughout that time, and my Chief Worrier self kicked into high gear by suggesting we call 911 for the Fire Department at nine o’clock Saturday night – wherever the Fire Department might be for Hogback Mountain. Thank goodness for our calm son Drew who staged an intervention, urged me not to panic, talked me off the ledge on Saturday night, assured me the door handle was cooling, until the oven door finally opened Sunday morning. Repeat: Sunday morning.
Sofia (left) and Molly waiting for breakfast while Ella and I raid refrigerator
three-year-old Sofia brought her big sis Lily plus her parents Bryan and Nicole for the weekend
(they were all a great addition to the mix)
Sofia, Ella and Molly play on the beach at the nearby lake
how do you say salamander?and what are they anyway?
an unresolved mystery until Papa Williams (Pretty’s father) called to say
without salamanders, but her favorite new saying was
Go Away!
Go away, Neena and Naynay – but when we got up to leave, Molly would get up, too,
and say, I go with you!
The window seat in the living area of the Airbnb was a favorite spot for the girls.
she thinks she’s the only one who can have a Unicorn
that Unicorn belongs to me and only me, says four-year-old Ella
oh, man – make her give me back my Unicorn – I’ll trade for sunglasses
ok, let’s trade
just kidding – I’ll keep the sunglasses and the Unicorn
Remember I said two worries? The second one came when we were leaving Monday morning in the midst of a very strong storm on the mountain. Winds actually blowing ferociously, rain pouring on us as we carried our girls and belongings to the cars. I knew my Chief Worrier needed to be summoned when normally calm Drew shouted, Be quick – we have to get out of here – there’s a tree down on the road! Our little caravan of three vehicles left the house in a hurry on the small gravel road we had to use to come down the mountain. Not far from the house a power line was down across the road which meant we had to turn around and take a different direction. Whew. My nerves were a wreck by the time we reached Landrum where we met Papa Williams for lunch.
Guaranteed good times, you bet! High drama an unexpected twist in 2024! I wouldn’t trade sunglasses or anything else for the time with family and friends this year. I’m grateful to the service members who made the ultimate sacrifice for us to live in a free country where we can celebrate their memories in special ways on Memorial Day.
God bless the United States of America, and God bless our troops.
The first presidential debate between Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump in the 2016 election took place on September 26, 2016. I tuned in, of course, and posted this piece the following day.
The 400-Pound Hacker in the Room
Donald Trump on our national security in the debate tonight:
“Hackers could be anybody sitting on their beds weighing 400 pounds.”
Whaaaaaaat? What did you say? What does that even mean?
Donald Trump on foreign affairs:
“I haven’t given lots of thought to NATO…I just know we have to knock the hell out of ISIS.”
Really? Not much thought to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization? You might want to add that to your debate prep topics for next time.
Donald Trump on the war in Iraq:
“I was against the war in Iraq…all you have to do is call Sean Hannity and ask him. He knows I was against the war in Iraq.”
Somebody please call Sean Hannity… and restore a little sanity.
Donald Trump on deal-making in the Obama administration:
“You almost can’t name a good deal they’ve made.”
I can name that deal in three notes…or was that tune…deal, tune…whatever.
Donald Trump on what it takes to be President:
“To be President of the United States, you have to have the stamina.”
It also helps to have an understanding of the job description.
Hillary Clinton on preparation:
“Yes, I prepared for this debate. I’ve also prepared to be President.”
And with that I say to all good night and good luck.
***********************
Never underestimate the importance of the presidential debates. Somewhere today a 400-pound hacker sits on his bed laughing uproariously.
Pretty found this card when she was clearing out one of her carefully packed away boxes yesterday. She saw that it was mine – and asked me if I wanted to save it. It was dated 12/31/15, and when I read it, of course I wanted to keep it. This card should have been kept with my collection of most treasured personal mementos I carefully pack away in my own special box in my office – not randomly mixed in with Pretty’s hundreds of tubs filled with collectibles at various stages of “to sell or not to sell.” Occasionally she surprises me with something that got crisscrossed in one of our many moves over the past twenty-three years. This card slipped through the cracks during the 2017 move from Casa de Canterbury in downtown Columbia over the river to Cardinal Drive in West Columbia.
Sheila, where does the time go? It seems only yesterday that I was racing down the basketball court to pass the ball to you. You were always there, ready to take the pass. Wonderful memories!
Carolyn and I played basketball at Columbia High School in West Columbia, Texas, from 1961 – 1964. We played a variant of the game called six-on-six because well, each team had six players on the floor at the same time: three guards playing defense on one half of the court and three forwards for offense on the other half. Carolyn was one of the fastest guards we had, could steal the ball from one of our opponents’ forwards and then dribble like crazy to get to the half court line ahead of players who were always a step behind her, desperately trying to get the ball back before she could pass it across the half court line to one of her forwards who would be waiting to alter the course of play with a switch from defense to offense. Thankfully, women didn’t play full court basketball with five players like the men until 1971. I played forward for our six-on-six team but definitely lacked both speed and endurance for full court. I’m exhausted just thinking about that.
our senior pictures in the 1964 Columbia High yearbook
Carolyn’s beautiful smile was deceptive on the basketball court – she was much tougher during competition. Since I was the shortest forward on the team, I needed to look tough, but that wasn’t easy when my mom insisted she needed to roll my hair in tight curls before games and especially before the yearbook pictures. Sigh.
The 2024 WNBA season started this week, and we have ten former University of South Carolina Gamecock women’s basketball players who made Opening Day rosters, second only to UConn alumni with sixteen. Basketball for Pretty and me is more fun when we know the players, when we see “our girls” playing on the big stages of professional excellence.
But when I saw this beautiful card from my former high school teammate Carolyn Buchanan (Reid Young now), I was transported to the rush of feelings I experienced waiting for her to pass the ball to me at that half court line sixty years ago. I had to be there for her, for my team, ready to take that pass. Nothing could have been more exciting! And if by some miracle, I actually scored after I caught the pass – Caitlin Clark herself couldn’t have been happier.
Isn’t it funny, this thing called life. The directions it takes us, the experiences we share and the special people we meet along the way.
Carolyn is one of the special people I met along the way, and her card brought back a flood of wonderful memories for me of a “forever friend” who made my five teenage years in Brazoria, Texas, some of the happiest in my life. I hope she still has that Hollywood smile.
Whose birthday was it this past week since we’re in the birthday celebrating mood recently? That would be Pretty’s dad who turned 91 (or 90 – no definitive date but what’s a year here or there among friends) on May 2nd. Last weekend Pretty and I met our granddaughters and their daddy Drew for an overnight visit in the upstate to celebrate Walker Williams who is known to his family simply as Papa. As always, the hospitality of Darlene and Dawne, their dog Gabe, and an assortment of cats made the celebration in their lovely lake home extra fun for everyone. We missed the granddaughters’ mommy Caroline who had to leave early for a wedding in her family.
four-year-old granddaughter Ellanapped during an afternoon boat ride
on Lake Bowen
Nana needed her sunglasses –Naynay had sunshineon a cloudy day
(what can make me feel that way? my girls – talkin’ bout my girls)
Naynay, is this yellow thing a bracelet? asked two-year-old Molly…
outside local brewery following dinner later that evening
Hm. Better ask Neena, Naynay said
Neena, is this yellow thing a bracelet?
Molly, the hole is too small to be a bracelet for me, Neena said as Daddy smiled
oh, so this is where the yellow circles go
three cheers for the kindness of strangers
On Sunday morning, we took Papa for a birthday brunch. Molly sat at the head of the table next to her great-granddaddy who she felt obligated to entertain since older sis Ella watched “tubes” on Neena’s phone. Whenever Molly understands her behavior is inappropriate, as in throwing food she doesn’t like on the floor, she has learned to give an infectious smile and say “Molly funny.” It’s impossible not to smile back at her.
I'll Call It Like I See It 
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