Author Archives: paul

We landed in New Orleans on Sunday, which isn’t when most people arrive in New Orleans unless they’ve made a mistake. It had been a quick trip to New York. In and out. Just two days. The main reason was a play I didn’t want to miss—a revival of David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross. BobContinue reading “A Roast Beef Poboy and a Curtain Call”

My paternal grandmother was one of the sweetest, most loving people God ever put on this Earth. She didn’t fuss. Didn’t preach. She just went about loving people the way she knew how—quietly, gently, without any need for attention or applause. Her love showed up in small ways, the kind you don’t notice until yearsContinue reading “Crusts Off”

Father’s Day has come and gone, at least according to the calendar. But I’m still carrying it with me. There wasn’t a big moment this year. No slow morning at Table 19. No movie with the kids. I was in Atlanta with my wife. We had brunch at one of my favorite spots—pancake the sizeContinue reading “The Best Job I’ll Ever Have”

There’s a lot of talk these days about self-made people. I’m not one of them. Whatever I’ve done, whatever I’ve built, whatever I’ve been blessed to be part of—it wasn’t done alone. Not even close. I’ve been in a reflective place lately. Not sure if it’s age, or just life slowing down enough to reallyContinue reading “A Long Thank-You Note”

Ice cream didn’t play a big role in my childhood. Never cared much for cream or shakes. Candy was more my thing—sour apple Jolly Ranchers and Milky Way bars, mostly. But when it came to frozen treats, it was always pineapple sherbet. My babysitter used to take me to the little shop by the parkContinue reading “This Wasn’t Supposed to Be About Milkshakes”

On May 25, 1983, I was 21 years old—lost and heading nowhere fast. That night, I was fspeeding down 4th Street in my hometown of Hattiesburg, headlights off, 90 mph, foot on the gas. It was 2 a.m. Three police cars chased behind me, blue lights flashing. Reckless. Irresponsible. Dangerous. I don’t remember much else—exceptContinue reading “The Door at the Bottom”

A few years ago, when both of my kids left for college, I wrote each of them a letter. Nothing fancy. Just something I hoped they’d find helpful once the room quieted down and the door had closed behind me. I slipped it into the top drawer of their dorm room desks and left itContinue reading “RSJ’s Advice to Upcoming Graduates 2025”

By the end of this year, more than 1,400 people will have traveled with me on RSJ Yonderlust Tours. It’s hard to wrap my head around sometimes, considering it all started with one trip to Tuscany back in 2016. Just a handful of guests and a shared love for a place I’d come to knowContinue reading “Eight Weeks, Fifty Memories, One Grateful Heart”

There’s a quiet fear I carry that never really goes away. It doesn’t keep me up at night, but it walks with me in the background of every day. It’s not a fear of failure. I’ve failed plenty. It’s not a fear of hard work. I love to work. That’s never been the issue. It’sContinue reading “Onward Toward a Creative Life and Not an Unlived Life”