Author Archives: Robert

We’re Number One! (Again) In junior high school pep rallies were mandatory. I never minded them because they were a legitimate excuse to get out of class and hang out in the gymnasium. I never became too lathered up during these proceedings; call it lack of school spirit, absence of general enthusiasm about which gradeContinue reading “We’re Number One! (Again)”

A Tale of Two Heavens Blackberry Farm is the most civilized 4,200 acres on the planet. I spent my 10th anniversary at Blackberry Farm a few years ago. I wrote about the visit at length, and continue to talk about it, today. Earlier this month, my wife and I dropped our kids off at summerContinue reading “A Tale of Two Heavens”

Pilgrimage Part II In a non-descript building, on U.S. 411 outside of Madisonville Tennessee, in the foothills of the Smokey Mountains, sits a little smokehouse. Over the past few years it has become the porcine capital of the known universe. It is a place I have wanted to visit for a long time. Last weekContinue reading “Pilgrimage Part II”

Pilgrimages are typically once-in-a-lifetime events. If one is lucky he or she might get to make two or three pilgrimages over the course of their life. People from all over the world take religious pilgrimages to Israel, Mecca, the Vatican, or Nepal. Golfers live to go to where it all began- St. Andrews in Scotland.Continue reading “Pilgrimages”

Shrimp Season 2008 Mississippi’s shrimp season is open. I was eating oatmeal in my breakfast room watching WLOX’s morning show when the opening-day announcement was made. The television station cut to their on-location camera covering the waters of the Gulf of Mexico and there was one shrimp boat on the water. One boat. I canContinue reading “Mississippi’s shrimp season is open.”

What A Wonderful World What a difference a few years make. When my daughter was born— 11 years ago— my wife and I never slowed down. We ate in the same restaurants, visited the same hotels, and flew the same airlines. Other than getting to move to the front of the line when flying Southwest,Continue reading “What A Wonderful World”

The Meat Parade For years I have been hearing about Brazilian steakhouses. I have received several emails and had many discussions with numerous friends and acquaintances about the merits of restaurants that parades protein around the dining room on large metal sticks. “They’re great,” my friends say. “They come to your table with huge skewersContinue reading “The Meat Parade”

Mexican Cuisine Mexican is my favorite ethnic cuisine. I have vacillated through the years. As a kid, I was into Italian (if you can call spaghetti, lasagna, and pepperoni pizza Italian— and actually, you can’t). In college I was fond of Chinese food, which seemed very exotic at the time. I still like Chinese, butContinue reading “Mexican Cuisine”

Ye Olde Foode and Gas-e Costs I paid $100 to fill my gas tank today. Actually, the pump stopped at $99.38, but I kept squeezing the handle, topping it off, and eking the last $.62 out of the pump just to see if our economy had actually reached a point where it takes a clean,Continue reading “Ye Olde Foode and Gas-e Costs”