Category Archives: Uncategorized

My uncle and his wife were diehard Francophiles. He was originally from my hometown of Hattiesburg, Mississippi. After his undergraduate work at Mississippi State, he received his MBA from Harvard and was headed for a career on Wall Street until the military called him back into service. He ended up being stationed in France andContinue reading “Corner Market”

A man once said, “You can call me anything you want, just don’t call me late to dinner.” It’s an old joke that’s been around since the 1830s. It’s not a very funny joke, and no one truly knows the origin of it, but I can relate to the statement on several levels. No oneContinue reading “Dear John”

I “fell back” yesterday. I didn’t hurt myself. No neck brace, stitches, or crutches were needed. I fell back in the sense that I didn’t spring forward. I set my clocks back one hour. Years ago, the physical act of changing the time wasn’t a hard thing to do. These days it takes someone withContinue reading “Daylight Savings Time”

This past weekend, we hosted a small gathering of friends. My wife had worked hard to prepare several dips, spreads, and hors-d’oeuvres for the group to go along with the alcoholic punches she conjures up for such occasions. In the middle of the party, I walked to the refrigerator and pulled out a block ofContinue reading “For the Love of Cream Cheese”

The first time I ever sat at a community table was in the early 1980s at Paul Prudhomme’s legendary restaurant, K-Paul’s, in New Orleans’ French Quarter. In those days, the New Orleans restaurant world was filled with traditional French-themed restaurants. Actually, that wasn’t just a New Orleans thing. From the 1940s through the 1980s, ifContinue reading “Community Tables”

There is a substantial case of wanderlust deep in my soul, and the call to travel has always been strong inside of me. In the song, “As Long as I Can See the Light,” John Fogerty sings, “Guess I’ve got that old travelin’ bone. ‘Cause this feeling won’t leave me alone.” I, too, have one—Continue reading “Magical Mississippi Tour 2018 Recap”

The Beatles were such a huge part of my childhood that they filter through almost every aspect of my life— even as a 57-year old. One walk through my office and it’s clear that I am much more than an “average fan” of the four lads from Liverpool who turned the pop music and rock-and-rollContinue reading “MAGICAL MISSISSIPPI TOUR”

Over the past 30 years, I have met a lot of people in my line of work. A lot of them are foodies. Many tell me they have the “best recipe” for this, that, or the other. In the 20-plus years I’ve been writing this column I have received countless cookbooks, old family recipes, andContinue reading “The Hushpuppy Whisperer”

There is a national crisis afoot and it has nothing to do with taxes, trade, or immigration. Breakfast cereals are going the way of the dinosaur. I was a kid during the breakfast cereal heyday of the 1960s and 1970s. It was a glorious time to be alive. We might have only had three channelsContinue reading “Get Off of My Lawn and Start Eating Cereal Again”