O nce upon a time, as most fairy tales begin, I thought that since I was a pretty fair athlete in high school, I should be able to be a pretty fair golfer. Duh.  These old retired guys who play golf regularly are usually labeled with something called a “handicap.” For the uninitiated, that’s an indi...

I n our good ol’ boy world of Texiz, a double standard for the sexes has long existed.  Equal rights standards notwithstanding, a dominant macho mentality for years steered public thought and even legal ruling in favor of males.  It’s the cowboy image, don’t you know. “Come heah, woh-mun!” Try it wi...

I n the late 1950s, Houston’s metropolitan bus service didn’t reach out nearly as far as it does today. So, a laborious transportation process was my tricky, no-missed-deadline method for getting to the University of Houston for classes and a job.  After two years at Sam Houston State (then) Teacher...

W hile the high school football experience is a necessary journey for those of us who suffer from the mano-a-mano challenge and I didn’t urge my sons to play the game (nor discourage), I managed to suffer enough injuries to make one question my intelligence and/or judgment. But, I upheld the “I ain’...

A s an old great-grandfather-wannabe, I was recently reflecting on some first-child experiences.  Men are ill prepared for the birth of their children, especially the first one. As a result, these new fathers can offer some pretty hilarious sidebars to the birth, which is a tremendous physical marat...

“You’re a smart man, Mr. Gallagher. I’m pretty smart myself.” – Wilford Brimley to Paul Newman in the movie Absence of Malice. Most of us, if we admit it, grow up idolizing someone on movie or TV screens. Some of us could probably ‘fess up to having acting idols in our adult years.  As a kid, I came...

R ight away you should understand that in the early and mid-1950s, one did not use nicknames for coaches, particularly your high school football coaches, who had the power and respect, which enabled them to employ disciplinary tactics that could leave quite an “impression.” Oh, you might do it in hu...

P erhaps that headline would lead you to think I was an ornery misfit with issues with our American armed forces.  Let it be said here and now that I have nothing but admiration and respect for our U.S. military. I simply didn’t want to become a member before I completed my college education.  As a ...

M y son thinks I’m comatose when I watch football on TV and not much better when in the stadium.  There are a number of explanations for why he or any other normal, rabid, foaming-at-the-mouth, chew-the-ref, cuss-the-coach football nut case would think something was wrong with drab-don’t-get-excited...

“Boy, if you can’t afford to lose, don’t gamble.” – L. Ray Webb, circa 1953 A generally reserved nature fastened me with a selection of labels during my growing up time. That nature was reinforced by similar sage admonishments from my dad and direct threats of “double-M-belt spankings” for transgres...