Hospital Merger Dilemma: MB v BM Healthcare ??? (Short Story) - 8/4/2026 9:50:17 AM
A very keen observation. Laughed my head off!
Thank you for all you've done for the elderly and underprivileged in the greater New Orleans area.
Ron
My Backpack As An Altar? (Short Story) - 7/24/2026 1:45:37 PM
You never said how long you walked, but since you said it was days, I believe it was a rather long journey and gave you what you needed spiritually as well as physically.
I don't recall ever having a backpack or nap shack in my youth. Except when we went on extensive outings in Boy Scouts where they were provided.
During my 50 mile walk for President Kennedy, I carried a couple of chocolate bars in my shirt pocket and a car came along with my lunch of sandwiches and a couple of cans of pop for the day.
When I spend an entire day walking up the volcano Agua to 11,500 feet in Guatemala, I carried my market purchased beautiful shoulder bag with two rolls that I bought in a bakery as I walked out of town and no water. Before I started down the mountain, there was a convenient rain barrel where I drank my fill and when I got to the village of Santa Maria de Jesus at 6500 feet, I bought a Fanta to drink.
In all the other trails and walks that I've taken in all of my travels, I never carried anything. Making my journeys on those trails as light and free as could be, with no concern of being dehydrated or going hungry.
Ron
Hat's Off Honors for All Dads with Father's Day! (Short Story) - 7/6/2026 1:00:39 PM
That's an interesting story about how your family and you have gotten into hats.
Generally, once we reached the 1950s, most of my family never wore hats, even in the sun. But the sun was much weaker in Wisconsin and there was no known cases of skin cancer back then in our extended family.
I never wore a hat until I reached my late 70s. My partner caregiver tends to cut my hair very short and I found that the sun bears down on my head much more than it ever did. She bought me a straw Fedora when we were on a cruise and I like it because it's light and gives me the shade that I desire.
My mother had any number of skin cancers because she and dad spend a lot of time on the golf course. I remember her wearing a straw hat to golf in McAllen and when she was out in summer in Wisconsin.
I've had only two moles removed because they looked pre-cancerous.
Ron
All Saints Day - Just A Closer Walk With The Pope & New Saints! (Short Story) - 10/23/2025 11:52:54 AM
It's so good to see you posting again. Especially, an adventure like this. As I read it reminded me of my college days. I'm so glad that the youngsters accepted you as part of their own adventures.
While I don't understand the need for all of the ritual in the Roman Catholic Church, Rome certainly seems to be the place where most of it is carried out. And knowing that you are devout, it appears to be a once in a lifetime experience for you.
I would forgo the Vatican for what is left of the Roman culture and enjoy the modern Italian experience you briefly mentioned about a dessert I've never heard of.
Ron
Staying Alive, Staying Alive .. CPR and Heimlich Maneuver (Short Story) - 7/9/2025 8:37:46 AM
Loved reading this. I had just listened to that song by the Bee Gees and was thinking of this. I took CPR at work, but never had to use it. But I now know this song would come in handy if I did. Glad it helped you, and I love Wendy's too. Love their Frosty, but they don't love me. (Ice cream headache)
Micky The Monkees Grasshopper (Short Story) - 2/25/2025 11:27:59 AM
Interesting reading about your family and the wonderful things that they did with you in your childhood. I'm grateful that you let that grasshopper go free even though it may not have lasted very long in the urban environment.
You made me remember all the fun times I had with aunts and uncles and cousins, many, about our age. Grasshoppers were just part of our daily living in the countryside. They had a kind of brown, tobacco juice that appeared when they were irritated.
My last aunt, who I visited with my last uncle about four years ago thanks to Scott Zachary a fellow author who took me to College Station when he turned 100. He died two years later and she died last year. Only a couple of my cousins are still in coast touch.
Ron
You Know You're Getting Older When You Start Watching Lawrence Welk! (Short Story) - 7/10/2024 2:29:29 PM
Thanks for reminding me that I grew up in central Wisconsin with Larry Welk just a few miles down the road in Milwaukee. Something that was rather unique even in those days with only his show, The Grand Old Oprey and Dick Clark's American Bandstand airing from venues outside of NYC and LA.
I don't remember the accordion player's name, but but he was a virtuoso and I was not. I have little desire to go back to those old shows, but listen to old song, hopefully some by the original artists every night before going to sleep. Sometimes it's something from The Lawrence Welk Show.
Ron
Louie Louie Guitar Story Penny Post Neutral Ground Augie's Delago (Short Story) - 6/2/2024 11:48:38 AM
So glad you are still playing and singing in nursing homes. I miss singing old favorites like Sweet Caroline at the assisted living place that I went to during Thanksgiving and Christmas for several years, stopped by the pandemic.
Oh how I wish I had taken up the guitar rather than the piano accordion! And I'm so glad that you were able to get to the places where the blues reigned in spite of claims by Memphis and St. Louis. And still do.
On Sunday, I watched Willy's 90th celebration and him play with many others of his collaborators his songs, with two of his sons, still with great facility and remembering every word for over an hour like he was still in his prime. And I've also listened to Eric Clapton generously collaborating with many other artists and helping them with their guitar skills like Willie.
Guitar playing and great lyrics have changed America for the better. I'm so glad that I was and you were part of that time when black music crossed over into the mainstream and the electric guitar became an accepted way of reaching more than just a small venue.
I am grateful to Rose, who took care of to the very end, Freddie Everett, a local Houston guitarist reminiscent of Jimi Hendrix. After he died after 6 years with ALS in 2009, I was able to hire her and she still helps out from time to time, unwilling to stay with me, but her mother, until she dies.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXtNsLo5ydU Freddie at 2002 and his best.
Ron
Torn Jeans, Shorts, Skating Fashionably.... (Short Story) - 12/27/2023 11:48:19 AM
An enjoyable story, both then and now. I would advise you to take a good look in the mirror before you go out in public with your new, old duds. But it can payoff to be up-to-date.
As I recall, rollerskating was a bit more difficult than ice-skating, although I'm sure there are those that would argue that point. With the former it was the fear of floor burn. And with the latter it was a good lick on the ice, like I did with my elbow one time, tearing my left bicep and taking five weeks to heal on its own. Thank goodness.
Since you are only 64, I would suggest that you put on your new duds and go rollerskating again because I don't think they have an ice rink in Baton Rouge, unless they have one at the mall like they do here in Houston.
Ron
City of New Orleans Trip to Memphis Blues, Elvis & Graceland Too! (Short Story) - 10/13/2023 11:30:00 AM
Sounds like a great trip where you really soaked in the vibes.
City of New Orleans by Arlo Guthrie is one of my favorite songs. Reminded me of my trip from Grafton, WV, the hometown of Mother's Day to Washington DC and back on Amtrak right down to the capital at Union Station for Transpo 73.
I have driven through Memphis several times but never stopped to soak up the ambience like another of my favorite blues singers, BB King. I never had any desire to see Graceland but have always admired Elvis's velvet voice.
Ron
Getting All Choked Up After A 5K Race And Finding Treasures (Short Story) - 7/25/2023 12:17:47 PM
Great story. Proves that if you walk with your head down, you're likely to find something important that may have fallen from someone's hand or pocket. I recall my grade school friend who always walked looking down to find coins and bills. One time, he found a five dollar bill, worth a lot at Woolworth or Kresge (Kmart) five and dime. But not much in today's five dollar stores
In the last three years, perhaps because a bone growth on my spinal column in my neck, I find myself often choking on my food or having it trying to go down my windpipe. Since my partner/caregiver can't give me the Heimlich maneuver, I have found that if I lean forward and cough, most of the time, whatever's caught in my throat will pop out to be chewed. In the meantime, I have to make sure I thoroughly chew everything I eat before swallowing.
I recently had a CT scan of my neck bones to see if there is something impinging on my esophagus or not. If there is, an orthopedic surgeon may have to remove some of the bone so that I can safely swallow again.
Ron
Rock Lobster Fun in Ensenada Mexico (Short Story) - 3/16/2023 12:47:41 PM
I've never heard of the rock lobster dance, but I can guess that it looked rather funny and awkward. ;-) I am familiar with the B-52s.
My cousin when I lived in the Bay Area during my studies at Stanford had a little place in Santa Cruz. While there, I consumed some giant prawns and lobsters shipped from Australia. Some of my fellow workers vacationed in Ensenada. I got to Tijuana once when it was cold and windy with no one on the streets. My girlfriend was afraid to get out of the car, so we didn't.
I often crossed the border from 1982 to 1995 to dine on Mexican food when my parents spent their winters in McAllen, Texas. I've heard that it's no longer as pleasant there for winter Texans.
In 2019, while on a cruise, when we were docked in Cozumel we were allowed to eat all the lobster we wanted that evening. They were small lobster tails and may have been harvested in the Gulf.
One time when my twin brother visited me. He was working in Boston. He came with a container with a fresh lobster still alive.
Ron
Christmas Mall Walking (Short Story) - 12/18/2022 2:16:54 PM
I haven't been to a mall in years. But you made me remember going to Sharpstown Mall when I had Christmas packages to wrap and I couldn't do it myself. People had set up tables in the Promenade where they would wrap packages for you. It was a nice convenience for me and for many others buying Christmas presents at the mall.
Ron
Christmas Cheers Shared & Spread, Caroling With Santa's Reindeers In Red! (Short Story) - 12/8/2022 9:40:01 AM
I love your traveling buddy idea. Just don't take him on the high occupancy lanes only for two or more occupants. They frown on even Santa Claus for those. You did bring back memories from times when I joined Impromptu groups to go around and sing Christmas carols at work.
In recent years, I went to an assisted living home and sang Christmas carols with the occupants who could sing. I didn't have to dress up. The song they liked the best from karaoke, was Sweet Caroline, not a Christmas song, but a fond memory.
My sister just sent pictures of my nephew who has grown a full beard and mustache and had it bleached white like he has done for many Christmases so that he can play Santa Claus and really good cheer. This year his wife and he are all dressed up for some parties in their decorated craft business where they will host groups making Christmas knickknacks and decorations.
Ron
Veteran's Day - Hyping Typing (Short Story) - 11/12/2022 8:13:28 AM
Typing was considered women's work in those days. I took typing in my sophomore year of high school and did badly, 35 words a minute. But never regretted it. I don't know if my uncle typed or not, but he joined the Army Air Corps in 1941 and served 20 years. Never left the United States during WWII. Most of the time he was in school or training others. He died two years ago, one month short of 102. The only member of my family without the aftereffects of combat.
You didn't say how long your father lived. I believe that he was a big influence on who you are. My father failed the physical in Milwaukee in 1941 because of myopia, astigmatism and ruptured eardrums (boxing and infections). Strange, but I don't believe I would've been born in 1942 had he been inducted.
Ron
He Reigns Rains Newsboys KLOVE Radio Fall Back (Short Story) - 11/8/2022 2:21:53 PM
We could use a little bit of that calling out for rain here in much of Bible Belt Texas as we watch the clouds open up over Louisiana this year as we dip deeper into drought.
Ron
August 29th Hurricanes Ida, Katrina Nightmares - an LCSW Perspective (Short Story) - 8/29/2022 1:00:55 PM
Thank you so much for this very personal story of how you weathered Ida and the infamous Katrina that so devastated New Orleans and its people. You may recall we had a similar experience with Harvey five years ago this week. So many homes were flooded and some of them still haven't received the promised FEMA funds to rebuild. Many haven't. Fortunately, in spite of it being so widespread, only 70 died.
The death toll in New Orleans is what stands out about Katrina. I can see why you were so frantic about David. And he was very fortunate to be able to hold out so long before the National Guard rescued him with food and water being a real survival concern. And I'm so glad you were able to take in your mommy and daddy and actually have a family reunion.
It's so rewarding to help people and with your profession you are right at the ground level comes to helping people recover from tragedies like this.
Ron
Hard Headedness (Short Story) - 3/12/2022 1:14:12 PM
That hammer made me think "Ouch!" out loud!
I seem to have had a hardhead like you. Although I recall several times hitting my head very hard but never losing consciousness or having a concussion like my twin brother had when he was struck by a pickup truck in front of me at seven as we crossed the only street between our school and home.
On my way to a college class at 630 in the morning in 1965, I stepped off the curb on a small patch of ice and both of my feet went completely out from under me as the back of my head with my full weight behind it hit the concrete sidewalk with a loud "crack" that sounded like someone hitting a home run. My brother's a half block away heard it and ran to my aid. He drove me to the emergency room where I got 10 stitches and still made class with a mighty headache.
By the late 1980s, I was tripping and falling quite often onto my face and forehead. Getting cuts from my broken glasses, amounting to 200 stitches accumulating on my forehead.
I fell twice, across the room into the wall headlong, placing a large dent in the sheet rock. Fortunately, with the sheet rock caving in like that, I suffered no cuts or lasting head pain when it happened. Finally, just before I was going to go out with my parents to eat who were visiting, I fell from the second to bottom stair coming downstairs and hit my head on the carpet with concrete underneath. I crushed my sinus, fractured by eye orbit, and waited in the emergency room with an excruciating headache for four hours for the diagnosis. It healed itself but the headache took a couple of days to go away.
On doctor's orders for my own protection, I got into an electric wheelchair, and the falling stopped.
Ron
Ron
Deacon John Jamming Pre-Mardi Gras Fun in Uptown New Orleans (Short Story) - 2/27/2022 9:49:09 AM
Happy celebration! My tenant, a hard-working single woman from the Philippines, just found herself a retired age companion, a former radio announcer and Texas A&M instructor. They left two days ago to take in Mardi Gras with you.
Ron
Beatles Drive My Car Memories Tied To A N.O. Saints Game! (Short Story) - 1/23/2022 10:08:57 AM
That was a cool memory and an interesting coincidence.
Forgot this morning even though I got a reminder on my computer, forgot to tell her, "Baby, please drive my car." She exercises my van every Sunday since I no longer drive it. And I remember driving my cousin's 1965 Continental for her all the way to her beach house in Santa Cruz, but she was 40 years my senior, and made a rather odd pair when we entered bars together. ;-)
When I crossed the Ohio River at Wheeling, my first time ever to West Virginia on my way to Morgantown to study for my doctorate, I heard John Denver sing, "Country roads, take me home, to the place I love best, West Virginia, mountain mama, take me home." Also for the very first time.
Running and Fishing for Hope, Love & Peace (Short Story) - 7/4/2021 10:52:42 AM
It sounds like you have a wonderful place both the run and fish. And that you are always fishing for men/women in your jogs.
I was a fishing fool until I was 20 and could no longer reel a fish in. Taking up watching others catch wonderful monster fish. And I was a runner until I couldn't run, or jog at the same age, but found that I could still dive and swim underwater like a fish.
Ron
Red Wagon Catfishing (Short Story) - 3/21/2021 10:58:26 AM
Even though my introduction to fishing was in the far north, Wisconsin, there is much similarity to yours. My first fish were shiners and chubs from a Creek that ran through my uncle 's farm. But shortly after that, in farm ponds and our rivers, bullheads were usually caught by putting an earthworm on the bottom. Perch, bluegills and sunfish occupied the shallows. We called them pan fish, but I disliked bullheads. But remember that my grandfather loved catfish and preferred fishing for them.
I was a fishing fool and introduced any number of kids to fishing and handling bait.
Ron
Extended Taste-testing Restaurant Patrons (Short Story) - 11/18/2020 9:06:02 AM
I checked the link. I do recall Shaq on the Jimmy Kimmel show that night but didn't get the conversation. He was telegraphing his generosity and making him a target for waiters, regardless of their waiter skills. I always tipped 15% and resented it when restaurants automatically added a tip. But I understand why because so many come up with so many excuses not to tip that all.
Back about 1982 my stepson was graduating from the University of Wisconsin. His buddies had two options to make it with their college degree: become a commodity trader in the Chicago Commodity Market or a waiter in an exclusive Boston or Manhattan restaurant where they would dress as monks and make a good living on the tips. Since we divorced, I'm not sure what he ended up going into. But I was concerned that the focus of his friends was much money they could make rather than putting their college education to good use.
My niece paid for part of her college education in zoology at the University of Wisconsin as a waitress in a Big Boy where she waited on me passing through and as a cocktail waitress where she made more money with her beauty and charm.
Ron
September 11 2001 Memories (Article) - 9/11/2026 9:30:29 PM
Strangely I don't remember anything about what happened to JFK. I had driven home from college during the time period he was killed, thinking about going into the hospital the following Monday to have a myelogram to see if I would need spinal surgery.
It was in the hospital lounge that I saw Oswald being shot by Jack Ruby while playing pool.
On 9/11, I was driving to work listening to my usual music when it was interrupted by the announcement that a plane had hit one of the Twin Towers. The immediate thought I had was that it was a terrorist attack. Like you, at work, we huddled around televisions and watch the rest of the tragedy unfold.
It took 2 1/2 hours to read all the names this morning and see the pictures of the fallen. For lower Manhattan, not only was the loss of life staggering, the dust that came from the building materials and their bodies stayed around for a very long time and has shortened lives of those who breathed it.
May it never happen again.
Ron
Buen Camino Follow My Camino Reflections May June 2026 (Article) - 6/19/2026 2:43:56 PM
I was wondering why you hadn't posted for some time. I can see that you have been off to see the world from a pilgrimage, walking point of view. And a thoroughly enjoyable one from the way you have written it.
Ron
Good Morning! Good Morning! Good Morning! Good Morning! (Article) - 7/23/2024 7:25:34 AM
Ron Hull has a good attitude when extending a verbal greeting. I agree! To have more friends, you need to be a friend. A good start is to greet everyone (unless they are on the phone) who passes by. Yes! I found more positive responses this way! Probably 70-80 percent will respond kindly. That's good news! By the way, "Have a Good Day, Kieth!" LOL
Dealing With Dementia ... A Son and Dad's Conversation (Article) - 7/16/2024 12:46:32 PM
Very common problem. A rather kind conversation. Sometimes it requires the difficult task of putting someone in an institution.
My uncle told me about my grandmother. Shortly after her lively 85th birthday where she engaged in conversation with three conversations of the same time, she became overly religious. Something that was not like her to do. Eventually my uncle had to put her in a nursing hospital in their small town. The first time I visited her, she told me not to tell anyone as she jumped up on a chair with her replaced hip to reach for something on the top shelf of the closet. I can't recall what it was, but we had a nice conversation when she showed me what she got.
When I returned a couple years later, she was sitting in the chair staring into space with her cataract eyes. Seemingly unable to even recognize me. She never refused any food but no longer could recognize anyone. It was the first case of Alzheimer's I ever heard of.
Ron
New Year's Resolution: Keeping The Music of Life Renewed and in Tune (Article) - 1/1/2024 11:45:59 AM
Your guitar playing complements your occupation very well. And I can see where it brings you spiritual enjoyment to play along. And your reference to how music can help someone feeling a bit depressed during the winter months after the new year.
After I failed while taking piano lessons at seven years of age. And learning how to compose music in grade school but then, promptly forgetting it, my twin brother and my parents that we could make a lot of money in people's basement bars playing polkas on an expensive piano accordion. With thoughts of baseball rather than music, we never got past Blueberry Hill. While Lady of Spain was the standard, we never came close.
I often wondered what would've happened had they given me a guitar. Lately I've been singing a cappella, many of the old tunes every night to my partner. She loves to hear me sing and thinks that I'm very good for an old dude. She wanted to sing in clubs when she was a teenager, but her father prohibited it. Her brothers play guitar and sing.
After my singing, I listen to some of the great songs. Those that can pick out a melody like Willie Nelson, Carlos Santana or, perhaps the greatest guitarist of all, Peter Frampton.
Ron
Halloween Fantasy, Trick & Treat, All Saints Day, World War III (Article) - 10/14/2023 11:28:01 AM
As I read this story, more than an article, I had to chuckle. At first I puzzled at why you would have to relocate to the Adirondacks, but then I realized what you are writing about was a satire of human behavior and expectations. A real mishmash of human experience.
Ron
A Modest Proposal: Sharing Social Security With All Generations (Article) - 9/9/2023 8:54:29 AM
I've got a few years on you in this matter having reached 80 with my retirement funds intact, hopefully to be given to my alma mater for educational purposes when I die.
Very few live in a place where they can survive on mere Social Security. The only way to ensure well-being in old age is to save and invest early. Frugality tends to work in this regard. We all want our children to keep up with their peers, but we often spoil them with unnecessary, throwaway values. I never bought candy when I earned as a child, but put it in my savings account for college. Borrowed only twice during my college years and finished my doctorate with no debt and only enough stuff to put in my used, much older, car to stay mobile, job wise.
George Bush suggested that the Social Security fund be invested in the stock market and so are you with this new initiative. We all need to invest in the stock market. My twin brother recently suggested instead of giving a youngster a toy, a car, jewelry or other thing, to give them stock so they can begin to understand the power of ownership in the American economy.
I am at the point where I need total care nearly 24/7. The last time I calculated it, it costs me around $60,000 a year to pay for attendant caregivers in my home. If I were to go into assisted living, it would cost me around $5000 per month or $60,000 for the loss of my individual freedom and poorer care, leading to an earlier death.
Fortunately, about $34,000 of that amount is covered by the state for me. But would not apply if I chose assisted living. If I needed a nursing home, it would cost much more and by quality of life would decrease immensely. I'm in good health and my pharmaceutical needs, along with very good insurance for drugs, is minimal. For many elderly people of my age, their need for drugs is eating them alive.
Social Security is not security for the elderly. At best, it's a nice supplementary check to get. The only way to live on it alone is to stay healthy, live very frugally, and enjoy the simple life rather than spending what active time one has left on expensive bucket lists. When one can achieve Guinness world records in one's backyard, why spend money doing it.
Ron
Good Morning! Good Morning! Good Morning! Good Morning! (Article) - 8/24/2023 8:35:05 AM
Good morning, Spider-Man,
I'm glad that I got to your post, finally. I need to get back to calling out "Good morning, Vietnam!" to my Vietnamese partner, instead of begging her to turn on Good Morning America. And oh how I wish I could get out and run in the mornings or even walk in the neighborhood, saying Good Morning to everyone I meet. Like I used to do when I walked campuses of universities.
Wherever I've gone, I loved talking to strangers. And a simple Good Morning, or "Hello, how are you?" Can start a conversation with a stranger or even a neighbor that you haven't connected with yet.
But you failed to mention one thing. While in the past, I found it hard to interrupt those talking on their cell phones, because it would be impolite to interrupt what seemed to be very important discussions, it is even harder today to get people to look up, look at and smile or frown at what they see or hear. This is especially prevalent in waiting rooms where I always liked to talk to people while waiting. Before it was magazines that kept people from engaging. Now it is browsing or texting on cell phones that has everyone in their own little lonely bubbles afraid to engage fellow humans in a meaningful and conversational way… Very sad.
But I remain hopeful. Hopeful that my wheelchair and my happy and carefree attitude will break the ice again with a few people as I offer them my books for free.
Ron
What Ever Happened to Free Speech? A Return To Decorum For Us / With UAPs! (Article) - 8/3/2023 11:18:54 AM
Three cheers for that soapbox presentation. But we must all continue the good fight against ignorance and injustice as we learn new information even on old subjects all the time.
You made me remember my walks from the student union back to engineering corner at Stanford where I was a square, trying to understand high-level engineering with a permanent deferment from the draft based on my disability. Halfway during my walk, I passed the 1966 class president calling out to the crowd to defy the draft and end the Vietnam War.
David Harris continued his soapbox around the country with his wife, Joan Baez until he was arrested and sent to prison for failing to report to the draft. He was a man of his convictions. Died recently of lung cancer.
Ron
Sound of Freedom Movie Reflection (Article) - 7/16/2023 1:49:24 PM
Fortunately, there seem to be a number of television programs devoted to exposing human trafficking in all of its variation. One would think that human drive would've ended by this century. Unfortunately, the Internet fueled it rather than quenched it.
I just watched Blood Diamond with Leonardo DiCaprio and a great actor playing the part of an African fisherman found a huge diamond while working with kids in the bloodthirsty diamond fields of Sierra Leone during the Civil War there. Child labor is still rampant worldwide
Ron
Hurricane Who Dat Preparations Make A Plan GOHSEP (Article) - 6/8/2023 12:33:01 PM
Fun playing with your favorite Saints on a serious subject.
We are not as prepared as we used to be. But I know she will crank up the volume if we have anything scary coming out of the Gulf again. And something will come out of the Gulf again like it has the past.
Ron
ED - Eschatology Dysfunction / Theology of the Body (Article) - 4/30/2023 9:37:56 AM
As life goes on, some moral principles need to be revised and some need to be removed altogether so we can understand ourselves better and create a better future for every human being and every other living thing on the planet that we've been ignoring in our self-centered "human" domination of the world and each other.
For example, there are many. When we see our dogs or cats suffering with age, we take them to the vet and we have them euthanized. But, we charge all of our doctors with the Hippocratic Oath that requires them to sustain our lives way past all understanding. If we have lived a full life and are now suffering from ailments that will eventually kill us. Why can't we just decide that we'd like to die peacefully in front of family and friends?
What is it that makes us different from our pets? The fact that we make the decision for their death? Is that what's bothering the "right to life" hypocrites? We start our wills with "being of sound mind." Why can't we end our lives, "being of sound mind," rather than wait until we are slobbering, incoherent, delusional, demented suffering souls with thousands of dollars of hospital, assisted living and nursing home bills?
Is that what our God and Savior wants for us?
Ron
What Ever Happened To Daydreaming? (Article) - 3/7/2023 9:49:29 AM
I'm well aware of sleep deprivation, particularly for my partner/caregiver that she has to wake up from a deep sleep several times during the night to tend to me when I've wakened naturally with some need or another. Daydream deprivation is right on the subject.
I haven't driven since 2017 and am glad I don't have to deal with those people driving slowly in the left lane on their mobile phones or now even worse, texting while driving… Egad!
ZZ Top is from here in Houston and while they had to wear those beards because, "They were so ugly," they know how to get the right buttons with her songs. And that 33 or 34 Ford hot rod always reminded me of our 35 coupe.
That done quite a bit of daydreaming in my time. But now it seems to be I get my inspiration for stories from dreams at night, interrupted by occasional needs to turn, etc.
Ron
MLK I Have A Dream Color Blind Seeing the Delight of God's Creation (Article) - 1/28/2023 1:00:57 PM
I'm glad that you see it as part of your mission in life to work with black churches and promote the ideals of Martin Luther King.
From my early upbringing I always judged a person by their character and not any other characteristic. So it was easy, when I attended the midnight address on New Year's Eve, 1965 at the Quadrennial Conference of the Methodist Church in Lincoln Nebraska, listening to Dr. King speak from the balcony above him, to believe he was on the right track and follow his lead.
But I was participating in the civil rights movement in the North from 1961 and when the opportunity came to work at two, predominantly black, universities, I didn't hesitate. I believe that my presence in these locations 33 years, surrounded by black people who chose those institutions, either to work or to study, because they detested the way they were treated by white people in other schools, changed them. And I believe, while I was hated by some for being there, that I won over quite a few people to thinking like me and Dr. King, that "All God's little children, will one day live in harmony…"
I never met a man or woman I didn't like, until I thoroughly got to know who they really were.
Ron
Flight-Mare Headaches With Plane Travel New Years Resolution (Article) - 1/8/2023 2:31:10 PM
Thanks for the tip. Why I always drove during the holidays. My folks didn't live near major airports and rental cars were expensive. It's fun just to watch the mayhem of people who think that travel should go the same way it always does during holidays and the weather. It's better to have options like you had. One time, when I miss my flight the day after Thanksgiving, I flew standby, and actually arrived, like you did, ahead of my regularly scheduled flight.
Ron
Social Work Month Mindfulness Living In The Present Moment (Article) - 12/24/2022 9:22:12 AM
A fine lesson. The grass is not always greener on the other side of the fence. I have lived in five places here in this wonderful United States. I have fond memories of my time in each of those places. Socially, I was much more connected there than here. And that, like having a good friend nearby that you see every day, is very desirable, priceless.
While I reminisce about those places, for the most part, there is really good reason why I could no longer live there and must make the best of where I'm at right now. In fact, I haven't spent a lonely day here just thinking that I should go somewhere else, near forever. I'm doing just fine right here and nowhere else would be better. Still have a huge list of things I need to do right here before I "shuffle off this coil."
Merry Christmas to you and yours,
Ron
Christmas: An ADVENT-urous Freedom Opportunity (Article) - 12/1/2022 11:12:20 AM
Perhaps in Stories, I have responded to some of my similar experiences in the past, so I won't, here.
Except to quote from a Christmas carol, the words, "Peace on earth and goodwill to men (and all other genders, especially women)."
Ron
Thanksgiving Blessings Free Birds Twitter Elon Musk 1st Amendment (Article) - 11/27/2022 9:34:57 AM
As always, your story brought back memories. I love that band's title, Lynyrd Skynyrd. So I listened to your link to Free Bird. Like you, free speech is something we must cherish and allow. Censorship of any kind restricts our growth as human beings.
In 1979, when I met for the first time a graduate student, Danny Lewis from then,, Bombay, he told me that he and his wife, Bina, loved going to the disco, Taj Mahal, and listening to the likes of Lynyrd Skynyrd. I believe that was the hotel that was attacked brutally by separatists sometime later. The only major gun tragedy and mass shooting in India that I recall from the news.
I never used an umbrella. And after I was paralyzed my hands and arms were too weak to hold an umbrella up, so I often got wet. But as one professor at Atlanta University passing me in a light rain said, "A little rain on the noggin doesn't hurt me, I'm not a Baptist." ;-) I do recall heading to my first day of class in 1975 at Marshall University when I got drenched in a downpour. I looked like a drowned rat when I got on the stage of an auditorium with that overflow management class. Thankfully, the department head looking dapper and untouched by water, stepped up on the stage and saved me by giving the students a rousing welcome and introducing me so that I felt more comfortable my first day of teaching there.
In 1966, while taking engineering courses at Stanford, I often passed the White Plaza at noon while getting my lunch where the student body president, David Harris, was railing against the Vietnam War. He later went to prison for draft evasion and married Joan Baez. Those were heady times. Barefoot was the rule.
We have a lot to be thankful for in this great country.
Ron
Find Common (Coffee) Grounds (Article) - 7/19/2022 1:48:50 PM
That was quite an experience! Having a conversation Dan Barringer over dinner and beer. And coming to terms, better for the shared discussion of your viewpoints. He was a hero in my time and I really appreciated what he and his brother did to advance our society from ignorance to a better way to live.
My encounter with a psychiatrist activist, Dr. Oliver B Henderson, when I picked him up hitchhiking in the morning on the California coast outside of Arcata and drove him to his home in Palo Alto where his wife made me and him a chicken dinner was very agreeable. We both believed that the war in Vietnam and especially the use of Agent Orange and napalm were war crimes. And needed to stop.
Unfortunately, I have found that pro-life people today are very rigid and will not discuss anything other than defending their cause, including the Supreme Court, based on the Bible and a Constitution that doesn't give rights to women.
There is much more towards saving healthy babies in family planning clinics. Abortion is a health and that includes mental health of the mother and/or a baby that may be disabled or ostracized for their entire life. Abortion is a necessary tool in making sure that the health and wealth of all citizens have a more equal chance at life.
Ron
St. Joseph Altar Memories (Article) - 3/13/2022 12:17:17 PM
You made me recall pictures of my mother when she took the train from Wisconsin to Bullhead City in the summer 1947 or 1948 to drive my grandparents back from washing dishes for the building of Davis Dam. My grandfather no longer drove, and my grandmother had rolled and repaired their 1939 Buick on ice near Flagstaff.
They toured parts of California prior to returning. The pictures were of mom feeding the pigeons at San Juan Capistrano. It wasn't the time of year when the swallows returned like in the song.
Ron
COME TOGETHER: A Progressive / Conservative Dinner: A Roving Pot Luck Party (Article) - 12/10/2021 1:19:21 PM
Lennon also wrote "Imagine," one of the most profound songs bringing people together in the 20th century. Unfortunately, Lennon was killed by a zealous Christian cultist who read Lennon's interview with Playboy that drove him to do what he did.
I think the greatest thing bringing neighborhoods together our young children going to the local schools. But neighborhoods, like mine, gentrify and become something else over time. Without young children tying everything together or some other regular activities, neighbors and individuals in subdivisions can become like apartment dwellers, not even aware of their next-door neighbor. I know it's hard for me, because I rarely leave the house, and have no neighbors really looking out for me even though some of them have been a big help when I needed it.
Ron
Keeping The I HAVE A DREAM Alive And Active (Article) - 1/27/2021 9:37:38 AM
I am so grateful for having had the opportunity to hear Dr. King speak part of his dream speech at the quadrennial conference of the Methodist Church held in Lincoln Nebraska midnight address on the new year 1965. I was about 40 feet away in the right balcony looking down on him and his two bodyguards as he spoke.
Here in Houston, the Rev. William Lawson was a student minister at Texas Southern University when MLK called for boycotts and nonviolent resistance. After students sat in at local cafeterias, Bill Lawson was part of the group of ministers who got together with the powers that be downtown and and made great progress without any violence or riots in this great city of diversity and cooperation.
Rev. Lawson went on to establish the Wheeler Ave., Baptist Church in the same neighborhood where George Floyd grew up. Also the likes of Mickey Leland, former Congressman. His daughter, Melanie Lawson, is longtime anchor at ABC 13 television. She is an MS survivor and has done a lot to keep her father in the hearts of Houstonians. I also had the pleasure of attending a luncheon where I got to meet Melanie when Bill was honored for his civil rights work at the same time that former Pres. George H W Bush in his last year of life was present with Barbara and she received an award for her work with kindergarten children.
I feel fortunate to have had conversation with Rev. Bill Lawson and attended his church for several funerals. I have lived through great times, but have only been to New Orleans once and greatly enjoy my brief visit to the French Quarter listening to the band, Bless This Mess, with their wonderful news that I put on the video that I made of the trip. I really wish I had been able to stop and see you, Paul, on that trip.
https://ronhullauthor.com/streams/Louisiana-10-4-15.m4v
Ron
Christmas COVID-19 Promenade @ The Baton Rouge Labyrinth (Article) - 12/28/2020 9:14:48 AM
Taking walks to the most beautiful part of New Orleans sounds like a great way to offset the isolation COVID-19.
This morning I learned that we are now losing more people than we lost during 9/11 every day and we may end up with 500,000 deaths from COVID-19. The reason why many of us haven't experienced with those that have experience are suffering is because that number is only 1/600 of the population. Those infected before the vaccination may reach 1/3, but it is a unique worldwide phenomenon that we haven't experienced since 1917.
Ron
To Kill A Mockingbird? ... Nah! (Poetry) - 6/10/2019 9:31:02 AM
Mockingbirds seem to be the only native, natural city species here in Houston. They are everywhere, mocking other birds in spring and guarding their nests and territories with bravado that belies their small size. Lately, we have found that if we let our cherry tomatoes reach the red stage, our mockingbirds like to poke a hole in them (for the seeds?). They don't like the seeds we put out for other birds, but seem to prefer insects and worms.
I have planted asparagus fern around the house. White flowers turn into white berries that turn into red berries in midwinter. I have seen a mockingbird come by every once in a while and eat those red berries, seemingly making sure that they would last all winter long. Crape myrtle provides another food for them.
Ron
To Kill A Mockingbird? ... Nah! (Poetry) - 6/10/2019 9:10:48 AM
Birds have to eat too, and I'm sure they're thankful in their own way.
Mother Teresa Pic Story / Beatitudes - 'I' Must Die Song (Poetry) - 9/3/2016 10:52:16 AM
Like a few others that I won't go into naming, Mother Teresa was one of those shining examples of the best that humanity can produce. And she did so not by being flamboyant and great in any outward way, but by merely attending to those that no one else would attend to. As a result, she is not only an example for Dawn, but for all of us on how to live.
Ron
Cooking Up Some Romance! (Poetry) - 2/7/2015 9:56:26 AM
I've thought long and hard how I would show this year, the gratitude I have for her cooking, so dear. We don't see eye to eye all the time, but when we eat together, nothing could be more fine.
Ron
Cooking Up Some Romance! (Poetry) - 2/7/2015 7:43:18 AM
I cooked her a meal,
with loving care.
we sat down to eat,
a meal to share.
I try to do,
whatever she wishes,
and then we argue,
over who's doing the dishes.
Michael D.
New Orleans 'Yat Limerick (Poetry) - 9/3/2014 8:50:10 AM
Now I know where it's 'Yat. Those roots run deep.
Ron
New Orleans 'Yat Limerick (Poetry) - 9/3/2014 7:09:28 AM
I understand the sentiment if not the words. Anyone who thinks of his roots as being "below sea level" can't be all bad. :-)
Micah 6:8 Applied to Social Media (Poetry) - 1/26/2014 8:19:29 AM
Nice thought...this is probably my favorite scripture.
Cheers,
Dan
Saints and Sinners Prayer (Poetry) - 3/27/2012 8:13:53 AM
You surely do take your sports seriously! :)
Valentine's Prayer and Survival Poem (Poetry) - 2/13/2012 5:00:12 PM
Good advice, given in a humorous way, but serious nevertheless.--or the doghouse!
Your wedding picture is gorgeous!
Connie
Valentine's Prayer and Survival Poem (Poetry) - 2/13/2012 9:41:45 AM
Oh what our culture has come to, when expectations exceed reality more and more every year, and, somehow, it always seems to cost more?
Well, I had better take your advice and go shopping…
Ron
Tim Tebow (Te-beaux & John 3:16-eaux) (Poetry) - 1/16/2012 2:59:27 PM
BEING TRUE TO ONE'S FAITH...PLOUGHING...GOING AGAINST THE GRAIN! I SALUTE TIM TEBOW AND I THANK YOU KEITH, FOR SHARING THIS FINE TRIBUTE. LOVE, BLESSINGS AND FAITH...JOYCE * HIS INSPIRATIONS
Holiday Blues (Poetry) - 11/3/2011 9:01:17 PM
'yippee kay yay' is what we gotta say! Holiday blues cruise can't be far behind.
God Loves You, Peace, From Someone Who Cares (Poetry) - 9/19/2011 10:18:40 AM
Keith,
This touches my heart. May your daughter always have Jesus in her heart and will always be a shining light for Him.
Many blessings,
~Linda
Heaven and Hell (Poetry) - 9/19/2011 10:15:00 AM
Keith,
Amazing poetry from a talented pen.
Many blessings,
~Linda
Let Go, Let God (Poetry) - 9/19/2011 10:13:31 AM
Keith,
This song has special meaning. My friend Shelia passed away of cancer and Hospice was with her when she died. They helped her in many ways, God bless them, and God bless YOU.
Many blessings,
~Linda
Let Go, Let God (Poetry) - 9/12/2011 5:44:47 PM
Those who serve in Hospice Care must be chosen by God....they are a wonderful comfort and help for patients and their families.
Connie
Stephenie (Poetry) - 9/12/2011 5:41:27 PM
What higher praise can there be for a friend? "You honor the Cross...You've helped me to grow in Love And to better listen to the Dove"
God bless your friendship!
Connie
Heaven and Hell (Poetry) - 8/8/2011 9:20:18 PM
I think this is great. I hope you did well with it. That's not an easy feat to do, either, and do it well, too.
Heaven and Hell (Poetry) - 8/6/2011 7:19:26 PM
Leaves Lot Room For Discussion,i.e. Looking From 1's Own Eyes...
Credit Illuminating Write...
TRASK...
Psalm 23 (Poetry) - 10/3/2010 10:17:03 AM
Amen. This is so beautful, wonderful offering.
Blessings,
Christine
Hurricane Who Dat? Warning by an Anonymous Writer (Poetry) - 2/8/2010 6:03:50 AM
I absolutely adore this, Keith. As one interested in weather, as one who once lived near New Orleans, as a Saints fan, those Colts found out what a hurricane feels like! Who Dat, Who Dat! Superbowl Saints, 'Ain'ts' no more! Saving this one.
(((HUGS))) and love, Karla.
Hurricane Who Dat? Warning by an Anonymous Writer (Poetry) - 2/5/2010 11:55:34 AM
WELL...EVERYBODY KNOWS WHERE YOUR MONEY IS...AND ALL I CAN SAY IS ...MAY THE BEST 'SWIMMER' WIN!! THANKS FOR THIS GREAT SHARING AND GOD BLESS. LOVE, JOYCE * HIS INSPIRATIONS
Hurricane Who Dat? Warning by an Anonymous Writer (Poetry) - 2/5/2010 9:07:00 AM
Now THAT'S one hurricane I love!! GEAUX, Saints, GEAUX, GEAUX, GEAUX!! AAIEE!!!! :D
(((HUGS))) and much love, your friend in Tx., Karen Lynn. :D
Saints / Colts Humor (Poetry) - 1/29/2010 9:32:51 PM
I guess I should refer you to a couple of friends who have a stake in this contest. They would of course agree. My Detroit Lions were devoured early on. Patrick
Hearts (Poetry) - 1/21/2009 4:53:47 AM
This is a very good poem.I enjoy reading it,take care
Edwin
Suicide, Fall, Grief, Volunteer Work (Poetry) - 1/21/2009 4:52:43 AM
This is a unique and beautiful poem.Thank you for sharing and explaining the message in it,take care
Edwin
Hearts (Poetry) - 1/19/2009 11:47:53 AM
Good write, great hearts are made to be loving persons, and looking forward to Valentine's Day of love even without a lover, is to be experenced by having a good heart and using it to pass love to others you meet on the way of life.
Suicide, Fall, Grief, Volunteer Work (Poetry) - 1/19/2009 11:46:35 AM
Thanks for the explanation of the seasons and renewal of life. I did know of it and believed it, but reading it here has made it absolutely more believable and comforting. You do know how to comfort grieving people. Such a nice write. Glad I saw it here.
