Soft Where
I’ve taken off a day from work and prepare myself for a hot soak, a totally outrageous notion because for years I’ve shared my bathroom time with Anna who remains unconvinced that she can do without me for five or ten minutes.
Essay
Begone, Fox Squirrel!
City people, take notice. If you think country-living is laid back, easy-going, a ramble in the woods, you may be in for a surprise.
Donna’s: My New Barber in Choudrant
Finding a good hair stylist is almost as difficult as finding a good mate. Much of it is about chemistry.
Vernon and Rae-Ann (4)
One summer Domino did get covered with fleas and Rae-Ann did just what her auntie had told her. By the time Domino shook herself dry,… Read More »Vernon and Rae-Ann (4)
Billy Goat Gruff: Rae-Ann (3)
But Eudora wasn’t the only one who shared their private business with Rae-Ann. Maybe it was because there was something in the way she presided… Read More »Billy Goat Gruff: Rae-Ann (3)
Rae-Ann, the Trusted One (2)
Every morning after she had switched on the lights and turned up the thermostat of the Half & Half, she thanked Earl for taking such good care of her. He had been a good man; after his funeral, all the store regulars had mailed her condolence cards in tones of silver and violet that she arranged on the fireplace mantle, and for the first few months, touched each one as she walked in circles from the living room to the kitchen.
Portrait of Rae-Ann
She got in the van and finished putting on her lipstick, something she rarely did in the car, but Mondays gave her an extra oomph. Of course, all her best friends shook their heads, “Just wait. Give it another year and you’ll wish you were back home again.”
Shopping at Walmart in January
Walmart ordered way too many bicycles this year to sell over the Christmas holidays. They outline the entrance to the store all the way back… Read More »Shopping at Walmart in January
Ernest Gaines at Northwestern State in Natchitoches
“He knows a history unknown in history books.”
Buttery Nipples
It was in the South Side Salon in Keithsville, Louisiana where I discovered buttery nipples, a drink that my bartender friends tell me is composed of two main ingredients: butterscotch schnapps and Bailey’s cream.