I spied the mimosa tree in bloom as soon as I turned the corner onto our county road. I veered onto the shoulder so I could get out and take a photograph. In nearly four years of living here at Three Geese Farm, I had never noticed this impressive specimen of what is considered in East Texas to be an invasive species. I have driven past this tree at least a few thousand times in our years out here. This time, the sun’s early morning rays highlighted its pink fern blooms just right. So I stopped.
My love of mimosa trees began when we moved to Longview from New Hampshire in the summer of 1968....
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One of the infuriating non-responses I hear while listening to NPR or come across in the dozen or so media outlets I read daily is a version of this: “Sen. Doofus declined to comment.” From the Oval Office to a local constabulary, it appears the entire government apparatchik has decided the best response to inquiries from members of the media who are not brown-nosing toadies is to ignore them.
I would peg the percentage of stories, many of which are of major import, that end with the beleaguered journalist saying “no comment was available” at roughly 80 percent. Few folks in public life...
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The girls have arrived.
Last Sunday, we made the one-hour journey to Alba, population 473, up by Lake Fork. From there we crisscrossed several country roads and finally spied a sign: Chickens for Sale. A pleasant young couple and two dogs came out to greet us in front of a fenced shipping container that had been converted into a giant chicken coop. There was a whole lot of clucking going on that afternoon from 125 Cinnamon Queen laying hens, all sporting various patterns of burnt orange and white feathers.
We had lined a dog crate with newspaper (print still has its uses), put the seats down...
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More than 40 years ago, I bought a copper weathervane from a fellow in San Augustine who had opened an antique store of sorts. I say “of sorts” because the weathervane was brand new when I bought it, for perhaps $20. The same guy, over the five years I spent there running The Rambler newspaper, sold me a handsome book cabinet that houses my collection of presidential biographies and other histories. It now anchors a corner of the living room. I also bought a massive blueprint cabinet that is down in the shop, filled with my late dad’s artwork and my photographs.
That rooster weathervane,...
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