“Messy, messy, messy.” Any time I hear the word “messy,” especially around the holidays, I think of another tradition my old man just loved: Watching the classic Christmas shows on TV. When my brother and I were young, that was one of the true treasures of the season. As I’ve written, Dad didn’t have that […]
“No C’s, babe.” They were three little words written on the Christmas card from my father in 1991. He also wrote that he was proud of me and grateful to be my dad. But the last line, underlined several times, was glaring: “No C’s, babe.” By 1991, my sophomore year of high school, my brother
Twelve Days of Christmas, 2020, Part VI: Average grades mean you walk to school Read More »
As I wrote a few years ago, leaving Lebanon, Missouri, in 1989 was difficult for my brother and I. We liked the schools, had friends and were comfortable. I had just turned 13, Dan was 11, and a few months before that big announcement, we thought we’d be there through high school. That was the
Twelve Days of Christmas, 2020, Part V: When we were mallrats Read More »
“Son, you’re a good person, and you’re smart as a whip. You should never be surprised that any woman likes you. She sees that you’re a good man. That is why she’s interested in you. Believe in yourself.” Dad told me that in the first week of January 2011. I’d called to tell him that
Twelve Days of Christmas, 2020, Part IV: Dad and my wife Read More »
Not every Christmas is as good as the others. The first one without Dad, in 2019, was easily the most difficult one. It just wasn’t the same. The first Christmas I spent away from home, living in Texas with my soon-to-be ex-wife in 2002, wasn’t exactly a bundle of joy. But those Christmases weren’t the
Twelve Day of Christmas, 2020, Part III: Mortal Kombat and burritos Read More »
Note: This blog was written on Wednesday, Nov. 25, the day before Thanksgiving. Hey, Dad. It’s been a while since I’ve written you. It’s been a crazy year with a pandemic, toxic election and much more. There have been times when I’ve actually thought, “You know, I wouldn’t want the old man to see or
Twelve Days of Christmas, 2020, Part II: Driving (and trembling) with Dad Read More »
During my Twelve Days of Christmas blog series about my dad last year, I mentioned several times that my parents usually worked craft shows during the holiday season. More often than not, Mom and Dad were gone for weeks while my brother and I stayed with friends and families. Who we stayed with depended on
Twelve Days of Christmas, 2020, Part I: Spending the holiday season with the Halls Read More »
We’ve all done dumb things in life. The inspiration for this thought was YouTube. As I flipped through videos earlier this week in search of positive messaging (another blog for another day), I came across an old-school pyramid scheme infomercial that made me think, “What’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever done?” It’s not a short
Webb: Dumb and dumber was signing up with Don Lapre Read More »
I’ve seen that anxiety in the eyes before. That thought ran through my mind today as we moved our daughter into her residence hall at the University of Missouri. It was a day of excitement, stress, fun and, of course, anxiety. It reminded me of the look I saw on my face when I moved
Webb: Words of wisdom to my daughter on the day she moved into college Read More »
I haven’t written much about my father’s early years, notably the lost years he endured from his early teens to his late 20s, a period of time in which he spent about 13 years in various juvenile halls, jails and prisons. It wasn’t something Dad was proud of, to the point that I had no
Webb: Like Morgan Freeman’s Red, Dad was the guy who could get it for you Read More »
