Lessons From the Sidelines

We live in a critical society. Social media is mostly to blame for that, along with twenty-four-hour “news” networks and talk radio. Everyone has a voice whether they have anything worth saying or not. If you have a bad experience at a restaurant, Tweet about it. If your hotel bed isn’t as comfortable as you think it should be, grab your phone and give it two stars on Google. I don’t exempt myself from taking part in the reactionary culture in which we find ourselves.

Missing Jackson, Part 3

There’s something to be said for being below the Mason-Dixon line while the college football season plays out. Yes, you can try and find the Manhattan affiliate grill & bar of your favorite team to watch the game in. Maybe you’re even lucky enough to have some people from your original hometown that live around you and you can have viewing parties with each other. These sorts of things I’ve somewhat figured out in my previous years of living in NYC.

On: Lions Field

There’s a quote about nostalgia from one of my favorite television shows, Mad Men. In the scene, Don Draper, the creative director at a Manhattan advertising firm, is trying to sell his pitch to Kodak. He invokes the word nostalgia and explains it like this: “Nostalgia—it’s delicate, but potent. In Greek, ‘nostalgia’ literally means ‘the pain from an old wound’. It’s a twinge in your heart far more powerful than memory alone.” We all have memories from our childhood.

What I Learned In Jackson Schools

There is a very special place in my heart for the schools in Jackson, Tennessee. From elementary school at Andrew Jackson to middle school at Tigrett and high school and college at Jackson Central-Merry and Union University, I am fully a product of the Jackson-Madison County public school system and West Tennessee higher education.