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With everything going on in the world, between COVID-19, state lockdowns, murder by racism, political war-of-the-parties, rioters destroying small businesses that were already in trouble due to being shut down for long periods of time, I must admit, I’d had my fill of life on the ground. So, my solution? I took to the skies. The plan? To dive out of a plane- yes, a perfectly good one. Now this happened to coincide with the celebration of the boyfriend’s birthday, but the truth is, I just nee...
Does Racism exist? Yes. It does. There's no running from it. It's been here and has been here for centuries. Especially here in the south. To argue it, is stupid. To deny it, is ignorance. To ignore it, is intolerable. To tolerate it, is insufferable. And to suffer it, well, that's a form of denying it. See what happened there, folks, it's circle logic. We, as Americans, have been stuck in this circle of cruelty to one another for far too long. We didn't start it. No one alive today started this...
I want to start by saying that I love my son, but Lord, is he a talker. He is a normal rambunctious 6-year old, but I dare say he might have a better grasp on the English language than some auctioneers. Now when I say that this boy likes to talk, you’re just going to have to trust me that I have literally walked by his room in the evenings when he should be asleep and heard him talking; not playing with his toys. Nope. Just happy to chatter away in the dark listening to the sound of his own v...
Years ago there was a song made famous by The Judds. It had a line that said “Grandpa, tell me ‘bout the good old days”. Now, the good old days the song was referring to were the days following World War II, when life was on the rebound after facing a true global adversary. They were the days of healing. Days of mending a broken world. Well, as a millennial, I dealt with my coming of age in the wake of 9-11, a recession, the Afghanistan war, countless school shootings, movie theater viole...
For a few months now, we have been watching the news and seen the horrors unfold in other far-away, distant countries caught in the grips of the smallest of invaders, a virus called COVID-19. We didn’t think it would affect us. We went about our daily lives attending sporting events, shopping, worshiping with our congregations, dining with our families in niche restaurants, booking flights for vacations, grabbing drinks with coworkers for evening social hours, and casually wrote life off as n...
You’d have to be living under a rock to have not noticed all the controversy surrounding the half-time show of Super Bowl LIV (54), but just in case you missed it, let me hit the highlights: Latina artists Shakira, 43, and Jennifer Lopez, 50, took the stage and sang highlights from some of their biggest hits over the years wearing skin-tight costumes of glitter, spandex, jewels and metallic prints while dancing with a lot high energy to keep up with the backup dancers, who I might add, were h...
Every morning I wake up and my phone alerts me to CNN’s ‘5 things to start your day’. I usually read through it and make mental notes on things that I find important or pressing. Next, as I stretch, I say the words “Hey Google, good morning,” at which point my home assistant greets me as warmly as a robot can, turns on my bedroom and living room lamps, informs me of the weather forecast for the day, and fills me in on the top news stories hitting FOX and Bloomburg. (See, I cover all my bases...
Memories...What is it that spans them? I mean think about it...over the years, as you age, certain little moments get lodged in your head and your brain takes those moments and records them. They become unshakeable. They can be brought up by various things like a smell, a touch, a sight or a sound. What is it about those moments that as you go about your everyday life a certain thing comes up and instantly whisks you away on the train of ‘Memories Time Warp’ and you find yourself tra...
I was not raised in the south. The southern heritage was imposed on me when I moved down here. I have to admit, I have thrived under the southern tutelage, and no greater lesson was learned but that of ‘Memaw Dressing’. Now see, Memaw wasn’t my Memaw, but somehow she was everyone’s Memaw. When you walked into her kitchen on Thanksgiving, her home smelled like love, and that’s all she gave. Memaw was the type of grandma that made other grandma’s jealous. She just loved her family, friends, church...
With the holidays approaching, some will find themselves on edge about what to discuss as they gather around the Thanksgiving dinner table surrounded by friends and family. Let’s face it, there are two topics that are highly regarded as explosive topics: religion and politics. Well, I’d like to add a third topic to that list for us folks south of the Mason-Dixon Line...college football. I can tell you I have had recent incidents that altogether remind me to steer clear of these nuclear top...
Veteran’s Day is Monday, Nov. 11, 2019. All across the country VA’s, community centers, towns and cities will be participating in various programs and services to honor our nation’s veterans. It’s their day to be recognized after all. Well, I have to say this bothers me. We as a country are content to let our service men and women sign up to serve and protect us 24-hours a day, for over 365-days a year. They miss holidays, birthdays, family time and nights out with their friends. Everyda...
Traditions mean many different things to many different families. They can be important to some members of the family and mean about nothing to other members of the same family. Sometimes they can even be unimportant until they are gone and in those instances are sorely missed. See, I grew up in a family that was insistent on having a lot of family traditions. Some seemed big and important to me as a child and some have not taken on greater meaning until I became an adult and a parent myself. A...
Ohio. In the grand scheme of things, it’s really not that far away, but I’ll tell ya, boy, is it far. Those people up there don’t wear crimson and white to support their good, God-fearing football team. They wear this strange shade of red and begin sentences with things like ‘O.H.’ Weird. Stupid southern girl that I am, went into that country and tried to navigate the streets and suburbs of Columbus with nothing but a built-in tour guide...Folks. Up there it ain’t the same- they drive like...
Shel Silverstein's book, “The Giving Tree” has inspired a new fundraiser sponsored by the Flomaton Elementary Parent Teacher Organization. The fundraiser, appropriately called 'The Giving Tree' is possible by a partnership between Escambia County Bank and United Bank of Flomaton and the PTO to raise money for much needed school supplies in local classrooms. Inside of each bank is a tree. Located next to the trees will be a basket or jar filled with paper apples. Each apple has the name of a tea...
Friday night lights shown bright on Jay when the Royals took home the victory against the Cottondale 40-16 Friday night in Jay. Jay will be back in action this Friday night when the travel across the river to take on Flomaton in a 7 p.m. kickoff. Deven Lambeth and Connor Roberts were the stars of the show this past Friday night as they had impressive runs and touch downs during play. In the first quarter, Roberts scored first blood with a 4-yard touchdown run making the score 6-0 in the first. T...
Arguing. Why do we spend so much time doing it? I've thought about it recently when I've watched the national news. I thought about it again when my daughter got into an argument online with a stranger that didn't see eye-to-eye with her. I was reminded of it, yet again, when I found myself embroiled in an argument with someone close to me. Not so very long ago, I was speaking to my mother, whom I've come to realize may be one of the wisest people that I've ever had the pleasure of knowing. I...
Flomaton Elementary School kicked off the 2019-2020 school year on Thurs., Aug. 8. Preschool students and kindergartners were welcomed with a special 'Tears & Cheers' breakfast. For more, see our Photo Gallery....
Flomaton Elementary school welcomed a new batch of students for the 2019-20 school year Thursday, August 8 as they kicked off the school year. Among the first day events, preschool students, kindergartners and their parents were invited to the school lunchroom to enjoy breakfast together as a special 'Tears and Cheers' welcoming for the new children. The students and their parents were able to enjoy biscuits, sausage, yogurt, cereal and fruit together as they discussed the prospect of the first...
On the last day of jumpstart, Thursday, June 27, a program intended to prepare incoming Flomaton Elementary School kindergartners to attend school, the children were treated to a special surprise. Flomaton Fire Chief Steve Stanton along with other firemen and EMS drivers, arrived with their fire engine to spray the children with the water hose. Chief Stanton and his crew had visited with the children prior to Thursday's visit to educate the kids on fire safety and emergency awareness. As the...
Jean Dean, a representative of the Reading Is Fundamental Project, read to the preschoolers at Flomaton First Baptist Day Care, Wed., May 22. Dean also is a partner with the Kiwanis Program and provides free books to children enrolled in the program. For more information call 800-276-2134....
Write what you know. A long time ago my Mama told me to do that. Fast forward a few years, and my husband told me the same thing. Write what you know. Its simple words, but how do you write when you realize that you don’t know anything. Well, here’s what I know. Our country has changed. For the better or worse remains to be seen, but it has changed. Whether or not you voted for him, President Trump has changed our country. There is an underlining current that is gaining momentum and truth be...
Preschoolers at Flomaton's First Baptist Day Care got to explore right in their back yard, Thursday, April, 11, on a field trip to Turtle Point Science Center which is also located within Flomaton's town limits. Turtle Point's director, Jackie Word, opened the minds of the kids to new wonders in science when she explained the life cycle of butterflies, guided the kids on a nature walk through the center and introduced some local wildlife with a hands-on experience. The preschoolers began their...
The fish were biting Saturday, March 30, at Brewton's E.O Wilson Park, as the City of Brewton and the Brewton Fire Department hosted the annual event Fish on Fire. Crowds of kids with parents and grandparents in tow showed up to cast their reels and come up with a prize winning catfish. A select number of catfish were tagged and the kids that caught the special fish were the recipients of a new reel combo pack or a gift card to Walmart. The fire department fired up their grill and cooked over...
The sun shone on Jay, Fla., Saturday and Sunday for Opie's first annual Car Show and Crawfish Festival. The event drew crowds from all over the south to view classic and exotic cars and trucks that lined Commerce Street in Jay. Live music filled the air and lines stretched around buildings as people waited to purchase their pounds of freshly cooked crawfish. Gumbo, ice cream, hamburgers and hotdogs were also available to be purchased by festival attendees. Local vendors sold everything from...
Local residents of the Pollard-McCall area are seeking information in the wake of a fire that claimed their barn and the contents stored inside. The barn and the equipment were considered a total loss to the fire. Kenny and Anne Powell were alerted to a fire on Sunday, March 10 at about 2 p.m. after a neighbor spotted the flames at 4000 Oil Well Road. An investigation with the State Fire Marshal is on going, but the Powells are asking for the public's help. "We just want answers," Kenny Powell...
