A friend recently posted a great article about Cracker Barrel restaurants. It was a well written piece by a young man who ruminated on the sociology and political aspects of the national chain, noting that behind the hokey facade, the restaurant had once been far from the welcoming place that it now appears to be. He spoke of a time of innocence when he and his family traveled from Houston to the north stopping at every Cracker Barrel along their route, oblivious to the chain’s sometimes racist past. He wondered if he might have viewed the place in a different light had he always known that its founders from Tennessee had at one time perpetrated the Jim Crow policies of the past. I suppose that Cracker Barrel is one of those eateries that evinces different responses from different people. It may be viewed as a bastion of old time comfort food or a fat farm filled with dishes that defile the human body. Some may enjoy the quirky gift shop or laugh at it in disdain. Others may feel uncomfortable in an atmosphere that reminds them of a time in the south that wasn’t always kind to all people. I suspect that most people simply like the place for its rather reliable menu when traveling on the road and are blissfully unaware of any skeletons in its closet. For me it is a place that evokes fond memories of Friday nights with my mom. Continue reading “Life is a Garden”
Author: Sharron Burnett
Choose Wisely
Happiness is a choice, not a result. Choose wisely.
We all know people who generally have sunny personalities. There are even tiny babies who are mostly pleasant. It would be easy to assume that somehow our genetic makeup determines whether or not we are happy, but perhaps the reasons for being joyful are more complicated. Continue reading “Choose Wisely”
Three Things
I had an interesting evening last night. Mike and I were preparing to leave for a camping trip this week but I left in the middle of our work to attend a memorial service for a dear friend. Since I got home rather late, I still had quite a bit to do so that we might leave for our destination this morning. I tuned in to all of the election coverage to see how the different candidates from the two parties were doing. It was almost midnight before I finally went to bed. Continue reading “Three Things”
Mighty Women
Mike and I got home after dark yesterday from a weekend in San Antonio. It was a quick trip so it was relatively easy to unpack and settle in for the evening. We had eaten dinner on the road which meant that I didn’t have to worry with cooking. We were both feeling a kind of happy tired that we get when we’ve had a good time and neither of us was up to any kind of activity other than watching a bit of television. I took out the remote control for the television and began surfing aimlessly when I saw that Fried Green Tomatoes was showing. That was it for me. I just had to stay right on that channel even though I’ve seen the movie over and over again. Every single time that I watch the film or read the book I find myself wishing that I had enough talent to produce the kind of classic that Fannie Flagg did when she wrote the enchanting story. The movie itself is a perennial choice in the catalog of my all time favorites. While it showcases a tour de force of talent that I appreciate it mostly reminds me of just how important my female relationships have been. Continue reading “Mighty Women”
Zika
In the history of the world it has been the tiniest of insects that have wreaked the most havoc. Flies, fleas, ticks and mosquitoes have been carriers of death. Just as we conquer one of the many diseases that they impart to humans, another one comes along. Today the disease that is baffling scientists is Zika which was first discovered in Africa in 1947. It is carried by the Aedes aegypti mosquito which also is responsible for spreading yellow fever, dengue fever, and other infectious diseases. It is believed that Zika jumped from Africa to Pakistan, Malaysia and Indonesia in the nineteen seventies. By 2007 it was found in Micronesia and from there made its way to French Polynesia. By 2015 it began to show up in Brazil where it is now an epidemic.
Most people don’t even notice that they have the Zika virus. In its most severe forms it causes a rash, inflammation of the eyes, flu-like symptoms, painful joints and a fever. Very rarely it causes Guillian-Barre Syndrome which causes paralysis and even death. The biggest problem with Zika occurs when pregnant women catch the disease. It has been closely linked to microencephaly in fetuses, resulting in smaller than normal brain size in the babies. This can lead to developmental problems in the growing child. Continue reading “Zika”
