Reading Time: 3 minutes*Names changed for those I gossip about because that shit is embarrassing One of the great mysteries of being from a small, mid-west town: There were only 60 people in my graduating class but the number of classmates whose mugshots appear on the local evening news is infinite. When my mother sees my high school classmates’ mugshots on the tristate news—KFVS12, live, local, late-breaking!—she will thoughtfully record the clip on her cell phone. Then she sends me …
Category: Portrait of a Hick
Reading Time: 4 minutesCape Girardeau, Missouri, colloquially known as “Cape”, was populated for probably more than 12,000 years. But not surprisingly, it is named after a French trader who set up shop a measly 289 years ago. Cape is a college town that sits on the banks of the Mississippi River. Historic, downtown Cape Girardeau is lined with quaint restaurants, antique shops, and popular bars. Downtown Cape is undoubtedly the ‘it’ spot in an area void of ‘it’ spots. It …
Reading Time: 3 minutesI was riding my bicycle home and was going downhill. My mind was wandering. It was dusk and as I picked up speed, bugs were slapping me in the face. I pursed my lips tight to keep them from getting in my mouth and I was reminded of my great-aunt Lovetta. I only met her once. I think she was my grandpa’s baby sister. It was the act of consciously trying to avoid swallowing a bug, that …
