Edmond Outlook: 5 Years (2005-2010)
Five years ago, Dave Miller invited me to write for his new magazine, Edmond Outlook. I agreed and trotted off to my first assignment—Andy Boatman’s glassblowing studio with no AC in the scorching August heat. Not a comfortable afternoon, but what an adventure. I was hooked. Over the years I counted it a privilege to…
Read More >LTJ: Medicare Madness!
Last month was my birthday and I have never had so much attention. My mailbox was stuffed with envelopes weeks before my celebratory day and my phone rang incessantly. And yes, I come from a large family but few cards were from special people in my life. It was Medicare madness! I had daily mail…
Read More >LTJ: Sunburns and Seashells
It was the summer of 1960 when my older sister invited me to take a vacation with her to Galveston, Texas—just the two of us. I was fifteen years old and had never seen the ocean. What could be better? Jerlene and I packed the car on a Saturday morning and headed south. Hard to…
Read More >LTJ: Celebrate Life!
Hard to believe that half of 2010 has passed. Some highly organized people are probably already shopping for Christmas. Thanks, but no thanks on that. Being a procrastinator, I will wait until I feel the icy blasts of cold weather and winter snow before I hit the malls. So far, this year has been filled…
Read More >Letters from Louise: Fired from the Peanut Patch
I had no idea how to “shake” peanuts nor did I care. At ten years old I was just happy to get away from the house and not have to scrub dirty, bug-infested fruit jars for Mama’s canning. After a half-mile walk, my brother, Jimmy and I arrived at the peanut patch. I don’t know…
Read More >Letters from Louise: Happy Mothers-in-Law Day
Mothers-in-law get a bad rap! They are the brunt of comedian’s jokes and are often vilified in movies and TV sitcoms. But in spite of such negative press, most moms-in-law have great relationships with their children’s spouses, some even becoming like a second mom. I was blessed to have a mother-in-law who adored me. Being…
Read More >Louise Tucker Jones: The Great Train Ride
It was the trip of a lifetime. Our third grade class taking a train ride! No matter that we were boarding a small mail car, bound for a destination just fifteen-miles away. We were as excited as if we were boarding the Orient Express, not that we had ever heard of the infamous train. Our…
Read More >Healthy Disorganization
The month of May has always been busy for me. Not only are there three family birthdays, but it is also the month for State Special Olympics, Mother’s Day and—drum roll, please—spring-cleaning! Yep, you read that right. Years ago, I would round up my kids, map out all the dirty chores (they didn’t know about…
Read More >7 Minutes of Terror
What part of your daily routine takes only seven minutes? Is it your morning shower? Breakfast at home? A quick stop at Starbucks? Seven minutes sounds short-quick-fast, but sometimes it can feel like an eternity. On April 20, 1999, sixteen-year-old Crystal Woodman Miller spent seven minutes of terror, crouched under a library table at Columbine…
Read More >Wishes & Dreams
When I was 30 years old I gave birth to my youngest child, James Ryan Jones. “Jay” was quickly diagnosed with Down syndrome and soon after with congenital heart disease. My little bundle of joy was a very sick baby. His immune system just didn’t kick in and he struggled to take even a two-ounce…
Read More >Capturing Life Through a Lens
Darrell Barton has been in most wars since the mid-1960s. “I fought in Vietnam and filmed the rest,” he said, speaking of his years as a cameraman with ABC, NBC and CBS news. Born in Arkansas and growing up “all over” but mainly in Kansas, Barton had an interest in cameras from an early age,…
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