Columns

Companion animals bringing more joy than ever

My new puppy entered the world on Christmas and he’s already bringing incredible joy into my family — just as many dogs, cats and other bundles of joy are doing for millions during these unusual times. I drove to Punxsutawney over the weekend to choose a Labrador puppy.

2020: A reluctant retrospect

Ok, let’s get the obvious out of the way. 2020 was the year of COVID-19, also known as corona (minus the lime), the plague, the super crud, or, as my dad calls it (and most other contagious illnesses), “the rooty-gootus.” But what else happened in 2020?

Longing for authenticity, even if its fake

The older I get, the more I am turning into my father. You see, the world makes less sense to me every day. My fellow man puzzles me more every day. I cite exhibit A: crappy stone walls. I know a woman who recently paid $10,000 to have a stone retaining wall built along her driveway.

Gender, politics, and equal protection under the law

Civil rights legislation always has its genesis in humanitarian principles: Protecting the weak, advocating for the voiceless, providing opportunities for the disenfranchised.

Is profanity in the ear of the beholder?

In case you (expletives deleted) missed the marketing campaign, on January 5 the noble public servants at Netflix will launch a six-episode series, “History of Swear Words,” hosted by actor Nicholas Cage.

Born on Christmas: 3 baseball hall of famers

Of the 42 Major League baseball players born on December 25th, three are enshrined in Cooperstown’s Hall of Fame. First on the list is fan-favorite Chicago White Sox’ second baseman and defensive specialist Nellie Fox, who played in every game from 1953 to 1959.

An old time (circa 2019) Christmas in Baton Rouge

Pastor Tony Spell is a man who takes his texts seriously. He believes in the plain truth of the Bible and the First Amendment. And that’s why Life Tabernacle Church in Baton Rouge, will be having Christmas services as usual this year. In person. In the presence of God.

A New Year’s retrospective

Over the half-century-plus that I have been writing about Acadiana, I’ve driven down practically every road in south Louisiana, visited (or at least passed through) every named community, and met and been befriended by some of the most extraordinary “ordinary” people on the globe.

Eugenics has no place in a civilized society

I have always thought that Planned Parenthood got a pass on its origins. While most people know that Margaret Sanger was an avid eugenicist, defenders of the organization she founded have tried to downplay her philosophy for decades. Fast forward to the pandemic.

Three things that kept me sane in 2020

The end of this sad, strange, historic and transformative year is almost upon us. And like a lot of you, I found myself burrowing into ritual, structure, and obligatory loaves of sourdough to fill up those hours of social isolation thrust upon us by the COVID-19 pandemic.