Classic Content: This Valentine’s Day, Ditch the Pick-Up Lines
In early 2014, I was asked by LEO Weekly to write a Valentine’s Day story. We decided that examining pick-up lines would be an interesting approach, and I took it to the extreme by going out and testing out some bad ones.
Classic Content: Stephen Beam and the Birth of Yellowstone Bourbon
Eight years ago, I visited Limestone Branch Distillery and got to sit down with distiller Stephen Beam to talk about future plans for his bourbon. Today, his Yellowstone Bourbon brand is gaining traction in the whiskey world. It started here.
Classic Content: Who’s Idea Was That, Anyway?
This is an early Brain Fart I wrote for LEO Weekly, way back in January 2001, when it was still called Louisville Eccentric Observer. Hard to believe I got through this without mentioning the oyster.
Classic Content: A Tribute to the Late, Great Joey Ramone
Written nearly 21 years ago, this is a heartfelt fictional tribute to the late, great Joey Ramone.
Classic Content: Attack of the Garden Spiders
I’m not afraid of many things. I do suffer from a slight case of coulrophobia (which is an abnormal fear of clowns), but that has become almost a fascination. But I will admit to being afraid of one thing: spiders.
Classic Content: When in a Wreck, Don’t Forget the Blood Capsules
No, I did not recently have a wreck. This is a Brain Fart that dates to April 2006, and it still pops into my head occasionally when I see a wreck on the highway.
Classic Content: One Afternoon in the Santa Suit
In 2015, my friend Andrea Blair, of the Kentucky Humane Society, asked me if I would volunteer to do a shift as Santa Claus for the KHS Picture Your Pets with Santa annual fundraiser. Naturally, since I love animals, I said I would. This was my experience — and I went on to play Santa each year until covid said that I couldn’t anymore.
Classic Content: The Juggernaut Jug Band is More Than Just Jokes and Cool Names
Back in late 1996, I met a group of gentlemen I have never forgotten. They were the Juggernaut Jug Band, a group that has played with many lineups since 1965. I found them to be engaging, upbeat and, frankly, pretty hilarious. This is the story I wrote from our first meeting and my first Juggernauts show.
Classic Content: Awkwardly Fathering the Facts of Life
I can still remember the first time I began to understand the word “sex.” I was in the fifth grade, and my best friend showed me his collection of dirty books. It should come as no surprise to anyone that when my parents finally had “The Talk” with me, I didn’t have many questions.
Classic Content: An Ode to Clifton … From the Past
I moved to the Clifton neighborhood in 2006, and I’ve seen it change in many ways over the past 15 years. But recently I ran across this piece, which I wrote March 27, 2007, and it was striking just how many businesses have come and gone. I don’t believe this piece was ever published, although I could be wrong. At any rate, here is a blast from Clifton’s past, seen through the eyes of a Cliftonite.