The first successful trans -continental auto crossing was only in 1903. Driven by a Vermont doctor, Horatio Nelson Jackson, and Sewell Crocker, plus their dog, Bud. It took them 63+ days to travel the length of the country which then had only 150 paved miles in the entire USA! When we went on a trip, … More ChangesTheBook Chapter 28

A few words about a glorious American tradition.  We can become so sullied by all the hoopla of getting it right that we can begin to loose the real meaning of the wonderful event.  Two years in a row, I have had the chance to be without family during the Thanksgiving day.  Traditionally, this is … More Thanksgiving 2010

Some people are very cool. They virtually never look at a map. If they aren’t driving, they feel that it is their responsibility to watch the road while you continue to drive and look at the map. I have even had passengers who were quite happy to let me unfold a map, hold the steering … More ChangesTheBook Chapter 27

Well, what can you say about a day like this.  President Woodrow Wilson first proclaimed an Armistice Day for November 11, 1919. In doing so, he said,  “To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with lots of pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with … More Veteran’s Day 11-11-2010

One day, even though I am a man, I had stopped and asked for directions. I hate being unsure or lost, so I never mind asking. But this particular time, I wish I hadn’t. You ever have one of those times?  You ask and immediately, after a long, very pregnant pause, the messenger begins with … More ChangesTheBook Chapter 26

Used to, if you wanted a good coffee, there was one of two ways to go. Get on an airplane and go to Europe, or make it at home. I remember being told by a banker who wouldn’t loan me money to go into the coffee business in the year 1982, in Tucson, AZ, that … More ChangesTheBook Chapter 25

To finish the cruise story, We went through Miami, stopped at the international airport and got out to go and find a small bank or something that might cash a check. No go. Then, I went to the airbase, called Homestead, nothing was open, and we didn’t score there either. No worries. I went on … More ChangesTheBook Chapter 24

My first career after college was flying the A-7D Corsair for the USAF in a little hamlet called Myrtle Beach, SC. (Today, not such a little hamlet). I went on a cruise out of Miami for three days to the Bahamas on the USS Emerald Seas. It was fun, but I think the ship was … More ChangesTheBook Chapter 23

Not all inventions had competing types. Some were just so cool that the world took them on. Like the need for a bowl when the ice cream purveyors ran out of bowls on a hot Chicago day, and you invent by necessity the ice cream cone. Or like the drive through window mentioned earlier, and … More ChangesTheBook Chapter 22

Someone had just figured out that you could lay a cable completely across the Atlantic ocean, and make phone calls so here was our Father, in Libya, calling on a phone to us in SC. It took us going to a special station, waiting an hour or so for the team to get it going. … More ChangesTheBook Chapter 21