The Eastern New Mexico News - Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities

This is my 441st and final column for The Eastern New Mexico News. I have moved and am stepping aside as a “local columnist” to repurpose my keyboard for other endeavors. The... — Updated 8/27/2018 Full story

I have been volunteering with the Workers Defense Project (WDP) in Dallas. The membership-based organization empowers low-income workers to “achieve fair employment through educat... — Updated 8/19/2018

I recently joined a fitness center to try to extend whatever years I have left — although I’m not sure what it matters (other than survival instinct). Even if I avoid diseases,... — Updated 8/11/2018

Recently, I attended the Weed Bluegrass Festival in the mountains south of Cloudcroft. Weed’s population of 60 swelled to 500 for the event, including a couple I knew from Elida.... — Updated 8/4/2018

Acquired from the last Portales Public Library sale for a quarter, my book-of-the-month summary for July is “1,001 Reasons to Love America” by Hubert Pedroli and Mary Tiegreen... — Updated 7/28/2018

Garage sales have replaced barbershops for visiting. After recently digging through closets, cabinets and outside storage for one, I gathered enough stuff to help put Sears out of b... — Updated 7/21/2018

Since Clovis and Portales sometimes fall short of July 4 fundraising goals, they could take a page from Levelland, Texas — a Portales-size town 30 miles southwest of Lubbock. In... — Updated 7/15/2018

Robert Gilbert, who attended Portales schools from the sixth grade until moving to Roswell his senior year in 1970 and spent his career as a professional drummer, recently moved bac... — Updated 7/7/2018

Purchased for a quarter at the last Portales Public Library book sale, my book-of-the-month summary for June is “How the Body Works: 100 Ways Parents and Kids Can Share the... — Updated 6/23/2018

Here is my latest sermon to butter up my flock at The Podcast Church for Couch Potatoes — where I am the Minister of Defense Against Little White Lies and Great Big Whoppers. To... — Updated 6/17/2018

Because of his own experiences with suicide, Portales resident Jim Lee is trying to spare others from its devastating aftermath. His father, a World War II veteran, committed... — Updated 6/9/2018

Checked out from the Portales Public Library, my book-of-the-month summary for May is “The New Quotable Woman,” edited by Elaine Partnow (Meridian, 1992, 714 pages). Excerpts:... — Updated 5/26/2018

On May 24, 1989, the Portales News-Tribune ran an article I wrote about Portales biology professor Bob Taylor refuting an article in Interview magazine about eastern New Mexico turn... — Updated 5/19/2018

When I interviewed retired Clovis High School Band Director Norvil Howell a few months ago for a feature, his wife, Elaine, joined us. She was such a delight, I realized she needed... — Updated 5/13/2018 Full story

With the rare exception of using song titles a little too salty for Sunday newspaper reader sensibilities — in which case he gently suggests an effective alternative — my editor... — Updated 5/5/2018

Checked out from the Portales Public Library, my book-of-the-month summary for April is “The Tell: The Little Clues That Reveal Big Truths About Who We Are” by Matthew... — Updated 4/28/2018

Today marks another completion of my yearly 584,020,178-mile orbit around the sun. Among those sharing the ride were four fellow travelers I recently encountered during a slightly... — Updated 4/23/2018 Full story

I took at least 1,000 photos during my recent 17-day, 4,162-mile journey with Spooky, a fellow Navy spy, stretching from New Mexico to North Carolina. States included New Mexico,... — Updated 4/14/2018

Submitted from Charlotte, North Carolina, here is a condensed version of my travelogue of an in-progress trip stretching from Taos to the Tar Heel state. After a 43-year break, a fe... — Updated 4/7/2018

Stephen Hawking, who died on March 14 at 76, and I had one thing in common: Many do not understand what we are talking about. In his case, it was because of brilliance; in mine... — Updated 4/1/2018

This concludes my three-part series of looking back at eight years of columns. Today I focus on reflections and meditations I’ve written. • “Every time I feel the wind coming... — Updated 3/24/2018

As part two of a three-part retrospective of eight years of column writing, here are excerpts of a few of my attempts at humor: • “I forgot my twin sister’s birthday.” ... — Updated 3/17/2018

For the eighth anniversary of this column (this time around), I am looking back at my greatest hits. And, by hits, I mean mobster — not Billboard top-40. Hits covered in the... — Updated 3/10/2018

According to Time.com, 66 percent of Americans support stricter gun regulations. Support for universal background checks, a mandatory waiting period and an assault weapon ban came... — Updated 3/3/2018