The Terrible Catsafterme

I had been to Savannah once before – back in 2006 when Ashleigh and I made a pre-convention trip by bus to the historic town. Then we had a guided tour to some of the area’s more historic sites, followed by an independent ‘ghost’ tour. This time I was walking the streets with my cousin Chris who once lived in the heart of the downtown district. He and his wife Sarah had a quaint  garden apartment built in 1855 that they rented on Calhoun square. Read the rest of this entry »

It seems like I spent much of the early parts of March preparing for some of my upcoming trips this year. For starters, I finally applied for my passport with that hideous photo from January. I also wrote to Laurel and Hardy and Our Gang co-star Buz Buckley in hopes that Bob and I might be able to meet up with him when we visit Texas. He politely responded on March 17 that he had no interest in the motion pictures and that his Mother had basically forced him into acting. And finally, I was trying to drop a few pounds in anticipation of many hearty Georgia and Texas meals, but Jackie made it difficult with her own verson of the Olive Garden’s Zuppa Toscana soup and homemade whipped cream to top her unbelievable brownies. Read the rest of this entry »

Woodrow Wilson certainly ranks at the top when it comes to the effectiveness of our United States Presidents. As the 28th leader of our country, Wilson came from a devout Presbyterian family and was a noted intellectual and the president of Princeton University. He authored more than fifteen books, one being about President George Washington in one of the very few writings by a President about a President. With William Howard Taft and Teddy Roosevelt dividing the Republican vote, Wilson was elected in 1912 and guided the country through its first major crisis since the Civil War – leading us to victory in the Great War and in the meantime, being elected for a second term.  

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Had he completed his entire term, our nation’s twelfth President Zachary Taylor might have proven to be one of our weakest due to his complete lack of political involvement before running for the highest office in the land. Because of the fame derived from battlefield victories under his leadership in several major wars including the War of 1812, ‘Old Rough and Ready’, as he was known, became the victor in the 1848 Presidential election. Unfortunately, President Taylor died just 16 months into his term under rather mysterious circumstances. The consensus was that he passed away from dysentery, but some claim that he may have been poisoned. Read the rest of this entry »

William Henry Harrison became our nation’s ninth President on March 4, 1841. Just thirty-one days later he passed away from pneumonia resulting from giving an incredibly long inauguration speech in the biting cold weather. This, unfortunately, was Harrison’s biggest claim to fame – being the first President to die in office, having the shortest term, and being the oldest President ever elected (until Ronald Reagan broke his record in 1980). Before his short-lived Presidency, he held many imporant roles as well – not the least of which was Governor of the Indiana Territory and as an Ohio Senator, but we will never know what Harrison might accomplished as our country’s Chief Executive. Read the rest of this entry »