Monthly Archives: August 2017

Jimmy Buffett: A Pirate at 70. The musician’s buoyant new biography sings

By Jonathan Miles I once stumped Jimmy Buffett by calling him a saint. This was many years ago, somewhere in Texas, when during an interview I offhandedly deemed him the patron saint of beach bars. With an easy, elfin laugh … Continue reading

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Thoughts on Discipleship from a Marine Conservationist

As a deep lover of the ocean, I was intrigued that Christianity Today, the widely-respected evangelical magazine of record, posted a beautifully insightful article from Cara Daneel, a South African marine biologist. Here are a few paragraphs: “Christians are not … Continue reading

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George Jones, sad songs, and country music

I was sitting at the bar in Tootsies Orchid Lounge in Nashville on the day of George Jones’ funeral. I was the guy sobbing and gripping on to a PBR for dear life. I’m not even a country nut; I’m … Continue reading

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An armada of good ol’ boys

Got a little emotional behind an armada of high water trucks and boats who are led by their better angels to help the stranded, wet, and hurting.

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Hurricane Harvey

There is no way to adequately describe the ferociousness of Harvey except catastrophic. Evacuees wade down a flooded section of Interstate 610 as floodwaters from Tropical Storm Harvey rise Sunday, Aug. 27, 2017, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

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Remembering Michael Cromartie

  With so many others, I am saddened to hear of the passing of a joyful old friend, Michael Cromartie. For a few years in the late 1980s, I worked as his research assistant in Washington D.C. It was a … Continue reading

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Heartbreaking Navy losses

Heartbreaking & unnecessary to lose these young Navy sailors. ABC News: “While each of these four incidents is unique, they cannot be viewed in isolation,” said Adm. Scott Swift, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Analysts said the two latest … Continue reading

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Solar Eclipse elation

For my generation, The Jetson’s helped create a technological imagination of what could be. For a different generation, inebriated with gadgets, the Solar Eclipse helped create a cosmological wonder of what always has been.

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Kentucky College Students to Assist in NASA-Sponsored Eclipse Live-Stream Project

Father’s Pride: My son John Paul Beard is mentioned in this news story for his role as the Logistics Coordinator on the Balloon Sat Team consisting of students and faculty from the Kentucky Space Grant Consortium at Bluegrass Community and Technical … Continue reading

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County prepares for solar eclipse

  Father’s Pride: My son John Paul Beard is mentioned in this news story for his role as the Logistics Coordinator on the Balloon Sat Team consisting of students and faculty from the Kentucky Space Grant Consortium at Bluegrass Community and … Continue reading

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