Author Archives: Gary Wright

About Gary Wright

Gary Wright grew up in the cotton fields of northeast Arkansas where he acquired his deep sense of love for the South and for country living. Always a son of the South and an ardent student of Southern history, culture and lore, Gary Wright found himself tugged by many different cultures and traveled all over the country and other parts of the world. But he always found his way back to his Southern roots. He served a stint in the Viet Nam war as a helicopter pilot, with the U.S. Army’s Studies and Observation Group, then four years abroad for his government as Assistant Customs Attache in Mexico City. He rounded out a thirty-five year career with federal law enforcement with the U.S. Customs Service as a criminal investigator and retired in Mobile, Aabama. He served a six-year stretch with the federal Drug Czar‘s Office. He retired in the small town of Eclectic, Alabama near Montgomery where he lives with his wife Carol and his beloved Great Pyrenees dogs, Sampson and Goldilocks. He remains active in the Episcopal Church and plays country and gospel songs on the keyboard and sings at the Eclectic Senior Center and nearby Tallassee Rehabilitation Hospital. Gary continues to write songs, stories and blogs about a variety of subjects, especially about Southern topics.

FLOUR SACK CLOTHES

Flour Sack Clothes by Gary Wright “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” — F.D. Roosevelt Times were tough during the depression of the 1930’s. Throughout American history there have been economic downturns, bank panics, recessions and … Continue reading

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APPALACHIA

Appalachia by Gary Wright Appalachia: rich land, rich people. Old Black Appalachian Trail, Great Smokey Mountains, Tennessee      There is an exceptional place partially inside the boundaries of the South where people do not speak with a southern twang … Continue reading

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MARDI GRAS LAGNIAPPE

 MARDI GRAS LAGNIAPPE by Gary Wright ‘We picked up one excellent word — a word worth traveling to New Orleans to get; a nice limber, expressive, handy word — “lagniappe.”’ — Mark Twain, Life on the Mississippi   Headed to … Continue reading

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ENDURING THE GREAT DEPRESSION

Enduring the Great Depression by Gary Wright The Great Depression of the 1930’s was, in many ways, the darkest time in our modern world. From 1929 until 1939 millions lost their jobs, the stock market crashed, bread lines wound around … Continue reading

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All in a Name

All in a Name by Gary Wright “Names have power.” —Rick Riordan, ‘The Lightning Thief ‘ Indeed, there are some unusual place names around the world, but, here in the South we have more than our share of unusual, comical, … Continue reading

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A Southern Raisin’

A Southern Raisin’by Gary Wright Southerners have mastered picking, choosing and rationalizing better than their own mother’s fried chicken recipe. — Maggie Young Looking back on my life, I realize that my southern raisin’ was an extraordinary occurrence granted to … Continue reading

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OTHERWORLDLY TESTIMONY

Otherworldly testimony by Gary Wright   “I know there is no such thing as a ghost, but, on the other hand . . . .” Greg Washington, ‘Not a Ghost of a Chance   Zona Shue 1896, the year she … Continue reading

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Travis of the Alamo

  Travis, of the Alamo By Gary Wright Follow the crowd, and you will never be followed by a crowd. — Unknown   On March 6, 1836, after a 13-day siege by an overwhelming force of more than 3,000 Mexican … Continue reading

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Black with Pepper

Black with Pepper Collected and Edited by Gary Wright   ‘Everybody is ignorant, just on different subjects‘— Will Rogers Some sayings, you only hear in the South, and sometimes even Southerners have never heard them. There are also things people … Continue reading

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Ode to Billie Jean

Ode to Billie Jeanby Gary Wright “There is nothing in the world like the devotion of a married woman.It’s a thing no married man knows anything about.”—Oscar Wilde American Country music has no counterpart anywhere in the world. Its father … Continue reading

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