In the small Iowa town where I was raised, Memorial Day was a very special day. Our community’s men and women who served their country during war and peace times gathered to march in the Memorial Day parade.

I’m trying to keep an open mind about the North Carolina Assembly’s proposed budget, but whoever inserted the part about eliminating teacher assistants in second and third grade is a ninny. I mean, they must have a nanny.

This past weekend I headed out to enjoy the All-Star NASCAR race at Charlotte Motor Speedway with my best friend Zandi Watts.

Forget the political “blame game.” The biggest game in town now is the credibility game -- a high -stakes exercise that will end with America’s political middle deciding who is trustworthy and who isn’t. Some key players:

After a culmination of sleepless nights, countless term papers and years of hard work, high school and college seniors are once again marching down aisles and across stages to collect diplomas and degrees on graduation day.

Well my nephews did not visit this past weekend so I’m left without anything new to write about. On that note, please allow me to ramble a bit.

Bill Clinton, wearing a white toga and a crown of gold, sat in a garden while attractive women fed him grapes. President Obama, having just suffered the most devastating week of his presidency, sat nearby, seeking advice in the art of telling whoppers. Using the Socratic method of teaching, Clinton began to tutor his new student.

Graduates of nearly 7,000 colleges and universities across the United States have crossed the stage in recent weeks with a common question on their minds: “What’s next?”

Looking back about 10 years ago, I never really expected to be doing what I am currently doing.

We hear the sirens and from a distance we can see the flashing red lights of a Rutherford County EMS ambulance or vehicle.