Word and photos by Ken Billett One unique advantage of living in Memphis, Tennessee, compared with other mid-sized American cities, is that everyone knows Memphis.…
Read More Elvis is My Co-PilotCategory: Personal Narrative
Major Category
Tracing My Black Roots in Old Whitehaven
Following in the footsteps of her family and a well-known chronicler of old Whitehaven, the writer traces her roots in Memphis’s city to the south.…
Read More Tracing My Black Roots in Old WhitehavenMy Street: The home where I grew up is now somewhere under Memphis State
By Robert A. Lanier The street in Memphis where I did most of my growing up in the 1940s, from age 5 to 21 or…
Read More My Street: The home where I grew up is now somewhere under Memphis StateLament for a lost diner
For this writer, when the day comes and if I have a choice of a last meal, I want it to be in a diner…
Read More Lament for a lost dinerReconciliation: What’s Left Behind
Words and Photos by Ken Billett From overhead speakers, Jimi Hendrix’s whispery voice sings the story of “Little Wing.” The song’s slow tempo and bluesy…
Read More Reconciliation: What’s Left BehindReconciliation: Dock of the Bay
Words and Pictures by Ken Billett A gray squirrel scampered across the painted concrete deck, darting between thick-cushioned outdoor furniture. Glass chimes, hanging overhead, rattled…
Read More Reconciliation: Dock of the BayFinding Peace
Word and photos by Ken Billett Birds, mostly gulls, swooped and squawked, playing in the oak trees lining 4th Avenue North in downtown St. Petersburg,…
Read More Finding PeaceBlues With a Feeling: the 2023 International Blues Challenge goes on
Words and photos by Ken Billett January 28, 2023—On a wet Saturday night, John Nemeth and his band, The Blue Dreamers, opened their set to…
Read More Blues With a Feeling: the 2023 International Blues Challenge goes onFamily Ties III: Winnie Ille Pooh
Words and photos by Ken Billett At the bottom of a plastic bowl, Winnie the Pooh smiles up at Tigger who has bounded atop the…
Read More Family Ties III: Winnie Ille PoohFamily Ties II: Our Roots Run Deep
Words and photos by Ken Billett Television coverage of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade quietly played in the background. While the morning coffee brewed, I…
Read More Family Ties II: Our Roots Run Deep