Surprising to many, election years are not good for the flag business. Sure, we sell bunting to campaign offices and pep rallies, but that doesn’t make up for the overall downturn in annual sales …
I have four children, three of which work with me and my husband in our flag business. This makes me happy. It makes all of us happy and (I think) makes my employees and customers happy.
The story of Matthew and Dreamland began in utero.
I was pregnant with middle-son Matthew Savage McCoy when I bought and restored the Taborian Hall with its Dreamland Ballroom on the 3rd floor. Little did I know at the time that he was going to grow and inherit my love of this old building.
You don’t have to be Mexican to celebrate Cinco De Mayo or Catholic to enjoy Mardi Gras. Same goes for the Lenten season that began this week on Ash Wednesday and goes ‘til Easter.
Watching the Grammy’s is an easy way to keep music relevant. But a few years ago, when Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion performed WAP, complete with a stripper pole and a big bed, and Sam Smith came in a red dress, I thought I may quit watching. Now, I am far from being a prude; I cuss like a sailor, have lived a women-libbers life, have lots of gay people in my family, and I do understand art is provocative and I appreciate that. But maybe, because of my age, this year’s awards show was getting too raunchy and political for my prime-time music tastes …
Don’t ask me why, but writing seems to be good for everyone, even for those of us who feel they don’t read or write well. Just the mere exercise of putting your thoughts down on paper is good for one’s mental health and is the reason why, years ago, I started writing my life’s story. At the time, I titled my little autobiography, “Why to Go to College … NOT.”
In an earlier blog I wrote, “Leadership qualities are not a secret. Leaders are usually: hardworking, action oriented, optimistic, brave, good communicators, empathetic, open minded and honest.” In my previous blog, I expounded on the topics of honesty and optimism.
To continue my pseudo-lecture on leadership qualities, I’ve next selected the attribute of bravery to write about. Everyone can learn to be brave and this bravery comes in all different fashions.
Leadership has been a reoccurring theme the past two weeks. I’ve been…
My love of old structures and saving history is evident in the lifestyle choices I’ve made (i.e. the Dreamland Ballroom and my 1911 Craftsman-style residence). This preference began early. In 1975, upon returning home to Arkansas from Dallas, I took up residency in the aging Hillcrest neighborhood of Little Rock, Arkansas.
The Dallas Cowboys football team is about as close to a pro sports team as Arkansas gets. We Arkansans relate to them because their current owner, Jerry Jones, and their former coach, Jimmy Johnson, both harken from Arkansas. And their alma mater, the U of A, is a feeder school for the team’s new recruits.
At the end of a long Mother’s Day, Grady said to me, “Sorry you had to work so hard.” My reply was honest and simple: “I enjoyed it.”
This summer will be my 50-year high school reunion. Like all reunions, it snuck up and surprised me. But it didn’t surprise me as much as the phone call I got, later.
Last month, in another blog post, I wrote that FAB had some exciting news to share and I could not wait to tell everyone. Also, if you remember, last year I asked my readers for suggestions on adding a new product line that would complement FAB by having merchandise synergy and a peak season in the winter months (opposite FAB’s summer peak in flag sales). Thank you for all the good product suggestions …
It has been years since I played in the rain. Recently, a rain event began in panic and desperation as I tried to stop flooding into our warehouse that has over $250,000 worth of inventory in it, but ended in a carefree, childlike feeling.
This past flag season, which is the second quarter of every year, it seems everybody in America was looking to represent themselves with a flag.


