Mailbag - October 2020

MARGIE’S MEMORIES Author Margie Jenkins, 97, reflects on her third book, I Don’t Remember Getting Old, a candid, witty account of a life of love, laughter and loss. (Photo: lawellphoto.com)

Virtual living room

Today the first thing my internist said to me: “I just read a great story about your Mom’s book” [And That’s Margie: Tales of love, loss and laughter by Cathy Gordon, September 2020]. It seems every day someone I know says they loved Cathy’s story on Margie. I am hearing from long lost friends, new friends and now my doctor.

The Buzz is a true community connector – never more needed than now. When we can’t see one another, we can read about one another in Houston’s virtual living room: The Buzz. Thank you again for a great experience that keeps on giving.

Toby Gilbert

Remembering the space landing 

I read your article about the lunar landing [When We Went to the Moon: Memories from 50 years ago, by Pooja Salhotra, July 2019] and swooned. My family and I are huge fans of NASA and the space program. My grandfather (mom’s dad) worked for NASA in the ’60s, and it was definitely a very exciting time. You captured it perfectly with the interviews! My grandfather helped design and build the first moon buggy, and he made the iconic flagpole that went to the moon. (My mom says that that is her family’s claim to fame. My grandfather’s signature is carved into the pole!) 

We are cleaning out my grandmother’s house now and finding all sorts of incredible memorabilia from NASA that was given to my grandfather. I just had a few things framed and need to find ways to display the rest to honor the work and legacy of my grandfather. It’s a labor of love for me this summer. Reading your article just brought back happy memories of my family’s dinner table conversations and so much more.

I just had to thank you for the wonderful article! I shared it with my family via email since they are all over Texas now. It really warmed my heart. 

Kim McHugh 

Editor’s note: Thanks for sharing, Kim. This article ran in July 2019 in print and was re-promoted online on the anniversary of the lunar landing. 

Importance of diversity 

I enjoy your magazine; however, I would like to point out that the Bellaire edition does not represent the cultural diversity located within this great city. My neighborhood consists of families of many ethnic backgrounds and includes people of color, LGBTQ and many different nationalities; however, your cover always represents "white" families.

In this time of cultural awakening, I feel it is time your publication properly represents the people of the city for which it is targeted. I encourage you to consider broadening the focus of your magazine that represents the diverse population that is present in Bellaire. 

Phillip Bowden 

Editor’s note: Phillip, thank you for your feedback. We agree it's highly important to be inclusive, and we aim to feature neighborhood residents from diverse backgrounds throughout our four magazines (Bellaire, West University, Memorial and Tanglewood/River Oaks). We encourage our readers to reach out with story ideas spotlighting neighbors we haven't yet met.

Love for recipes 

Thank you [for including her recipe in Quarantine Bonus: Discovering recipes we'll keep, by Andria Frankfort, September 2020] – that’s so fun!

Also, thank goodness for you all posting recipes online because I’m at our place in Aspen, and I really wanted to make the tortilla soup in The Junior League’s Stop and Smell the Rosemary (since it might snow today?!), but I don’t have that cookbook here, and sure enough, you all had posted it online a few years ago and saved me! It’s in my slow cooker as we “speak” – thank you for that service to our community!

Tiffany Smith 

Editor’s note: Thank you, Tiffany, for sharing your “Trader Tiff’s Paleo Plus Almond Meal Muffins” – a homemade version of Trader Joe’s Almond Meal Muffins – with us. Find this recipe, plus years of past recipes, at thebuzzmagazines.com/recipes, which includes a Recipe Finder so readers can search by ingredient, recipe type, etc. 

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