L. Darryl ARMSTRONG and Associates Behavioral Public Relations LLC

01/05/2026

BETWEEN THE TRACKS – Uncle Delbert and Aunt Lener’s Campfire

I see their pop-up camper by Lake Barkley in the heat-hazed 1970s. Its once-bright paint has softened to chalky streaks, and pine needles form a fragrant carpet around it. Becky and I bounce along rutted dirt roads in my battered International Scout, the back piled with a springy foam mattress and two quilts as thick and heavy as town blankets—one patched in florals, the other in bold red-and-yellow squares....

I see their pop-up camper by Lake Barkley in the heat-hazed 1970s. Its once-bright paint has softened to chalky streaks, and pine needles form a fragrant carpet around it. Becky and I bounce along …

01/05/2026

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BETWEEN THE TRACKS - Short Stories from Southern Boy, Darryl Armstrong

29/04/2026

BETWEEN THE TRACKS – The Doctor’s Pronouncement

When we met, around 1971, in a small newspaper office in an even smaller southern country town, she had the sweetest smile and laugh. She still does. Her husband was a Vietnam vet. A “snake eater.” Big laugh. We fished together. Hunted a couple of times. He built fine guns. Made deerskin clothing. Built me a deer blind that still stands at the edge of our pond at FArmstrong....

When we met, around 1971, in a small newspaper office in an even smaller southern country town, she had the sweetest smile and laugh. She still does. Her husband was a Vietnam vet. A “snake eater.”…

26/04/2026

BETWEEN THE TRACKS – Another “Good one” is Gone

They were fixtures. Not many are left anymore. Sat side by side. Dedicated seats. American Legion bar. Miss Tess, our barmaid. Best friends. He sipped his beer slowly. His buddy nursed a drink. Daily, most often. I always stopped to visit. His voice barely reached across the bar. His smile reached further. Made me feel welcome. A lawyer who never talked down....

They were fixtures. Not many are left anymore. Sat side by side. Dedicated seats. American Legion bar. Miss Tess, our barmaid. Best friends. He sipped his beer slowly. His buddy nursed a drink. Dai…

25/04/2026

BETWEEN THE TRACKS – Dad’s Hurt, Too

Through the steam-fogged shower glass, I always caught glimpses of my husband’s silhouette in the morning, shadowed and bowed, one hand flat against the tile, head dipped low, shoulders shuddering in time with the water’s hiss. If I listened closely above the heater’s drone, I could hear the occasional stuttering breath, the kind a child lets out when they’re too worn to keep sobbing but the next inhale threatens to start everything again....

Through the steam-fogged shower glass, I always caught glimpses of my husband’s silhouette in the morning, shadowed and bowed, one hand flat against the tile, head dipped low, shoulders shuddering …

24/04/2026

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Love, redemption, and healing come on four paws

Discover a treasury of true tales where animals rescue us as much as we rescue them. From Louis’s battle with lifelong depression and a beaten-up stray named Oscar who saved his soul, to a little girl finding hope through her dog Blue after her family’s greatest loss. Walk Tybee Island’s sunset shores with a PTSD “service” dog in training, meet Calista— the terrier thug in a clown suit—who teaches her new dad about trust, and follow Murphy, a feral tomcat who becomes a graduate student’s unexpected savior. Then witness a scrappy mutt named Stimpy transform a man on the brink of despair into a believer in second chances. Each heartfelt vignette reminds us that love, redemption, and healing often come on four paws—an unforgettable celebration of the bond between humans and their animal angels.

Read inspiring stories of faith, resilience, and love in Darryl Armstrong’s newest collection of short stories - BETWEEN THE TRACKS. We recommend you get a soft-cover SPECIAL EXPANDED EDITION WITH MORE ILLUSTRATIONS AND PHOTOGRAPHY at Books.by/Darryl-Armstrong for $19.99 with FREE SHIPPING (7-10 days delivery).

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BETWEEN THE TRACKS - Love, redemption, and healing come on four paws

22/04/2026

Bruce, “The Angel without Wings”

Konrad Lorenz once said, “The bond with a true dog is as lasting as the ties of this earth will ever be.” Those words echoed in my heart when I saw Jon’s post on Next Door Neighbor about Bruce crossing the Rainbow Bridge. I’ve never met Jon, but his profile photo reveals laugh lines etched by genuine joy, mirrored in his son’s toothed grin....

Konrad Lorenz once said, “The bond with a true dog is as lasting as the ties of this earth will ever be.” Those words echoed in my heart when I saw Jon’s post on Next Door Neighbor about Bruce cros…

19/04/2026

BETWEEN THE TRACKS – The Library, Carol Ann, and a Town’s Compassion

The church bells shriek through the thick morning air, yanking my mind back fifty years. In the fifties, here in Princeton, Kentucky, a pack of “mill kids” like me worshipped at the George C**n Memorial Library as if it were a second home. Under an April haze that clung like wet wool, the library loomed across from the crumbling Henrietta Hotel—the one whose peeling paint hid phantom laughter and shadowy opera-house ghosts....

The church bells shriek through the thick morning air, yanking my mind back fifty years. In the fifties, here in Princeton, Kentucky, a pack of “mill kids” like me worshipped at the George C**n Mem…

06/04/2026

The Waffle House “Tele-deportation”

Call it the brainchild of “highfalutin quill jockey,” Cletus “Quill” Mullespike, self-styled wordsmith for the Fancy Gazette of New York City. He’s bent on proving that Jedediah “Jed” Puddlefoot couldn’t have snapped himself straight into a Rome, Ga., waffle joint by sheer paranormal will or tele-deportation. Dolly Mae Dingle’s been slinging hash at that same sticky booth for more years than she cares to count....

Call it the brainchild of “highfalutin quill jockey,” Cletus “Quill” Mullespike, self-styled wordsmith for the Fancy Gazette of New York City. He’s bent on proving that Jedediah “Jed” Puddlefoot co…

04/04/2026

BETWEEN THE TRACKS – Momma’s Corsages, Easter 1964-1968

My chest feels heavy, like damp clay pressed against my ribs. Each heartbeat thumps low and steady. It feels like the earth pulsing beneath my feet. The ache grows stronger when I walk into the old homeplace yard every Easter. Spring’s soft green shoots push through the grass. The air smells of fresh soil. Dogwood blossoms drift on the breeze. Their white petals edged in pink remind me of her smile....

My chest feels heavy, like damp clay pressed against my ribs. Each heartbeat thumps low and steady. It feels like the earth pulsing beneath my feet. The ache grows stronger when I walk into the old…

03/04/2026

BETWEEN THE TRACKS – Rose petals for an Old Man

She looked like a Disney princess. Dressed in a frilly white ballet dress. About four years old. Barefoot and smiling. Carrying a plate of her “homemade” cookies. And smiling. She and her Mom were there to celebrate my “Tybee” daughter’s birthday. Along with an assortment of folks from their teens to me, the oldest at 75. With the exception of the “Princess” and another young lady, we are probably the only ones there without tats....

She looked like a Disney princess. Dressed in a frilly white ballet dress. About four years old. Barefoot and smiling. Carrying a plate of her “homemade” cookies. And smiling. She and her Mom were …

03/04/2026

BETWEEN THe TRACKS - Short Stories by Darryl Armstrong is now available.