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 |  My second blog. What you get are pieces of me; my humor, my memories: be welcome. |
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MY BOOK! http://www.lulu.com/davidmac73 This picture was in the header of my first blog and I wanted to bring it back. Me and my sweetie on our wedding day....it is my favorite picture. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** This is my second Blog on WDC. The first Blog, Random Thoughts, is finished and done and I loved almost every minute I spent doing it. This blog will be somewhat different than the first because I want to use this space for my humor and my memories. The humor may sometimes fall flat and the memories may, at times be boring, but isn't that the way it is with life. Please join me here and partake in these pieces of me and if sometimes you find the jokes unfunny or the memories dull, then please come back another day and maybe you will find something to your liking. After all, like my daddy always said: "Some days you get the bear, some days the bear gets you." Thank you, vivacious   for this neat new logo for my blog! Yup, this about says it all, I think!** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** I thought that Independence Day was the appropriate day to put this great new siggy in my blog....Thank you sultry ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Please check out Scarlett's Newsletter for Bloggers: The Blogville News
** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Thank you, Startiara  for this lovely Siggy!! ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** |
| I had every opportunity this morning to be in a really bad mood. I never do well with less than six hours sleep, especally on my day off yet here I am UP and awake. I hit the floor grumbling and growling and the dogs all went and hid. You know what though....I just couldn't hold the mood. Nope the grumbles have slipped away and left me, unaccountably content. It just hit me, this morning as Booker and Sherman vied for my attention, whining at my feet and Mel puttered about in the kitchen....I am a lucky man. I come to the blog page every day and I read blog after blog of folks who are really and truly unhappy. They write about different mental and physical issues they are dealing with, and many of the blogs have an underpinning of sadness which just breaks your heart. As I sat here this morning and read about these other people's problems, I had to admit to myself....I have it pretty damn good, all in all. I am married to a woman who loves me and who I love completely, I am in reasonably good health for a fossil and I have a job which allows me to pay for a roof over my head. The "roof" also happens to be the dream farm Mel and I have always talked about getting one day. Ten acres and a "quaint" little farm house with room for all the critters and good neighbors not too close to us...what more could a man want. Upon reflection, I think I have always been lucky. I had a happy childhood...poor...but damn we were happy. I had two parents I loved and who loved me and though I lost one brother by the time I was twelve, I was left with another one with whom I have remained close to and who has been a best friend, not just a sibling. Like many other men of my age, who came of age in the 60's, I lived through some "Drama" but the important thing is...I lived. That drama molded me and made me, in large part, the man I am today so I have no real regrets about that either. I have five children...six when I count Mel's son, which I do gladly and for the most part, they seem to love the old man and I love them. They are all grown and they are each dealing with their own dramas, but that is part of life isn't it; we suffer ours and our kids suffer theirs. As for my writing...well...I believe I have already done more with it than anyone of my limited talent has a right to expect and I don't really have any complaints about that either. I have friends who care about me. I have friends who endure me. I even have a few who resist the urge to run when they see me coming....I am blessed. Yup, when weighed against other people whose words I read in here, and who I encounter in real life, I really am luckier than most. Oh I will have my little dramas from time to time, but all in all....I have a pretty good life. I am glad I finally figured all that out before I croaked, I would have hated going to my dirt nap all mad at the world and stuff. |
| We have a new routine at our house, thanks to the new puppy, Booker. Now that my work hours have been changed, I always get home late at night...around midnight. So now, when Mel knows it is almost time for me to arrive, she will tell Booker: "It's time for daddy to come home, Booker." Now when she says that, the puppy starts getting excited and runs to the door barking. Mel then picks him up and walks out on the front porch and sits with him in a chair to await my arrival. She says that Booker sees my car coming down the old dirt road and he begins to squirm and wiggle, trying to escape her lap. When I pull into the drive-way, it is all she can do to hold him until I have parked the car and turned off the motor. Then, when I open the door and exit the car, she turns loose of the puppy and he flies out of her lap and rockets toward me. Now that is when things really begin to get funny. You see Booker has this little problem. Maybe it's because he is still a baby, maybe it has to do with his legs being so short...I don't know. What I do know is that it is about the funniest thing I have ever watched. He charges off the porch, hits the ground running toward me. His little legs are churning as fast as they can move. Then, when he is almost to me, the same thing always happens....his back legs begin to outrun his front legs and, by the time he reaches me, he is literally running sideways. Then, upon reaching my feet, all he can do is plop over on his back with all four feet stuck in the air...still pumping as if he is running. I guess you really have to see it to appreciate the humor, but it never fails to cause both Mel and I to collapse in laughter. So each night now we go through this routine. It always ends when I reach down and scoop him up off the ground, and he covers my face with baby, puppy kisses. Within a few minutes of coming home, after we have gone in the house and calmed Booker down, I will always hear the big dogs barking in the back yard. That is when we walk out to the back porch and watch as our own Deer family make their way from our back pasture, where they love to graze, to their sleeping ground across the road. There are three of them, sometimes four, and they walk in a stately, unhurried fashion, ignoring both the barking dogs and us as we watch from the porch. The sight of them never fails to lift my tired spirits after a long day at work. Routine. I believe that is what we humans are all about, don't you. We get use to seeing certain people, doing certain things and at certain times. We regulate our lives in this way and it brings us comfort. When our routine is changed for any reason we tend to get irritable, feel uncomfortable, and suffer a feeling of being somehow lost. Our lives need a certain rhythm to it for us to be able to find any happiness. I'm glad for my own routine. |
| This is your lucky day....less writing by me and more reliance on pictures. So let's get started, shall we.... This first picture is proof that our new puppy, Booker, is giving CC's dog Peedy some real compitition when it comes to Ugliest Dog on the Planet. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** The following pictures are of local flood damage from roughly 12 inches of rain that fell in a twenty-four hour period..... This first picture is a shot of the road to our house. Our place is sitting on top of a hill in the background of the picture and the flood water came to within about a hundred yards of the house. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** This next picture is of just some of the flooded businesses in Doniphan which is about three miles from our house. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Of course what would shots of flooded businesses be without pictures of flooded homes so here is a shot of some of the homes in Doniphan. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** And, lastly, just to give you some scale of the problem, this shot is of powerlines which cross the Current River. Both the Power Lines and the bridge from which Mel took the picture is normally twenty five or thirty feet above the river. Those bushes you see in the picture are the tops of some very large trees. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Well, that's it for "show and tell". Hope you enjoyed the pictures. |
| Well the last two days have flown by and now it is Thursday and I have to go back to work. Boy, that sucks! It has been an interesting two days though. You remember me talking about all the rain on Monday? Well four miles to my north lies the small town of Doniphan and it is more or less under water now. To the South, the road to Poplar Bluff, where I work was also under water. Hopefully, by the time I get ready to go to work this afternoon, those roads will be clear. The water tends to recede fairly quickly from the small creeks which have swollen and covered the roads so I should be okay with the drive. I had planned on putting a few flood pictures in this blog entry but WDC makes it such a pain in the ass to use pictures that I decided to save that chore for later. I just wasn't in the mood this morning to go into the computer, reduce the chosen pictures to WDC size, then make each picture an item in my port (I have no premium membership and so no album), then post each image number in the blog. That whole process should be made a little easier...but that's just my opinion. Speaking of WDC, I was saddened this morning to read that schipperke is leaving the site. For those of you who did not get the opportunity to know Schip, she is a quality lady and one of the really good Mods out there. Her presence will be sorely missed by some of us. Continuing on the subject of WDC....A short time ago they increased the number of entries that can be made in a blog from 500 to 725. Now for those just starting out with their blog, this may be a good thing. When you are just beginning to blog you tend to have a lot to say and the extra entries gives you the freedom to expound to your heart's content. The thing is...after two blogs, some of us just don't need the extra entries. I have talked to a few folks who are into their second blog and almost to a person, they say that writing entries have become a struggle. That is understandable if you think about it for a moment. If you finish a 500 entry blog, and you average 500 words per entry, you have written 250,000 words. Now if you start a second blog, and take it to the same conclussion....well...you see how many words you have committed to the screen. Is it any wonder that we begin to struggle with topics or words to say that anyone would be remotely interested in reading? So, having said all of that, I have decided to put this blog to bed when I reach 500 entries. This gives me a few options. I will have two blogs with 500 entries and if I want to say anything in the future, I can pick either of those blogs and add an entry to it, or I can just start a new blog. This entry is number 413 so I still have quite a few left before I shut the door....I know...you were hoping this was number 500 weren't you.  So, for those of you with enough to say to fill two or three blogs with 725 entries each, I applaud you and wish you all the luck in the world, but for me, I think 500 entries is a good stopping point. |
| I have been labeled fatalistic and pessimistic in my views of the world in general and the state of this nation in particular and that is a perfectly justifiable conclussion for someone to reach.....who doesn't really know me. The few who really do know me understand that if I were not hopeful and optimistic at heart, I would have long ago given up. Had I not been able to hold out hope for the future and confidence in my fellow Americans to find the best path, I would have opened a vein back about 1970, and bled out. Over the past twenty years or so, what I have become is a Realist. I have come to understand that, no matter how much I hope for the best, sometimes the best is not to come. I have come to accept that hard lesson history teaches us all. I like to call it; The Natural Progression of a Nation. All great nations advance to a certain point then, like a ball thrown up in the air, when the nation reaches its highest point, gravity takes over and it begins its downward path until it reaches the ground. On the world stage, I believe that this nation has reached that high point, and is now on its downward journey, pulled by the gravity of history. Like so many in this election year, I believe in Change. I believe in the inevitability of change, but I realize that not all Change is for the better. I realize that change for changes sake often times lead us in a direction we may not have expected. Thrace, Egypt, Greece, and Rome; they were all great powers at one time. Their armies were mighty and their power was absolute in the known world, but to each came a time of Change. Each great nation was eclipsed by the power of a changing world until now they are but footnotes in history. This is only the natural order of things. Without Change there would be stagnation. Does recognition of this fact make me a pessimist? No, not really. I just recognize the truth taught to me by history. If one studies history, they know that Change does not fit a timetable. It can come swiftly, overnight, or as is most often the case, it can happen slowly over a period of years. I believe that for America it has been happening for a few years now and will continue, slowly for perhaps another ten or twenty years to come. That, dear reader, is only my uneducated prediction and not carved in stone by any means. So, remember, as this national election for a leader comes to a head, Change is what we wanted and Change is what we are going to get. I just hope that the Change we receive is not the Change which History teaches us is the one that comes to all great nations eventually. |
| As I write this entry thunder is crashing and lightening is flashing outside. Rain is pounding my roof and the water has turned my front yard into a rather nice lake. I love it. I love this weather and for a simple reason: IT'S WATER THAT IS FALLING AND NOT SNOW!!! What makes this weather even sweeter is the fact that these local wimps can't handle it. Oh they have all had such fun over the past couple of months, making fun of my snow induced misery, but now the shoe is on the other foot. I come from a part of Texas where we call a three inch rain a heavy dew. These turkeys panic when they have to drive in the evil liquid...me, I pay it no heed....ah life is sweet. There are a number of regional, geographic, differences that come into play when trying to explain the different effects rain has on people here that it doesn't have on me. First of all, this land around here is all hills and valleys and of course, the water runs downhill and pools there. Did I mention I LIVE ON A LARGE HILL? My idiot neighbors live on the low lying ground around me...hehehe....they are now doing the back-stroke. I did manage to venture out on my front porch a bit ago and yell down at my nearest neighbor: "Hey...WANNA BORROW MY SNOW SHOVEL!" That was a phrase they use to delight in yelling to me while I cowered in my house to escape the cursed, white, devil dust that just a month ago was everywhere. Making all this even more sweet that it would normally be is the fact that I am OFF WORK for two days....God is good!! I think that after I finish this entry I shall go back out on the front porch, sit and watch the neighbors and their livestock float past on the road/river...it's gonna be a good day. The only truly dark cloud on my personal horizon has to be that dang ccstring who has decided to write a dang epic in his blog. Anyone needing a laugh, go over and check out the bum's blog. |
| For writers of fiction the pharse, "What if...." is the engine that drives many of our stories. Last night, at work, that phrase was rattling around in my head as I thought of all the possibilites for the human race if only the "What if" factor were to assert itself. What if....America decided to abolish hunger within its borders. What if....Credit Card companies were abolished and all of us were forced to live within our means. What if....we shifted from a consumer based economy, to a production based economy. What if....Health care and Education was free to all Americans. What if...we cared as much for the children of this country as we do for our pets. What if....we decided to cure what ails this country before setting forth to cure the ills of the rest of the world. Yeah, those would be some interesting times now wouldn't they. I just thought I would throw those out for your inspection...what do you think? What if.....? |
| There are two sides to every story. That pretty much sums up the quandary faced by anyone who studies history for any length of time. Nowhere is this more evident than in the study of Texas history. As a child, growing up in Texas, studying Texas History was required from the fifth grade on and the problem with that was that the official history of Texas, as taught in schools was largely myth. Now that is not to say that it was all lies...there was a bit of truth in the curriculum. Unfortunately the "Facts" were taken from the Anglo point of view. For example, let us look at the subject of my blog of a couple of days ago: The battle of the Alamo. For those of you who are familiar with the movie, The Alamo, starring John Wayne, that is pretty much the "official" version of what happened during the battle. Unfortunately, after many years of study, it has been found that very little of that happened the way it was portrayed on the screen and in the history books. Perceptions of the Combatants We were taught in school that the war was fought by peaceful WHITE settlers who had immigrated from America to settle in the Mexican province of Texas. They rebelled against the cruel Mexican dictator, General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. Fairly simple and straightforward, don't you think. Well it is until you look at it from the Mexican point of view. In 1824 Texas was a vast, mostly unpopulated land belonging to Mexico. The Mexican government, in an effort to make this land more productive, began to accept American settlers into the area, providing that they follow Mexican law and become Mexican citizens. What the did not expect nor could they foresee, was the scheme, hatched in Washington, of taking control of this vast territory through the settlement of Americans. People such as Moses Austin and his son, Stephen F. Austin gained huge land grants from the Mexican government and began bringing in American settlers. Men such as these two were called "Impresarios". All told, there were twenty-three of these Land Speculators and by the time of the revolution, there was a total of 38,000 Americans living in Texas and only about 7,800 Mexicans. Almost from the beginning, the Americans began to agitate against the Mexican government, complaining that their laws were too strict. When Santa Anna came to power in Mexico the first thing he did was abolish the Constitution of 1824. He saw the danger of allowing so many Americans into his country and he set about to bring them in line at once. Over estimating and Underestimating your opponent Now that we know WHY they came to conflict, let us look at the two opposing forces at the Alamo. We were taught in school that the Texans, under the command of William Barrett Travis decided to make a heroic stand at the old mission of San Antonio de Bexar in order to hold back the Mexican Army and give Sam Houston time to rally his forces. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Texans actually believed that if they held the Alamo and were reinforced in time, they could actually deal Santa Anna a defeat. They based this optimistic view on the fact that they had over twenty cannon at the Alamo and had spent months strengthening the fortifications and walls of the old mission. Travis did not believe the Mexican Army could stand against this massed artillery for long. Also taught in the history books of my youth, was the fact that the defenders were Anglos. While the majority were just that, there was also a large contingent of Mexicans who fought along side the Anglos, who were as much against Santa Anna's rule as the immigrants. The number of defenders was placed at 183, but recent discoveries could put the number as high as 275. The Texans were guilty of overestimating the power of their cannon and underestimating the army of Gen. Santa Anna. As for the Mexican army, Gen. Santa Anna commanded a force of between four and five thousand soldiers. This was not a rag-tag army he commanded, in fact it was one of the best trained and most powerful forces of its time. Patterned after the grand armies of Europe, this force was just coming off of two years of fighting in the Yucatan, putting down revolts and was highly disciplined and well armed. In fact, Santa Anna liked to refer to himself as the "Napoleon of the West" and his army had never been beaten. Instead of moving into Texas with his full force, the general decided to forge ahead with his Calvary and much of his cannons, into Texas to deal with the Alamo, leaving his main army to follow as quickly as they could march. Upon arrival in San Antonio, the general immediately ringed the fort with his calvary forces, cutting off any escape then, in the time honored tradition of European armies, he commenced to use his cannon to reduce the walls of the Alamo. That is why it took 13 days to defeat the Texans, twelve days were spent bombarding the fortications. On the evening of the twelfth day, the rest of Santa Anna's army arrived in San Antonio after a forced march through hundreds of miles of desert. They were exhausted but instead of continuing the bombardment, the general ordered a frontal attack for the next morning. His officers were outraged. All he had to do was continue to use his cannon and soon the Texans would be without walls to fight behind. Unfortunately, Santa Anna Overestimated the power of his own army and Understimated the deadly marksmanship of the defenders...he ordered an attack. In school we were taught that the defenders beat back attack after attack, leaving the field littered with piles of Mexican dead before the walls were breached. In point of fact, the entire attack, once the full force of the Mexican army was deployed, took about ninety minutes. the Mexicans attacked on all four sides of the Alamo at the same time and, while it it true that the massed cannon and rifle fire of the defenders caused the Mexicans to halt, fall back, then reform once, they kept up the charge until the walls were breached. For the Mexicans part, their casualties were unnecessary. Had they merely waited and let their cannon do the work, they could have taken the position with a minimum loss of life. As it was, they suffered between 600 and 1000 dead and wounded in the fight. All because their general underestimated the Texans. Once the Texans were driven from the walls, during the attack, it ended fairly quickly. They retreated to the Long Barracks and the chapel where they were overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of the attackers and the battle ended with fierce hand-to-hand fighting. It is at this point that the strongest of the Alamo myths is born...that of the cruelty of the Mexican army. It was taught to us in school that the soldiers of the Mexican army took no prisoners. Now we know that at least seven Texans survived the battle, among them, David Crockett. They were captured trying to escape and were brought before the general by a Col. Pena who pleaded for their lives. Santa Anna refused clemency and had the men executed. There is valid reason for his actions. In his opinion he was not fighting another country's army and not bound by rules of honor to take prisoners. He believed the men to be rebels and outlaws and the custom of that day was to execute all such brigands. He was merely following the custom of the time. So there you have it; A battle that was fought at the wrong place and the wrong time because the Texans overestimated their own ability and underestimated the ability of their opponent. A battle that was won by the Mexicans but at a price higher than need be because of their own miscalculations. The net result of the Battle of the Alamo was to weaken the Mexican army and to make martyrs of the defenders. It gave birth to a myth that was passed down through Texas history as fact and colored the relations between two people, the Texans and the Mexicans, for the next 173 years. This is why I love history so much, the truth of any matter lies often between two different points of view and it is up to us to divine that truth. |
| It is better to smile than frown. It is better to laugh than cry. In the spirit of those two sentances, I offer you maybe a smile or a laugh today. Enjoy it if you will and take the opportunity to smile, at least. A guy is 86 years old and loves to fish. He was sitting in his boat theother day when he heard a voice say, 'Pick me up.' He looked around and couldn't see any one. He thought he was dreamingwhen he heard the voice say again, 'Pick me up.' He looked in the water and there, floating on the top, was a frog. The man said, 'Are you talking to me?' The frog said, 'Yes, I'm talking to you. Pick me up. Then, kiss me andI'll turn into the most beautiful woman you have ever seen. I'll make sure that all your friends are envious and jealous because you will have me as your bride.' The man looked at the frog for a short time, reached over, picked it up carefully, and placed it in his front breast pocket. Then the frog said, 'What, are you nuts? Didn't you hear what I said? I said kiss me and I will be your beautiful bride.' He opened his pocket,looked at the frog and said, 'Nah, at my age I'd rather have a talking frog.' ************************** She married and had 13 children. Her husband died. She married again and had 7 more children. Again, her husband died. But, she remarried andthis time had 5 more children. She finally died after having 25children. Standing before her coffin, the preacher prayed for her. He thanked theLord for this very loving woman and said, " Lord, they're finally together." One mourner leaned over and quietly asked her friend, " Do you think he means her first, second or third husband? " The friend replied..... " I think he means her legs." Smile today, lord knows it couldn't hurt |
Back a couple of years ago, when a lot of us first started this blogging thing, we use to get a lot of our ideas for an entry from each other's blogs...they would inspire us to write our own. Today's entry is one of those, it was inspired by PlannerDan 's last entry: "Invalid Entry"  where he talked of our upcoming visit to Civil War battlegrounds.I was about twelve years old the first time I visited the Alamo. My father figured that I was old enough, at twelve, to fully appreciate the history of the site by then. I don't think I will ever forget that first visit as it had more the feel of a sacred pilgrimage than a vacation to a tourist attraction. There is little left of the original Alamo fortifications, the old chapel and a couple of the barracks buildings are still intact. On that first visit I stood by the large double doors of the chapel and ran my hands along the surface of the wall of the old church, feeling the pockmarks of the long ago bullets which had left their mark on the worn, ancient, masonry. I stood with my back to the wall of the chapel and stared out at where the rest of the fortifications once stood. Of course by that time, all anyone could see was downtown San Antonio which had grown up around the old mission. Buildings...office and department stores, busy streets and sidewalks choked with pedestrians was all I could see. But, I closed my eyes and I remembered the descriptions I had read about what was once on this ground. I pressed my back against that wall and felt the same surface the defenders felt and then I opened my eyes again. It worked.....the buildings, the cars, the people and the streets seemed to disappear for me and suddenly I could see the entire defensive position of the Texan force. For just a moment, I fancied that I could actually hear the sounds of battle; the men yelling, the trumpets of the advancing Mexican Army, the blast of cannon and shot. Then it was over as quickly as it had started....Dad laid a big hand on my shoulder and shook me gently: "Quit daydreaming, boy," he told me. "We still have to go into the chapel and join that tour." Just like that, the stores and buildings, the people and cars, were all back again...those ghosts of the past had faded, but I remembered them all. I think that was the first time that I had an inkling that history would always be something special for me. Later in life, I learned that it was not unusual for those who have a real love of history to be able to see what was once there, instead of whatever occupied the site in the present. I do look forward to making that trip to the Civil War battlegrounds...I know I will see some more history unfold once more before my eyes and I will watch the armies of ghosts march again over fields that were made hallowed by their blood. |
| Well dang, I had to go and change my header again. Seems the Storymaster has stepped in and changed the settings so that one can no longer bump up a blog to the top. Now that is fine with me, if the option is not available, then so be it. Actually I am glad to see SM taking such an active role in Blogville. For as long as I can remember, the Blog page has been the poor step-child of WDC. Now, if SM really wants to do something for us, maybe he would consider including "Invalid Item" in the list of official newsletters of WDC. What's that you say? There has to be a Mod in charge of a newsletter, is that a real rule? Well Okay then....simple solution to that little roadblock...Hey SM, how about changing the color of Scarlett 's case from Yellow to Blue. Not only would she make a wonderful Mod, but she is one of the most loved people on this site. Anyway...give it some thought, will ya, SM? I really think it would be good to have the Blogville News be an Official Newsletter. Speaking of good....I finally found a good thing about working the late shift. After about nine at night, foot traffic slows way down and this gives me the opportunity to let my mind wander and to allow story ideas to bounce around and be noticed. Last night I came up with a new idea for a book....well I did come up with a title anyway. Buzzard Neck Nights! Catchy, uh. I think this will be a series of stories revolving around the colorful citizens of Buzzard Neck, Texas. Characters such as Billy Bob Rabinowitz and Jimmy Joe Chen, the Jewish cowboy and his Chinese sidekick, "Coon" Jordan, the greatest coon hunter of all time and his famous pack of coon hounds, each named after his children. There is also a character named Clifton Daniels who is the sheriff of Buzzard Neck. Clifton is evidence of what it would have been like if Barny Fife had been the sheriff of Mayberry instead of Andy. Right now I am in the mere planning stages and trying to flesh out the characters, but I think writing this thing will be fun. On a personal note: I don't think this mess I have is Chicken Pox. I have not run a fever or felt sick other than just the dang itching. So I guess whatever it is will go away eventually, I just hope I have skin left by the time it makes its exit. |
| In honor of the coming Spring, I have opted to do a bit of spring cleaning and a few changes. In the spirit of Spring, today marks a new beginning for this blog. I have, to date, done over eight hundred entries, in two blogs, and now I figure it is about time for me to stop obsessing over how others may feel about my words and just write what I honestly feel. It is time to take the muffler off my humor and the filter off my thoughts. Take, for instance this whole "Bump-up" subject. Now I have learned that "a number of bloggers" have discussed among themselves the fact that they really hate it when some people bump up their blogs to the top of the blog page. It was even suggested that this was a cheap ploy, a trick, to gain more views. Well guess what, bucko....I disagree. I bump my blog up after five hours or so, when it is about to fall off the front page. I do this because a lot of bloggers are like me....they use the blog page to choose blogs to read and not the Favorites page. I use the blog page because I can go to my fav bloggers from there and I can also see new bloggers who I check out daily. Now if you use the blog page, all you have to do to keep from being "fooled" by some crafty, evil blogger such as myself, is use the damn blog peeker. Just run your cursor over the "View Blog" at the left of the name and you can read the first paragraph of said blog and also see the TIME STAMP of when it was made....it's not rocket science people. Let's face it, we all want to do what we can to ensure that our blog gets read. If we didn't care about whether or not it was seen then we would all mark our blogs as "Private" and just hand out pass-keys to those who would like to read it. So I do and will continue to bump up my blog. You, the reader, can either continue to read it, or just ignore anything with my name on it....there, now that's easy isn't it. The title of this blog is "Pieces of Me" and if I were to write the real pieces of me, I would sound a lot more like my character, Dr. Bubba who one or two of you may have seen in the Blogville News, newsletter. He needs to come out more in the future. Another change I want to make in my blog....besides doing it the way I want to do it and not worrying so much about what people think....is the frequency of the blog entry. Many days I sit here and struggle to come up with something to write and frankly, those entries show the struggle....they suck bogwater. From now on I will only write a blog entry when something moves me to write. The rest of my time on WDC will be spent getting my book ready to publish. That is why I came to this site, after all. Well that should be enough for one entry. For those of you who plan on coming back and continuing to read....thank you. Oh and just a small hint....I will not ever make more than one entry a day so iffin you see this thing back on top ten hours after you read it....I BUMPED THE DAMN THING UP....DON'T BOTHER CLICKING ON IT. I really do hope that has helped you. Oh and in personal news....I woke up this morning itching like crazy. Small sores are popping up all over me....I think I may have the freaking CHICKEN-POX!!! At my age? Welcome to my world. |
| Today is the beginning of a new month. March is upon us and with it, the promise of Spring...then Summer. Warm weather, flowers blooming, trees leafing out, both filling the air with the sweet smell of renewal. Hot Summer days are around the bend. Days when fish lazily breach the surface of the pond to snap at flies and bugs that skim the water. Days when a man can sit and let the wind blow through his hair, and ponder his life, days when children can play as if there will never be another winter's storm. Life is like that isn't it. We hunker down and endure the bad while all the while, dreaming of the coming day when things are easier. We look forward to the Springs and Summers of our life while enduring the Winters. Seasons change, people change....nothing stays the same forever. We see the same thing in here. Change is the only constant. Black cases become Yellow, Yellow becomes Blue. People we know and love will leave...some come back and some never do. Friends drift away, new friends take their place. Change. If we obsessed about it, it would drive us crazy so all we can do is carry on in such a manner as seems right for us and let the changes come as they will. To all those friends who have come and gone, who have left or drifted away, I wish you all "Bon Chance" my friends, and "God Speed". To those who are still around and new ones who wander by, I offer you a seat next to me here by my little pond as I contemplate life during my Summers, and a place next to the fire to warm yourselves during those nasty Winters of our Souls. We can talk about the beauty of the one Season and we can support each other during the harshness of the other one. I guess that's just life....isn't it. |
| In order for me to make it through a day at work without entertaining thoughts of suicide or murder, it is important for me to find the music. My music comes to me sometimes when I see something that reminds me of the old days...really old days...when I was young. That memory will trigger another memory of songs I use to listen to on the radio and BAM! I got my music for another day. Once a song or songs are back in my head, I will spend the day humming or even singing the song in a very low voice so as not to be overheard. The music soothes my soul and allows me to smile at the idiots as they stagger through the front door. Yesterday I found my music because I suddenly remembered one scene that took place many, many, years ago. Ten young men, none over twenty, standing around this large cement table outside their barracks, doing their laundry with buckets of soapy water and a large scrub brush. That was how we did our laundry when we were in Boot Camp in San Diego. Anyway, I suddenly saw that scene again....a bunch of us around that big old table, pounding and scrubbing our uniforms and....singing. Yeah, it was like a scene out of South Pacific or something. But that is what lonely kids do when they are far from home...they sometimes sing popular songs to remind them of home. When I remembered that, I marveled at how young and innocent we were. My God we were such babes in the woods. Standing there singing....terribly off key..."My Girl" and "Sounds of Silence" then a whole string of Beatles songs.... So the music came back to me then and I spent the rest of the day singing one 60's hit after another one...low and to myself, so no one else would hear. The important thing was....I was smiling. I always smile on the days the music comes back to me. What triggered the memory? Three kids came in the store and they were singing some gawd-awful song rather loudly. They were laughing and smiling and just thoroughly enjoying themselves. I shook my head at their youthful exuberance and wondered: Was I ever that young and silly? Now I remember the answer: Yes, I was that young and that silly and it really was a magic time, now that I think upon it. I just hope I can find the music again today. |
| Due to the newest addition to our home, our family dynamics are still sorting themselves out, so to speak. As for little Booker, well he has made himself right at home and considers himself to be just as big as his brother, Sherman. That's Sherman....110 pounds Booker.....1 pound in real weight....100 pounds of attitude. About those family dynamics though...it seems that Sassy, who is not yet a year old, has taken on the role of "Mother" to little Booker. Even though she will never have pups of her own, thanks to the skill of the local Vet, her maternal instincts have blossomed with the arrival of the orphan puppy. She rarely lets the little fellow out of her sight and she spends long periods of time grooming him and playing with him. Their favorite spot now is in front of the heater; Sassy lays down with Booker between her front feet as though she is hugging him and they fall fast asleep. Now if Sassy has taken over the role as Mother to the pup, then Mollie has slipped comfortably into the role of Cranky, old aunt who hates kids. Mollie, who has been Queen Bee around our house for years now, will barely tolerate the boisterous youngster. She can stay in the same room with him, but if he tries to play with her...LOOK OUT! She growls and snaps at him and sends him scurrying for cover. She never actually tries to hurt the pup, just hand out a bit of discipline. That was all well and good until Sassy took it upon herself to be "mom" to Booker. Now she is his fearless protector. The other day Sassy was asleep by the heater. Booker woke up and toddled away from her and over to where Mollie lay. He walked up to her and started trying to snuggle up against her belly. Well Mollie let out a growl and turned and snapped at Booker, letting him know she was not going to stand for that behavior. Booker let out a yelp as though he had been bitten clean through, and scurried back over to Sassy. I was sitting at the computer and saw the whole thing unfold. Sassy, hearing Booker's cry, came lunging up and took a position standing over the shaking little puppy. Her hackles were up and a fearsome growl was sounding from deep in her chest. She was ready for a fight. Mollie was in much the same mode and they were about to have at each other, until I intervened and sent them to separate sides of the room. This is perfectly natural dog behavior. Sassy is maturing and she has definite Alpha tendencies. She is using Booker as her excuse to challenge the Alpha dog in her pack. Mollie is getting older and less able to handle such challenges and Sassy senses this. Now Mollie and Sassy are finding every opportunity to square off at each other. The real trouble comes in the form of Mel. I have tried to explain to her that they are just doing what dogs do naturally...sorting out the pecking order, but she will have none of it. I don't believe I have ever seen anything quite as funny as the scene we had in the living room a day ago. Mollie and Sassy had tangled just a bit...nothing serious. Mel heard the commotion and came running in with her big "Wopping Stick". She slapped both dogs on the rump and made them sit calmly in front of her. She then scolded them roundly for not getting along! "Listen here, you two. There will be no fighting in my house!" "Uh...hon....they are just being dogs," I tried to explain. "One of them has to be Alpha, after all." "By God, I'm Alpha around here if they need Alpha, and they better get use to it!" I just shook my head and chuckled...but not too loudly. Mollie and Sassy spent the rest of the day casting evil looks at each other, but they did behave. Now what is really funny is that Sherman, who is bigger and stronger than either of the two females, is a non-participant in the whole Alpha thing. He is just a big ole happy-go-lucky guy and all he wants to do is lay out in the sun and chew a stick. Both females take turns bossing him around...and he is fine with that. Yup, you can learn a lot about humans by watching dogs. Just ask Sherman.....or Me. |
| I love the fact that the more things change....the more they stay the same. We travel in great big old circles sometimes, don't we. For example, do you remember when we were all urged to use plastic bags at the grocery store? Yep, they told us if we loved the earth, if we cared for trees, we would have the cashier pile all our food in those neat little plastic bags with the handles. They showed us grafts and pie-charts depicting the deforestation of the planet and how the evil paper grocery bag was largely to blame. So for years now we have been collecting plastic bags. I have piles of the things in my house and they come in handy to pack a lunch in on days I decide I want to eat lunch at work. Now they tell us the plastic is evil. If we throw them away, they don't degrade and they choke the earth. If we burn them, we destroy the atmosphere. WHO KNEW! So what are we to do...Well now they tell us if we love the planet we would bring our own bags to the store and they would be CLOTH bags. I had to laugh at this, it proves my point: We travel in big old circles. My great-great grandmother, when she made her MONTHLY trip to the nearest town to do some shopping, would always carry burlap bags to pack her purchases into for the wagon trip back home. That was back in the 1870's or so and now we have come full circle. Our civilization has advanced to the point that it was at back 130 years ago. Recycling stuff is not a new concept. Hell, how many of you can remember getting dresses and shirts made from flour sacks? Producers of flour use to pack their product in cloth bags of various color print just to accomadate wives and mothers who they knew would be using the bags for clothing after the flour was gone. Wonder how long it's going to take before we decide that wearing flour sacks is the "IN" thing to do again? Yeah, that should be a trick; trying to talk little Johnny and Jenny into wearing homemade four sack shirts and dresses. I can't wait to see how they explain that one to the little darlings. Hey, if you really want to conserve...stop building homes. Yeah that's right, recycle and only buy homes already built. Heck, the banks own a ton of those suckers right now because of their lending practices. Just think how many trees we would save if we built no new homes. Wait...what about all that fossil fuel we are burning. We are burning up the ozone. Okay, easy....Back to the horse and buggy...another big old circle. Actually if the government was serious about all this conserving stuff, they would mandate the car companies make cars with a top speed of fifty. Imagine the savings on gas. Oh I got a million other ideas but it's time to get ready for work. I will leave you with one last idea for conserving our natural resources....Stop teaching kids to write! Think of all the paper we would no longer need....HELLO NEW FOREST! |
| Small change in work hours....I came home at midnight and have to be at work again in less than an hour. Not a lot of time to read blogs or write. Maybe tonight when I get home I can write something suitable for this space. Funny, Serious, Memories, who knows. The title of the blog is "Pieces of Me", I just never know what kind of piece will show itself until I set down at the computer. I would like to take a moment and thank all of you who stumble in here and read this mess. This morning I noticed that I had just passed 33,000 views of this second blog. I am more grateful for your attention than you will ever know....thank you. |
| Hands in the audience....how many of you out there are just tired of all the election hoopla that assaults us every single day? Like everything else, we Americans overdo the whole election process. Do we really need two years of non-stop stumping for votes and endless pundits explaining what the candidates really said to us? I admit it...I have disconnected. I don't care anymore who wins because the writing is pretty much clear on the wall.....after this election, conservatives are going to be an endangered species. I use to laugh at survivalist who would cluster in small groups and stock-pile food and fuel and ammunition against the time when social order and law would break down. I don't laugh near as much anymore. Unfortunately, being a real die-hard survivalist cost money. Yeah, you need to have disposable income to be one of those. You have to have the money to buy in bulk and store it. Hell I do good to buy enough to make it from payday to payday. So, I will never be a real survivalist. Instead I will just stay quietly prepared, in my own small ways to greet the storm when everything falls down around our heads. I was never big on trying to predict a horse race but I am going to go out on a limb here and predict that the Dems are going to take the White House and will gain full control in the Congress. Furthermore, their hold on the White House will continue for a full eight years. They will gain the second four years by using the time-tested, successful, argument that they must have more than four years in power for their programs to work because of all the damage done by the conservatives during their time in office. Then what happens after that eight year period? I believe that this country will slide into a worst depression than the last Great Depression of the '30s. I think we will be laboring under the greatest tax burden we have ever experienced before, and jobs will be all but non-existent. Our borders will be almost completely open to any who want to wander across and get on the public dole, and internationally, we will be roundly ignored as a "Paper Tiger". Terrorist attacks on our soil will become common place because those countries who support terror will know that the only reprisals they will ever face is maybe declarations of censor, but only after endless negotiations and hand-wringing on our part. I see all of this coming as sure as I use to "see" what was surely waiting for me around that bend in the trail in the jungle. This time though, I choose not to blunder blindly around that bend. No, I think I will pull back and watch it happen. You other guys can walk point for awhile and get your nose bloodied. Me? Well I am going to just concentrate on taking care of me and mine for awhile and just try to ride it out. You folks have a great election and I hope, after eight years have passed, you are still as happy as you will be on Election Day. I doubt it. But, hell, I've been wrong before haven't I. PS: After doing this blog entry, I stumbled across this little jewel. Listen to it and maybe you can see where I am coming from...LOL http://www.theurbangrindblog.com/?p=2435 |
| "Just another day in Paradise". Yeah, that pretty much describes things in my world. Another week, another ice storm. Because I was unable to make it to my car yesterday without doing an impersonation of Scott Hamilton skating to the song "Wipe Out" while suffering a seizure, I was forced to call in. Now what was really funny was that when I called the store to inform them that I was unable to make it there to work, I didn't even have to speak to a manager. The operator was taking all call-ins? When I asked why she was taking them instead of a manager, she told me that I was number 54 in the list of people who could not make it to work and the phone was still ringing off the wall!! So I sat home all day yesterday and today is my day off...just as well because the world outside my door is still WHITE. I hate white. Yesterday was spent getting acquainted with our new "baby" and watching him try to nurse poor Sherman who was more than a bit traumatized by the whole affair. Booker, for his part, was incensed by the fact that he was surrounded by big dogs, none of which had any milk to offer him. He even made a move on Smoke, the cat. That got him him a big front paw upside his little head. Booker looked up at me as if to say: "Hey! that sucker pulled a knife on me!" One of his many life-lessons learned, I guess. Yeah....that was my day. Today I am sitting here, feeling my core temperature drop to a level somewhere below that of a frost-bitten popsicle. Did I mention I hate cold weather? Say what you will about the Texas heat, but by God, heat don't drain the spirit like cold does. *****small pause here*********** Booker was demanding to sit in my lap just now. *Note to self: Never place a puppy who is searching for a place to nurse, in your lap! He is now back on the floor after getting his little head thumped! Yesterday did bring some good news though. partyof5 is back and blogging! For those of you who are new, you should really treat yourself and read his blog. It will quickly become a favorite of yours just as it has always been for many of us who have been here awhile.On the good news front, I see that Anyea has decided to start a "radio station" in Blogville. Now this should be fun. And finally.....A couple of days ago I left for work and as I walked out the door, Mel was in an IM conversation with both ccstring and Nada and as I left, she turned and asked me about a certain photo which she had taken of me......I don't have to be a mind reader to know that something really bad is afoot. Now all I have to do is wait and see what kind of nefarious scheme those two have hatched. Yeah, just another day in Paradise. Welcome to my world. |
| Well it would seem that Missouri has the same Animal Lottery in place that Texas has and two days ago the latest winner was announced. Which is my way of telling you that Mel has struck again! Yes, two days ago, while driving home from the store, Mel spotted THIS laying on the side of the road, in the cold, shivering and all alone..... ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Please give a warm WDC welcome to "Booker", the latest addition to our family and the winner of the Missouri State Animal Lottery....this sucker struck it rich. He went from starving and cold on the side of the road, to a warm home and plenty of playmates. Mel named him Booker because he "arrived" at our home on the same day my book did. Sherman was overjoyed: "MOMMA BROUGHT A TOY HOME FOR ME!!" I could almost here him shout this when Mel walked in carrying the little furbag. To give you some idea of the size of this little fellow, I have included a couple of pictures of him and Sherman getting to know each other. Sherman is proving to be a really good "big brother" and I do mean BIG. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Welcome to my world. |
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