End of Harvest Moon

Last Tuesday night the sky held one of the most beautiful moonscapes I have ever seen. It was pleasant outside and it seemed like the moonbeams were dancing magic right down to the earth. Nothing magical happened to me, but somewhere, someplace, someone was taking advantage of that beautiful night. It was too powerful to be wasted.

The week before was the Winter Solstice Eclipse. One of my friends was telling me about how she and her daughter got up in the middle of the night to see it. Then her husband got up and came out with the camera to try to get a photo. He was holding it as far away from him as he could to get a better view. They started laughing at him and asked him if he wanted them to get a ladder so he could climb on it for a better shot. You know, get him closer to the moon and all.

I heard some news about the Hobbs School from a very reliable source. The Rotan school district owns the property, which they lease to the Sweetwater school district. There is talk about shutting down the alternative program, but nothing set in stone. RISD is looking at having an empty school campus on their hands.

Wouldn't it be ideal to get a college to lease it as a satellite campus? I mean, A&M interns are working at the RPQRR, so the idea isn't far-fetched. There's even housing for staff. Can't you just see? I can. Busy people adding to the economy and society of Fisher County, particularly the Hobbs Community. I think it's a very exciting idea worthy of being explored.

Lordy, can't wait for the holidays to be over. If I'm ever a wealthy woman, I will travel to another continent this time of year where the celebrating is not occurring. I personally think Christmas is a rich man's holiday and there's too much pressure to fabricate happiness. Oh, well, another year down and it's just about all over. The next big holiday? My dad's birthday!

Riding that Train

I do not mean Jerry Garcia's train. It's my train of thought, that jumps the track and wanders off into meadows.

I recently checked out a couple of books about Thomas Jefferson from the library because I have some interest in his views and accomplishments. In my political naivete, I was surprised to learn that one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence seems to be a liberal.

So, I was reading the introduction to one of the books, reading about all of Jefferson's high-mindedness and philosophical ways, when the train ride began.

First I wondered if Jefferson had slaves (he did). I wondered when and how slavery in New England began. I couldn't imagine how one came about with the idea of using another being in such a way. I figured it was a situation that I don't understand because of the differing century, differing mores and values, or of incidents caused by extreme events. I thought, well, slavery must not have been a new idea to the colonists, if they found the practice acceptable, so I explored (Googled) the history of slavery and came up with historyworld.net. I'm not holding this up as a perfect example, but you can get a timeline and gist. It's a practice as old as time, brought about by population, war and indebtedness.

Jefferson is not the first revered figure whose principals regarding slavery have caused me to question the whole of his character. Moses was the first. It was monumental for him to lead the Israelites out of slavery, to help them find their freedom, only to turn around and enslave others. In Exodus, all those rules about servants sound like rules regarding slaves to me.

I'm going to have to stop the train there and build a platform, because you don't want me to get going on concubines, a subject of note in the era of both characters.

I'm thinking I will consider certain bits of the personae of Jefferson and Moses as valuable, disregarding the portions influenced by the time period and the human condition.

All the Leaves are Brown

Actually, all the leaves are gone, since most of ours are skinny mesquite leaves, not so good for piling up and jumping on.The piling up and burning of mesquite wood is very useful, though, for knocking the chill off a cold winter night.

I am very worried about our chickens and this cold weather. Mr. Husband keeps saying "They have feathers". I can see that. I'm sure what he means is that they're like any other bird and will survive the elements, come what may. If it were up to me, they would have a brick chicken house with a fireplace. Instead I will just decorate their pen with heat lamps.

For those of you who know your poultry, I'm sure you have counted five roosters in the accompanying photo. I know what time five roosters wake up in the morning. 4:30 a.m. To tell the truth, I'm used to it. Those first warm up crows are pretty funny, too. It sounds like "Er Er Er Er, Aack!" Like Bill the Cat coughing up a hairball.

There is a pecking order, haha, among the roosters. It's entertaining to watch them fight. They get all puffed up then jump at each other in the air, claws out, but never collide, like there's a piece of glass keeping them from actually touching each other, or like two opposite magnets. Now, when a rooster gets on the wrong hen (yes, I mean chicken sex), the managing rooster will knock the other off like a baseball that's been thrown. Really, like a rooster ball. No fight after that, the point has been made. You can see the rooster that's been hit trying to shake the stars out of his head.

Well, enough of this titillating chicken talk. Maybe soon I will tell you how the cats are trying to ruin my marriage by scratching up our expensive new couches. They really have it in for me.

One Flu Over the Cuckoo's Nest

I'm trying to prevent it from being three. The diagnosis was confirmed by Dr. Vaughn yesterday at the clinic in Sweetwater. She said Little Sis had one of the first cases, and it was celebrated by a second nasal swabbing required by the health dept. when the lab comes back positive for flu.

Unfortunately, it had been too long since the first symptoms appeared to be treated. Also too late for the other family members to get preventive shots. So, I will pass on my too-late-to-be-used knowledge. First of all, get a flu shot. If that doesn't happen, get to the doctor at the first signs: headache, fever, sore throat, coughing, etc. This thing is not like a cold, believe me, you'll know the difference. Then you can get the Tamiflu medication. It has to be done within the first 48 hours, or you get to ride the storm out, which at our house, includes some weeping, much loss of sleep and the need to be waited on hand and foot.

We've also had an outbreak of cat colds. I have too many, I know, the fact that there are plural colds signifies that fact. Anyway, if one cat gets a cold, all of them get it. Very contagious among cats. Usually they sail through it in a couple of days, but we had one that worried me and she got to go the vet. I was afraid it would get in her lungs, which caused me to have shortness of breath because a cat with a respiratory illness equals lots of dollar signs. Fortunately, it hadn't gotten that far and she got a shot and some medicine to be taken daily. Both the patients, human and feline, are laying around the living room all doped up.

Yeah, I know some of you are thinking cats are for kicking and just shoot them if they get sick. I live with someone who probably has that same ideology, but I'm definitely a sucker for those furry critters. I can't think of one I've met that I didn't like, no matter how mean or scurvy.

So, I'm urging ya'll to be looking for those flu symptoms. I would only wish it on my worst enemies.

Imogene Taggart dies at age 89

Imogene Taggart died November 17, 2010 in Grand Prairie, Texas.

She was born in Paris, Texas on January 11, 1921 to Leslie and Daisy Templeton. She was the oldest of four children, preceding Johnnie, Haskell and Mickey Templeton. The family would later become residents of Fisher County.

She married Ivey Buster Taggart on April 9, 1937 in Roby, Texas. The couple had two children, Barbara and Jerry Taggart. The couple was residing in Grand Prairie by the time the children were born.

She was preceded in dead by her parents, daughter, brother Haskell and her sister Johnnie.

She is survived by her husband, son, brother Mickey, grand-daughter Robin Morris and grand-son Phillip Taggart, and one great-grandson, Logan Morris.

They call it stuffing for a reason

I mean, beyond stuffing the turkey. Or it's accurate if the turkey is me, because I have single-handedly been trying to eat what's leftover, and I'm stuffed. I think this job might be better suited to our canine Hoover. She never even looks at what's going in her mouth, just holds it open so you can pour it in, and she never gains an unsightly pound, just weight pounds. Yep, she can help me clean the fridge.

We had a houseful of friends and family. I didn't take photos of them because it seems to jinx things, or when I look back I'll think someone didn't look like they were having a good a time. There were a couple of people not present that are dear to me, and I missed them, but I sure appreciated those who came. The photo is of my front door, but everyone came in the back. It's just not as pretty.

I keep meaning to update the Kinder Morgan CO2 pipeline story, but since I have no facts, I guess now is as good as any time. I'll just tell you what I see.

Everything is all buried up now and fences have been mended with new gates. The station by the cemetery has become permanent and has been manicured with caliche and fencing, and the piping has been painted. There is another permanent station east of Camp Springs. I don't know what they are for, but the pipelines come up out of the ground and have big round valves on them. Maybe emergency shut offs, maybe they move stuff in and out of the pipes. You oilfield folk probably know the purpose.

We're in the thick of cotton stripping season. This is the time of year you see the big machines scouring the fields, even at night. Funny to get a feeling of holiday just from seeing lights filling the cotton fields after dark. But I do. That's when I know summer is truly over in Texas.

Big winds today. That oughta make cleaning the chicken coop fun.Or walking, opening car doors and seeing. It's really whistling through the house and beating on the siding. Dang, this is my first day off in a long time and I had planned on doing a lot of stuff outside. I guess I'll just pay bills online go to the movies. Maybe all the junk in the yard will just blow away and I won't have to clean it up.

The Wind, the Holidays and a One-Eyed Cat

- Pumpkin aka Punkin the pirate cat -

About the one-eyed cat. A sweet little stray that disappeared for a few days then came back with her eye poked out. Now she has to be beloved because she cost so much at the vet. She has gone to the head of the line as our most expensive cat, beating out a fat cat that broke her leg. Oh, the drama.

Poor Mister Husband got elected to take the cat to the vet. He was totally humiliated because he had to say the cat's name out loud in the waiting room. It's hard to sound manly when saying "Pumpkin".

The wind. The danged old blowin' wind. I know there must be some reason in nature for the wind to howl like a durn banshee, but justification does not remove the fact that it grinds, grinds, grinds on the nerves. Also, you can not do sheet metal projects in the keening wind unless you think you might like to be decapitated.

The holidays. Hmmm. Lots of pressure to try to create artificial feelings of goodwill and family togetherness. I'm chucking it all for the guy perspective, let's eat and watch football. I call that a no-fail plan.

My biggest gripe of the holidays is the Christmas music playing in the stores two months before the event. Those freaking tunes get stuck in my brain and I'm singing them continuously in my head, but not in the happy way they're meant to be sung. Maliciously, disparagingly, cynically, as though I were eating bugs and wanted to spit them out. That canned music will surely be the reason we finally boycott Christmas.

Yulecon and some Speculating

Here is a delightful photo of me at an Anime Convention. I'm so glad we could get the butt-crack in the frame. Look to the left of me.

I thought it was interesting that the American Airlines Convention Center that we stayed in was built in 1957 as a stewardess training center. It was a nice place, but the room was so small that I was embarrassed to later see the guy who checked us in because he knew I was a sucker.

We were somewhere near Irving in Tarrant County.

All of that was fact, now on to speculation. Recently, the Goodwill in Sweetwater changed staff, in a "They cleaned house" sort of way, you know what I mean? I figured something must have gone down, because the two main people who had been there for years and years were suddenly gone and the whole store was drastically reconfigured. Soon after this happened, I asked one of the new clerks if the other two still worked there and she politely told me the store had changed management. This was maybe three months or so ago.

Yesterday, I was in there looking for a bed frame and I was waiting for the customer in front of me to check out so I could ask a question (Do you have any bed frames?). A harried looking man resembling Ed Begley, Jr. came from the back, or really the north room, where I've noticed a mountain of clothing-stuffed trash bags rising nearly to the ceiling. His name tag said he was some kind of manager and I didn't recognize him as a regular employee. He told the pretty, older clerk, "I'm going to save that upstairs room for Mr. So-and-so to see on Friday when he comes here to inspect. It's unbelievable." And he didn't mean in a good way. He conveyed in his demeanor that it was such a God-awful mess that a book could be written on it. The clerk said, "Oh, I could give him a personal tour", expressing that if he thought that was bad, she could show him some other areas that would make his skin peel off and remove all hope from mankind. That was my take, anyway. It would be interesting to know the whole story, but then I would have to ask people questions and write on a pad, so you could see how that would just be inconvenient. For me.

I heard last month that the Hobbs School will be closing after this academic year. I was told that Ricky Williams announced it at homecoming. I have not confirmed this with the school. The school office window has 1897 - 2011 written on it in paint, though, and that would only be appropriate if the school were closing. They've been decorating the front nicely, doing some gardening and putting messages in the fence with colorful cups. I don't know if that's done by the school or a local alumni committee. Perhaps I might call the school or the Sweetwater ISD to see what's going on. I theorize that the schools who used to send students to Hobbs decided that they could do the program on their own campus or within their own district and hold on to the funding. There is not a bit of fact to that statement, it came straight from my head.

Opening Weekend 2010

I was glad to see the hind-end of a deer hanging off the tail-gate when the guys drove in this morning. I could tell they were disappointed after coming back with nothing yesterday. The left-hand guy, Ken, bagged this sweet six-point. And, of course, there's a story.

The guys were sitting in the blind this morning when a buck crossed their line of sight. The deal is usually for Ken to take first shot since he's our guest, but this year Ken told Fred to take it. So the buck is hanging around the feeder, but they can't get a bead on him. He started walking into the next field, where another hunter is set up, but he wasn't occupying his stand this morning. A cow scared the buck back towards the guys, but then he got into the tall grass and they lost him.

Well, right about then three doe came through the feeder area, but they didn't stop to eat. They were acting jittery the whole time and soon moved out of sight. The men thought their window of opportunity had closed.

Fred decided he had to stretch and got up to walk around. He checked the perimeter, looking all around when all of a sudden, here came that buck again. He grabbed his gun and tried to get a bead on him, but he just couldn't line it up. He finally took a shot, but it was just as the buck took two steps forward. Luckily, Ken had a line on the deer, so when Fred missed and said "Take a shot, Ken!", he nailed him.

The guys had to go get the pick-up to haul the deer out, and as they were leaving after loading it up, they saw a doe and her two fawn picking their way to the feeder. There should be plenty of deer for another day.

A Time for Death

Rosemary Tucker, 66, died last night in Sweetwater, Texas at the Nolan County Nursing Rehab after a short bout with lung cancer.

Tucker was born in Dumas, Texas August 21, 1944, to Aubrey and Bertie Jones. She was the youngest child of three, succeeding an older brother, Doug, and sister, Norma.

The family eventually migrated to Snyder, Texas. Tucker married Mickey Templeton in 1962 and resided in Hobbs, Texas. They had one child, Leslie Ann, in 1965. The couple divorced in 1968 and she and her daughter moved to Sweetwater.

She married Bill Tucker of Sweetwater in 1972 and went on to own and expand Big State Roustabout Service as an equal partner with her husband. The couple experienced a heyday period of success during the 1970's and early 80's oil boom.

Tucker was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1986 and became reclusive while dealing with the disease.

"Tell them I laughed," she often said. "Make sure you tell them that."

She will be cremated under the direction of McCoy Funeral Home in Sweetwater. No public service will be held.

Memorials can be made to the County-City Library in Sweetwater. Tucker was an avid reader and appreciated the stock of the local library.

Register to Vote by Oct. 4! Claim Your Power!

Voters who want to participate in the Nov. 2 election must be registered by Oct. 4, this coming Monday. You can visit Votexas.org for  Texas registration information. That's where the button on the right came from.

And YOU NEED TO VOTE! DO IT!

I'm not a political type person, I don't claim to be R or D, but I think it's important to be knowledgeable about your government. About the facts, not the Rona Barrett, gossipy version.

I recently became so fed up with patriotic propaganda that I tried to think of a way to kindly tell friends to quit sending it to me via e-mail and for them not to watch Fox News while I was visiting. When I analyzed it, though, I decided that my friends send me e-mail because they care about me and want to make a connection, and Neil Cavuto is just making a living. Also, I remembered the old adage, if you can’t be a part of the solution, don’t be a part of the problem (I may have taken liberties).

So, instead of adding to the complaining and whining going on by crying about lack of fact-checking and how willing people are to believe anything they are told without documentation or evidence, I tried to think of a way to make them feel powerful instead of inciting mass hysteria and feelings of impotence and frustration.

A mosque at ground zero? gay marriage? abortion? These old dead horses are nothing but cover, diversions, to keep you from focusing on areas in which you can actually make a difference. My vote may not count when I choose the president, but it darn sure does when I vote for county commissioner. Your power lies with the local vote.

My reasoning is that the local vote, if taken seriously and carefully researched, will affect legislation all the way to the Texas Capitol and beyond. An opportunity to wield your power is close at hand when you choose city and county officials.

You need to know how your incumbent thinks. Are you and your commissioner of the same mind? Does he have your best interest at heart? Does he vote in elections? What are his goals for your precinct?

I’m using commissioner because I live in a rural area and he is my first go to. I am aware there are female commissioners, but mine is male, so I use “he” to denote a commissioner in general.

Get to know the officials who represent you. Who is on your school board, hospital board, water board?

Government may not be something you know much about, so start studying now! Don’t be content to sit at the keyboard saturated in hateful ignorance. Get up and find out about what’s going on around you. Go to all those local meetings that are announced in the newspaper. That’s your invite! You may not know what they’re talking about at first, but the more you attend and become familiar with the subjects, the more you will begin to understand. You’ll be on the learning track when you are several meetings in and think “Oh, they talked about that last month”. You will start to be interested and with that you will become knowledgeable.

The local coffee shop is also a good source of information. Not only will you learn about local politics, but just about everything else that’s going on in your county. Church is the same way, if you bother to hang around and chat after service. Talk to your neighbors! What all of you think is important. You are the heart and soul of the community. You are the very nexus from which the need for legislation springs. Without you, there would be nothing.

Going further out on the spring board, know who your representatives are in the Texas legislature. Ask yourself all the same questions you would when choosing the closest local representative. How does he vote? What are his goals? His morals? Find out what bills your candidates have supported in the past. Write him your opinion on matters of importance to you. Don’t be embarrassed! He is representing you! How can he do that if he doesn’t know what you think? Just use good writing form, please. No cursing.

Digging into the local and state legislature will take so much time, you won’t need to go beyond the Texas borderline.

Educate yourself online, in the library and with your local newspapers. Know your representatives, near and far. Help make Texas a strong voting state. Be able to discuss more than three or four old and overly-handled topics. Breathe new air into Texas politics and voice your opinion in an informed manner. Get rid of that whiny sound that happens when people want to talk about political matters, but don’t know Jack from Jill.

And for goodness sake, put those dead horses to pasture, preferably in a very deep hole.

Quick Feed

Bytes from Hobbs -

• Jennifer Jones is the Hobbs School new principal
• Bodie Hooper was convicted of arson and sexual misconduct. He was sentenced to 55 years. This guy was the neighbor who burned down the house that used to belong to my grandparents.
• The RPQRR will be hosting their 3rd annual field day on Oct. 1
• Hobbs Holler is on twitter
  

Hobbs Homecoming 2010 October 16

Click on the image to the right to see it full-size. It is the complete and return form for the homecoming. Be sure to open it up, it has very important information for you to read! There may be money involved! Not the way you hope for it to be, but money is coming or going none-the-less. If you don't get a form in the mail soon, print the one here, fill it out and return it to Pat Porter asap. October will be upon us before you know it. That reminds me, we need to cut some wood. Do it!

Hiring Principal for Hobbs School

The Prinicipal's position has opened up at the Hobbs School. You can check out the qualifications on the Sweetwater ISD website. Only SISD employees are eligible to apply. Hobbs Alternative High School is under the administration of SISD.

More pipeline news

Hah! News! I just take photos and make up what I think is happening. For this picture, I didn't even get out of the truck, an explanation for the big crack and antenna that's in the frame.

This is taken on the east side of the road across from the old house just north of Hobbs Cemetery. Now here's what I think is going on. They're (Strike? Kinder-Morgan?) bringing in these big wedge tank thingies and then Key is coming in with water trucks and filling up the tanks. Then they're gonna blow water through the pipes laid thus far, maybe to clean them or test them. That's my take. Could be all kinds of wrong.

I found the Texas Register page on the website for Texas Secretary of State Hope Andrade. There is so much information located on this site that you could do searches on your searches for days, keeping you entertained without the need for social networks. The register is the journal of state agency rule-making for Texas, documenting changes that are made to the Texas Administrative Code.

Boy, it's been hot! And speaking of the weather, a friend of mine uses WeatherBug on her computer desktop. It downloads a cute little ladybug onto your toolbar and it chirps when the temperature changes. I've never used it before, but I was checking out the iPad at BestBuy this weekend and WeatherBug was one of the apps on there.

I like the KTXS interactive weather map, but it seems like it's a little off sometimes, especially when you zoom in. I also like NOAA, but it's been acting kind of wacky, too. KTXS Live Doppler is usually my deal-breaker, the absolute authority after I've visited twenty other sites.

Wondering how to spend the fourth? I'm thinking Mexican food and watching public fireworks. We've done all the variations, barbecuing, eating at the carnival, doing our own fireworks or watching the fireworks show, and I've decided this year I want less work and more fun. And no eating at the carnival or in the park. One year we saw a naked, small child crawling all over the food storage area of one vendor, so we went to another stand, only to end up with food poisoning.

I think Casa Olivarez and Towle Park in Snyder sound like good destinations for celebrating Independence Day.

Watch for the cold front coming in tomorrow. Ha ha ha! They should call it a tepid front. But forecast highs will only be in the 80's, lows in 60's, and we'll take that.

Juneteenth Texas-style

The article Forever Free on the Texas State Library & Archives website has a lot of information about the June 19 celebration and what it meant for a black man to live in Texas after the 1865 Emancipation Proclamation. Interesting to note that in 1854 the Republican party was formed by slavery abolitionists. Check out all the links on the site to learn more about Texas history.

Texas-Mexico border conflicts

I wanted to show you some articles written by Christopher Sherman, the Rio Grande Valley correspondent for The Associated Press. He is writing some very interesting copy regarding mounting tension on our border. You can also follow Sherman on Twitter. Illegal immigrants and the cartels have both sides at a boiling point.

What sparked my interest and led me to find Mr. Sherman's articles was that he interviewed my friend Jack Cox (not the Roby one), a land owner at Falcon Lake near Zapata, Texas. They're having trouble with Pirates on that lake because the border runs through the middle of it. Cox is used to being in the middle of the fray, though. He was a hunting guide in South Africa and hunted elephants and lions himself. He was also an oilfield roughneck, which led him to Africa in the first place.

Looking at Sherman's articles in a time line tells a story in itself as tempers flare and patience runs short in the border cities.

Here is the cut-line for the photo; it was taken a short distance off-shore from Cox's camp:

In this May 27, 2010 photo, game wardens from Texas Parks and Wildlife patrol the U.S.-Mexico border on Falcon Lake. Since the Texas Department of Public Safety warned two weeks ago that boaters should steer clear of the international boundary that zigzags through Falcon Lake because "pirates" had robbed fishermen at gunpoint, most of the boats hunting the lake's famed large-mouth bass have stayed on the U.S. side, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife Capt. Fernando Cervantes. On April 30 and again on May 6, heavily armed men robbed fishermen on the Mexican side of Falcon Lake. (AP Photo/Christopher Sherman)

Little camel on the prairie

When we drove into Snyder yesterday, the last thing we expected to see was a camel. People had the opportunity to ride the beast that was situated on the Gallery Furniture parking lot. It was very strong, and I mean smelling. I bet the little girl's mom made her ride in the bed of the pick-up after being on that critter.

I was watching the news and they interviewed a lady who had taken her children with her to volunteer in a tornado-torn area, and I got to wondering, how do volunteers survive? I mean, how do they have the flexibility to leave at a moment's notice, how do they pay bills, how do they pay for the volunteer trip? Well, I didn't find any of that out, but I did find some interesting and informational websites about the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Volunteer Louisiana, Mobile Baykeeper and the Environmental Protection Agency sites were three that kept to the facts, with a lot of details about the spill and training for volunteers. I have some friends in LA and my take is that they are having a mental struggle between enduring this adversity with the carefree nature of their culture and reeling from the horrific reality of what the aftermath will be.

I recently had a problem with WildBlue Satellite Internet double billing me on my debit card. I could entertain you with the whole story, the yelling, nasty e-mails, etc., but I prefer to be a solution person, so I will advise you on how to maintain control of your bank account when paying online. It is short and simple. My bank gives me the option of having pre-paid cards that I can immediately transfer money to from my bank account. I put only the amount of the bill in the pre-paid account, so the billing company can take no more than what I owe. If your bank doesn't offer pre-paid cards, they can be purchased at Walmart and other stores. Another solution is to use PayPal. They will give you a single-use account number to pay debts with so there will not be a direct link to your main account.

If the company you are using is just downright shystery and you can't get any satisfaction, as Mick says, you may need to report them to the Attorney General and the Better Business Bureau. Even if you are not compensated, sometimes information is compiled about bad business practices until there is enough evidence for action to be taken against the company. Plus you get the satisfaction of getting to do something official instead of just screaming at a clerk on the phone who cannot help you in any way and is so far down the food chain he or she hardly counts as Skittles.

By the way, WildBlue rates D+ on the BBB website. The rating system is on an A to F scale, just like in school.

How to sustain love

This would be the name of the experiment I am currently participating in, no final report yet. I'm always curious how people stay together or have life-long relationships with people other than blood relatives. I also wonder how to make it so the final words people say about me are more than "She was here". I guess you have to live life to find that answer.

My pondering was brought about by a message sent to me from Tom Hargrove regarding his late wife, Susan. I wanted to share it with you all. I am glad to have insight into the lives of two exceptional people.
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From Thomas Hargrove:

Friends,

I want to share the epitaph for the grave marker of Susan Hargrove. I drafted the words, but Miles, Geddie, and Emily all made inputs.

Susan was cremated. A third of her ashes were buried at the Hargrove Family Cemetery, established in a Hargrove cotton field 13 miles west of Rotan, Texas. That's where this grave marker is being placed. The marker is flat (horizontal), of "Texas pink" granite (like the Texas state capitol in Austin), with a clear view of a lot of cotton and ranch land, and the famous (in West Texas lore) Double Mountains standing clearly in the distance.

Then we held a special celebration of her life on Nov. 8, her birthday, at Lucas Terraces, our home in Galveston that she loved, and where she died. Friends and family told "Susan stories," then spread another third of the ashes in the yard. We had a catered Texas barbecue.

Most of Susan's other ashes were spread on the graves of her father, mother, and brother in Granbury, Texas.

Susan and I met at age 12 in junior high at Rotan, Texas. We married in 1967 when I was in graduate school at Iowa State University. Then came the Vietnam War, then back to Iowa State. We later had a wonderful life and great adventures at the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines, plus two sons (and a lot of dogs and cats) to raise. Then a good life in Colombia that ended tragically...and changed our lives forever...Susan's brave and strong actions--and those of our sons and some close friends--obviously saved my life.
-
I appreciate Tom for sharing this with me. I found it to be very touching and inspiring.

Please note that the photo is an etching of Susan's headstone. Click on it for a magnified view of her epitaph.

All the kids are doing it

Managed burning, prescribed burning, controlled burning. It's not as simple as grandma burning the yard off to make it green in spring.

It's considered a science and proof of that can be found in college and university articles discussing the pros and cons of using fire to get the highest yield from the land. Planning and strategy seem to be vital in the burning process.

The question to burn or not to burn is highly debatable around here. You might be pegged as a hippie liberal if you're for it. Kind of a hippie in cowboy boots, though. The others are too busy with their LSD and fighting against the man and making up anti-war songs. Anyway, for more information, check out the Texas Parks and Wildlife site. This particular link will take you to prescribed burn associations in Texas.

Also, the Rolling Plains Quail Research Ranch will be hosting a Prescribed Burn Tour this Friday, April 30, at the ranch house located near the intersection of US 180 and FM 611.

In the photo is the east field of the old Templeton farm. The burn was done in late March, early April and the land quickly greened up afterward.

Laying it on the line

- CO2 line -

Or laying it in a line, really. The Kinder Morgan Eastern Shelf CO2 project is well underway, and contractor Strike Construction is on the task of laying, connecting and burying the 92 miles of 10" cross-country conduit.

Right about at the prison on Camp Springs road, you can see it on the north side of the road coming across the cotton fields. It runs all the way down to Camp Springs on the Hench Ranch, behind Johnnie Ballard's, crosses over CR 1154, runs behind Anson Martin's, then cuts across FM 1614, just east of the Hammitt's, then heads east across lots of land, the Beaver's, Maule's, Gordon's, Martin's, then here across from us starts going south east and comes out and crosses FM 611 just north of the Hobbs Cemetery, on the south side of that blue house. Then it takes off east and disappears into the horizon.

A map of where the pipeline is running can be found on the Kinder Morgan site, page 12.

Speaking of the Hench Ranch, it is featured in an article of the Sept. 2009 issue of Beef Magazine. Author Larry Stalcup researches the merits of brush sculpting by interviewing Rod Hench, owner of the ranch.

I remember someone actually laughing at me a few years ago because I wanted to manicure the 80 acre pasture we were leasing at the time. It kind of made me give up, and look, now it's in style. My timing is always lagging.

Everyone knows by now that the Rotan Sale was cancelled yesterday because of rain. It has been rescheduled for May 8. That gives three more weeks for people to take their items up there. It's sure to be a spectacular sale, with concessions and everything.

If any of you out there would like to live in our little bit of nirvana, there are two nice homes for sale out here on FM 1614. Well, actually there are three, but one is off the record and is by word of mouth only. The other two are listed with realtors. The Glen Williamson home is listed with Williamson-Branson, and the J. C. Cave home is listed with Stevenson Real Estate. We'd be happy to have you as a neighbor!

It has sprung

Ah, the first day of spring. How the snow does fall and the north wind does blow! Yesterday was Winter's last breath, we hope, and the shining sun promises that today will be brighter and warmer.

The wet season has left the window for plowing open just a crack. Mr. Husband finally got to prep the field to be sprigged with Tiftan 85, a grass that is supposed to be hardy and full of protein. We've decided to get away from growing careless weeds.

I was sad to read about the recent death of Sweetwater's Dr. Densmore. He was such a kind person, and Jim Drake's blog will give a sense of how the community saw him. Such a sweet, sweet man.

The annual Kevin Hutson Rotan sale is coming up, Apr. 17, at the rodeo grounds. There's already some things to look at out there. Surely they're still taking consignments. Call them up if you've got some items to put in the sale.

I can't say I appreciated "Reader's Digest The Best, Worst and Deadliest Roads in America: The Rankings" being touted on the local news at face value. Best roads, New Mexico is ahead of us? Hah! I'm basing my findings on what I've seen. We drove clean through the United States from here to Canada (well, North Dakota) and we actually laughed at outdated and substandard guardrails and fencing. Deadly roads are based on per million miles driven? Guess what, Texas is big and we have more lane miles.

Also, it is no reflection on the roads when the criteria is being based on actions of the driver.

I may be a tiny, tiny bit biased because we're a TxDOT family. You can draw your own conclusions from statistics posted at the Federal Highway Administration portal, which is where RD got their basic info.

Now I'm going to plug Don King, owner, editor and publisher of The Roscoe Times. He did a fine memorial to Densmore on the front page of the March 19 issue. It seems that King has hit his stride with the paper and it is quickly becoming a popular bi-weekly source of regional and local information. If you would like to subscribe, e-mail amwemes@yahoo.com, write to Roscoe Times, P.O. Box 43, Roscoe, TX 79545, or leave a message at 325-235-0203. These contacts are also good if you have news you would like to share with the Roscoe community.

Oh, and I can report it is truly spring, not just because the calendar says so, but because I saw a buzzard on Friday. It's so nice nice to have the helpful carrion-eater back, he does such a wonderful job of cleaning up the roads. Gruesome, but true.

Happy Spring, and tulips to everyone!

Round Up kick-off

The Rattlesnake Round-Up is gearing up and the big kick-off is today and tonight with the parade and Queen contest. The park is filling up fast. It's looking like this is going to be the biggest round-up yet.

I wanted to mention that Java Jax will have live entertainment this Friday and Saturday. Dinner starts at 7 p.m. with the show beginning at 8 p.m. Butch Hancock will be the feature performer both nights, with special guest Angela Virgen on Fri. & Lance Richburg on Sat. Check it out at 325 Oak St., downtown Sweetwater. BYOB, smoke-free environment.

Rites of passage

We have a new driver in the family! It was made official this week after my daughter passed her driving test in Roby. I cried as I handed my money to Ms. Bright, the test administrator. My girl was proud, but she let me drive home. She said she was too stressed out from the test.

I had my own initiation this week, into middle age. I was buying some snappy new shoes and started talking about phones to the salesgirl, whom I thought was around my age (I keep thinking I'm 18, 24, around there somewhere). She said she remembered the old phones at her grandmas. I said, oh, yeah, the big black rotary phone. She said, no, it was peach-colored, and you had to stick your fingers in the slot and turn it. There was my clue that I was out of the conversation. Obviously, her grandma and mine had years between them. And if someone doesn't know what a rotary phone is called, well, jeez. I didn't realize what it would mean to know so much. I feel very experienced (euphemism for nearly 50).

I'm about to let you know how ignorant, once again, I am about the voting process. They started running the election tallies on tv Tuesday night, and we noticed the proposition numbers were coming up. I didn't see the propositions on my ballot, I thought we would be voting on them when we vote for governor Nov. 2. Surely they weren't only on the republican ballot? Maybe they were on the back? I don't know. I may never understand politics. But I'll keep trying!

I saw in the Feb. 26 issue of the Sweetwater Reporter that Matt Counts, son of late Fisher County Sheriff Mickey Counts, was promoted to Sergeant by Sweetwater Chief of Police Jim Kelley. Mike Counts, brother to Matt, is a Sergeant in Snyder.

T. Baker Smith has been busy surveying up and down FM 1614 and FM 611. I'm supposing this is for the Kinder-Morgan CO2 pipeline. In the Clay Johnson letter I received in 2006, it said the line would run through several counties to include Scurry, Fisher and Stonewall. They've been putting sticks on the south side of 1614, about 50 feet inside property lines.

I want to remind everyone that Hobbs Holler is on Facebook and Twitter, two networks that are fun to browse and peck around on (waste time).

I've been feeling guilty about this, so just in case some of you grammatically correct readers want to knock me around for constantly ending sentences with prepositions, Grammar Girl helps me justify my usage. With or without justification, though, I am a proponent of grammatical freedom. I figure that if I've conveyed my thought to you through words, then any means is justifiable.

Okay, okay, okay. Have a nice day, talk to you soon.

Applecore, Baltimore

- Prickly Pear cactus -

The photo won't give you a clue about the title, it's just one that I took at Rough Creek Saturday afternoon. I like the red hue of the cactus. That was one sweet day.

We got a call Saturday morning at 6:41 a.m. from a number in Baltimore, Maryland. That's early even by telemarketer standards. I answered, but there was no one on the line.

I looked the number up on the web and found that many people had been getting calls from the same source. It ended up being the time and temperature number for the state of Maryland. I e-mailed them and apparently it is some kind of glitch and they've had many people contact them. They were hoping to report it to the phone company today and resolve the problem. Apparently, some folks got as many as 11 calls at 3:00 a.m. I'm lucky to have gotten just the one.

In a note of passing, Tim Counts died Sunday week. He was the brother of Sheriff Mickey Counts, who died in December. Jimmy D. Parker, Jr., Kenneth Gordon Allen and Judy Rushing Clifton also recently died. In Sweetwater, well-known business man and former mayor Jere Lawrence died Feb. 18.

Voting will take place tomorrow, so get ready to hit the polls. I actually voted early at the court house, first time. I had no idea how to do it. I wandered around asking a stranger where to go. I finally found the polling booth in the county clerks office. They were very helpful and lined me out. It only took a few minutes and I got to have a small adventure. On the way out, I told the woman, whom I had first asked, where the voting place was in case she was asked again. She was very nice, sitting on the bench in the atrium with a broken leg. She said she wasn't even from this county.

The Hobbs School is the voting place for local constituents. I know some people think voting doesn't count, but it's kind of like the lottery: if you don't play, you can't win. I'm still working on understanding the voting process. If you want to vote local, you have to vote democratic because there are no republicans running, and frankly, there never are. I think it's funny, because I don't know anyone in farm country who likes democrats on the hill, you know, that one in Washington. They think they're liberal.

I guess there's a big difference between country democrats and city democrats.

I'm thinking of doing a run of Hobbs Holler in print. There would be a lot more info, stories, photos, etc. if I decide to do so. Let me know if any of ya'll would be interested. Before anything else, I need a mailing list.

Keep snug, April showers aren't that far away!

The Lion didn't sleep last night

You know that old saying, "In like a lion, out like a lamb"? The one that I drag out every year in utter amazement at the changing of the season? Well, it roared last night, lots of lightning and thunder, a little rain. I know we still have some cold days ahead of us, but this is the first switch, and once the storms start coming, you can be sure spring is on it's way. This yellow daffodil that Jess photographed in the yard told us it was true.

My favorite event of the year, the Rattlesnake Round Up, will be happening March 11-15, but I also want to let you know about the Sweetwater Music Festival, which will be going on March 23-27. For more information you can contact the SMF Event Coordinator at (325) 725-1160 or sign on to Facebook and look at the Hobbs Holler profile to find the SMF link. Venues will be Java Jax, Sweetwater Municipal Auditorium and the Sweetwater Texas Theatre.

I never did find out what went on at the Hobbs school a couple of weeks ago. The sheriff's report just said call for deputy.

The USDA has awarded the Fisher County Hospital District funding to install a GESPER unit and to fix up the Dietary Dept. If you don't know what a GESPER is, just click on the link and learn all about it.

I'm making it short this week, I just noticed the clothes hamper is regurgitating clothes, so I better get on it. Enjoy this sunny day and catch you next time.

Moms are strong

This week I unloaded and loaded Miss Grand-daughter from the car and I'm pretty sure I overexerted one of my stringy muscles. I used to have strong, full mom muscles, but the only ones left are in my brain, trying to figure out how to outsmart my kids. Believe me, I'm starting to lose that race. Or just realizing how far behind I really am.

Here is the Hobbs kids photo I promised you last week. I recognize a few kids, like on the front row Darlene Teel, Penny Price and Sherry Anderle. I think a little girl named Esther who briefly attended is hanging off the side. I see Mary Ellen Cave sitting high right. I recognize Kristi Price and some Anderle boys. Anyway, if you know the names, comment on the bottom here and I'll add them in. Thanks, Penny, for the photo!

My dad has promised to introduce me to a real Hobbs buff whom he says has photos and scrapbooks dating way back when, and even some paraphernalia from when the military airplane crashed in the 1950's. I hope to meet her soon and share her memories of the community with all of you.

Here's an article I ran across called Folklore of the Rattlesnake, which seems timely, since the Sweetwater Jaycees Rattlesnake Roundup is just a month away, and on subject, since it mentions Buddy Burnett and other locals. The link I put to the story is a web page, but you can click at the top of it and download the whole article for easier reading.

I also found a photo of a blown out well near Hobbs on the Portal to Texas History website. You can spend a lot of time there just clicking around. Tons of info.

I don't know what went on at the school this week that required an ambulance, sheriff's vehicle and DPS. I had hoped it would be in the paper, but the Sheriff's report only went to Feb. 6. If I see it next week, I'll let you know. I guess I could just call up to the Sheriff's office and ask, but it would probably be annoying if I were calling up there all the time asking what's going on. I guess I could text them: WGOA (what's going on at) ----- (fill in the blank). I bet they'd appreciate that.

For those who love music (I do!) Sweetwater will be hosting a music festival Mar. 23-27. Check out the event on Facebook and suggest some of your favorite bands for the show. You'll have to log in to see the info.

The wind is blowing, how unusual, and flurries are forecast for this afternoon. Check out the Hobbs, TX weather at NOAA. Wear a coat if you're coming this way!

The day the music died

This past week, I had three different people recommend Lubbock as a shopping haven. We usually go to Abilene, but I decided to ignore the ruts and go the other direction.

On the way there I heard on the radio that the plane crash Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper died in had occurred that day in 1959. I found out later that it was actually Feb. 3, but I'm setting a scene here. Anyway, it only seemed appropriate that I visit the Buddy Holly Center since I was on the way to his home town.

I was surprised to learn that his career only lasted 18 months and yet he made immense social impact, not just locally or nationally, but as an international figure. He was just a boy from Texas.

The museum is unassuming from the outside, but the interior is streamlined and clean (so important to me). The man running the place was very nice and friendly (also very important to me). There were guitars, guitars and guitars! There is a lot of information to read, written in a time-line on the wall and partitions as you walk through the museum, and includes ALL of music history, mentioning such influential musicians as Leadbelly and Jimmy Rogers. If you get the opportunity, stop by and visit the center on Crickets Avenue. I got a t-shirt!

While researching this subject, I came across a story that describes how Richardson's (The Big Bopper) son had him dug up and autopsied, then gave the casket to the Texas Musicians Museum. I think a big "No, thanks" would have been in order. What a weirdo, and how distasteful. I keep grimacing even as I'm writing this.

I also read that Waylon Jennings was originally supposed to ride the plane, but was talked out of his seat. I bet he felt like someone walked across his grave when he heard about the crash. Or maybe that's what buoyed his career. I'm sure that many more journalists before me have pondered the variables and what the future of music would have been should the passengers of that flight been switched around.

We also visited the Science Spectrum and the South Plains Mall while in Lubbock. We took a drive down University and saw the Texas Tech stadium (Jones AT&T) renovation in progress. I thought they were building a new one, there's so much construction going on.

I would like to go back another day and just spend the whole time walking in and out of shops around the campus. I spotted Freebirds burrito shop, which has been featured in Texas Monthly and is also where the son of one of my friends works.

We were really pooped by the time we got through. We left home at 8 a.m., got to Lubbock around 10 a.m., right when the Buddy Holly Center opened, and arrived back home around 5 p.m. We were nearly passed out by the time we got to Post, but rallied with a trip to the Dollar General to buy diaper wipes (requested by my son for my grand-daughter) and Cokes.

It's so funny when people ask me where I'm from, like the man at the BH Center. When I say Hobbs, they automatically think New Mexico, but then when I say Texas, they have no clue. Then I have to start naming towns closest to farthest: Rotan, Roby, Snyder, Sweetwater, etc. Sometimes I say Lubbock, but that's not helpful when you're actually there. I could say "Center of the Universe", but that might not be a useful descriptive.

Let's talk Superbowl! I've heard that people want the Saints to win, but bets on the Colts are giving the indication that the gut feeling is Peyton & team will dominate. Predictions of a 28-34, 24-34 Colts scores are popular, with the Saints coming on strong, but the Colts succeeding in the end. Mr. Husband wants the Saints to win, reasoning that if they do, this will leave the Vikings (our favorites) as true second place, since the Saints are who beat them out of the Superbowl spot. If the Colts win, then the Vikings are just one of the many who lost. He thinks the Colts will win, too, though. Oh, well, we'll just watch and let the potato chips fall where they may.

More winter for us this week. I'm going to try not to think about it, but it's kind of hard to ignore when Frosty's cold fingers tickle up the bottom of your coat and under the three shirts you're wearing.

Despite the cold weather, I noticed some crocuses or something coming up in the kids yard. The rose bushes in their and our yards have not died back, either. I guess it's because they're on the southeast corner of the house.

I was looking for a brochure online used for identifying weeds, and I thought it was distributed by Monsanto, but maybe it was another company, or you can only get it if you're at the retailer's. Did you know that Monsanto is suing Dupont? Sometimes I find so much information while surfing that I can hardly get through an article, I'm sidetracked so many times. Anyway, I was looking for the brochure online (which I didn't find) and came across, once again, the USDA Plant Database. I did a search for the common name of all plants in Fisher County. You can configure it any way you want, and there are identifying photographs of each plant. It's so useful and easy to use.

Soon I hope to post a photo that Penny Arnold sent me of a group (could be the whole student body!) of kids on the playground at the Hobbs school. I can pick out a few, but maybe some of you out there in reader land can identify others and give the exact year. It must be sometime in the 1970's, one kid has on a pair of very groovy pants.

I wish you all sanity, warmth and a week that goes well. If you already have warmth, then I wish you bathing suits and a beach to wear them on. I know that's where I really want to be.

Mardi Gras is in nine days, so Happy Fat Tuesday if I don't talk to you before then. Boy, New Orleans is getting more than their fair share of publicity, don't ya think? Oh, well, let's just eat some King Cake and celebrate Carnival!

I'm just a constituent

I took this photo in Mitchell County yesterday. I thought, "Oh, Schlumpy!" I've never seen a windmill looking like it had wilted.

I listened to the GOP's candidates for Texas Governor the other night. I kind of liked Medina. I gotta tell ya, I get sick of hearing discussions about these three subjects: abortion, gay marriage, health care. It makes me want to cut my wrists the minute these topics come up. I wish they would quit smelling up the room with those dead horses. Those carcasses are so squooshy, they're liquefied.

I can appreciate a discussion about TxDOT, though. Hutchison talked about revamping this brontosaurus of an institution and complained about lane miles not being added.

TxDOT is always revamping. Now, if she was REALLY talking about overhauling at the executive level, then get on it. Usually what happens, though, is the re-do takes place at the blue collar level, then they burn out before reaching any higher.

The working man sector of TxDOT has been cut to the bone and some counties are working with a deficit of employees. I wonder if they have compared the cost of using contract labor against the cost of using the TxDOT county employees. Used to, the local employees did the mowing and replacing of guardrail. These things are done by contractors, now. That's why sometimes you see a piece of guardrail sit damaged for months. The contractor may feel like they can afford to take the monetary penalty of not working within the contract guidelines and not feel inclined to get the project done right away (they get charged by the day if they go over the time allowed in the contract; sometimes what they make way overshadows any tariff, so they can afford to take a big hit).

If the local TxDOT guys were allowed to do the job, it would get done much faster. So, you're talking about solving safety and aesthetic issues quicker. If things keep on the way they have been, our roadways will look like some of those other local states', I don't want to mention names, New Mexico.

I don't know, maybe it's an issue of liability or cost of equipment. I think a comparison report is called for.

As for lane miles, think about your county. Do you need more roadway or do you need more maintenance? You're probably thinking maintenance. That costs a lot a money. Maintenance includes not only the roadway itself, but ditches, signs and guardrail.

I know in bigger cities they're all hepped up on more highway, but I don't care about the cities. I don't live there. I don't feel bad about saying I don't care, because it's a reciprocal feeling. It seems we're always getting blanket laws slapped on us that don't really pertain to us, but since big politics is in the city, our country society is often not considered in legislation. Unless it's agricultural legislation, but that's behind a whole 'nother gate.

I don't claim to be a member of any political party, so don't be thinking I'm republican just because I watched the GOP debate. With so many variables, I don't see how anyone can dedicate themselves to one political group. To quote my mom, "I was never much of a joiner." I prefer to make my own decisions.

Okay, enough of all that.

If you are working on a project or book that requires Texas historical resources such as permanent records, newspapers, journals, books, manuscripts, photographs, or historical maps, the Texas State Library and Archives Commission holds a veritable cornucopia of information. It is possible to get microfilm records on loan through your local library.

I came across the website for the local Lion's Club, of which Fredda Buckner is the District Governor. Buckner is also CEO and General Manager of Big Country Electric.

I've got to go do some rat-killing, so I'll wish you all a good Sunday and warn you that garden planning should be going on now because spring is just around the corner. Time to get those Gurney's out!

The book is always better

I recently watched The Last Picture Show for the first (and only) time. Guess what? Yeah, like I said above. The star-gazing was great, with Florence Henderson, Ellen Burstyn, Randy Quaid, etc. It's just that McMurtry describes details, minute details on the page that give the story form. The film was very flat compared to the book.

I may have told ya'll this before, I'm notorious for repeating myself, but when I can't find anything to read at the library, one of my old stand-by sets is The Last Picture Show trilogy, which includes the aforementioned book, also Texasville and Duane's Depressed. Sometimes they make me laugh and sometimes they bring me down, but I know I can depend on them to be engaging.

My other favorite stand-bys are John Irving's Hotel New Hampshire, The World According to Garp, and The Cider House Rules; Richard Russo's Nobody's Fool and Straight Man; and Annie Proulx's The Shipping News.

I think McMurtry, Irving and Russo have similar writing styles, because they can give every detail of a scene without boring you to death. Have you ever read Jane Eyre? It's a good story, but after a page and a half of going on and on about some feeling Jane is having, I'm like "Hey, Charlotte Bronte, enough, already, I get it!"

Proulx's book is just plain good. I have not seen the movies of any of these books (except the one), but I understand that the people in The Shipping News were attractive. The characters in the book are not, it's integral to the story that they are not.

I think the only movie that has been true to the book is Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird. When Mayella, played by Collin Wilcox Paxton, bats her eyes maniacally while being questioned in the courtroom, it's utter magic.

See, I do love the movies as well as books. I am mystified and in awe when they seem to do just the right thing on film, or have just the right actor to portray a certain character.

I've always wanted to work on a movie set, just doing something like handing out water or putting donuts on trays. I really want to see the working part of the movies. It seems like that would be a story in itself.

You will have to lay in the bed that you made

You will reap what you sow, what comes around goes around, and, as Earl says, "Maybe Karma's behind this whole thing."

And if such beliefs hold true for malicious people, then they should hold true for the good ones as well.

There are probably some of you good folks that feel like Karma, good fortune, the bountiful fruits of life, are not bestowing gifts on you in return for following the rules, paying your taxes and doing unto others.

I recall a conversation I had with my dad one time when I was trying to read Exodus (couldn't get past the girding of loins while eating mutton or whose fault it is if the neighbor's donkey falls in a hole your servant dug). I was going on and on about how gripey those people (Israelites) were even though Moses was trying to help out. "They just complain and complain," I said. "First of all, he's leading them to their freedom. They say they're thirsty, he scrounges them water (with some help, ha, ha). They're hungry, he provides food (more help). Still, they kvetched and moaned. "I mean, what's up with that?" I asked, and I remember my dad's answer was like someone suddenly hitting a gong. "People still do that today."

I wish I could convey how powerful a message that was as it came to me that day. If I could draw a picture, I would have a lightning bolt striking my head. We still do it today.

I'm not much for being put on a guilt trip, so that's not what this is. This is what is sounds like when I talk to myself. I say, "Self, you are a good person for the most part, and you do have a good life. Just because you're a little put out by the weather or someone going slow in front of you (or perhaps more serious offenses) doesn't mean you are not reaping the fruits of life. Hey, Self, remember, you have a warm house, a fine husband, beautiful, smart kids, healthy, too. You have lots of friends and family that love you. And you got one heckuva dog in Sue. Yep, it's really not so bad. Not bad at all."

Then I pull out my list and mark Joy off. Okay, I thought that was pretty funny, but if you don't watch "My Name is Earl", you have no idea what I'm talking about. I'm not recommending it, either, because I'm sure some might find it offensive. I just think it's funny, sometimes. The basic message is good.

Anyway, I want to thank you all for coming to the sermon today, and if you could just leave a little money in the plate as you leave, I'll be able to meet you at Dairy Queen for lunch.

In the lane, the snow is glistening

See, here we are in Hobbs, the day after the big snow and the charming cottages and chalets were shining in the morning sun...oh, okay, it's Norway, not Hobbs, Texas or even the U.S. We have no darling pathway, except where a cow might roam. This photo was sent to us by our Nordic friend Joe Duncan. He says they're having a record winter with temps sitting at 0. I'm still jealous of Joe because he has a fjord and they seem to have a fantastical existence over there in Lillesand. Perhaps it's the grass is greener effect, but I always need a place to dream of going to. The last place I fantasized about was North Carolina. Go figure.

It seems that we are having our very own cold winter this season. We are re-establishing our relationship with Gray Fuel and have become very close. I can feel the propane burning. We're having to use the gas heater in tandem with the fireplace. Now that's cold, folks.

If you've ever wondered what YouTube is, but never knew what to look for, get a start by perusing Ricky Niell's videos. Then from there you can look at his friends and followers, or just search for what you want to see. Put in Fisher County, Roby, anything you can think of. It's really entertaining.

I'm going to close now because I keep having to run back and forth between the computer and the heater, and with the temp hanging in the 20's, the heater is winning. I hope the New Year will be good to you all. I've learned a lot in 2009, not all of which I can appreciate but which will, in the long run, increase my wisdom. Unless I forget, and that's always possible. Happy NY and Happy Birthday to my dad tomorrow!