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!