Navy Days

Got this photo about 12 years ago. This is my first real cruise out of the country, to Antigua. By the way, the word cruise is totally different here. Our boats are haze gray and underway and not one of those luxury liners.

We hit port and as soon as liberty call was sounded, we hit the beach. A little bar named Spinnakers. We walked to the beach and strategically placed halfway there was a rum stand outside of the rum distillery selling $3 bottles of rum. Every sailor had at least one bottle under each arm, some two. Eventually, we were playing surf football with empty bottles.

This was the best shape I'd ever been in (bottom row, right end), except for my liver. I was about 170 pounds, could run a mile and a half without keeling over, and worked all day on about three hours of sleep.

If you can't tell, I kind of miss it.

I'm related to someone famous! And you might be too!

FamilySearch is a free genealogy site that I use to track my family history. I have a lot of fun finding new relatives, but it got even better. FamilySearch.org says that I'm related to all of these famous people or their spouses. When you think about it, if you go far enough back in time, you'll eventually find that all of us are cousins to some degree. Kind of cool to see how connected we are.

This was done through an event that they put together called RootsTech. The event ends March 31st, so you might want to move on it. Here's the link: https://www.familysearch.org/rootstech/home

My Dad's side of the family

Lucille Ball is my 8th cousin twice removed!

Walt Disney is my 8th cousin three times removed!

George Washington is my 5th cousin eight times removed!

Muhammad Ali is my 9th cousin three times removed!

Abraham Lincoln is my 7th cousin five times removed!

Babe Ruth is my 11th cousin three times removed!

Claire Mae Merritt Ruth is my 8th cousin five times removed

Brigham Young is my 5th cousin five times removed!

Brigham Young's wife Harriet Emeline Barney is my 4th cousin four times removed

Emily Dickinson is my 8th cousin three times removed!

Helen Keller is my 6th cousin four times removed!

John Wayne is my 11th cousin once removed!

Joseph Smith Jr. is my 5th cousin six times removed!

Princess Diana is my 11th cousin once removed!

Queen Elizabeth II is my 12th cousin!

Shirley Temple is my 10th cousin twice removed!

Susan B. Anthony is my 7th cousin four times removed!

Wilbur Wright is my 6th cousin six times removed!

Winston Churchill is my 8th cousin three times removed!

My Mom's side

Sean Astin is your 12th cousin twice removed!

Martha Washington is my 3rd cousin nine times removed

Jane Austen is my 6th cousin eight times removed!

Elvis Presley is my 6th cousin once removed!

Franklin D. Roosevelt is my 8th cousin four times removed!

My Wife is related to these folks.

Her Mom's side of the family

Walt Disney is My wife's 7th cousin twice removed

Emily Dickinson is My wife's 6th cousin four times removed

Franklin Delano Roosevelt is My wife's 6th cousin four times removed

John Wayne is My wife's 8th cousin once removed

Joseph Smith Jr is The husband of my wife's 3rd cousin five times removed - Eliza Roxey Snow

Princess Diana is My wife's 9th cousin once removed

Wilbur Wright is My wife's 6th cousin four times removed

Sir Winston Churchill is My wife's 6th cousin twice removed

Her Dad's

Shirley Temple is The wife of my wife's 7th cousin once removed - John George Agar

Mary Todd Lincoln is my wife's 2nd cousin four times removed

Jane Austen is My wife's 5th cousin seven times removed

Crazy Thinking?

I'm sitting in the local restaurant where all the staff know me. According to the Kid, the whole town seems to know me and it drives her nuts.

The owner sees me staring off in to the distance and asks if I need anything. I tend to stare into the distance a lot. Not necessarily staring into the void, because, you know, it stares back, but just listening to the traffic outside, the music in the background, and snippets of conversation around me.

Today though I was running through tasks that needed to be accomplished and other things that I found traipsing around the wasteland of my mind. To answer her, I just waved a pointed finger in a circle beside my head in the universal signal of "crazy."

I really meant it as "I'm thinking," but when I thought about it, I was circular thinking. My original thoughts lead me in a myriad of tangents, kind of like the Marvel Universes Multiverse, which eventually leads right back to my original thought.

In a way, that does sound a little . . . crazy? Not even mind-mapping would help me out of that one.

Observations from an Ice Storm

As I sat in my darkened living room thanks to a power outage brought on by the two days of ice, I had time to think about stuff. All kinds of stuff. And sleep, which really threw my time table out of whack.

It started Monday night with a short outage that lasted about four hours. Then it blinked at 5am, just enough to shut off my C-PAP and glue my mask to my face like an Alien facehugger. That'll get you coming up straight out of bed like nothing else!

Then it blinked again at 11am and finally gave up the ghost at 2pm and that lasted until just before midnight. We hunkered down in the living room with the thermostat dipping to only 67 degrees, but it was enough for us to curl up on the couch under several blankets and wait.

When it did come back on, we cooked a quick hot meal, in case it went out again, which it didn't do. Until . . . 

The next day at around 11am when I felt it was safe to get back on the computer. I hadn't been on the computer 10 minutes and power flickered four times before I could get it unplugged. What really freaked me out was that I laid down a large sum of money for this new computer just days ago and had planned on getting a UPS for it. I just didn't think that I would need it so quickly!

Today, as the temperatures rise (slightly), and the ice leaves the area, I feel better at powering it up and getting back to my projects. I'm still getting that UPS because winter isn't over and even spring brings torrential rains.

As for my observations, I thought about how during any typical ice storm sans power outages you can just kick back with hot cocoa and a book, but lack of electricity makes that impossible. No light to see by, no cooking unless you have gas.

This got me to thinking about the folks back in the before times and how they coped. Back then, there was no sitting around waiting for someone to fix your electricity. Life went on. You got as much done as you could during daylight hours. Most, if not all, had fireplaces which required wood. Hopefully, you chopped enough wood when the weather was good, but you probably still had to chop some now. Hopefully, your larder was stocked so that you had food. You probably had farm animals that needed tending, so you had to brave the outdoors for that. 

Basically, back in the day, you were busting your behind for survival. Nowadays, we sit around waiting for the linemen to fix the line. If we have electricity, we sit around and binge-watch Netflix. In my case, with the power out, I sat in my recliner, which wouldn't recline because it was electric, and napped. This in turn threw off my sleeping pattern and I was up until 5am one night after power came back on catching up on projects. And that led me to sleeping until late this afternoon, which isn't so bad since a lot of my work is online. Does not help when you could be up taking care of other things that you can only take care of during real world business hours.

I guess my observation is that those that came before us had to be so much more self-reliant and solve their own problems. Nowadays, we have to rely on the electric company and the linemen to fix our electricity when it's out. If the power is on, but the roads are too icy, we can still sit in comfort and watch our shows, read our books, and, if they are crazy enough, we can order a pizza and have it delivered.

Now, where is that delivery guy?

DJing as a Career - How I Made a Living and Had Fun Doing It!

Some of my friends and readers of this blog (hello to that one person) may not know that I was a DJ for a little over a decade. Everyone always asks if I was on the radio, which I was for about three months, but for the majority of my twelve years, I was in a booth at a bar, club, or restaurant.

During my term in the Navy, I loved going out to clubs and dancing, and would befriend the DJs. At a club in the greater Norfolk area called the Double Deuce (not related to the one from Roadhouse) I got to be friends with the DJ and he offered tips. When I got out in 1992, my then girlfriend set me up with a surprise audition at a little bar which garnered me a spot, only I had to wait three months for it to open.

I turned it down, wanting to come home to Louisiana. Somewhere around Halloween of that year, the little bar in my hometown was looking for a waitress and they put my girlfriend to work. I asked the guy at the door if they were looking for DJs and he said "You know, now that you mention it . . . "
I didn't audition for the gig. I was supposed to meet the owner and another guy that was going to audition, but they were no shows. For almost a week, the owner kept missing our appointments and finally I found that he was building a house and had been working on that. I found out where and went there. Finally catching him, he told me that if I had went through all that trouble for the job, I could have it, no audition needed.

I worked there for a little over a year and eventually went to another club in Monroe which was the next biggest city about 20 miles away. In addition to DJing for a dancefloor, I ran a karaoke show. This show was part karaoke for customers and then part show for the customers to watch. The show involved runner-ups from a karaoke contest. They were paid to sing for two hours on a Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday night and it was well-received.

After a year or so of that, I wanted to do more. I saw a commercial on late night TV about a Music/Video business course at the Art Institute of Dallas that piqued my interest. Calling my mom who lived in Dallas, we made arrangements for me to move in with her until I got on my feet.

I never finished the course, though it was a good one, but I was learning just as much in the gigs that I was getting. I probably should have finished it considering I was only six weeks away from finishing, but I was working clubs and private parties and they took up a lot of my time and paid pretty good.

I worked at the newly refurbished Bronco Bowl in Oak Cliff in 1996. It had been closed for a while and a new owner from Oklahoma came in and purchased it. I was DJing in a 10,000 square foot nightclub with state of the art equipment. We did a variety of music, plus live acts, and after parties for the concerts that were held in the Bronco Bowl arena. I did after parties for George Benson, Tesla, and the Fugees.

I moved on in '97 to DJing the busy hours at a chain of restaurants and recording canned music for play when I wasn't there. Not liking the corporate culture that I was in, I went back to DJing at little bars and restaurants in 2000.

I met my future wife at one of those clubs and after proposing to her in 2004, I decided it was time to hang up the headphones.

I've met all kinds of people, some of them kind of famous. I've met celebrity DJs, musicians, actors; I've had Matthew McConaughey on my dance floor. I don't ever remember having a bad meeting with any of them. Back in the days before he fronted Skid Row, I DJed and ran lights for a Tesla after party with Johnny Solinger. After his show, he came by the booth fueled up on the energy of the show, alcohol, and whatever else and gave me one of the sweatiest hugs I had ever received. But it was a fun night!

I don't miss certain aspects of DJing in the those venues, such as folks who don't know how to handle their liquor, bosses who think they know music better than you do, and the late hours. I do miss, however, the power of being able to make people dance, playing that one song that everyone has to move to, and making people feel good for a night. When I look back, that was the two things that I loved; the music and the people.

NORAD tracks Santa!

My daughter learned how to track Santa from an early age. It's kind of a cool tradition in this technological age. You can track him on the computer, an app, or even call a toll-free number. Even as we get older, we still get a kick out of knowing where the jolly old elf and his eight reindeer are at any given moment on Christmas Eve.

Tracking Santa all began with the Continental Air Command (CONAD) way back in 1955. NORAD, or North American Aerospace Defense Command, replaced CONAD in 1958 and have been tracking Santa since. You can go to the NORAD HQ for more info on the history, how's and why's and clicking the image below will take you directly to the tracker.

The Haunting of Oaklea Mansion in Winnsboro, Texas

It's funny how things come back around. I was working at Borders Books in Lewisville (northwest of downtown Dallas) in 2010 and was in charge of events.

April Slaughter had been a staff writer for TAPS magazine which was published by the team of Ghosthunters. My wife and I were big fans of Ghosthunters on TV and I saw that we had this book in the store and saw that the author lived in the area. One thing led to another and October 31, 2010, we had her come in for a signing.

It wasn't until last year while researching haunted Texas locations for a post, did I come across the chapter on the Oaklea Mansion Bed & Breakfast. I was working at the library and made sure to get a copy in for circulation. It's just strange that I would eventually move to this beautiful little town with a literary connection to my past.

If you have any local hauntings that you've witnessed or have heard from family members, please share!

America's Haunted Road Trip: Ghosthunting Texas - The Oaklea Mansion

Visiting The Edison Exchange inside of The Historic Oaklea Mansion

The Kid and I, while out hitting all of the Winnsboro Autumn Trails events on Saturday, dropped by The Historic Oaklea Mansion. While there we visited Dustin and Gabriel of The Edison Exchange.

The Edison Exchange deals in antique/estate jewelry, Art Deco, and Native American jewelry/art. Beautiful pieces can be found everywhere you turn. One of the more intriguing displays was this exhibit of mourning jewelry.

Per The Gemological Institute of American ~

  

The tradition of wearing mourning jewelry goes back to at least the Middle Ages, when motifs like skulls and crossbones served as a tangible reminder of death. The exhortation memento mori, which literally translates to remember death, urged the wearer to live a moral life.

The popularity of mourning jewelry reached its peak during the Victorian era (1837-1901). Queen Victoria was deeply in love with her husband, Prince Albert, and when he died in 1861, she fell into a long depression. Queen Victoria spent much of the next four decades wearing black crepe dresses and mourning jewelry. She commissioned portraits, memorials, and busts of Prince Albert and other mementos that were reminders of her deceased spouse.

Hair Jewelry – jewelry that contained locks of a loved one’s hair – was particularly popular during the Victorian era. The Victorians believed that hair had a sacred quality because it contained something of the essence of the person. And because it was somewhat imperishable, it also symbolized immortality.

Many of the items on the tray were made with strands of hair woven into them or the entire piece was composed of braided hair from the deceased.

The Edison Exchange is located inside The Historic Oaklea Mansion at 407 S. Main St. in Winnsboro and is open Wednesday through Friday 10am to 5pm and Saturday 11am to 4pm. You can visit their website here or look them up on Facebook.

Photos are of the mourning jewelry and other pieces on display and for sale.

Affordable Connectivity Program Helps Families with Internet Costs

I recently received an email from the Social Security Administration about how to get a discount on internet. It seems that the offer stems from the infrastructure bill that was passed earlier this year.

It's tough for families to make ends meet nowadays and sometimes cuts have to be made. It's really hard when internet has become a necessity in some households. I really saw the divide between folks who live in the city and rural folks when I worked at my local library last year. Locals would come in to use the libraries facilities because they couldn't afford a computer or internet and what internet was offered was spotty in quality and availability.

Hopefully the infrastructure bill will address the availability of internet to rural areas, but in the meantime it has done something to help with the affordability of it.

The program is called the Affordable Connectivity Program and it us run through the FCC. If you meet any of these checkpoints then you may be eligible for a discount or free internet:

• Households that have an income at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.
• People who use certain federal assistance programs, including Federal Public Housing Assistance, Lifeline, Medicaid, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
• People who already use a discounted internet service from a high-speed internet provider that is aimed at low-income households.
• Households whose children get free or low-cost school meals.
• Households that participate in programs specifically for tribes, such as Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance, Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations, or Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.
• College students who receive student aid in the form of federal Pell grants.

Discounts range from $30 a month (which may mean free if you go through certain companies) to $75 for households on qualifying Tribal lands. Some households would even be able to receive a discount of up to $100 for purchasing a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers.

Check out the article below for more info or apply directly to the FCC, contact your current internet provider, or by mail.

20 Providers Offering $30-a-Month High-Speed Internet Access - AARP

Ancient Tablet Not a Smoking Gun but Still Stirs the Imagination

Comet NEOWISE July 2020
by James H. Pickering 

So, they've found a stone tablet from about 13,000 years ago that points to a swarm of comets. I find the headline a little misleading as it doesn't necessarily mention an actual impact, but I still find archeological artifacts that show astronomical events from the past fascinating.

I especially love this particular find as it was unearthed at Göbekli Tepe in Turkey which is a site that is spoken about often in Ancient Alien episodes. I'm not a true believer of ancient aliens and am skeptical but I love the idea!

Check out the article below for more details about this interesting find.

https://www.iflscience.com/13000yearold-tablet-mysterious-temple-ancient-comet-impact-41378

Birthday Wishes!

As we get older our birthday wishes tend to get simpler. We don't actually worry about celebrating another lap around the sun, could care less about a party, and really we're just happy that we woke up.

I had all intentions of staying in my PJs on Sunday, but as I began to retire the night before, I saw a post on Facebook about a local zoo and the animals you could see. I realized that all summer, I really hadn't seen my kid because she was off making the rounds visiting grandmas, aunts and friends. School would be starting in just a few days and we really hadn't spent any time together. Oh, well. Who wanted to nap all day anyway.

The Kid and I got up bright and early and headed south to Grand Saline, known for the salt prairies southeast of town, most of which are owned by the Morton Salt company. There used to be a big old salt block in the middle of town that you could look at or lick, if you were daring, though there were signs advising against such a thing. It's not there now, or maybe too many people licked it into oblivion (photo was from last year.) We stopped off at a local eatery aptly named Salt Lickers for some grub. Serving a little Cajun and home cooking we got our fill and then proceeded on down to see the critters.

Located off in the woods, East Texas Zoo and Gator Farm is hidden from the road by a picket of trees. Once parked we walked into the main building and immediately got to see wildlife from parrots and tarantulas to lizards and hissing cockroaches! From here you purchase your tickets to gain entrance to the park and you can also purchase food to feed the animals and access to the baby room. We bought the tickets with the baby room access and some food for the animals and made our way outside.

We were just in time for feeding time. Alligator feeding time, that is. The Kid wasn't as excited as I was about it, but she gave in so I could enjoy it. We talked gator with the keeper in charge of them. They take in rescues and nuisance gators from around the area. One of the gators, 515, is from Lake Fork where Hwy 515 crosses between Yantis and Emory and he's a big old boy, but he's not the biggest. That goes to the chief of the swamp, Domino.

After feeding the gators we made our round to the other animals. It's a self tour with signs along the fences describing the animals. It was hot and early afternoon so some of the animals were in the shade snoozing. The laziest out of all of the animals were probably the kangaroos and they weren't shy about it either. Zebras, wild cats, baboons, tortoises, porcupines and many others were to be found. The tortoises are free roaming so you could actually walk up and pet one. I don't guess you have to worry about one trying to get away at the speed they move.

We hit the baby room last and got to meet Walter and Steven, a wallaby and a wallaroo. I can't remember which was which, but the wallaby was an albino with white fur and pink paws and eyes. They were accompanied by two zebu calves and a little pink screaming hairy armadillo, who wasn't screaming but enjoying a nap and appeared to be running in his dreams like a dog. We got fifteen minutes in the room with them and they were very cute and loved the petting they got. 

All in all, it was a fun visit and we got to see animals that we hadn't seen before in other zoos. We'll probably visit again when it's a bit cooler as the animals didn't like the heat either. If you fancy a nice little excursion that won't take up your whole day, visit the Grand Saline area and the East Texas Zoo and Gator Park. 

You can also visit my Facebook page for more photos.

Meditation from the Backroads of Lake Winnsboro

I took a drive around Lake Winnsboro, as the Kid and I often do. Tonight I didn't have her with me because she is visiting Grandma before school starts up again. 

I had suggested this drive to a friend on Facebook the other night as she asked for ideas for places to visit with her husband who can't get out much due to health issues. I figured I'd take some of my own medicine after supper.

I usually start at the Marina and sit on the little point behind it to get a good view of the lake and Pleasure Point across the way. I hadn't been out this way since the July 4th fireworks display and was surprised (though not really in hindsight) to see how far the water level had dropped. Timbers from an old pier were raising their tops above the waterline. 

Leaving there and driving by the picnic tables at the little swimming area, I nod to some folks that I had seen at dinner just a little while earlier. Seems others had a nice evening visit to the lake on their minds. Some folks were still out fishing both on shore and on the water and the fish seemed to be jumping.

The temperature wasn't too bad and I drove with the windows down. Fortunately traffic was non-existent as I continued my tour at a slow pace. Nothing ruins a trip like this more than someone flying up on your tail because to them backroads mean no speed limits.

After turning north from Pleasure Point, I stopped at the first causeway to find that the only water left on the west side was a small puddle that didn't look like it would last another week, if that. Though there were no fish, turtles or frogs to watch, I did find two young does enjoying the green grass that was thriving in spot. They didn't seem the least bit afraid as I stopped the car and took photos. I guess the food was too good to leave.


More turtles, one huge bullfrog, and a few cranes were present as I crossed more causeways on my way to 515. My last sighting was of another small group of deer in a large open field. They looked like does and maybe a few yearlings, but it was dusk and my eyesight isn't too sharp anymore, even with glasses. They, too, didn't seem in a hurry to leave good eating behind, so hung around as I stopped to watch.

Trips like these are therapeutic. A meditation trip, if you will, as long as you stop the car to do the meditation.

For more photos from my excursion click this link: Facebook Photo Album-Drive Around Lake Winnsboro and while you're there, like my Facebook page, Winnsboro Living.

Remembering Mamaw Carmon Pickering

This lovely woman would have been 92 today. We lost Great Grandma Carmon last year and miss her so very much. She and Carroll loved each other so much that I am sure that they are having a time together now up in Heaven.

She was a big influencer on my life growing up. I know that most grandparents are, that's not really saying anything. My grandmother, though, catered to my interests by stoking my love of reading. When we would go to her house, she'd send me to her room to get a book. The walls of her room were lined with books stacked on the floor to where you had to crabwalk around the bed to get to them all. Books on gardening, wildlife, the sciences, everything. When I took an interest in space, she got me subscriptions to astronomy magazines, science magazines, science fiction literary magazines, and even a membership in the Planetary Society so that I could get the monthly Jet Propulsion Laboratory newsletter. She was a life-long learner and it's one of the greatest gifts that she could have given me, other than her love! Miss you Mamaw!

Rainy Day Ponderings

It has been my intention to start writing again for a very long time. Just put pen to paper or in this case finger to keyboard. That’s the problem though. I have ideas racing through my head, ninety to nothing, but I abhor the process of writing, the “labor” portion of it. So, I think I’ll start doing what my 9th grade English teacher told me oh so long ago and what many people do all around the world. Just write.

So here you go. I just sat out on the patio for the last 45 minutes watching storms roll in from nowhere. The temperature dropped about 20 degrees really quick and the winds kicked up to high gusts blowing dirt and dust everywhere. I had to bring in the pansies and tomato plants so they wouldn’t get destroyed. It wasn’t until about 30 minutes into the display that the rain finally started coming down.

I love this kind of weather. Don’t know why, I just always have. I remember when I was a kid and the storms would roll in, my brothers and I would stay out in it as long as we could. With the thunder and lightning crashing above, I fancied myself a wizard commanding the elements. All kids love playing in the rain. I think it’s a primal thing. It just brings us down to our base selves where there is nothing else but the pure enjoyment of the moment. While I sat watching, a neighbor boy could be seen racing back and forth down the street in the deluge with wild abandon. Sometimes we forget how to enjoy simple things like this.

Photo by Zach Reiner on Unsplash

Inspiration from the Ukrainian People and How to Help

I've been watching the news that comes out of Ukraine. It's hard to watch. Basically, it's your neighbor breaking in to your house all because he wants your stuff. It's all done in broad daylight while the rest of the neighborhood watches. It turns my stomach.

But many heartening stories are coming out of the country that gives me hope for them. At the borders, women and children are lined up exiting into surrounding countries, while their husbands, brothers, and fathers say good-bye, turn and head back to fight.

Being prior military, I get a swell in my chest hearing about the "Ghost of Kyiv." Look him up. The first Ace of the 21st century. Just a matter of time before his legend arrives in air combat video games! And if it turns out that he truly is a ghost, the story still serves a purpose of inspiring and rallying the country's people.

And lastly, there is Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky fighting alongside his people in the streets. When asked if he wanted to be airlifted out, he says “The fight is here. I need ammunition, not a ride.” That's how you lead a country! As I watch with bated breath, I can only say to the people of Ukraine - Give Russia Hell!

If you're feeling inspired to help, here are two articles that list organizations that are working in and around Ukraine. Time - Here's What You Can Do to Help People in Ukraine Right Now

NPR - Want to support the people in Ukraine? Here's how you can help

#giverussiahell

Growing Up and Growing Old - Reflections On My Navy Experience

On this date, 35 years ago, I entered into a contract with the United States to serve in the United States Navy. It's not something that I regret. I have often said that I would do it again, if given the choice, and I've never attempted to talk a young person out of serving, though I'm honest with them about what that service will ask of them.

I remember boarding a Greyhound bus from Monroe, Louisiana on a Sunday afternoon. My Dad took me and waited with me for the bus to arrive. He gave me his old wallet, since I didn't have one, though they would eventually make me send it back to him. You didn't bring in any unnecessary things; the military provides for you. I've only seen my Dad cry a few times in his life and that day was one of them.

I took the bus from Monroe to Shreveport, stayed the night at a hotel, went to the MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station) at 5AM Monday morning and eventually boarded a plane bound for Orlando with a slight layover in Dallas. That bed I woke up in on Monday would be the last bed I would see until I was introduced to a rack in our barracks on late Tuesday night. Yep, about 42 hours before we were allowed to sleep, and then it was wake up at 4:30AM.

Our company commanders, or CCs, were Chief Roland and Chief Livingston. Chief Roland loved to fish and Chief Livingston liked to chase me around the grinder (big parking lot like exercise area) until I puked. Eight weeks of torture, but there was a reason for it. It's better to break in boot camp than out at sea. The first morning of processing, we were waiting in the chow line and we witnessed the first drop. Two chiefs carrying a recruit between them, screaming his lungs out. Kind of scared us, but also made us resolve not to be that guy.

Oh, and they would push you. Like I said, Livingston liked to run behind me (yeah, I was the slow one) yelling for me to give up and go home. I kept my nose clean, but even that didn't get you out of anything. They have a certain event, I can't remember the cutesy name for it, that they would have where all the screw-ups would go for intense physical training. Two hours of push-ups, sit-ups, planks, etc. One night the chiefs came in with smiles on their faces and asked "Okay! Who hasn't been yet?" Yep, I got to experience it and it wasn't fun.

For all of the pain we went through, we learned a lot. We learned what our limits were, we learned how to push ourselves, and we learned above all things, responsibility and accountability. Something I can't say that I would have learned at home. And I would be lying if I said that I took it all in stride with a smile on my face. No, there were nights that I went to sleep crying wondering what I had gotten myself into and then crying when I woke up because I was still there.

We passed in review on December 27, 1986 in eighty degree weather, in dress blues, called crackerjacks after the little boy on a Crackerjack box, that were made out of wool. Great material for cold weather, but not in the heat. We had a few boys pass out.

Even though we had graduated, Chief Livingston stayed in character. Standing in a line outside our barracks with our seabags packed, Chief cracked jokes and smiled with everyone, but told me that I would never make it in his Navy. Six years later when I would get discharged, I thought of him as I walked down the brow (or gangway), and wished he was there so that I could tell him that I had made it in his Navy. That's not to say that I hated him or anything. In the end, I knew that he was probably trying to motivate me to keep going.

I do miss my shipmates and have a Facebook page where we connect and yes, I'd do it again, if I had the chance. But now I'm older and not in the best of shape, though I think that might be from some of the stupid stuff I did when I was in the service. But I am thankful every day for what the Navy made of me. Bravo Zulu to that experience!

This photo was taken in boot camp. My mother remarked that she started crying when she saw it because the look on my face made her think that they were torturing me. I laughed and told her that we were told to look "stoic" for our photos. I think I did a good job.

Dealing With Loss

I've posted here before about Joey Feek's passing in 2016 and how I watched how her husband Rory dealt with it and the raising of a little girl by himself. So many comparisons in mine and his life.

Recently he had to deal with the loss of her Dad and penned this blog post talking about dealing with the death of a loved one and he touches on the effect that it might have on his daughter. The link to the post is here (https://www.roryfeek.com/post/happy-sad) and my comment to him is below.

So sorry to hear this. My situation is similar to yours. In fact, it was after the loss of my wife in 2013 and my little brother in 2014 that I heard about Joey and and started following your stories. I cried along with you, as so many others did, when Joey passed. My daughter was only 3 when we lost Carroll. We lost her Dad the previous year, and then along the way, every year seemed to take so many more in our family. Just in the first month of this year I lost both of my grandmothers and last year two uncles within a month. My daughter has learned to deal with death at such an early age and that will make her a stronger person down the road, as will it make Indie, but you wish that your children didn't have to learn that. Watching you deal with life has given me strength in my daily trials and I thank you for that. Much love and blessings on your household as you deal with this.

Though it is said that the Lord will not give you more trials than you can handle, I've often wished that he didn't have so much faith in me. And much love to all of those that are dealing with their own trials.

Mexican Gold and Captain Stout

Stout, Texas. Google pulls it up on a map, but it's only an intersection in the middle of East Texas. A few houses, pastures and plenty of woods. But at one time it was a small community named after a pretty interesting fellow.

It was brought to my attention one night while out singing karaoke. A friend had mentioned reading some of my other stuff and loved the idea of rambling around East Texas, but she loved hearing long lost stories about the people that populated this area two centuries or so back. And one of those stories was about Stout and the rumor of Mexican gold.

There isn't a lot of info about the gold heist. All that I can find is that a group of Americans stole a mule train load of payroll from the Mexican Army. As they made their way through the area, the Mexicans were hot on their trail and so they buried it as quickly as they could somewhere south of Stout. Though some folks have made to look for it, no one has found it and it remains hidden. I did a little figuring and using some really fuzzy math figured that those mules were probably carrying just under a million dollars worth back then, but it would be almost seventy-five million today. That's enough to make me wanna break out some shovels and a metal detector. Again, not enough info to make a real go of it, but it did introduce me to a very colorful local gentleman by the name of Captain Henry B. Stout.

Captain Henry B. Stout was from Tennessee and came with his wife and a newborn to settle in Texas back in the early 1800's. After reading some of the news articles from over the years about him, they could make a movie about this man. He was an explorer, adventurer, settler, bear hunter and much more. He was a Texas Ranger at one time, the first sheriff of Wood County, veteran of the Texas Revolution and the Confederacy, and served in the Texas House of Representatives. It's not known if he actually built the community of Stout, but he did live nearby with a grist mill and freight hauling company that he ran between Wood County and Jefferson. There are several stories of him fighting bear with only a knife. He even rode with David Crockett hunting buffalo and even helped plan Crockett's last route to the Alamo. This is one man that I wish I could have met.

With all of this info, me and The Kid loaded up in the car shortly after the blizzard started thawing out and we made our trip south on 312 out of Winnsboro. We came to the intersection of 312 and 4640 and aside from a few houses, there's not much that says "Hey, this was a settlement at one time." 

We continued our journey another three miles or so down to 2088 and hung a left headed to Perryville. Just a mile further and on the right is a little park with the Stout Family cemetery on a hill overlooking it. With a chill in the air and the ground a little soggy from all of the snow and rain, we made our way up and into the fenced in site. There is a historical marker at the end near the road. It's a beautiful little overlook and if I were to want a place to settle my weary bones when it was all over, this would be a nice spot. Many descendants are buried here, but if you walk to the center of the cemetery, you'll come across Captain Stout's grave marker. It's new, and some of the others that haven't been replaced are so weather-worn that it's hard to read them. Some markers are nothing but flat stones set on end in the dirt.

It's amazing how much information is hiding in that little dash between the birth and death date. Thankfully books have been preserved and stories have made it to the internet for reading, because truly these are adventures that need to be remembered. And this is why The Kid and I like to ramble, to find these stories and see the evidence that is left behind.

Remembering Lost Ones

Today was the fifth anniversary of the death of Joey Feek. Joey and her husband Rory Feek were country musicians and very talented. Joey was diagnosed with cervical cancer and though fought it off once, it relapsed and eventually she passed.

I found a lot in common with Rory. Our wives had only turned forty when struck with cancer and we were both left to take care of our small daughters. And to this day he feels that he is still a husband to his late wife as I do. I admire him for his faith and his strength and would love to meet him one day just to shake his hand and thank him for giving me someone to take lessons from.

If you get a chance, he's got a show called This Life I Live that you can watch on RFD-TV or on Youtube. It's also a book. He still makes music and the latest one is a beautiful ode to his wife even though it was written long before her passing.

Hug and Kiss your loved ones.

The Freezening 2021

The view from my patio sums it up just fine. Lots of snow, considering it's Texas, and low temps makes me want to hibernate like a bear. I step out on to my patio like a king would man his parapets to survey his domain. "Yep, that's snow. And it's cold." Okay, domain is still there, I'm going back inside to get warm. I do all of this bundled up in sweatpants, tshirt, long sleeve shirt, housecoat and slippers. I've decided it's not worth the risk of a slip or fall to go out and partake in snow activities.

The Kid is already learning to judge patches of seemingly "safe" snow and has quit running higgledy-piggledy all over creation. She's figured that busting her behind several times is lesson enough and is demonstrating caution when playing.

If I had a big truck like most other Texans, I might decide to get out and hit a few backroads. Alas, my little Nissan Versa does not instill me with confidence, so I sit in the comfort of my apartment and cruise Facebook looking at other folks' photos.

At the time of this writing, we've got one more little patch of bad weather coming and I'm not so much worried for me, but others who have already suffered with rolling black outs or just downright lost power. Some of my friends back in Dallas are still waiting on power after twenty-four hours without. I've lowered my thermostat and put on a few layers of clothing, but haven't had any outages yet.

That could be coming though. The apartment complex I live in is weird about it's electricity distribution. I noticed during a power outage last year, shortly after moving here, that one half of the complex got power back a full fifteen minutes before our half. I jokingly assumed that folks on that half maybe paid more rent for that luxury. Same thing happened last week, with power going out for about an hour early in the morning, but the other side of the complex didn't even blink. I wouldn't have probably known about it except for two things. One, I'm that guy that sleeps with fans on. That sudden onslaught of silence wakes me every time. Two, I have a c-pap machine for sleep apnea. Basically, I wear a mask that helps me breath at night. When power goes off, that mask becomes a face hugger from Aliens and I come up out of a dead sleep clawing at my face! Anyway, the other side of the complex lost their power this morning for a few hours, but we are doing fine on this side. Here's hoping they forget about us.

As I sit here and read posts from other areas of Texas, I wonder how folks in our neck of the woods are handling things? Do towns like Winnsboro, Quitman and Mineola have buildings that can be used as warming stations for folks that have lost power or are maybe suffering other problems? Granted, these are unprecedented times, but it's something that should be considered. It really doesn't need a lot of planning, or at least I wouldn't think so as I'm not an emergency planner even on a personal scale. I tend to react as it happens. It doesn't always end well, but those are stories for another day.

Long story short is no, I'm not getting out in this stuff, I hope that for those that are having difficulties it gets better soon, and if you have neighbors that you can check on, do so. In the meantime, stay safe, stay warm and it'll be over soon. At least the weather folks say it will be and we can trust them, right?