montague county moments

  Deafening thunder , lightning bolt flashes , and a torrent of pouring rain sent patriots scrambling for cover as the Commander In Chief Obama took the podium in Chicago for his Memorial Day tribute …. an omen ? …or just unfortunate timing !

  We’ll never know the theme or content of his tribute to fallen American soldiers… a virtual down-pour disrupted his speech… rendering a mass exodus…and his words for patriotic Americans a mystery….

  Simultaneously…. The radiant sun was shining through cloudless blue skies on Arlington National Cemetery’s rows of white-crosses….where  V.P. Joe Biden conducted his stand-up routine …

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  Today’s veteran celebration began with our traditional breakfast at Sgt. Major Macks American Legion Post in Bowie…

   Our platoon consisted of  Jerry (Red )Hardison…  four purple-hearts U.S. Marines-Vietnam…. Ray (chipper ) Walker 101st airborne – two purple hearts -Army-Vietnam , Keith Ratcliff -Navy Seabees Vietnam era , and Spec.5 ambulance driver U.S.Army Fort Lewis- zero purple hearts-Larry (shortfellow) Carter…. … Air-Force General Patrick Adams would have been proud !

   We ate and exchanged stories with respected WW-ll vets like Brock Lyon and Sy Young , then back to Nocona for their quality tribute at the Gazebo flag-pole in the cemetery… where the decorated Navy veteran , Master-Chief Randy Duckworth served as keynote speaker…  while his ww-2 veteran Dad Duckworth looked on ….He reminded us that the common bonding thread between each branch of military service is the common oath to defend and protect the Constitution from all enemies both foreign and domestic…  His moving speech followed by patriotic songs ,  a seven-man rifle salute and taps blown by a talented patriotic adolescent  ( Kyle Silk ) from Nocona…

  Then the geriatric G.I.’s jumped back into Chipper’s apc for the return trip to Bowie’s V.F.W. , where Vietnam veteran Karl Kirksey , who was totally and permanently blinded in Vietnam , delivered a stirring patriotic keynote speech before an appreciative crowd…then the same Nocona kid  ( Kyle Silk ) blew taps again for the Bowie’s veteran ceremony….

  Finally we returned to Montague’s Ultimate Hamburger Haven’s chow-hall , where Chipper sprung for burger-baskets all around..

    I got back home at two , just in time to watch ” to Hell and Back ” starring Audie Murphey , the most decorated soldier in American military history (at the age of 19 )… Lieutenant Murphey was a proud native North-East Texas soldier , and veteran of seven campaigns in World War Two …

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     The days of the ant-eating horned toad are behind us now… Once a familiar sight throughout the cross-timber regions of Montague County and North Texas… for unexplained reasons the Texas Horney-Toad has vanished.. ( not to be confused with chipper , an example of the endangered two-legged horney-toad species )…

  Some folks credit the arrival of Mexican fire-ants with the decline in horned-toad population…some say historic applications of DDT …

  Not only have these dinosaur cousins disappeared from our landscape , but their dietary main-stay ,  the red-ant  , have diminished as well…. except in my back-yard…where  a bed the size of a Conestoga wagon-wheel marks the geographic center of my hallowed yard…. these diligent creatures pass their days transporting grain-seeds from the messy eating habit droppings of Carolyn’s African Grey Parrot’s cage on the back porch , to the bald yard-circle they call home…. wearing trails of familiar destinations through the manicured lawn…

 The novelty and nostalgic ambiance of having our own red-ant bed is growing thin … persistent pesky traffic trails across the porch is losing it’s appeal… the perfectly round gravel covered bald spot in the yard has lost its flair …

   Carolyn said the ants have got to go !… but how do you rid the area of the worlds most diligent builders… diesel and pyrotechnics ? …poison grain could prove fatal for the yard-chicken population … IED ‘s too noisey….shot-gun blasts are ineffective at depths below 16 inches…flooding em’out through Ed’s free-wheeling meter is cost prohibitive….

   Short of a military bunker-buster-bomb , what I really need is a Mason quart fruit-jar of my granddad’s DDT …

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 What better way to memorialize the selfless soldiers that provided the ultimate sacrifice for our daily American freedom than to spend it on the eight acres that I call mine ….mowing the growth of spring rains…. watering the plush St.Augustine lawn… sipping iced-tea….grilling a couple of chicken-halves and Texas-made bratwurst.. conducting intermittent checks on the Ranger’s status……..taking a leisurely afternoon nap….

   That’s the very reasons they sacrificed all… to insure the ultimate experience of future generations that sets free-nations apart from the oppressed …enjoying life to the fullest… performing menial domestic task with peaceful pleasure…

     Even today as America enjoys this traditional holiday , patriotic young American men and women spill their blood on foreign soils , often without due respect or righteous reward , for the bravery and patriotism they offer as a gift to us all…..

     God bless all who gave some and especially the sum that gave all ….the emptiness left in their family that mine may experience fullness… God bless their generous souls !  May we never forget the depth and breadth of their service ….

 God bless America and the military veterans that made it the freedom-choice destination of the world..  Salute this day and the white-cross that marks their ultimate unsurpassed unselfish sacrifice….

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 Don’t talk to me til I’ve had a minimum of two cups of morning coffee… the only person I’m interested in seeing at my kitchen table at six a.m. is the Arbuckle merchant , Juan Valdez…

  If caffeine addiction is a misdemeanor vice , then I’m a hardened criminal ! ….The familiar perking sound at day-break is an orchestrated symphony of domestic tranquility…one of life’s greatest pleasures ! anticipation building as the unmistakable aroma engulfs still slumbering nostrils….

  No Starbucks feminine folgers for me… I want it Black and I want it Hot , without foam or fanfare …straight from the standard drip-method pot …just like God intended !…  No chickoree… no Vanilla extract ..never the words French or Instant in process or product….

  I was first introduced to the sinful liquid pleasure in the military… Fort Lewis Washington … where the combat-seasoned medics of South Fort Dispensary bartered penicillin for ground beans from the company cooks… Why did the cooks value penicillin more than canned coffee ? …I can only speculate , but the traditional trade lead to the continual indulgence of life’s simple pleasures for all involved …

    Coffee is shared only with close personal friends or loved ones …. the  “sacred ” favorite cup shared with no-one … it’s a personal experience … a ritual … an intimate right of passage into adulthood…and the perfect complimentary accent to a contraband Marlboro ….. I’m hopelessly hooked !

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  Forty-four years ago today Carolyn Mc Donald disappointed her entire family by walking the aisle at Calvary Baptist Church to accept the life-long responsibility of keeping me straight… under the direction of the barber-shop preacher , Bobby Joe Johnson.. no shot-guns required…

   She began the monumental task as C.E.O. of the Carter Clan…. a job that she relished and excelled at …  Three exemplary kids and Nine grand-kids later she still defends her nest….a dedicated Mom , a doting Grandmother , and a God-send wife for me … Happy Anniversary Carolyn… this is it ,  a Hallmark card cost five bucks !

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 Hectic schedule for the next three days….. #3 grand-daughter’s high-school graduation tonight … Way-ta-go Macy… , then the monumental decisions of memorial day week-end….

    Preferred methods of cooking vary with age , gender, and geographic location…. gas-grill vs. charcoal…. smokers vs. flames , flank-steak or brisket , bratwurst or rib-eyes….traditional burgers or ball-park franks ? … too many choices , too many chances for error in judgement…  the faint of heart will cave to the pressure of masculine expectations…. searing raw meat over an open fire in the back yard , or defaulting  to the sissyfied George-Forman Grill …

   Testosterone and adult beverage required for the proper cave-man cremation of cheap cuts of meat … high heat and low expectations for memorial day week-end …

  Traditionally this is the time for road-cop saturation …local fuzz enhancing their budget… a flat-foot behind every tree …..  seat-belt citations and D.U.I.’s  memorialize the stupidity of rednecks with time on their hands….

     Stay home and cook , burn something to be proud of…. under the influence…..in the presence of impressionable children…. have a great holiday week-end… God is good !

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    The beloved Nocona I.S.D. has notably failed to reply to the employment application of a professional level player and coach…. Bill Clay played minor-league ball in his youth and coached for the Independent Minor-League Fort Worth Cats just this past year….

  He has numerous years of coaching experience at various levels , including high-school…. his enthusiasm for , and expertise of baseball is unquestionable….His dedication and historical ability for teaching area-youth is a matter of impeccable record…. yet his desire to coach the Nocona Indians baseball Team garnered zero formal response from the Super or board of trustees ….

   Perhaps they are secretly working on a deal with Darrel Strawberry or more likely some influential citizen has a personal vendetta to squelch his prospects…

   Hey trustees…… Step up to the plate … go to bat for the good of your kids rather than appeasing your family physician ….

      A phone-call , an acknowledgment , an interview…..Give Coach Clay an at-bat ! …Give the Indians an opportunity to learn from the area’s best !

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 and I’m back at the helm… after a trio of days in the company of fellow studious terd-wranglers… I graduated in the top-twenty in a class of 19 …not bad for Montague County’s red-neck delegation…

  We talked at length about practical methods of dealing with un-wanted fecal material , effective ways to render the obvious non-toxic… and acceptable effective methods of proper disposal…..my suggestion was just vote Republican in the next election and send the big-stuff down the creek….

     Hopefully I’ll be back up to blogging-speed by the week-end , soon as the Algebra clears port….meanwhile , I’m stuck in pie-r-square and pole-ax activity at the bar-screen…. what’s that smell ?

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 President Obama is in California giving the political kiss of death to the fore-head of Barbara Boxer , while the Gulf coast continues to choke in B.P.’s hydro-carbons… but the Democratic Messiah is scheduled to arrive in the Gulf area on Friday… He will undoubtedly part the waters with his miraculous staff , for direct confrontation with the spewing Republican well-head…

    Seriously , though Barrack is taking guff from his political opponents and his previous disciple , James Carvill ,  there is nothing other than lip-service in Barrack’s arsenal of wild-well practical experience…. He’s from Chicago , not Odessa… any appearance will be purely theatrical ….political in nature !….. of no consequence to the crippled well casing…

  If he were not diametrically opposed to any consolidation of Church and State , he could offer his best hope of a  positive result to his Louisiana visit  , by calling for a National Day of Prayer for the Gulf-Coast disaster .

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