If The Big "O" Can Do It...

Then, by damn, so can Pattie.

Start a bookclub, you know. Now, if perchance I discover Oprah's gold mine, well, I'd be sure to share.

May I recommend for your reading pleasure, a little tome written by a fella named William O. Douglas. You might have heard of him?

Was a judge of something or other...ahem.

The book is Farewell To Texas, A Vanishing Wilderness. I found a used copy here. Bought my own copy (which has Ft. Worth Public Library stamped on the page edges) in a garage sale by a used online bookseller going out of business. I guess she bought it at a Friends of the Library sale.

*As an aside, I love this phrase found at the library website: Free People Read Freely.

When this book was written, there were still ivory-billed woodpeckers in the Big Thicket forests. Sadly, it is believed they are extinct. What peckerheads humans can be.

 

Though these words were written 40 years ago, they still ring true:

"Real estate operators are eating you away. There¹s no overall program for conservation," he told reporters. Douglas' book, published in 1967, was an indictment of dam-builders, ranchers, lumber companies, oil and gas companies, and others who were managing land resources in Texas.

He predicted: "The people of Texas are aroused against these modern Ahabs; and their voices are beginning to be heard. But heroic action is needed if the shining bits of wilderness that are left in Texas are to be salvaged."

HEROIC ACTION.

Let's hope Jerry Patterson reads Texas Trifles.

Jeff Shares Toys

My west Texas blog buddy, Jeff, has shared his meme tag with me.

Someone tell me how this serves world peace and helps Hieronymus Merkin forget Mercy Humppe and find true happiness...

Four Jobs I’ve Held:

Waitress, liquor store/motel clerk, proprietor of an outboard motor dealership, skate girl for a neighborhood roller rink

Four Films I Could Watch Over and Over:

Gone With The Wind, Gettsyburg, Dr. Zhivago, Fiddler on the Roof

Four TV Shows I Watch:

My Name is Earl, CSI Las Vegas, Lost, China Beach - dang I forgot. It's cancelled.

Four Places I’ve Lived:

Port O'Connor, Denver, Poolville, Springtown

Four Favorite Foods:

homemade chicken and dumplings, quesadillas, enchiladas, homemade chocolate sheet cake

Four Websites I Visit Daily:

Time Goes By, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, YouTube, random blog from my Herd

Four Favorite Colors:

burnt sienna, raw umber, coral red, turquoise

Four Places I Would Love to be Right Now:

McDonald Observatory, here, or here, or here.

Four Names You Love, But Could/Would Not Use for Your Children:

Jedediah, Little White Dove, Calamity Jane, Bathsheba

Duck duck goose, I pick YOU...

Vet Removes Illegal Flag

I can't say I blame him.

What would you do if you saw the same violation?

Move Over, Deadwood

Best oater I've seen in a while. Too funny!

Get That Thang Outta Here - Or, Excedrin Headache No. 110

"Rhoda, please!"

Pay attention to the model airplane. And Charles Nelson Reilly in the role?

Priceless.

Romulans In The Bakery

Yesterday, my to-go order for chicken salad from the corner bakery was taken by a Romulan.

Nope, it wasn't an early Halloweenie get-up; his deep-set eyes, straight black hair, over-arched eyebrows, and funny frontal forehead ridges were more obvious than the upper bunk accoutrement's of a Dallas Cowboy cheerleader. And his accent? Thicker than the foam on a draft Shiner Boch.

 

Nonchalantly following his actions and responses to the customers at his section of the order counter, I attempted to keep my observations less apparent, but once or twice I caught him returning my perusal with his own defiant "you wanna piece of me" stare.

Now, this small establishment is well-beloved by downtown workers for its delicious desserts. And right there among the tiny pumpkin bundts and German chocolate brownies, I discern an Osol Twist tucked behind a lemon tart. Am I the only one who sees this?

Getting a little panicky, I looked around for possible back-up: the two ladies right behind me were oblivious to anyone or thing except their own juicy office gossip, and the young men in front of me were just that - too young to understand or care about Romulans, so it was pointless to enlist the aid of my fellow line mates. After all, Romulans have been part of these typical gamers' lives for several years.

"Whas's the big deal?", they would say with a slacker shrug.

Known for their great ability to sneak in and out of galaxies using their signature cloaking talent, an accurate headcount of Romulans in our communities is an impossible task. They bypass all legal methods of planetary entry and cut in line (if you will pardon the school girl phrase), and reshape our part of the universe more to their liking. Taking jobs most Americans deem as lowly, they insidiously have become part of our daily fabric. And sure enough, I counted six Romulans in the back as the kitchen door swung briskly with the ins and outs of the waitstaff with food-laden trays.

The invasion is more than well underway, Jean Luc.

"The War" Updated

 

I wrote this post about Ken Burns' documentary, and I had yet to feel the heartstring tugs I expected.

Staying the course, I am now watching the seventh night of the documentary, and I must say it has been fascinating, both heartsick and uplifting to watch. I have begun to discern the individual interviewees' personalities and how the Big One related to each of their lives.

A friend who often stops by TT, and exchanges emails (thank you, Edward) pointed me in the direction of this book by E. B. Sledge. Here is a link to a Studs Terkel interview with Eugene Sledge, among other soldier interviews (Sledgehammer's is about midway).

Lastly, I read of this experiment at a Christian Science Monitor site: a small group of four young people are watching the documentary and giving the researchers feedback. Very interesting reading. The last sentence is an echo of a similar sentiment I feel myself:

As the group breaks, a feeling of uneasy awe lingers at the table. Finally, one member voices a previously unspoken concern: "Will America ever be able to succeed like that again?"

I don't know. But, I hope we are never tested with the horrors of another war like WWII again.