Small Town Fame

I was raised in a state that only a handful of famous people call home, so one of the things about Texas that amazes me is that almost every small town lays claim to a celebrity of one stripe or another. Sissy Spacek was born just two little towns away; Earl Campell was raised just a few miles down the road; Wiley Post called another neighboring town his home; Audie Murphy lived on a farm about thirty miles away, and singer Johnny Horton...Battle of New Orleans...was a Tyler native. Several well known politicians from the past also hail from around here, but I'm not going to give them any publicity.

Lindale has claimed the latest celebrity, in the form of country singer, Miranda Lambert. I've yet to meet her, but most of the folks around here have. She visits quite often and has done several shows in the area...even got into a bit of trouble in a Tyler honkey-tonk. It wasn't her doing, but it made the papers for a while.

The building in the picture above is her fan store run be Miranda's parents. They sell Miranda merchandise, and even a brand of Texas wine, despite this being a dry county. That situation is too difficult to explain, but just know that Smith County is often refered to as the wettest dry county in the state.

The small town where this video was filmed is not Lindale, but it could be.

I Feel Better Already

I attended the first car show of the season with my Valiant convertible last Saturday and actually won an award. It wasn’t for a fancy paint job or a chromed, hopped-up, motor, it was for being “The car that makes you feel better”. First time I ever got an award like that, but I’ll take it. I always feel better when I’m driving it, so I suppose the award was appropriate.

Speaking of my convertible, while I was gone, some of my restoration parts arrived, so I’ll soon be covered with grease and nursing sore muscles and skinned knuckles. I’m going to rebuild the suspension, upgrade to modern disc brakes, re-chrome some of the interior parts, and then take it in for a repaint. By next spring, it should be handling and stopping like a modern car, and looking better to boot.

Another winter project is rebuilding my spare engine so that I’ll have a new one ready when needed. I have all the parts and pieces needed and I only have to assemble it. The original engine in the car has never been rebuilt, but still gets over 1,000 miles on a quart of oil.

Trip Report

Crossing the Continental Divide in Wyoming. This was on the way up, before they received several inches more snow.

Funny how life seems to turn 180 degrees as you age. When I was young, I needed a vacation to rest from the long days I worked. Now I need long days of rest to recover from my vacations.

I was gone from home nine days. Three days travel time to the Pacific NW, three days visiting family, and three days driving home. Now it’s been another three days catching up on chores and just plain resting, and I’m nearly back to normal.

Making that trip in the fall is actually rather pleasant. Besides the beautiful fall foliage, there is hardly any traffic and the motels offer their off-season rates. With my military discount, Comfort Inns were nearly as cheap as Motel 6, and the accommodations are wonderful.

A real highlight of the trip was my personal version of a pilgrimage to Mecca. I got to visit my old launch officer from my days on a missile launch crew. As I wrote in an earlier entry, next to my father he was the most influential male role model in my life, so it was a wonderful treat to see him after all this time. For several years, I promised myself that I would take the I-70 route across Colorado so I could make the visit, but schedules, or something else, always ruined my plan. This time, Wyoming weather made it the sensible route to take and though our time to reminisce was far too short, I’m glad I made that choice.

Home Again

Home again and checking in. It was a good trip, but there are lots of chores to catch up on, so I probably won't find time to blog until this weekend. Until then, I'll just post a picture of the sunrise I saw yesterday just outside of Raton, New Mexico.

On The Road Again

Time to get a good night's sleep, as I'll be rolling by 0530 tomorrow morning. It should be a beautiful drive through the Aspen country.

I'll leave you with one of my favorites from our old dope-smoking Texan

Catching up

The hummingbirds managed to devour nearly twenty pounds of sugar this fall, but we were down to two birds today. I imagine they'll be gone in a couple of days. I already hate winter.

As the hummers leave, the Monarch butterflies begin their migration. I'm seeing more and more every day. We're a ways off their main migration route, but still get to see quite a few.

I mowed the lawn today, but it was mostly a leaf chopping exercise. At least it goes fast with the mower in high gear.

Speaking of mowers, mine has developed a starting problem after only two years of moderate use. I guess I'll worry about that when the grass cutting season is done. Fixing it will be a good winter project.

And speaking of winter projects...I'll be working on my '64 Valiant this winter. I'm upgrading the brakes to discs in front and 10" drums in back. When you had to stop fast with the tiny 9" drum brakes all around, you needed more hope than an Obama voter.

After the brake upgrade, it goes into the shop for a new paint job. The previous owner gave it a cheap repaint over 20 years ago, so it really needs some TLC.

I see GW Bush is being blamed for Chicago losing the 2016 Olympics. Thanks, W, you probably saved the taxpayers several billion dollars and kept a few hundred terrorists out of the country.

After record cool weather in much of the country this summer, several states are already reporting record lows this fall. That's a sure sign of global warming. Meanwhile, sunspot activity remains at a low ebb. Of course, that has nothing to do with our weather. It's those damn SUV's and George Bush.

Heard a Republican politician bragging today that the socialist Obama agenda means great things for GOP candidates next year. Apparently he hasn't paid any more attention to the tea parties than Obama and the Democrats. I'm as fed up with spineless, incumbent Republicans as I am with Democrats, and many I've talked to share my opinion. It should be a good year for Libertarians and primary challengers in both major parties.

I'm off to the Pacific NW on Tuesday, so won't be blogging until I get back in about ten days.

When Government Bureaucrats Control Healthcare

The rhetoric over this Obama care/health insurance reform/health care reform, is getting ridiculous. Are people so stupid that they can’t understand basic facts, like the laws of supply and demand, or that the government has never, ever, overestimated the cost of a purchase or service? Despite that record, some fools still believe government mandated universal health care will be cheaper than what we have now.

First, consider Medicare. The Democrats argument is that they can reduce Medicare costs by offering more and better coverage. Is that patently stupid, or what? The fact is that if they cut the cost of Medicare, some people, or some maladies, will not be treated. If their plan is to lower cost by eliminating waste, what exactly do they plan to fix that couldn’t have been fixed in the past 40 years?

Death Panels. The Libs claim opponents are spreading lies. Of course, a panel of experts is not going to look at each person’s case and say yea or nay about pulling the plug. There will simply be a rule that after a certain age, or if the chance of a successful recovery is uncertain, some treatments will not be approved for payment. That means that if the treatment is not approved, the patient will suffer with it forever, or if it’s a serious ailment they will die. Life and death will be meted out by a bureaucrat with an instruction manual. It’s not exactly a death panel, but the results are the same.

Jail sentences for those who don’t buy insurance. The leftists pooh-pooh this claim, but if it’s not true, what will be the punishment if someone can’t, or won’t, pay the fine? Isn’t imprisonment the usual punishment after fines? Maybe they will send a harshly worded letter.

The Democrats don’t want health care reform, they want power over people.