Back When Our Dad Would Light Into Both Of Us, Just To Be Sure All Bases Were Covered

Back in our early school years down at Jollyville, we rode the bus back and forth to school. A family, The Koepecke’s, had moved in not too far out of Jollyville. It was a place that is now part of the Balcones Country Club. This family were poor, you could tell. Kind of looked like they came in there straight out of the Grapes of Wrath movie. We got home from getting off the bus one afternoon and headed straight for the horse pen. About then the Koepecke’s old rattle trap station wagon came up the driveway. Kenny and I … Continue reading Back When Our Dad Would Light Into Both Of Us, Just To Be Sure All Bases Were Covered

The Women That Shaped Me

I grew up with more women than men surrounding me, at least in my family. My Mother, Bonnie Gay Boultinghouse Lewis Bonnie Gay would have been 89 this year. She grew up poor, in a very large family. She was the 8th out of 11 children. Her father died when she 9 years old. She married at 15, had her first child at 17. She waited until she was 19 to have her 2nd child, that was me. She only lived in Smithwick and Jollyville her whole life. She was a friend to many and an enemy to no one … Continue reading The Women That Shaped Me

The Sailfish

Madeline and I had traveled to Acapulco, Mexico for a getaway in the late 1970’s. It was enjoyable and we wanted to go back. So we convinced my parents, Bonnie and Cecil, to go with us. It wasn’t an easy decision to make. One never knew how well Cecil Lewis would travel and adapt to various situations away from Smithwick. Once we got there we wanted to make the most of the trip and do something memorable for them. We lined up a parasailing ride for Bonnie Gay. She was extremely proud that she had tried it. Madeline took pictures, … Continue reading The Sailfish

Just Passing Time

For some reason the new scam is someone will text and pretend they think you are someone else. This happened earlier tonight. I can’t just ignore these attempts at being scammed. So I start talking like I’m really who they think I am. Oh well, this is a screen shot of the lengthy text exchange. I guess I finally wore them out. They finally decided to move on along. Hey guys, try that phone number, you may find a hot date on the other end Continue reading Just Passing Time

Reflecting Back On Cecil Lewis

This is something I wrote about my Dad, Cecil Lewis, not long after The Angora Chronicles was inaugurated. While Cecil Lewis wasn’t a perfect man, he did something for Kenny and Me both. He taught us about hard work and keeping to our word. If a man is paying you, then give him a days worth of work. If you tell a man something, you damn well better stick to your word. Those lessons were never forgotten. He gave us every opportunity to learn how to operate every kind of machine there was. He taught us how to work on … Continue reading Reflecting Back On Cecil Lewis

The Ugly Phone Call

I was sitting in the office one morning a few years ago and had received several solicitation calls. I was busy and was fed up with all nonsense calls when the phone rang again. It was an area code I didn’t recognize at all. I picked that phone and the guy said “Hello Ron, This is Dave out here in New Jersey, how is everything going down in Texas?”. I launched into a complete tirade about how sick I was of getting these $:;@/”:?!)$ phone calls, and to never call here again. He had sounded just like the several other … Continue reading The Ugly Phone Call

The GMC Toro-Flow

Back in about 1967 Cecil Lewis, my dad, went off somewhere, probably Austin or San Antonio and bought a 1964 GMC truck. That GMC had perhaps the weakest engine ever put in a truck. It was a single axle with a winch that he paired up with a single axle float type trailer that he had recently purchased. Now here’s the deal, that float trailer was an oil field float. You knew that because it had a rolling tail bar on it and it was built extra heavy duty. Anything going into the oil field needed to be built strong. … Continue reading The GMC Toro-Flow

The Very Worst Vehicle Purchase I Ever Made

General Motors had started making a 6.2 liter Diesel engine for their pickups. It was advertised to be the greatest advance in power that had ever been. I had to have one. I found one. I didn’t care what color it was or where I had to go to get it. I just needed to hear the roar of that big diesel engine and feel the power when I stepped down on it. There was one other thing. It had to have all the features available, but had to have rubber floor mats instead of carpet. That was a pretty … Continue reading The Very Worst Vehicle Purchase I Ever Made

The Story That Really Shouldn’t Be Told

There was a guy once that left Houston, where he currently was working, to go with his wife and a son to Augusta, Ga. to visit another son that was there training with the US Army. This absolute idiot of a guy decided to go on the Atkins Diet while traveling. Not the brightest move I’d say. If a person eats only meat, cheese and eggs for several days, his regularity is not exactly in check if you know what I mean. The Atkins Diet Plan instructs you to take Psyllium Fiber to help with the above condition. The time … Continue reading The Story That Really Shouldn’t Be Told