One Of The Most Vile Mass Murders In American History And I Can’t Recall It Happening

I watched a newly released episode of People Magazine Investigates on ID, Children of Thunder, that happened in the Bay Area of California. It seems worse than the Manson Murders. It involves the murders of the ex-wife and daughter of Blues Musician, Elvin Bishop, as well as 3 others. The song I most remember Elvin Bishop for is; I Fool Around And Fell In Love, which was written about his then wife Jenny. The whole story and the motives behind them are far too difficult to explain here. If you are into this type of thing, you may want to … Continue reading One Of The Most Vile Mass Murders In American History And I Can’t Recall It Happening

My Food Phobia

The mind works in mysterious ways. At least I know mine does. I claim to have an eating disorder. No it’s not anorexia. I have a difficult time eating if I don’t know the cleanliness practices that were used while preparing food. I didn’t grow up worrying about such things, but for my adult life I’ve had this fear. I know it’s irrational to go into a fast food place where 12 teenagers, without a care in the world past body piercings and heavy metal music are preparing food that has been handled by who knows what. Those places are … Continue reading My Food Phobia

Hiring Chief

Back in the days when blasting was necessary on almost every project, we would have to hire outside “blasting contractors” to supplement our forces. We had done this on a big subdivision we were building and this guy was well into a project and he didn’t show up for several days. I would stop by and it was evident his crew was without leadership and therefore without direction. The guy’s name was Ron. So I ask where Ron was. No one knew but they were beginning to get concerned because payday was coming up and he hadn’t been seen for … Continue reading Hiring Chief

The Back Nine or “Growing Old Gracefully”

You know … Time has a way of moving quickly and catching you unaware of the passing years. It seems just yesterday that I was young, just married and embarking on my new life with my mate. Yet in a way, it seems like eons ago, and I wonder where all the years went. I know that I lived them all. I have glimpses of how it was back then and of all my hopes and dreams. But, here it is… The back nine of my life and it catches me by surprise… How did I get here so fast? … Continue reading The Back Nine or “Growing Old Gracefully”

Cruising The UT Drag

The spring of 1971 found Jimmy Frasier and me in Austin one Friday afternoon. Probably for no other reason than hoping to find some excitement. I had a brand new Chevrolet pickup. We decided a drive down to the Drag was in order. When we got as far a 34th street on Guadalupe, heading south when we stopped for a red light. A couple of pretty young UT gals were in the right lane, with us in the left. Paying more attention to the girls than to driving, when the light changed as they eased off. So did we. The … Continue reading Cruising The UT Drag

A Trip To See The Doctor

A few years ago, my wife and I were getting ready to leave for a trip of a lifetime. A trip that I was really excited about. We were flying up to Calgary Canada and getting on a train to spend the next few days traveling west to Vancouver. The train moved along during the daytime, stopping at night, allowing us to sleep in nice hotel rooms. Once we got to Vancouver, we spent a day or so there then boarded a cruise ship for a trip up to Alaska to see the amazing sights and then back again, where … Continue reading A Trip To See The Doctor

Mobile Phones On The Cheap

After the prosperous years of the 80’s came the real estate bust of the late 80’s and early 90’s. Kenny, Coy (of double tailed quarter fame) and I were teamed up again doing work together. The days of mobile phones had given way to pagers and pay phones. Mobile phones were very costly in the early days. My average phone bill in the 80’s was $1,000 – $1,200 per month. And that wasn’t for the whole company, that was just me. I stayed on the phone constantly, conducting business and doing a fair share of BSing. Those costs just weren’t … Continue reading Mobile Phones On The Cheap

Don’t Be Passing On The Shoulder

When I drive around Houston now I reflect on how much different it was in 1975-76. Where there are freeways and toll roads everywhere, back then you used a lot of 2 lane roads to get around. We were living over in the Alief area of southwest Houston and traveled Highway 6 a lot. There was intersection at Richmond Rd. or Westhiemer Rd. where traffic would back up for a half mile and take 30 minutes to get through. One Friday afternoon Madeline, the baby and I were leaving Houston to spend the weekend at Marble Falls. We had been … Continue reading Don’t Be Passing On The Shoulder

The Highway Patrolman Down By Paleface Park

Besides racing Shetland’s at Paleface and eating lots of BBQ at the Paleface Store I have one other story that connects to that area. One Sunday morning Kenny, Karen, Madeline and I were heading from Marble Falls to our great grandmother Purcell’s for a birthday celebration at Luling. I was driving Madeline’s new 1974 Pontiac Granville with that big 455 cubic inch engine in it. Most likely I was exceeding the speed limit. Oh of course I was. Because of gas rationing they had just reduced the speed limit to a maximum of 55 MPH statewide, so almost everyone broke … Continue reading The Highway Patrolman Down By Paleface Park

The Shetland Jockey’s At Paleface Park

It’s always fun listening to kids, starting back when I was one, dreaming about where their life would take them. “What I want to be when I grow up”, kind of stuff. Then I heard it from the next generation, my kids and their friends. Now I get to hear the dreams of my own grandchildren. I’m going to be a pro-ball player. I’m going to be an astronaut. Life is made of dreams. I was no different. Well maybe a little different. As I got on up in my teen years I just thought more about doing whatever it … Continue reading The Shetland Jockey’s At Paleface Park