Prayers for the Families

Yesterday, we learned of the all too soon death of a Buna alumni. It always leaves questions when some one is taken early in their lives.

This mother leaves young children and a family with heavy hearts.

Today, we learn of the loss of Nannie Fae. A long time Buna ISD employee who kept generations of Buna students fed.

There was only one Nannie Fae and she will be sorely missed.

I know and consider several of her family members as my friend.

I pray the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob brings comfort to both families in this time of sorrow.

My thoughts and continued prayers go out to the families and friends of both in this time.

Well...Too Cheesy?

In about 1 week I have my 40th high school reunion. I have convinced myself to go.

I drug this out. It now fits. ( Actually, it's too big for my finger now.)

Should I wear it? Too cheesy? Too juvenile? Too whatever?

Once Again, SE Texas Economy....Don't Look Good.

As many of you know, I spend a good part of the day watching the markets, and with it, the price of oil and the businesses involved with oil.

The price has been stagnant. Stuck.

It is a little better today with the price just below $50 a barrel, but the price is not good enough to keep oil companies from laying off people.

Earlier this week, Conoco-Phillips said that lay-offs from their company would continue.

Yesterday, Chevron announced 1500 lay-offs. 950 in Houston.

Today however was another coup de grace. Shell Oil announced they were laying off 6500.

As I have written in the past, this area is tied to oil. We are a one trick pony. There are no other industries...

Even retired teachers in Texas should be concerned. A great deal of Texas Teacher Retirement is invested in.....that's right, the oil industry.

Amy Gossett Made Me Write This Blog...

And at this point in my life, she could probably "beat me like red-headed step-child."

In all seriousness, if I had to go back to work, teaching, playing piano in a whorehouse, whatever, I would try and out-dress the best dressed person at the 'shop.'

When I first started teaching a Buna, I wore a tie everyday. Often with a jacket. I had come from a district that required a dress shirt and tie and it had become a habit.

My first couple of years, I was given "grief" by believe it or not, by some female teachers for dressing "up." They were really upset because I didn't wear jeans on casual Friday's.

I finally went " Native" after a few years and started dressing " Bunanite."

For a while because they let me, I wore jeans everyday....and work boots.

My last few years in Buna, I came to my senses. I started dressing better. A coat and tie everyday.

I felt better. I looked more academic. I hit the tweed hard when it got colder. Say what you want, when you go out in public dressed-up, you get treated better. Sorry, that's just the way it is.

Amy made the remark that she hoped to get a position in which she would be able to wear a suit and heels everyday. We were talking about how people dressed on Mad Men. How well Don Draper dressed.....and everyone in those days dressed better.

I look forward to dressing up now. I really do. If I ever get another invite to a BHS reunion, I'll " dress to the nines."

Call me a fop, call me a dandy, but as Beau Brummell once said, " Clothes make the man." And today if you want to make yourself stand out from the pack, dress up.

Killing a Lion

I doubt I will ever visit Africa. For our next trip, I was looking at us visiting Tunisia in the Med., but that was before an ISIS gunman killed 40+ British tourists on a beach in that nation. So, us going there...slim.

That said, I have hunted, and will probably hunt this Fall once again.

I have deer antlers on the wall in my den.

I really like deer sausage. I really like duck gumbo....

But, I will never be wealthy enough to hunt on a safari in Southern Africa.

I understand shooting various animals in Africa to thin the herd in order to keep them from starving.

Some animals, I do not understand why people shoot them. Giraffes or monkeys for example. I'm not eating a monkey. Too much like being a cannibal.

The lion who was killed by the dentist from Minnesota, well, I understand some people are upset because the lion was named, and famous, but you know, if the lion had half a chance, it'd have you for dinner...however, I could not see me killing a lion....once again, I am not eating a cat.

I am wondering. Will the media, excuse me, the damn media, use the killing of this lion to demonize all hunters? Most hunters I know do more to take care of wildlife. And I often wonder if the press in NYC and Washington D.C. Really understand the process that the steak they are having for supper went through? That the process the chicken for their chicken salad when through to get on that piece of bread?

I wonder...I seriously wonder?

Malaysian Airliner Found?

This has been a mystery for about a year and a half and I hope this is it.

They have found the wreckage of an airliner on Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean, near the coast of Madagascar. ( Off the Africa coast.)

Reunion Island is still a French Territory and to be honest, I am glad it washed up there. A nation like France has the resources to get to the bottom of if this is the plane or not.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3178978/Debris-floating-Indian-Ocean-missing-Malaysia-Airlines-flight-370.html?ito=social-facebook

Here's Why We Live in Texas

I have been to Buffalo, NY once in my life. We flew in when we decided to visit Ontario, Canada. ( Ontario is really nice. You need to try it.)

Buffalo was not impressive. Grey city, nothing exciting, the roads were well, awful. ( Buffalo International Airport is really nice however.) That said, the folks in Buffalo were nice enough.

When we flew into Buffalo International, we sat across the aisle from a couple from Buffalo who had been visiting their daughter in Dallas.....and as we started to land, the man slapped me on the shoulder and said, " hey, you're lucky, there is no snow on the ground." ( This was middle June)

Man, he wasn't kidding. It is the end of July. I just read an article that there are still piles of snow in Buffalo.

I know it was chilly when we were in Scotland, and most of the year it is like our Winter, but Buffalo? Snow on the ground in frickin' July? Late July?

No, I'm glad my ancestors came to Texas.

Go Ahead Buna Alumni, Pat Yourself....

From time to time I make my presence known in Buna.

Tractor Supply, New Family Dollar, Pizza Hut...What happened to Burger King? Good thing I retired, I couldn't "DO" breakfast. ( #1 with bacon, hash browns, coffee)

Today was one of those days.

And I was pleased to run into a few of my former students At everyone of my stops in town. ( I made four)

Once again, I am, as I always say, am glad to see every one of you....

But the big thing is, I am so very proud to see how well you are doing.

As I have said, I know there are bumps in the road from time to time, but you know, you all have figured out how to rectify and overcome your obstacles.

So, once again, pat yourself on the back.....you're doing good.

Mortality?

As many of you know, I have not been right since we returned from Germany.

I did some things to by back, other things of my health, well, actually, the German rail system and I have turned my thoughts often to my own mortality.

One of my favorite shows in a British murder mystery program, called " Inspector Lewis." Or as the program is often just called, " Lewis."

Inspector Lewis' partner is Sgt. James Hathaway, a Cambridge trained theology degreed former seminarian, who often asks difficult questions concerning life, our being.

Today's events made me wonder.( I wrote a blog, earlier, but pulled in down. In truth, it was not really anyone to blame, and I didn't want to seem I was laying blame, even though I was upset at the time. )

I have had a strange brush with fate during one of my surgeries in an attempt to fix my back. I had a bad reaction to being put under and have sort of a fear to this day of being " put out cold."

Today, I was like Sgt. Hathaway, I asked the question, " What are we for?"

I know when I had the opportunity to leave teaching, I did. And in truth, I couldn't stand the ancillary events that surround the profession anymore.

But I often ask the questions....

"Did I do right?"

" Did I do what I was suppose to do?"

" Am I doing right writing the blog?"

" Have I helped people?"

" Should I have done something else in my life?"

And the biggest one of all...

" What should I do or go next?"

I know this is a " Midnight Special" on the blog, but I wonder...How many of you are troubled by the same questions?

Oh Man, No God?

From time to time I see posts of Facebook that say things such as...

" Bring God back to school"

" Bring prayer back to the classroom"

Well, this weekend there was a statue erected to Baphomet, a demonic image used since the Middle Ages.

( Often Baphomet was associated with the Knights Templar during the Medieval Period, but that's another story for another day. Today, it is a demon associated generally with Satan.)



Sequenti die aurora apparente, altis vocibus Baphometh invocaverunt; et nos Deum nostrum in cordibus nostris deprecantes, impetum facientes in eos, de muris civitatis omnes expulimus.


As the next day dawned, they called loudly upon Baphometh; and we prayed silently in our hearts to God, then we attacked and forced all of them outside the city walls

But I digress.

In Detroit over the weekend a 9 foot, 1 ton statue of Baphomet was put up.

Orginally it was to be placed beside a statue of the Ten Commandments on the grounds leading up to the state capitol in Oklahoma. That is, before the Oklahoma Supreme Court has ordered the Commandments to be taken down. ( The Oklahoma governor so far has refused, but trust me in the end, she will lose. Especially when Federal courts start to get involved saying the " Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster" wants to put up a statue. )

As I have said, one day, there is going to be a group of people, and it might not be more than 5-6 people who want to " gather around the pole" in front of the high school and pray to Satan. Or there is a group who want an organization called " Youth for Buddha."

Are you going to tell folks " no" they can't do this? Is the tax dollars they pay for their kids to attend school not as good as your dollars?

Be ever so careful what you wish for folks....

Other People Who Need to Go to Hell....

So Aetna called today. Aetna is my health insurance provider through TRS-Care. And I am paying a pretty penny each month for the insurance.

They wanted me to speak to a nurse about healthy lifestyles.....and I decided to give it a try.

After a long discussion, I told the lady I had lost 130lbs., in the last two years.

Guess what, the idiot lady suggested I needed to lose another 40-50 lbs.

I told her I would weigh about 120-130 lbs. And she said " that would be an ideal weight."

I hung up on her.

Literally to lose to that I would have to stop eating, and walk 10 miles a day. I am looking at 60 years old. You know, I thought about losing down to a welterweight size just to see if I could do it, but you know, the last 20 lbs I lost were the hardest. It was like my body said " enough."

I already had no butt. Seriously, no fat on my rear. I have a hard time sitting in certain chairs. 130lbs? I would look like a death camp survivor who could never sit down.

120 lbs? Screw you Aetna.

Be Careful Folks!!!!

So, four Port Arthur Police Officers have gotten into trouble for their posts on Facebook.

When I was still teaching school, we were reminded about how you could lose your job for posting stuff on Facebook, Twitter, etc.

The biggie then was posting yourself with beer or whiskey in you hand. It seems the damn Baptists were getting upset because teachers drink. And trust me, I have sent email to former students who are now teaching about doing just that. Telling them to be careful...

Remember folks, ain't everyone a " half a bubble off" retired government teacher who can now say what he really thinks....

Greatest Invention of the 20th Century

There are a lot of great inventions during the 1900s, but I am of the opinion that the Birth Control Pill might be the greatest.

Seriously, it allowed women to not " stay" pregnant like people did in the past, and allowed women to become professionals, all with the ability of being married and being able to control the amount of children they could produce.

Some of you may say, " well, it allows unmarried women to have sex without ramifications."

Well, guess what, before 1960 when The Pill was introduced to the market, people were having sex. Many unmarried. And many people got married, at the point of the shotgun. Women disappeared for 9 months, and many women had a mysterious " D&C"....( look it up )

I know some people may get on here and say taking it is a sin, or sex for the shear pleasure of having sex is a sin, or using any type of artificial birth control is a sin, but I disagree. In my opinion, sex is an important part of a relationship, and being a Protestant, I don't see artificial birth control as a sin...

Sorry if you think a/c or the Internet or Blue Bell is a greater invention, I am convinced, The Pill trumps them all...

An American Icon....

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Sorry...I Am Not, Just Not

I have had a couple of suggestions, hints, etc... over the last few days to, consider a starting a church...

It ain't going to happen.

Sorry, I'm not suppose to do it.

I am at times pretty " High Church" and may on one Sunday wear a better robe than the Patriarch of Constantinople...then next Sunday wear a bow-tie and a tweed coat looking like some history teacher( old habits die hard), and then the next, a polo shirt and ratty jeans.

I would wear an Anglican " Dog-Collar" uptown to on an occasion just to " Piss people off."

I am not an administrator.

I cuss too much.

I see no problem with using alcohol.

I see no problem with using tobacco, having tattoos...

I would serve communion every Sunday, sometimes in a Dixie Cup. ( Cheap way to do it.) actual wine, not Welch's.

I'd be bad at hospital visits and funerals. Just awful...

I am afraid I would be too much Like Gene Scott or E. C. Fulcher in my style...

Finally, and this is serious. Unless I was just dragged kicking and screaming, I like being retired. ( Love it....the greatest job ever.)

You see, there are too many people who are preachers who have no business in the pulpit. If you can do ANYTHING else. Teach school, be a lawyer, plumber, boilermaker, etc....you may not need to be in the ministry.

Too many people in the vocation who are afraid to make people mad, too many people in the profession hanging on because their pension in through the denomination....

Sorry, not going to happen...

Privacy Concerns?

So, Wallace Hall has a lawsuit against the Univ. Of Texas-Austin to get the records of, well, pretty much every student at the school.

He is concerned that people who wrote letters of recommendation helped get people admitted that should not have gotten in, instead, they should have been down I-35 at Texas State in San Marcos, or at the Harvard of the Neches in Beaumont. The letters were written by state representatives, business leaders, etc.

Mr. Hall wants to prove that these people would not have gotten in without the letters.....and probably, they would not.....Hall is on the Board of Regents at UT.

The students in question number....73.....that's 73 over a number of years.

UT-Austin admits around 15,000 Freshmen every year.

I have always said if they really want to look at admissions, they need to look at those admitted with less than stellar GPAs and pitiful SAT scores...but they run a 4.2 forty, or stand 7 foot tall, or throw a 98 mph fastball, or won the 6A state tennis championship 3 years in a row.

The trouble is this, the opening of the records will open everyone's school records to scrutiny. Not just UT, but every school.....and we are talking college and high school.

Now, if you were under the old paper grade book system, they won't be wondering, " how the hell did they graduate?" Those old books are long shreaded.

The question is the new computer system. Even deleted, they can be recovered.

Now, I doubt questions like that could be brought up....but as crazy and goofy as stuff is in this day, you never know.

Sometimes, private stuff needs to be private. As a "World Famous Science Teacher" posted the other day, manners, work ethic, the kid doing the best they could often goes into a miricle " 70." ( I had a kid do some extra work during the Christmas Season. His effort graduated him. He will tell you that.)

Interesting times we live in....

Tattoos....

I do not have a tattoo. In truth, if I got one, I do not know what it would say.....

This said...

There has been some Biblical inspired posts concerning not having a tattoo....specifically Leviticus 19:28.

The trouble is, Leviticus tells us a bunch of stuff we ignore....( and other Biblical commands.)

Leviticus 11:8 says we shouldn't eat or even touch pork.

Leviticus 11:10 says no shrimp, lobster, crawfish, crab, or catfish.

Leviticus 19:19 says no fabric blends.

Deuteronomy 23:1 says a man can't be allowed in church with testicles or a penis....so, if you've lost them to say cancer, or an accident, your out of luck.

Mark 10:8-12 says no divorce....and if you remarry after your divorce, you are committing adultery.

1 Timothy 2:9 says you should not wear gold....or pearls.

Deuteronomy 25: 11-12 says if your wife defends you against an attacker by grabbing the attacker's genitals, you must cut your wife's hands off.


Look, having a tattoo is not going to keep you out of heaven, not eating pork, not wearing gold, not eating fried catfish all fall under this works business.


Grace and grace alone is getting you to heaven....not skipping bacon on your cheeseburger...my favorite verses always will be Ephesians 2:8-9...go read it.

Too Interested?

Look, I know this " Swinger's Club" is a curiosity to many of you....

But some of you are well, too curious. Email, private messages....makes me wonder? Do you want to know how to get ahold of the group?

If you posted on Facebook, this is NOT for you....

Makes me wonder about some of you?

37,000,000

37,000,000

That's how many members Ashley Madison, the " Affair" site has.

37,000,000 people are giving their information to a site to play " bury the wiener." 37,000,000 are paying to play " dunk the dingus."

And now the site and their info has been hacked.

It makes you wonder if it will slow membership down? Probably not.

And if there are these many people turning to pay sites to " Go crab fishing in the Dead Sea," how many are running around using the old fashion methods?

Work, bars, the grocery store, even church.....yes church.

There are some good church going folks playing " How's your Father." ( I know many of you go to services to be nearer to God, but one day when your not feeling close to the Holy Spirit, look around, see who is giving each other "goo-goo eyes" when " every head should be bowed, every eye closed." )

It was just the other day I discovered another member of then some-called Buna's Swinger Group. Yep " Taming the Strange" on Gum Slough....

Seems a couple of the group are regular readers of the blog.

Tell everyone at the group I said " Hello."

No Etiquette? No Culture? No Damn Class?

So, I go to the Family Dollar here in town....


Needed odds and ends and well, it was easier to get to than the other dollar store, so we got our stuff there.

As I came out, and my hands were full, ( big bag of 6 paper towels, two sacks of items) I held the door open for the bread man who was struggling with his cart, a lady I guess in her 30s and a teenage girl.

Neither the bread man nor the 30ish year old said a word. The teen said " thank you sir." ( I told her that her " momma raised her right", loud enough the others heard.)

The simple act of thank you, it seems is going away.

At one time, people were grateful for simple acts.....what has happened? Are we too good or think we are too good to say " thank you?"

Anyway, I won't be buying Nature's Own Products anytime soon...

I Shouldn't, But I Worry About This....

I know you are all professionals. I know you are all bound by HIPPA Rules. But at some time in my life, I am going to run into one of you in a professional medical situation....and it hasn't really yet.

I am taking about LVN, RN, Pharmacy Techs, Nurse Practitioner, Pharamcists, MD, DO, DDS, DC, Physical Therapist, RT, RRT, RTT etc.

And I am really proud of you. Seriously, I am.

Trouble is...and call me silly, call me shy, calm me reserve, call me private, I worry about well personal items...and I shouldn't, but I do.

At some point one of you is going to see me in a hospital gown, without my under attire and glance and say, " damn, my government teacher really was a Neanderthal."...or " Darwin was right, there is a Missing Link, and there he is..."

Or you look at my prescriptions, and go, " damn, how does he take that many pills in a day? " And the thing is, since the weight loss, the number has decreased. And then I take some stuff that is pretty serious and high powered. ( I know one of you in the healthcare business already knows about it.)

When I was in college as many of you know, I worked in a drug store. There was no such thing as a pharmacy tech in those days and often when I wasn't making deliveries, the druggist had me counting pills for a prescription. I remember a young lady I had graduated high school with coming in and getting her prescription for birth control pills filled. She was married, but it didn't keep her from turning six shades of red when she realized I was behind the counter.....she was so embarrased, she transferred her prescription.

Once again, I know it is silly to worry about these things, but I do....and if I ever see you in a professional situation, don't be surprised if I am shy or act embarrased.

The Queen is a Nazi? Why You Might be Interested?

So, the Sun, a sorry ass rag of a newspaper in England, better known for their Page 3 girls ( they are topless) has published a video from 1933 of the present Queen Elizabeth II.

The then princess is about 6 years old.

The video is shot by her uncle, the future King Edward VIII, shows Elizabeth giving a Nazi salute.

Now her uncle was only king for about a year. He gave up the throne so he could marry as The English said, " some American trollop." Elizabeth's dad then became king.

This is media today. Anything to sell papers.

Trust me most people in 1933 didn't have a clue about Hitler. This was 6 years before WWII. Most people in England never dreamed there'd be a second war with Germany.

The sad part is this. In this day and age of smart phones, you have to wonder, what silliness will be recorded when you were younger, that'll come out 25-30 years later? And be honest, as a kid, you did some stuff in which you didn't understand the ramifications.....you may want to talk to your kids....( I need to write a seperate blog on this don't I?)

When John Wayne Sucked...

Sorry Mattison Witt, he made some stinkers of some movies.

Two were on Thursday night. McQ and Brannigan.

Both of the movies were The Duke trying to cash in on the success of the " Dirty Harry" movies.

You see, before Clint Eastwood, John Wayne had been offered the role. He turned them down, said the movie was " too violet."

So, after the box office success of the " Dirty Harry" shows, he tried to cash in..

The two movies, made in 74-75 showed a 66-67 year old Wayne, who was sick by this time, ( He'd had a lung removed due to cancer) wearing a bad hair-piece, and carrying a gun well, John Wayne should have carried bigger gun.

I know the Colt firearm company was trying to sell guns from one of the movies, just like the S&W .44 mag. that Dirty Harry carried made everyone want a Model 29. John Wayne in Brannigan carried a Colt Diamondback .38 Special.

The Colt is a nice weapn, but by the mid-1970s, most cops were carrying a .357 mag. and all wanted not the Diamondback, but the Colt Python.( He carried the Python in the first movie. It was like he couldn't handle the .357 so he got a smaller pistol.)

I am a big .38 fan. My 84 year old mother carries a. 38....they are fun guns, they like all guns can do damage, but when I CHL, I carry a .44 special.

John, you should have retired before these movies. At some point, " old age humbles us all."

I Almost Cussed...Well, Actually, I Did...

So, I saw last Sunday's Beaumont Enterprise. ...What a waste of newsprint and paper, but that's another story. ( And yes, I am about a week behind.)

I took a look at the massive stack of ads in the paper...and the first one says " Back to School." And the second one says, " Get Ready for School!!!"

I go into a panic.

I used bad words.

And just as quick as I fall to pieces, I realize....I don't have to go back...I'm done...Thank you Jesus...

Old habits die hard...

Okay, It Is Time.

First, I am so mad at Fox News. They should have had a ten second delay. They know better. They had a feed from a helicopter from the site of the shooting in Tennessee. And they showed a photo of one of boys as he laid on the ground after the attack. Fox, you know better. That Marine deserves better.....any damn thing to get " there" first...

It is time ladies and gentlemen.

I do not know what it is going to take. We are going to have to take the fight to Iraq. Take it to Syria. Go in hard, go in ugly.

We can't let this happen here without retribution.

ISIS is a group that needs to be stopped. Whether you believe it or not, most Muslims are scared to death of them.

Any group them captures women and sells them as sex slaves needs to be done away with.

Tell the Saudis the Kuwatis to pay for the entire operation.

I know this may not be a popular statement, but it's time to mount and and go back. And keep the media away. That way the U.S. Military can do what needs to be done.

If it doesn't begin now, we will have more attacks like this down the road....

Just When You Think You've Seen It All.....

So, yesterday, I took a look at Amazon " Prime"....just too see if there was anything worth joining the service to actually buy....( I've never seen more crap in my life they were trying to dump.)

One item stuck out liKe a sore thumb.

A 55 gallon drum of " personal lube."

It includes a pump.

As I've said for years, " you can't make this stuff up."

Who on earth needs that much lube? A whorehouse? Newlyweds? The Buna Swinger's Club? ( Yes, there is one....and I know names...ain't telling, but I know who you are.....)

I don't know, but just when you think you've seen it all...

http://www.amazon.com/Passion-Natural-Water-Based-Lubricant-Gallon/dp/B005MR3IVO

That One "Person"

So, this is the third time someone has tried to be me on Facebook.

It is either some idiot in Russia or China trying to be me for some nefarious reason.....or it is someone who knows me.

Probably an ex-student.

Listen ass-clown. I don't know what I have done to you. Don't know if you think it is cute or funny or your mother dressed you funny as a child....

Or you think I treated you badly in school.

I treated EVERYONE badly in school. I tried to be fair in that area.

Sure, I am friends with ex-students now, but, they are grown people now. Hell, I think some of them are now older than me maturity wise. ( I have regressed. I can be silly now. I couldn't for over thirty long years. I can be a " guy" again....I can also be more sentimental.)

Are you upset because you don't have my cell number? Well, you ain't getting it now....

So, next time you want to be " me" well, just don't....

If You Are Facebook Friends With Me.....Read Please!

I am not sending out friend requests.

If I start a new Facebook page, will let you know before I do so.

If you receive a friend, just deny and move on....

Thanks.

You're From Texas....Stop, Just Stop.

It is called July. It is Texas. It is suppose to be hot. I have lived here for almost 60 years. I can't remember it not being hot in the Summer.

Look, most of our ancestors left Europe, and if you were in Scotland or Ireland where my ancestors hailed from, you'd be griping about how " bloody cold" it is...( However, it would be really cool to wake up in Edinburgh tomorrow morning.)

It will be hot until October.

And then, the temps will get tolerable....maybe.

You will go to the first high school game in Week 0 and it'll be " fires of hell" hot. That's because the first game is in August.

This is Texas folks. It is suppose to be hot....Kwicherbichen....

If I Hear This Again....

I was looking at a friend of mine's Facebook post and he was asked where their child was going to college this Fall...and he replied, " just Lamar."

Dammit, I swear, if I hear that again....

Lamar folks is a pretty darn good university....oh I know those of us who went there make fun of the place, " Pecker Tech." And the " Harvard on the Neches." But you know, you can get a pretty darn good education there...

It wasn't until I went off to grad school in Ft. Worth that I realized that Lamar turns out a pretty good product.

I was just as bright and did better in many cases than those Univ. Of Texas, Texas A&M, Baylor, LSU, OU, etc grads.

Look folks, people who go to law school or medical school from Lamar do just as well as everyone else.

So, be proud of your LU education. Stop being so pessimistic...if it was so bad, why are all of those foreign students working on degrees out there?

I'm Sorry....I Know You'll disagree....

I am going to get disagreement..

I know people will say the damn Beatles. The Rolling Stones...hell, even the Beach Boys. ( Get Pet Dreams)

I have listened and blown my ear drums out this morning....Led Zeppelin is the quintessential Rock N Roll band.....I know, I know, Skynard.......I know some of you youngesters will say Guns N Roses......some will say The Hendrix Experience.....and they are worth listening to.....but I have listened to Zep since 1972....I have never gotten tired listening to them.

Besides, as Shannon said this morning, you can play a drinking game based on every time Robert Plant says " Baby."

Okay Native Texans.....

So, there has been a huge jump up and down about secession from the union......again.

My questions are this....if you leave, whT are you going to do about the following?

Money.

People have gotten all excited thinking Texas is moving thier gold reserves from New York to Austin.

All $601 million dollars.

That would run the Texas Government until about 11am Tuesday. Texas' budget for the 16-17 Budget Years is $202 billion. That is running schools and taking care of highways. Just think how much it would increase if you had to have a defense budget, and trust me, that would triple the budget.

What would you do about the millions of Texans....

On Social Security?

On Medicare and Medicaid?

What would you do about all the Texans whose mortgage or car loans or boat loans are held in dollars....in banks that are headquartered outside Texas?

If you print your money, it has to be fiat money, will be backed only if people accept it. ( and what if the Euro Zone or the Bank of England makes it worth a third of the dollar? You are screwed. )

Let's look at demographics

The Anglo ( that's white folks) population is about 11,000,000. The Latino population of Texas....10,000,000. And growing twice as fast as the Anglo population.

And the Latino population is much younger than the Anglo. Latinos are 51% of the make-up of Texas schools. Anglos? 29%.

If you secede, what happens if Latino community decides to rejoin Mexico again? Or a form of a Latin American nation?


If you are Republican, enjoy it. I've predicted this for a while. Texas will become more and more purple. In your life ( not mine I'm gone within 20 years) Texas will vote Democratic.

Secede from the union? Not going to happen...

Trump

So, Donald Trump has captivated the angry section of the Republican Party.

This is early in the campaign. We are 7 months away from the first primary in New Hampshire. 7 months. So many things will have changed since then. So much.

I know he's struck a nerve about people on immigration in the GOP.

But you've got to remember the following about Trump.

- He has not been a Republican very long.

- He has given millions of dollars to Democratic candidates.

- For years he has praised Hillary Clinton. It wasn't until he decided to run for US President that he turned against her.

- He was critical of Mitt Romney for taking weaker positions on immigration. He said Romney was " too mean" in other words it his only been in the last couple of years he has changed his position on immigration.

He has a lot of money. He could run as a third party spoiler.

He had a TV show. He has been a public figure for years.

Polls show this 30% think Trump is honest/trustworth....44% do not....62% of Republicans see him as a side show...

He ain't going to be president.

Cold?????

So, the British newspapers are jumping up and down about the possibility of 'so called' " Mini Ice Age."

The Ice Age is to be caused by the sun going into a 'sleep.' ( Cooling down for a bit before it re-heats.)

Well, there are climate changes that we have not control over. And to be honest, if we have an Ice Age, there is little we can do about it.

Let me remind you that the weather here would be similar to perhaps Kansas or Nebraska and there would be dramatic periods of cold. You could see ice on the Neches and Sabine. Not frozen over, but ice.

In London, during the last Mini- Ice Age 1600-1870, the Thames River totally froze over and people were able to walk on the river, they even had horses pull wagons on the river. ( Man, I wouldn't want to know what Edinburgh was like...actually, I'd go to just see how cold it was.) The had celebrations on the river called " Frost Fairs."

The Great Lakes of what is now the United States had chunks of ice on them in July.

This period of predicted cold is now for 5 years yet ( 2020) and it remains to be seen just how accurate the " weather guessers" are.

That said, you do not know what the weather is going to be like.

I know they are saying this is an El Nino year for us here in Texas....which means a cooler and wetter Winter. We will see.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3156594/Is-mini-ICE-AGE-way-Scientists-warn-sun-sleep-2020-cause-temperatures-plummet.html

Okay! I Hear You!

Got letters about my panhandling blog.

No, I am not broke. Doing okay right now, doesn't mean in the future I won't need money.

No, I am not going to actually panhandle. It was suppose to be a light blog....humorous....calm the hell down...

However, if you really want to send me cash or a check or plane tickets to Europe or Japan or Australia or New Zealand. I will give you my address. ( I prefer London, Edinburgh or Glasgow. ) :)

And finally, Kimchi, Kimchee, and Gimchi are all correct when writing the Korean dish....( got a letter on that.)

STOP THE HATE!!!

I am sick of the throw away the cole slaw photos.

I for one, am a fan of the cabbage.

I'll eat cole slaw with my fish, fries and smile. ( In England, they serve mushy English peas with fried fish and "chips," it's actually pretty darn good)

I love boiled cabbage and sausage.

I love Sauerkraut. Geben Sie mir einige Wurst!

I will even eat Kimchee. ( Buddy, that'll clear your sinuses. )

So stop it! Cole slaw is good stuff!

I Swear....I Am Going to Do This....

So, as I said, we traveled through several towns in East Texas on the way home.

I was surprised how many people were out, on a Monday trying to raise money...for something. Mostly, religion, churches, the like.

Yes, on a Monday...

I am going to get dressed up and go someplace and get me a bucket. Stand here on Hwy 62 and Hwy 12, or Hwy 62 and Hwy 96.

Going to put on it something catchy...." Will teach history for food.: "Raising money for my presidential campaign," : " Give me money for letting your dumb-ass graduate." : "Need money to pay for my health insurance." : " Send me back to Scotland, maybe I won't come back."

So, if you see me out panhandling one day, don't be surprised.

21 and Over

21...that's the new age that people and legislators are going to start pushing for people to be able to buy tobacco products.

Heck, I can remember when you could go into a store/shop in just about anyplace in Texas at 14,15, even younger and the businessperson would sell you cigarettes, or chewing tobacco. They either thought it was for a parent or didn't care. A sale was a sale.

When I was in high school, there was a smoking area across the ditch at the high school I attended. High schoolers openly kept packs of Marlboros or Winstons on the desks or in their shirt pockets. No one cared. Heck, teachers smoked in the lounge.

Oh, the members of the House and Senate from Kentucky and Virginia and North Carolina will put up a fight, but sooner than you realize, you'll need to be 21 before you can buy tobacco.

I wonder if it will do any good? Or make youth want to smoke and dip even more? That forbidden fruit?

Whatever Happened?

I may ask about some folks from time to time.

Just curious. I have taught 3500-4000 people in my life and many, many don't do social media, have enough sense not to become involved, and to be honest, I wonder...." Whatever happened to so and so?"

I know there are former students who are no longer with us.

I know there are students in " Uncle Bo-Bo." ( I have a former student who is up for his first parole hearing in 2041)

So, I may ask you from time to time if you know whatever happened to a person. You may want to send me a pm or an email when you answer.

Just curious. I actually want to see everyone doing well. Even those who were a pain in the ass in school...

KFC

I can't remember the last time I have eaten at KFC.

I can't tell you the nearest KFC restaurant.

At one time Kentucky Fried Chicken was THE fried chicken chain in America.

When KFC was started, Col. Harland Sanders was the spokesman for the chain. Yes, he dressed in white seersucker suits, yes he had a goatee...it was Col. Sanders who started KFC, it was his 11 herbs and spices recipe.

KFC has brought back Col. Sanders, well an actor playing him...

But that is where the similarities end. Col. Sanders was very dignified. Very much the gentleman, and professed his Christian belief.

The nitwit that is now portraying Col Sanders is just that, a nitwit. It is so silly, so stupid it makes me want to never go to KFC. ( Like I was going anyway.)

Is it just me, but does the new Col. Sanders look like a guy you'd want to keep your children away from?

Well, The Wheels Come Off The Truck....

So, several things happened while I was off for the holiday....

First Iran.....what the hell? The Obama Administration is going to allow them to build a nuke. A damn atomic bomb. What the hell is wrong with Sec. Of State John Kerry? Many of you were not alive in 1979-80 when the Iranians held the Americans hostage in Teharan....Many of you do not remember the protests at Lamar Univ. against the Shah by Iranian students. ( The Iranian Navy and Air Force sent dozens of students to Beaumont, TX to study engineering.) The damn place almost went out of control for a while....had a discussion with a friend both of us saying....will this screw up us getting our degree?

No to Iran having nukes. I am wondering if the religious leaders there having the bomb thinks this brings them one step closer to the end of time?

Greece.....keep an eye on them...I was surprised the markets didn't dip more than what they did. And the price of oil...the stronger the dollar, the cheaper oil becomes.

That said, Greece may become a heck of a bargain to visit as a tourist location. Thousands of beaches.( Topless beaches) Greek history, thousands of islands to visit. Greek food....might be a place to consider.

Some people are predicting a dictatorship in Greece....


I am wondering, if they collapse, will the Euro? Will we have the Deutchmark again? The French franc? The Portugese escudo? Or hell let's go trad in Portugal and go real....

I seriously wish I had a mayonnaise jar full of Swiss francs buried in the back yard....

Bill Cosby....well, Quauludes are a hell of a drug.

Drunk..swimming with alligators.....drunk, placing fireworks on your head....neither are a good idea. Both Darwin Award nominees....

You Ever Wonder About Yourself??

Do you ever wonder how you are so different from your family members?

I mean the entire extended family?

I mean, they all own or want to own some sort of a camper or RV or massive camping trailer and drag it all over the nation....I have no interest. Why? Get on a plane and travel to that place in the United States or Canada or in 6 hours, be in Scotland. Get out of the plane, rent a car, take a taxi, and rent a hotel....and then they decide they got to cook breakfast, or supper, and got to clean up the dishes...nearly every hotel has a free breakfast now. Even in Europe....and for supper, eat different foods of the region/ nation. Travel? Yes. But go there and when you are done, you can get home in 4-5 hours.

They all listen to music that I cannot stand. It is boring. I've heard it all my life and as a kid I didn't like it. I understand it is church type music, but I do not enjoy it. I am pretty sure if when I die And they are singing Southern Gospel when I get there, I have not made it to heaven.

They all go to church and while at one time I sort of enjoyed attending, it was like I had a revelation one day. And I really don't enjoy going to church anymore. I literally have nothing in common with most of the other people in the pews. I often question what a minister or pastor or priest says. I would question things in a Sunday School class. If you're going to preach, given me some meat on the bone. I don't want to hear politics. I don't want to hear about tithing.if you're going to preaching on the tithe, then you have got to tell folks to stop eating crawfish, bacon and shrimp. You've got to tell folks they've got to stop being gluttons, and money hungry, and actually love their neighbor...( I know, I digress.) don't go to church because, well, we always have...

I don't enjoy the same things they do. And I never really have...

It's like somehow I am different. And it's been that way my entire life.

Maybe there was a mix-up at the hospital or my DNA was messed up somehow?

Hey! I Am Back!

Good not to have to write a blog everyday....and I really actually sort of missed it.

Have several topics to discuss in future blogs....

However...if you are a former student of mine, worked with me, whatever...please give me a heads up on a possible recommendation.

I am more than glad to write letters or answer questionares or phone calls, or whatever to help you get a job, get you into a school, keep you from getting kicked out of a school, write a letter to a judge to keep you out of jail...seriously, happy to do it.

However, if it is something I can't foresee coming, give me a heads up. ( Had a phone call this morning, so odd, so strange, I can't tell you, and at first I thought they pulling a prank....but It wasn't.)

I actually like 99.9999% of you and I don't hate that .0001% of you enough to give you a bad recommendation.

Thanks!

Okay.....Readers

Going to take a few days off.

Need to regroup, shoot a couple of new revolvers, decide where and what to do next.

I will be honest, I have never seen the United States so divided like it is this July 4th. ( Vietnam maybe?) It is sort of concerning.

I really need to see where this blog needs to go from here or just take a sabbatical? ( Or just start a new one?)

Have a good holiday folks!

Okay Gay Folks, This is for You...

Okay this blog is sent out especially to my gay readers and I know that others will read, but it is generally for you.

As my old time readers know, I have been fairly supportive of gay marriage. As I have said, I could not from a government/state point of view ban it

That said, a couple of things.

1. I know a number of you are caught up in the moment and have decided to get married....and in many cases, I wonder if it is because, well " you can" not because you want to spend the rest of your life with that one person.

I know people I went to high school with who got married at age 17-18 just to prove to their parents, teachers, whoever, that they were grown ass people and could do whatever they want...well, most are divorced now.

Divorce is not pleasant. It is not a happy situation. In most cases it is pretty damn expensive.

Think long and hard before you marry.

2. Now that you have been given the right to marry, it doesn't mean you will keep getting special recognition, special "rights. "

Example- Michael Sam the football player left his pro team in Canada because he and his boyfriend broke up. He was able to rejoin the ballclub after a two week absence.

In most situations, if you divorce, your boss ain't going to care. He/she needs a body filling a position. They will find someone who can work.

It is going to become everyday common occurrence for people straight and gay to marry. The newness will wear off.

Okay, I've said my piece. Good luck to you.

Spinning out of Control

It just seems things are just spinning so fast.....you can't keep up with news, events....the changing world...

Then, I see this morning that when Pope Francis visits Bolivia here in the coming days, he plans to chew coca leaves. Yes, that's the leaves that make cocaine. It's the same leaves the Indians in Bolivia have chewed for years to keep their energy up. Stave off hunger.

Yes sir, that's all we need, the Pope all doped up....first chewing leaves, then snorting cocaine, and finally smoking crack. That should make for some interesting Papal Bulls.

Where is Father Guido Sarducci when you really need him? ( Showing my age here...old SNL )