Got All These Buckets Coming Out Of My Ears

Private property rights should rule supreme

2009-07-11T08:23:00.000-07:00

There are two news stories floating around in the 24-hour spin cycle which concern supposed discrimination being perpetrated by the Mormon Church and a private pool in Philadelphia. It seems that the Mormons had asked some gay men to leave the church plaza in Salt Lake City for making a public display of affection to one another, while in Philly it was a private pool that had decided that allowing a large group of inner-city black youth to use their facility was a mistake and denied them access.

In both cases the dreaded specter of "discrimination" has begun to rear its ugly head over both incidents. Well, yes, that IS what this is. Discrimination. That this is also the very essence of private property rights and what true liberty is all about should not be lost on any of us. When something is privately held it is your right and privilege, to yes, discriminate. I have the right to keep people out of my house that are unwelcome and so does the LDS Church and the Valley Club in Pennsylvania.

Do I personally agree with these decisions? That does not matter one iota. The fact that these privately held entities decided to act in their own self interest on their own property is all that matters. Period. By asserting their private property rights they have put a healthy check on tyranny and a boost to liberty for us all.

Mormons: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-07-10-utah-gay-couple_N.htm

Philadelphia pool: http://snipurl.com/mp5ue

"As a man is said to have a right to his property, he may be equally said to have a property in his rights." ------James Madison

Same old, same old

2009-05-13T09:58:00.000-07:00

"If you are a poor, hapless Afghan civilian whose family's bodies were ripped apart by U.S. bombs, does it really make a difference to you if the air "strikes" were ordered by the Moron from Texas, George W Bush, or the Agent of Change, Barack Obama? I would think not. If you were a Pakistani civilian whose village had been bombed by the U.S. would your heart be comforted by the fact that the mad bombers have a new, young, hip "Commander-in-Chief" who makes funny jokes to all the stenographers known as "The Washington Press Corps"? I sincerely doubt that as well."

The full piece in its entirety: http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig8/spielberg9.html

Returning to the gold standard

2009-03-31T02:39:00.000-07:00

Russia wants to return to the gold standard. Well, it's about time someone got it right:

http://snipurl.com/ex83q

Lynyrd Skynyrd Keyboardist Billy Powell Dies

2009-01-28T12:32:00.000-08:00

Lynyrd Skynyrd keyboard player Billy Powell died today at his home in Florida of natural causes. He was one of the greats of Southern rock and with his death there is only one last remaining original member of the band that is still alive, guitarist Gary Rossington.

The heavenly reunion of one of the best bands to ever play rock 'n roll draws ever nearer.

http://snipurl.com/awb6a

What's really happening in Gaza

2009-01-05T15:34:00.000-08:00

The reality of bombing Gaza.

Just wanted to post a link for my American friends who may not have the wherewithal to delve much beyond the state worshiping media here at home and may want to get a tiny glimpse at what Israeli bombs (U.S. manufactured and taxpayer funded) really do when they land in Gaza.

May God have mercy on all of our souls.

http://palestinian.ning.com/forum/topics/the-other-side-of-the-story

Kirby passes

2008-12-13T09:41:00.001-08:00

Kirby (2000 - 2008)

Bill & Janel Bassett's beloved dog Kirby passed away a few days ago in Springdale, Utah. According to Bill the whole canyon community is in mourning as they lost a great friend that had acquired the nickname of the Doggie Lama due to his human-like intelligence and warm personality.

In addition to being a member of the Bassett family he also ran unsuccessfully for a Springdale town council seat in 2003 with the memorable campaign slogan: "Make no bones about it, Kirby is the best doggone candidate for Springdale."

He will be sorely missed.

Some Change!

2008-12-06T07:51:00.000-08:00

It was quite a sickening spectacle to endure all of the sycophantic nonsense concerning the sudden messianic rise of a slick Chicago machine politician into the office of the U.S. presidency. With all of the wild and ecstatic hoo-hollering from the masses over this charlatan and his hollow sounding promises of CHANGE, even I was starting to think something really new and important was about happen.

No. I didn't really think that.

I am, though, beginning to get a better picture of what that word may actually mean to the anointed Savior of America and think that, so far, his initial moves have been quite impressive:

The first big momentous CHANGE that has occurred was his decision to bring the Clinton clan back into the Executive branch of the federal gummit. The nomination of war-hawk Hillary has drawn rave reviews from such fringe radicals as Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld and Henry Kissinger.

Clinton era retread and political attack dog Rahm Emanuel is a nice touch for chief-of-staff as is Eric Holder (Attorney General) and John Podesta who also hail from that illustrious team of policy wonks and wise men who formerly infested the vaunted West Wing of the White House. Is James Carville not too far behind?

For Treasury Secretary we have Tim Geithner, the power-elite's flunky at the New York Federal Reserve. No surprise, since he's been touted by the likes of Alan Greenspan and Ben Bernake.

Geithner's resume is impressive: Kissinger and Associates, Council on Foreign Relations, International Monetary Fund and the G30. But he likes to fly-fish, play tennis, and surf, so I think that balances him out.

Bill Richardson, another leftover from the Clinton administration (Energy Secretary) is now going to be the Commerce Secretary. Does anybody out there know what actual duties that job entails? Or Energy for that matter? Oh, I almost forgot, he's also the most important Hispanic member of the team. Remember Roberto Gonzalez? You always gotta have at least one.

The current Bush appointed Defense Secretary Robert Gates has been invited to stay on to help keep the war machine humming as the bloody occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan continue unabated. The Messiah has hinted that he may want to attack Pakistan or Iran sometime in the near future so it's probably smart to have guys like Gates around when the need arises to implement further carnage.

So far, I'd say that's some pretty impressive CHANGE.

Can't wait to see what other NEW and exciting things unfold after the Holy Anointing on January 20th.

Is Maya Angelou going to read an Inaugural poem, again?

The holiday season has arrived in Tennessee

2008-11-24T08:48:00.001-08:00

Happy Holidays!

Later on, when the sun set........

Thoughts of peace from the Latter Day Saints

2008-11-20T10:50:00.000-08:00

Jeremy Ashton is a wonderful writer/essayist and proponent of Constitutional law. He is fervently anti-war, pro-free market and also happens to be a devout member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

Today he put out an essay, entitled "The Holy War", which weaves together the various strands of religious and social dogmas in his faith that confirm the view that God stands for peace and most definitely condemns involvement in aggressive war.

It is refreshing to hear this message from a contemporary Christian writer and I was elated that he used quotes from one my favorite LDS leaders Reuben Clark, who in addition to being an inspiring and dedicated church elder was politically every bit a libertarian leaning conservative of his time.

http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig8/ashton3.html

If you like this essay please check out his website: www.ldsfreemen.com

Reuben Clark (1871 - 1961)

The kitten is still cute

2008-11-17T14:06:00.000-08:00

The kitten has been with us for 3 weeks now and is healthy and growing.

Mitch Mitchell R.I.P.

2008-11-14T09:14:00.000-08:00

It caused a twinge of sadness when I heard the news that Mitch Mitchell had passed away at the age of 62 in Portland, Oregon on Wednesday. He was a great rock drummer who helped bring out the best in Jimi Hendrix, playing and recording with him right up until the end of his tragically short life.

One of my favorite Hendrix songs ever recorded was an instrumental piece titled "Beginnings", written by Mitch Mitchell, that is on the now long out of print record album War Heroes. (I still have the vinyl and love to turn it up and shake the walls down).

All the members of the Experience are now dead (Jimi in 1970 and Noel in 2003). I hope that they are having one helluva of a raucous reunion somewhere in the heavens above.

After all the jacks are in their boxes
And the clowns have all gone to bed
You can hear happiness staggering on down the street
Footsteps dressed in red
And the wind whispers Mary

A broom is drearily sweeping
Up the broken pieces of yesterdays life
Somewhere a queen is weeping
Somewhere a king has no wife
And the wind, it cries Mary

The traffic lights, they turn blue tomorrow
And shine their emptiness down on my bed
The tiny island sags down stream
cause the life that lived,
Is dead
And the wind screams Mary

Will the wind ever remember
The names it has blown in the past?
And with this crutch, its old age and its wisdom
It whispers no, this will be the last
And the wind cries Mary

Good night boys. Hope y'all have a good gig with lots of free drinks on the house. Say hello to Muddy and Janis for me.

Too weird to be true!

2008-11-07T09:28:00.000-08:00

From the headlines of my local paper:

http://snipurl.com/57hf3

The real news is going to put The Onion out of business.

Go figure

2008-11-05T15:09:00.000-08:00

For the third year in a row the Atlantic hurricane season was predicted to be "well above average" in the number of named storms and systems that would form over this quadrant of the planet. Instead it has, yet again, been a below average storm season with 2007-2008 marking a record of inactivity in the Northern Hemisphere not seen in some 30 years.

Now that's three years in a row that they've gotten it dead wrong. Go figure.

I often wonder if dire environmental predictions now serve a societal purpose? Are they just one more thing to add to the color-coded matrix of fear the government and the 24-hour media spin cycle can use to keep us frightened, alarmed and standing by for further developments?

Would anyone dare issue a prediction of a calm storm season these days? I sort of doubt it. It might be seen as an irresponsible act towards the security of the Homeland.

This year many meteorologists are predicting a cold winter, especially in the Northeast and Midwest. With virtually no sunspot activity this past year it seems a certainty, to me mind you, that the planet is entering a period of much cooler weather. I wouldn't bet the house on it ('cause it ain't paid for yet) but I suspect that those of you in places like Michigan and New Hampshire are in for some frigid butts come January. We'll just have to wait and see.

Let's hear it for Iraq!

2008-10-28T13:25:00.000-07:00

Funeral for the victims of the recent American air strike in Syria.

An important news story was buried in today's headlines concerning the government of Iraq's condemnation of the recent U.S. air strike into Syria which killed 9 and injured 19. What stood out the most for me was this particular quote from their official statement: "The Iraqi government rejects U.S. aircraft bombarding posts inside Syria. The constitution does not allow Iraq to be used as a staging ground to attack neighboring countries." WOW! They actually follow their Constitution! Imagine that!

The U.S. government could learn a thing or two from them, don't ya think?

http://snipurl.com/4scpz

Georgia vs. LSU

2008-10-23T16:33:00.000-07:00

It don't get no better than this folks, an SEC battle par excellence will occur this Saturday when the #9 Georgia Bulldogs face down the #11 LSU Tigers in Baton Rouge. This will be a crucial test that the Dawgs must pass if they are to remain in contention for a shot at the SEC East title. Alabama is the only other upper echelon opponent they have faced this season, who proceeded to demolish them before a national television audience in their own house.

I really don't like talking about it.

LSU was also embarrassed in their sole loss to the Florida Gators and will be looking for redemption as they defend their national title with an eye to repeating the feat again in January. This should be a great game that I hope Georgia can win. Predicted score: GA over LSU 34 - 30.

In the Sky

2008-10-22T15:30:00.000-07:00

The following clip from a 1968 performance on the BBC by the Mothers is one of my all time favorite songs, even though it has always sort of perplexed me as to what the actual words are that Roy Estrada is singing. My ears come up with "Who is this guy, who is this guy, who is this guy in the sky?" but I've never been totally sure.

Now through the magic of cyberspace I'd like to see what y'all think the words are to this immortal and magically charged performance by the best damn band nobody ever listened to.

I look forward to hearing your replies. Thanks in advance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swgWNM_4eNk

Sunday Drive

2008-10-20T17:23:00.000-07:00

The weather has finally cooled off here in the Tennessee Valley so we decided to take a drive in the country this past Sunday. As always the character and culture of the rural South is consistently interesting to the curious traveler and the emerging Fall color only added to the splendor.

Cumberland Trail

Along old U.S. Hwy. 41

Tennessee - Alabama Fireworks Store

View atop Raccoon Mountain

Buckets of Shred

2008-10-15T17:23:00.000-07:00

It is such a privilege to live in an era when there are so many entertainment choices available via the Internet. I was recently blown away with how many different live versions of one of my favorite Buckethead songs could be found on YouTube. So I carefully played them all and picked the following one as my favorite performance of "Frozen Brains Tell No Tales", which originally appeared on the album Bucketheadland 2.

The pulsing build-up chords finally lead into a burning solo that reminds me very much of Hendrix and early seventies Zappa. Its frenzied fuzzy tonality is pure joy to my ears.

This clip is from a show at the Aggie Theatre in Ft. Collins, CO.

Shred on dudes!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6x7GL8CoEs

Journey to Texas

2008-10-07T15:04:00.000-07:00

As promised I am posting some photos of my recent journey to Texas where I worked on a mobile emergency kitchen in the wake of Hurricane Ike. I've chosen the images that I like best from the six rolls of 35mm film that I shot.

The world is a strange and wondrous place and the South is even more so with all of its quirky and colorful eccentricities. Every journey here is an adventure and a revelation. It's an irresistible place to point your camera and click.

Downtown Shubuta, Mississippi

Real Estate Office
Shubuta, MS

New Orleans in the early morning.

Lafayette Cemetery, New Orleans

Toomey, Louisiana

Feeding line in Beaumont, Texas

Fed and happy storm victims

A worn out crew in Beaumont.

Brick wall down in Bridge City, TX

My dream come true---a genuine Texas smoker!

Ribs prepared with love and oak.

David & Nancy take a break in Galveston, TX

The Fred Hartman Bridge
Hwy. 146 over the Houston Ship Channel

Peanuts
Evergreen, Alabama

Conecuh County, Alabama

Autauga County, Alabama

Home At Last

2008-10-06T08:45:00.001-07:00

I have finally arrived back home three weeks after departing for the Gulf Coast of Texas to staff a mobile emergency kitchen for survivors of Hurricane Ike. It was a rewarding, sometimes grueling and ultimately faith testing experience which I'm still sort of recovering from. I will have some pictures to share (I used an old 35mm film camera) in an upcoming post about the entire trip.

I'd like to thank several people for helping me along on my journey to and from this disaster zone: Tricia and Justin in Ocean Springs, MS; Audie and Kim in Houston, TX; my brother-in-law Steve who's probably on the road somewhere along Interstate 10 as I write; John and Joy in League City, TX; my fellow kitchen crew members-----just us seven doing the work of twenty and last but not least the enduring support of my wife and step-daughter here in beautiful Chattanooga, TN. Y'all deserve a big round of cosmically charged applause.

Yup, it's good to be home.

Hurricane Ike

2008-09-15T09:27:00.000-07:00

I am setting out for Texas in the wake of Hurricane Ike to help staff a mobile kitchen for displaced victims of this terrible storm. I will be working with Christian Disaster Response, a non-profit disaster relief organization based in Winter Haven, Florida. I've been out with them before to work in tornado ravaged areas of Tennessee, Kentucky and Florida but have not yet been asked to respond to a hurricane. The scene I am about to confront will be on an order of magnitude many times greater than any I've experienced in the past.

Wish us luck and if you are so inclined please give generously to:

Christian Disaster Response
P.O. Box 3339
Winter Haven, FL 33885

Thanks in advance.

Land of the Free

2008-09-11T14:22:00.000-07:00

Now come along quietly and there won't be any trouble.

In case you are still deluded into thinking that we still live in a free country I thought I'd share some headlines from today's news cycle to clue you in about what's really going down across the fruited plain:

From the Alligator Republic of Florida: http://snipurl.com/3pfeu

From the cradle of the Confederacy: http://snipurl.com/3pfek

From the home of the Boston Tea Party: http://snipurl.com/3pfe5

Window on the world

2008-08-28T08:16:00.000-07:00

Some of you have requested more landscape photos taken from the window of a jetliner, so I have finally gotten around to selecting some of my unpublished favorites. I hope you like 'em and understand why I always request a window seat.

Provo, Utah

Mississippi River

Gooseberry Mesa, Utah

Jacksonville, Florida

Colorado River, Utah

Grand Canyon, Arizona

Delta of the Mississippi River in Louisiana

Cliffs above Orderville, Utah

Rockville, Utah

Taxes are voluntary

2008-08-26T07:16:00.000-07:00

If you've got about five minutes to spare this snippet from an interview with U.S. Senate Majority leader Harry Reid presents a crystal clear picture how to be a consummate straight faced liar. It'll also cause you to double over in laughter (at least it did for me) as well as clue you in to what our masters in DC really think of our intelligence.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7mRSI8yWwg

Take me out to the ballgame

2008-08-20T10:01:00.001-07:00

Among the many wonderful amenities and pleasures of being a citizen of Chattanooga, Tennessee is the fact that I can walk to nearby AT & T Field and take in a minor league baseball game on a warm summer's night. Every Tuesday I can use my Bi-Lo grocery store discount card and get in for $2! Such a deal!

The Chattanooga Lookouts are a AA franchise of the Southern League and a farm team affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds. The stadium is situated on a bluff above the Tennessee River that affords expansive views of the surrounding mountains and ridges as well as the North Shore district of Chattanooga where we live.

The team has two, count 'em two, mascots: Lookout Looie and Slider, who regularly make the rounds in the stands and perform the Chicken Dance atop the home team dugout during the bottom of the fourth inning. What more could one ask for the price of general admission?

Lookout Looie

Last night the Lookouts pitcher Travis Wood lost his no-hit bid with two outs in the eighth inning but still prevailed with a 3-1 win over the Jacksonville Suns. A great time was had by all, including me.

Slider

The Dawgs Are #1

2008-08-16T07:46:00.000-07:00

Georgia cheerleaders with Hairy Dawg in Sanford Stadium

The Georgia Bulldogs are the #1 ranked team in college football according to the AP. I hope this doesn't turn out to be a jinx. After all the SEC ain't no Saturday picnic in the park like the Big 10.....er.....11 or the ACC.

Personally I think Florida has as good a shot at the SEC East title as the Dawgs and can see Auburn emerging from the brawl that is the SEC West with a champions crown upon their head (with apologies to my dear friend Darrell who loyally bleeds Crimson for the Tide).

It should be an interesting campaign this year and I think everyone should keep an eye out for Vanderbilt and Mississippi State. I see them winning games that nobody expects them to win and generally upsetting the apple cart of teams tempted to take these two feisty programs a tad too lightly.

Can't wait for the season to start. See y'all in the stands!

http://snipurl.com/3gvg4 [www_nytimes_com]

A quick jaunt into the Smokies

2008-08-12T06:56:00.000-07:00

We live in a beautiful part of the country and it has been a lot of fun exploring the many parks and preserves located within about a two-hour drive of our home. So far, some of our favorites include Cloudland Canyon State Park in nearby Georgia as well as Frozen Head State Park and Falls Creek Falls here in Tennessee.

Yesterday we took a short trek up the drainage of Abrams Creek which is located in a wild and remote corner of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Reputedly the most heavily visited national park in the U.S., it would have been hard to glean that impression from where we had chosen to hike.

After setting out from the Abrams Creek campground, under unbelievably tall hemlocks, we followed the densely forested Cooper Road to the Little Bottom Trail which led us up and over a very steep ridge and then down into the valley of Abrams Creek. During our entire time on the trail we saw no one else, not even old footprints. I took a lengthy dip in the cool refreshing waters until I couldn't stand all of the nips and bites I was getting from the multitudes of fish that inhabit this stream. My wife said it proved that at least the water was very clean.

Enveloped in the depths of the Smokies

The Smokies are a real treat for those who love their nature wild and omnipresent. I can't wait until we set out again to explore this magnificent mountain range in the Fall when the leaves will be turning beautiful colors and SEC football will be blaring from the radio in our campsite. I'm sure my wife can't wait for that either.

Tall hemlocks along the Cooper Road

Steep uphill grade

View of the Abrams Creek drainage

Little Bottom Trail

Abrams Creek

Back down the ridge

Vonore, Tennessee

Green hills of home

2008-08-06T08:22:00.000-07:00

We spent the past weekend visiting relatives in Kentucky and decided to return to Chattanooga on back roads to see what we could see in the beautiful Cumberland Plateau country that is now our new home. I'm happy to report that many of the old ways of life still stubbornly persist and I saw many more Confederate flags waving along U.S. 27 than I ever expected to find in this section of Dixie but still dutifully saluted each one as I passed.

Rugby, Tennessee

Butterfly outside Lost River Cave
Warren County, Kentucky

Clear Fork River
Morgan County, TN

An ancient barn
Simpson County, KY

Forbus General Store
Forbus, TN

Whittling away the day on the front porch of the Forbus General Store

Mennonite produce market
Allen County, KY

Laurel Dale Cemetery
Rugby, TN

Kentucky girls

Roll Tide!

2008-07-28T12:12:00.000-07:00

We recently traveled to the University of Alabama to deliver my step-daughter to cheerleader camp. While there I had the privilege to visit their college football museum which is dedicated to one of the most storied programs in the history of American sport. Even if you aren't the biggest college football fan in the world this is still a great museum filled with lots of interesting exhibits and photos pertaining to that Southern cultural phenomenon known as the Crimson Tide.

ROLL TIDE!

Football from their first win against Auburn!

Portrait of Paul "Bear" Bryant

1935 Rose Bowl trophy

1963 Orange Bowl trophy

A fan's cheering stick

Alabama practice field

Cheerleaders in training

The road home

Out West

2008-07-19T11:39:00.000-07:00

As promised I have gathered together for display a few of the nearly 500 pictures I took while working in Utah from late May through early July. It was great to see old friends and visit former haunts that carry many happy memories.

The Colorado Rockies from 35,000 feet

Canyonlands National Park, Utah

Springdale, Utah

Genevieve

Dinner at Larry's

Cactus flowers

Carlos and Christopher with their dog Taco

Bryce Canyon National Park

Black-headed Grosbeak

Me fossil hunting in the House Range of western Utah.

A lonely road in the Ferguson Desert
Utah

Doe and two fawns in Zion National Park

Band night at the Bit & Spur
Springdale, Utah

Watchman Trail
Zion N.P.

Bill's apricot tree
Springdale, Utah

Home at Last

2008-07-12T13:22:00.000-07:00

Finally made my way back across the country to Florida where I loaded up the van and headed to Tennessee. My wife picked out a very nice house for us to live in and I'm very grateful for her tireless efforts on our behalf while I was away working in Utah. This is going to be a great place to live.

Home sweet home

There will be a recap of my western adventures coming soon, so stay tuned kids. Right now I just need to keep unpacking and also go out on the porch and see how the grilled chicken is coming along. I'll see y'all later.

Breaking in the brand new grill.

View from the back porch.

New digs on the bluff

2008-07-01T21:18:00.000-07:00

As of today my new home address is Chattanooga, Tennessee (I move in next week). We have a cute little house atop the river bluff in what is known as the North Shore section of town. We can walk to many things of interest including the local minor league ball yard. Yeee-hawww!!!

I sure am missing my girls back home, especially of late, and am glad the tours in Utah are about to come to an end.

I had one great adventure with an old friend in the wild and wooly West Desert where we we stalked Paleozoic fossils and camped on rumpled stony lumpiness in exchange for silence under a blanket of stars. We drove down roads we had very little business driving on but did so anyway. Hurray for middle-age rebellion (however lame). Keep swinging that rock hammer dude. Nerds rule!

Cambrian trilobite from the Wheeler Shale

House Range, Utah

540 million years old

Beehive Bound

2008-05-06T11:53:00.001-07:00

I-70 just west of Green River, Utah

I will be returning to my former home in the Utah desert tomorrow, for two months, to conduct natural history tours and also work with local chef Brad Tarren who has promised to unlock the mysteries of preparing fresh fish creatively as well as the art of making traditional Mexican dishes from scratch.

When I return home I will be journeying to the University of Alabama to deliver my step-daughter to cheerleader camp. That should be a mighty interesting blog post, so stayed tuned for my dispatch from Tuscaloosa.

Hawaiian Secession?

2008-05-02T06:52:00.000-07:00

(CNN) - A group of native Hawaiians occupied the grounds of the old Hawaiian monarchy's royal residence Wednesday, vowing to stay and do the business of the kingdom's government.

Chin Ho wants the haoles to take a hike.

"It is through a greater realm than ours" that the group took this action, said Mahealani Kahau, elected leader of the group, called Hawaiian Kingdom Government. "Today and every day, we will be here to assume our role."

Group members left the palace grounds Wednesday afternoon, but vowed to return Thursday morning, The Honolulu Advertiser reported.

"We'll be here at 6 o'clock in the morning," Kahau told the newspaper.

The group is one of several in Hawaii that reject statehood and seek to return to the constitutional monarchy that effectively ended in 1893 when a group of politicians, businessmen and sugar planters -- aided by the U.S. minister to Hawaii -- overthrew the kingdom's government.

The monarchist groups say that the kingdom was overthrown and annexed into the United States illegally.

Hawaii's office of the attorney general did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment on Wednesday's action.

The staff of Iolani Palace, built in 1882 and now operated as a museum, shut down the building to visitors. The 60 or so protesters occupied the grounds, chaining the gates and stationing guards there to explain to visitors the purpose of the action.

The group later reopened the gates, but remained on the grounds and the building was kept closed.

"It saddens my heart to have to turn away visitors," said palace staff member Cindy Ascencio, who added that although she, too, is a native Hawaiian, she does not understand the actions of the group. Ascencio also said that the group appeared peaceful and she was not concerned about security.

Jose Carrion, a visitor to Hawaii from Puerto Rico, told Honolulu's KHON-TV that he was "disappointed" he wouldn't be able to visit the ornate palace and "learn about the culture of the Hawaiians."

"We wanted to come here precisely because we thought we'd learn something about the history of Hawaii and the last queen and the monarchy," said Carrion, who said he had reservations for the visit. "But we're leaving tomorrow so we won't get to see the palace."

But Carrion also said he "kind of understood" the actions of the group.

Puerto Rico and Hawaii, along with Guam and the Philippines, were annexed into the United States in 1898 after the Spanish-American War. Guam and Puerto Rico remain territories of the United States. The Philippines gained independence after World War II, and Hawaii became the 50th state in 1959.

Although the monarchy was not overthrown until 1893, its fate effectively was sealed six years earlier when the same group that forced the overthrow imposed a new constitution on King David Kalakaua, who was forced to sign it under threat of arms.

The document dramatically reduced the authority of the monarchy and instituted voter requirements that limited voting to wealthy businessmen and Hawaiian landowners, barring 75 percent of the native Hawaiian population and all Asians.

When Queen Lili'uokalani ascended the throne after the death of her brother in 1891, she began work on a new constitution that would have effectively reversed the 1887 document. With the help of John L. Stevens, the U.S. minister to Hawaii, the elite group that had changed the constitution in 1887 opposed the queen's actions.

Two years later, under threat of U.S. troops, she yielded her authority, saying, "Until such time as the Government of the United States shall ... undo the action of its representative and reinstate me in the authority which I claim as the constitutional sovereign of the Hawaiian Islands."

The queen was later imprisoned in Iolani Palace for eight months for her participation in an attempted 1895 revolt, until she relinquished her claim to the throne in return for her release. She died in 1917 at 79.

In 1993, the U.S. Congress approved, and President Clinton signed, an apology to the people of the Hawaiian Islands. The document "acknowledges that the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii occurred with the active participation of agents and citizens of the United States and further acknowledges that the Native Hawaiian people never directly relinquished to the United States their claims to their inherent sovereignty as a people over their national lands, either through the Kingdom of Hawaii or through a plebiscite or referendum."

Let's hope that this is the start of a trend nationally and that other secession movements will spring up to reclaim local sovereignty from the imperial rulers in DC.

God bless you Hawaii! May you yet reclaim your independence.

Free money from the government

2008-04-30T06:22:00.000-07:00

Opening the door to greater prosperity.

For all of you folks who are eagerly poised to get your Economic Stimulus check from the federal government I thought you'd enjoy this little Q & A session from that brilliant satirist of the Miami Herald, Dave Barry:

Q. What is an Economic Stimulus Payment?
A. It is money that the federal government will send to taxpayers.
Q. Where will the government get this money?
A. From taxpayers.
Q. So the government is giving me back my own money?
A. Only a smidgen.
Q. What is the purpose of this payment?
A. The plan is that you will use the money to purchase a high-definition TV set, thus stimulating the economy.
Q. But isn't that stimulating the economy of China?
A. Shut up.

I hope y'all have fun spending your free money (borrowed from China) that has been so beneficently provided by the politicians in Washington, DC. I look forward to running into you at Best Buy.

The Big Chill

2008-04-28T13:24:00.000-07:00

Chilly Willy will be diggin' it!

The following link is to an article from today's headlines in the Australian press and confirms what I have been gathering from anecdotal evidence over the past few years, namely that there is a very good possibility that the earth is getting cooler folks! That's right COOLER! COLDER! DOWNRIGHT FRIGID!

Read on: http://snipurl.com/267l4

The Falling Dollar Meter

2008-04-16T07:42:00.000-07:00

Everyone who drives a car knows that the price of fuel is rising almost daily. One of the most securely held jobs in America right now is the task of changing the numbers on the gas station's price sign with a long pole and suction cups.

Now many of y'all might be led to believe that these rising prices are nothing more than a greedy cash grab orchestrated by those thieving monsters collectively known as Big Oil. The U.S. government has a vested interest in perpetrating this view, which helps explain why Congress summoned the CEO's of this supposed cartel to Capitol Hill, a few weeks back, for a dog and pony show in front of the news cameras. Unfortunately for the poobahs in DC these particular witnesses were not nearly as much fun to grill as a steroid using baseball player, because their answers indicated that the problem was much more closely tied to policies emanating from Washington than in the boardrooms of Houston or New York.

Chevron CEO Robert Peterson is grilled for the cameras.

The truth of the matter is that the price of oil is directly tied to the plummeting value of the U.S. dollar and the precipitous descent of the greenback is mainly due to the unrestrained printing of dollars by the U.S. government to help fund a failed war and to paper over disastrous central banking policies that have led to the current crisis in the financial system.

The world price of oil is currently pegged to the U.S. dollar and thus as it continues its downward spiral on world currency markets the corresponding amount of them it takes to purchase a barrel of oil is continuously on the rise. In fact you can use your local gasoline station's price sign as a very accurate and up to the minute gauge of the health of the U.S. dollar. After all there is no shortage of gasoline when you go to fill up your tank, so these higher prices are not part of the cycle of supply and demand, but are a direct reflection of the dollar's decline as a traded currency. Plain and simple. Econ. 101.

This morning's reading from my local U.S. dollar value meter on Hwy. 192

In today's headlines I find that the American Geological Institute has come up with empirical evidence to demonstrate the cause and effect of a falling dollar and rising oil prices:

"The steep increase in the price of crude oil in the United States remains a headline issue, along with the falling US dollar. The drop in the dollar has caused concern in oil-producing countries which use it as the economic basis for the commodity, and often their currency. The chart below shows the spot market price of crude oil per barrel (BBL) in US dollars and in euros from 2001 to today. The price of oil has grown faster relative to the dollar than to the euro. Yet, a portion of the rise in oil prices is due to the fall of the value of the dollar. The graph also shows the number of barrels of crude oil per cost of an ounce of gold, demonstrating the parallel growth in commodity pricing.

If the US dollar had remained strong in the global economy, oil might, in theory, be around $65 per barrel. However, oil is priced in dollars, and oil prices continue to rise. The impact of increased oil prices can not be ignored in the US economy, and, in turn, can further weaken the dollar. Resource economics is a complex feedback loop where today’s resource boom is driven by many external factors."

The chart shows the price of a barrel of oil per dollar in blue, euro in red and ounce of gold in purple.

A cursory glance at the graph will show you that by using gold as a standard currency of value the price of oil has not risen appreciably since 2001. Now go figure!

Leave it to geologists to set us straight on what is going on beneath the surface of popular conception and dig down beneath the sedimentary layers of fiscal mismanagement. Keep your eyes on the falling dollar as you drive past your local gas station. The guy changing the numbers on the sign is doing the public a valuable service if only it knew how to interpret the data.

Tom's Hot Dogs

2008-04-10T14:55:00.000-07:00

While we were visiting the Panhandle last month I was dispatched by my wife on an urgent mission to Panama City to secure Easter candy from a small Chinese grocery store that we used to frequent when we lived in that area. On my way back to our beach compound I stopped off in downtown to check out the main drag (Harrison Ave.) and get me a soda pop. While there I stumbled unto Tom's Hot Dogs, an old fashioned local institution that quite frankly served me the best tasting hot dog I've ever eaten (a regular all beef dog with kraut and spicy red relish, mmmmm boy!) which I washed down with a Dr. Pepper.

555 Harrison Ave., Panama City, FL

Chili cheese dog

If you're ever in the general vicinity of Panama City I highly recommend that you take the time to check out Tom's. It's a definite throwback to a bygone era with lots of charm, character and excellent food. They tell me the cheeseburgers are the best thing on the menu. Who knew? As General MacArthur famously said "I shall return!"

The line snaked out the front door.

A regular and a slaw dog

Tom's Hot Dogs
555 Harrison Ave
Panama City, FL 32401
(850) 769-8890

More tramping through Dixie

2008-03-30T17:44:00.000-07:00

We covered some serious miles on the road this month, with our first destination being the gorgeous Emerald Coast of the Florida Panhandle to visit with old friends and get my inaugural sunburn. After a week of sun, sand and barbecue ribs we scooted on up to Tennessee and then headed back home by way of Georgia.

It is always a happy time when I am traveling the byways of the Old Confederacy. Here are some pictures from our most recent journey. Enjoy-----I sure did.

Florida State Capitol in Tallahassee

Seaside, FL

Frost Bites in downtown Seaside

Tire swings at the cemetery
Parrott, GA

Easter treats at church
Seagrove Beach, FL

Sunset in Seaside

Trophies
Richland, GA

Dixie County, FL

Porcelain dogs
Parrott, GA

Camp Creek empties into the Gulf of Mexico
Walton County, FL

Gourds
Sasser, GA

Fanning Springs, FL

Springing forward into barbecue time

2008-03-14T12:30:00.000-07:00

Spring has almost sprung and it's time for y'all to get outside and start grilling in the balmy sunshine. Fresh corn and pork spare ribs have been on sale here in the Sunshine State over the past few weeks, so that's what I've been preparing.

My neighbors don't seem to mind that our street often smells like a southern rib shack. I don't think it's hurt property values. At least not yet.

Always soak the corn for at least 20 minutes

Have the patience to grill the ribs for at least 2 hours (or more)

A good homemade sauce is always very important

Grill the corn in the husks

Gator tails

2008-03-07T07:15:00.000-08:00

While on our way to visit a remote nature preserve down in Okeechobee County we encountered a stretch of road that reminded us of the bayous of Louisiana. The highway was distinctly elevated above the surrounding swamp land and there were many old houses and ancient live oaks draped with Spanish moss that conjured up images of the bayou country.

Who could resist?

We stopped for a spell in the tiny hamlet of Lorida to stretch our legs and poke around a bit. I went into a little market that sold local swamp delicacies and inquired about the availability of gator tails. The lady in charge went into the back of the store and returned with a bag of frozen tails for me to inspect.

Gator tails.....mmmmm boy!

I was told that they were delicious when lightly breaded and deep fried like fish and that they would be glad to sell me a bag of Everglades spices that would complement the meat most favorably. She said that the best thing about alligator meat was that it really didn't taste like anything else; not chicken or fish or snake or turtle but was uniquely a meat with a mild and mellow flavor all its own.

The next time I'm down that way I plan to bring a cooler with dry ice and tote a bag or two home. I'll be sure to invite y'all over to try some with me.

Yup it sure looks like Louisiana

Backyard on the bayou
Lorida, FL

Lynyrd Skynyrd: Second Helping

2008-03-04T19:43:00.000-08:00

The next record album in my series on enduringly great discs from the early seventies is Second Helping by Lynyrd Skynyrd. This album along with their first record Pronounced pretty much defined the sound of this exciting and original rock n' roll band from Florida.

Lynyrd Skynyrd started out as a local bar band in Jacksonville that were brought into the national limelight by Bob Dylan's former keyboardist Al Kooper who first discovered them and then produced their first three albums on MCA.

Second Helping introduced some of their most famous concert anthems including the sarcastically toned paean to Southern headneckery "Sweet Home Alabama" as well as "Don't Ask Me No Questions" and "They Call Me the Breeze".

My two favorite songs are "Swamp Music" and "The Ballad of Curtis Loew", both of which show Skynyrd to be a deeply Southern band that owes much of their identity and sound to "the black man's blues" as well the rich cultural roots of their home region. Their three lead guitar attack was unequaled by any other band before or since. I sure do miss 'em.

Going down to the swamp
Gonna watch me a hound dog catch a 'coon
Well, I'm going down to the swamp
Gonna watch me a hound dog catch a 'coon
You know the hound dog make a music
On a summer night under a full moon

Fetch my cane pole mama
Gonna catch a bream or maybe two
Fetch my cane pole mama
Gonna catch a bream or maybe two
And when the hound dog starts barkin'
Sounds like ol' Son House singin' the blues

This was one of my favorite albums in high school and I still like it just as much today. It just plain rocks. What more could you want from a head-banging rock record?

The boys in the band on the curb in Jacksonville (1972).

Next record: Mott by Mott the Hoople. Stay tuned.

Wise words from Uncle Joe

2008-03-04T16:17:00.000-08:00

Uncle Joe

"Those who cast the votes decide nothing. Those who count the votes decide everything." ---- Joseph Stalin

You've got to admit that this mass murdering monster had a pretty keen wit and an extremely penetrating understanding of the fundamental truth that underlies modern democracy.

Wandering through Dixie

2008-02-29T14:08:00.000-08:00

I finally uncovered the photos of my recent road trip back home from doing tornado relief work in northern Tennessee. Luckily I was able to take my time and savor the journey.

The South is always so much fun to explore when you can take the roads less traveled and in the winter it's all that much sweeter. Hope y'all enjoy these snapshots from my home here in Dixieland.

Russell Cave, Alabama

Inside the entrance to Russell Cave

South Pittsburg, Tennessee

Dixie Freeze, South Pittsburg, TN

Inside the Dixie Freeze

The BBQ Pork Platter Special

Daniel Creek
Dade County, Georgia

Cloudland Canyon State Park, GA

The Tennessee River winding through Chattanooga

Home at last!

Rock in the 70's

2008-02-26T07:28:00.000-08:00

Lately I have become acutely aware that rock n' roll is pretty much dead and that there are very few new practitioners of this once thriving art form. Fortunately I am stuck in a time warp that keeps me immersed in the musical sounds of my youth: rock that was produced in the early seventies.

This was a great period for rock n' roll and I made a list of all of the albums from this period that I still enjoy playing as I trudge towards middle age. I then whittled this first list down to a core of five essential albums. The basic criteria I used was that these are the records that can make me feel happy on a dark and gloomy day and want to thump my hands against the steering wheel while fighting traffic on Hwy. 417.

Over the next few weeks I plan to do a post on each of these five records. If you're not familiar with some of these albums you might want to check 'em out. They've stood the test of time with me since Nixon was president and gas was 35 cents a gallon.

The first album in our series is:

A Nod Is As Good As A Wink To A Blind Horse (1971) - The Faces

This is the third album by a legendary ensemble that I like to call the spare parts band of rock n' roll because most of its members were later used to replace departed or dead musicians in other bands, including the Rolling Stones and the Who. Led by Ronnie Wood this loose and carefree group of talented musicians played for the sheer love of the music and of making sure they were having a real good time while performing it. The Faces was the first, and maybe only, band to set up a bar on stage so they could have drinks served to them while playing. There are probably all kinds of laws against that nowadays.

This album catches them in peak form with such concert favorites as "Miss Judy's Farm", "You're So Rude", "Stay With Me" (their only Top 40 hit), "Too Bad" and a delightfully shambling cover of Chuck Berry's "Memphis". They were probably best appreciated live but if you were to pick one record of theirs to own this would be the album to have.

The refrain in the song "Too Bad" sums up the band quite succinctly:

All we wanted to do was to socialize
Oh you know it's a shame
I was always getting the pain

All we wanted to do was to socialize
Oh you know it's a shame
How we always get the blame

Outcasts and louts to the end, they were just a bunch of boys out for a laugh and a few pints at the pub before calling it a night. There will never be another band like 'em again.

The Faces are:

Ron Wood - Guitar
Ian McLagan - Keyboards
Kenney Jones - Drums
Ronnie Lane - Bass
Rod Stewart - Vocals

Woody and Rod onstage

Next up: Second Helping by Lynyrd Skynyrd

American Idol Presidency

2008-02-20T07:13:00.000-08:00

Sinking fast

The news is getting pretty grim for the Clinton gang as more and more Democratic voters have become captivated by the charms of the smooth and suave senator from Illinois. Many of us in the Peanut Gallery are watching this drama unfold in a state of joyful glee as Mr. Obama methodically chips away at the ever diminishing possibility that the political couple from Hell will ever get a chance to return to Washington, DC for a dreaded second act.

It is all starting to play out like a well choreographed episode of American Idol where the out of nowhere long shot crooner from inner-city Chicago is beating the stuffing out of the well coached and expensively coiffed professional from Noo Yawk.

That this makes for gripping television there is no doubt but it may not necessarily be a good thing for the country in the long run. Actually perceiving and supporting a president by using the same criteria employed to judge the talents of a celebrity is not only a big mistake but is probably dangerous to our health. Writer Anthony Gregory hits the nail on the head with an article published Monday which amplifies this point quite well (here is an excerpt):

Obama promises lots more spending but he is an interesting case. He actually terrifies me precisely because I find him rather likeable. When a radical libertarian finds something to like in a statist of this caliber, you know we are dealing with a dangerous politician.

His appeal is somewhat understandable. Of course, much of Obama’s program is anathema, but on crucial issues like war and civil liberties, he sounds much less crazed than Bush, McCain or Hillary. Listen to the conciliatory way he puts things. He sounds much less offensive to many basic old liberal principles than the others.

Then it hits me. He’s not saying anything at all, really, except what everyone wants to hear. He is a masterful politician and represents what most Americans want out of their president – someone they can be proud of and feel good about, someone to shape their warm and fuzzy view of what it means to be American. This view varies somewhat, depending on the group, from the center left/progressive coalition that backs Obama to the neocon/theocon/Wall Street Bush coalition. But it is clear that most all Americans want a president they can respect.

I don’t. I don’t want Americans to get their faith back in the presidency. It is a horrible institution and the more the people give it blind trust based on the personality they see, the more awesome its power and abuses. In the 1970s, the presidency was gloriously disrespected and thus relatively impotent. Reagan brought faith back into the presidency, at least for the right and center. Clinton later did the same for the left and center. Their administrations were quite detrimental for American liberty.

Modern politicians get votes not mostly on their policies but rather on how they make people feel about America. When Americans favor the president more, they also tend to think more highly of the presidency. They want more from their government, and are less bothered when it commits great wrongs. It has been populist solidarity with the state that has created the democratic leviathan of the 20^th century, with all its power to bomb, usurp and torture. Vast American pride in the presidency is what has allowed it to become the nation's master and such a menace to the world.

Americans shouldn’t look to the president for their self-respect, patriotism and cultural identity. The presidency in its current form is entirely too powerful and thus an inherently corrupting and inhumanely destructive thing. The presidency as it supposedly should be, under the Constitution, is a relatively humble office overseeing the executive branch, one of three composing a radically restrained government with very limited enumerated powers. Today, the presidency overshadows the other branches, the states, and all Constitutional and statutory limits on its power. In any event, why should 300 million people, and to a great extent the rest of the world, have to live under one all-powerful law enforcement official? The whole idea seems like some kind of insanity. How did this become the American way? If we are to restore our freedom, we need our compatriots to snap out of this trance. The silver lining in the Bush administration has been the disgust he has elicited so universally, especially among the left and center. This has constrained his actions somewhat. I am not looking forward to the many Americans turned off by the obvious horrors of the Bush administration once again respecting and trusting the president.

Short of a mass campaign against the omnipotent presidency itself, which Ron Paul’s has come closest to representing in modern electoral history, no presidential bid is going to excite me much. I prefer the president kill far fewer people and loot the country less. I prefer fewer peaceful prisoners to more. But we will all lose out on peace, freedom and wealth so long as Americans love and celebrate the presidency, looking to it as savior, moral guardian for the nation, stabilizer of the economy, provider of goods and necessities, protector against evil and liberator of the world. Indeed, given the choice between an Obama, Hillary or McCain who might breathe new life into the presidency and restore the respect and awe it once elicited; or, on the other hand, the stale, despised and pathetic George W. Bush, I am more than tempted to say: Four More Years!

He's not impressed.

In conclusion we all need to be a lot more like Simon and much less like Paula. Our continuing and dogged skepticism of these pretenders to a clearly un-Constitutional throne will be our enduring strength and salvation.

What I need?

2008-02-19T19:06:00.000-08:00

Tonight I happened to walk by the television set and overhear Barack Obama delivering part of his victory speech in the Wisconsin primary. I was struck by an applause inducing sound bite from the Illinois senator wherein he emphatically stated that: "What the country needs is a president who will not always say what people want to hear but what they NEED to hear". This declaration was the follow up to a slew of government programs that he had just promised to implement upon gaining the presidency.

I'm glad that we have a candidate that is at least honest about his intentions to steal my wealth and run my life because I really, really need his help. It reminded me of an old Dylan lyric which seems to turn the entire notion on its head:

When Ruthie says come see her
In her honky-tonk lagoon,
Where I can watch her waltz for free
'Neath her Panamanian moon.
An' I say, "Aw come on now,
You must know about my debutante."
An' she says, "Your debutante just knows what you need
But I know what you want."

I do not plan to vote in this election either.

Bobby for president!

Tornados strike the South

2008-02-18T06:31:00.000-08:00

Our part of the country has been getting slammed with tornadic activity over the past few weeks due to the presence of cold Arctic air masses that are diving south and colliding with warm unstable low pressure systems emanating from the Gulf of Mexico. Just last night another round of tornados touched down in western Florida and southern Alabama as yet another cold front pushed its way through Dixie.

Last week I traveled to a devastated area of north-central Tennessee as part of a relief team for Christian Disaster Response. We delivered emergency aid kits to a local church that had a set up a distribution center for storm victims in the town of Lafayette. We also did some field assessments to determine what further assistance was needed in the wake of these destructive storms.

Right now we are working to get contributions to help pay for the transportation of donated food from a group of farmers in the state of Washington who have generously given us food aid in the past, most recently for homeless fire victims in an isolated and mountainous section of rural San Diego County. If you would like to help here is the link to our website: http://www.cdresponse.org/currentdisasterappeal.htm

Distribution center for storm victims

Sunset in my neighborhood

2008-02-05T14:57:00.000-08:00

Today's sunset marked the beautiful conclusion of a warm and sunny afternoon in February.

From Florida with love.

The groundhog definitely lives in Pennsylvania

2008-02-03T11:13:00.000-08:00

Punxsutawney Phil came out of his heated den yesterday to proclaim that another six weeks of winter are upon us. Well I've got news for everyone: Phil doesn't live anywhere near Florida!

Here I sit on the afternoon following Groundhog Day with a forecast for temperatures to get up to around 85 degrees on each of the next three days and then "cool off " into the upper 70's. It is definitely the first time I've ever run the AC in February!

I'm not sure how to react to July weather on Super Bowl Sunday but since it's here there really ain't much I can do about it except maybe go and soak my head at the neighborhood pool.

Y'all have a Happy Halftime Show.

Our sunny subtropical neighborhood

White ibis cool off in the midday heat

A warm day under the jungle canopy

To the Rescue

2008-02-02T16:28:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite comic book superheroes as a child was Captain Marvel. Just by uttering the magical word Shazam young boy newscaster Billy Batson would instantly be transformed into that mighty defender of the universe Captain Marvel.

Lately it seems that government has been donning cape and tights to try and save various groups of people from the evils that lurk everywhere in contemporary society. I have three recent examples from this week's headlines that bring this point home most poignantly.

First we bring you the enlightened efforts of a group of selfless heroes in the Mississippi legislature who want to make it illegal for restaurants in that state to refuse service to people who have the wrong body mass index in the eyes of the government.

New bill would make it illegal for restaurants to serve the obese

FEBRUARY 1--Mississippi legislators this week introduced a bill that would make it illegal for state-licensed restaurants to serve obese patrons. Bill No. 282 is the brainchild of three members of the state's House of Representatives, Republicans W. T. Mayhall, Jr. and John Read, and Democrat Bobby Shows. The bill, which is likely dead on arrival, proposes that the state's Department of Health establish weight criteria after consultation with Mississippi's Council on Obesity. It does not detail what penalties an eatery would face if its grub was served to someone with an excessive body mass index.

Next we have some caped crusaders in New Mexico who want to prevent folks from ever getting that fat by urging the state government to levy a tax on video games and television sets, which, in theory, would offset the pernicious effects these products have in creating grossly obese people in the first place. Read on: http://snipurl.com/1yuwd

Finally we have the heroic Georgia state legislature voting 151-9 on Friday in favor of a resolution urging the NCAA to create a playoff system for college football. It seems that the good ol' boys in Atlanta were less than happy that their beloved college football team, the University of Georgia Bulldogs, were only afforded the opportunity to destroy the hapless University of Hawaii in a lopsided blowout in this year's edition of the Sugar Bowl and wind up finishing #2 in the national rankings. What an outrage of justice!

This certainly sounds like a call for governmental action if I ever heard one. A playoff system would have supposedly given the Dawgs a chance at the national glory that went instead to the Tigers of LSU. Sounds like a worthy crusade to me: http://snipurl.com/1yux5

All in all I must say that it is comforting to know that there are real Captain Marvels out there every day attempting to save us from the nasty slings and arrows of outrageous fortune which by courageously opposing them will surely end them. Shazam indeed!

Digging for clams

2008-01-24T16:44:00.000-08:00

Today we took a trip down south into the wilds of Okeechobee County to dig for fossil Mercenaria clams which are highly prized for their beautiful amber colored crystals. In fact the place we went to dig, known as Rucks Pit, is the only place in the world where these particular critters can be found.

These fossilized clams are about 1.5 million years old (Pliocene) and are found in an area of Florida that was once underwater when sea levels were much higher. The amber crystals are quite unique and look a lot like a geode but are actually the fossilized organic remains of the clam's soft interior.

Mercenaria permagna

Outcrop of fossils at Rucks Pit

After spending several hours digging for clams we proceeded further south to take in the lovely bucolic splendor of this rural county and snap a picture of Lake Okeechobee. It is the second-largest freshwater lake wholly within the continental United States, second only to Lake Michigan, and the largest in the southern United States. Okeechobee covers 730 square miles and is relatively shallow, with an average depth of only 9 feet. The name comes from the Hitchi Indian words "oki" (water) and "chubi" (big) and literally means "big water".

Lake Okeechobee

Cattle ranch

Yeehaw Junction, FL

MLK Holiday Cooking

2008-01-21T13:28:00.000-08:00

What better way to celebrate Martin Luther King's birthday then to grill up a big batch of barbecued chicken thighs prepared with my special secret recipe sauce?

The sunny 72 degree weather made for a great holiday atmosphere here in the densely wooded swamps of the Florida peninsula.

Hope y'all are enjoying this 3-day weekend in January as much as we are.

Secret sauce

Could this be a trend?

2008-01-18T12:54:00.000-08:00

Photographed on the fishing jetty at Cape Canaveral, FL

Could double-exposed boxer underwear be a groundbreaking new trend about to take off in the multi-billion dollar world of American youth fashion? Am I possibly witnessing the start of a bold and exciting direction that will captivate an entire nation? Only time will tell.

Let me know if y'all notice a similar fashion happening in your neck of the woods. Being a naturalist ain't just about watching birds and counting tree rings. Humans is real nature too.

Charges against 10-year-old Florida girl are dropped

2007-12-26T10:51:00.000-08:00

Felony weapons charges against a 5th grader in Ocala, who was caught cutting her lunch of leftover steak with a kitchen knife, have been dropped. It seems that everyone involved realizes just how utterly stupid the government run schools look in this ridiculous instance of one-size-fits-all zero-tolerance policy overkill. A court trail would have only focused further unwanted scrutiny on the imbecility that is the norm in public education here in the 21st century.

Assistant State Attorney Ric Ridgway was quoted as saying, "She has an excellent school history, no disciplinary problems, good grades and nothing whatsoever to suggest she was a troubled child." The same however cannot be said for the administrators of her local school board.

http://snipurl.com/1vu7p

Now can we get back to our food fight?

Oscar Peterson 1925 - 2007

2007-12-25T08:11:00.000-08:00

The jazz world lost a true giant today with the passing of Oscar Peterson at his home in Canada. Along with Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell and Hank Jones he was one of the great pioneering jazz pianists of the 20th century.

This warm and friendly man will be missed by all of us who savored his highly polished technical skills and seemingly effortless improvisational style. I am grateful to own many of the wonderful recordings produced by this prolific artist that will keep his music and memory alive for many years to come. He's left behind a lot of joy.

Rest in peace Oscar, you've done well and have helped to make this a more happy and beautiful world. I know the angels will enjoy you as much as we did.

http://snipurl.com/1vspv

On the Beach in December

2007-12-23T18:30:00.000-08:00

Since the weather has been so balmy of late here on the Florida peninsula we decided to go frolic in the waves at New Smyrna Beach, one of my favorite coastal towns on the Atlantic shore. We spent the afternoon at the beautiful Smyrna Dunes County Park, which is located at the northern end of the barrier island where it juts into Ponce Inlet.

This spectacular park protects a large population of endangered gopher tortoises and preserves the last remaining chunk of undeveloped sand dune and coastal scrub ecosystem in Volusia County. It also includes extensive bay & river frontage as well as a magnificent strand of Atlantic beach. I must admit that I love wearing swim trunks in December.

A large gopher tortoise heading into its burrow.

Atlantic Ocean

A snowy egret in Ponce Inlet

New Smyrna lighthouse

Old Man of the Sea

Winter solstice in Florida

2007-12-21T08:19:00.000-08:00

Today is the winter solstice and I wanted to share a little taste of what it's like at our home here in the subtropical bliss that is December in Florida. So I took a hike with my camera out to "the island" (which all of you regular readers know is a Disney nature preserve located directly behind our house) to record what the first day of winter is like in the wilds of Osceola County.

I do hope y'all are enjoying this the shortest day of the year, wherever you may be, as much as I am. The amount of daylight starts to lengthen again next week, so hang in there all of you sun deprived Michiganders and Minnesotans out there in cyberspace. Help is on the way.

Merry Christmas!

Winter light in the Reedy Creek Swamp

A gigantic two-striped walking stick (Anisomorpha buprestoides)

Tropical clouds hover lazily over the island.

Moonrise over the swamp

Green grass in December? That's a new one for me.

Another typical afternoon in Amerika

2007-12-16T06:48:00.000-08:00

The following article appeared in this morning's Orlando Sentinel and fully encapsulates what daily life has become in the land of the free and the home of the brave:

10-year-old student arrested after using knife on steak

OCALA - A 10-year-old girl could face a felony weapons charge after she brought a kitchen knife to school with her steak lunch, the child's uncle said Saturday.

Marion County deputies arrested the girl Thursday at Sunrise Elementary School and took her to the Juvenile Assessment Center. School faculty had seen her cutting the steak with the knife at lunch. They took the knife away from her before calling the Sheriff's Office and her uncle.

Her uncle, Kenneth Thomas, said the child was distraught by the arrest.

I'll be closely following this case and will make sure to keep y'all apprised of developments in the prosecution of this 5th grade girl. I'm thinking of establishing a legal aid fund on her behalf. Any thoughts for a name I could use?

Oh the horror!

December in Florida

2007-12-12T06:16:00.000-08:00

So far, here in the subtropical splendor of the Florida peninsula, the average daily temperatures this month have been warmer than they were in November. I have never experienced a December this balmy in my life, with daytime highs averaging about 83 degrees and overnight lows of 60. While it's certainly not something that I've been accustomed to, I wish to assure you that I intend to endure it with all of the dignity and grace at my disposal.

"Honey would you please pass the sunscreen."

Christmas tree in downtown Celebration

I hope that December in your neck o' the woods is chugging along just fine and that your holiday shopping is pretty well wrapped up. If anyone else wants to join us for Christmas on the beach please drop me a line and state your preference for either the Gulf of Mexico or the Atlantic Ocean, as we're equidistant to both. Also, to my Jewish friends I'd like to wish you all a very Happy Hanukkah!

December skies in Florida

My neighbor's house

2007-12-05T16:57:00.000-08:00

I guess I'm just not the suburban type. For some odd reason I simply can't work up much enthusiasm for block parties, soccer moms, endless rows of similarly styled houses sitting atop manicured lawns or otherwise humble abodes overdone in brightly lit holiday ornamentation. Lord knows I've tried to fit in but can now totally understand why I spent 16 years in the windswept wastes of the Great Basin desert. Jackrabbits don't dress up like elves and cactus definitely ain't no fun to decorate.

I guess the final indignity came sometime after dusk this evening when my neighbor's house came alive for the first time this season with a garishly gleaming barrage of holiday lights and decorations which includes a mechanical Santa Claus that emerges every few minutes from an inflated chimney, powered by its own motor with which to levitate him up and down and up and down and up and down until dawn's early light breaks across the swampy stillness.

I sort of feel like Charlie Brown after he sees the Las Vegas style decorations adorning Snoopy's doghouse. My home, in comparison to my neighbors, is like the drooping twig straining under the weight of a single Christmas ornament.

It's definitely going to be a long holiday season for Beamis.

Merry Christmas Charlie Brown!!!!!

Did I mention that my neighbor is a Hindu?

SEC Championship Game 2007

2007-12-01T12:23:00.000-08:00

Louisiana State University Cheer Squad

Today's championship game, being played in Atlanta, between #7 LSU and #15 Tennessee is the culmination of a very exciting and memorable season of college football in the Southeastern Conference. Ten out of the twelve teams in the league are bowl eligible (with Ole Miss & Vanderbilt being left out) and the top ranked team (#4 Georgia) is not even eligible to play for the title.

The incredible performance of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow was fun to watch and his statistics are historic. I'm rooting for him to win the Heisman Trophy but won't be surprised if it goes to another SEC standout, Arkansas running-back Darren McFadden. I wish good luck to them both.

Some definite highlights of the season would have to include the LSU-Kentucky game (actually watching it with friends while visiting Kentucky a lucky bonus), Alabama-Georgia, Florida-Georgia, Arkansas-LSU, and Kentucky-Tennessee. These games were entertaining and very well coached. I truly believe this is the best sports league in America. Eat your heart out NFL, you should be so lucky to have this many thrills in ten years worth of games.

The current LSU mascot Mike IV

The book makers in Las Vegas have LSU as a 7 point favorite over Tennessee but I beg to differ and think there will be a big upset in Hotlanta today.

My prediction: Tennessee over LSU 37 -35.

University of Tennessee mascot Smokey

GO VOLS!!!!

College basketball game

2007-11-24T08:00:00.000-08:00

Last night a friend invited me to attend a college basketball game at Disney's Wide World of Sports complex which was a part of the Old Spice Classic being televised on ESPN. We watched Kansas State (#20) versus Central Florida in an exciting and close game that went into overtime.

It goes without saying that college basketball is a much better entertainment product than the NBA and so much more affordable. The games are shorter, more exciting and played with real passion. I had a great time and encourage y'all to go see a college game in a neighborhood near you.

I took some pictures that I think summarize the essential elements of the NCAA basketball experience. A good time was had by all.

The Milk House at Disney Wide World of Sports

Cheers for Central Florida

Lay up

Time out

Foul shot

Handshakes

Final score

West Coast road trip

2007-11-21T13:07:00.000-08:00

We spent yesterday, our first wedding anniversary, taking a road trip down the west coast of Florida to collect shells on Honeymoon Island and have dinner in Tampa.

We're getting pretty good at this road trip thing.

Thought I'd share some highlights of our journey with y'all on the day before Thanksgiving. Be safe and make sure to tell Grandma I said hey.

Antebellum mansion
Brooksville, Florida

Confederate monument
Broooksville, FL

Gopher tortoise
Hernando County, FL

Mermaid statues
Weeki Wachee, FL

Wall Spring
Palm Harbor, FL

Boggy Creek
Pinellas County, FL

Honeymoon Island State Park

Wood storks
Honeymoon Island State Park

Gulf shore
Honeymoon Island State Park

Connie's haul of sand dollars
Honeymoon Island State Park

Rush hour in Tampa

Kentucky vs. Georgia

2007-11-14T06:40:00.000-08:00

Sanford Stadium

The Kentucky Wildcats (#20) will journey south to Athens this coming Saturday to take on the resurgent Georgia Bulldogs (#9) in Sanford Stadium. The current mess that is the SEC East standings has the lower ranked Tennessee Volunteers (#19) in the drivers seat for claiming the division crown due to the tie-breaking advantage of having beat the stuffing out of Georgia in Knoxville back in October. Oh the trials and tribulations of life in the SEC!

Andre Woodson

Truth be told, I really like this Kentucky football team and think that their coach Rich Brooks has done a wonderful job reviving a moribund program from oblivion. Andre Woodson is a great quarterback and the Wildcats stunning defeat of LSU was a highlight of the NCAA season. Having said that, the Dawgs must defeat the Cats and hope for a Tennessee loss in the next two weeks to get a shot at LSU in the SEC championship game and a berth in the Sugar Bowl. The Las Vegas odds makers have Georgia favored by 8 points and I think that this will be borne out by the final score: 35 - 21.

Next week I'll be rooting for Kentucky to kill the Vols!

UGA in his new black jersey

This game will air on ESPN at 12:30 PM Eastern time.

Auburn vs. Georgia

2007-11-05T08:44:00.000-08:00

The oldest football rivalry in the South commences for the 111th time this Saturday in Athens, GA when the Auburn Tigers (#17) take on the Georgia Bulldogs (#10) between the hedges in Sanford Stadium.

2006-07 Auburn Cheer Group

The boys in Las Vegas have Georgia favored by one-point, which pretty much translates into even odds in my book. If Georgia can come away with a win this Saturday and another the following week against Kentucky it is not too much of a stretch to speculate that they could win the SEC East and meet LSU in the championship game later this month in Atlanta.

I pick the Dawgs to win this one 37 - 24.

Downtown Athens, GA on game day

This game can be seen on CBS at 3:30 PM Eastern. I'll be serving BBQ & slaw with pecan pie. Y'all come down now, ya heah?

Wilco performs on Austin City Limits

2007-11-03T21:39:00.000-07:00

Wilco on stage at Austin City Limits

I had the great privilege to catch Wilco perform on the wonderful PBS show Austin City Limits. The band was in great form and played songs from their most recent album Blue Sky Blue. Lead guitarist Nels Cline was featured more than usual and boy oh boy did he wail. I just loved hearing that battered old Fender Jazzmaster ringing in my ears once again, even though it was just coming out of TV speakers instead of through a stack of Marshall amps live and on stage.

It may seem a bit hyperbolic to say but I'll state it anyway, this is the best damn band in the land! They are astute artists that incorporate a wide range of influences and are able synthesize it into music that is fun, refreshing and intelligent.

Keep an eye out for this show in your local listings. Nels Cline alone is worth the price of admission.

Nels Cline

LSU vs. Alabama

2007-11-02T06:40:00.000-07:00

The long awaited clash between the Cajun Tigers of LSU against the Crimson Tide of Alabama will finally occur tomorrow in Tuscaloosa. The newfound, and quite intense, enmity of Tiger fans towards the Tide is due to the perceived traitorous nature of their former coach Nick Saban who took the head coaching job at Alabama without the blessing and permission of football fans in Louisiana. They are especially upset because he decided to coach a rival team in their own division (the SEC West). That he coached the Tigers to the 2003 national championship title seems to matter not a whit in their low estimation of his tainted character and honor.

A popular shirt in Baton Rouge

LSU is currently ranked #3 in the nation, with a good shot at the national title, yet Tiger fans are still harboring a boatload of venom towards their former coach Nick Saban. It must be very disheartening to their current coach Les Miles, who is rumored to be considering a move back north to coach his alma mater (the Michigan Wolverines) next season. I think all of this Cajun fanaticism is beginning to wear on him more than a little, because in Ann Arbor they're quite happy if all you do every year is beat Ohio State.

Of course, in Alabama the arrival of Nick Saban is viewed quite differently.

The odds makers in Las Vegas have picked LSU as a 7.5 point favorite but I think emotions will be running high in Bryant-Denny Stadium and the Tide will emerge victorious 31 - 27.

This wonderful spectacle of SEC football will air on CBS at 5:00 PM Eastern time. I'll be grilling chicken served up with homemade slaw and home fries. Y'all come on down!

Pecan Pie again

2007-11-01T13:48:00.000-07:00

It's pecan pie time again here in the Deep South and I'm sharing my recipe, which I published last year in a similar blog post. I found it in a fifty-year old copy of Gourmet magazine (November 1956) that I bought at a library book sale in Utah.

As I mentioned before it is important to use a good quality cane syrup if you can find one. Most brands that are available in major chain grocery stores use a mix that often blends in corn syrup or dextrose, which is not as good as 100% cane syrup.

I bought the above jar in Louisiana at a country produce market and am always on the lookout for the "real thing" when traveling throughout the South. There is a wonderful roadside market on U.S. Hwy. 27 in Lamont, Florida where I can reliably obtain pure cane syrup that is locally produced. They also sell white chocolate covered pecans to die for!

So have at it you busy bakers out there, nothing puts the folks at home in a better mood than the sweet smell of freshly baked pecan pie wafting through the corridors of the house. You'll always attract a crowd around the oven, mark my words.

Southern Pecan Pie

Boil 1.5 cups of cane syrup with 1 cup of sugar for about 2 minutes, or until the sugar is thoroughly dissolved. Slowly add the hot syrup to 4 beaten eggs, stirring constantly. Add 1/4 cup butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1.5 cups of coarsely broken pecans, and stir well. Turn the mixture into an unbaked pie shell and bake pie in a moderate oven (350 F) for about 45 minutes, until the shell is browned, the filling is set, and a knife inserted near the center comes out dry.

Georgia vs. Florida

2007-10-24T06:50:00.000-07:00

Florida and Georgia fans coexist peacefully in the stands

The Georgia Bulldogs will meet the Florida Gators (in Jacksonville) for their annual clash in what is known in these parts as the "World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party". I see in the paper that the good fellas in Las Vegas have the Gators pegged as 9-point favorites over the Dawgs and I think that this is a fair estimation of the relative balance of power between the two teams. If anything, it might have been a little too generous towards Georgia who have yet to really beat anyone of stature besides Alabama.

UGA will be traveling to Florida to show his support.

As y'all know I am a longtime fan of the Dawgs, but must say that I also really like the Gators as well. I like their quarterback Tim Tebow (who should be a serious contender for the Heisman Trophy this year) and their coach Urban Meyer (who went undefeated at Utah when I was a resident of that state a few years back). Judging by my t-shirt collection I'd say that the Gators are definitely my second most favorite team.

Tim Tebow & Urban Meyer

I'm not prepared to go out on a limb and say that I really believe Georgia has a good chance of winning this game, so I am going to just refrain from making a prediction and be content to sit back this Saturday and enjoy a grand spectacle of football tradition in the sunny precincts of the Southeastern Conference.

Alberta & Albert will also be in attendance.

The game will air on CBS at 3:30 EDT.

Pumpkin pie is back

2007-10-23T16:00:00.000-07:00

Even though it is still broiling in the lower 90's down here each day it's also still October. You know, the fall? So now that Wal-Mart has finally dropped the price on pumpkins, as they always do in the last week of this month, I have begun to prepare my ever popular homemade pies. It is a sure sign that Autumn has arrived and one that I hope will give Mother Nature a clue to turn down the thermostat here in the Florida jungle. I've even promised her a whole pie if she'd just cool things down a little. The mid-80's would feel oh so refreshing!

About ready to emerge into the world

Get the knife!

Kentucky

2007-10-22T12:37:00.000-07:00

As promised, I am showcasing some photos of the Kentucky leg of our recent journey to the rolling hills of the mid-South. We spent several days at Aunt Sue's farm near Bowling Green and used it as a base from which to explore nearby Mammoth Cave National Park as well hit every thrift store in Warren County. I also went on a geological expedition in Green County that resulted in the collection of many fine specimens of crystallized limestone and seabed fossils that were duly handed over to Aunt Sue's grandkids. It's never too soon to turn young minds on to the wonders of science.

All in all a rather peaceful and unaffected corner of America. I could live there. Enjoy the pictures.

Good Spring Church cemetery
Mammoth Cave National Park

First Creek Trail in Mammoth Cave N.P.

Vintage Mountain Dew sign

Freshly harvested tobacco

Mexicans hanging tobacco in a curing shed

Rural post office

Tourist trap merchandise
Cave City, KY

Entrance to Mammoth Cave

In the cave

Coral Hill, KY

Nolin River
Mammoth Cave N.P.

Wigwam Motel
Cave City, KY

Aunt Sue's pumpkins

Sunset on the farm

Mississippi State vs. West Virginia

2007-10-19T14:52:00.001-07:00

Mississippi State mascots "Bully"

As many of you know I'm a hit or miss college football prognosticator this season but I still keep making predictions nonetheless. This week I'd like to stick my neck out on the chopping block and say that the odds makers in Las Vegas have underestimated the boys from Starkville, MS by proclaiming them 23 point underdogs against the West Virgina Mountaineers in Morgantown. I predict otherwise and hereby proclaim, in this season of improbable upsets, that the Bulldogs will win the contest 34 - 31.

I think they will at least cover the point spread so get on the phone and call your bookie NOW!

Travels in Tennessee

2007-10-17T16:25:00.000-07:00

We spent last week visiting relatives in Tennessee and Kentucky. In amongst the socializing and family gatherings we also managed to experience a wide array of nifty places. As a result I have decided to split the trip into two separate blog posts, one for each state visited.

I've included two shots I took from the airplane looking down on Florida which I think y'all will appreciate. (Click on the ones you want to see in more detail.)

I'll post the Kentucky leg of the journey later this week.

St. Johns River and tributaries
Volusia County, Florida

Downtown Jacksonville, Florida

Tennessee River from Signal Mountain, TN

World famous onion rings at Nikki's Drive-Inn
Chattanooga, TN

Dry Pond Lead Trail in the Little Frog Wilderness

Inside the Texaco station
Cowan, TN

The Parthenon in Centennial Park
Nashville, TN

Railroad tracks climbing the Cumberland Plateau
Franklin County, TN

Forgotten Florida

2007-10-08T08:06:00.000-07:00

Limestone, Florida

This past Sunday we headed south into the deep interior of the Florida peninsula in search of wild unadorned nature and to experience the essence of a largely ignored and forgotten region of the state. As many of y'all know I like ignored and forgotten places. The world is full of 'em and I intend to get to as many as possible before I finally expire in one.

Thank God for the forgotten places.

Downtown Bowling Green, Florida

Salvation and Full Service Beauty
Bowling Green, Florida

Highlands Hammock State Park

Frostproof, Florida

1948 Studebaker Truck in Frostproof

Downtown Frostproof

Leaving Frostproof

College shirts

2007-10-05T12:42:00.000-07:00

My newest hobby is collecting vintage college logo shirts. I like to comb through thrift stores and yard sales looking for these unique and rarely preserved relics from the past. Some of the shirts that aren't my size I give to my wife to wear and have even put some up on eBay, where the prices for this stuff can go pretty high, depending on the team.

So dear readers, the next time you're at a yard sale and see a really cool old college team shirt think of your old pal Beamis who wears a size L and who would be mighty glad to reimburse you for postage.

Some cool oldies I've collected so far:

Florida vs. LSU

2007-10-05T11:58:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to put in a prediction about the upcoming game on Saturday night that will pit the defending national champion Florida Gators against the currently #1 ranked LSU Tigers in Baton Rouge. The odds makers in Las Vegas have the Tigers winning by 7 points, so do yourself a favor and pick the Gators who will manage to squeak out a win in the bayou.

Score: Florida 27 - LSU 24

Remember to enjoy SEC football responsibly.

Georgia vs. Tennessee

2007-10-02T15:37:00.000-07:00

Old Smokey

My beloved Georgia Bulldogs travel north to Knoxville on Saturday to take on the Tennessee Volunteers in Neyland Stadium. This should be a good match-up but one in which the Dawgs will ultimately prevail.

The predicted score: Georgia 37 - Tennessee 16

UGA is way cuter!

Moonrise over Celebration

2007-09-26T05:56:00.000-07:00

For the past couple of nights the moonrise over my little corner of Florida has been most spectacular, so I decided to get out and photograph it to post on this here blogsite. I do hope that the lunar light show has been just as nice in your neck of the woods too.

Morose in Michigan

2007-09-24T13:38:00.001-07:00

It looks like another nail is about to be driven into the coffins of two once high and mighty entities known as General Motors and the United Auto Workers union. Today the UAW called a strike against GM because the ailing car maker could not give the weaseling union representatives enough assurances concerning long-term "job security". Who is ever given a guarantee of that besides government workers?

What ever eventually happens in the end will not be good for the health of the company or the long term prosperity of these mainly unskilled workers and their Rust Belt communities. This strike will not end the misery but will only exacerbate it.

Meanwhile the corpse that is currently the city of Detroit just became a little more rotten smelling as a long procession of Toyotas and Hondas rolled on down Woodward Avenue to watch the funeral pyre blaze up a fresh fountain of sparks by the river front.

http://snipurl.com/1r6ks

Back in GM's postwar salad days.

The Iranians Are NOT Devils!

2007-09-23T16:40:00.000-07:00

I accidentally caught tonight's 60 Minutes interview with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. I found him to be an honest, intelligent and thoughtful person who does not, contrary to the invective of the Bush-Cheney-Fox News cabal, have horns and a trident. Most tend to forget that he is the democratically elected leader of an ancient, very large and diverse country.

It is because I have great fear that the U.S. government is imminently planning to wage an unprovoked war against this peaceful nation that I wanted to share some of the exchanges that President Ahmadiejad had with CBS News correspondent Scott Pelley. His sincere and unrehearsed answers showed me that Iran has no intention of waging any kind of a war against the U.S. or building a nuclear bomb.

Am I just a dumb and deluded rube? If so it is far preferable to being swept up in a frenzied wave of hate and paranoia that will blindly support the senseless bombing of innocent people that have done nothing to harm anyone.

I found President Ahmadiejad in possession of the unique ability, for a politician, to accurately separate out the contrary interests and intentions of the American people from that of the lawless warlords that supposedly rule them. In fact he said some of the most intelligent things I've heard so far about the current mess in Babylon that is costing the American taxpayer $720 million a day. It was refreshing to hear a politician speak so freely and with such assured conviction.

I found his words and reflections encouraging and hope and pray that they will convince more of my fellow citizens to see him and the Iranian people as human beings just like us, who deserve respect and the dignity due to a sovereign people.

Pray for peace!

PELLEY: But the American people, sir, believe that your country is a terrorist nation, exporting terrorism in the world. You must have known that visiting the World Trade Center site would infuriate many Americans, as if to be mocking the American people.

AHMADINEJAD: Well, I'm amazed. How can you speak for the whole of the American nation?

PELLEY: Well, the American nation . . .

AHMADINEJAD: . . . you are representing a media and you're a reporter. The American nation is made up of 300 million people. There are different points of view over there. I would like to think that the points of view of the American people is very close to the points of view of the Iranian people. The American people are very much against and opposed what certain American officials are saying and their points of view. And they're also, the way that the people have voted in the American elections is very telling. And we are criticizing such behavior on the part of the American government. We believe that if anyone just allows himself to accuse others, there will be no possibility for peace and friendship.

PELLEY: What do you mean the American election is telling? What did you take from it?

AHMADINEJAD: What I'm saying is that the American people very clearly have shown that they do not endorse what certain American officials are saying and doing. I remind you of the rallies in Washington a couple of days ago. What were they saying and shouting? Perhaps 70, 80 percent of the American people are against their troops, their sons and daughters being in Iraq and war. And as I said, they're very much against war. And for that matter, the American people are peace-loving people. You shouldn't think that what the American officials are doing and their behavior reflects completely the mood of the American people. And American officials must not make the American people a victim of their wants and wishes. And we make a distinction between the American people and American officials. And the American people are opposed to occupation, the use of force, and also terrorism, the killing of the people of other nations. And this is what we are saying. This is what we believe in. With that in mind, we feel very close to the American people. And I'm sure that this is reciprocal. A couple of days ago, an American scientist, a scholar, wrote to me saying that he has a great love for Iran. And once he passes, he wants to be buried in this country. The two nations are very close to one another.

PELLEY: Mr. President, you say that the two nations are very close to one another, but it is an established fact now that Iranian bombs and Iranian know-how are killing Americans in Iraq. You have American blood on your hands. Why?

AHMADINEJAD: Well, this is what the American officials are saying. Again, American officials wherever around the world that they encounter a problem which they fail to resolve, instead of accepting that, they prefer to accuse others. We basically are very much opposed to any kind of insecurity inside Iraq. Because once we have insecurity in Iraq, the first party, if I can use the word, that will be affected would be Iran. Having said that, we fully oppose occupation and also military attacks. In Iraq we don't need to do that. For that matter, in any part of the world we don't need to do that. When it comes to war, we don't think that war, belligerence, is a good solution for differences of opinion. We have said this in the past to American officials that the Iraqi people very much oppose occupation. And they will not accept this. And experience tells you this. This is a nation with many thousands of years of history. They have stood up to occupiers in the past, and they will stand up again. I'm very sorry that, because of the wrong decisions taken by American officials, Iraqi people are being killed and also American soldiers. It's very regrettable. And, again, I'm saying that why should they be killed? Why should these boys and girls be killed? Why should we have war in Iraq and insecurity? I believe that the people behind the insecurity are those who, from thousands of kilometers away, have brought in troops. First, they said that they want to topple the dictator and find WMDs [weapons of mass destruction]. They didn't find WMDs and there's no dictator there anymore. So the question is: What are American troops doing right now in Iraq? They have to answer, respond to these questions. We are not interfering in Iraq. The Iraqi people are our friends. And the president, the prime minister, the speaker of the parliament are our friends. We don't need to interfere in Iraq. We are two nations which have been connected through history. Each year millions of Iranians go to Iraq for pilgrimage. And in a number of these bombings inside Iraq, Iranian citizens have been killed. We want peace; we want security in Iraq; and it only serves our own interests. And those American officials who see the interest in a continued occupation of Iraq, I ask them to reconsider. They should leave alone the Iraqi nation and also their own soldiers. And they shouldn't accuse others needlessly. We basically oppose the killing of any person, innocent persons, from any race or community. As I said, the Iraqi people have been victimized. We feel very sad for them. Equally, we feel sad for American soldiers and troops because they don't know why they're there. They are the victims of the, if you will, the wants and wishes of certain American officials.

PELLEY: Mr. President, American men and women are being killed by your weapons in Iraq. You know this.

AHMADINEJAD: No, no, no.

PELLEY: Why are those weapons there?

AHMADINEJAD: Who's saying that?

PELLEY: The American Army has captured Iranian missiles in Iraq. The critical elements of the explosively formed penetrator bombs that are killing so many people are coming from Iran. There's no doubt about that anymore. The denials are no longer credible, sir.

AHMADINEJAD: Very good. If I may.

AHMADINEJAD: Are you an American politician? Am I to look at you as an American politician or a reporter? This is what the American officials are claiming. Well, we don't need to arrest many people to prove that Americans are occupying Iraq or produce fabricated documents. If you go to the streets of Baghdad, you will see American helicopters and tanks and Humvees, so on and so forth. So the Iraqi people are just defending themselves. I think the way out for the American official from this problem that it has created for itself shouldn't be in accusing Iraq, Iran, rather. You need to understand the realities of the region and also respect the Iraqi people. The Iraqi people, like other people, want to have security, want to have peace, want to be free. When they see that soldiers come into their houses, they react. So if the American government does accept this reality, this truth, everything will changes. If they accuse us 1,000 times, the truth will not change. They need to accept the truth and also the wishes of the Iraqi people. That is a way out of this deadlock.

PELLEY: For the sake of clarity, because there is so much concern in the world about this next question, please give me the most direct answer you can. Is it your goal to build a nuclear bomb?

AHMADINEJAD: What are you driving at?

PELLEY: Simply that, sir. Is it the goal of your government, the goal of this nation to build a nuclear weapon?

AHMADINEJAD: Do you think that the nuclear technology is only limited in a bomb? You can only build a bomb with that?

PELLEY: No, I appreciate the differences, sir, but the question is limited to the bomb.

AHMADINEJAD: It has different uses. Well, you have to appreciate we don't need a nuclear bomb. We don't need that. What needs do we have for a bomb?

PELLEY: May I take that as a "no," sir?

AHMADINEJAD: Please, let me finish my thought. It is a firm "no." I'm going to be much firmer now. I want to address all politicians around the world, statesmen. Any party who uses national revenues to make a bomb, a nuclear bomb, will make a mistake. Because in political relations right now, the nuclear bomb is of no use. If it was useful, it would have prevented the downfall of the Soviet Union. If it was useful, it would have resolved the problems the Americans have in Iraq. The U.S. has tested new generations of bombs, many thousands of warheads you have in your arsenals. It's of no use. And also the Zionist entity, they have hundreds of warheads. It's not going to help them. The time of the bomb is past. The parties who think that by using the bomb you can control others, they are wrong. Today we are living in the era of intellectual pursuits. You should spend your money on your people. We don't need the bomb. For 28 years we have defended ourselves in the face of enemy onslaught. Every day we are becoming more powerful. And, again, we don't need such weapons. In fact, we think that this is inhuman. So can you please tell me why the U.S. government is fabricating these bombs? Do you want to provide a more welfare, happiness to the people through the bomb? Are you going to deal with global poverty? Or do you want to kill people? So our belief, sir, tell us and also our culture, because of these, we are very much opposed to the killing of people. This is very clear.

PELLEY: Mr. President, I just have a few questions. We have appreciated your answers very much, and I know we're pressing on time here. We would be very grateful if you wouldn't mind taking just a few more. Will you, in this interview tonight, rule out the possibility of a nuclear test of an Iranian weapon during your presidency?

AHMADEINEJAD: Well, we don't have any plans.

PELLEY: But rule it out. Say that "we will not test a nuclear device as long as I am president." Can you say that?

AHMADINEJAD: Please, please, let me finish my thought. Actually, I very much oppose this behavior. Picture it. If an Iranian reporter kept repeatedly asking the same questions from a U.S. official, how would you feel? Would you feel good about that?

PELLEY: I would.

AHMADINEJAD: I think that instead of going astray here and misleading the public, we should try to help with the uncovering of the truth. You are a member of the media. You are not a government official. You should be concerned with the truth. We should all be concerned with the truth. We don't need such weapons. Those who don't have anything to say to other nations and deal with them, they resort to atomic weapons. We are a cultured people and we have good relations with all nations. And the status of a country has nothing to do with atomic weapons, rather its culture and its civilization. And whenever we make a decision, we are courageous enough to come out and say that we have made such a decision. Whatever we want to do, we have nothing to hide. We clearly will announce that. Well, I said sometime ago that if you sanction us, we are going to take the production to an industrial scale, and we did that. And we said that we will continue to push ahead undaunted. We did that. We have no problems. When it comes to that, we are very transparent and we have a frank tone of voice. Let me be frank and very straightforward here. I oppose the unilateral policies and bullying policies of the American administration. I believe that these lead to war, leads to greater poverty and killing. I believe that you can manage the war better through friendship, mutual respect, and by respecting laws and also fair play. Again, I'm being very frank here. I oppose the very idea of the bomb. I have nothing to hide. Also, I oppose the policies of the American administration.

PELLEY: Would an attack on your nuclear sites, in your opinion, give you leave to attack U.S. forces in the region or the U.S. mainland?

AHMADEINEJAD: Who is going to attack this country?

PELLEY: President Bush has pledged that you will not be allowed to possess a nuclear weapon and will use military force if necessary.

AHMADEINEJAD: I think Mr. Bush, if he wants his party to win the next election, there are cheaper ways and ways to go about this. I can very well give him a few ideas so that the people vote for him. He should respect the American people. They should not bug the telephone conversations of their citizens. They should not kill the sons and daughters of the American nation. They should not squander the taxpayers' money and give them to weapons companies. And also help the people, the victims of Katrina. People will vote for them if they do these things. But if they insist on what they are saying right now, this will not help them. Again, nobody can hurt the Iranian people. And history tells us that the people who have been less than kind to the Iranian people, they have lost out. What I'm saying, I am being very sincere here. I'm a Muslim. I cannot tell a lie. I am supposed to tell the truth. What I'm saying is that President Bush's conduct in Iraq is wrong. And his wrong conduct is behind his party losing the previous elections. This is very clear. The American people are very much dismayed with the behavior and the conduct of the present administration. They are not dismayed with Iran. In fact, the two nations are very close to one another. An example of that would be the letter sent to me by an American scholar a few days ago.

PELLEY: You mentioned telling the truth as a Muslim, and as you know so much better than I do, Verse 42 of the second sura: "The truth shall not be obscured by falsehood, and those who know the truth must tell it." But when I ask you a question as direct as "Will you pledge not to test a nuclear weapon?" you you dance all around the question. You never say "yes." You never say "no."

AHMADEINEJAD: Well, thank you for that. You are like a CIA investigator. And you are . . .

PELLEY: I am just a reporter. I am a simple, average American reporter.

AHMADEINEJAD: This is not a Baghdad prison. Please, this is not a secret prison in Europe. This is not Abu Ghraib. This is Iran. I'm the president of this country. Well, I think that I've gone beyond what you've asked me, above and beyond. And I think that if you speak to your job as a reporter, what I have said so far, again, goes above and beyond what you ask me.

The full interview: http://snipurl.com/1r53x

Beyond the backyard

2007-09-22T16:25:00.001-07:00

I have been taking pictures over the last few days that I think capture the essence of my new home down here in Osceola County. The cooler weather and the welcome efforts of a conservation district work crew that have been cutting back some of the vegetation on the access trail leading into the nature preserve behind my house has enticed me to explore more territory than I would have a month ago in the buggy, muggy misery of summer.

The main difference from the Panhandle is that there is very little dry land around here (our house is built on fill) and the forests have more hardwoods and palms than the long leaf pine woods that characterize the sandy hills of northern Florida. There are a lot more lakes and swamps and it rains a bit more, about every afternoon, just like in the Amazon jungle.

The Reedy Creek Swamp directly behind my house.

Angry storm clouds roiling in from the south.

An osprey soaring over the lake searching out a meal.

Sunset over the swamp.

It is a totally new terrain that I'm still adjusting to and very cautiously exploring. It's beautiful and a little bit frightening. As the weather continues to get cooler and the bugs and snakes become less of an issue I plan to explore more extensively into this mysterious and fascinating realm that seems to yield its secrets very reluctantly. Stay tuned and wish me luck.

Happy Fall!!!!

Georgia vs. Alabama

2007-09-19T06:51:00.000-07:00

Bryant-Denny Stadium

This coming Saturday the #21 ranked Georgia Bulldogs will pull into Tuscaloosa to engage in battle with the #20 ranked Alabama Crimson Tide. It should be a barn burner of a game because these teams are very evenly matched and the intense euphoria left over from the Tide's thrilling defeat of Arkansas last week is still hovering in the air over Bryant-Denny Stadium.

UGA chills on the sideline.

Las Vegas odds makers have Alabama favored by 3.5 points but I wouldn't touch this game with a ten-foot pole. My prediction: the Dawgs will find a way to prevail over the Tide 21-20.

The SEC rules!

Will Nick Saban bring back the glory of the Bear?

Shampoodle

2007-09-18T11:45:00.000-07:00

I saw this vehicle making the rounds in my neighborhood today, which got me to start waxing rhapsodically about what a wonderful thing capitalism is. A niche for every need.

Yet more proof positive of what a wonderful civilization we have produced here in the New World.

Silicon basting brushes

2007-09-10T14:44:00.000-07:00

My dear friend Kelly Hartsell of Johnson City, Tennessee gave me, as a wedding gift, a set of silicon basting brushes to use when cooking meat on the backyard grill. After using them for the past few months I want to take this opportunity to testify to their superior quality and durability. There is really no comparison!

Not only do they perform more efficiently but they clean up so well that I wonder how I got by before they were invented.

Thanks be to you Kelly for giving me a barbecuing tool that takes me into the 21st century.

Brush at rest

Brush in action

Perfection!

Alabama History Tour

2007-09-03T11:43:00.000-07:00

Alabama State Capitol

On our way back from a recent trip to Tennessee we made several minor detours in Alabama so I could visit some historical sites that I have always wanted to see. The first stop was the Alabama State Capitol, in Montgomery, where I took a self-guided walking tour of the grounds and building.

According to the WPA Guide to Alabama: "The State Capitol on Goat Hill, at the east end of Dexter Ave., is constructed of brick covered with stucco and patterned after the National Capitol. It ranks among the most beautiful of the Greek Revival capitols built during antebellum days."

The building was dedicated in 1847 but was burned two years later and rebuilt in 1851. It was here in January 1861 that the Secession Convention convened and one month later representatives of six seceding states chose Montgomery as the provisional capital of the Confederate States of America (it moved to Richmond, VA four months later).

On February 18, 1861 Jefferson Davis was inaugurated as President of the Confederacy in this building and in 1886 helped lay the cornerstone of the Confederate Monument located on the north lawn of the capitol grounds.

Capitol Rotunda

Unlike so many other public buildings these days there were no security checks or a police presence of any kind upon entering this magnificent building. I found the Alabama State Capitol to be a friendly place with a courteous and welcoming staff who were eager to help visitors enjoy this hallowed space.

Jefferson Davis

Just across the street from the State Capitol grounds is the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church where Dr. Martin Luther King was the pastor during the turbulent civil rights era in Montgomery. In many ways this simple 19th century building was the spiritual and moral epicenter of a revolutionary movement in American history. Many of the most famous and important events of that period occurred in this city, including the bus boycott instigated by Rosa Parks in 1955 and the famous voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery in 1965.

I had always thought that the Dexter Ave. Baptist Church was located in a segregated section of Montgomery and was quite surprised to find it located directly across the street from the state capitol building. This congregation was way more strategically located to stir up change than I had ever imagined. That's why historical pilgrimages are so important to students of history. You can only learn so much from reading books, you've got to get out there and smell the ghosts.

Front of Dexter Ave. Baptist Church

The Montgomery bus Rosa Parks made history in.

We made another stop in the small and decaying town of Georgiana in southern Alabama. This is where we exit the interstate to make our way over country roads into the panhandle of Florida. Connie said she saw a sign that pointed to the Hank Williams boyhood home. At first I thought she had misread the sign because I had never heard anything about him living in THIS town.

We got gas and I turned around and headed back in the direction of the sign. After a couple of left turns we came upon the house all right, located on a very forlorn block in a run down neighborhood. Across the street was a disheveled and derelict old house that was at one time a museum dedicated to Hank but had since fallen on hard times. We peered in through the dirty windows at piles of mementos and junk and then realized that it was time for us to split, mostly for our personal safety. It was just not a very nice neighborhood.

The Hank Williams boyhood home

I think you can confidently skip this historic home the next time you find yourself in this neck of the woods and enjoy these pictures from the safety of your computer screen. The whole thing looked and felt like a feeble attempt by the state tourism authorities to breathe a little economic life into the terminally ill patient that is Georgiana, Alabama.

I will say that we did see some of the lowest slung, boxer underwear revealing, pants on the young males in town that we had observed on the entire trip. Now that's a real point of civic pride.

Downtown Georgiana, Alabama

See ya later alligator

2007-09-02T16:03:00.000-07:00

While taking a stroll at dusk we stopped at the dock that juts into the neighborhood pond to do a little bird watching. Tonight we observed wild turkey, white ibis, wood storks, anhingas, great blue herons and common egrets. Florida is certainly a good place to look for wildlife.

Fork it over dude!

Someone had left a bunch of stale bread on the railing of the dock which we threw into the water. Within seconds a plethora of small fish swarmed like piranhas upon the helplessly vulnerable rafts of Wonder Bread. Less than two minutes later a large hump of reptilian flesh was creating a large wake in the middle of the pond that was aimed straight in our direction. It seems that Florida alligators have developed a taste for Wonder Bread too.

Awww come on now! I'm hungry!

This fearless gator swam right up underneath of where we were standing and was as bold as any wild critter I've ever seen in making its case perfectly clear that it wanted some of those enriched wheat flour wafers too. Unfortunately for this large hungry saurian it is illegal to feed alligators in the state of Florida and after several minutes of useless entreaties it finally sulked off in a huff, angry that we were such law-abiding squares. See ya later alligator!

Later dude. Thanks for nuthin'.

YouTube Is Great!

2007-08-26T13:36:00.000-07:00

He's now just a mouse click away.

I've been somewhat under the weather of late and forced to lay low and rest. As a way of passing the time I have been turning to YouTube to watch all sorts of things that I would never have been able to access in any other way.

Until very recently I didn't realize that this site had all kinds of professionally crafted and copyrighted material, in addition to the amateur stuff, which people have posted to share with the wider world. It's really incredible what I can now watch: old episodes of Leave It To Beaver; Thelonious Monk concerts; interviews with the likes of Frank Zappa & Bob Dylan; hysterical shrieking speeches delivered by Adolph Hitler to hypnotized German audiences; guitarists Steve Vai and Buckethead collaborating on the soundtrack for the sci-fi flick "Ghost of Mars" (Buckethead wears his mask in the recording studio too!); Jimi Hendrix on the Dick Cavett Show; very old episodes of the Honeymooners with Ralph screaming "TO THE MOON ALICE!" and vintage stand-up comedy routines from the likes of Richard Pryor, Alan King, Jonathan Winters and Lenny Bruce. Sheesh, I'm exhausted from all of the choices at my fingertips. In case y'all didn't know about it yet, this site is worth a look.

I'll be better soon and will complete my historical tour of Alabama as promised last week. Also more giant spiders from interior Florida. Stay tuned......

Wally & the Beaver

Driving through Dixie

2007-08-20T18:39:00.000-07:00

I've been on the road again for the last few days and managed to visit a few historical sites that I had wanted see, for years now, and actually discovered a few more that I didn't know were so close to the ones I had set out to visit.

I'll list the towns and y'all can try to guess the historical sites: Dayton, Tennessee (something to do with monkeys); Montgomery, Alabama (rebels and a King) and the obscure village of Georgiana, Alabama (a hot rod Ford and a two dollar bill). I'll be putting up a post concerning my history adventures sometime later this week and shall award no-prizes for the best guesses concerning the actual sites themselves. They shouldn't be that hard to figure out. I have very brainy readers.

For now I just want to share some random shots of the South in late August taken along the lesser traveled back roads and byways of Dixie. Hope everyone is enjoying their August.

Front porch
Georgiana, Alabama

Aquarium
Chattanooga, Tennessee

Painting of George Wallace
Alabama State Capitol
Montgomery, AL

All Saints Chapel
University of the South
Sewanee, Tennessee

Stevenson, Alabama

Green light
Florala, Alabama

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Training Camp

2007-08-11T06:55:00.000-07:00

I don't live far from the Disney Wide World of Sports complex in Orlando where the Tampa Bay Buccaneers hold their pre-season training camp. Practices are held in the morning and afternoon and the public is invited to come and watch for free. Since I had never been to an NFL training camp I thought it might be fun to go and watch the boys limbering up for another grueling season of battle on the gridiron of professional football.

The Buccaneers are coached by Tampa native Jon Gruden who led them to a Super Bowl victory over his former team, the Oakland Raiders, in a laughable blowout back in 2003. Since that time, Chucky (a nickname given to him by his players because when he fixes his intense stare on something he reminds them of the evil doll from the Child's Play movies) has not had much success since then and some in the Florida sports media speculate that his time in Tampa may soon be running out if he isn't able to return the Bucs to their former glory in a hurry.

Chucky goes over the play with B. Gradkowski

All in all it was a fun morning at the Hess Sports Field where I mingled with devoted hardcore fans and members of the press corps to witness the sweat and toil of life in the NFL. I wish the Bucs the best of luck as they embark on their 2007 campaign.

Cadillac Williams eludes the lumbering horde

Jeff Garcia rolls out

Chas Gessner snags one

Josh Bidwell punts a boomer

My old-fashioned barber shop

2007-08-10T06:54:00.000-07:00

I was inspired to share the simple joys of the barber shop that I frequent after reading Devastatin' Daves blog post about a visit to Durf's in Bridgeton, Maine:

http://snipurl.com/1pfsg

The Central Barber Shop is located at 207 Broadway in downtown Kissimmee, Florida which is the county seat and largest city in Osceola County. I found it quite by accident one day while checking out the central business district for the first time. It's a real throwback to the old barber shops that I went to as a younger man that have been rapidly disappearing with the advent of unisex "haircutterys" beginning back in the 1980's.

The last real barber shop that I frequented regularly was in downtown Santa Monica, CA (now long gone) that was owned by a real character who knew the history and lore of that town better than anyone. He would spellbind me with captivating tales of yesteryear while briskly clipping my thick mass of hippie curls.

The sights, smells and rituals of an old-fashioned barber shop are definitely something from the past that I am happy to be supporting in this era of large chains and impersonal service. This particular place is always packed and the loyalty of their regular customers is quite evident, with many patrons getting a haircut twice a month. The price is right if you're into frequent visits.

So, if you're ever in the swamps of central Florida and need a little trim off the top come on in and sit a spell at 207 Broadway in the heart of beautiful and historic Kissimmee.

Out and about in the sweltering South

2007-08-09T17:49:00.001-07:00

We've been doing a lot of traveling recently and have also relocated to central Florida for the time being. (Further bulletins as events warrant.) Since I haven't put out a blog post in over a month I will probably be spitting them out for the next few days just to catch up with all of the material I have been collecting while on the road. I have one planned about my barber shop, a report from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers training camp and something on the way all of the hot weather we've been having here in the Deep South is being reported in the press. Can anyone tell me what the heck the "heat index" means?

For now I'd like to share some random photos that I've snapped from the past four weeks that I thought might be of interest to you my gentle readers.

Oh and by the way, it is less than a month until the college football season begins!

Thunderhead
Osceola County, Florida

Summer jungle growth
Reedy Creek Swamp, Florida

Spiderman
Kissimmee, Florida

Big fat gator
Osceola County, Florida

Daniel Creek
Cloudland Canyon State Park, Georgia

Storm at dusk
Celebration, Florida

Mobile, Alabama

2007-07-07T18:27:00.000-07:00

I spent the day hanging out in Mobile, a city I have passed through many times on the interstate but never taken the time to investigate. It is a 300 year old port city with hints of Creole French and Spanish conquistadors emanating from its ancient buildings and narrow oak lined streets.

My over all impression of Mobile is that it is a quintessentially Southern place where time and people move very slowly (especially in July) and change has come only grudgingly. My kind of place. Y'all should check it out sometime.

Presley Chapel

Old neighborhood near downtown

Ba Ba's Cafeteria

A specialty at Ba Ba's

Downtown

Church Street Grave Yard

Mobile Harbor

Oh, Mama, can this really be the end,
To be stuck inside of Mobile
With the Memphis blues again.

Blue Sky Blue

2007-07-04T12:48:00.000-07:00

I bought the new Wilco album Blue Sky Blue at my favorite music store, Groovacious in Cedar City, while visiting Utah last month. Since then I have become addicted to this record and play it in my car almost constantly.

This is their first studio effort with new band members Nels Cline and Pat Sansome (who have been touring with Wilco for three years now) and you can hear the difference, especially the guitar work of Cline. Band leader Jeff Tweedy has woven a delectable, hook filled tapestry that is part mid-sixties electric Dylan, post-Beatles John Lennon, southern-fried Ziggy Stardust, early Steely Dan (the guitar duel at the end of Impossible Germany sounds a lot like the solo from My Old School), Mott the Hoople, the Faces, Uncle Tupelo and a very liberal sprinkling of Neil Young three-chord electric guitar chops spread throughout.

There is a humble and gracious attitude of celebration in the simple things of life that make the lyrics a throwback to an earlier time in American life, which I like muy mucho.

Sunlight angles on
A wooden floor at dawn
A ceiling fan is on
Chopping up my dreams
What is left of them
I take to sleep again
Where I dare pretend I'm more than I seem

Suffice it to say I highly recommend this record, which is available at your friendly neighborhood Wal-Mart.

Happy 4th of July!

Eating along the road less traveled

2007-07-01T13:48:00.000-07:00

Little Manatee River

We've been down in Osceola County for the past two weeks, using it as a hub from which to launch adventures into the the vast and exotic lands of the Florida peninsula. We visited the Atlantic coastal beaches at Canaveral National Seashore, the interior jungles and savanna of Lake Kissimmee State Park as well as the crystal white sands and deep blue surf of the southwest coast along the Gulf of Mexico.

Generally I pack my own food when traveling but we did patronize two excellent establishments for lunch that were welcome culinary throwbacks to a bygone era.

Our first discovery was on Canal Street in the old downtown section of New Smyrna Beach, along the Atlantic coast, where we accidentally stumbled onto a gem of a drugstore that still had a functioning lunch counter that also happened to be the social hub of this small close-knit community.

Little Drug on Canal St. in New Smyrna Beach, FL

The old-fashioned lunch counter in Little Drug.

We sat down and ordered our lunch while I wrote postcards. In no time at all people sitting nearby took an interest in us and we began engaging in friendly conversation. A lot of the talk was fond reminiscing about eating in places like this when we were all kids.

I had the Hot Dog Platter

It reminded me of the old luncheonette in the Kresge's at Wheaton Plaza in Maryland where my mother would take us after shopping for school clothes. If we were good we'd get a banana split or ice cream sundae afterwards and if you ordered a lunch you were eligible to choose from one of the balloons hanging from the ceiling that contained a lower price for dessert inside of it, that your waitress would pop, revealing a small piece of paper with the price you had to pay written on it. I'll never forget the day I got my dessert for a penny! Talk about your cheap thrills.

Butter pecan!

Locals relax at the counter.

The other culinary gem was Junior's Barbecue on Hwy. 46 in Sanford. This was some of the best southern style pork and chicken barbecue I've tasted in a long time. Owner Elic Green, Jr. (hence the name) was nice enough to let me take a sneak peek at his smoker and kitchen, which is about the size of a small pop-up camper.

Junior's in Sanford, FL

He will soon be relocating to downtown Sanford by taking over the space that was formerly the old Stokes Fish Market. Give him a holler if you're ever down in Seminole County and you're hankering for some of the best barbecue this side of Georgia.

Pork Sandwich Special

Mmmmmmm.......good!

Way Out West

2007-06-15T18:11:00.000-07:00

I have just returned from an extended visit out West and wanted to present a brief photo montage of this beautiful journey. There will be a few blog posts forthcoming detailing specific areas, so stayed tuned.

I'd also like to say that I'm really, really glad to be back home in Dixie!

Great Sand Dunes National Park (Colorado) from 35,000 feet

Clepsydra Geyser, Yellowstone National Park, WY

Lodgepole pine forest on the Pitchstone Plateau
Yellowstone N.P.

The Grand Teton (13,770 feet), WY

License plates
Gallatin County, Montana

Angel Moroni blow your horn!
Mormon Temple, Salt Lake City

Drying my clothes in Springdale, Utah

Axel, Moxie and Mean Joe Bean

Utah Hwy. 130

Delta 88, Modena, UT

My old raven neighbors in Quichapa

Horse Ranch Mountain (8,726 feet)
Zion National Park, UT

Back in the void

2007-06-03T20:56:00.000-07:00

High desert of southern Utah

I'm spending some time in the desert that I used to inhabit.

It is still very quiet. The rabbits are still huge. The coyotes still yip & yowl. The moon still looks good coming up over pinyon pines.

Just the same, though, I still cain't wait to get home to Dixie.

Cooling off on Larry's driveway.

Blue Plate Special

2007-05-23T15:57:00.000-07:00

Some old-fashioned grub

Tonight I prepared a blue plate special for our evening meal. Having grown up in the Baltimore-Washington area, which abounded with diners, I decided to cook up a favorite dish that was a steady staple of those venerable culinary institutions of yesteryear: the open-faced roast beef sandwich with mashed potatoes and gravy. In Baltimore it always came with french fries topped with brown gravy but in the DC area is was always whips (we were a little more Southern, I guess) unless you specifically requested otherwise.

The decline of diners in most of the country, with the exception of the Northeast, has been a sad thing to watch because they were always such warm and friendly places to soak up some atmosphere as well enjoy good strong java and hearty delicious stick-to-your-ribs food.

I remember moving to Los Angeles in 1979 and being awed by the spectacular 24-hour coffee shops such as Googies, Norms, Zucky's, Ships, Penguin and Johnnies. The architecture was cool and very space age L.A. and the atmosphere was laid back and friendly. The menus were usually about three feet tall and contained six to eight glossy pages. In those sleek glass and tile palaces you could also get open faced roast beef and taters as well as avocado burgers and the best triple-decker clubs you ever ate at three in the morning. Unfortunately that era of Los Angeles history has quickly faded away, with almost all of the original coffee shops having been either torn down or put to other uses. Maybe one day I'll write a book about it all.

A classic Norm's from the 1950's

It was fun reminiscing with my step-daughter at dinner tonight about blue plate specials and the good old days of diners, a period of history that now seems distant and remote. I miss those good old days but am pleased and thankful that I had the opportunity to enjoy and now happily remember a time that was.

Final day in Baton Rouge and a visit to LSU

2007-05-20T08:16:00.000-07:00

Downtown Baton Rouge from the top of the State Capitol

After touring the Louisiana State Capitol building we set out to see the old one which was located nearby in downtown Baton Rouge. This structure, known as "the old gray castle", served as the seat of government from 1852 until 1932 and is considered one of the most distinguished examples of Gothic architecture in the United States.

Original Louisiana State House (1852 - 1932)

The building was not without its critics as Mark Twain, the riverboat captain, wrote about seeing it from the wheel house of his steamboat while passing by on the Mississippi River, "It is pathetic that a whitewashed castle, with turrets and things should ever have been built in this otherwise honorable place." I think if Twain had lived to see the towering colossus that took its place the old building would seem quaintly austere and restrained by comparison.

Stained glass dome of the Old Capitol

Spiral staircase in the center---very Gothic indeed!

Our next stop was the campus of Louisiana State University, known to everyone in the South as LSU. This gigantic school is a member of a fervently ritualistic religious cult, that I am a branch member of, known as the Southeastern Football Conference (SEC). Throughout the Deep South each Saturday in the fall gaudy and determined gladiatorial battles are staged in vast arenas where the honor and pride of whole regions is determined in hard fought combat on the gridiron. LSU is one of the founding members of this league and its fans are some of the most dedicated and fanatical in all of sports.

The most outward manifestation of this fanaticism is the large enclosure, built next to the stadium, that houses their team mascot Mike the Tiger. This hallowed compound is a landscaped replica of native tiger habitat with a stream of running water, rocky outcrops and miniature jungle. This particular Mike was the fifth to be the official mascot in a line of tigers stretching back to 1936. It seemed to be one of the most visited places in Baton Rouge and a spot of much reverence and curiosity from visiting pilgrims.

Mike V sleeps the afternoon away.

Outside Mike's compound

Be part of a legacy!

Another interesting sight on the campus are two ancient mounds located across from the Huey P. Long Field House. According to the official campus guide book, "Archaeologists believe the Indian mounds were built more than 5,000 years ago, before the construction of the Egyptian pyramids. Scientists also believe Native Americans constructed the mounds for ceremonial or religious purposes, not for shelter or burial sites. The exact purposes remain a mystery as researchers do not want to risk damaging the mounds with further testing or digging."

LSU Indian Mounds

There are also five lakes on campus that teem with all kinds of wild critters including: ducks, geese, egrets, turtles, fish and white pelicans. It's Louisiana ain't it?

A large turtle heads back into an LSU lake after a stroll near the dorms.

On a sad note Mike V died this past Friday from old age. He had served as the official LSU mascot since 1990. The search is on for Mike VI. http://snipurl.com/1labt

Ron Paul Got It Right!

2007-05-18T07:24:00.000-07:00

I hate your freedom!

Many of you, for logical reasons, probably did not see the recent Republican presidential debate on Fox. The highlight came when Ron Paul suggested that the United States government had a role in precipitating the attacks of 9/11 by meddling in the affairs of the Middle East. This observation stirred an angry rebuke from Rudy the Great who asked him to take it back. It was probably the high point of the entire presidential campaign.

Thankfully today a nationally syndicated columnist has seen fit to comment on the veracity of Paul's claim. I am proud to offer the link to this column for your perusal:

http://www.lewrockwell.com/buchanan/buchanan58.html

By the way, Ron Paul won the debate according to the informal Fox News poll conducted afterwards, much to the consternation and angry confusion of that modern day political genius Sean Hannity. Way to go Dr. Ron!!!! Long live freedom and the truth! Those things still matter to some of us.