Bok has a pretty clear idea of the reality of the situation, doncha think?
I actually have two half written posts saved up, but just not the time nor the energy to finish them. Tonite I'm in Charlotte MI, tomorrow I'll unload and drop by to see my aunt and uncle on the way home. I probably won't be posting anything at all tomorrow - doing the quality time thing and all.
Michigan and Illinois can stick their speed limits - well, let's just say where the sun don't shine.
I've had to drive one of our "spare" trucks while mine is being repaired. A bolt mounting one of the turbos broke, and it was pretty noisy. Very irritating. The bolt broke off in the center section of the exhaust manifold, which has to be ordered in. I have to take the spare to Michigan next week, because mine won't be ready. This truck is a Kenworth with the extended cab. It has great legroom for a day cab, and KWs are built very well and there is a lot less road noise, even for a truck with a few trips around the world on it.
So, it got me out of the XM rut, by having to listen to terrestrial radio. This truck has XM installed, but I'm not paying for a month while only using it for a week. One of the problems with the death of the AOR format is that ya just don't hear this Led Zeppelin song very often, and it's really rare on XM. I heard this on a hard rock station in Nebraska, of all places.
East of Scottsbluff, NE on NE92. I've keep saying it and never do, but I've got to have my real camera ready to catch some of these shots. You can kinda see the finger projection to the left, and some other formations to the right. They were actually several miles apart. Anyhow, I hadn't seen them before, and I thought it looked pretty cool.
US83 north of Valentine NE. A cow hauler behind me said this was the "old funeral home" from there. I get to feeling at times I'm hauling some pretty wide loads, but not compared to this! There were utility trucks north of the house pulling lines for miles. Not exactly a "mobile" home, but it's gonna be for a bit.
Just in case you have nothing to say go here. My post:
F*** me dead I just climbed out from under my rock and realised I have not updated this since Paris Hilton was in jail... You would not believe it only hurts when I laugh. I prostrate myself in sorrow and beg thy forgiveness..
I am out of it with sleeping my way to the top, rock crushing, just generally being a terrible burden to my local police, my day starts with the dawn patrol from the second I am woken by murderous Teletubbies to 11pm at which point I fall asleep on the couch. I am avoiding recapture. but this damned rock is heavy.
I won't promise anything to you but if one more person emails me to ask why I haven't posted today I will start posting pictures of toe fungus, or fecal murals. No, really! Assuming I don't get distracted by counting my chest hairs..
Yep, inspiration is a many splendored thing. H/ T Erica
A sweet grandmother telephoned St. Joseph 's Hospital. She timidly asked, 'Is it possible to speak to someone who can tell me how a patient is doing?'
The operator said 'I'll be glad to help, dear. What's the name and room number?' The grandmother in her weak tremulous voice said, 'Norma Findlay,? Room 302.'
The operator replied, 'Let me place you on hold while I check with her nurse.' After a few minutes the operator returned to the phone and said, 'Oh, I have good news, her nurse just told me that Norma is doing very well. Her blood pressure is fine; her blood work just came back as normal and her physician, Dr.Cohen, has scheduled her to be discharged on Tuesday.'
The grandmother said, 'Thank you. That's wonderful! I was so worried! God bless you for the good news.'
The operator replied, 'You're more than welcome. Is Norma your daughter?'
The grandmother said, 'No, I'm Norma Findlay in 302. No one tells me shit.'
For some reason, this remembrance came bubbling up from the cesspool that is my mind.
A couple of years ago I had some free time, and decided to try to call in some coyotes. I had just gotten several calls, and had been working on my techniques. There is some fairly rough (for this area) country not too far east of my half section, and the draw running through it is a wildlife roadway. Past expeditions have shown coyote signs, and there is plenty of other denizens of the prairie there as well.
There is a spot where the draw follows a sort of "S" shape, and there is a little ridge at the bottom of the tiny valley. This was my destination. I parked my pickup about a mile away to the north, and walked in. I was suitably attired in camo, and had my calls and my Savage Model 10 in .243. I've got a long bipod on it, and can shoot with the rifle supported in the seated position. I found an area that had several clumps of weeds and a bunch or two of yucca. I pulled up some tumbleweeds to build up the little area so that I could mask my silhouette a bit as well. I had a pretty good view of the valley floor as it opened up from the south, which is where I thought I could draw any coyotes in the area. Since I'd walked in from the north, I figured that direction was probably a lost cause.
So, I'm equipped not stripped, and wounded rabbit calls were being sent in a timely fashion. I had my binoculars with me as well, and there just wasn't anything happening. But, it was a fairly nice day, if a bit windy. I was enjoying just sitting in that little area, whether anything happened or not.
But then, I heard several thumps from behind me. For the life of me, it sounded like car doors being slammed some distance away. My first thought was someone was trying to rip off my pickup.
But, when I turned around, it was nothing of the sort. A mule deer buck and two does were contemplating just what I might be from about twenty yards away. Muleys don't walk, they spring from spot to spot, and the thumps were what I heard when their hoofs hit the ground. They looked me over, and I marveled at the sight. After a bit, they decided they'd had enough, and started to move away. It took a couple minutes before they disappeared from view to the south.
Muleys are a curious lot, and the buck with his little harem just had to see what was making that racket. I don't know if I really did sound like a wounded rabbit, but I'd hidden myself well enough that they didn't know what I was until they about stepped on me. Of course, it wasn't deer season, and I've never gotten a muley tag anyways. Whitetails are what I always draw, and they are a lot more skittish.
But, none of that mattered that day. I didn't fire a single round, but the day was a success.
County Road 49 (also known as Kersey Road) between I76 and US34, southeast of Greeley CO. A big load of loose onions in a bobtail truck. There is a cabbage patch on C79 between Bennett and Prospect Valley, but I'd never seen onions.
He was definitely overloaded - I wanted to get around him, but he was dropping a huge onion about every quarter mile, and I didn't want one through the windshield.
This was on the radio as I was headed home late this afternoon. Man, it's been a while since I've seen the movie. I've always been a fan of off beat movies that might be terrible, but something about them grabs me. This is one of them.
The animation sucks, the story isn't bad, and the drug references are legion. Cokeheads loved this flic when it came out - one of the scenes where John Candy's robot character snuffed up yards of a feel good powder was definitely a favorite. There was even a bit of T&A. The music was particularly good. The plot is a bunch of short stories originally appearing in the magazine Heavy Metal with a common thread - the evil Loc Nar. The animation varies because to speed the release of the movie, several studios were assigned segments. Some of the backgrounds were decent, but the movement was jerky. However, it is still an enjoyable film to me - just not one I can watch repeatedly. It would wear out it's welcome pretty quickly. So, Heavy Metal is a guilty pleasure.
Just got home from a "trip to town," which included a visit with the Workman's Comp doctor. I'm cleared to go back and to take it easy. The doctor's father used to have a big cow hauling truck line, so he was joking with me about not to jump from a cabover. He need not worry about that!
Got the convention on, too. I'm not sure how much more of Wolf Blitzer I can take.
This one is a story told in installments - The Luck of Dennis St. Michel, Viscount Stokington. You might guess it has something to do with Jolly Olde England, and you'd be right. I don't know exactly what time period the story is set, but they are still using horses. I'm only about a third of the way through, and it's a compelling read. The story is told in the first person, and he is able to travel through all strata of society comfortably in his nefarious quest, of which I know nothing at the moment.
Anyways, if you have time to burn, check it out!
Edit: Now that I've gotten a bit further into the adventure, a couple things really stand out. There are quite a number of pop culture references in the story - a villain trying to kill our hero is named "Calvin Hobbes." A certain "Major Tom" dies unexpectedly, and our hero says "Can you hear me Major Tom?" several times. There are more, and I cannot help but chuckle when coming upon one.
Some time ago, I was watching Rear Window on television, and during the breaks the channel had a running commentary from Brent Spiner - Data on Star Trek The Next Generation. He commented on the opening shot and how it showed Hitchcock's mastery - there was a several minute sequence with absolutely no dialog, but we learned all kinds of information. It was a hot morning looking out at the rear of apartments across a plaza, the hero was a photographer for a national magazine injured getting a great shot of a race car crash, among other details. Spiner said that was a far more effective way of using film to tell a story rather than have someone narrate. That always stuck with me, and I look for that sort of thing in films I watch.
Now, I've never had any sort of film appreciation training, or any sort of higher education related to film making what so ever. But, I do notice certain things, and Shane was a pioneer in a lot of ways.
For instance, if and when you view the movie, watch the dogs. It seems there is a mutt somewhere in a scene, and it isn't accidental. When one of the homesteaders is buried, his dog is right there at the grave, whining at the death of his master. Joey's constant companion is a dog that helps convey emotions - particularly during the fight between Joe and Shane, when he breaks his leash to be with Joey. Most telling is the dog in the bar. When Jack Wilson, the gunfighter, first shows up at Grafton's, check out how the dog slinks away. We now know for sure Wilson is a bad guy, and we didn't have a bunch of dialog to explain it. The dog did that for us.
Another touch I "got" was the opening part of the clip above, right at the end. We see Shane, riding into town to meet his destiny. Joey and his mutt are chasing him, and he runs through the graveyard. The scene freezes on the tombstones - one with a big cross. The scene fades to Shane, his horse at a fast paced walk. Shane, death, and moving with a deliberate purpose, showing no fear. Again, no dialog.
Of course, the acting is superb. Apparently,
George Stevens originally cast Montgomery Clift as Shane, and William Holden as Joe Starrett. When both decided to do other films instead, the film nearly was abandoned before Stevens asked studio head Y. Frank Freeman who was available. Upon seeing a list of actors with current contracts, Stevens cast Alan Ladd, Van Heflin and Jean Arthur within 3 minutes.
Alan Ladd was too short (5'6"), Jean Arther was too old (over 50), and Van Heflin wasn't a big star. This was Arthur's last film. But, their performances and the supporting actors made this flick a classic. Jack Palance, the gunfighter, was a relative unknown. Dad told me men copied how he put his gloves on for years after the movie came out to show how tough they were. Ben Johnson, one of my favorite character actors and a longtime film companion to John Wayne, portrayed a young cowboy who saw the light. Edgar Buchanan (Uncle Joe in the Beverly Hillbillies/Petticoat Junction/Green Acres universe), Elisha Cook, Jr. (Icepick in Magnum PI), Ellen Corby (Grandma Walton), and even Nancy Kulp (Miss Jane on the Beverly Hillbillies) makes an appearance. Brandon De Wilde, who died far too young, plays the boy Joey.
It doesn't hurt that the story is pretty good, too. A gunfighter looking to escape his past ends up at the Starrett place and finds a home, helping on the burgeoning farm. He puts his gun away. He becomes the boy's hero, and there is an attraction between he and Marian, the wife and mother. He is also fast friends with Joe Sr., the man of the house and the leader of the collection of homesteaders. But, the local cattle baron - Riker - wants them gone. He needs unfettered access to the river to water his cattle. The "squatters" have fenced him out, their farms with barbed wire shutting off his cattle. The cattleman's point of view is presented somewhat sympathetically as well - Riker makes a valid case. But he crosses the line when he hires a gunfighter to run the homesteaders out of the valley. This part of the plot is reminiscent of the Johnson County War in Wyoming. There is a great scene where Shane and Joe fight the Riker boys at Grafton's, bonding as friends and destroying some furniture in a classic battle. There are some great lines as well - Shane shows Joey how to shoot, and Marian objected, not appreciating Shane glorifying guns to Joey:
A gun is a tool, Marian; no better or no worse than any other tool: an axe, a shovel or anything. A gun is as good or as bad as the man using it. Remember that.
The movie is a gradual slide into requiring Shane to strap on his gun again. Riker wants to eliminate Starrett, because he correctly determines he is the glue that holds the homesteaders together. Shane knows Starrett will die if he confronts Riker and his hired gun. Shane, with his innate sense of "all that is right and good," knows the job has to fall with him. It means a fight with Joe, who won't let Shane fight his battles. Shane has to fight "dirty" to win against the larger and stronger Starrett.
So, we find ourselves at the beginning of the clip above, Shane on his way to meet his destiny. Shane conquers all, but is wounded. There is some debate on whether Shane lives or dies - I'd like to think he lived. The story was deliberately vague. You think what you want here.
Also, the most famous lines were uttered by Brandon De Wilde, when he calls to Shane: Shane, come back! Mother always cried when she watched this movie at this point.
So, while I am a total John Wayne westerns fan, and really like a bunch of the "classics," Shane will always be at the top of my list.
I feel bad - I just noticed I didn't have Jed from Freedom Sight linked on the sidebar. Actually, I'm embarrassed. Bad manners and all. He has been a friend and I really enjoy reading his posts. I hate to pigeonhole anyone, but if you want to read about government excesses and the ramifications thereof, he is the guy. Jed also covers geeky stuff pretty well, too, often turning a well deserved jaundiced eye towards Microsoft and their shenanigans. He also covers Colorado issues - since that is where he resides. I kinda like keeping track of the neighbors and all.
I've lived here on The Poor Farm most of my life. Located in western Kansas, where the wind blows - supposedly the Dodge City weather station at the airport has the highest average wind speed in the CONUS. It would be the "sticks" out here if there were any trees, but I like it. I really like the spring - when it is calm, and the smell of the fresh wheat and other plants fill the air with a unique "green" smell. My real love is the fall, when the air is cooling and calm, when you breath the air it is like a drink of cool water. Speaking of cool water, my well produces some mighty good tasting stuff. It is hard water for sure - all the faucets have lime on them, but I'll take it over soft mossy smelling reservoir water from the city any day.
Oh, man, now that is just too funny. Yannow, what Smith should have added was that Palin burned the book later! Wouldn't that just be too much?
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