MOVED FROM NOT A GOOD PLACE - WOOD PECKER - SUMMER HEAT - NOT MOWING WHEN MOWING - JIBBER JABBER - SARAH HOYT

 LOADED YARD DIRT

Loaded two bags of dirt this morning at our local feed store. Small bags till I picked one up. Water-logged and double the weight.  

As I threw the first one into the truck bed, it slipped out of hand and my shoulder and right wrist reported that all of this was a mistake. But I had made up my mind that I could still do all of this young man stuff and proceeded. I got it done, but most likely will not do it again. I will get "the guy" next time.

I took a photo of the bag price as I have learned this works perfectly for the check out person when pricing. Show the photo on the cell phone and priced in an instant. Always works.

I parked, went inside and picked up a bag of bird seed and headed for check out. The gal checking me out asked for my phone number and I told her "no phone number."

She said I could get discounts and good deals. I replied that I do not give out information to anyone anymore. I was polite, and I was. 

She rang up the bird seed and complimented me on the cell phone photo to help her price the dirt. She said that it so much easier this way. I paid and she handed me the receipt.

There was no one else in line so I commented on the tattoo on her right arm and both wrists. I asked if I could look at them and she said OK. Long vines, a photo hidden inside part of the twisted vines and a single word tattooed on the inside of each wrist. Large cursive words that read to her when she looked at her wrists. Words to live by, offer encouragement, hope, consistent life guidance at a glance. (I do not remember the two words).

She said, "I got the tattoo when I was a teenager."

I replied, "Last year huh?"

She looked at me. A hint of a grin on her face. 

"I am 36" she said. "Four kids .... been here in town for two weeks now....bought a small piece of land and put a mobile home on it....moved from not a good place."

Still youth in her face, a personality along with a strong presence of self-respect, accomplishment and determination. She caught me somewhat off guard with a glimpse into her life book. There was a smile on her face now.

I looked at her and more seriously said, "moving here may turn out to be one of the best decisions you will ever make in your life time." I went on to briefly talk of the goodness of the people and how she will come to see and appreciate. If moving here was one of best ever decisions my wife and I have made in the past 26 years, then offering her that advice came from experience.

I told her that there is no crime here and she said; "I know and for the first time my daughter is sleeping all night."

How could I top that? 

I generally thanked her and she told me to have a good day. I wanted to tell her the impact she had on me. 

I am not sure from where she moved, but she already wears this little east Texas town as well as anyone I have met. She and her kids are going to thrive here!

---------------
 WOODPECKER AND BIRD FEEDER

 

I mentioned this awhile back; how the wood pecker hangs on the edge of the bird house floor to eat like he does holding on to a tree trunk. He could stand like the bird on the round feeder, but even there, will hang from the edge to take food.

The cat lays under the small green tree as if it is hunting. Not ready to pounce or working at hunting. Just lays there to prevent the birds from feeding. A cat finger to all the birds at best. So I placed an orange cone to solve the problem

The cat always wins. On this day I walked towards the cat "shooshing it away" along with bad cat language. The cat stood up, did not move and replied using cat talk and giving me a most nasty look. She forced me closer forcing me to use more shooshing language and hand gestures. She only gave up her ground when my toes were touching her tail. And even then, sauntered away with a meow that would have gotten her grounded if only I knew "cat language."
 

----------------

TREE DOWN

 

It is hot now. The center of the nation and other places around the world also experiencing three-digit summer day temperatures. The highest I have seen in our little corner of the world was 104 the other day and heat indices are higher. We have been spared somewhat here for the past few days with the slightest of breezes out of the south. Even with that, the moving afternoon heat is physical in its presence.  

-----------

NOT MOWING WHEN I WAS MOWING
 

I was out mowing early this past weekend, but not early enough. The sun was already rising when I got to the road side strip. I can mow most of this, but not all of it easily. The slope in the middle and further down the road is beyond my ability or wanting to try using the zero turn. Watch one YouTube video of someone overturning a zero turn mower on a steep slope is a lesson learned. I have learned to mow perpendicular to the strip for the center section. It does work but takes more time and patience.

After about an hour or so I stopped for a small bottle of water and then went back to mowing. I pushed the throttle to full and starting making my passes. For some reason the mower was not working as I expected it to. And yes, you are exactly right. After about 5 minutes of that, I realized that I had not engaged the deck. First time that has ever happened in my life. Funny, yep and I would appreciate your help keeping my secret.

------------  

JIBBER JABBER 

Stuff I have recently found that is fun and is keeping entertained. 

WALMART DRONE DINNER DELIVERY. 

This is just starting. Gonna get crazy and will be fun to watch all of this develop and grow. I want to see a John Deer tractor delivery!

A MILLION DELIVERIES celebrated. 

------------ 

SCHOOL LUNCH PIZZA 

I have seen a few pizza ideas like this on You-Tube and I am going to try it. Looks fun and easy to do.

---------------  

TACO STROMBOLI idea 

Yes, have to try this also.

------------  

DON'T LEAVE ME AGAIN, all AI and I love the music and visuals.

I am becoming a fan of Sarah Hoyt. She does a lot with AI imagery and music and I visit her blog site daily now. I am not sure if I can become a fan of her fantasy writings. But I will keep exploring. 

A recent example from her blog site.   

I would like to learn how to do this. Heck, anyone now can do this and is only limited by the learning curve, individual creativity and the wanting.

According To Hoyt - Born Free

----------

Thanks for the visits this month. 

 

AMAZON BOXES - DEAD MOUSE DELIVERY - JIBBER JABBER

THE GARBAGE

It is still my job to take out the garbage. I am not complaining. My wife, too, will take out the garbage. A shared responsibility in truth. But this past week it was me. In part because of the “***” Amazon boxes. Large boxes. I cannot carry one empty box out the door because the open flaps catch on everything. There is no handle. I have yet to figure out how to carry a large open box w/o having issues. Two large boxes require two trips to the side-by-side for trimming, folding and securing with string.

The corners of each box are cut, the box force-folded, held in position while a string is strung, snugged and tied off. The garbage folk want/require boxes be prepped like this. After my struggle I understand why.

Two large Amazon boxes cut, folded and tied laying in the back of the side-by-side bed is an accomplishment. A small amount of satisfaction. Some swearing and talking to myself is always a part of the procedure. And I always have to apologize for some of the swearing because of a lifetime of bad swearing habits. I am getting better, but the degree of inner frustrations often skims the surface of some of that language. These days I do feel wrong and badly using some of that language. Why is it still that some frustrations so get to me?

And within this past weeks garbage rants, I wondered if there were others experiencing similar frustrations. I wondered how many million of Amazon boxes have to be murdered and tied up for their end of days. And with in all of that, I wondered if there was a brotherhood of folk around the world that morning, also talking low under their breaths and then having to apologize for said frustrations. I do not think that I am alone here.

Stepping back when all was said and done, I had to laugh at myself in that disposing of Amazon boxes is a small price to pay for the convenience they bring to just this one home.

Months' supply of paper towels and toilet paper delivered to our back porch by young men who have yet to ever complain to us about unloading, carrying and placing boxes stacked up in their arms in one hundred degree afternoons. Young men dressed in company logo shirts, summer shorts and tennis shoes.

“Would you prefer that I put your packages back here instead of your front porch?” The young delivery kid asked and I said yes. Briefly explained that it is easier for my wife and me to unload and that the area is also protected from weather.

I realize that these young men are kids. They are in shape and their bodies are built for these kinds of missions. I marvel at youth now. I could not pick up one full box and he had just carried three to me as easily as I might carry a paper sack from the car to the kitchen.

Was I ever this young, agile and indifferent to the day's work? Did I too do all of these physical motions and work without issue? Did I jump back into the next chore, in a day's work filled with chores as nonchalantly as he did? As they all do? Do these kids get off work, stop by for a cold beer and pizza before heading home? Maybe somewhat exhausted and content at having that day's work behind them? I bet they do. I just bet they do.

As I write this morning, the garbage truck has just pulled up on the roadside, emptied the contents of our large garbage can and moved on. They, too, do not complain. They will actually go out of their way to help within their routine. Case in point, coming up our driveway after a bad storm had placed large tree limbs that prevented my wife and me from being able to leave our home. Two men lifting, rolling and dragging limbs so that our driveway was clear. Not complaining, rather asking if there were any other immediate problems they could help with.

Every Christmas my wife makes sure that delivery men and garbage truck men get several dozen homemade cookies. One might think all of this is the rule, but sadly it is the exception. But we say thank you often and to those who go out of their way day after day for so many folks, cookies are the rule.

The short of all of this is that Amazon boxes win. The bigger the box, the bigger the victory. I have learned late in life though that when all is said and done, some battles still go on and winning/losing is not the issue. It is the going through it to get to the other side! 

---------------

This is just fun. 

Found on the Feral Irishman blog. 

Dead Mouse Delivery 

-------------- 

JIBBER JABBER

Not even a photo in this week's post. The weather is not worth noting either. Looking at heat maps, millions of us are in the same boat. Fracking hot and sticky is fracking hot and sticky. Move on!

America, who knew? 

Thanks for the visit this week. 

 

"THANK-YOU AMERICA" - BUG OUT BAG UPDATED - THE RABBIT - PINTO BEANS PLUS - JIBBER JABBER

Will start today's blog with a thank-you to America with a clip from a Canadian coming down on a visa to experience this country. Heart-felt and a great way to put 250 years of celebrating independence behind us and look forward to the coming year.

THANK-YOU AMERICA 

I found this on Bustednuckles blog post this morning. The first video may not play. It is the second video I want to share. 

-------------

BUG OUT BAG 2026 

It has been quite awhile since I have written or covered items like this. Bug-out bags look different at 81 than in my earlier posting years. 

These days, I worry about being stranded in a traffic jam coming and going from Dallas or to some of the other distant towns we visit. We had a blow-out on 37 south a few weeks ago and were in the car nearly 3 hours before the tow truck fellows came to change the tire. Water, snacks, and few OTC personal items will come in handy and help prevent my wife and I getting to an emergency situation.

Daily temperatures over a 100 degrees are becoming more common now and through the next few months. Plus, I have always had a propensity for self-injury, case in point bumping my hand on the way out of the post office causing the skin on the the back of my hand to tear and bleed. An aging thing for older folk. Some disinfectant, a band-aid and paper towels fix a problem like these on the spot.

During a clean out of the bag last week, throwing away old and replacing with new bandages etc., I found the Israeli Emergency Bandage that I always keep in the bag. Taking just a moment to ponder this bandage, I realized that having the bandage is smart, but not knowing how to use/apply it defeats the whole purpose. So to “YouTube university” for more information. Two short videos follow and there are many more on the net.

Video 1    Video 2

I was surprised at how well designed and versatile this bandage is. Also with just a little time learning how to apply it, upgrades my skills with the contents of the bag. We have 6 of these bandages at home and I have added one more to the bag.

Sometimes little things can become big problems that some planning could have avoided. Eye drops, toothpicks, OTC pain meds, band aids, gauze, tape disinfectants, sun screen, hats and plenty of water for an extended period of time.

A month ago, we ventured into Dallas for a lunch with family. We decided to take highway 80 west because it is a stress-free drive. But no matter which highway we take to Dallas, there is no avoiding “driving into the machine” nearing Dallas. Big rain storms and an accident as we neared Dallas brought traffic to a crawl. Added an hour to our trip.

We were treated to some entertainment, though, watching folks leave the freeway trying to cross the grass strip to a close by service road. The grass strip had some old tire mark paths that appeared to have worked for other folks trying that under dry conditions. But on this day, the grass was soaked and turned into a mud pit for all who tried. The fellow who thought the rules did not apply to his big, expensive 4 x 4 also found himself with spinning wheels caked in mud ruts.

As fate would have it, that service road led everyone right back to the freeway we were all currently on. Spinning mud wheels while talking on the cell phone “duth not” help. Stranded in long traffic jams happens more often than not near bigger cities.

So, BOB updated for summer travel months.

----------------- 

THE RABBIT

There lives a family of rabbits now in a thicket to the east on the property. Good-sized rabbits. Would be a good catch for the cats if they were not so lazy. A meow from them brings a food dish to the ground. Then they walk a few paces to a cool spot on the cement to nap until the next time they ask for a snack. A good cat life for sure and my wife has spoiled them.(An opinion)

Often in the mornings, when I go outside to open the gate, I see the rabbit running all the way across the front lawn and then stopping a few feet from the thicket, dead still, thinking that he is safe. I yell at the rabbit that I see him, that he is not safe, that the cats see him and for him to get into the thicket. But the rabbit thinks he is safe because he has stopped and that no movement is his cover.

I want to further tell the rabbit that if I was a rabbit hunter, he would regret stopping dead still on the lawn. But like the cats, I am not a rabbit hunter. Only TEOTWAWKI will change that.

I turn my attention to the gate and then back to the rabbit and he is gone. The rabbit is just one of the many creatures moving about here.

Horses graze across the acreage beyond the front lawn. Cattle on the eastern acreage. A family of a dozen deer ranging from babies to full grown adults roam here. The teenage deer are the ones testing out side paths as they move through our yard each day. I will come upon them grazing just a few feet away. They are somewhat tame and more often than not, are annoyed that I am disturbing their grazing. When caught alone though, some sense of that causes them to run. Eventually, they come to a familiar fence or field, jump easily to grounds that are closer to home and family. The deer family is growing in size each year. No one here hunts them.

Birds announce when I fill the bird feeder. Or, they are yelling at me to fill the bird feeder and that I forgot to do so yesterday. I think it is in their tone. Blues, reds, yellows flash as they drop from the tree branches, hit the feeder and vanish. Birds spend a lot of energy in gathering, even when feed is readily available.

Armadillos live here, too. They destroy lawns, gardens and flower gardens. When either my wife and I are lucky enough to seen one still rooting for bugs early in the morning, the .22 rifle comes out and they are dispatched without prejudice.

We are fortunate that hogs to do not live here. If armadillos bring out the hunter in us, hogs bring out the hunter in everyone. Once a person sees the damage done to large acreage by a herd of hogs, it becomes instantly clear that left unchecked, hogs devastate the lands that produce food.

The running rabbit this morning was welcomed and a good start to my day.

------------ 

PINTO BEANS PLUS

 

A can of pinto beans+ is on the simmer this morning. I am a fan of beans, out of the can or fixed up. Only after arriving in Texas have I become interested in fixing small batches for meal main course side dishes and having those in the fridge. 

The above batch is a spin off of a Charro Beans recipe. Smaller in size that does not become a responsibility to eat taking up refrigerator space. Leftovers added were the "plus."

-----------

JIBBER JABBER

I sit here this morning with a new eye. Cataract removed and new lens implanted a week ago. The time has come for both eyes to have the procedure before the cataracts present bigger problems. 

The doctor who did this procedure on both of my wife's eyes a year ago is also doing mine. Seven minutes and the procedure is done. After 4 hours, the bandage is removed and the eye begins functioning. It takes most of the day for both eyes to again adjust to each other. My job is to follow the doctors directions. I am a good patient.

Saying that I am amazed and impressed is an understatement. The skill set of the doctor is beyond words. I have not seen colors for years like the colors I am seeing now. White is very white and the east Texas fields and lands are breathtakingly beautiful. A wonderful gift for an old man who often enjoys sitting and surveying his kingdom.

The other eye is now a noticeable problem. Fogs up perfect vision.  Poking myself in the bridge of my nose to adjust glasses that are not there is not funny. Yea, it is funny. More to follow as the second eye is scheduled very soon.

Thanks for the visit this week. 

 

 

DOGS BEING DOGS - INDEPENDANCE DAY 250 YEARS

Golden Retrievers retrieving.

-----------------

250 years coming this 4th of July. USA Declaration of Independence. A few flags flying adding some color to an east Texas lawn.

-----------------

Born in 1945, an historical year in which world wars ended and this country began transitioning into peace time and growth. I often wonder what my parents were going through and thinking about during those years. A world seemingly on fire, hundreds of thousands of our young men and women fighting in far-off countries and a homeland struggling for footings. That I was bred and born in these times gives me hope and strength in a world still trying to find footings. 

I am a child of Russian and Norwegian decent. Had my grandparents and parents not come to this country in search of freedom, at the cost of leaving all behind, is proof in the strength of the human spirit. I am most proud of my heritage and the strength of the human spirit that came from past generations. 

Maybe there never has been or ever will be a "good time" to bring a child into the fold. But growing families is a constant around this world. I'll take some solace in all of this, keep an open heart that we will all keep on keeping on and give thanks to God often.

-------------

GOOD EATS TOO OVER THIS WEEKEND CELEBRATION

 RED WHITE AND BLUE DESSERT

 

   Thanks for the visit this week.

 

 

NO AI PIE - BI-ANNUAL MAINTENANCE - ANGEL FLIGHT - JIBBER JABBER

Machines sent me happy birthday wishes this past week. Caring machines, me thinks. They do not forget. Their wishes last a day or two in the inbox then vanish. 

BUT, my analog wife bakes me an apple pie. Deep pie dish, Fuji apples, apple pie filling and a crust from Aldis. That is as I requested. The pie also vanishes, but aided by human's hands.

There is a lot of love in the pie photos below. My wife is a strong proponent of the birthday day being all to do about the person on that day. "It is your day and we will do anything you want." She gives many yeses on my birthday. 

It was my "job" to cut the first and second slice. The two slices came out as expected and wanted. Mostly intact, but not all intact. A spoon was needed to get the dregs left behind. The dregs are placed on top of the slice and each slice leaves no debris behind in the pie pan. A perfect pie, like the photos above, does not bleed out. It oozes while holding onto the contents of the next slice.

The slices were warm and my wife sat across the kitchen table as I took the first bite. She was leaning forward with a hopeful look that her husband would be pleased with her work. 

In the world of apple pie-making, she hit this pie out of the park. Perfect in all of the important pie criteria. This pie begged overdosing. Completing the first slice, pushing the plate aside and then digging into the remainder of the pie pan with a spoon. Eating, "umming and yumming" out loud. Only common sense prevented the eating of the whole pie, half the pie! I could have done that; nearly done a half pie for sure. I believe there are others reading here with the similar skeletons in the closet. 

The bride also received two thumbs up for dinner that night.

 

--------------- 

BI-ANNUAL MAINTENANCE

Drained the fuel out of the small 2500 watt generator and filled with new fuel. Makes a difference as old fuel can clog and cause carburetor problems. That has been a "thing" in my life time, carburetor "varnish". It's real and results in poor engine performance to failure to start and run. Fresh fuel twice a year solves the problem. Generators also need to be run from time to time with a load on them to help with lubrication. 

In the video above, I have one air conditioner and a fan on high plugged in to the generator. It started on the 4th pull and purred. There was a high degree of satisfaction at listening to the little generator work for an hour. Gotta be a man thing!

If the world as we know it ends I can run a window air conditioner and a small freezer/refrigerator for a few days. To what end? It sounds like a good idea for now and if nothing else, that's OK. 

----------- 

ANGEL FLIGHT

Turn up the sound. I think you may like this.

----------- 

JIBBER JABBER 

Cataracts have me tilting my head now like a bird to a new noise to see around the clouds in my eyes. To the point that I am scheduled to have both lenses replaced in the near future. Procedure takes from 5 to 7 minutes per eye and one eye will also receive a few incisions to help correct slight astigmatism. Like slicing the top of bread dough changes the shape of the loaf, small incisions work the same way to change the shape of the eye to become a better lens. 

The doctor visit this past week was extensive with high-tech tools mapping my eye and computing the exact shape of the lens to be implanted. All I had to do is not blink for a few seconds while the machine whirred, designed the lenses and snapped pictures. Pressures were measured and time was spent looking inside and at the back of eye and optic nerves. 

The doctor finished up the examinations with a concise and detailed explanation of the operating procedure. I was impressed with his knowledge, skill sets to do all of this and his ability to explain in layman's terms. He asked if I had any questions and completed the examination with asking permission if we could pray together for the Lord's blessing. 

I will be in good Hands.

Thanks for the visit this week. 

 

BURNING AND SHREDDING - CUTTING BACK LARGE TREE LIMBS - GM RECALL - JIBBER JABBER

Clearing large portions of land involves gathering large trees and vegetation in a pile and, when the weather permits, burning them. Large tree roots that will not burn due to being caked with dirt are buried. In those cases, large holes are dug using a back hoe, the tree stump pushed in and then covered with dirt. It works.

This process is not unique to east Texas. Anywhere where large fields need to be cleared of trees, brush and debris, these burn piles build up as a final step in producing fields for crops or simply fields that are easier to maintain. 

Shredding the surrounding fields near these burn piles was also be accomplished on this day. A large project and the equipment was being manned by father, son and a retired fellow running the back hoe.

 

I was sitting in my side-by-side along the roadside watching and doing some photography. The father running this project yesterday morning came over to visit. Neighborly. He introduced himself and I told him he was my morning entertainment. That my neighbor told me he was going to burn today and come on over anytime. 

Come to find out, this fellow and his son also clear smaller portions of acreage in the local area and then sell the cleared land all but prepped for a new family home with a few acres to boot. He mentioned a few smaller parcels he has cleared and the prices seemed most reasonable in today's markets.

It is nearly impossible to have larger acreage without having some of the heavy equipment to help maintain it. The speed at which mother nature grows everything here in Texas makes it necessary to shred to just maintain flat ground and trimmed fence lines. Let the fields be on their own for a few years, collect fallen trees from thunderstorms, and the clean-up becomes much more difficult and time consuming. Long story short, maintaining large acreage comes at a cost and work for the owners. This is part of what freedom looks like for farmers, ranchers and homeowners wanting this kind of life away from big city hustle and bustle. 

At noon, the man's wife showed up with lunch for the crew. She does this every day they are out working along with home family breakfasts and dinners.  

If any of this appeals to you, all you need to do is be willing to work 7 days a week, be your own boss, enjoy some aches and pains and be wedded to the idea that you can do anything you are big enough to do. 

Final clean-up after burn.

 ---------------------

Fields and burning piles to the east of us two weeks ago. 

 ---------------

CUTTING LONG LOW OVERHANGING TREE LIMBS 

Husband and wife neighbors came over awhile ago to remove two large long tree limbs that were growing over our fence and sagging so low that I could not mow the lawn under them. Not an emergency and not a job that had to be done right now. He said he would come over and look to see the problem. Indeed, a unique problem from a couple of large overhead limbs hanging just a few feet off the ground.

He called after dinner and said they were on the way to remove the limbs. For me, another opportunity to pull up on the side-by-side and watch. More entertainment now watching work that I use to do when I was younger. I have been the guy in the bucket and or driving the tractor. But those days are gone. 

The most important person in this team is the both of them. If you are the guy in the bucket, the driver is most important. If you are driving the tractor, the guy in the bucket is. So I watched. 

I was most impressed with her slow deliberate ability to maneuver the tractor and give him what he was asking for via hand signals. It was as if she has done this before. No jerking up/down/left/right or tilting the bucket but exactly as requested. They worked well together.

It was not too long afterwards that they both left with large limbs draped over the forks on the bucket, her sitting on the rear wheel tractor fender, him driving and them visiting with each other as they drove back through the woods to put the limbs on their burn pile.

Living here we have been fortunate that neighbor ranchers and farmers have equipment and have been most helpful with some of the work we have wanted/needed done.  They are neighbors doing what neighbors do.   

My last stint doing this kind of man-in-a-bucket work was lifting my son up to the edge of our snow-covered roof to better pull down row after row of heavy snow. He trusted me and we had done stuff like this before. We usually never told anyone when we decided to do these kinds of jobs. But moving him while standing inside the bucket that winter day mandated the smoothest movements I had. My wife had reservations but I told her not to worry. Man talk for "I think we will be just fine."
---------------

GENERAL MOTORS RECALL  Park and Do Not Drive Order

I found this on Bustednuckles and the bright colors in the headline did catch my eye. The video is worth watching. These are not our fathers' automobiles. 

Lessons here? 

Folks might give some thought to finding a very good honest mechanic and an older truck or auto with good bones. One that can be driven, repaired and maintained for reasonable money.

There are many dealers that sell older cars and trucks for bigger money, but the older vehicles are worth their weight in gold for longevity if properly driven and maintained.  

Check out Streetside Classics (Ft. Worth location) 

There are other locations and might be worth checking out. There will soon come a day where old cars and trucks will be near impossible to find. Time spent looking for an older vehicle through other sites and places might be time well spent.

Quite often, older trucks and cars  popup  for decent money.

-----------------

JIBBER JABBER

Again, June comes in bringing the heat and humidity. Nineties in the afternoon along with humidity. Thunder and rainstorms still passing through, but it will not be long until we get into the long dry spell. It takes a full year for me to forget how hard the heat hits me when I go outside past noon and an instant for all of that to hurry me back in the house.

Appreciate the visit this week.  

 

 

"ARNIE NAKKERUD, YOU ARE NOT FORGOTTEN" - MEMORIAL DAY 2026

I was a 20 year-old kid when I first met you at Ft. Wolters, Texas. We were both arriving to the base, young Army helicopter pilot cadets, class of 66-15. You were from Seattle and I was from a little coastal town, Hoquiam, in Washington State. Being from the same state is what we first had in common entering this new world of helicopter pilot training. That first meeting found us together through the checking-in process, being assigned rooms in the same barracks and attending classes together. We ran together when off-duty and also flew together during training. 

We voluntarily held back a month after completing Fort Wolters training as our flight class was larger in numbers than Ft. Ruecker could accommodate. After that month of downtime, we arrived together with the class of 66-17 at Ft. Rucker, Alabama to complete our training. Through all of this, we continued as roommates, flying mates and running weekend trips to Panama City in my red 1963 Corvette. Memories of you, my friend, are many, some stories I can tell and some stories I will not tell.

To this day, your presence continues within me as a great friend who had a truly positive impact on my life and times while in the Army helicopter flight program. 

You taught me how to be me and to open up and enjoy life. You taught me that in your presence, I was always laughing at your antics and wantings to bend the rules just enough to afforded us getting away with living the colors of life, closer to the edge. How many weekends we danced and drank the nights away on the beaches of Panama City, Florida.

I remember the trip one weekend when we hopped in the Corvette, top down just after being released Saturday morning. We skipped breakfast, threw some clothes in the back, topped off the gas tank and left Ft. Rucker for Panama City. We stopped in a small store for a quart of milk and a bag of Oreo cookies that we shared as our breakfast while driving south down the back roads. The weekend was ahead of us and we owned it!

A few miles down the road and in one of the dry counties, an old Sheriff pulled us over to check the car for alcohol. He found us drinking milk from a quart carton and finishing off a bag of Oreo cookies. We explained to him that we were helicopter flight cadets at Ft. Rucker and were on our way to spend the weekend at Panama City. The sheriff checked our milk carton for alcohol as that would have been the things young guys like us would do. But no. We were indeed telling the truth, milk and cookies. 

There were many cars that day pulled off the road and being checked for alcohol. Folks were out of their cars as sheriff deputies checked their vehicles. The sheriff tipped his hat to us for being the "outstanding young men we said we were" and let us leave the line-up to get back on the road. 

You and I laughed so hard several miles down the road when you pulled out the 5th of whiskey you had tucked under your seat. To this day, I still laugh about so many of those moments we shared. 

 

Arnie is pictured here (top left) with fellow candidates during graduation week.

Arnie pictured here in the center on the day we were graduated from Ft. Rucker as young officers and Army helicopter pilots. Most everyone in the class that day had orders in hand to go to Vietnam. This was last time we were together.

The last time I saw you my friend was while placing a photo of you at the "Wall" in Washington DC, 2005. To this day, I weep as I am now.

I do look forward to the day when I do get to see you again. I am hopeful we are afforded the time to sit, talk and catch up on stories. Knowing you as well as I did here, I bet you have stories and stories to tell. You are not now nor never will be forgotten, my friend.

----------------

Thanks for the visit this week.