Timestepper

For some reason it reminds me of buddy up home in Kansas who claims he ain't gettin' married anymore. Nope, just gonna' out about every 3 or 4 years, find a woman he hates and buy her a house and a car...

Just about finished again with "Behind Hitler's Lines" by Thomas H. Taylor - The true story of the only soldier to fight for both American AND The Soviet Union in World War II. Last read it a couple of years ago and I think it's even better the 2nd time.

Hell, I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous!

Well, in a nutshell, you can make change with 20's that you can't make with a 100. Plus with seemingly rampant counterfeiting going on these days and counterfeiters getting smarter and smarter, if someone takes 4 20's on an $80.00 gas purchase, only one is likely to be counterfeit so they're only out $20.00. Whereas if someone takes a 100 on an $80.00 gas purchase and it's a bad bill they're out 100 bucks (actually they're out 200 - $100.00 on the counterfeit bill, $80.00 on the gas and $20 on the change). Much as it's an inconvenience to the rest of us, it kinda' seems like a good business practice to me.

I would have set it at $1,000,017,500.00 and then accepted a million dollar bill as partial payment just to F with everyone else.

Oddly enough, my wife and I were both given million dollar bills yesterday while walking around at the K-ville Zoo. The young couple who gave them to us said they could "Solve all your worries." (If you read the fine print on the back of the bill you'll find that it's actually a religious tract.) Guess the guy in Lexington didn't read the fine print. Seems like there's a lesson there somewhere, but I don't even wanna' touch it...

Noble idea, but I, for one, would have to recuse myself - I'm just as guilty of wanton vegetable devouring as I am premeditated meat eating.

Looking forward to canoeing the Clinch after trout & smallies at least once more before Spring gets here. The tail waters of Norris Res. on the Clinch has kinda' spoiled me & I haven't bothered to look for warm water fish.

Being a card carrying member of PETA (People Eating Tasty Animals) I recall fondly not just the cattle I've cooked, but also the Bambies I've lambasted, the turkeys I've trepidated, the squirrels I've sniped, the rabbits I've wrecked, the doves I've de-feathered, the ducks I've dunked, the geese I've goosed and the swine I've swooned over. And the best memorial I can give any of them is to continue to live well from the nourishment they've given not just my body, but indeed my very heart and soul. So here's to them: BUUUUUUURP! (Damn, that was some good eatin'!)

You're not in love, you're in lust. Not my taste, but I can't say as I blame you.

I stopped drinking in public when I started caring. But personally, I'd rather face a drunk armed with a gun than one armed with a car.

Singing off key is one thing, being deliberately stupid and not following the teaching of the preaching is quite another. Let me see if I can put it in a way even the simplest will understand: See Dick. See Dick drink. See Dick drive. See Dick die. Don't be a Dick!

Yep, remember that alcohol and gun powder don't mix - It won't shoot and tastes lousy! Tonight, like many another New Years Eve, I plan on watching a little T.V., maybe drinking a beer and going to bed well before midnight. I figure if the new year can't come in without my help then it ain't worth waking up to.

Ok, if I do this right the following link will give the <more or less> exact location of where we're going to this and you can use it to get directions from where ever you are to where we'll be. Primitive Skills Meet-up (The blue balloon marks the spot.) If the link doesn't work or someone needs further instructions, please let me know. ...TS...

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In a privately candid moment, Hillary & Michelle each sheepishly remember the fond times they had sleeping with their favorite presidential candidate while hoping their husbands wouldn't find out.

Time for my MORNING adult beverage: Hazelnut coffee spiked with Irish Mist, washed down with 4 exceedingly fresh over-easy eggs (God, I love raising chickens!) and toast w/homemade butter. MMMMMMmmmmmmm!

Give it to me and we'll solve TWO problems: You won't end up bald and I won't end up broke!

Sure wish you'd make up your mind.

Several years ago I made the only resolution I have ever managed to keep - I resolved not to make any more resolutions. I'm not breaking it this year either.

Hmmm... Tonight has been yummy: Irish Mist to cut the dust of a week on the road followed by Caramel Apple Schnapps to smooth out the bumps then a Carona w/lime and tobasco to wash down supper. Not sure, but I think I hear the Irish Mist calling again. Ahhhhh!

Yeah. As a matter of fact it's about a quarter of a mile from the bottom of my driveway. I'll try to get off my kiester sometime soon and post a map showing the location in relation to Knoxville. Plus, I'll send out a PM with my cell number to everyone who plans to attend, just in case they get lost or something. lol The only problem I foresee right now (never realizing I'd have the responses I have) is finding a place for everyone to park. Worst case scenario, I'll find a place for everyone to park nearby and then we'll just "ferry" folks over in my pickup.

There's a good chance it'll be both. I don't see a problem right now if anyone wants to camp - as I mentioned earlier, people camp down there quite a bit - but there are those (myself included) who may not be able to camp due to time constraints. I'd like to camp, but given what I do for a living I won't know until almost the last minute whether I'll get home in time or be at home long enough to do it.

First, my dad was and is my biggest influence and, even though he passed away in April of '01, I continue to try to live my life in such a way as to be the kind of man he would have been proud to call "friend." As to changing points in my life, there have been several. One came when I realized that I wasn't good (read passionate) enough at riding bareback broncs to make a living at it. After that, I had to do it for fun and that made me a better rider. And also a better person. Another came when I realized in my twenties that I was neither immortal nor invincible and that sometimes all it takes to get dead is a momentary lapse in concentration, and it doesn't matter if it's yours or someone else's. Yet another came when I began my current " professional career" as a long-haul truck driver; When I was growing up, Denver, Colorado was 400 miles away and might as well have been on the dark side of the moon. When I started driving truck, I learned that 400 miles equates to considerably less than one day's drive. It made my world smaller and my dreams bigger. Now, after more than 2 1/2 million miles my dreams are still intact and exceeded in size only by the ongoing love affair I have with America. The summer I took a hiatus from trucking and spent making a living as a docent portraying a Civilian Army Scout during the Western Indian wars was also life changing; it helped me to realize what an amazing man my great grandfather (who WAS a Civilian Army Scout during that time) must have been. Indeed, it gave me a new appreciation for ALL of the people who left everything they knew behind to "head West" in search of their dreams; They were the very foundation blocks upon which this amazing nation we live in was built. Maybe not last, and certainly not least, came the point when I began to have articles and short stories published and I realized that I was living my father's dream of becoming a published author. Dad was a great writer and some of his poetry would stand with that of Robert W. Service, Wadsworth or perhaps even Poe, but I think he never quite found the right audience and so never had the success that his youngest son started realizing less than a year after he passed away. Everything I have written and will write has my father's hand in it because without his inspiration, advice and encouragement I would have written nothing. I think those were changing points in my life. They feel like it. Each one was a crucial, if minor, step in molding the person I have become and without them I would not be the me that I am. I am sure that there have been others that I am simply too tired to elucidate and I am equally sure that there will be more to come. And all I can say is that while my joints may be stiffer in the mornings than they used to be, the rest of me is still malleable and awaiting the hand of the master potter. OH, and one of the VERY BIGGEST life changing points came nearly 5 years ago when I tossed everything I'd ever known over my shoulder and moved from Western Kansas to East Tennessee (felt like I'd moved from Bedrock to Hooterville) and married the love of my life. (Shoulda' put this in last night, but like I said, I was exhausted.)

Sounds like a plan. Sometime between this Saturday and the 21st I'll get down to the creek and check things out. With all the rain we've had lately I know it's pretty muddy right now, but I've got another TGO member who's gonna' go with me to find the best (read driest) spot to do things.