I’ve posted on this before, but two things happened this week to bring it to mind. The first was a meeting with ten new Scouts (and five older ones). As usual, my question "What is your honor?" was met with blank stares. As usual, I was dismayed (but no longer surprised). A few boys essayed […]
Category Archives: Side-Bar
Sometimes you don’t realize how much you needed something until you get it. In my case, what I needed was some fresh air and open space. I’ve either been working or going to meetings or working the little league basketball games for Kiwanis, or going to funerals or just about anything except riding my motorcycle. […]
I have heard it said that "…if you want a big funeral, be sure to die young: before you’ve outlived all your friends." The other approach would be to live a long and full life, and keep making new friends as you go. That’s what filled the church for Martha’s memorial service. I didn’t get […]
Regular readers may remember me whining about a cancelled camp-out. It finally got rescheduled and I took a rare Saturday off to get the new boys off to a good start. We had a combination of orienteering (using your compass to find stuff), problem-solving, team-work, and physical challenges. The weather was absolutely perfect. The cargo […]
There are some things that are inherently dangerous, but if you start them early enough as a kid, you just don’t think about it. Working with horses is like that. Intellectually you know it’s potentially very dangerous, but when you grow up doing it, you just aren’t scared (cautious, yes, but not quaking and shaking). […]
If you’re a regular reader, you may recall that I’m a band nerd, and an old euphonium player. Tonight I had the rare pleasure and privilege of seeing and hearing the United States Navy Band in concert right in my old home town. Despite the funky acoustics of the high school gym, the sound was […]
I like a lot of different kinds of music. My favorite is vocal ensemble close harmony. Think Barbershop Quartets, the Mills Brothers, The King’s Singers, the Andrews Sisters, Rockapella, Take 6, and cowboy songs (of course). I like brass quintets, Renaissance and Baroque music, and Sousa marches, among others. Upbeat, peppy Bluegrass and old-time thumping […]
It hit sixty today with plenty of sunshine. So, even though there is still some snow beside the road, I figured it was time to blow the cobwebs out of Ol’ Red. My wife had bought me a little heated vest from Hammacher-Schlemmer. It runs on a little rechargeable battery pack and has three settings. […]
"In a fair and distant land, where we’re going to take the Scouts, it never rains a single drop unless you’re camping out. So, a-camping we will go ’til the rivers overflow, and when everything is soaking we will shoot the buffalo." The red asterisk in the Bootheel is Kennett. The big green and blue […]
Every year, my wife wants the Christmas tree up on December first. It doesn’t usually happen, but that’s what she shoots for. Myself, I think that it’s a mistake to start revving up the Christmas decorations and songs before Thanksgiving. By the time Christmas arrives, you’ve worn it out (yes, Wal-Mart, I’m talking to YOU). […]