until we meet again--

                                                                             

my aunt Christine will be laid to rest today. she had a full and fruitful life by all accounts and goes to her eternal reward some months short of her 100th birthday.  she made waffles for breakfast on a visit when I was quite young. it was the first time I can remember having them; how I marveled at their toasty brown, exotic to me, crunchy goodness. on another visit, I was probably 12 or 13, her older boys took me on a rabbit hunt.  I was just along for the ride and not allowed to take a shot.  as I recall, jack rabbits and cotton tails were so plentiful as to merit a bounty.

it's odd that a life of 100 years can be reduced to two distinct memories.  we didn't visit that often, usually only when she and her clan would come to visit her mother, my grandmother, in Lubbock.  i haven't seen her or any of her family since my grandmother's funeral too many years ago.

still, after all the years, I can hear her voice in my head, I can see her perpetual smile and sparkling, mischievous eyes.  my aunt christine was an elegant lady.  I will miss her, holding her memory close until the time we can sit down together once again. and I wonder, are there waffles in heaven?

aio

HONK TX 2013

                                                                          

this past weekend took us to the live music capital of the world for HonkTX  2013.  It is one of several such music festivals staged across the country which draw Community Street Bands from near and far for a weekend of music and flat out fun.

our connection to the festival is our son's zombie themed group, the Dead Music Capital Band.  It was DMCB's second year to play the HonkTX festival, but our first time attending.  Privately, this proud papa had some concern as to how DMCB might stack up against bands like the "Biohazard Brass Band" from Fort Sam Houston and the others.  There was not a slouch among the 23 bands performing.  Putting parental pride and prejudice aside, DMCB stood toe to toe with all those groups musically.  In the entertainment category, DMCB was several lifetimes ahead of some others. you can see videos of DMCB's performances at http://www.youtube.com/kenemac47  the videography isn't the best but you can get and idea of what was our ears were privileged to hear.

www.dmcband.org
www.honktx.org
www.krewedcm.com

if the t-shirts I wore last weekend had buttons on them going in to the festival, they most assuredly would have been decorating the streets of Austin at the end.  My heartfelt congratulations to all of you drummers and tooters performing as the DMCB at HonkTX 2013. Forgive me as I get a bit misty at the remembering. You make me proud.  The blood, sweat and tears you each contributed toward your outstanding performances, individually and as a group, was evident.  Keep up the good works.

aio

happy days are here again...

I was pleasantly surprised to see a post at www.monkeyheartdiscourses.blogspot.com this afternoon.  it has been a minute since her last but, having not posted on kdg in a bit myself, I know full well that one has to be inspired to write anything; anything at all. to write something that might be seen as mildly amusing, entertaining, thought provoking or moving requires at least the hint of an idea.  without that, it ain't happnin'. 

I so admire my friend, JMB, who writes a general interest column for the AGN. More often than not his piece brings a tear to my eyes.  He has a way with words that was evident back in the days when he worked in sports. I expect that he has some help coming up with a topic to write on, still he has to conduct an interview and from there glean the bones on an article.  Fleshing out the piece into something people might like to read is his forte. whether from a tip or from the germ of an idea hatched in ones head, without a hook any piece-- whether from JMB in the AGN, from me at kdg or ksmw at mhd , likely remains unwritten.

the post today at 'the monkey heart discourses' brought a tear to my eye.  not that the piece was meant to be moving as such but in the manner it was conceived and executed.  it did my heart good to see any post at all but more so that I can see that my baby girl is well on her way to picking up where she left off. full steam ahead k****cita.  mucho amor, tu padre   

  

just 7 days ago...

a week ago today, the bleezard of 2013, sped through little a-town pacing winds at 50-60 mph with gusts recorded to 77.  and by the way, on her way out of through town, mother nature left off 19 inches of heavy, wet snow.  not pretty while it was happenin' but a blessing just the same. the experts are saying the snow storm was not a drought buster, I get that, but it will give a reprieve to the thirsty parts here about for a time.

what a difference a week makes. yesterday, we saw temps in the middle seventies and today it was around there.  all that snow is gone! gone, that is , with the exception of deeper drifts in shaded areas and the mountains of snow pushed  into piles in parking lots across town. el grande sol, working his melty magic.  right on!

mother nature can be a ferocious force while leaving life giving moisture in her wake.

momma, you come on back now. ya' hear!

aio

it's gonna' be a BLEEEZARD ya'll--

the local weather gurus/alarmists are prognosticating from on high the ferocity of the snow/wind-storm heading this way.  I understand there is a job to done in getting folks prepared for the possibilities, but what are they?

 Possibly 3 to 8 inches of snow in the western panhandles with a possible 6-12 inches "or more" in the central and eastern panhandles.  If any, or all, of those inches would fall like the past couple of snow squalls, that is straight down, most any amount wouldn't be that much of a problem.  BUT, 6 to 12 inches with sustained winds at 20-30 mph with gusts of 45-55 thrown into the equation-- things could get very interesting.

my usual take on weather things is "i'll believe it when I see it".  what does worry me though is how dead on the bulls eye accurate the forecasts of those recent snow storms have been. If they get it right again this time-- whoa nelly!; but we here at 7420 are as ready as we can get.  hopefully, we won't lose power.  should that happen we can always drag the bear skin rugs up next to the fire in the fireplace and crack open a good book. we can light the burners on the kitchen stove for some heat in that part of the house.  We have plenty of provisions.  so-- not to worry, we'll be fine.

I was just kidding about the bear skin rugs, but we do have many fleece blankets plus three hot boxes of the feline variety.  again, we'll be fine!  and like I said, "i'll believe it when I see it".

aio

it's snowing!! the weather gurus have hit the nail on the head yet again. woot! and wonder of wonders, there is only a slight breeze which has allowed the snow to pile up on most any surface. in a word, beautiful but more than that, in the parched panhandle of texas, moisture in any form is welcomed in red carpet style.

a quick measure just now showed that here at 7420 there is 5 inches on the ground and it continues to snow, fairly hard.

mr. snow man, bring me a dream
make it the whitest that I've ever seen
make it pile up on roses and clover
then tell that the snow's not over

mr. snow man, bring me a dream

sorry, about that.  sometimes I just can't help myself.

AND an as today is fat Tuesday-- "laissez les bon temps roulez!"

gun control is the hot topic of discussion of late.  in the interval since the horror of Newtown the fury has risen to a fever pitch.  Today, President Obama signed 23 executive orders whose aim is "to strengthen measures already in place" or something along those lines.  if you asked a hundred people for their thoughts on gun control, you might well get a hundred different responses.  

as a gun owner. and a supporter of the 2nd amendment, I do question the need to own guns like the AR-15 and high capacity magazines. Certainly that much firepower is not needed for hunting, nor for home defense. As for the "for sport" argument i can think of  more productive uses for the money spent on these types of guns, magazines and ammo.   

you may know the black comic, D.L. Hugely.  he was on with Jay Leno last night. Hugely professes to be a gun owner but he questions the need for a "bushmaster" type weapon and a high capacity magazine for home defense.  Going for a laugh, he asked, "who is invading your house-- Afghanistan?"  His query, made in jest, has merit.  as a homeowner you should damn well be able to dissuade or disable a home invader in 7-10 shots.  if not, you may be more of a danger to self, and others, than the intruder.

The truth of the matter is, at least in my opinion, these weapons pose no degree of increased risk when in the hands of your "average joe."  i have no problem with any background check the authorities want to run on me.  i have nothing to hide.  there is nothing in my background that would preclude me from buying, owning and using an AR-15 with an extended magazine for its intended purpose, but i am not at war with anyone.

all the rhetoric coming out of washington does concern me.  i believe that no measure passed by the congress  can 100% guarantee there will not be another aurora or newtown.  where there is a will, there is a way; an individual, bent on doing evil, will find a way.  restrict the legal purchase of these weapons and magazines and large amounts of ammunition, broaden the scope of background checks if you will mr. president. these restrictions will serve only to limit the rights of the law abiding citizens of this great country.

those bent on usurping the law will find a way.  those looking to satisfy the demand for these guns, legal or no, will find a way.  those who would suffer most under these broader restrictions are the ones who would pose little danger in owning said items in the first place.  where there is a will....

BTW, we're locked and loaded here at 7420.  Intruders, enter at your own peril, and FYI, . CHL is forthcoming.

aio