Busy Saturday...

Got the yard mowed early, Mary had band rehearsal and then loaded for departure to band camp today.

After lunch me Cathy, Morgan and Mary headed out to the lake, skied a round, swam, caught 5 catfish and then with lightening in the distance and white caps beginning to build we headed in. Spot we fish is a 15 minute ride from the boat ramp across really exposed water if the wind is up, so we took no chances. I guess we were not too mad at the fish yesterday to stick it out and battle the elements.

We got home to a message from an out of town friend, Anne. She was at the Banita Creek Hall in Nacogdoches where a Make-A Wish benefit with local bands playing. We jumped in the car drove over there. Saw Anne and other out of town friends we don't see much like Suzi and Charley. Also a bunch of locals, some of whom we have lost track of and have not seen in years like Debbie and Dennis, Buckley, Maggie and various others. Knew quite a few of the musicians also. Nice time. It was funny to think that some of these folks were teenagers when I first laid eyes on them so long ago. I was a teenager too back in those days.

Debbie and Dennis called me fish fry Carl, an old nick name from the big fish fry days from long ago. I told them that those days would come again when I get out of school. I have enough fish in the freezer now, I just have other irons in the fire.

Between bands we ate at Sushi Ya.

We left the hall at about 12:30 and stopped at a nearby store because Cathy wanted a water. I snapped this picture of a guy sleeping in a car in the parking lot while she was in the store. He stirred just a bit when the flash went off. Cathy complained that she could not leave me alone for a minute without trouble. Allowed as how I would get my ass whipped one day. I think I could outrun this guy. The picture does not really do justice, he was a large young man, filling up a good portion of a compact car.

I bet he is a net head, he will Google and find this picture today.

We are taking off a couple of days, be back later in the week.

Not much this week...

Other than the fishing trip not much this week.

I have worked extra, was off Tuesday. Worked both out patient rehab and acute care.

Mary has had drumline practice every morning leading up to a week at band camp that starts Sunday. I think there is a drumline party this after noon at our house, I'm sorry I will miss it.

More later.

More catfish...

Pop and Geneva came up from New Waverly yesterday and were guided on a fine East Texas Catfishing trip.

I guess they thought it was fine, it included a rain soaked boat ride. Here is everybody soaked at the ramp.



It included stinging insects in the boat. Fighting the wind at the ramp the rear of the boat blew around into a willow bush and it knocked a wasp nest into the boat. I guess the downpour kept them somewhat less than excitable because we loaded the boat and did not notice them until the above picture of us standing around the parking lot was made.

And of course the victory picture.













They are swimming in our belly, execpt for a bag of fillets that Pop and Geneva took home.

Hope eating fried catfish aint bad for you.

Another goal meet...

During my time between semesters I had hoped to get some photo album work done. Here it is:
http://www.pbase.com/wallace_6/root

There are about four new albums, some New Orleans stuff, some family photos, a What, where, who, why section and some old hunting and fishing pictures. All are old 35mm shots scanned in that were part of the loose picture collection, they weren't part of any of the conventional photo albums. Some are outakes of sessions where maybe the better one was framed and hung on the wall or something and the one have I have posted here had someone crying or messed up hair or something but still shows some merit for some twisted reason or another.

Mainly done to preserve these shots as it does not look like I will ever use regular photo albums again. If you don't find your picture here don't worry, I have other goals to work on now.

That Texas heat...

Makes folks crazy. Snapped these pictures in Huntington Texas yesterday. This just reeks of creek baptisms, snake handling, all night prophesizing and speaking tongues no one else can understand.

I also suspect loud rocking music is used to whip the believers into a frenzy. I applied for a job as bass player. They said my application is being processed. I suspect a laying on of hands is involved in this normally mundane human relations function.

Another shot, this needs to be examined from all sides. I can only imagine what the top said.

I heard the term "white Christians" used the other day, I doubt that catch phrase has caught on in Heaven yet, but I think this is the kind of car they drive.

Word from Lebanon...

As always I hate to get too shrill on the politics here, even when there are events that make me mad because there are so many doing that kind of thing already. I prefer to try to have an experience of some sort, a way that I can know what is going on by reducing the filters it comes through and showing how it affects everyday people.

I often visit a discussion page, (Fender discussion Page, see link on sidebar) and meet a bunch of people from all over there. When the business in Lebanon started a guy living there posted some news with the discussion group about goings on around him. A little back ground I got from his postings, he plays the bass, 18 years old, Catholic dad, Muslim mom, raised Catholic, they can't flee because refugees from the south would take shelter in the vacant house, some bombing nearby with a civilian neighborhood containing no military targets reduced to ashes.

I sent him an email as apparently many on the discussion group did to let him know we cared and here is his reply to me:

"Thank you very much for your email. I also wish the world leaders would read this, but my guess is it wouldn't change a thing. They are doing what they want for a reason, and don't mind killing civilians along the way. But I digress. You guys on the FDP are one of the best group of friends I have. Thank you very much for your kindness and support.From Lebanon
with love,Jeff
P.S.:I always enjoy your posts."

Since there was one day this week that the local paper, The Lufkin Daily News, carried exactly zero stories on the middle east, that is the most current news I can get, something a person like you and me is going through.

Those big wire tapping snoopers have my number I am sure, I have now sent an email to Lebanon and also to my friend Jeremy with the army in Iraq this past week.

Welcome to the world of subversion.

So if you send me a hateful email...

I think I'll send this back to you.

Seems I have been getting very intolerant emails concerning immigrants and the war in the mid east from friends lately and I am worried that my silence may be sending the message that I agree. I don't. So hence the little message, which is a bookmark that I picked up and scanned. It came from a very subversive place, my local Roman Catholic Church.

Seems that extremist people are in power in many key countries right now. Their actions, with bombs missiles and gunfire drown out the quieter messages of others.

I think that apart from these radical extremists, which are in all countries, that the average guy, a person a lot like me just wants the best thing for his family, food, shelter, education and safety.

Peace is the best way to get them. So quit furthering the cause of those that want you to make war and hate, even if it's you own countrymen.

It might be one of those days...

I had a great idea of an autobiographical musical type posting for today, but after the mornings events I may have to put it off another day.

I wake and go outside, all dogs, mine and neighborhood are looking up a tree, they are busy before it gets too hot. I feed and I notice El Guapo, see previous post for his picture if you don't know him, has something that seems to be stuck to his mouth. He is trying to get it off, looks like a string and animal kindness person I am I want to help. I pick him up and pull on string. String has fish hook attached and is hooked under the tongue. Looks like he has found an old hook that maybe had a bit of old cat bait on it and tried to eat it. Barb looks buried, but luckily it is just one of three.

So it's one of those things that happens in the mist of other activity, Cathy is leaving to visit an out of town friend that's laid up with injury, loading food in the car to take so I have to wake my 15 year old medical animal attention assistant.

We arm him up, guys in the band, remember last night at the gig, the small pair of pliers I loaned Larry, they are just right for pulling a small dog tongue out. El Guapo is making those noises that the kids make him make on purpose sometimes, you know the sound of a small dog fussing. Also kicking and scratching. You have to count you blessings at this point, it could have been the big dog.

I wiggle the hook around, the dog struggles, I have visions of the extra hours from work last week vanishing in vet bills. El Guapo is Spanish, we cry out to him:
"Solo va a dolar un poco" (this will only hurt a little)
"Calmese, calmse" (calm down)
"Todo saldra bien" (everything will be ok)

We stop for a minute to look up the vet number to see what time they open, to regroup and to review hook removal techniques. Mary looks at El Guapo and the hook is gone. Where? Did he swallow it? No! Then we find it on the floor, thankfully before we have to start a process to remove it from a foot. I guess our actions were enough to turn the barb and stretch the hole that it fell out.
Or El Guapo got tired of us and got it out on his own.

The patient is currently resting well after the procedure. He's in bed with Mary. Full recovery expected.

Me taking it easy...

Trying to use this time off from school to get around to some of the fun things I have not been getting to do. Like playing guitar in my room. I play music all the time, at church, any weddings or such there that might come up and at the state school once a month, but not often do I get to work on new stuff or play guitar for that matter since I play bass on most other gigs.

Here is a picture snapped by one of my in house photographers. You can see El Guapo, he seems to like it when I engage the wah pedal and the phase shifter at the same time or maybe he is trying to protect me from being swept up in the Maelstrom of sound.

Just to answer any questions, to "nip it in the bud" so to speak I am in my underwear and the song we are playing is "Summer Time"...

"...and the living is easy, catfish jumping..."

So I got busy this morning...

For those that think I'm on the computer too much, here is my business this morning. Wanton destruction of Mother Nature runs deep in my blood. It's ancestrally genetically imprinted.

I burned a pile about this size yesterday, about a week old it was so dry it burned to nothing left. I'm trying to beat the burn ban before it is instituted. These are all trees that have grown up too close to out buildings, fences and other trees.

Actually it is somewhat satisfying to know that after all this time in the classroom and in an air conditioned job at the hospital I can turn in a mornings hard labor with a chainsaw and axe. I did a good bit with an axe, I think the air filter clogged on the chain saw and sweat was running in my eyes so I could not see how to take it apart to clear the dirt. May be later after lunch I will take a look.

I was able to store up a few sticks of fire wood and use some more long pieces to border areas according to my crazy man landscaping plan. So not all will go up in smoke uselessly.

When cutting in the woods you do have to keep an eye out for these guys.

New experiences in PT all the time...

The other day I go to meet the PT to treat the patient. It's a wound care, I get there with all our supplies and the Doctor is doing the treatment as the patient is being discharged. I peer through the door window and see what he is doing, it's ok and I think about it in terms of a lab practical, he will get a "B". It's ok, but there is something he could do to get an "A".

In a moment the nurse comes out and I mention, "would you like to dress the wound the way PT has been doing it?" I think she is looking for ideas and says yes. I show her our stuff and she takes it to the Doc. He comes out and asks all about it, the Physical Therapist has not arrived, so I fill him in. The doc turns out to be a great guy, writes all the info about the products we are using in his palm pilot. He learned something, he filed it away for later to use again. Really the first time I have had to deal with a Doctor this way, the real winner is the patient, he went home in good shape with a dressing that would function until home health took over.

I guess the moral to this little story is that to be successful, file away info, you never know when you will need it.

Oh yeah, and talk to people nice when you pass the info on.

Catching up on news...

Dealing with aliens all week has got me behind on my fishing reports. Here is a picture from mine and Cathy's trip on Tuesday.

That's 28 catfish and 1 white bass. The white bass hit Danny King's catfish bait. I don't think he was attracted, he just saw a shiney hook falling through the water and struck it. He's swimming in my belly, real tasty blackened in an iron skillet. The course white bass meat blackens better than the catfish in my opinion.

Here is a plug for a web site belonging to a friend of Katie's. He is reported to visit here sometimes, so stop by and check him out.
http://www.austinbassfishing.com/home.html

More evidence ...

I am not alone in these thoughts. Nice to know sometimes.

Here is a man who got right up amongst them. See the July 11th post.

http://dan-danz.net/

I hope they did not get to him.

Aliens among us...

Seems that there is a great influx of cattle egrets this year. Those white birds that stand among the cattle doing I don't know what, eating the bugs off of them or something. They like bugs, when the hay balers are busy here in east Texas there might be several dozen following the tractor as it stirs up dinner. This year is a little different, there are so many of these birds they are coming into my yard and some have been even following my neighbors lawn mower. They fly over in great flocks in the evenings.

I suspect the body of these birds have been taken over by aliens. They are spying on us. Here are several (the white dots)I photoed getting ready for a cattle mutilation which is something aliens like to do. Forgive the grainyness of the picture, but that is the way it is with unapproachable creatures like aliens and big feet. You just can't get close.

The way I first suspected they were aliens is when Cathy reported seeing the big teenage that lives next door, across a grassy field when the have been landing shooting at them. Notice I said landing, that is what aliens do. The other thing they do is plant something, some kind of controller, and I suspect it might look like a bug or a grass seed in your ear to sway you to their bidding.

He was shooting at them with a pellet gun so I suspect that they have powers that render gunpowder useless. Cathy, who only supports the death of catfish, oysters and heavy beef, said she put hard eyes on him and he stopped shooting. They have put a controller in her ear.

But just think, like those movies where the main guy recognizes the problem but no one else does, this big teenager is fighting the aliens alone, shooting at them with the only weapon available, the symbolism of using a toy from his childhood to kill hanging heavy in his heart and in a sweat of fear as his big soft teenage belly hangs out pants that are really made for little skinny guys to wear down low. He no doubt shook his head at the knowledge that Cathy was controlled by them because of the disapproving glances she sent his way. He puts cotton plugs in his ears to keep out the tiny controller. The cotton has a side effect, it causes him to install ever larger and louder stereos in his car. He is a walking deaf man.

So there you have it, have you noticed these things, these suspect happenings that cannot be explained any other way? If not, it may be too late for you.

Blog reader needs help...

Yes, it's my daughter Katie. Seems that a few weeks ago she needed her birth certificate to acquire a passport. Her mom complied with this request, popped it right into the U.S. mail. The same government agency that is capable of delivering a gallon of Danny King's catfish bait almost overnight did not delivery the birth certificate. It is lost, intercepted, stolen.

Katie is a non person in the eyes of the state of Texas. I am sure this falls under some kind of homeland security/immigration precaution. The situation is complicated by the fact that she is my step daughter and I had her last name changed to mine when me and Cathy married. There is an amendment to the birth certificate. All this looks like a fake idenity already to the government would be my guess.

Any way here is how you can help. Yesterday we faxed the birth certificate amending to a lady named Gladys in the Bureau of Vital Stastics and it should correct these things. I detected a quiver masking hatred in Katie's voice when she told me of Gladys over the phone yesterday. In case it does not correct things all readers need to submit a comment to this blog saying what a nice person Katie is. I have Glady's fax number now and I will fax these references to her so she will know that Katie is not a terrorist and is a good American known to many.

You can even consider it your own little war on terror, what you did, because that is what lost in a burearcratic system amounts to.

So help Katie out, get in the habit, we may need to vouch for her again when another Katie turns up with the lost birth certificate. There is an upside to this, when Katie retires the person that became Katie with the lost certificate and obtained a replacement Social Security card same as Katie's will pay in taxes in her name. Like double money, both paying, Katie will be the only one of her generation to collect on social security.

Happy birthday...

Mary's birthday today. 15 years old. She got to drive. She did well.








The person who drove with her did not do so well.

A regular Monday...

After working this weekend, my usual shift, they asked me to work today. I feel like a regular guy, going to work on a Monday morning.

Maybe I'll have fun stuff to write about later.

What a good day...

Since school has been out I am relaxing and catching up on stuff.

Fishing with Master Olford (check his link on the side bar) and Morgan we caught 18 catfish. That is about 55 head in the last 3 trips.

Grilled some ribs before Cathy went to work.

Chain sawing and weed eating I have a huge brush pile piled up. By the time it drys enough to burn there will be a burn ban on.

Only unsettling note of the week, the water company people called. You know the people that put up the water tower we paint on. They said, "Mr. Wallace we are filling the tower today, how is your water pressure?"

Think they are on to us?

Good service...

Got worried that I would run out of Danny Kings catfish bait. I ordered over the computer, paid with PayPal on the 4th of July. I received an email that said because of the holiday all orders would ship by US Postal Service the 5th.

I got my bait on the 6th. The post office is my favorite government institution. Made the $8 shipping a little easier to take.

I'm headed to the lake.

If you really want to be serviced well, see the side bar links and order from Go Gol Bordello.

Hot and Humid...

Really enjoying the summer so far, a little relief with the rain, lush green coming out while I sit outside cooking and listening to music in the heat makes me think of New Orleans.

Not the drunken college boy throw beads New Orleans but the weird gothic southern charm courtyard superimposed to the new century but still old New Orleans. The New Orleans that did not notice the hurricane. Here is a picture my daughter Katie gave me for Father's day and I imangined it was painted in a New Orleans courtyard. It comes from one of those roadside junk shops and I really like the recessed frame. It's one of those things hanging around that I have not had time to address the thoughts it gives me because of school business.

Some think it is a little too bright and light for a New Orleans courtyard. That's even without the reflected camera flash. Personally I think it shows a little French Quarter hope.

You know, you wake up in your French Quarter digs, wander out in the courtyard with a thick cup of French coffee. It's so bright because even though you just got up it's late afternoon. It's bright because you want to make it a new day for yourself, do things different. Think of Lent maybe. I don't know why I think of Lent in summer. Oher parts of the country have some bleak winter days yet tropical plants are springing to bloom here at this time. Time to come in from the dark, new growth, time to give some stuff up.

You decide you are not beginning your evening at the dungeon when it opens at midnight. You may tell Gary Strong he can't visit anymore. It is getting a little old coming home in daisy dukes and fishnet stockings, after all you are not gay. Cook less with wine and more with olive oil. Stay at home during Mardi Gras. Limit your fried food intake to soft shell crabs. Decorate with flowers instead of weird old pictures found in the French Market thrift shops. Lose a few pounds, the matador outfit is getting a little tight. Stay away from the corner of Esplanade and Rampart. Listen to less pounding tropical African drumming that summons the Congo Square spirits and swing more with Louis Jordan. Tea instead of thick maddening French coffee that just gets you all revied up to go.

Guess I'm all revied up and ready to go.

Happy 4th...

A few catfish...









Some fire works...











I been having fun all day...

I don't think...

I really did not do my wife justice with my anniversary post last week. I heard her telling a friend this morning that the picture I posted did not even show her face. She's right, I should have shown her face, but it was the best suitable photo I knew I could find on short notice. I have been busy but now with school out, my case study paper written I did some tweaking to the computer and got the scanner back on line. I was afraid to mess with software with something important pending at the end of the semester. Here is my first scan.

In fact I will tell a little story that goes to show how much I value my wife's input and support. I had recently downloaded some African drumming from the emusic web site and I printed off the cd art. I told my wife I wish I had been a drummer, I would then get this picture tattooed on my back. Nice art of hands like they would hit a drum head with some flamey looking stuff.

My sweet wife pointed out that even in this post Broke Back world, guys still don't get other guys hands tattooed on their backs.




Thanks again honey!

It thundered and lightening...

But the catfish bit yesterday evening. The damage was done between 6 and 8 pm, 23 channel cats of better than average size than that the last catfishing trip. Caught on Danny King's (see sponsor link) catfish bait. We were on Lake Sam Rayburn south of 147 bridge about 2 miles down from where the Angelina and the Attoyac Rivers used to merge. Water was 28-30 feet deep.


Sorry, all my pictures have been a little blurry lately. I had to touch this one it up a bit because it was dark.
Right here El Guapo, is doing his best to keep those catfish from escaping that tub.

We were also check for the 4th and 5th time this year by the game wardens. Three big beefy white guys pulled us over on the way back in, it was about 8pm and checked documents, fish, life jackets and fire extinguisher. We passed all inspections. We continued on less than half a mile and my friend who has now checked me 4 times this year pulled us over. His partner was with him the last time so that makes twice for that guy. They said, "Hey, the beetle spin man." First time they remembered us. We told them we had just been checked and they let us go.

If you are on the lake and between Hank's creek and the big bridge I would suggest you be legal in all matters.

Next time I get stopped I am going to have the camera, make their pictures, maybe ask to sit in their boat, see if they will handcuff me, and make my picture, that would sure make a good blog post. No better yet, I'll make the old ladies picture with them. Her in hand cuffs, no one will believe I got arrested, but they know it's possible for her.

Anyway, a big bag of fillets went to the freezer, but some of them ended up swimming in my belly. Here they are blackened in the tradition of fine New Orleans dining.