Not Enough Christmas Yet?...

Spotted this unique manger scene at a Stop and Go outside New Waverly, Tx. I was a little shy about just walking up and taking a snapshot so I took this photo through the windshield and through the establishment's closed glass door.


As I think about what's in the picture I decided the through the glass shot was a good one. After all we all have a variety of filters through which we see things. The shopkeeper did not see to be of Anglo descent, not to judge, he may have been East Texas born and bred just like me, he might have just been the hired help having followed the bosses orders to construct a manger from cases of beer and thought nothing of it. Maybe some one has been able to discern, some brand identity detection of some sort that Joseph liked Coors light while Mary preferred Miller products. Either is a patriotic choice as seen by Old Glory flown on a Styrofoam ice chest the lid of which is going to be absolutely useless to anyone who owns a pick up truck.

I am with the manger animal of indescriminate species found in the foreground. He rears up, says, "Let me out of here."

Os!...

Here's another Christmas tradition, I know I know, some have already taken down the lights, the tree but I am still absorbing all the fun and good eating of the last week or some and am fully intent on extending into the new year with same same.

This is the BIL Kevin oyster shuck tradition. Kevin, Margaret and Grayson fly into Houston and don't pass go until they have stopped at Kingwood Seafood and picked up a bunch of oysters in the shell. We had them raw, grilled and fried.

Pop bears down. I think there is about everything you need right there on that 12 square foot of table, family, fresh food, hot sauce, utensils, deep fry supplies and matches.

These oysters shucked out good, clean and fresh.









I like to shuck oysters. My tool of choice is a sears screwdriver, 60s vintage, you can find one in any old man's barn. Sometimes I wish I was dumb, could just head down to New Orleans and shuck oysters in French Quarter restaurants as a career, smoking Picayune cigarettes in back allys during my break times.

More Custom Christmas...

Here is the tuba portrait Miguel drew for me, taken from a photo in my face book tuba album of me jamming down and generally partying like I am only 50 years old, Guess it's best described as kind of a water color type thing, the pink feelings it inspires are sensitive, very warm, suitable for the holidays only.
Mary pulls a fast one on Miguel, gives a swim suit calender with her face pasted on all the models with suitable expressions for each month.






So sensitive, Miguel paints a fetus in the womb for Rose and Juan in anticipation of the birth of their first child. Juan looks pretty sensitive as he displays the gift. It's a little hard to get Juan to smile for a photo and the DPS Trooper training has not helped so we will settle for all choked up.

All these designs seen in the last couple of blog updates can be purchased imprinted on men's ties, women's underwear, snuggies, big screens and sham-wows at the local J.C. Penny's. The manager of the store does not know this, but our man on the inside enables us for the first time to offer indie undercover products at a competitive big box venues.

Home Made Christmas...

The kids show off the Our Lady of Guadalupe pillows Cathy made for them.










Miguel draws or paints Christmas presents, customized to the individual, just like Target or Best Buy or some real store. Here you have some for the symmetrical engineer and some for the artistic dancer.










Katie shows her abstract.

More home made photos later...

The Great Christmas Silly String Massacre...

Seems that we just got all the silly string from last years massacre cleaned up and it happens again. This is becoming a fine tradition around here. Who say the holidays have to be depressing?

Mary and Miguel.










Rose with another tradition, just a few years old, the crowns.












Cathy and Katie.




















Morgan and Ali.

I must have 200 pictures made at the Land, at my Mom's house and at our house over the last week. Plenty good blog material to close the year.

It's Christmas Eve Man...

That's from a famous Charles Dickens Novel, an old Cooney family tradition, and really what Christmas is all about. I know it was good for my family this year.

Couple of views of our modest decorations, the Holy Family and lights in trees and windows.

Merry Christmas.

Weird Lights and Other Significant Christmas Observations...

As I gaze on Christmas lights I thought I saw in my yard I realized it was time for the annual Christmas card count. You know, the one I do each year as I as I sit forlornly, warned by shrill subversive voices that it's bad to say "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas."

Once again it's the secular vs. the religious and guess who comes up short? The church goers once again find themselves in a hole, barring a Christmas Eve rally, behind 22 to 12. That's right only 12 cards featured religious images. The rest were either some representation of a heathen eternal circle of light as pictured above, pagan images of wreaths, trees, snowmen, one that seems to be an artist's rendering of the French Quarter (had some good holidays there for sure) and otherwise plain old pleasant winter scenes. Out of this count (and don't make fun of me because I only got 34 Christmas cards) I can safely confirm only one probable atheist and one unconfirmed that I think is screwing with me because he sent one card from each category.

As usually, cards, letters emails are welcome, beats a vist by me to your house.

Official Wallace Christmas Photo...

For 2009, from left to right, Morgan, Ali, Miguel, Mary, Katie, Carl, Cathy, Juan, and Rose.










Here is the unofficial 2009 Christmas picture.

Thanks to photographer cousin Samantha for having patience to capture our best.

Fishing 12-21-09

Took Cathy's sister Margaret, her husband Kevin and Pop along for a fishing trip today. It was slow, we managed to catch enough for a fish fry supplemented by some of the oysters Kevin brought. We were joined by Morgan, Ali, Ali's dad Nick and brother Brent for the after trip fry.

There were some unusual catches, here's Pop with a big tree he caught.
I pulled up a rod and reel in good condition. Looks like it will make a good panfisher.









Kevin shows off a channel cat, about average size we caught. That fish is swimming in some one's belly now.

New Blog Character...

Introducing a new blog character, a future grandchild, to be born in July to parents Rose and Juan seen here in an ultra sound made today. Juan says it waved at him.

We are sitting around debating names tonight, Baltimore, Caesar, Moon Child and Field Marshall.

This is the first of many $39,000 b;log appearance payments.

More Rockers Christmas...

Travis sent me some photos more photos from the Rocker's Christmas party last weekend. Here's me on harp and turtle shaker, Reg on trumpet, Dixon on sax, Lionel on keys.
Travis and Max.
Full band. This was an M.D. Anderson Cancer Center Benefit, raised $1000.







Brothers Nick and Max, these guys smoke on guitar. That's Mike on drums in the background.

Merry Christmas From the Stone Wall Rockers...

Played harp last night at the Stone Wall Rockers Christmas Party. Here you see Nick on guitar, Travis on bass having an Elvis Christmas moment.








Thanks to Travis for hosting and inviting me to play with this fine group. Thanks to Elvis also, lot of effort on his part to be there.

It was the big band show last night with horns, singers and the whole nine yards.

In addition to playing with the band I made crab meat salad for the party. There was none left, several asked the recipe, here it is:

In a clean 55 gallon barrel shred 35 gallons Trans Oceanic Crab Meat Product (thanks to all corporate sponsors, TO is a big one)

Stir in 10 gallons Tabasco Mayo .

Chop 5 gallons celery and green onion to your desirable amount and add to barrel stirring well.

Stir in 3 gallons Ragin Cajun Sweet and Spicy Jalapeno Relish to taste.

A 2 gallons of Louisiana Spicy Sea Food Cocktail Sauce.

The juice of 10 lemons.

Stir well, serve on crackers.

Result can be spicy, careful.

Do I Know These Guys...

Almost forgot about this photo, snapped back in September in Navasota Texas at the Bubba Can Cook BBQ Cook off. Don't ask how I came to be at this event. It was an experiment and sometimes experiments don't work out.

So what if the bass player is skinner. So what if the drummer is younger. This little band first up on the bill that day was playing their hearts out at 11 am in the morning and I would guess that they played 80% the same songs as our little band does.

The next day we played at the church festival, you have seen the pictures here. It was also earlier in the morning than any self respecting musician admits he has gigs. I mentioned this band to our front man, how they did the same songs. He said, "those are good songs."

Feast Day...

It's the Immaculate Conception of Mary today, a feast day. Here is a photo from that other Mary's files she made in her photo class last year. I can only assume the location is somewhere local.












I made this one on an Austin street near the UT campus. It has appeared on these pages before. Painted on the building corner, it's a yin/yang the with a character I cropped out here.














A sad New Orleans Mary, made on our first trip back after Katrina. Seems like I have a Mary grotto picture from St. Jude's on Rampart Street but can't lay a hand on it right now.

Faces...

Catfish faces that is. Cathy likes to take pictures of their faces.


These guys are from last weeks catch, too busy working, with church to fish this week.