End Of Watch: Constable Cleve Johnson - Titus County Constable, Precinct 2

Another Texas Police Office lost his life this week, this time as result of a traffic accident.

Constable Cleve Johnson, from the Mt. Pleasant area, had been constable of his precinct for seventeen years.  Before serving as constable, Mr. Johnson had been a Texas Peace Officer for another seventeen years.

Constable Johnson leaves behind his wife and two daughters. 

I am honored, though saddened, to mention Constable Johnson in my blog, and I extend my deepest sympathy to Mrs. Johnson, her daughters, and to the officers who lost a fellow cop yesterday.

End Of Watch: Police Chief Michael (Mike) Pimentel, Elmendorf Police Department

Police Chief Michael Pimentel, head of the Elmendorf Police Department, was killed by a petty criminal whose name will not be typed on this post, but can be seen in the several stories online and in the newspaper regarding this senseless murder.  This happened on August 24th, but I chose to hold this blog for several days because of the media frenzy, and general chaos, regarding Ferguson, Missouri.  I believed that the murder of an honorable and decent officer needed to be out from under the shadow of all the hysteria stirred up by the media in Ferguson.

Chief Mike, as he was known by many people in Elmendorf, stopped an individual who the Chief more than likely knew personally.  As the Chief started to arrest the man for an outstanding warrant for Criminal Mischief (by Graffiti), the individual began wrestling with the officer, and during this struggle, produced a weapon and shot Chief Mike several times.  The officer was alive when help arrived but died a few minutes later.  Meanwhile, the shooter meekly surrendered when confronted by officers arriving to assist Chief Mike.

Chief Michael Pimentel was not only respected, but was well-liked by many members of the community of Elmendorf.  Residents knew the shooter as well, and stated that he had had many confrontations with various officers over the past few years.  In an outpouring of grief and support I have never heard of, residents of Elmendorf replaced their porch and yard lights with blue lights, which they illuminated every night this past week in honor of their fallen police chief.  This was a very touching and poignant gesture, and I am sure the family and the colleagues of this officer must have very greatly appreciated this most unusual show of support.

Chief Mike served as a peace officer for over forty years; before that he served in Viet Nam.  There is no fathomable reason that a person wanted only for criminal mischief would decide that another person's life was worth less than the few days this criminal would spend in the county jail.  So many things I would like to say about this man, but I will not.  All I will say about him is may he rot in prison. 

Chief Pimentel was an older officer who had "seen it all," as we sometimes say.  During his years served as a peace officer he saw much improvement in police ideas, tactics, and equipment.  For instance, when he started in law enforcement, his patrol car most likely had an AM radio and a long "aerial" that stretched nearly the length of the patrol car.  During his later years as an officer he drove a car equipped with a computer, ultra-high frequency multi-channel scanning radio, and satellite navigation and tracking.  Chief Mike had also seen the face of law enforcement change as well, from a time when women and minorities were discouraged from the profession to a new age, a time when a woman is the chief law enforcement officer in Bexar County.

Michael Pimentel lived a long life full of the kind of police service that we expect from our officers.  I offer my deepest sympathy for his loved ones and friends, and for the law enforcement community.  Chief Pimentel, thank you for your service to this nation, the people of Texas, and the community of Elmendorf, to whom you gave your life in their service.

Ms. Woods, "Activist," Declares "White people (for the most part) are keeping racism alive."

Ms. Janee Woods is an activist (nothing wrong with that) attorney who wrote the following article:

http://qz.com/250701/12-things-white-people-can-do-now-because-ferguson/#/h/96453,2/

Ms. Woods says, "As we all know by now, Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenage boy, was gunned down by the police while walking to his grandmother’s house in the middle of the afternoon. "

No, Ms. Woods     "We" do not "know" this.  I do not know this because I was not there.  Were you?   Then you don't "know" it either.  You "heard" it somewhere, according to your article, from your Facebook feed.  Your status as a lawyer does not make hearsay more credible just because you repeat it in your article.  It is still hearsay.

Ms. Woods further goes on to inform us that White people "for the most part" continue in the vein of the antebellum state of mind.

"And, quite frankly, white people have a role in undoing racism because white people created and, for the most part, currently maintain (whether they want to or not) the racist system that benefits white people to the detriment of people of color."  (Italics mine, not Ms. Woods')

Clearly Ms. Woods is the racist here, by her defining of Whites "for the most part" as racist.  She somehow knows the minds and hearts of millions of people she has never met.  Is she somehow able to peer into the homes of White people and see all the Klan sheets hanging in the closets? 

I do not know, Ms. Woods, why so many White people were "silent" but I can tell you why I was silent.  I did not know the facts, and still don't at this point.  But news reports from Ferguson are now stating that witnesses are coming forward with accounts of the incident that closely parallel the officer's version of the incident.  Therefore, I believe, Ms. Woods, that many White persons, like me, did not write condemning messages on Facebook or other forums because they do not automatically assume that a White officer who shoots a person of color is a racist police officer. 

Now here is a big surprise for Ms. Woods.  It turns out that the "teen" was not just "minding his own business."  In fact he was the "star" in a video tape showing him hulking over the small man that he is robbing.  As you can see, this "kid" is as big as a professional football linebacker!  It turns out that the officer did not just stop and "gun down" this "teen."  In fact the officer rightly suspected that the young man was the robber.  That is called GOOD POLICE WORK, Ms. Woods.  That is the officer's job.  But the officer had another job to do as well, and that was to protect the lives of the people, including the officer's own life.  It is tragic that the officer shot the man, but it would appear that the officer was in fear for his own life when he made the decision to fire his weapon. 

You are part of the media frenzy that partially caused the rioting in Ferguson, Ms. Woods.  You and others who immediately accused the officer of murder should be ashamed of yourselves.  No Ms. Woods, it is not Whites "for the most part" that keep racism alive.  It is in fact people like yourself who do so, by assuming that every White person in America is motivated by racism.  I appreciate your article, though, Ms. Woods, because by reading it I now know not to waste another second of my life on anything you publish henceforth.

 

Police Judgment, Riots, and President Obama's "Justice" Department

My heart goes out to the family that lost their son in the Ferguson, Missouri police shooting.  I also hold the officer in my thoughts and prayers as well.  The circumstances surrounding the shooting are questionable and do warrant investigation, but the investigation needs to be done by officials and not by the media or persons using the "social media" on the Internet.  That applies to me as well, as I do not know anymore about this shooting than anyone else who was not there.  Having said that, it is obvious that the burden of proving his actions were justified falls on the police officer since the suspect was unarmed.  And, having said that, I would also like to point out another "obvious," and that is if a police officer fears for his life, he is justified in using deadly force to save his life.  It is the police officer's own judgment that determines if he is in fear for his life.  Only the Ferguson officer knew if he was in fear for his life.

Leaving the investigation to qualified investigators, I would like to say that one aspect of the Ferguson situation puzzles me: Why all the rioting?  By that I mean the looting of stores and burning of buildings.  The rioters are tearing down their own neighborhoods!  Are they "protesting?"  Well, a captain of the Missouri State Police marched WITH the protesters a day after the shooting.  That protest was peaceful and was carried out in a lawful manner.  But the next day another protest turned into a "loot fest!"  Theft and criminal mischief carried out on the pretext of protest surely dims the value of the protest.  In memory of the dead man, people are stealing furniture and television sets? What a way to honor this young man!  The State Police offered a venue for protest that could have garnered results and captured the nation's attention; instead, the reason for the protest is far overshadowed by the mob violence.  Now the people are under martial law in Ferguson, and several people have been injured in the ongoing and senseless violence.  None of this accomplishes the goal, which should be to keep up a never-ending demand for justice, for both the dead man and the officer.

In the midst of the violence and the demands for a thorough and impartial investigation into this tragedy, President Obama finally spoke to the people.  On the one hand, I have to grudgingly give credit to this, our worst President ever, because he took time off from yet another vacation to call for calm and reason instead of more violence.  In fact President Obama said there was "never an excuse for violence against the police or for violence and rioting in the streets."  The President went on to say that there was never an excuse for the police to use excessive force, which is also true.  I have to complement Mr. Obama in that he did not "weigh in" on the side of the dead man, but called for both restraint and for a non-biased investigation of the Ferguson shooting. 

On the other hand, I find it very ironic (I would say humorous but I have too much respect for the people involved in this situation) that President Obama is demanding that the Ferguson Police Department be "open and transparent" with the people of Ferguson about this incident.  Yes, I believe the investigation should be open and transparent.  The irony is that President Obama had the gall to call on this municipal police department to open with the people when Mr. Obama's own Administration has been the most closed and murky administration since President Nixon approved the Watergate Hotel burglary.  How hypocritical, Mr. Obama!  How do you have the nerve to even utter the words "open" and "transparent" to anyone!  And President Obama wants the people of Ferguson and the United States to trust and believe in an investigation that could be handled by Attorney General Holder or one of his minions?  The President who allowed the National Security Agency to spy (or at least to continue spying) on Americans suspected of no crime at all.  The Attorney General who approved, if not oversaw, the infamous Operation Fast And Furious, the gunrunning operation which left two federal officers dead (as well as no telling how many Mexican officers, soldiers, civilians, and drug cartel members).

Holder's Department of Justice only charged ONE PERSON with "hate crimes" in the "knock out game" that has played out in the streets of our nation.  It was a White man (in Texas, by the way) who knocked out a Black man.  Many Black men were charged with simple assault for their part in the "knock out game," many times they assaulted White persons.  But not one single Black man was charged with a hate crime.  Some Department of Justice!  I believe the Ferguson police officer would be in better hands if the NAACP were in charge of the investigation!  That organization is a respectable one, and would pursue the matter, but with fairness based on the evidence.

The Ferguson police officer made a decision under stress that cost the life of an unarmed man.  Was the shooting justified?  I don't know, but the family of the victim and the citizens of Ferguson are right to demand a thorough, unbiased, and professional investigation of this incident.  The Ferguson Police Department should demand the same as well; however, police officers should never hesitate to defend themselves if they believe their own lives are at stake.  I hope that reason will eventually prevail with the rioters, who are only victimizing themselves at this point.  I would not want to live under martial law, and I hope that martial law will be lifted as soon as possible.  On the surface this particular shooting seems questionable.  If the officer acted improperly and unjustifiably, he should be charged with the appropriate crime, not just simply fired from his job.  I hope that the Department of (In)Justice proves me wrong this time, that federal officials do a real investigation in this case.  The nation needs openness and transparency from its police departments, but it needs the same from its elected and appointed officials as well.

On Making Video Of Police Officers Engaged In The Performance Of Their Duties

Some might think this is a strange topic for me to blog about.  Some may not know that I was once a peace officer.  Others, who know me, know that I served during the "pre-video" era, several decades ago, when dinosaurs still walked the earth...well, no dinosaurs, but several years have passed.

So in today's world, almost everyone over the age of three usually has easy access to some video device, be it a cellular phone or an actual video camera.  If the device is not actually in a person's possession, it is stowed away somewhere within easy reach.  If a picture is worth a thousand words, a video can be priceless.  We see beautiful things, unusual things, or scary things, we want to record them.  That is now a normal reaction.  One thing we may someday see is an arrest taking place, a terrible accident, or just a confrontation between a policeman and another person.  And we may want to record the incident.  After all, this is a free nation, and we have the right to make video in public places.  But where we have rights, we usually have responsibilities, and that is the case when it comes to filming police officers "in action."

What responsibilities do you mean, Jim Silver?  Well, first of all...SAFETY!  Everyone's safety, INCLUDING THE POLICE OFFICER AND YOU!

In EVERY confrontation between the police and another person, A WEAPON IS INVOLVED!  Yes, I am talking about the officer's weapon, primarily.  Assuming nothing else, we KNOW that the officer is armed.  That fact alone should be enough to keep the "uninvolved" and the "innocent bystander" at a safe distance.  Unfortunately, this is not the case many times.  The person who has turned "citizen journalist" for some reason seems to want to insert himself or herself right into the fray, for those close-up "action" shots.  But there are two dynamics that come into play here. First, the officer cannot assume that the person taking the video is either a "concerned citizen" or an "innocent bystander."  A non-police person may not understand that the officer MUST assume the person to be armed - it is a matter of survival for the officer.

The other dynamic involved is related to the first, that is that because the officer cannot be sure of the videographer's intentions, he or she must divide his or her attention between the person of interest and the videographer.  Do you see the problem here?  The officer, of necessity, now has two "suspects" instead of one.  Do you see the safety implication here?  If the true suspect, realizing that the officer is distracted, suddenly draws a weapon and commences shooting or stabbing, someone may get hurt...and that INCLUDES the videographer.  Again, one who is truly concerned about a situation and wants to record it should be able to do so without ever making contact with the police officer or the suspect.  When a person insists on getting right next to the action, the police officer and the suspect are not the only persons subject to injury...OR DEATH!

Now, what if YOU, as the videographer, are also the person of interest to the police officer, and you INSIST on recording the contact.  That is your right.  But again, there are responsibilities.  First of all, contrary to all the attitude displayed today on YouTube videos and on news clips, a person lawfully stopped by a police officer should, within the bounds of the Constitution, cooperate with the officer.  After all, we as a society have authorized and empowered the police to PROTECT US...ALL OF US.  If you were speeding, YOU ARE IN THE WRONG and the officer who stops you is doing his or her duty...the duty WE pay officers to do.  Do you have to admit you were speeding? No, that is your right.  Can you record the contact? Yes, that too is your right.  Do you have to display a defiant attitude just because A) you were caught in some traffic violation and you do not want to get a citation, and B) you are recording the contact? No.  Are all police officers "polite" when they issue a citation?  No, some are rude...I have seen this myself.  But, there is still no reason to do other than cooperate to the extant reasonable under the Constitution. 

What if the officer asks you to stop filming?  If you want to continue the recording, you should explain to the officer that you are cooperating with him or her, but you have a right to record the contact.  If there is another person in the car with you, why not hand the camera to that person and thus devote all your attention to the contact with the officer?  Things will go faster that way.  But, what if the officer demands that you stop filming, or else?  Here you have a choice to make.  If you are determined to continue recording, there is the possibility that you may be arrested. 

Some officers believe that the very act of recording them constitutes interference with their duty.  Thus, you are not charged with recording, but with interfering with a public servant in the performance of his duties.  You COULD and probably WOULD be arrested in this case.  If this happens, then you will have your day in court, and you will probably win in the long run, but only at great legal expense and loss of time at work, etc.  Some states actually have enacted laws against filming police officers, but I suspect these laws will be ruled down...but in the meantime, there is still the trial process that leads to appeal.  Again, costly and time-consuming.

Now, suppose the incident really turns sour.  Suppose the officer "confiscates" your camera.  Never hit the officer or try to take the camera out of his possession.  Doing so will guarantee your arrest for assaulting a public servant, possibly even Aggravated Assault On A Police Officer.  No matter why you either hit the officer or wrestled with him, judges frown on this conduct, and you will most likely go to PRISON.  DO NOT DO THIS.  There are more productive and less costly means of getting back your property.  The easiest way is simply going to the police department and POLITELY asking for your camera or cell phone.  Just a civil tone and calm attitude go a long way in ending these situations on the spot.  Threats and posturing only make things worse.  If the person refuses to hand over your property, request to speak with a supervisor.  If the supervisor also refuses to turn over your property to you, simply inform the person in charge that you will be pursuing the matter.  Then LEAVE!  That's right...just leave.  Deal with the situation during business hours when "top brass" are available.  You will have much better results in this manner.

I believe strongly in the Constitution as the Law of this land, never mind the direction the Government is headed these days.  Thus, I believe that a person has a right to video a police officer in action.  Having said that, I believe that the videographer must exercise responsibility and must take into account his safety and the safety of all persons involved, including the police officer.  Suppose an officer approaches the videographer and says something like, "I understand that you want to film this.  But for my safety and yours, would you please stay across the street (or whatever REASONABLE location the officer suggests).  Why not honor this request, use your camera zoom, and film to your heart's content?  You get your video and the officer is not distracted by your presence. 

If you are the subject of the officer's detention, you still have a right to record the situation. Again, do so in a safe and respectful manner.  Many officers do not like to be recorded, but most realize that you as a citizen have a right to make the recording.  If the officer then arrests you or takes your camera, or both, do not physically resist the officer.  Do not touch the officer or in any way make a threatening movement toward the officer.  This will not help you in any way and could subject you to being arrested FOR A FELONY.  Read two to ten (or more) years in prison!  If your rights have been violated, you have legal recourse, and could possibly even win a court settlement.  There is no need to do other than cooperate with the arresting officer.  THE POLICE are recording too, and your actions will speak as loudly as those of the police officer's. 

Ector County Sheriff's Deputy, Unarmed Citizen, Survive Outlaw's Attempts To Kill Them

I waited a couple of days before posting this blog because the health of the deputy involved was still in question.  Today, five days after Deputy Javier Leyva was shot by a wanted fugitive, the news is good.  Deputy Leyva will recover from his wound and will be back at work before too long.  The shooter, whose name is not worth the trouble of typing here, is languishing in the Odessa jail at the moment, having (as usual) meekly surrendered when confronted by police officers who were actually looking at him.  You see, this brave outlaw, who was not a subject of interest to Deputy Leyva at the time of the attack, waited as the deputy drove past him then began blasting away with his weapon into the officer's patrol vehicle.  One shot struck the deputy, but the THIRD shot just missed the officer's head.  The criminal fled the seen by shooting a young man and taking his car.  Luckily the injured man also survived the attack.

The criminal was caught a short time later hiding in an apartment.  As I said earlier, when confronted by officers who actually knew who he was and were looking him in the face, the brave criminal meekly let officers take him into custody.  An "honest" outlaw, while still a criminal, is certainly deserving of more respect as a person than is someone who would shoot a police officer in the back.  Again, the officer had no idea what this man was up to and was simply passing by as the criminal stood beside a car outside a convenience store. 

I am happy to be able to write here that Deputy Leyva will be able to return to his duties after a short stay in the hospital, and that the civilian who was wounded will be able to return to his normal activities as well.  I suspect, though, that both of these men will always be looking around themselves, checking over their shoulders, as result of their close brush with death.  The wounds to the mind are usually deeper and longer lasting than the physical injuries.

Deputy Leyva told the Ector County Sheriff that he was eager to return to work in spite of this incident.  This attitude is embodied by most law officers, and is the spirit of what it means to be a peace officer; the desire to serve and to protect in spite of the dangers that entails.  I know that right now the news is full of stories about a small minority of police officers who have tarnished their badges and acted in a way not worthy of a public servant, but the vast majority of officers go to work each day with only two intentions; one, to serve and to protect, and two, to complete their respective shifts and return at the end of the day to their loved ones.

Thank you, Deputy Javier Leyva, for your service rendered, and your continued desire to serve your community.
 

Vacation Number Two: Sunday Through Wednesday - Central Texas

A few weeks ago Vacation Number One was climaxed by the Wedding of Child B to The Love Of Her Life.  Those two are off on their own lifetime adventure now.  And now Sweetie and I are on Vacation Number Two.  So far, nothing really drastic has happened, but lots of good things have!

On Saturday and Sunday I attended a family reunion with my Lovely Bride at Lake Whitney.  I knew some people there, although I had not seen many of them in a decade or more.  Some I had never met at all.  And there were one or two embarrassing moments when I could not recall the names of one or two people that I knew reasonably well.  That was not a serious issue in itself, but taken together with all of the other things I have been forgetting of late, and I have to wonder if something maybe misfiring (worse than usual, I mean!) in my brain.  Such is life after fifty, I suppose.

Lake Whitney is very beautiful this year, due to semi-normal rainfall in the area, as well as to all the samples of wildlife running (and flying) around the park.  The facilities there were very nice as well, and very well maintained.  The best thing was the staff.  They were very friendly and helpful.  They genuinely seemed to love their jobs and enjoy working with park guests.  Okay, maybe that was second best.  I have to admit that the best thing was the food and fellowship (pick the order!) we enjoyed during the reunion.  Some of the family had been there for two days or more, and we were all closer by the time it was over.  By the way, did you know you could rent pontoon boats there?  It's true.

The only hitch in the reunion was that on Sunday afternoon, my Lovely Bride was called into "active duty" when one of the reunioners was stricken with a heart malady.  Luckily that all ended well, with the ill relative being sent home after a few hours at Providence Hospital in Waco.

Since Sweetie had gone with the sick relative and another family member to the hospital, I packed up our gear at the shelter we had rented, then drove to Waco.  My Lovely Bride was ready to go by the time I reached Waco.  We spent the night with my dear sister-in-law.  There were plans for Monday, but instead of doing the planned activity (work) we decided to go shopping at the outlet mall at Round Rock, near Austin.  Sister and Cole took us, and I was pleased to be a passenger instead of the driver, for a few hours.  The ladies and the young gentlemen found things to buy.  I did not purchase anything myself, but enjoyed the shopping, anyway.  So we played on Monday.  Work to come on Tuesday!

Tuesday morning, 6 AM came around right on schedule.  I should have been eager to get on the move, but I was not.  The bed was so comfortable.  I indulged my laziness by staying in bed another thirteen minutes, but daylight was burning.  By 7 AM my Lovely Bride and I were on the way to the Fiefdom, the name we have given to land my sweet grandmother gave me.  This is a very nice little piece of the old Meeks Dairy, but it has lain fallow for quite some time now, and will take a couple of years to convert back into a working operation of one kind or another.  Part of that work consists of cutting down all the trees that have taken over the dam at the stock tank.  No trees were intended to be there, and the trees there now present a danger to the integrity of the dam.  So they have to go.

But one of the best things that happened on Tuesday happened BEFORE we arrived at the Fiefdom.  I saw a lady crossing the little farm to market road and I recognized her to be a cousin I had not seen in probably thirty years, and that is no exaggeration.  Oh, I had seen pictures, but not the real, live cousin.  I skidded to a stop in the driveway and, I am pretty sure, scared my cousin.  To make matters worse, it was obvious by the look on her face that she did not recognize the young man getting out of the black pickup.  I could see that she was deciding whether to stay or to bail.  But I jumped out of the truck, told her who I was, and THEN she was glad to seem me.  We just got to talk a minute, but it was a glad reunion, nonetheless!  Then, on to the Fiefdom.

We were greeted on arrival at the Fiefdom by a buck white tail deer.  He was magnificent to watch, but he seemed to make a point to stay just ahead of our vehicle instead of really trying to get away.  I watched the buck, all the while thinking this was not exactly normal.  About that time movement way off to the side caught my attention.  I turned and saw why the buck was trying to distract us.  A small herd of deer, consisting of two or three does and three fawns, was making their getaway in the opposite direction.  Deer are one of the animals represented here, but there are also wild pigs, and, believe it or not, a panther passes across the land occasionally.  Not only are cougar tracks found, but at a home nearby, two dogs were killed by the cougar.  Yes, my friends, I had a rifle and a revolver with me, not only in the very unlikely event of a cougar attack, but also in the much more likely case of feral hogs or any snake unfortunate enough to make an immediate appearance.

By 8 AM we were hard at work on top of the dam.  My Lovely Bride and I took turns cutting down segments of a huge cedar tree and hauling away the cut wood.  This, my friends, was the Cedar Tree Godzilla!  The trunk was about three feet in diameter, but then divided into five or six separate "trees."  We worked on this tree and a few smaller trees which encircled the cedar for over an hour before I decided that the chainsaw blade was dull.  We made a quick trip to the local hardware store and bought a new chain, then raced back to work some more.  The new chain was the magic we needed.  By noon the large tree and several smaller ones were history...or, rather, firewood.  And my Lovely Bride and I were bushed.  Fortunately, my mother called about this time and said lunch was ready.  We packed up and went to visit Mom and have lunch with her.  Mom fed us well, I have to say.  After lunch and a brief siesta, we went to visit my brother and his wife.  I had not seen either of them in a couple of months, so again, another happy reunion.  The reunion was short but sweet, then we had to get back to our home base at Waco, to prepare for the highlight of the evening, dinner with one of my lovely cousins.

We met my cousin and her husband at one of our old Waco haunts, La Fiesta.  It was great to see her again.  We were joined by my sister and her family.  As an added bonus, as we were walking into the restaurant, I saw a person I recognized from my previous life in Waco.  I had not seen him or his wife in over twenty years.  Again, a short but happy reunion, then on to dinner with my sweet cousin.  We laughed and talked for over two hours, and somewhere in there we managed to eat dinner.  I know the food was good, but the company was so nice that the cuisine was almost just another backdrop.  We caught up with each other's families and generally had a good time.  All too soon it was time to leave.  We all promised to try to see each other more often.  I wonder how many friends and loved ones tell each other that, and really mean it, but just do not get to follow through?  We said our goodbyes and gave hugs all around, then went our separate ways.

Once again, the morning came too soon.  Wednesday was the day we decided we would pick mustang grapes.  So once again we forced ourselves to get up early and get started.  Man, I thought this was vacation.  We went back to the Gatesville area to a location where grapevines line the fence along an unpaved country road.  I have to say that some of the area in which we picked grapes was very snaky looking.  But we beat the grass and swung our buckets through the weeds to try to clear the way of any lurking reptiles.  Hornets and wasps were hazards as well, but we avoided all harm.  In about two hours we had picked more grapes than we needed.  Mustang grapes are a variety of wild grapes that are basically not edible off the vine.  Okay, you can eat them, but you may not really like the taste.  In fact, they would probably sting your mouth for hours.  But when rendered and canned, these grapes make some of the best jelly you will ever taste.  And the juice can be diluted and sweetened, again, making one of the best natural fruit drinks you will ever taste.  So having gathered our crop and avoided any unfortunate injuries, we drove back to Sister's house.

By 5 PM my Lovely Bride and I, and Cole, the nephew, were on the road headed for Old San Antone!  We plan to take in a few sights, plus my Lovely Bride will present some of her stroke work at a national conference in the Alamo City.  She is becoming quite renowned in her field.  I am very proud of her.  The trip to San Antonio was shortened, and more fun, when we took the toll road at George Town.  Actually, it was not shortened by miles, but by speed.  The toll way allows speeds of up to 85 miles per hour.   I had not driven this fast in quite awhile, so this was fun in itself.  By the time we arrived in San Antonio, had supper, and settled into our motel room, it was getting on toward 9 PM.  It took awhile for little Cole to calm down enough to go to sleep.  The sights of the large city, as well as the boredom of riding for three hours, had wound up our little nephew, so it took awhile to get him in bed.  Now I am the only one awake.  Tomorrow promises more fun and adventure...hopefully of the relatively tame and fun kind. 

 

Blogging In Lieu Of Productive (And Necessary) Work

One of the hazards of being a blogger (probably writers of any medium, as well) is the deeply rooted desire, nay, the NEED to write.  This need is deeply ingrained, almost an addiction.  It gets in the way of doing necessary things, such as breathing, or taking out the trash when Honey thinks the bin is too full.  By the way, Honey does not understand that a trip to the dumpster can be delayed at least twelve hours by simply smooshing down the trash in the can.  I wonder if many females share this deficiency, but...I digress.

I wonder if I mistitled today's edition...because blogging IS the Productive and Necessary Work! All the other things are annoyances.  Now I realize there are necessary tasks that have to be accomplished but this causes such a disruption with the creative flow.  For instance, I am eager to put these few words on my page, but there are so many things yapping for attention in the back of my mind that I almost (ALMOST) feel guilty for taking this little time out.  There are lots of errands to run today, and plans to make...but, I have not done my blog yet.

Life has a way of interfering with blogging, too.  Sometimes the interferences are not unpleasant, though.  For instance, the little grand nephew son has been visiting for two weeks now.  I have found that his days are packed, which has left me a little less opportunity for blogging.  But there is no shortage of blogging material with him around!  For instance, there is the mystery of the disappearing bottle caps.  The kind kids (and Honey) likes to eat, not the kind that actually cap bottles.  Honey keeps a stash of bottle caps secreted near her recliner; Colton discovered said candy cache.  At least that is what we surmise.  The number of bottle caps in the bottle has declined disproportionately to the amount that Honey actually consumes.  This phenomenon commenced approximately twenty-four hours after our young charge arrived.  Cole, however, knows nothing about this situation.

Today, I have a lot of things I need to do in preparation for leaving town tomorrow. We are taking the vacation that we had planned last month, but which turned into the surprise event, the marriage of our daughter and new son.  Child B and Sifu are now embarked on their new life together, and I was so glad that Honey and I had that time off (totally coincidental) that allowed us to make the trip to Las Vegas to be a part of the blessed event.  And we had some adventures along the way.  Hopefully this vacation will be a little more relaxing.  But there will be adventures along the way, even if they are somewhat less intense that witnessing a major accident on the way to our daughter's Las Vegas wedding. 

Having gotten the blog bug out for the day, Colton and I are about to leave the house and head out on the various errands waiting completion.  Colton was not ready to leave earlier, as he had not finished his Lucky Charms (his breakfast of choice).  The very act of taking Cole shopping and on other missions is an adventure in itself.  Cole is capable of making an adventure out of pulling a bag of flour off the grocery shelf.  Such a seemingly straightforward activity can either take just seconds, or up to fifteen minutes, depending on whether or not the flour is bagged securely!  It is such adventures that tug at me all the time, the things that make me want to blog in lieu of productive activity.

Have a nice day, everyone.  Cole and I are headed to town.  Keep us in your prayers!!