Why I'm an extreme homebody

Moving Pictures

I once met Lisa Shue

She was in town filming Call to Glory. I was watching her shoot a scene in downtown Del Rio. When it was done she called me over and I asked if I could have a photo taken with her. My mom took our picture with my 110. She was not well known at the time and had only done a Burger King commercial. She said her name was Elisabeth but everyone called her Lisa.

Don't forget to write!

"He was handsomer than anybody I'd ever met. He looked just like James Dean."

I found this mini, souvenir photo set of Badlands, South Dakota while thrifting and had to have it. Had I come across this when I was twelve, I would have placed it in a my treasure box (a cigar box found at a garage sale that I had covered with stickers). Now that I am all grown up, it has a place on my treasure shelf with all my treasures.

Chorus #6

----and the streets of time & grime
without rhyme or dime, all crime,
in the blue sad bellows of Manhattan,
and old dirty black and orange-shit ships
with dirt white substructures,
and wharves of rusty junk, & barges,
and I felt Exuberant
I felt I was the only Perfect Man
in the World
The Brooklyn Bridge Blues


                                   ~By Jack Kerouac as found in The Book of Dharmas

The Jack Benny Year

When I turned 33 it was called The Jesus Year among my friends. It turned out to be an awesome year. I was swept off my feet by the man I married. This year I'll turn 39, The Jack Benny Year, in honor of the man who never aged. I'll be pushing 40 for 365 days. I don't drink much but at this point, I don't want to walk up to a cashier and not get carded. Last time I got carded and I sort of want to quit while I'm ahead. Just feels better.

Two months ago I was standing at a bus stop and struck up a conversation with the girl standing next to me. She was telling me about her major and how she hated what she picked but she'd be sticking with it because at 25 all she wanted was to get out of college and graduate. Then she asked me what my major was. I told her I was not a degree seeker and had a nice little job. She then asked how old I was. For those few nano seconds, confronted with my age, I found myself trying to swallow the fact I would be pushing forty this year. It was not a reality until that moment. Do I tell my real age or make one up? I finally understood those people who hated to divulge their real age. The number just doesn't feel right, in fact, the number feels very wrong.

Geez, I'd been employed almost two decades, was born into a world that still had John Lennon, rotary  telephone booths and was a good fourteen years old when I worked with a computer for the first time. It was a brand new Commodore (very ancient now) that used a cassette for storage. I told her I was pushing forty. Let's be honest, what the hell is two months. No sooner did that sentence escape me that I thought, I might as well start saying I am forty, to get used to it and comfortable with the idea that I'll be in my fourth decade of life. Anyway, much to my surprise, her eyes got huge and she said, (get this) she actually said, "I thought you were nineteen!", Hahaha I laughed out of real genuine relief, happiness, whatever, it was a good thing, it was a really supermegauberfanatastic thing. Yeah, my new best friend in the whole world thought I was nineteen. Feeling really high on things and I'm sure grinning ear to ear, I managed to eek out polite doubt and said, "Aw c'mon, nineteen? Really? Nineteen, oh no way, I really look my age." I totally felt like Jack Benny in one of his skits. Then she said, "Well, maybe you look 20 or 21, at the most 23..." I had to shut her up, why have it all ruined. Out in broad daylight, little make-up on, no sunglasses, not feeling my absolute best,  she had guessed nineteen after looking straight at me for several minutes. I'll be holding on to that for a very long time.

I could tell she was starting to study my face really close but the bus arrived and I picked a seat next to someone else. I didn't want to see her to continue to stare. She got off the bus and I gave her a real huge smile and a wave and said, "Thank you so much, totally made my day!" I run into her from time to time, just in passing, but when I do I smile and wave (keeping my distance a bit, teehee) but seeing her is an absolute lift.

Minutiae

Watching North by Northwest was a great way to start the weekend. It got better though, we watched Renoir's The River (1951) after a donut run to Mrs Jonhson's Donuts. The glazed were piping hot, melt in your mouth delicious! Timing.

My friend and I made made a day trip to a tiny town to rescue a rabbit.  Years and years ago I went to the pound and fell in love with the cutest rabbit ever. He was in a pen with several other black and white spotted rabbits. I pointed him out as the one I wanted and knew his face. A few days later a truck appeared and my rabbit was unloaded.  I was given some other rabbit. This was not the rabbit that reached out for me as I walked by, this was not him and I phoned the shelter and then the bunny rescue group immediately to try and rectify the situation.  They thought I was nuts and insisted that this was the rabbit I had picked out. It wasn't, though, no way.

I looked at this strange rabibit and he growled then bared his teeth. It was a long 48 hours before the rescue group came for him.  This rabbit was so evil and I was so spooked by him that at one point I was running around the room, screaming and jumping because he was growling and hopping at me.  I was forever blacklisted and never allowed to adopt from this rabbit rescue group again. There are no second chances with these people. That experience left me never wanting a rabbit again anyway.

In helping a friend adopt a dog I couldn't help but notice all the rabbits up for adoption. I found a rescue group outside of town (since my name is mud among the bunny people in town) and drove there this weekend to pick up Artie. Artie was surrendered  together with two other bunnies and is three years old. I was told that everyone passed on Artie but when I held him I fell in love instantly and had to have him. Artie is pure love, he is the gentlest lil soul and has given us all bunny kisses. Not being comfortable with the idea of anything scarring me for life, I had to give this whole bunny thing another try. It was a case of mistaken identity last time. Meet Artie, he takes himself very seriously and you should too:

Kustom Kar Kommandos

The kustom kar charged weekend begins today at the Lonestar Rod &Kustom Round-Up! This is where you'll find all the gorgeous classic cars and hot rods. Careful not to drool on the tuck & roll jobs or over all that perfectly tight piping and don't you dare let that obnoxious, vintage, charm bracelet come within a quarter of an inch of any sexyshinysleek paint job. I saw that happen once and it was not a pretty scene.

All the fun bands will be there like Herman the German, The Thunderchiefs (these guys are so kool!), Heybale and more!

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It was so pretty that April day four years ago.