May 10, 2008
The Moon Pole
This whiskey barrel will have a Moon Pole.
This “tree” will be placed in the whiskey barrel to create the Moon Pole.
MoonFlowers will be planted in the whiskey barrel. With 10 to 20-foot vines, the deliciously fragrant heirloom MoonFlower (Ipomoea alba) unfurls huge white blossoms at dusk. The plants have large heart-shaped leaves.
It will be glorious.
May 3, 2008
Kentucky Derby 2008
The Kentucky Derby, the 134th run for the roses...
I curse Bob Black Jack!
mint julep
bocce ball
A.H. Hirsch Reserve Straight Bourbon Whiskey distilled in 1974, in the barrel for 16 years. Widely acclaimed by authorities, A.H. Hirsch Reserve is that complete rarity: a whiskey of such uncompromising quality and individual character that words simply cannot do it justice. A thick-textured whiskey, which coats the mouth. Rich, complex flavors, very spicy, with plenty of mint, evergreen, dried apricots, toffee, and vanilla. Long soothing finish.
Vader Cake
The pool...
April 29, 2008
April 24, 2008
The Great Sunflower Project
I have joined The Great Sunflower Project to produce the first real map of the state of the bees. Some bees have had severe declines, such as Colony Collapse Disorder, which may be affecting food production. No one has ever measured how much pollination is happening over a region or continent, especially urban areas such as the Denver. Without pollinators, there will be no pollination, which in turn means there will be no fruits and veggies!
The Great Sunflower Project will supply me with wild, native sunflower (Helianthus annuus) seeds. Twice a month I'll collect the following data: temperature, count the number of flowers on the Sunflower plant and time how long it takes for five bees to visit. I will report the data online for their study.
Sunflowers make you happy.
Sunflowers make you smarter.
Sunflowers are wicked cool.
Sunflowers help you make friends.
Sunflowers make work go by quickly.
Sunflowers will teach you about science.
Sunflowers are pretty.
Sunflowers are a cherished gift.
Sunflowers are in my garden. (What about yours?)
Sunflowers will help.
I've joined the hunt for bees!!
April 21, 2008
Summer Jubilee Adventure Scrum 2008
Summer 2008 looks to be a fine summer of exploit. Plans are currently in work to chart adventure of most fun and frolic. Friends of mine shall be skiing in Chile or partying it up in the Las Vegas and I will construct similar merriment of my own. Similar but different.
I make it a habit to keep pleasurable activities on my plate and the summer of 2008 shall be no different. There will be plenty of ample opportunities to feel the Wakan of the Earth; the breeze of freedom. I am excited. If you could see me now you'd see the goose pimples on my arms.
Here is a brief list, a bragging dub of sorts, of the adventure to come:
1.) Gardening of course, such a splendorous GX-1134 Urban Garden of legend and myth. Songs will be sung of my epic garden. Tales and poetry will be spoken of the bounty grown.
2.) A road trip to the Kansas to an ancestral home of my family.
3.) A June camping trip to Tarryall Reservoir.
4.) A July camping trip to the old haunt of Turquoise Lake.
5.) A August camping trip to the Great Sand Dunes National Monument under the Full Sturgeon Moon.
6.) Bicycling through the city.
7.) Picnicking in parks and mountains.
8.) BBQs and merriment.
9.) Lard.
There will be fishing and hiking and camp cooking and campfires and relaxing in the wild; letting the wind penetrate the soul. This is just a brief list. More adventure will crop up I am sure.
April 20, 2008
planting
Planted sunflowers and ornamental corn this day.
WORM SIGN!
April 16, 2008
Moritz Embroidery Works
The Moritz Embroidery Works in Pennsylvania have been doing embroidery since 1885. They provided us with our mission patches the past 3 years.
The company was notified today of the mission patch all-weather testing done by Pumpkin Lord James. The images are being passed around the company this instant.
PLJ was asked if they were for space.
Day 291 and counting…
Mission Patch Project Alpha 1 Gallery
April 15, 2008
April 14, 2008
NSS CONTEST
Dear Russell,
Thank you for sending "The Day" for the National Space Society's Return to Luna short story contest. This is your confirmation that we've received the story and you are entered into the contest.
Before I forward your story onto the jurors your name will be removed and the story will be assigned a number to remove any biases while evaluating it. (Your name will be reunited with the story, if chosen, of course.)
We expect to have results and a list of winners, including a Grand Prize winner, by late Summer 2008. The anthology, RETURN TO LUNA, should be out by Fall 2008.
Check back at www.hadleyrillebooks.com and www.nss.org for updates and for the announcement of winners.
Note: if your email address changes, please be sure to notify us.
Good luck!
Eric T. Reynolds
Hadley Rille Books
April 13, 2008
Doors Open Denver 2008 and Yuri's Night
It was a pleasant weekend filled with Doors Open Denver and Yuri’s Night celebrations. I was carrying a 40-pound pack! It never hurts to be prepared.
I walk to my own music. Figuratively and literally. I fired up my portable sound system and softly jammed to good tunes all weekend long, usually causing many funny laughter moments in the process.
SS and I had a run in with Daryl at Doors Open Denver. Daryl was a homeless man, a musician. We walked down the 16th St. Mall talking with him, learning his story. We arrived at our destination and in lieu of giving him cash, SS sent him towards Ross, where we would meet him in 30 minutes and she would buy him a new pair of shoes.
Our tour of the D&F Tower complete, we hustled to Ross and watched Daryl from the stairs looking over the shoes, checking the price and trying them on. The shoe purchase complete and Daryl on his way with a new pair of sneakers, we continued our tour of the Denver.
It was the most beautiful thing I had ever witnessed, almost collapsing weak at the knees.
Candyman
Yuri’s Night was spent at Denver’s Chamberlin Observatory wallowing in tektites, transit telescopes, globes and stereo photography of the Aurora Borealis and comets. I mixed with memorizing chronometers and visual measurement tools. I was lost in Universal and sidereal time checking out the telescope, a priceless 114-year-old 20-inch aperture, f/15 Alvan Clark-George Saegmuller refractor! A smile never left my face.
Yuri’s Night finished at Sputnik. A splendid Yuri’s Night!!
Chamberlin Observatory
a 20-inch aperture, f/15 Alvan Clark-George Saegmuller refractor
a 20-inch aperture, f/15 Alvan Clark-George Saegmuller refractor
Transit Telescope
Yuri's Night 2008 at Sputnik
April 10, 2008
April 8, 2008
Yuri's Night is April 12, 2008
Yuri's Night is April 12, 2008.
www.yurisnight.net
Yuri's Night is like the St Patricks Day or Cinco de Mayo for space. It is one day when all the world can come together and celebrate the power and beauty of space and what it means for each of us.
Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin embarked on the historic first manned space flight on 12 April 1961. Twenty years later on 12 April 1981, the US launched the first space shuttle flight.
April 5, 2008
April 4, 2008
April 3, 2008
Colorado Rockies Home Opener 2008
Ah yes, I scored tickets to the Colorado Rockies home opener following the World Series season of last year. It should be a raucous party for sure for sure. THANKS ROB AND MICHELE!
Colorado Rockies versus Arizona Diamondbacks
Friday April 4, 2008
02:05 pm MT
I will be in my Rockies cap. And I will drink beer.
April 2, 2008
Twin Powers
I am a twin. My sister and I have had random twin power occurrences over the years. The last one happened the other day. I popped in the Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back DVD and recorded the menu via my cell phone and sent the clip to my sister.
She was watching the same movie across town as I was at the same time and we were within 3 seconds of having the movie completely synced. It was awesome.
March 29, 2008
Garden Hulks
Construction of the serendipitous beds of Earth for the GX-1134 Urban Garden was done this day. COMPLETE GX-1134 GALLERY HERE
Laborious. How does one muster the troops so early when they’re weakened by the appetite and lack of sleep? They are stricken with a painful twitch that hungers for breakfast. I know breakfast. Nothing feeds the pre-manual labor body like a plate of homemade biscuits and gravy.
Then we worked...
March 28, 2008
March 27, 2008
rad harmonica jam
RAD HARMONICA JAM Right click and "Save Target As"
The exotic spice
I am on vacation and exotic adventure waits. The spice of life. The spice must flow.
A rock-hunting trip perhaps? I’ve always wanted to see the K/T boundary. Loosing oneself in the old maps at the Western History Collection in the Denver Public Library? Walking tours of historic Denver? Disco Mountain concert? Or a journey to the Rockies in the west for early spring fishing? A pleasant visit to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science? My book! My book! I must finish my book! And my short Lunar story shall be edited soon.
And gardening. Work will continue on the Great eXperiment GX-1134 Urban Garden. Plans upon plans upon drawings upon blueprints upon lumber trek complete, a plot of ground will be forged this Saturday. From the depths of sterile nothingness shall come new-fangled soil to till; fresh surface for the seed plant; the nutritious Earth edged in redwood and built by the fuel of biscuits and gravy and Venti Chai tea with 7 pumps of sugar free cinnamon dolce syrup, soy milk, extra foam, misto and 7 packets of Splenda brand sweetener. Serendipity! The tools of the strange garden realm will be commanded.
I need 16 cubic feet of soil: garden soil, organic soil, enriched planting mushroom compost, steer manure, peat and sheep and those horticultural polymers. Those magnificent horticultural polymers. I lord-master the nature. My thumbs have a green stain.
The mission patch … what will it be? What could it be? What grandeur can be made to compare to those images of times past?
Life aplenty to be had. So much to do. How does one sleep when there is so much to experience?
March 26, 2008
EXCLUSIVE AUDIO!
(right click and "Save Target As" to save this mp3.)
slim jibbidy
by MELT RAD
orally interpreted by RAD
what is this a photo blog?!
NO!
Hollow by RAD
Walking confidently on Earth
Filled with knowledge
Brimming with life
Inhaling the healing atmosphere
The fruits of existence surround all sides
An explorer seeking adventure
Overflowing with the capacity for good
Eager to lend a helping hand
One who shares
Who makes a difference
But hollow inside
A void in heart and soul
Blood pumping just to support life
Going through the motions of existence
Everything a blur
Lost
searching for meaning and guidance
acceptance and understanding
rummaging around the splinters of a spirit in formation
False smiles often hide pain
in the darkness kept to oneself
a singular point of diamond density
shielded from light
but cracked thank goodness
Walking confidently on Earth
incomplete somehow
stumbling in the search
for balance
to merge all knowledge with that of the ache
moving forward through the thorns
across the stream of fire
gasping for breath in the vacuum
to emerge on the other side
On Earth
Skipping this time
Brimming with life
Wiping away the tears
The fruits of existence surround all sides
An explorer seeking adventure
Strength gained
Unstoppable.
Das Ende
--
I'm on vacation.
March 23, 2008
March 21, 2008
Spring
Now that spring has come, sun tea, radish and wildflower planting are the call of the times.
Icicle Radish, white, long radish.
Pink Beauty Radish, pastel pink, round radish.
Cherriette Radish, smooth, bright red radish.
Multicolor mix Easter Egg Radish, mix of red, purple and white round radishes.
A custom STS-13L Wildflower Gauge was installed in a pot.
by RAD
O’ Spring,
rebirth and renewal
a cog in the hoop of all things
replace the splendor of the winter
bringing color and warmth
thy dirt is mine friend
Das Ende
March 19, 2008
Dale Family Mexican Easter Fiesta
Sunday is the traditional Dale Family Mexican Easter Fiesta!
I am making my patented Chili Con Queso.
The Dale Family Mexican Easter Fiesta is tradition dating back as far as I can remember. Instead of ham, lamb, duck, eggs, potatoes, rolls, green beans, asparagus, strawberry pie and all the other traditional Easter feast items, my family gathers for a massive Mexican food potluck.
We wallow in burritos, enchiladas, corn chips, salsa, tortillas, green chili, spicy casseroles, Mexican rice, nasty guacamole, refried and black beans, chicken fajitas, chile rellenos, a myriad of delicious desserts, iced tea, soders, freshly brewed coffee, sour creams, cheeses, fresh lettuce, tostadas and many other Mexican cuisines. One hasn't celebrated Easter until they shove refried beans and flour tortillas into their mouths. I find this family tradition to be a wonderful, blessed thing. Don't you wish you were a member of my family? Many do.
March 18, 2008
Radish Festival in a Months Time
I am planting a gaggle of radishes Thursday, the first day of Spring. I will plant them in waves to provide a steady crop of radishy goodness.
Here is the rundown of what I will plant:
Pink Beauty Radish: a pastel pink, round radish with delicious uniform roots and medium tops. These pink beauties have a nice, tender, crisp texture and taste. There are whispers that this is an eye-catching, top-quality radish. I cannot wait to taste these in salads or straight from the Earth.
Cherriette Radish: smooth with bright red roots; dense and crisp with a sweet/hot taste.
Easter Egg Mix Radish: a multicolor mix making beautiful bunches with a mix of red, purple and white round radishes. They stay crisp and mild even when large.
Some of last year’s STS-13L radishes:
Also, in other gardening news, well woes really, my jalapeno pepper sproutlings, all five of them, were eaten by a wormy looking caterpillar insect which I dispatched in anger by flushing the bastard down the toilet into the sewer systems beyond my realm.
March 16, 2008
March 15, 2008
March 13, 2008
RETURN TO LUNA: A Short Story Science Fiction Contest
I am submitting a story or two: RETURN TO LUNA: A Short Story Science Fiction Contest
The National Space Society (NSS) and Hadley Rille Books are looking for Science Fiction stories that show the adventure of lunar settlement. They want to feel the romance of life there, the wonder of the lunar frontier, of its magnificent desolation. They prefer near future (50 to 150 years from now), realistic stories about human lunar settlement. They want good characterization and well-written, tight prose. They want to feel what it's like to live on the Moon.
All winning stories will be published in the anthology RETURN TO LUNA with a potential readership of thousands; the book will be submitted to well-known science fiction editors to consider each of the stories for inclusion in their "best of the year" anthologies, and the book will be sent out for review. All winning authors will be eligible for royalties and will receive free membership to the NATIONAL SPACE SOCIETY for one year. GRAND PRIZE WINNER will also have a review of his or her winning short story featured in NSS's magazine AD ASTRA, and on the NSS and Hadley Rille Books websites.
I can do that. I am doing that. I'm already 1000+ words into my first submission. Excelsior!
March 12, 2008
Arctic Dairy Queen Sub Zero Blizzard Run
You can't go wrong with an arctic Dairy Queen sub zero blizzard run.
March 11, 2008
Farming
Farming runs in the family. It’s in my blood.
My 4th great grandfather William Colwill was a farmer in England. His daughter married my 3rd great grandfather John Rutledge Bailey and moved the family to America from Devonshire (Devon) England after 1842. They settled in Jefferson Township, Knox County, Ohio.
Another 3rd great grandfather, Ebeneezer Jennings Whitney, was a farmer and a mechanic near Hartford, Vermont until October 1837 when he and his family moved to Knox County, Ohio.
Ebenezer Jennings Whitney and Sarah Amanda Boardman
Eben’s ancestor Eustace De Whitney, born in 1080, dates the Whitney family back 22 generations in England. The Whitney family emigrated from London to America aboard the "Elizabeth and Ann" in April 1635, settling in Watertown, Massachusetts.
My 2nd great grandfather Elias Dale was a farmer and a preacher who couldn’t read or write in Kansas. The family used the "Diehl" spelling until the late 1700's. Then they used the "Deal" spelling until about 1850. The "Dale" spelling is currently in use.
Elias Dale
Another 2nd great grandfather’s family came from County Tyrone, Ireland. Charles Matthew Culbertson, a twin who had 2 sets of twins himself, was a farmer who in 1891, having grown moderately prosperous raising strawberries in Indiana, looked for greener pastures and moved to Pratt County Kansas. He was known as “The Strawberry King.” Even when he became almost blind he continued to farm strawberries, sweet potatoes and onion sets.
My great grandfather Whitney John Bailey was a wheat farmer in Pratt, Kansas where his family lived in the early 1900s.
Whitney John Bailey and Dora Emma Culbertson
Both my grandfathers escaped the Kansas farming life. Grandpa Louis Leroy Bailey always had a nice garden in Pueblo, Colorado.
My father Richard Charles Dale had a grand urban garden in Aurora, Colorado.
Hundreds of years of farmers reside in my family. I am no different.
It hurts when you love
I wasn’t going to publish this at first. But I decided that since I wrote it, I might as well publish it. I’m not known for self-censorship… –rad
Have you ever had intense feelings for someone who didn’t return the feelings?
I have.
Could it have been love? I have not a clue. What is love? All I know is that something struck me like lightning one day. It was out of the blue; it caught me off guard as I was conducting my normal, everyday life. It wasn’t something I was actively searching for. It was a feeling I had never felt before - and no it wasn’t a heart attack. But similar perhaps?
It was a yearning; a higher purpose calling almost; a desire to do more for someone else than myself; to pursue; to learn all I could about her; to channel all efforts into that relationship, to proclaim and sing and shout and dance and leap. It was a connection beyond space and time; a strange epiphany that scrambled the brain, prevented coherent thought, heightened my alertness, produced sweating and shallow breathing. It was painful butterflies in the stomach. It was hours upon hours of trying to sleep with the mind reeling, constantly thinking and sizing up and evaluating and thinking; an unvarying image always on the mind. A waking dream. A vision with trumpets and chorus. A painful twinge just out of soothing reach.
All those feelings and emotions occurred in a breath. A heartbeat. In the tick of a nanosecond. It encompassed an eternity and continued with each passing moment.
Dream on Russ. A dream indeed.
Sure I’ve had little crushes on the ladies here and there in the past, but nothing like that. I’ve hardly dated anyone in my lifetime because I am so particular when it comes to whom I spend time with, whom I open up to and whom I show my true self. Time is precious. If you believe in something you make the time. You make time for your friends. You make time for your family. You endeavor to make time. There is no room for “second-rate” friendships or friendships of convenience in the modern world. The masks we all wear need to be taken off sometime. The masks should merge into one true face.
At what point does one come clean and say something, profess the truth and feelings, when one already knows the ultimate outcome, the inevitable answer, in their heart? Does one profess that truth when it is painfully obvious by demeanor and the words exchanged between? Should silence be the ultimate profession? Such revelations tend to complicate things more, often resulting in separation forever to prevent uncomfortable silences and the like. That.Is.Horrible. But a fact of life. It’s happened to me. It’s happened to many people.
I told a girl long ago that I liked her and she went silent and never talked to me again. If fact, most of the people I have asked out on dates in the past quit talking with me within a few days, maybe weeks. They moved on. Upon seeking advice about my pain, a girl friend of mine told me: “Sometimes girls drag guys on … so that you will still be friends with them. As soon as you tell a guy you just want to be friends they back off.” Hmmm. I can see how that happens. If you mention to a lady that you want to be more than friends they either:
1.) Are flattered and honored and want to be just friends.
2.) Say ‘no’ then break off all contact and/or distance themselves forever.
3.) Never answer the question.
4.) Accept
Can men be friends with women? Not all men are on the prowl for sex and sex and even more sex, with maybe a little bestial dirt coitus on the side. There is more to a relationship than just a physical relationship. So much more. Is sex going to keep the relationship going when one is pushing 80 or 90 years of age? Maybe. Maybe not. My grandparents Dale were married over 65 years! One of my guy acquaintances said that only gay men could truly be friends with women.
“Just friends…”
…you hear that term a lot nowadays. The relationship rejection factor makes one wonder many things: “What have I done?” “What can I do?” “Is it me?” “Is it my personality?” “My appearance?” “Do I not make enough money?” “Is my profession not very glamorous?” “My clothes?” “My skin color?” “My smile?” “My baldness?” “My success or lack-of success in life?” “My passions?” “Me?”
“There are plenty of fish in the sea” is a term I have heard and been pounded in the head with all my adult life. It is true. There are. I sometimes wonder if my life mate was alive 200 years ago, or has yet to be born.
What is vital to human interaction? Trust is important to relationships. Communication. Loyalty. Safety. Comfort. Love. Fun. Understanding. Respect. I could ramble on and on about my “perverse” sense of human relationships. Call me old fashioned if you want. Maybe that is my failing. I don’t shy away from courtly love and chivalry.
Ultimately, on the journey of life, one must muster up the courage to move forward and pick up the pieces of a heart shattered or disappointed. To move on. It is a stark human experience in a world that is more complicated now than it has ever been in the history of humankind. Men and women are so different. Women have ventured out of the “traditional” homemaker roles into roles of success and power and liberation and they create individual goals and dreams. I think this is great. I’m all for strong women. Many of the characters in my novel are strong women. They are enormous role models in society. The strongest woman I know, who busted her butt to provide for 4 children single-handedly, raised me.
I suppose we all look for guidance and acceptance by those around us. To make a connection or impact in life that is a true mark of friendship or love. Some turn to a higher power for help. Some turn to friends and family. Some turn to their peers. Some turn inside themselves. Some block out their pain altogether. Some turn to all of these.
But one should never deny love, even if it is a hopeless kind of love. It is, after all, what being human is all about. We think. We feel. We experience. We analyze. We live day-to-day, minute-to-minute and second-to-second…always moving forward to the unknown an exciting future.
We love.
If we deny love that is given to us or refuse to give love because we fear pain or loss, then our lives will be empty. And our loss greater.
March 9, 2008
STS-666 STS13L Weather tests
Mission Patch all-weather testing day 252 side by side comparison. Scan by Pumpkin Lord James.
brakes
I got my hands dirty and learned to do my own brakes. Call me grease monkey!
Today there is a posse coming over and there will be farming done.
March 8, 2008
March 4, 2008
Possible Config
A possible configuration for the Urban Garden this year. There will be more room for vegetables of the consuming kind.
February 28, 2008
Russ statement on final RADcast
Dear Everyone:
I am done. Done with internet radio. For now. Not forever. But I am done. I will retool and redesign the RADcast for re-launch in the future.
Done with so many things am I.
Starting tonight after the show, I will thrust myself whole-heartedly into bettering myself and finishing my novel. Every moment of my waking life will be used to work on it. I will not emerge from my solitude until I have a draft in hand, ready to be proofread and edited by those who care. This self-imposed hermit life must be achieved in order to have the distraction-free journey of a writing frenzy. I have been unfocused. Unbalanced. Distracted. Nothing will stop me from achieving my goal.
Give me encouragement. Sing me songs of life and love. Push me to fulfill my mission. Most important of all: support me. Please.
The next Russ Dale you meet will be a completely new man.
Until then, I remain,
rad
February 27, 2008
the FINAL RADcast
The FINAL RADcast…
Date / Time: THURSDAY 2/28/2008 8:00 PM MT (10 PM EASTERN!)
Category: Comedy
Call-in Number: (646) 915-9516
What everyday events are magic? What makes you happy? Do you appreciate the beauty of life?
Russ counts down his top 10 favorite RADcast bits, reminisces of RADcast and celebrates the goodbye of an internet staple. Scheduled for 120 minutes…
February 25, 2008
3rd Annual Tank Party
3rd Annual Tank Party
MELT’s homemade sushi!
February 24, 2008
February 23, 2008
Sushi Oscars
Tomorrow night is the traditional Oscar celebration complete with MELT's homemade sushi.
February 21, 2008
Biscuits and Gravy
Biscuits and gravy: the finest grub ever invented by modern man. I am the founder and President of The B&G Society, a vagabond group of people who search the world over for the holiest of holies: the bestest plate of biscuits and gravy ever! We elite at the B&G Society are ever searching, always seeking, the holy grail of biscuits and gravy.
My fascination with this wholesome breakfasty treat started in my teen years. I first made biscuits and gravy on Sunday, December 1, 1991. I remember it like it was yesterday. I was 16 at the time and whipped up a hefty batch with best friend MELT. The culinary delight had ground turkey white gravy and was GOOD!
Here at the radhole HQ, we have shared countless plates of biscuits and gravy together over the years.
The search still continues to this day.
I pride myself on taking the quest so very seriously. I know that the finest plate of biscuits and gravy is out there somewhere. Some say B&G is deadly and I laugh! I consider it like the Japanese delicacy, fugu! The hunt for B&G takes determination, foresight and leaves no room for bashfulness. It’s a rough road. Don’t be afraid to photograph your biscuits and gravy. You shall not be persecuted.
While on the travels, one never knows when one will hit a B&G jackpot. Truck stops, family owned restrents or street vendors usually sell the grub B&G. Undoubtedly, while on the road, there is a painful twinge in the back of your brain, a hankering for a mess of fluffy, mongo buttermilk biscuits slathered in peppery, white country sausage gravy. Few can fight the urge.
In the constant search for biscuity goodness, the quest has taken me to various locations upon this great American land: Kentucky, Alabama, Kansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, California, Delaware, New York, Washington DC, Georgia, Tennessee, Illinois, Missouri, South Dakota, Texas, Florida, Utah and Colorado.
I’ve searched and searched for the ideal biscuity knowledge. The one true source! But nothing compares to the righteous and stout recipe by GrandPappie Bailey. I was weaned on his freshly split buttery enchantment. I used to watch him craft breakfast. He was a cook in the World War II. He taught me to cook. Them biscuits are legendary! Them breakfasts am hearty. I salivate.
Old GrandPappie Bailey perfected his blissful recipe when he was four years old back in Saratoga Township, Pratt County, Kansas in 1925! Forget Bisquick! GrandPappie make his exquisite biscuits from scratch and they’ll make you rise on up and proclaim with a hearty holler "GrandPappie Bailey’s biscuits make me sing in jubilee!" Add those goodly biscuits to perfecto gravy sunshine, luscious gravy or grubby gravy; all made from the drippings of the finest browned breakfast sausage, and you’ve got yourself a mess of breakfast delight!
Biscuits and gravy is a tradition in certain circles, a great ceremony. There are times when B&G is made just for the sake of making it. It’s a treat to sit down to a steaming plate of biscuits and gravy. Try it. They taste good any time of year.
Besides homemade, the current best biscuits and gravy (2008) reside at Bauer's Campus Café, 435 Poncha, Alamosa, CO 81101 (719) 589-4202. They are cheap and delectable.
Russ Dale
Biscuits and Gravy Society
-
excerpt from CON 2001 by Matthew E. Twardy, Eric Kemper and Russell A. Dale (2001)
EXT. SPIDER HILL - MORNING
PAUL is awakened by PEPE shaking him and handing him a steaming plate of biscuits and gravy. She wears Spock ears and a CON 2001 T-shirt.
PEPE
Hey ... You want biscuits and gravy?
PAUL
Oh hell yeah. Thanks man!
PEPE
Coffee?
-
Biscuits and Gravy Rap Lyrics:
TELEPHONE CONVERSATION
Yo. We hit the B&G jackpot dawg. We be sittin' down to a heapin' plate of biscuits and gravy yo. Better dan da restrents. Come on over Shiz-Hole. It's homemade from the drippings of the finest browned breakfast sausage. Uh huh. Dats right. You's got a hankering for a mess of fluffy, mongo buttermilk biscuits covered in peppery, white country sausage gravy? I'll sees you in ten minutes dawg!
What up J-Hole? I's got a song fo you.
Forget your cereal. We got lardy goodness.
It's ethereal. Down right crudeness
Food stuffs. Release your cuffs.
No greasy bacon. Hey I ain't fakin' It's time to awaken!
No no no
No eggs neither
Take a breatha
We's gonna slather
or rather
tether, every otha, whilst enjoy this weather.
And together
Fill our bellies with anti jams and jellies. Inhale the smellies, no delis fellies, feelin' wellies. Feliz Navadad!
Knees on sod, pray to God, not Zod, just nod, join the B&G vice squad. It's odd.
It's peppery. We play. Don't stray!
It's biscuity goodness. Call the press.
I see you drool. Welcome to school.
You's got hunger? You ain't getting' any younger!
The pains be stabbin'. Yo stomach you grabbin'
Soooooooooooo
(Chorus)
Grab a plate yo. It's feast time.
You's be filled with glee
At my blissful recipe.
It's Biscuits. Biscuits and gravy. (HAY-VE)
freshly split
buttery enchantment (buttery)
hearty contentment
Don't be lazy. Taste my gravy
I used that buttermilk? Smoother than silk!
And da steamin' pepper white gravy. Sweeeeeeet so very savory.
Can't forget the peppah. Freshly ground black peppah.
Pass the butter yo. Ain't in no mood for olio.
Damn straight yo. We go wit da flow.
Got the Jimmy Dean sausage. Brown breakfast sausage.
Yo it's spicy pork. Don't need no goddamn fork.
I know I be a smarty. This food am mighty hearty.
Hear that bell that ring? Join me and sing.
It's breakfast time. Come here my rhyme.
(Chorus)
It's feast time.
You's be filled with glee
At my blissful recipe.
It's Biscuits. Biscuits and gravy.
freshly split
buttery enchantment
hearty contentment
Don't be lazy. Taste my gravy
Taste like shit? Damn foo. You don't like it?
Well fuck you!
I slather I don't skimp. I'm the B&G pimp.
February 19, 2008
each moment
Each breath is a gift.
Each second that passes is another moment to soak up and learn. Each tick of the clock is a marvel of life.
Each step we take on life's journey is special.
Each person we contact is worthy of respect.
Each moment is to be cherished.
Share these moments with me.
words words words
Sometimes I think I am too wordy. I often say too much. I sometimes say too little.
Regardless of my word craft word speak, I like words. I was an English major in college. I use words to express my feelings. I use them in writing my novel. I use them to communicate with those around me. That is what they are supposed to be used for, wordy or no. I am a communicator.
I hardly ever use words in person, because I have a handful of friends that I don't really see that often. Most of my writing is composed for the "spoken word." I much prefer spoken words to written words. Maybe that is why I'm an eloquent mofo.
There are words in the English language that are not used enough. Some of my favorites include: festering, disturbing, dander, supple, mock, jeer, scum, thwart, filthy and the most evil of all: … Rubbermaid!
Someone wrote me an email: "Yesterday I read your blog and recognized the word dastardly, a word I have not heard since high school and only heard from your gob. Over the years, I thought about using it once or twice, but wasn't sure I could pull it off. Good word."
Dastardly is a great word, but not as good as 'GOB!' Anyone who uses the word 'gob' is okay by me. I use 'gob' all the time.
It's time now for homework. Grab a piece of paper and jot down a few words that you use frequently. Use them in a sentence. It's fun. Do it!
February 16, 2008
February 14, 2008
Valentine's Day horror
‘Tis time now to retell the classic elementary school Valentine’s Day horror show of my youth:
In elementary school, as my classmates were distributing their Valentines into the creatively festive and decorated shoe boxes with the little slot at the top, I was full of activity handing out my own Transformers Valentines crammed with candies and cookies and treats and trinkets abound. I took pride and meticulous care putting each Valentine into the appropriate students box. I made, with youngster pride, a special Optimus Prime Valentine, the Transformer leader of the Autobots, for little Sally, a classmate with whom I had a tiny elementary school crush. I wrote her pure poetry in grade school scrawl. She would scoff at my shy smiles. We spent countless hours playing MASH (Mansion, Apartment, Shack, House) during journal time.
Our special school-day party beginning, everyone sat proudly at their desks and we were instructed to open our shoeboxes and begin reading our Valentines. The paper was flying and there were squeals of delight all around me, candy wrappers buzzing. The clamoring in the room was deafening. I tore my lid open to find one Valentine. My blood froze and my under-developed mind could hardly process the smack down I had received.
"Only one," I questioned aloud, a defeated whisper really, tears welling in my eyes. But there were over thirty kids in my class! Could this hefty card be from wee Sally? I wonder what words of devotion she scrawled on the card? IMy hands trembled in anticipation as I slashed it open, tossing the envelope over my head, to reveal a Valentine from my teacher Mrs. H.
My peers had shafted me. I was the fat little nerd who didn't deserve any Valentines. I was the kid who had to wear the eye patch because of a lazy eye. I was the poor one who ate string cheese at snack-time. I can still hear their hateful snickering. At least nobody put boogers on the back of my shirt like they did with filthy Mandy what’s her name!
I was made fun of mercilessly because of the eye patch. Comments like, "Hee hee you're a pirate," as I was being kicked down the stairs and "It's Valentine's Day not Halloween, why are you wearing an eye patch fatty?" as I was being shoved to the pebbly ground in the play area and "Fat boy, you're such a geek for wearing an eye patch," asshole classmate Rudolph would say, "You don't need this burger," as he took the cheeseburger from my lunch tray and shoved it into his filthy gob. I remember more than one lunch consisting of just mustard and a spoon.
The pointing and laughter didn't help me adjust to the eye patch. It only made me withdraw even more into my fantasy world in which I was lord and ruler. My teachers would try to help me in my grief, but
they only made it worse with accidental comments, "Yes One-Eyed Russie, the answer to number 12 is 387. Good for you pirate Bloody Russell Rackham. You get a silver sticker star and a piece of Valentine's chocolate. Arg!"
It was mandatory that everyone got a Valentine but I didn't raise a ruckus when I got only one. Perhaps my name was unintentionally left off the list. I smiled through it all although inside I was brimming with suffering and torment. Disappointed and ready to nap away my pain, my little tears soaking my custom pillowcases, it was time to beat the piñata. I was looking forward to shoving and battling for candy. My right!
John Paul was the brute of our class, but I was chosen as the first to try my hand at the piñata. Blindfolded awkwardly, my to-tight hand-me-down t-shirt showing my belly embarrassingly, I used the baseball bat to swing aimlessly at the papier-mâché Pound Puppies monstrosity hanging from the asbestos ceiling tiles. "I will now get revenge for the insult brought upon me this day," said I as my 3rd-grade mind reeled and dreamt of sweet candy falling from the air. Taking my Valentine's Day feelings and frustrations out on the piñata, I spilt it open with a fury on the third swing. I was alive. Power surged through me. Cheers echoed in the hallways. I had gashed open the piñata like a true sportsman. Gone were the days when I struck out in Tee Ball. Now I could revel in the candy treats like I deserved.
I felt a rush of air. I heard a mob of gleeful youth dive. I felt them pushing me out of the way, my knees bending in unnatural ways, my pants splitting in the crotch. There is nothing more sickeningly grubby than a frisk of kids scrambling for candy.
By the time I removed the blindfold and looked at the ground, all that was left was an unwrapped Tootsie Roll, a rubber band and the mangled head of Cooler the Pound Puppy piñata. I still hear the lips of my filthy peers smacking as they shoved the candy into their greasy, ungrateful mouths, pushing me aside violently to get back to their desks. I was beaten, my child soul stripped away without a second thought.
Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse, "Russie," screamed my twin sister, smiling uncontrollably as she entered the classroom. She was overburdened with her Valentine shoebox overflowing with goodies and presents and electronics from all of her little boyfriends and pals. Her hair was mussed and she had cupcake mess smeared all over her face and a separate basket filled with other lavish gifties and a new plasticy backpack crammed with stuffed animals and treasures and stickers and cookies.
I showed her my empty box and the rubber band in shame and she felt sorry for me. She shared her loot with me, handing me a cupcake with sweet pink frosting. We skipped home singing and laughing, which was a departure because usually bullies chased me home.
Thankfully Valentine's Day was over for another year.
February 13, 2008
techno phone
Finally, after 5 years plus, I have graduated to a new cellular phone. The ENv. Oh yeah.
Mine is designer orange.
February 9, 2008
Docking and Gardening
After a clean launch and ascent to orbit on Thursday February 7, 2008, Space Shuttle Atlantis and her STS-122 crew will dock with the International Space Station Alpha today at 10:25 am MT/ 12:25 pm ET.
On flight day two the crewmembers completed Atlantis’ heat shield inspection, which looked damage free and showed nothing of interest.
Atlantis is hauling the European Space Agency’s Columbus research laboratory as well as European Space Agency astronaut Leopold Eyharts, who will replace Expedition 16 Flight Engineer Daniel Tani.
My life is the mission right now. And gardening. 1st gardening day of the season is today. The ground is frozen and there is snow. Pictures to come of course.
February 7, 2008
RADcast: Monorail to AtomLand
RADcast: Monoral to AtomLand
Date / Time: 2/7/2008 8:00 PM MOUNTAIN TIME
Category: Comedy
Call-in Number: (646) 915-9516
Space basil seeds, shuttle launch, MySpace, Facebook, social networking and more. Can you see through a wall? Join us.
February 6, 2008
Space Seeds
Yes friends, the Droogs are powerful people. Kneel before us.
Cinnamon Basil seeds have been obtained for GX-1134, the urban garden mission for 2008. I’m not whispering of plain, regular, shabby basil seeds bought at any hole seed shack. Oh no. We run only the finest operation here in the Colorado, sparing no expense and leaving no stone unturned.
I have learned much of gardening these past two years. The battles have been harsh. Mold, mildew, mice, insect pests, squirrels, birds, wasps, hail, floods and City Fox. The very Mother Nature herself both blessed and damned the garden.
But Barnabas still stands true. It’s time to apply the knowledge gleaned to The Great eXperiment. And we will.
The seeds? The seeds! Our Cinnamon Basil seeds flew aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour on STS-118 in August of 2007. They don’t take chances at NASA. They double up on everything. There are two packets.
Homeless Prophet: A Light-Rail Journey
NEW EDIT!
Join a homeless prophet as he speaks of breakfast, butter, optimism, Mommie Dearest, gangs and other important things. The disembodied voice shines hope through the gravy fog...
keywords: homeless Denver lightrail train butter breakfast hope gangs thugs prophet mom dad fog gravyfog preach teacher mentor tornadoes obama supertuesday caucus restrainingorder spears lutfi
February 5, 2008
New Season: GX-1134
The new season of the garden is drawing closer. GX-1134, the newest urban garden mission, will be here before you know it. I can feel Spring in the air. I can taste it on the wind. I see it on the horizon, beckoning me to put my hands into the ground. Dirt never sounded so unsoiled. Growing never seemed so right. Tending to things that grow is a calming peace.
March 20, 2008 is the first day of Spring. I know March and April are the snowiest months in Colorado, but that is all right. Let the snows come to dampen the Earth and prepare it for planting.
The sweet harvest will be wonderful this year. I placed the first seed order today.
So far the GX-1134 crew have discussed changes to the garden. We will grow zucchini, cucumbers, peppers, sunflowers, pie pumpkins, radishes, cannas, 3rd generation nicotiana rustica Hopi sacred Mapacho tobacco and herbs. What will be new crop? Lettuce perhaps? Spinach? Potatoes? Hops? Carrots?
The end of gardening season was marked by the beginning of National Football League season. And now that the football season is officially over, it should be time for gardening. A little over a month! I am so excited.
The first work on the urban garden begins this Sunday.
The seeds purchased in order 1:
Diva Cucumber (Cucumis sativus)
Delicious 2002 All-America Selections winner!
AAS trial judges throughout North America agreed - Diva just might be the best-tasting cuke on the planet. Diva looks like a regular salad cucumber but with a much smoother, thin, no-peel skin. Distinctly tender, crisp, sweet, bitter-free, and seedless; especially flavorful harvested small, about the size of a pickle.
Easter Egg Radishes (Raphanus sativus) (2 packets)
Multicolor mix.
Make beautiful bunches with this mix of red, purple, and white round radishes. Maturing over an extended period of time, they stay crisp and mild even when large.
Raven Zucchini (Cucurbita pepo)
Very dark green for better health.
Darker green skin contains higher levels of lutein, a highly effective antioxidant. Open plants are high-yielding, producing glossy, smooth, cylindrical fruit. Concentrated fruit set, so plan for multiple plantings.
Gourmet Pepper (Capsicum annuum)
Early orange bell has thick juicy walls and fruity sweet taste.
Medium-large, very blocky fruits are bigger than Corona and easier to grow under a wider variety of conditions. Strong compact plants set plentiful fruits without crowding
King Arthur Pepper (Capsicum annuum)
Early, big, high yielding.
Remarkably large-sized bell pepper for its earliness.
Days to Maturity or Bloom: 59 days green, 79 days red ripe
Velvet Queen Sunflower (Helianthus annuus)
Rich, dark, and velvety.
5" blooms of burgundy, mahogany, chestnut, and bronze with dark centers. Well-branched, free-flowering plants with strong stems.
Zebulon Sunflower (Helianthus annuus)
Amazing geometrical pattern in the bright green center.
An attractive dwarf sunflower with an amazing center. Single stem, early flowering, and perfect for fresh bouquets
Baby Bear Sunflower (Helianthus annuus)
New last year! Double, golden yellow flowers.
Dwarf, branching plants. Side stems are suitable for use in small bouquets.
February 4, 2008
City Living - Filter the Static
The snow falls silently. A train whistle. Stillness mixed with progress: the new soundtrack to our lives.
Living in the city provides a sort of fodder for the senses. From the din of traffic to birds singing to wolves and dogs howling nearby, the natural world and our place in it, is a complex mixture of all-kind beauty. We are ciphers to our sphere home. Nature and technology. The divine and the damned. We just live upon her.
The air sings fresh music on a breeze. Add a wind chime to complete the symphony. The bus travels its route. Afire truck blazes a trail with crew to help those in need. Voices in the distance. Pipes dripping. Heaters heating. A woodpecker pecks the peach tree. Leaves rustling. Breathing. The heart beats. Car alarm. Construction. Sonic boom. Helicopters.
The whiz of the highway traffic sounds like a rushing river. The wind blows through trees. A fly. It all becomes white noise. A static obscuring the silence of old, of rare places without technological stink or scars of human defiling, the wild of protected lands. Places untouched. Or not touched as much.
Those places still exist. To be human is to seek them out and experience them for yourself. Just like your ancestors and those 100 generations before you. They still saw the moon as it sailed overhead. They looked at the same stars.
Filter the static.
February 3, 2008
The Bowl
Today is the Super Bowl. Today is also the awarding of the Droog Gridiron Challenge Fantasy Football trophy to MELT, the rightful winner.
I hope The Giants win the game. Pics to come.
Happy Sunday to all.
February 1, 2008
Van Halen Thunder Blizzard
A light rail journey to the scrum as Van Halen plays Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. Thunder, lightning, mixes with snow.
January 28, 2008
phone writing
I wrote this on my phone in November 2004:
$11.25 to bring small joys to people.
It's amazing what diversity you see at the bus stop. I road the bus into downtown today. There's good people watching on the # 6 East and West bus.
Each person has a story. Each individual has a different lifestyle and circumstances that find him or her on the bus today. I feel comfortable here, as though I'm connected to these people. We're all connected on this Earth.
It's a beautiful Fall Colorado day. The sky is a brilliant blue. A stiff breeze blows the gold, red and orange leaves form the trees. The leaves cover everything and mini cyclones swirl them around sidewalks, lawns and streets, announcing the soon arrival of a weather front from the east. Could the first snow of the season be on its way?
I meet Sug'z on the bus. He's hitting on the gal sitting next to him. He carries a ragged cardboard sign and a canvas bag full of CDs. He looks tired, as though he's seen and experienced a lot in life. SUG'z is a Denver rapper trying to make ends meet by selling his album: "They Call Me SUG'z (shoog'z)". I buy one for 10 bucks and he is gracious and happy. "You just made my day," he said to me, "I haven't sold very many. Thanks for the support." It's funky, edgy and unique.
I like it. It's made entirely in Denver, from production to packaging. There is a din of conversations around me. A woman sings a song to her daughter in Spanish. I think I hear two people speaking in Russian. An unruly child screams and cries for twenty minutes, saying the same word in Spanish between wails the entire time. Another woman finally quiets him by giving him a butterscotch candy. "Gracious," he says, wiping the tears from his eyes.
I pull out my MP3 player and load the U2 play list. I look out the filthy window at city life, each person quickly moving by, not taking time to see what's in front of them. They have a purpose. A destination.
The bus speedily turns the corner; everyone inside is violently thrust to the right. I see an elderly man running, his arms flailing as he hails the bus that's about to pass him by. The driver stops abruptly, again jolting people in the bus. He gets on, panting, and thanks the driver for stopping. He sits next to me with a groan, favoring his back and fishing in his tattered pants pockets for the fare. His silver hair was mussed by the wind and his blue flannel had definitely seen better days. His face was grizzled and he smiled a toothless grin. His smile faded as he pulled a packet of mints and a few coins from his pocket. I was watching him from behind the protection of my sunglasses when he turned to me and spoke, "Son," he said still short of breath, "I'm a little bit short on bus fare. Do you have 50 cents?"
I replied that indeed I did have the spare change. "I'll pay for you," I said, immediately pulling out my wallet and placing the dollar twenty-five in the fare collector at the front of the bus. I asked the bus driver for a transfer just in case the man needed one.
"Thank you and God bless you," he said happily when I returned to my seat. "I've had one hell of a day."
I offered him the transfer but he said he did not need it.
I arrived at my final destination and stepped off the bus. I'm fortunate to have all that I have. Spending $11.25 can bring a little hope and joy into the lives of complete strangers. I felt great. I skipped down the street, the leaves crunching under my feet, listening to U2, absorbing the glory of all creation.
January 26, 2008
National Western Stock Show
The 102nd year of the National Western Stock Show in Denver, Colorado.
photo by PLJ
January 24, 2008
more patch pics
More patch pictures coming in:
photo by firemantaco
Lexi the Three-Legged Dog
photo by JH
www.myspace.com/36772345
EATING THE PATCH!!!!!
RADcast: Ice is a Mineral
RADcast: Ice is a mineral
Ice is a mineral and other neato facts of life. Gladiator combat, rescuing the damsel in distress, grunting and more!
Date / Time: 1/24/2008 8:00 PM Mountain Time (10 PM Eastern!)
Category: Comedy
Call-in Number: (646) 915-9516
January 23, 2008
podcasts
So many podcasts ... ... so little time ... ...
12 Byzantine Rulers: The History of The Byzantine Empire
American Environmental and Cultural History
ANTH 379 Indians of North American
Astro 10P: Introduction to General Astronomy
Biology 2120: Lectures on Anatomy and Physiology
Black Folk Tales
Chemistry 221
clip2go German/English
CPR: Colorado Matters
Crossroads of Earth Resources and Society
Earth and Environmental Systems Podcast
Engineering 45: Properties of Materials
European Civilization from the Renaissance to the Present
Garrison Keillor's The Writer's Almanac
General Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
History Podcast
Human Emotion
Introduction to Human Nutrition
Jack Horkheimer: Star Gazer
Military History Podcast
MyGermanClass.com: Lernen Wir Deutsch!
Natural Resources and Population
NPR: Health and Science
NPR: Story of the Day
Open Source Development and Distribution of Digital Information: Technical, Economic, Social, and Legal Perspectives
Origins of the Earth: The Old Age of the Moon
Owenni:io The Good Word
PowWowCast - Native American Pow Wow News
radcast
Real Science
Science & the City
Science and Society
Social Psychology
The PiECast :: Language-learning podcast
The PodTribe (Native American news and commentary)
Thermal and Statistical Physics
This Week in Science
this WEEK in TECH
US History: from Civil War to Present
January 20, 2008
Molly Brown House Museum
Molly Brown House Museum
1340 Pennsylvania Street
Denver, Colorado 80203
303.832.4092
mollybrown.org/
January 16, 2008
January 15, 2008
No match
You click on half the keywords on my Match.com profile and there are no matches. Zero. Zip. It seems no single ladies in the whole Denver metro area have the same interests as me.
Yeah I admit I have a Match.com profile. Not for much longer. Seems like a waste of money to me if nobody has the same interests as me.
Human space flight? Monologues? Biography? Gum? Meteorology? Humanity? Wakan? Archeology? Pumpkins? Space? Universe?
Someone please point me to a space flight monologue gum meteorology humanities wakan archeology pumpkin space universe convention. Please show me where to sign up. Thanks.
It goes with the territory as a scientist I suppose, a lover of several natural and social sciences. I am an rocket scientist, chemist, biologist, archeologist, Egyptologist, quantum physicist and geologist. I dabble in many disciplines, dare I brag, I am a cryptologist, astronomer, meteorologist, anthropologist and experimental psychologist.
January 12, 2008
Tagged!
I've been tagged. 5 things about Russ. Tagged by:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMqoD2eozy4
January 10, 2008
the laughter
I make myself laugh when I say, "Huffed any good sulfer fumaroles lately?"
January 9, 2008
January 8, 2008
Adieu Buckingham Square Mall, Aurora Colorado
The demise of the classic Buckingham Square Mall at Mississippi and Havana in Aurora has begun. The mall, active from 1971 to 2007, has started demolition to make room for a new flavor urban mixture of retail and town homes called “The Gardens on Havana,” a public gathering place.
Many fond youth memories do I have at Buckingham, one of them being the 2 green tube waterslides placed upon the roof of the old Safeway store. They were the HydroTubes! I spent countless hours climbing up the yellow metal stairs listening to “Drive” by The Cars before sliding in a loop-de-loop whilst banging my head on the sides of the tubes and plummeting semi-conscious into the pool below, a childhood adventure. The waterslide stayed open for less than a year. There was Mile High Comics also. Sweet Mile High Comics… And God Fathers Pizza if I recall.
There are a lot of Pumpkin Lord James’ images in the official memory book of the mall. He’s a dead mall historian. Here are his pics:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/76967529@N00/sets/72157594364548505/
The demolition ceremony/celebration was fun. The Aurora Sentinel newspaper interviewed Pumpkin Lord James. The media scrum was there. As was I, a reprehensive of radhole. The Overland High School choir performed. The mayor of Aurora, Ed Tauer, was there.
Buckingham Square Mall Demolition Celebration
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
1306 South Havana
Aurora, Colorado 80012
January 4, 2008
patch mission
I send out mission patches with a mission: photograph the patch in unique and interesting ways.
Submissions are coming in for the STS-13L mission mission:
I am late in sending out patches this year. Who wants one? Email me your address radhole (at) gmail.com and I will send you one. Free!
January 1, 2008
Whitney J. Bailey
My great grandfather on my mom's side was Whitney J. Bailey, Birth: 5 Jun 1872 in Jefferson Township, Knox County, Ohio.
Whitney was a wheat farmer in Pratt, Kansas where the family lived. In 1900, they were living in McPherson Township and in the 1920's, in Saratoga Township, Pratt County, where Whitney was a farmer.
Death: 11 January 1947 in Pratt, Kansas. Burial: Greenlawn Cemetery, Pratt Co., Kansas
“Mrs. Rolin Mcguire recalls that one of the big social events of the year was the time of butchering when several families helped each other as they worked first at one farm and then at another. Pioneer settlers had a way of making play out of hard work. In the coldest part of the winter, neighbors came and several hogs were butchered, enough to supply the year’s meat. Many were specialist in some phase of the work but she says that Whit Bailey was one of the best butchers in these parts and much in demand.” PRATT PAPER
Charles Bailey, son of Whit, who was born in 1911, told the following story to the Pratt Paper on November 23, 1990:
“The name ‘combine’ was derived from the combining of the cutting and the threshing machine into one machine, the combine, which soon replaced all headers, header barges, binders and threshing machines.
Combines had only been out a few years when Whit Bailey bought an International Harvester from Burt Dodson in 1924. Charles Bailey says that the combine was assembled on a vacant lot just west of the Courthouse and that his dad, Whit, had Dodson to deliver it to him on the east side of town because he didn’t want to drive his tractor with lugs down the brick streets of Pratt. Whit Bailey rented a farm 2 miles east and 1 ¾ miles north of Pratt. Charles remembers going to town from the farm northeast of Pratt with his dad on a little 1921 Fordson tractor to pick up their new combine. Mr. Dodson delivered it to them on a hill east of town about where Don’s Servateria is located and they hooked it on to it and headed back down the Cannon ball towards the east to home. The Cannon Ball, now Highway 54, was just a dirt and gravel road. Whit Bailey drove the tractor and Charles rode on the combine seat to handle the brake when going down hills.
This combine came from the factory as a horse drawn machine, equipped with two small pony wheels in front and a tongue. It also had a brake on the bull wheel to hold it back when going down a hill. The first year in the harvest fields, Whit hitched 2 head of horses on the combine and put the Fordson tractor ahead of the horses. A log chain ran from the tractor back between the horses and hooked to the combine to catch the wheat. These wagons would hold about 60 bushels of wheat and it took 4 or 5 wagon loads to keep the grain hailed away.
The two horses hitched to the combine with the tractor ahead didn’t work too well. When the tractor turned a corner, the log chain rubbed the horse’s legs and also the horses had to breathe the fumes from the exhaust of the tractor. The two horses that pulled the grain wagon along side the combine didn’t like the noise of the machinery so close to them. The inside horse next to the combine was pretty spooked.
Changes were made before the 1925 harvest in the horse power hook up. The tongue was removed from the combine and a tractor hitch was installed where the tongue had been. The tractor was then hooked directly to the combine and the horses were put in the lead. The combine pulled the grain wagon along side with a special hook up for that purpose which required 6 horses then to help pull the tractor. This worked better but sill the horses were a little spooked with all that noise behind them.
Horses, tractors and this early combine were quite a colorful combination, but not the best operation in getting the wheat cut and threshed so more changes were needed to make this operation better. One of the changes made was a bin that was installed on the top of this combine to hold the grain. This did away with the grain wagon that was pulled alongside. Then a big change was made in 1927 before harvest when Whit bought a new John Deere tractor that completely took over the job of pulling the combine, and also semi-retired the little Fordson and put 6 head of horses out to grass.”
PRATT UNION PAPER, about October of 1907
“Whit Bailey killed a large rattlesnake near his home northeast of Pratt Monday. It had six rattles and a button. Mr. Bailey was lucky to discover his snakeship before he struck.” They were not uncommon during this country’s early existence but in 1907, were becoming rare enough that an encounter with one rated mention in the county papers.
PRATT UNION PAPER, September 1933
“There were 200 persons in attendance at the Pratt County Old Settlers picnic at the Fish Hatchery. Some who attended and the year that they arrived:
1884 Mrs. A.W. Bailey
1887 Whit Bailey
1887 Wal C. Banbury
1894 Mrs. C.G. Bergner
1892 Samuel Bloxom
Whitney John Bailey Obituary, January 1947, Pratt, Kansas
Whitney John Bailey, son of Wm. R. and Lucy E. Bailey, was born June 5th, 1872 near Danville, Ohio, and departed this life January 10th, 1947 in Pratt, Kansas. On Mat 5th, 1897 he was married to Miss Dora Culbertson. To this union nine children were born, four sons, Charles and Howard of Pratt, and Orace and Leroy of Wichita. Five daughters, Mrs. Lester (Elsie) Bloxom, Mrs. Wythe (Edna) Martin, Mrs. Billie (Bessie) Munch, all of Pratt, Mrs. George (Nellie) Martin of Byers, and Helen of the home. Fourteen grandchildren and one great grandchild also survive. He was a devoted husband, a loving father and grandfather and a sincere friend and neighbor. He will be greatly missed by his family and by the community in which he lived.
Funeral services were conducted by the Reverend E.M. Fly of the Pratt Methodist church assisted by the Reverend Robert Yeagy of Glendale. He was laid to rest in the Greenlawn Cemetery on January 13.
New Year's Eve Power Outage
Power Outage. 2-degree wind chill.
As I sat alone, drinking cheap champagne in the quazi-darkness surrounded by scented votive and tealight candles whilst ushering in the 2008, I was surprisingly at peace.
Calmness and meditative techniques were my solace. All my mental powers were harnessed. All my sanity heightened. I could sense what was going on next door. I heard the revelry 25 miles away. I saw through the eyes of City Fox. I was everywhere and nowhere.