Sunday, August 2, 2015

National Watermelon and Grab Some Nuts Day


August 3, 2015
Okay, this is too good to let pass since someone in our little berg likes to brag about being the Watermelon Seed Spitting Champion of these here parts.  Of course, Miller is a fur piece from Luling, Texas where the Guinness World Record Watermelon Seed Spitter lives.  Yes, folks, there is such a person.   The record is 68 feet 9 and 1/8 inches set by Lee Wheelis in 1989.  Be that as it may, today, August 3rd is
National Watermelon Day. 
Now that’s a day we can sink our teeth into.  The watermelon (actually a berry rather than a melon) is synonymous with summer and picnics, and apparently, today is the day to enjoy a great big juicy melon…excuse me…berry.  If you need some recipes to help you with different ways to enjoy your watermelon this link will help—watermelon.org.  This website has a really cool stegosaurus that looks like it would be fun to make if you have kiddos and several ways for grownups to enjoy this fruit if you are looking for more than the standard slice and dice methods.  There is another national day celebrated today
National Grab Some Nuts Day. 
 Yikes!! Okay, it’s not THAT kind of nuts, what sort of person do you think writes this blog.  Mixed nuts, people, mixed nuts.  Grab a handful of mixed nuts and crunch away.  The pecan, the almond, the pistachio, all have their own day, but August 3rd is a celebration of the goodness of all nuts.  So grab a handful.  Come on, you know you want to.  The organizers of the NationalCalendar want you to post your pictures and comments to social media using #NationalGrabSomeNutsDay.  Have fun. 
In case you want to have your own watermelon spitting contest, here are the rules for the Miller's annual contest:
First, you may want to practice your technique.  If so, read How to Spit a Watermelon Seed from Texas Monthly

Rules for Seed Spitting
Presiding Judge 2015: John Eaton on account of the fact that Jessie Adair is still in Belize

Event is open to all ages. Division are as follows:
         | 0 - 6yrs | 7 - 11yrs | 12 - 16yrs | Women 16+ | Men 16+| Seniors (over 60) |



The Spitway will be 15 X 60 and laid out on a concrete surface.
  1. Rules 1-9 same as Pardeeville's rules
  2. The seed may roll, bounce, scoot, spin, skip, or flip as far as possible.  The distance it travels will be measured. (Where it ends up counts, not where it lands.)
  3. If the wind is blowing, the competition will be postponed until the wind dies down.
Happy Spitting, ya'll.


Monday, July 27, 2015

A Moment in Political History

 

 

July 27, 2015
You will not find politics on this page very often.  Heaven knows that there is enough chatter about Republicans and Democrats to fill annals of cyberspace many times over without adding another voice to the babble.  Setting party politics aside, there are a few moments in political history that bear a mention. 
 
Today is the anniversary of the ratification of the 12th Amendment.  So it is appropriate to think for a moment about how our history would have changed without the 12th Amendment.  Don’t know what the 12th Amendment is?  Shame on you.  Prior to the ratification of the 12th amendment on July 27, 1804, each member of the Electoral College cast two votes for president. (Google the EC if you don’t know what it is.) The candidate with the highest number of votes was president; the one with the second highest votes was vice president.  Understandably, this created a few issues between the POTUS and the VEEP.  The 12th Amendment changed all that.  Now each elector must cast one vote for president and one vote for vice-president.  That concludes the history lesson for today.  Now back to the question posed.  Imagine if you will, how different the landscape of history would be if--
Nixon had been the VP while Kennedy was the president.



 
 
 
 
 
Or Kerry had been VP while Bush was president. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Or Obama and McCain.
 

Is your head pounding at the thought of the upheaval our nation would have endured?  All of this speculation begs another question: Do you think today’s candidates would refrain from slinging mud if they knew they would have to work closely with their rival?  Might, but in today’s society where blame is the name of the game, it is more likely the American public would just be treated to four years of continuous squabbling.  Alas, this speculation will be filed with all of the other what ifs--in a file marked Speculative Fiction.  As the presidential race heats up over the next year, it will be fun to imagine how Hillary and the Donald would function as a team.  Yikes!  In this case, like so many others in our recent history, we can be thankful for the foresight of our forefathers. 
 
 
May God bless America!


Monday, July 20, 2015

Mistakes for Sale


July 20, 2015

 Today, we’re talking about mistakes.  Everyone makes them at one time or another.  Mrs. Hooley, who is an institution in Miller, always said, “Mistakes teach you valuable lessons.”  Turns out she knew what she was talking about, who knew, right?  After making a rather costly mistake, this intrepid blogger (TIB) googled mistakes in an attempt to feel less like an idiot.  It is mind-boggling to see how many industrious men and women refused to be stymied by something as inconsequential as a mistake. So rather than expound on what an idiot TIB is, let’s just focus on the more interesting mistakes that turned out to be major money makers.

Some of the strangest are corn flakes (the Kellogg brothers intended to make a healthy food that would decrease sexual urges!!!), Coca Cola (Pemberton attempted to create a remedy for headache—does anyone else find it ironic that once you are addicted to Coca Cola if you don’t drink it you get a headache?), Post-It Notes (Silver hoped to create a stronger adhesive but created a weaker adhesive that he found useful for sticking notes on pages of books), saccharine (discovered because Falhberg a chemist working on coal tar derivatives did not wash his hands before eating—can you say EEEWWWW!). 

The seemingly endless list includes pace makers and Viagra (yes, the little blue pill—it was supposed to be a medicine that would oxygenate the heart—seems like their experiment went a little south). 

Also making the list are White-out, Scotchgard, chocolate chip cookies, microwave ovens, potato chips, and vulcanized rubber (a mistake Goodyear has never tired of). 

Oh, no, we’re not done yet.  A few more items on the list are Vaseline, Velcro, penicillin, super glue, silly putty, Play-doh (which began its life as a wall paper cleaner that teachers used for art project in their classes), ink jet printers, x-rays, Frisbees, and the ever popular Slinky.  

 It makes you wonder if anything was invented on purpose.  All of these unintentional success certainly give new meaning to Edison’s words, “You learn more from mistakes and failures than you do from success.”  Maybe he should have said earn instead of learn?  Just a thought. 


 

Monday, July 13, 2015

Got the Monday Blues?


July 13, 2015

 
Got the Monday blues?  Well, then you are right there with a million or so others who hate Mondays for no other reason than Monday is the day that follows Sunday.  Experts say that people who suffer from the blues on Monday, or any day that follows your day off, should think about their career path.  They suggest that the root of the blues is your job.  If you loved your job, then you would wake up every Monday energized and ready to go to work.  Since Mondays leave you wishing you could pull the covers over your head and stay in bed, then…you’ve got it--you must not love your job.  That is probably true in many cases, but not everyone who suffers from the Monday blues hates their job.  In this bloggers humble opinion, this feeling comes from the idea perpetuated by the media.  Without even really trying I can name a dozen songs that sell the idea that we are living for the weekend.  Too many Americans spend the hours between Monday morning and Friday afternoon wishing their lives away, focused on the fun they are going to have once Friday rolls around—even if that fun is something as tame as not setting the alarm and sleeping in on Saturday.  If you suffer from the Monday blues, the fix is simple.  You need to reprogram your brain.  No, you don’t need to spend your hard earned money on a reprogrammer of brains, assuming you could find such a person in the yellow pages.  To reprogram your brain you need to find something that you love to do and schedule it for Mondays.  Then write a note to yourself and post it where you will see it often (I love Mondays.  On Mondays I get to___________.).  When you set your alarm on Sunday night, say, “Oh good.  Tomorrow is Monday and I get to ___________.  
 
 Soon you will find that you are looking forward to Mondays with the same intensity that you used to save for Fridays.  Monday might even become your favorite day.  After you fix Monday, then you can work on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. If you still wish you didn’t have to go to work after you’ve reprogrammed your thinking, then you might consider finding a job that excites you.  Just a thought.  Speaking of thoughts, here is one that helps this blogger when the blues knock at the door. 

   It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit. ~ Harry S. Truman
The Buck Stops Here--Harry S. Truman the 33rd President of the United States.



For this blogger, feeling like something worthwhile has been accomplished goes a long way towards warding off the blues any day of the week.  Let me know how you beat the blues.



Image of Toddler courtesy of Serge Bertasius Photography at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Image of  Truman from whitehouse.gov

Saturday, July 4, 2015

Fire in the Skies


July 4, 2015

Smoke on the water, fire in the skies.  This line from the chorus of a song made famous by the 1980s heavy metal band Deep Purple seems appropriate in light of the river of smoke that is whipping into the United States from Canada.  It seems that the forests in the Northwestern regions of Canada are burning.  So instead of sending the usual blast of cold air into the jet stream that fuel our cold fronts, Canada is sending us smoke.   This stream of smoke is in the higher altitudes which makes the sky hazy instead of bright blue as is normal in the summer.  Will this smoke reach East Texas?  Doubtful.  Why mention this at all if we aren’t affected?  You know the saying, it’s an ill wind that blows no good?  Well, photographers, both amateur and professional, are capturing some amazing pictures of the blood red midday sun and the pumpkin orange midnight moon.   If you remember your science lessons from way back, then the change in color from white to red and orange won’t be a mystery to you. 

But if you are like most of us, and your memory of the light spectrum and how it affects nature is so hazy that it can’t cloud up your awe, these rare pictures will blow you away like…smoke on the water.  Remember that ill wind that blows no good?  Well, it is still an ill wind.  NASA warns that it is not wise to linger outside to view the vibrant sunsets that result from the smoke stream.  Those small particles of smoke that filter out the blues, purples, and greens and make the pinks, reds, and oranges more vivid contain carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and soot. All of these air pollutants are hazardous to your health.  Also, wildfires can’t be left to burn out on their own.  They are greedy and will consume whatever is in their path.  Luckily there are no people in the path of the Canadian wildfires, yet, but fighting fires requires firefighters.  These brave men and women are at risk every day the fire continues.  Let’s pray that the fires are contained swiftly and that all the firefighters return home to their loved ones safely. Oh yeah, before I forget there is another fire in the sky worth mentioning…

Happy 239th 4th of July
 
 

Picture of moon  by Bob King click to read more
Image of USA flag with fireworks courtesy of nirots at freedigitalphotos.net
Image of Sun Rays...courtesy of stuart miles at freedigitalphotos.net

Sunday, June 21, 2015

Honor Your Father



June 21, 2015

Father’s Day

On this the day that we set aside to honor our fathers, every son and daughter needs to reach out to the man he/she calls Father and say “I Love You.  Thank you for being my dad.”  Because believe it or not, being a father, you know—the guy that woke you up in the morning, played ball with you, saw to it that you did your homework every night, grounded you when you broke the rules, stood up with you or walked by your side at your wedding, cried with you when you were in pain, went to work to earn money to support your family, and did a zillion other things that got you to where you are today—being that guy is a choice.  Just so you know, not every child gets that guy for a father.  That's why it is important to be thankful that you did. 
image courtesy of nongpimmy at freedigitalphotos.net

I know, it isn't always easy to say what's in your heart, so I'll go first.  

Dad, you are an amazing man, and I am proud to be your child.   Everything I know about respect, honor and honesty I learned by watching you.

Every morning you got up and went to work when you would have preferred to sleep in, you taught me the importance of commitment. All the years you worked two jobs to make sure we had enough to eat, you taught me the value of hard work.  Every Sunday you set the alarm and made sure we attended church services, you taught me the importance of worship.  Every time you shared your stories about your Army days, you taught me to respect the service of others. Each time you put my needs before your own, you taught me what it was to be selfless.  Those times you paid the bills rather than waste your money on things that weren’t necessary, you taught me the importance of keeping your word.  Every time you treated my mother with love and respect, you taught me how to show my spouse love and respect. 

It might not have been in your nature to say “I love you,” as often as I would have liked to hear it, but you showed me your love in a hundred different ways that I carry in my heart now and always.  I love you, and I hope that I have shown you my love in a hundred different ways that you carry in your heart now and always, so that no matter how far apart we are, our hearts will be connected.  I know you could have walked away, made the choice to not be the responsible, caring, God-fearing father you are, so thank you for choosing to stick it out and be 

my dad.

You are and always will be a man above men to me. 
Dad, circa 1947


Oddly enough, not only is this Fathers' Day, it is also National Peaches and Cream Day.  For my dad, that would be peach cobbler and homemade ice cream.  It seems that there is something to celebrate every day, if you are looking for a reason to celebrate this link will take you to the calendar.  Sorry, but you have already missed National Ice Cream Float Day and National Martini Day; however, I am sure you will want to mark your calendar for 


National Pink Day, June 23.


Sharing the honors with Father's Day and National Peaches and Cream Day, June 21st is the summer solstice.  For most of East Texas the exact time of the solstice was 11:59 am.  So happy midsummer to all!!! What exactly does the summer solstice mean?  If you are in Texas it means, get ready 'cuz it's fixing to get really hot, ya'll.




Monday, June 15, 2015

Summer is Movie Season

 June 15, 2015

Summer is upon us,
The Texas summer
 is so hot even the flowers need shades
 although for the next few days
 an umbrella might be more helpful.
and for movie aficionados, summer is movie season, and there is a whole slew of new movies coming out over the next few months.


  A few of the coming attractions are sequels to popular movies—Pirates of the Caribbean 5, the Avengers: The Age of Ultron, and Jurassic World.  But the movie that has this blogger foaming at the mouth is the Superman/Batman movie (The official title is Batman vs. Superman: The Dawn of Justice.).  It may not make it to the screen during the summer of 2015, the last report has it coming out in the spring of 2016, and that’s a shame.

Perhaps you think that this blog should concentrate on the movies that will be in the theater this summer after all the title is Sumer Is Movie Season.  But the sequels all promise to be more of the same.  That doesn't mean they aren't worth seeing, just not worthing blogging about, in this blogger's humble opinion.

But the prequel to the League of Justice (you know that what it is, right?) is a different story.  Batman v Superman might not win critical acclaim, but it will bring in the fans.  Even those fans who will spend hours and hours bashing it.  Yawn. Before you can bash it, you have to watch it. Chaching.  

Regardless of when the movie hits the silver screen, it will be a great date night flick.


 Why, you ask? 

 Simply put it’s both a chick flick and a guy movie.  The story has enough romance to make the women swoon.  Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill running around in molded body suits and Jason Momoa in a wetsuit definitely constitute eye candy for the chicks.  Add to that the whole comic book hero come to life and there is sure to be plenty of action adventure for the guys to role play.  Plus, Gal Gadot will don the Wonder Woman suit and kick some serious tail, and what guy is going to complain about that --or Amy Adams as Lois Lane?  Neither of these women fit the previous mold for their respective female comic book counterparts, but molds are meant to be broken, right?  

Despite naysayers, the Dawn of Justice should set all kinds of new box office records.  This blogger will certainly be one of the masses who shows up to see if Superman is really going to be the bad guy.  Say it ain’t so, Sam!  Never you mind, this blogger will sit through anything as long as there is plenty of popcorn.  So look around at the movies, the person with the biggest bucket of popcorn just might be the writer of this blog. LOL.

Are you going to kiss me, or not?
Ding. Dong. Ding. Dong.    The wedding bells were ringing yesterday afternoon, but Millerites couldn’t hear them over the rumbling thunder.  Even so, the church was SRO (standing room only) as BND Number Uno said I do to GND #3.  The king and queen of country music (Meryl andTwanda) flew in and performed a selection of songs that could be called THE KISS ME collection.  The performance included a song from the groom to the bride.  Ahhhhh! The happy couple who are on their way to San Antonio for a hot, steamy honeymoon were predictably sappy.  It’s June.  Who goes to San Antonio in June? (Rhetorical question, no need to answer.) No rumor there, just fact.  Not a dry eye in the house when JE gave his daughter way.  Google it if you didn’t get to attend, there’s bound to be a video of it going viral as you read this.  But this blog isn’t about facts, it thrives on rumors and who do you think was seen cozying up together at the after wedding party at the Double D?  If you guessed GND #5 and BND El Segundo, give yourself a high five.  This bears watching.  And seriously, look for those Youtube videos, folks.  If you videoed it, then upload the video so the rest of us can LIKE it.


Meanwhile, summer and boats go together.  Boats and drinking do not.  Be aware when you are on the lakes, that hundreds of people drown each year due to carelessness.  Don’t become a statistic.  Follow the rule of boating—always wear a life jacket no matter how good a swimmer you are—and don’t drink while you are operating a boat.  It’s all common sense.  Nuff said.
Don't become a statistic.  Wear your life vest.

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@the Double D Series Book 3: Kiss Me Cross-eyed
Erlyne and Finnley's story

Image #1 is courtesy of scottchan at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Images # 2 and 3 are courtesy of digitalart at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Image #4 is courtesy of kateen2528 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Tuesday, June 9, 2015

The Whimsical Nature of Fame and Fortune

June 8, 2015


Last week this blogger wrote about Rameses II, one of the most well-known pharaohs in history even though his fame is mostly hype.  And we know the whole world read that blog, right?  Coincidently, on Saturday, another pharaoh came into the spotlight--American Pharaoh.  With his win at the Belmont Stakes he became the 12th horse in history to win the Triple Crown. An awesome feat, make no mistake, but will he, like Thutmose III, fade into obscurity?  Will winning the Triple Crown make him as popular as Seabiscuit who wasn’t a Triple Crown winner?  Probably not.  That’s the whimsical nature of fame and fortune.  If Hollywood loves you, you’re in. 
Why can't I be as famous as Seabiscuit?  Life is so unfair.

Moving on, you may not be aware of it, but today is National Best Friend Day.  Yep, that’s right—Best Friend Day.  Not that you should need a special day to honor the person who shares everything with you, but there it is.  So, what are you waiting for?  Take your best friend to lunch.  Of course, if you are taking your best friend to lunch, and your best friend is taking you to lunch, isn’t that the same as Dutch treat?  Just a thought.
I'll let you win this time if you'll let me win next time.

  Also, if that wasn’t enough, it is National Name Your Poison Day.  Okay…it’s not what you thinking.  The people that came up with the idea were definitely not talking about rat poison or anything like that.  Name your poison is a phrase that begin in a bar…so you can probably figure out the poison being referred to back then.  Over the years it has come to mean making a choice between two equally bad choices (Think Robert Frost--"Two path converged in a woods one day...").  From this oddly random bit of trivia, Name Your Poison Day was born.  Now you have a day to celebrate making those tough decisions, if you don’t die as a result of your choice that is.  Downer, dude.

Finally, it is National Upsy Daisey Day.  That’s right, Upsy Daisy, just like your mother used to say when she pulled your shirt over your head.  It made you giggle instead of cry, and making you smile is the whole point of Upsy Daisy Day.  Frankly speaking, after Name Your Poison Day, we are all in need of a smile, so here is one we can share.  
I'm for sale if you need a smile!!

For those of you that are overachievers, you can honor all three national days at one go round IF you name your poison with an Upsy Daisy smile as you have lunch with your best friend.  Efficiency at it’s best.

the image of the horse courtesy of dan at freedigitalphotos.net
the image skate movement courtsey of rakratchada torsap  at freedigitalphotos.net

Sunday, May 31, 2015

The Most Boring Day in History

May 31, 2015

The storms are gone from East Texas for the time being.  Tree Service companies are busy as beavers cutting up trees.  School is out for the summer.  SO…on to other things. 
In East Texas it's the bees and the blooms.
Because it was a very slow day here in Miller, this blogger had to turn to the internet for inspiration.  If you google May 31st, which you will most likely do now that it has been suggested, you’ll find a whole list of things that happened on this day in historya whole list of things that nobody cares about.  So it might be appropriate to dub this day, May 31, with the title, THE WORLD’S MOST BORING DAY.  Really!!  
However, there are two things that keep this blogger from issuing that proclamation. 
These boots were made for riding.

First, Clint Eastwood was born on May 31, 1930 AD.  Imagine, The Man With No Name is 85 years old.  He has to ask himself one thing every morning, “Do you feel lucky, punk?”  If he is able to get out of bed, the answer is yes.  Ha. Ha.  Why aren’t you laughing?  Okay.  Okay.  All kidding aside, the world will never know another actor quite like Clint Eastwood.  No, this isn’t a eulogy.  As far as this blogger knows, Eastwood is alive and well and celebrating his birthday with his family. It is fair to say even if you aren't an Eastwood fan that he’s one of a kind and an American Icon. 
Forget Kilroy, Rameses II was here.


Second, in 1279 BC. Rameses II became the pharaoh of Egypt.  According to some historians, the only real mark that Rameses II made during his sixty-seven year reign is akin to that of a graffiti artist.  It seems he “tagged” everything from buildings to statues, no stone was left unmarked. It must have worked because if you ask anyone today to name an Egyptian pharaoh, Rameses II will likely be the name they give you.  What makes him so memorable?  Most people think he is the pharaoh that went head to head with Moses before the Exodus.  Bible scholars have debunked this myth, but Hollywood has more pull with the public, so the misconception remains.  Few people know that the name of the pharaoh during the time of Moses was more thatn likely Thutmose III.  Possibly Thutmose should have written his name on a few more stones. Just a thought.

Cornflower with Bee and Cowboy Boot with Spur courtesy of Franky 242 at freedigitalphotos.net   
Egyptian Character Design courtesy of boylemonademoon at freedigitalphotos.net

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

School could be out for the summer.

May 27, 2015


Tomorrow will be day three of no school.  Parents and teachers in Miller are beginning to despair.  The storm that blew through East Texas Monday night knocked down trees and power lines and interrupted electrical services to most of the northern half of Cherokee county.  All three of the schools in Miller are without electricity.  Every day at four o’clock the school officials meet and make a decision as to whether or not to have school the next day.  With seven and a half days of school after Memorial Day, (three of which have now been cancelled) parents are in a quandary.  Do I hang in here day to day, or do I ship the kids off to grandma’s house for the next two weeks?  


Crews are hard at work trying to get the trees off the roads and electricity restored, but evening thunderstorms hamper their efforts.  Teachers, the very people who are normally ready for school to be over, are chomping at the bits to get back into the school so they can get those end of year chores out of the way.  The fear is that these days missed will have to be made up, dragging out the end of school into the second week of June.  Nobody wants that.  It could be worse, flooding is minimal, and there have been no casualties.  Compared with other parts of the state, the damage here in Miller is not so bad.  


You hear that a lot around town, usually accompanied with a head shake and a sigh.  Don’t think us ungrateful, but knowing that someone else has it worse, doesn’t really help when you have been without electricity for two days, or have a tree uprooted and smashed into your living room, or water standing three feet high in your house.  The storms will pass, the sun will shine, and the school issue will be settledeventually.  In the meantime, this intrepid blogger thinks that we should all get out and lend a hand to help get out community back on track.



Scenes from around Cherokee County.


blog entry is based on actual fact, but names have been changed to fit the fictional series @the Double D.

Sunday, May 24, 2015

A Day to Remember the Fallen

May 25, 2014


Politics.  No, it’s not a four letter word, but perhaps it should be.  More lives have been ruined by, families destroyed by, countries torn apart by the games politicians play.  Yesterday was the anniversary of the Fall of Saigon—the end of the Vietnam War, or maybe Churchill had it right when he said (after the WWII victory in North Africa), "the end of the beginning." There are many things about the Vietnam War that were controversial.  It was the war that changed American’s perception of war because television allowed reporters to bring the war into the living rooms of the viewing audience.  The old timers talk about gathering around the television each night to see the pictures of the war and listen in horror to the names of the men and women killed in action that day, praying that no one they knew made the list.  Reporter David Hume Kennerly was quoted as saying, “the whole arc of the war is really captured in photographs. And they go right to your soul.”  There is no doubt that he speaks the truth.  It is also true that for every picture taken, there were millions of images not captured.  No one picture no matter how skillfully taken could hope to tell the whole story.  But…that is fodder for another day.  


A Day to Remember the Fallen


Today this blogger will turn the spotlight on the Vietnam Memorial, as is fitting since tomorrow is Memorial Day.  Here are 6 things you might not know about this national monument.  
  • First, it was built without government funds.  The 8.3 million dollars raised came from private donations.  
  • Second, the design of the wall came from a 21-year-old Yale student rather than a professional architect. 
  • Third, although popular today, the wall created a storm of controversy when it was first constructed.  
  • Fourth, names are still being added to the wall.  
  • Fifth, the offerings (letters, flags, dog tags, photographs, and even a motorcycle) left at the wall are collected by the Rangers of the National Park and stored.  
  • Sixth, all the names on the wall have been read five times.  The last time, November 2012 it took from Wednesday afternoon until Saturday night to read all 58,282 names.  
Remember those who have given their lives for our freedom tomorrow.
Vietnam Memorial

photo shared courtesy of holohololand at freedigitalphotos.net

Friday, May 22, 2015

ALittleBitOfMiller: Book 1: Kiss Me Senseless

ALittleBitOfMiller: Book 1: Kiss Me Senseless: @ the Double D Series Book 1: Kiss Me Senseless CreateSpace eStore:  https://www.createspace.com/4999829 Amazon Author's site:  ...

Monday, May 18, 2015

ALittleBitOfMiller: Spotlighting Other Authors

ALittleBitOfMiller: Spotlighting Other Authors: May 21, 2015 In the SPOTLIGHT Indie Author Annie Douglas Lima About the Story: Bensin, a teenage slave and martial ...

Wednesday, May 13, 2015

ALittleBitOfMiller: Spotlighting Other Authors

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Sunday, May 10, 2015

Happy Mother's Day, With Love

May 10, 2015


Mother’s Day!!

This blogger will begin with a "hi dee ho" to all the mother’s out there, and a special shout out to the woman who gave birth to this blogger once upon a time.  Yeah, it sounds like I’m going to tell you a fairy-tale, someday maybe, but not today. 

January 14, 1930 to April 27, 2015
Tonight, she is resting with the angels and the man who has been waiting on her for 17 years.
Today this blog will be dedicated to the self-less women who work so tirelessly to make sure that their children go up strong, healthy, and happy.  There are all kinds of mothers--working mothers, stay-at-home mother, birth mothers, adopted mothers, foster mothers, step mothers, and grandmothers (listed in no particular order).  Regardless of where you fall in that list, you deserve this day of celebration. 

For all the nights you got up to care for a sick child when all you wanted to do was sleep, for all the hours you sat at practice (ball, dance, band, etc) patiently waiting for it to finish, for all the dinners you cooked, dishes you washed, floors you mopped and vacuumed, for all toilets you scrubbed, for all the teacher/parent conferences you attended, for all the PTO committees you worked on, for all the free time you gave up to go to games, concerts, and recitals, for all the costumes you created with little more than imagination and safety pins, and for all the things you wanted and sometimes needed that you gave up so your children could have more--YOU DESERVE TO BE HONORED.  

Not just anyone can be a mother, nor or all women called to be mothers.  But those of you who are, we, the children of the world, send you our undying love and appreciation. 

rose image courtesy of antpkr at freedigitalphotos.net


Monday, May 4, 2015

CC said YES!

Winning drawing from MCMS art contest: The Best of Miller, Texas
  Congratulations, Randy Rollins

May 4, 2015

Well, would you looky, looky here.  The Houston Chronicle’s food editor featured the Double D Roadhouse Houston in the Sunday edition. As the Chronicle is the largest newspaper in Texas, that’s a pretty big deal and well worth mentioning.  The people of Houston are really digging the down home cuisine of our own Chef M.  Not that’s so surprising really, good food is good food no matter what city you are in.  Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know that the roadhouse is technically in Katy, but it’s close enough to Houston for the Big H to claim it. The motel will be open for business on Memorial Day weekend.  Check out the Double D website for pictures.  It’s pretty amazing.  Guess it’s obvious that this intrepid blogger is a die hard fan of the Double D.  And no, Bruce Willis isn’t the one writing this blog.

Speaking of our own, if you haven’t heard, Mr. DD finally got around to proposing, not that this intrepid blogger is surprised that he did.  But what you might not know is that he proposed in the middle of a CVS parking lot.  Really?  Where is the romance in that?  I know his momma raised him better! Rumor has it that CC may have proposed to DD first.  Whatever.  The good news is that they are finally getting it right.

Meanwhilewhat happened to spring?  Is it just me, or does it seem like we skipped straight from not so cold winter to hotter than blazes summer?  It’s April for crying out loud.  Yeah, yeah, yeah.  April in Texas. So what’s your point?

Don’t forget to check out the snapdragons in front of the Double D Roadhouse and Motel.  They are spectacular this year, but aren't they always.


Oh BTWshe said YES, so wedding bells once again will be ringing in Miller. When is the wedding?  No wedding pool this time. According to the MOS,  July 17th is the day, a year to the day after the BB walked into the DD.  I guess the boy has a little romance in his soul after all.

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@ the Double D series  Book 2; Kiss Me Stupid
Chloe and Dean's story

Image of chef courtesy of Boians Cho Joo Young at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Image of bride silhouette courtesy of sattva at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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