Friday

Whew. I think I made it through the week. Tonight we will have pizza and hopefully I will set on my porch and watch my hummingbirds fight over the feeders.

Hope all you had a good week and we can just wonder about Kelly and The African Wards. A student who is in Washington State told me what beautiful weather they are having so I will assume that Jeff is enjoying good weather because everyone in the Northwest has the exact same weather, right :-).

Happy Weekend!

Ted Kennedy and the graves

In the Houston Chronicle's obituary/ front page story on Ted Kennedy's death, the reporter ask him (a few weeks ago) what he planned to do on Thanksgiving. Kennedy knew he was dying and said he wanted to go sit on his brothers' graves alone. I learned today he will be buried nearby.

That stunned me because I have done that. I have sat in the dark in Arlington Cemetery on both JFK's grave and Robert Kennedy's grave nearby.

A month after Robert Kennedy was assassinated, I went to visit Hunter Horgan at seminary. It was hot, we were wearing cut off's and t-shirts and watching some dull movie and drinking beer. I asked him what we could do for fun and he said, 'Let's go to Arlington and see Kennedy's grave."

So we did.

I never thought we would get in but it was wide open.

I never thought we would get t the grave site but we marched right up the hill and no one challenged us.

The beer buzz was wearing off and I asked Hunter if he thought we were being watched. He said , "Surely." So we wanted whomever was watching us to know we were not trying to sneak up or vandalize the grave.....

So being on Robert. E. Lee's former property, we started 'whistling Dixie' literally and as loud as we could.

We marched up the hill. No challenge. We sat down on the wall. The Eternal Flame was going and Robert Kennedy's grave -- which then seemed so close by JFK's was still a mound of fresh dirt... and a temporary marker. Later I learned it was basically a permanent one-- a simple cross..

Of course we were overwhelmed at that moment at where we were and that we were alone and that all of Washington, D.C. stretched before us all the way up to the Capitol Dome.

I commented to Hunter, and many times later, that I bet even the Kennedy family -- who all traveled together and with body guards and such, had never been here alone and in the still darkness... silent with the hiss of the gas flame on John Kennedy's grave-- one already settled in the dirt-- and the fresh smell of earth from Robert Kennedy's grave... and all alone to meditate or just sit.

Of course Hunter and I now were completely sober and in awe at where we were. I think we sat in silence for over two hours and did not talk..

When we slowly walked down the hill, we did not whistle Dixie or anything else.

Antique Cars

Schools starts for me Monday with threats of budget cuts, Swine Flu and overcrowded (or maybe under crowded) classes) so we start a typical new year. At least there are no hurricanes BUT we had a rumor there were earthquakes here last week.






But Saturday in Colorado in the early fall is glorious.. and one glorious thing is the sunsets along with things like the antique Car Classic.




Brother Phil

Have fun in Swaziland and I am swamped

Hi all,

You may have figured out by now that I am swamped this week. I got 46 new students on Monday and still have 150 others that seem to remain clueless about how to get registered. But it's all fun. I'll be back soon :-).

Music and travel.

Music and travel- Off to Swaziland tomorrow. Hopefully we will fly over any Atlantic Hurricanes and that they will stay away from the Gulf for a few weeks or more. We went to the Birdman for our Monday night music and heard a guy from Baton Rouge, originally from Lafayette, who played original songs for about an two hours. His name is Steve Judice and has had some play-time of Radio Free Texas in the past few weeks. We thought he was quite good-check him out if you can www.radiofreetexas.org

CD review

I am listening to the CD of Bill Frisell's New Album DisFarmer

It is the nicest new discovery I have made in music... well aside from the Big Damn Family album.

from Bill Frisell's album jacket..


Oh we had a 8 degree --- make that 28 degree--morning last week and the farmer's market is full of finished produce... beans and peas and such., I am making a nice veggie something.

The rifle woman

One of my most vivid memories was eating breakfast in Mother Berniece's kitchen when I was going to OSU. She was doing dishes at the sink looking out of the window. All of a sudden she ran toward the fireplace, grabbed the lever action 22 rifle from the mantle and ran out of the back door. As I followed her out through the gargage to the area near the clothsline, I heard a shot coming from where she stood. Then I saw two men in the pasture below with guns. She said, "Get off my land." They said, "We shot a bird and are just retrieving it." She shot again above their heads and said, "I said get off my land." They turned and left with out the bird. Daddy Harry, as usual, threw bird seed out again under the blackjack tree in the back that evening.