Happy Halloween!

The girls in the office got into the spirit of the holiday today . . .

Get it?

"Spirit" of the holiday?!?

Ha! I am so amusing . . . to myself!

Actually, I was pretty proud of Miss Becky for letting her true colors show . . . and her horns, too!

Politically Incorrect Halloween Costumes

I think everyone will agree that all the people going as Steve Irwin or his infamous stingray killer this year are being politically incorrect.

But, it got me to thinking, as I plan for tomorrow's shenanigans, of past years' poor taste.

2001 - Hanging Chad or Pregnant Chad. This was accomplished by wearing one of those "hello my name is" stickers with the name Chad written on it. Then you could tie a noose around your neck, or stick a pillow up the front of your shirt.

1999 - JFK Jr. & Carolyn Bessette Kennedy.

1998 - Monica Lewinsky. Top off the ensemble with a stained blue dress and a cigar. Going as a couple? Have the other partner go as either El Presidente or Linda Tripp.

1997 - Princess Di and Dodi Fayed.

1994 - Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson.

Can you think of any others that I may have missed?

2008 Demcratic National Convention Schedule

Perhaps a bit premature, but I thought it was worth posting anyway:

7:00 P.M. Opening flag burning.
7:15 P.M. Pledge of allegiance to U.N.
7:30 P.M. Ted Kennedy proposes a toast
7:30 till 8:00 P.M. Nonreligious prayer and worship led by Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton.
8:00 P.M. Ted Kennedy proposes a toast.
8:05 P.M. Ceremonial tree hugging.
8:15- 8:30 P.M. Gay Wedding-- Barney Frank and Rosie O'Donnell presiding.
8:30 P.M. Ted Kennedy proposes a toast.
8:35 P.M. Free Saddam Rally led by Cindy Sheehan and Susan Sarandon.
9:00 P.M. Keynote speech: "The proper etiquette for surrender," by French President Jacques Chirac
9:15 P.M. Ted Kennedy proposes a toast.
9:20 P.M. Collection to benefit Osama Bin Laden kidney transplant fund
9:30 P.M. Unveiling of plan to free freedom fighters from Guantanamo Bay, read by Sean Penn.
9:40 P.M. "Why I hate the Military," a short talk by William Jefferson Clinton
9:45 P.M. Ted Kennedy proposes a toast.
9:50 P.M. Dan Rather presented Truth in Broadcasting award by Michael Moore.
9:55 P.M., Ted Kennedy proposes a toast.
10:00 P.M. "How George Bush and Donald Rumsfeld brought down the World Trade Center Towers," a dissertation by Howard Dean.
10:30 P.M. Nomination of Hillary Rodham-Clinton for president by Mahmoud Ahmedinijad, seconded by Kim Jung Il.
11:00 P.M. Ted Kennedy proposes a toast.
11:05 P.M. Al Gore reinvents the internet.
11:15 P.M. "Our Troops are War criminals," a speech by John Kerry.
11:30 P.M. Coronation of Mrs. Rodham-Clinton.
12:00 A.M. Ted Kennedy proposes a toast.
12:05 A.M. Bill asks Ted to drive Hillary home.

Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party in the World

Yes, it's that time of year again.

Listen to the Dawgs howl . . . "yelp" would be a better word, I suppose.

21-14. Not bad.

Of course, it's "not bad" anytime the Gators win a game. But, the annual face-off with Georgia has so much history and tradition. It's gotten me thinking about past years.

Last year, for instance, I thought I was going to miss seeing the game on tv, because I was squiring out-of-town guests thru the streets of old St. Augustine. But, things worked out for this Gator fan and many others, and we won a surprise victory.

Then there was the year that I went up to Tallahassee to welcome my cousin Harrison into the world. His daddy just couldn't understand why I would rather stay home with the baby when he had a ticket to the FSU-UNC game at Joke Shambles stadium. Little did he know that I was getting a jump start on indoctrinating his impressionable youngest son by watching the Cocktail Party via satelite tv.

And, of course, there was the year my sister asked the boy across the way to drive her to Jacksonville for the game, because she didn't want to be trapped in a car with her Dawg roommate.

Yes, it's a history-laden event . . . made all the sweeter by this most recent victory.

Orange and Blue!

Dorothy Allison

Let me just preface this by saying that I don't usually care for the philosophical musings of militant lesbians.

Rosie O'Donnell can take a flying leap as far as I'm concerned.

But, I happened to catch a taped interview with the author Dorothy Allison this evening.

You know, she's the feminista who wrote, "Bastard out of Carolina."

Love that title, and that's about all I can say nice about the book.

Anyway, Mr. . . er . . . uh . . . I mean Ms. Allison did make an interesting statement about family tales. In her opinion, they spring from three primary motivations: to explain, to shame, or to comfort.

Interesting.

I'd like to add "to inspire" to that list. But, maybe that's just because I have more inspirational characters in my family's background than Allison does.

Or, maybe, she's just a Negative Nelly.

Ah, well, fodder for more musing, I suppose. We writers are much given to such . . .

Preponderance of the Evidence

It's been almost ten years since the ivory tower dwellers at the Board for Certification of Genealogists rejected from on high the long-held "preponderance of evidence" standard of proof.

For those of you who aren't "into" family trees, "preponderance of evidence" means that all available material INDICATES a kinship, even if it doesn't EXPLICITLY state so-and-so begat so-and-so.

This has been a pretty important standard, particularly for those of us with Southern roots. I mean, Sherman did a number on us back in the 1860s. And, we've had to infer a lot of relationships from documents other than birth certificates, marriage certificates, death certificates, etc.

Anyway, the rejection by the BCG continues to be a bone of contention in the Root-Diggin' community.

If you'd like to join an in-depth discusion, join us at GenTrek tonight at 10pm (EDT).

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~genealogylookup/chatroom.html

Necker Cube

I'm still trying to finish a book I bought at the beach earlier this month.

The reason is that it's one of those books that you have to go back and re-read in sections.

Or, at least, I do. Making sure I'm catching all the between-the-lines stuff.

Anyway, this book included an interesting comparison between the Necker Cube and perceptions of people.

The cube is a cool optical illusion. Some people will see it facing one way, others will see another way. Everybody's looking at the same thing, but defining it by their own perceptions. And, nobody's wrong!

Kinda like your perceptions of people. You can look at the same person, and draw completely different conclusions about them than someone standing right next to you.

And, your own perceptions can change if you come back the next day and look at the same cube or person.

The same components are there. It's all in your perception. You're just seeing them differently with the passage of time.

Hmmmm . . .

Beachcombing

Remembering where I was a week or so ago . . .

My friends from Texas sent this picture of me combing the beach at Barefoot Trace.

I post enough embarassing pictures of other people in this blog, so finally decided to take a shot at myself.

Get it? "Shot?!"

My photographer grandfather and English teacher grandmother would be so proud of that pun, even if you readers are retching right now.

Anyway, back to reality, at least for a while . . .

Happy Birthday, Uncle Bill!

I won't embarass him by telling you how old he is, exactly. Suffice it to say that Harry Truman was still president.

I will, however, take the opportunity to make him blush by pointing out that he is not an Orlando native, as he often claims.

Rather, the poor fellow came into this world at Craig Air Force Base, near the lovely town of Selma, Alabama.

I guess if I was born there, I'd probably lie about it, too!

Seriously, though, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, OLD MAN!

Go Bucs!

OK, was the Bucs/Eagles game not the most awesome NFL match-up of the season so far?!

I mean how often do you get to see a seasoned starting QB puke right on the field when the camera is on him. Thanks for that visual Donovan! Wasn't it great how neither team drew up any plays for the rest of the game that would've taken them anywhere near the 30-yard line?!

But, the greatest thing was that last minute field goal to put the Bucs over the top. 62 YARDS?! This guy usually can't make it from 30!

Annie Coleman Chapter - UDC

As I mentioned in yesterday's posting, I was invited to speak about my recent book at the regular meeting of the Annie Coleman Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy today.

I really had a good time, and made the acquaintance of some really neat people--including one of my dad's old high school classmates.

It was particularly interesting for me to learn what the UDC does beyond their role as a social organization. They really do a lot for charity. Most notable is their work to provide scholarships. The local chapter currently sponsors three students, two at that unmentionable institution up in Tallahassee and the other is literally studying rocket science up at Princeton. Pretty cool, huh?

Anyway, it was a great way to kill time on a Saturday since it was a bye week for the Gators. Hopefully, they're licking the wounds inflicted by Auburn last weekend, and Urban is re-tooling things in preparation for the upcoming Cocktail Party with Georgia.

Oh, yeah, and the BC victory over FSU was icing on the cake this evening. BTW, what was Bobby thinking, having his heathens play in black uniforms during a heatwave?! Just another example of why he needs to retire, I guess . . . doesn't this loss put them at the bottom of the ACC for the first time in school history?! Love it.

Reminder - UDC meeting tomorrow

In case you forgot to mark your calendars, I will be appearing at tomorrow's meeting of the Annie Coleman Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy to talk about my recent book.

They meet at the Sprint-Nextel building on Trafalgar Court in Maitland, 10:30AM.

Be there if you can. I mean, after all, it is a bye week for the Gators, so what else do you have to do on a Saturday?!

You tell 'em, Kevin!

Got home from work this evening to see some horrific scenes on the local news reports.

Apparently, some 17-year-old idiot snuck a pocketknife onto the campus of University High School in east Orange County, and ended the day by stabbing to death a 15-year-old rival for the affections of a female classmate.

Stupid. Tragic. Sad. Maddening.

Words fail to adequately describe this situation.

But, Sheriff Kevin Beary came close.

The local news media was in the process of crucifying him and other authorities for "allowing" this to happen, as if they were truly personally accountable for the assanine behavior of this punk.

Well, he came back at them before they knew what was happening.

The problem, he said, was primarily attributable not to law enforcement or school officials. Rather, the fault lay directly with the parents. Not enough of them pull their kids aside as Beary did with his own high schoolers following the recent melee in the Miami-FIU football game, or when they catch them playing violent video games, or after seeing violent scenes in a movie or tv.

They need to know that violence is not cool, it won't earn you any extra bonus points in the real world, and it's not entertaining in the least.

They need to know that violent acts will not only bring the Sheriff and the Principal down on them.

They need to know their parents won't tolerate such behavior.

You know, Kevin has a point.

And, he shut up those "journalists," too!

Another Charlie

Well, since I dedicated yesterday's post to criticizing a Democrat named Charlie, I thought I'd be "fair and balanced" and give a critique of a Republican by the same name.

I refer, of course, to our next governor: Charlie Crist.

I say that, because, I cannot foresee any scenario whereby Jim Davis can turn things around this late in the campaign.

But, I've been proven wrong before.

Anyway, back to Charlie.

Gut reaction: something of an empty suit. He even admits as much, that he doesn't focus on nuts and bolts of programs or issues, but will surround himself with intelligent people who do and will. Sorta Reaganesque in that regard, but not otherwise.

I guess the best thing I can say about this Charlie is that he at least LOOKS like he's the Governor of Florida with that tan . . .

Sorry, Charlie, I ain't buying what you're selling!

A lot of people were saying that to Charlie Stuart back in the 1980's when he was busy running his family business into bankruptcy.

Nowadays, a lot of people are saying it about his political rhetoric as he runs a laughable campaign to unseat U.S. Congressman Ric Keller.

Fortunately (or, unfortunately, depending on your political preferences), Sorry Charlie has torn the worst page out of the Democratic playbook this year. You've heard the drivel about how the sky is falling, everything is George W. Bush's fault, etc., etc., but don't offer any specifics about how Democrats would do things differently because that would scare the hell out of the average voter. What tripe!

So, instead of specifics, Sorry Charlie is trying to rely on his family name. And, it's a pretty good one in these parts. At least it used to be. In fact, I can make a case that yours truly would not be here today if it weren't for their old office supply business. That's where my mom got her first job, working the switchboard alongside a fellow named George Rollins. Within a short span of time, they went on a blind double date to the old Frisch's Big Boy on Colonial. And, that's how Mom met Dad.

But, I digress.

The main reason you should vote against Sorry Charlie is his one detailed policy statement. In an effort to encourage development of alternative energy sources, he wants to slap a $1 per barrel tax on oil plus a 1-cent per gallon tax on gasoline.

Now, that sort of thing comes straight out of an even older Democratic playbook.

And, it's more of an indicator of what kind of Congressman old Sorry Charlie would be than his surname could ever imply.

Vote for Ric Keller in November if you live in the 8th district. Even with all his warts and blemishes, he's the better choice.

Ok, off the soapbox.

What else happened back in 1948?

Today is my dad's birthday, not that he's aware of such things nowadays.

But, it got me wondering, what else was going on back in 1948.

For instance, I did not know he shared a birthday with some baseball coach named Leo Mazzone. Not exactly the biggest celebrity in the world, I know. George Wendt (Norm from Cheers) was only born a day later.

Some other well-known 48'ers: Kenny Loggins, Ronny VanZant, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Alice Cooper, Bernadette Peters, Mercedes Ruehl, James Taylor, Bobby Orr, Wolf Blitzer, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Steven Tyler, Al Gore, Rhea Perlman, Steve Winwood, Stevie Nicks, Phylicia Rashad, Cat Stevens, Gary Trudeau, Peggy Fleming, Sally Struthers, Janet Reno, John Ritter, Bryant Gumbel, Prince Charles, Howard Dean, John Bolton, Ozzy Osborne, and Samuel L. Jackson.

Pretty eclectic group, huh?

Other events of the year: Hells Angels founded in California; Marshall Plan began rebuilding Europe; Israel declared independence; a peace-time draft was instituted to combat the Cold War; armed forces desegregated; Cleveland Indians beat the Boston Braves in the World Series; and President Harry S. Truman beat some guy named Dewey despite premature newspaper reports to the contrary.

Kinda puts things into perspective.

Beach oddities

This trip to the beach has been an odd one for several reasons, so thought I'd enumerate them here:

1. Never saw jelly fish on this stretch of sand before.

2. Never saw a fleet of shrimp boats anchored offshore all night long.

3. Discovered the "stray" cat we nicknamed Steadman actually has a twin. (We renamed them Tiki and Rande for the Barber twins of the NFL.)

4. A cold front blew thru Friday night, so temps have been unusually pleasant --- like having AC outdoors!

5. I gave up the master bedroom to sleep in a twin bed for the first time since I was a small child. Don't like it. At all.

6. Got a sunburn on the top of my feet!!

7. Forgot my sunglasses, so I've been doing a lot of squinting

St. Augustine Lighthouse

Well, we were all keen on checking out the famous St. Augustine lighthouse today.

What a disappointment that was.

They wanted to charge $7 a head just to get past the gift shop.

So, cheapskates that we are, we wound up just peering thru the tree limbs from the parking lot.

I decided we got a much better view from the Matanzas River Bridge, and can put the $7 to much better use.

Coulda spent it on dinner, but we decided to eat in tonight: chicken breast, pasta with sun-dried tomato alfredo sauce, Brussels sprouts, baby carrots.

Delicious.

And, who cares about the lighthouse after all that?!

Oh, yeah, almost forgot the Key Lime pie flavored ice cream.

Vacations are awesome!

Friday the 13th

Supposed to be a scary day, isn't it?

Not for me.

13 has always been my lucky number.

Anyway, after a slow start to the day at the beach, we went into town to check out the massive factory outlet mall.

Now, THAT is scary!

Wound up spending way more money than I intended.

But, man o man, did I SAVE some money in the process!

Yeah, right . . .

Oh, well, back to the surf and sun.

Going Coastal

Slept in a little this morning after all the activity yesterday.

Didn't get out of WDW resort area til after 9am, but at least we missed the rush hour traffic.

Stopped by the office to put out a few fires before continuing on our way to Barefoot Trace.

I just love it up here. Surf, sand, and sun. Who could ask for anything more . . . except maybe for a few more shrimps on the barbee and another pitcher of Margaritas!

Cheers!

Oh, yeah, and Happy Birthday to Uncle Dan! And, thanks for everything! You're the man!

EPCOT Food and Wine Festival

Spent the day with some friends from Texas at the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival.

We had so much fun doing this last year, they wanted to do it again, God Bless 'em!

Actually started the day at the Magic Kingdom, because we wanted to check out the re-vamped Pirates of the Caribbean ride. I also got to see Disney's Philharmagic for the first time, which was cooler than expected.

The rest of the day was spent at the main event. I can't tell you how many times we circled the World Showcase, sampling food and adult beverages along the way. "A great time was had by all."

The icing on the cake, though, was a big steak dinner at Le Cellier. I had the 14 ounce New York Strip, and feel like I'm just going to explode!

Columbus Day Observed or Not?

I don't know about you, but I totally overlooked the fact it was Columbus Day until I got into the office and was told not to expect any mail or to take care of any bank transactions.

This begs the question, who really OBSERVES Columbus Day anyway.

I mean, if you really want to get technical, Columbus Day is not until 10/12. But, the feds OBSERVE it today, so they can give all the government employees another "much-deserved" day off.

Please.

Do you think any of the people who actually get the day off for this "holiday" spend any time whatsoever observing it?

I doubt it.

National Archives bends on hours

In a posting last month, I ranted about proposed hour changes at the National Archives that would have made it more difficult for the average citizen to access their research facilities.

I am pleased to report that my rants (and those of many others) have been heard, and the bureaucrats who were trying to hold our heritage hostage have agreed to offer extended hours on the following Thursdays and Fridays, (9:00 a.m. - 8:45 p.m); and Saturdays, (8:45 a.m. - 4:45 p.m.):

2006
October 19, 20, 21
November 16, 17, 18
December 14, 15, 16

2007
January 18, 19, 20
February 15, 16, 17
March 15, 16, 17
April 19, 20, 21
May 17, 18, 19
June 21, 22, 23
July 19, 20, 21
August 16, 17, 18
September 20, 21, 22

The morning after

After my post from yesterday, I thought it would be good to include the local press coverage:

Storm's deluge collapses roof in Apopka; 75 are displaced
Ken Ma, Sentinel Staff Writer
October 8, 2006

A freak storm Saturday night left up to 75 people homeless in Apopka when heavy rain collapsed the roof of an apartment building.

The deluge between 8 and 8:30 p.m. collapsed the roof of a building at the Forest Avenue Apartments, Apopka police spokesman Sgt. Jerome Miller said.

"I'm surprised no one got injured," he said.

About 13 to 15 apartments in the building -- one of two at the complex -- were damaged.

Miller said a tornado may have touched down at the complex, but weather forecasters in Melbourne said they were uncertain any had hit.

The Red Cross found shelter for those displaced from Forest Avenue.

The storm brought heavy rains and hail to Orange and Lake counties. The sudden change occurred when a cold front and an East Coast sea breeze collided and tapped cold, dry air, said forecaster Matt Bragaw, of the National Weather Service in Melbourne.

"Once they hit that dry air, they went to town," Bragaw said.

Apopka was soaked with 1 to 2 inches of rain, he said.

The storm, which also packed lightning that was blamed for at least one house fire in Orange County, rolled through Lake and Orange between 6 and 9 p.m.

In Apopka, it knocked a tree into a home and caused a power outage near City Hall, Miller said.

Elation turns to Fear

Wow, what a day for college football, huh?

First, #2 Auburn falls to unranked Arkansas.

Then, the #5 Gators beat #9 LSU in one of the greatest homecoming performances I've seen in years.

Even the commentators were speculating that Florida will be moving up to #2 when the polls come out on Monday.

Needless to say, I was elated by talk like that.

Unfortunately, that elation quickly turned to fear this evening.

About 8pm, a freak storm seemed to come out of nowhere. I lost power, as did all my neighbors. And, we were bombarded by rain, hail, and lightning.

Fortunately, my laptop pc has battery back-up. And, my Nextel was still getting a signal. So, I wasn't completely cut-off from the outside world.

But, the news I got from the outside world was none to encouraging, especially when I found out that there was apparently a tornado on the ground less than a mile from my house!!

Which way was it headed? How fast was it coming? With all the rain and the darkness of night, I couldn't see anything.

So, I did what the experts tell you to do in such situations. I crawled into a downtairs closet and hid-out until I got the "all-clear" signal.

Heck of a way to end such a glorious football day . . .

The Troupe Report

Just got an email from my high school classmate Lisa (Johnson) Troupe.

She and her "troop" are getting ready for their first winter in their new home up in Indiana.

It's kinda hard to believe, but the baby (Aaron) is already one year old!

Barbara Robinette Moss

Saw a great interview of a fellow Southern writer by the name of Barbara Robinette Moss.

She has actually completed her second book, and is working on adapting the first into a play or a screenplay; whereas I only have one book in print at present . . . but, I'm working on the sequel, I swear!

Paraphrasing Moss herself, the best thing to ask any author is, "What are you doing to keep yourself for writing?" It seems we look for the little distractions, the socks in the dryer, to serve as convenient excuses for not putting pen to paper . . . or fingers to keyboard as the case may be.

But, I digress.

Moss's family is shaking in their boots about the possibility of being portrayed on stage or screen, as if being immortalized in mere words was not enough.

You see, both of Moss's books are autobiographical. The first is Change Me into Zeus's Daughter, and tells all about surviving extreme poverty and malnutrition in rural Alabama. The second is Fierce: A Memoir, which tells how she went from being a single mother on welfare to realizing her dreams of being a writer and artist.

Check out her website for more info: www.barbaramoss.com

Her writing is both gritty and witty. But, I think what I like most about it is that it was written with a Southern accent, if you can imagine that.

James Cicero Franklin

That's the name of a friend's Civil War ancestor that I'm currently researching.

It's funny, but since the publication of my recent book I have found a lot of people around these parts have a renewed interest in their families' involvement in the war between the states.

No, I'm not taking credit for that. Just pointing out things from my point of view.

Anyway, I'm having a difficult time tracking down info on Lieutenant Franklin. Probably because he didn't survive the war.

But, I did discover Ty also had an ancestor that served as an officer in an Ohio regiment. That's right, a Yankee!

I don't know how he's going to feel about that . . .

PS - Did you notice on Jericho tonight that they featured the Chevy Equinox?!

The Infernal Revenue Service

No, I didn't mis-spell that word. I meant Infernal.

Now, that last word "service" is clearly an abuse of the definition.

I had the tremendous displeasure of dealing with a Mrs. Jones at the IRS "service" center up in Memphis by phone this afternoon.

Don't you just love how they never give you a first name, and all their surnames are so practically anonymous?! I guess that helps them maintain the aura of a faceless, heartless, brainless bureaucracy.

Anyway, the problems with Mrs. Jones et al stem from my father's Alzheimer's Disease, which I'm sure is why he failed to file a return for 1999, 2000, and 2001.

But, try as I might, I couldn't get any understanding or cooperation from the lovely Mrs. Jones. She only seemed interested in throwing more hoops at me to jump thru than solving the problem. And, she didn't care what three other federal bureaucracies have to say about my father's condition (Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, and Social Security Administration).

In her words, "The IRS doesn't communicate with other federal agencies." As if this should be a source of pride.

Perhaps this unwillingness to communicate amongst bureaucrats is why we have planes flying into buildings and cannot clean-up after hurricanes . . .

My ongoing flu-like symptoms are not helping my mood today at all. Actually went home early from work, something I almost never do.

Oh, well, time for another shot of Nyquil.

But, before I forget, Happy 60th to Cousin Marki!

North Lake County Civil War Roundtable

My recent appearance at the Greater Orlando Civil War Roundtable apparently got someone's attention.

I got home from work today to find a new invitation in my email "in box."

This one is from Bob Grenier at the North Lake County Civil War Roundtable up in Tavares.

After swapping some emails, he has scheduled me to speak to that group on December 7th at 7:30pm.

So, if you're in that neck of the woods, circle your calendar now and plan to be there!

As I told Bob, I think I'm going to mix-up my standard presentation, tailor it for the holidays.

Of course, I will also have copies of my recent book available for purchase and will do a signing after the appearance.

Shameless plug over.

White Rabbit

Don't ask. I think it's an old Irish tradition or something.

Anyway, how 'bout them Gators yesterday?!

I don't know which I enjoyed more, the game itself or the ceremonies preceding it.

I got to see 4 of the legends of Florida football get inducted into the new "Ring of Honor":

Steve "The Evil Genius" Spurrier

Danny "The Reverend" Wuerffel

Emmitt "Disney World" Smith

and

Jack "Briefs" Youngblood

I become more and more convinced with each passing year, that NCAA football is so much more compelling than NFL football.

Mostly due to characters like these new inductees.

Of course, I may just be turning into a grumpy old man . . .