Texas Camping and Hungry Varmints

If you camp over-night in a state park, be it Texas or any other park, you will have varmints visit your site while you sleep. It’s what is called, “a given”. In other words you will have animals in your camp looking for nibble goodies; little scraps of food, or more - unguarded loads of food.

The number one camp bandit is the raccoon and in state parks, the raccoons have ninjas-on-steroids skills. They have seen and will open almost any kind of container, cooler, box, or chest. They’ve seen it all and unless you place a heavy rock on top of your cooler, there is a good chance you will awaken during the night to the sound of “coons” rummaging through your stuff.

Raccoons make a very peculiar sound, especially when they are excited after finding something edible. To me, they sound like an alien from outer space, something like Mel Gibson’s character heard while standing in the cornfield in the movie “Signs”. It’s a major creep-out to novice campers, who huddling inside their tent and in the dark have no idea what it is.

I will attempt to describe their sounds: bubbles, clicks, purrs, and a cooing sound - kind of like a mischievous little monkey or a hideous malicious and drooling alien. Add to this the sound of a bungee strap slapping repeatedly against the side of an ice chest, aluminum and plastic cookware and eating utensils falling from the picnic table and the tree limb rubbing against your tent and you have everything you need to plead the mercies of your God.

However, once you realize what it is you are hearing, you have a couple of choices. First and the one I recommend is exiting your tent and chasing the critters to the far side of your flashlight’s beam (that’s all the farther they will retreat - trust me). Secure your stuff and then go back to sleep, hoping you didn’t miss something.

Your second choice is to suffer in silence while the raccoons ransack your site, again and again. My first experience with this phenomenon was about 30 years ago while camping at Camp Strake with the Boy Scouts. We were a bit sloppy in our camp discipline and the raccoons triple-teamed us all night. There is a reason they have the bandit band over their eyes. I think it has evolved along with their skill to rob campers of their goods.

This past camping trip I heard the hanging trash bag rattle as we sat around the campfire. Turning my powerful flashlight on, I spied a large coon peeking inside the bag, only halfway concerned with my awareness and about twenty feet behind it was a small fox. The fox is a second tier thief. Its modus operandi is to rob the raccoon and split the scene before the coon can catch it.

To me, that is justice served.

Meat on a Stick Time - Part 2!

We came, we saw, we camped, and cooked meat on a stick! Last Sunday, we wrapped up a four-day camping trip to Pedernales Falls State Park and due to my many obligations, I am just now finding time to write about it.

My brother TJ Bustem, nephew Andy Tallant, coworker “Big” John Graham, his son “Texas Slim”, and buddy “Texas Shorty” arrived at the quiet and mostly empty park Thursday about 2pm and began the process of setting up our tents and gear. I began worry about rain on this trip a full month before we arrived and I must say; we couldn’t have dialed in better weather, even if we had that ability.

The day before we left, I defrosted Elk and Axis deer back-strap my friend Brian White brought me and soaked it in milk overnight. Draining the milk and washing it, I put it in a one-gallon freezer bag and added Lea and Perrins Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce and Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning. Thursday evening, we skewered the tasty meats and held them over an open fire.

It was delicious! It was more than delicious, it was heavenly delicious.

The milk removed the normal gamey taste and appeared to tenderize the meat also, as it almost fell off the skewers. There we were, hunkered down, each of us as pioneers of old, cooking meat on a stick. Our two 10-year old “Texans” were getting both a taste of outdoor cooking by their own doing and the secure fellowship of men who actually care about their future development.

The Baytown Hiking Fellowship was enjoying its first campout. As stated in the previous Blog, our fellowship was founded last year to honor the memory of my son, Sgt. Nick Marshall and to promote fellowship and personal development. We all agreed we will have many more hikes and campouts, in the future.

I was determined to attempt a number of methods and new equipment on this trip, as possible for my own development and one of these is a knife/magnesium striker device, for lighting fires. In preparation for the first fire, I made cotton balls soaked in melted Vaseline, a fire-starting trick I saw on the Internet, but widely used by the Boy Scouts, hunters and hikers.

We gathered around the fire-pit and I pulled 2 cotton balls out, placed them in the pit and struck the magnesium rod with the edge of the knife blade. Like magic (and to my utter amazement), the cotton balls ignited and just like that, we had the beginnings of our campfire. My only regret is, we failed to video it.

Friday and Saturday we hiked as a group and Geocached. We were blessed with sunny days, but the nights hovered in the mid-30’s, which was fine, albeit cold. I opted to sleep in my tent with no heater, as did Andy and TJ Bustem and although my sleeping bag kept me comfy, my face was cold as ice and my only option was to wrap a fleece blanket around my head each night.

Once again, geocaching is a high tech treasure hunting game using a GPS device to locate “caches”. Pedernales Falls has close to 30 approved caches hidden within its borders and our first objective was to locate a number of them on the 4-mile loop trail. However, the Pedernales River had the only crossing flooded, so we went off to find other caches, eventually locating nine.

By Saturday, our two pint-sized Texans were weary of the slow-pace us seasoned campers were keeping, so Andy took them off to Pedernales Falls for four hours of hiking while TJ Bustem, Big John, and I hiked part of the Wolf Mountain Trail and located more caches. At the Pedernales Popcorn cache we found our first Travel Bug, which is a cool-looking dog-tag thingy and this one was attached to a travel boot ornament. The idea of a travel bug is the person who “grabs” it, carries it to a distant cache according to the wishes of the original owner and all of this is recorded later on geocaching.com.

This Bug is going to be placed Saturday, March 6th on the Goose Creek Trail, helping it on its way to the Appalachian Trail.

Raccoons, accosted our camp as always, but we kept a clean site, so they got very little besides a couple of my favorite Los Toritos bean, cheese and jalapeno tamales and a can of bean dip. Jackrabbits, deer, and even a fox passed through our site as we sat by the fire and who knows what else while we slept.

It was a weary bunch of trail-broke happy campers who rolled up their gear Sunday morning. At this point all of us could have stayed on without reserve, but commitments and our folks at home beckoned. As we drove out of the park, all were making plans for the next adventure.

Meat on a Stick Time!

What is that smell I smell?  Is that the visceral and distant calling of the wild upon my modern intellect, or is it simply the ancient practice of cooking meat over a campfire that brings the tendrils of feral game and burning wood to my flaring nostrils?

I am excited about camping and camping we will do next week.  Last year about this time the idea came to me to form a group to promote fellowship and inner development for young men who were buddies of my son, Nick Marshall and to honor his memory and I did, but this is the first chance we have had to exercise or execute an activity.
I called it the Baytown Hiking Fellowship and it is defined thusly on our website: 

"Fellowship is offered to qualifying men through referrals by members to both young and older in support of their efforts to pursue mental health and higher ideals through fellowship with other men while hiking and camping within the borders of Texas. As a general guideline, members are those who have demonstrated a desire to better themselves through hiking, camping, men’s fellowship, hard work, personal devotionals, self-improvement, sharing and mentoring and again, must come through a referral by an existing member".

This month we will make our way to Pedernales Falls State Park, close to Johnson City for our first fellowship.  It will consist of four days of camping, hiking, fellowship, and personal development.  I am also requiring each attendee to bring a skill to share.  My skill will be GPS orienteering and operation with geocaching as an objective.

Many of those attending have lost one or more parents, close friends, or sibling(s) and are in desperate need of a certain amount of healing and this is the real goal behind our fellowship. Some just need others around them who care about their future and we will supply this as well and then there is the very real need for all of us to simply get outside and rediscover our American pioneering spirit.

Over the last year, I’ve been scouring the area for sleeping bags, old tents, blankets – anything I could find to ready us for this day, as well as looking for sponsors.  It’s my goal that the fellowship will grow beyond me and become self-sufficient and by this I mean that it will not revolve around me, but develop those we mentor so they will carry this into their own maturity.

In our group we have an age range from as young as six to my age of fifty-seven.  We have two Dads with sons, a number of very stable adults, and quite a good number of twenty-something younger men - and all of us are very excited.  It’s a grand time for all concerned and we are beginning to amp up.Me?  I want to “do like Zog do” and hold meat over the fire, albeit on a stick instead of holding it in my hand and I want to do it in the company of those who are more used to holding a game controller, than a hiking pole.

Last week I inventoried my camping gear and it’s all setting beside my desk as I write this.  One of my nephews, Andy Tallant is coming by today to practice setting up his tent.  We plan to set it up, tear it down and then set it up again.  I’ll do the same with mine.

We are expecting the weather to be anywhere between 25 degrees F. to 60, so we are preparing for anything and everything and that is the luxury of Park camping over back-packing.  We can carry a lot of gear.  After all, our goal is not survival training, at least not at this juncture, but to get away from our routine and enjoy the outdoors, a roaring campfire and best of all – men who care enough about other men’s future to help them along.
*cartoon from The Far Side by Gary Larson

The Girl in the Swing

For as long as I can remember, I wanted to be married to just one woman. I had and still have no desire to play the field in search of some green pasture which incidentally does not exist and to my credit I still believe this.

In my immature late teens and early tweens I dashed to and fro like my peers, checking out this flower and that, but always in the back of my mind I had it in me to settle down and prove my worth to one and only one lady. In 1976, I met her. I was 24 and she was just 16.

Now before you break your jaw as it slaps your knee, let me explain. I met her in church and we did not begin dating until she was 17 and then a “date” meant getting a bite to eat after church and then I would drive her home and ne'er a kiss was exchanged until we were engaged. We both embraced fundamental Christianity and still do to this day and because of this, we practiced restraint.

On Valentine's Day in 1977, I asked her to be my Bride and this is how I see her today. I would love to say that I rode up on a white steed, or did something terribly romantic, but the truth is, we were both under the weather and I asked for her hand on the telephone.

Although I have uttered a lot of words in my life, both good and bad, I had reserved “I love you” for the woman I truly loved and after telling her those words numerous times the day before, I realized she was “the one” and while chatting on the phone that night in 1977, I unexpectedly blurted out that I wanted to marry her and that’s the rest of the story. She accepted and 7 months later, 2 weeks shy of her 18th birthday, we stood at the altar inside Peace Tabernacle on N. Main Street and became husband and wife.

On our first “date” we left service kind of late (as Pentecostals are known to do) and being hungry and thirsty and naïve, I thought I would impress her by taking her to Alexander Drive to the new drive-through hamburger joint named “The Varsity” located where Knowlton Ave. intersects with N. Alexander Dr. Now at this time I was jogging about 5 miles per day and with all the singing and “amen’s” at church service, I was powerful thirsty...and ravenous for some burgers and fries

Wanting to impress this young lady with my ability to drink large quantities of soda, I ordered Varsity’s largest drink, a 44-ounce full sugar Coke and 2 cheeseburgers and large order of fries, to her small diet-drink and no food order. I owned a sub-compact car at the time, as I do now and as the window employee handed the extra-large drink down to me, it tipped and landed topside down in my lap. Ice cold, sugary Coca-Cola quenched my bravado, my ego and my pride in one exaggerated nanosecond.

That was our first date and now 32 years later, we still laugh about it. In our purity, we met on a regular basis in her front yard and she would sit in the large tree swing her Dad built and I on the ground and we would talk about our future, or rather I would talk and she would listen (that pretty much went out the window about 20 years ago).

She is still my girl in the swing and my Bride. I am a clod and she is my Princess. I have many detractors, but to my knowledge, she has none. May God have mercy on me if I ever find myself in the single mans shoes again, because I will need supreme guidance to recover from the loss of her and hopeless to find another...girl in the swing.

Lindsey Zeb Wilcox USS Indianapolis survivor

Mr. Wilcox is our Baytown survivor of the USS Indianapolis disaster.  He is doing poorly and I fear for his health. He is now in assisted living at Remington Park on W. Baker here in Baytown.  Please say a prayer, spread the word and send him a card. Baytown Bert

Lindsey Z Wilcox
901 W. Baker Rd;  Apt 147
Baytown, TX 77521

Read his amazing story here.

Do Kuhmo OEM Car Tires Even Carry a Warranty?

Thanks to a national representative of Kuhmo Tires named “Will”, I was educated on the OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturers) obligation for tires on new cars with original owners concerning their tire obligation when something is not right with the tires on your new car.

Back in March of 2007, I bought a brand new KIA RIO5 hatchback and it was and still is the perfect little commuter car.  I haven’t had a problem at all with this car and recommend it.  I bought it right here in Baytown where I’ve bought my last 6 new cars.

The tires on my little car are for all practical purposes hazardously bald at 24,900 miles and after a trip to Discount Tires on Garth Road yesterday and consulting with Assistant Manager Jordan Arnett, a Marine and an Iraqi Freedom veteran, it was decided I should upgrade my OEM tires to a higher-rated Yokohama brand tire, which carries a real mileage warranty of 60,000 miles.

I asked him about the OEM warranty on my Kuhmo P195/55R15 Solus HP4 OEM tires and he suggested I check with the dealer on the warranty.  Well, being the kind of guy that I am, I had the original Warranty brochure which came with my KIA, but I also went onto the Internet to Kuhmo USA’s website  and downloaded the warranty .pdf file, located the appropriate person to call (Charles.  I was informed he handles literally all the OEM warranty calls across the USA) and called him.

After I left a message, called 3 more times until I got his personal number, he answered and handed me off to “Will” (last name not mentioned).  Will informed me my OEM tires did not carry a mileage warranty at all and furthermore, the reason Kuhmo’s aftermarket tires of the exact name, size and make carry a 50,000 mile warranty and these do not, is because the aftermarket tires are completely different materials than the ones shipped from Korea (that came with my car) and are actually of higher quality. 

They are not apples to apples and the (OEM – not the aftermarket) warranty brochure plainly states that if the tire fails due to workmanship within the first 25% of tread wear (only) then they will be replaced free of charge (minus mounting, balancing, etc. etc.), or prorated according to tread wear. 

In other words, it appears it is almost impossible to collect on an OEM Kuhmo tire warranty, due to the many sub-clauses, unless you have a major blow-out in the dealer parking lot as you drive off for the first time and one of the employees witnesses it and is willing to admit it to a Kuhmo Rep.

I asked “Will” a question.  I said this was false advertisement and akin to buying 2 boxes of identical cereal, one from the maker and one from the store – both in identical packages, but with different quality standards, but being passed off as identical products.  He told me “No, it isn’t, that’s just the way it is done in the auto industry.  These cars came from Korea anyway.  Do you expect them to live up to our standards?” 

I said “Yes, I do.”  OEM tires aren’t really meant to last at all it seems.

He told me the aftermarket tires are made of better materials and carry a mileage warranty so people will buy them over another tire.  I asked him to consider the fact that since Kuhmo is going to lose me as a customer for the rest of my life, would this alter his course of dealing with me as a consumer.  He said “No, it would not”.

If “Will” was my employee, he would find himself in a soup-line somewhere pronto, but maybe this is truly Kuhmo Tires USA attitude towards people as long as they can get the tire contract from the manufacturer of automobiles.

Baytown Bert? Meet Dance Baytown!

I found out about a month ago, that I was scheduled to learn a few fancy dance moves with Steve Divekar, of Dance Baytown, so I wouldn’t look like Frankenstein’s monster at my daughters wedding reception.  Last night was that night.

Steve Divekar teaches Two-Step, Polka, West Coast Swing and the Jitterbug.  Last night in an hour and a half lesson, my beautiful Bride Sandra, brother TJ Bustem and his lady Debbie, brother and sister in law Big Ray Tallant and little Tammy, nephew RJ and groom to be Michael Sievers and bride to be Melody all were greatly educated by this skilled dance, Steve Divekar.

Steve operates a web site called dancebaytown.com and I encourage anyone aspiring to cut a rug to check it out.

I figured TJ Bustem and I would breeze through this dancing stuff, as we are both longtime practitioners of the hard-style martial arts and Black Belts, but, uh, I was naturally a product of karate training and it appeared I was chopping my way through every move.  I was too stiff and even I thought I looked like a zombie.  It was hilarious.

Steve was very patient and tossed out encouraging words with a generosity the others deserved, but I, being my own worst critic knew the sad truth…I have two left feet.  Never-the-less, I am encouraged that I will stumble through and my bride has promised me we will practice, practice and practice until we look like Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. I figure it will be closer to Frankenstaire and Ginger Rogers, but we will see.

Anyway, if anyone acts up on the dance floor, TJ Bustem and I can always fall back on our “other” training.

Camping in Texas in February

I am posting this for future reference and for anyone planning a camping trip in possibly very cold weather and especially if the people are novice campers.

1. I would like each person who attends to "bring a skill to teach" to the camp-out and I would like a commitment asap. I know this sounds demanding, but we are not just camping, we are having a fellowship and workshop. Your skill can be how to prepare a simple food item, or how to make a homemade tent peg - I don't really care. However, you have the option of providing the necessary items for all or posting a list of things we need to bring. Search the Internet or youtube.com for ideas.

2. My selected skill is going to be teaching everyone how to use a GPS device. Please bring one if you have one, or purchase one immediately. The Garmin eTrex H GPS is an excellent choice and is $86 shipped on Amazon.com. I plan to teach Geocaching also to everyone who is interested. The park has many caches alongside the trails and this is a lot of fun to boot. Make sure to bring your manuals if you bring a GPS unit and you are unfamiliar with its operation.

3. Next item is transportation. Who is riding with whom and when do you plan on arriving? Two vehicles only are allowed at the campsite with additional parking not too far away. You can drop your gear at the campsite - we won't know which one we get until we arrive.

4. Each person is responsible for whatever food and personal items you need. It's the best way and proven course of action. Do not get too elaborate or it may be come difficult - due to weather conditions.

5. Footwear: Boots and no ankle socks. Ankle socks may be cool in town, but they are flat cold when camping and your ankles will get scratched to high-heaven while geocaching. Cotton socks are cold, so buy hiking socks and if you can afford wool, then get about 3 pair. Bring extra socks anyway and a second pair of shoes for around the camp area, so you can dry your hiking boots if they get wet. There is a water crossing or two on the trails. A small towel in your kit will help if you have to wade barefoot then put your boots back on. It happens.

6. Hot showers and warm toilets: The park has first class showers and restrooms. Bring flip-flops or water shoes for the showers and all necessary toiletries in Baggies.

7. Fees for the park per person: $3 per day, per person 13 and older, staying overnight- unless you have a park pass, which I do. It's $60 per year and well worth it.

8. Fishing: Fishing is limited to a small area, but you do not have to have a license to fish in a Texas State Park. The park will even loan you a pole, etc.

9. Activities: All group activities are optional, but encouraged. I personally plan to hike the 4 mile trail and the 7.5 mile wolf Mountain trail on separate days. All are welcome to come along and the 4-mile trail is a casual walk, but the 7.5 mile trail is a no joke no fooling around hike.

10. Cameras, IPOD's, chargers and batteries: Bring plenty of everything, but my personal experience concerning IPOD's, et al, is they alienate a person from the group. I have 2 and I'm not bringing either one on the trail. I have a camp radio that has an IPOD connection, which is perfect for sitting around the campfire for all to enjoy. Austin radio, which is excellent will also be available. Electricity is available at the campsite, as is potable water.

11. Firewood: One of us has committed to bringing a lot of wood, but we need back-up in the event that they have to opt out at the last second. The more wood, the better.

12. Containers: Rubbermaid makes excellent locking containers. You can get one of these at Target for about $35 and it will keep the raccoons out of your stuff. Rubbermaid 1172 Action Packer Storage Box, 24-Gallon

13. Raccoons:  Raccoons WILL get into your stuff if you do not secure it. Count on it.

14. Tents and sleeping bags. You must prepare for very cold weather. 20 degrees F. or possibly colder. Hopefully we will have moderate weather. Since we are sleeping in a State Park, we have the luxury of taking extra blankets, so bring some. Bring a pull over knit hat for your head while sleeping, or you will freeze to death regardless of how good your sleeping bag is. Trust me on this.

Bald Eagles Nesting GPS Coordinates in Baytown.

Bald Eagles Nesting GPS Coordinates in Baytown.

Come to Baytown Texas and go out Tri-City Beach road until you are almost to Evergreen Road.

N 29.42.836 W 094.57.209    Stand with your back to the golf course fence and the eagles are high in a tree nest (or aerie) about a hundred yards due east. Please do not disturb them or cross into the woods for a closer look. Bring your binoculars.


View Larger Map

Geocaching in Brazos Bend State Park

I had a good day today and so did “Big John” and “Texas Slim” Graham.  They’re father and son and since it’s a tradition of mine to award trail names to folks I hike with, these are the names they are stuck with from here on in.

John is a Safety Specialist at the Plant where we work and since his ten year old son, John Michael has never did geocaching, hiking, or trail finding, I figured it was time and high-time, he got a moniker fitting a real Texas boy.  Texas Slim and just Tex for short will do him nicely.

We did a shake-down hike and geocaching adventure this morning, to brush the cobwebs off my GPS skills, since I hadn’t looked for caches in about 8 years and teach them how to read a GPS device. 

You see, I bought a GPS (global positioning satellite) device about 10 years ago with the intention of participating in this hide and seek high-tech game of treasure hunting, but my bride was not interested in walking ankle-deep through water or knee-deep through briars out in the woods to accompany me, so I gave it up.

Now, years later, I decided to take it back up and use it as a tool to get my young friends off the couch and onto the trails.  This year we are going camping, hiking, kayaking and geocaching together and I see it as a win-win for all of us.

Today, I met my two trail buddies at the park entrance at 8am and we parked at the first parking lot.  Before I left my house, I visited geocaching.com and copied the coordinates to 6 caches and printed out a back-up copy of hints and instructions for each cache.  It’s a good thing I did too, as I had accidentally typed one number incorrectly into my device, throwing that location off by 8 miles.

Off we went, packs on our backs and reasonably dressed for the cool and mildly windy weather. The sun was coming on strong and was most welcome to boot.  I think this was Texas Slim’s first venture into the wild and since we were off the trail, more than on it, he began muttering little ouches and grunts to alert (mainly his Dad) that he was getting poked, stuck and whatever.

Being the son of a man who showed little sympathy for discomfort amongst youngsters, I began explaining to him that everyone who hikes, camps or spends time out of doors will get irritations, injuries, campfire burns, etc. and it is just something we all learn to live with – yes, including the fact that our feet hurt after walking for 5 hours.  This had a calming effect on him, as he didn’t utter another complaint – a real fast learner.

As we headed from geocache to geocache, I explained to my 2 tenderfoot companions the things I learned from my Dad, hiking buddies, brothers, my brief exposure to Boy Scouting and books on how to keep safe in the woods.  I pointed out poison ivy, the very real possibility of venomous snakes near the caches and most important of all – watch for the American alligator, which inhabit this park and almost any body of inland water here on the Gulf Coast of Texas.

Of the 6 caches we attempted to locate, we found 2, not bad when you consider that 3 of those 4 might be missing or damaged since they were placed.  I should have checked the online comments from other geocachers, but like I said, I am rusty.  One cache, called the “Just a Swinging” cache was apparently located yesterday and the folks who found it said it was hidden very well; we just gave up thinking it was missing and we were the loser on this one, to my shame.

All in all it was a wonderful experience and did indeed shake the dust off our equipment and ourselves.  We have a big camping trip planned for the end of February at Pedernales Falls State Park and there are about a hundred caches hidden there.   We plan to find most of them and in the process get exercise, sharpen our orienteering skills and most of all have fun in the great outdoors.

Two For The Sea – Wilcox and Joseph

I had the great honor of sitting down with two sailors this week and both were full of enthusiasm for the sea and ships they tended - Petty Officers 2nd Class Lindsey “Zeb” Wilcox of the USS Indianapolis and Claudius Joseph of the USS Iowa. 

Both ships and both sailors have memories of their time aboard that would be better off forgotten, but they relive their experiences too often and remember close friends who did not “make it back”.  Many memories are good though and they delighted in retelling them.

I, as an Air Force Veteran found much of their tales standard G.I. talk, but I must confess that much of their Navy verbiage, albeit maritime lingo is thousands of years old, found me scratching my head. Bells for hours and the confusing rank system still stymie my meager knowledge of naval nomenclature. Nomenclature is an example of the kind of words that are tossed around in the military.

Mr. Wilcox is a survivor of the worst wartime disaster in US Naval history – the sinking of the USS Indianapolis in 1945.  He floated in the Philippine Sea for five long days before being rescued, while the majority of his shipmates were lost to injury, dehydration, exposure and ultimately – sharks.  The tale was brought to the attention of our nation by the movie “Jaws”.

Read more about Mr. Wilcox and his life here.

Mr. Joseph was aboard the USS Iowa and was scheduled for number two turret duty that infamous day in April, 1989 when the turret exploded, killing 47 sailors.  He was excused for duty, after working an extra shift the evening before.  All of the sailors who died were friends of his and he thanks God for his mercy in sparing him to retell the story.


Read about the USS Iowa explosion here.

Recognizing the importance of honoring our Veterans, Mr. Joseph brought 2 of his sons to meet the great WWII hero and they sat in quiet observation as the two war veterans chatted.

Mr. Wilcox has been ill for the last month and is in the San Jacinto Methodist hospital, Alexander Campus, but tells me he is on the comeback trail after gaining ten pounds.  He hopes to live two more years, as he has a lot of work to do, but Mr. Joseph assured him, he would live many more, as he is a hero and a... survivor.

A letter of thanks from WG Fitts

 Editors note: It seems these days all we ever hear about concerning Veterans is sad or bad,  Ren is a one of the many thousands of success stories who has given back to his city - Baytown and his voice needs to be heard.  BB

In 2009 I completed another Mission and received my diploma with the help of a truly dedicated instructor, friend and Veteran supporter my RV mentor Amado Reyna from Kemah Texas who owns and operates Professional RV Services, who volunteered to take on a the mission to help a Disabled American Veteran learn a new field of work RV repair.

My college instructor Gary Bunzer the "RV DOCTOR" developed a program at North Hampton Community College in PA. where students could take on line courses as long as they could get a mentor in the RV business that he approved as a RV mentor. Many know that with my back ground in many fields in the mechanical field to include US ARMY Infantry, Air Assault, Aviation mechanics, refrigeration, HVAC, electrical technology and Process operations that I could never stop learning.

Lucky for me I have had many supporters like my family, friends, ExxonMobil management and employees, Veteran organizations and many supporters like Patriot Guard, Rolling Thunder. Some things started to pop up in my health and with the help of doctors I am still going strong, like many I will not give in or give up when work needs to be completed. I entered the RV repair world many years ago by helping others but did not know the how or whys of how systems worked so Gary Bunzer and Amado Reyna helped me to learn that and it has helped me in many other items in life to help other RVers to stay safer and keep their rigs more reliable.

RV digest did a article about me going from helicopters to RV repair and that was nice of them to take notice of a old vet. Amado Reyna has supported me not just in the shop but also in many fund raisers held by VFW Post 912 Baytown TX and VVA Chapter 922 Baytown TX where all money donations went to help other Vets and families and community charities. Amado didn't give me a hand out, but a hand up to succeed in another trade since my career was shortened due to some service connected disabilities that started to affect my older life in a job I really enjoyed doing in refining.

I hope all remember there are Great people out there like Amado who helps when he is called on. He supported the VVA Chapter 922 Golf tournament, VFW turkey shoot and many other events he knows about. If you get a chance, tell Amado hello and thank you for what he does and stands for by his work to help Veterans. If you have RV problems he is truly a Top Gun on RV's...

For God and Country Always..
Proud to be a Veteran and Proud to be a retiree of ExxonMobil
I got another certification, not bad for a old soldier...
Thank you all for supporting me

Warren (Ren) Fitts
Service Officer for VFW Post 912/VVA Chapter 922
Life member of Disabled American Veterans
Member of AMVETSand the American Legion
Member and supporter of Patriot Guard and Rolling Thunder
Honor Guard for VVA/VFW
I had the Honor to be recognized in 1974 by Star and Stripes newspaper for my previous duties in US ARMY

There is no Year Like This Year

I have very mixed emotions starting this year off. Like many others, 2009 was not my best year. Personal losses, family members whose great jobs disappeared and the general sluggish Obama-led economy all took their toll on me. In a nutshell, I do not want a repeat of 2009 in 2010.

For months now, I’ve felt a lethargic weight on the back part of my brain and what I need is a panacea or elixir to pull me back upright. I’m not a believer in astrology or fortune-telling and I have enough years in my poke sack to realize that if this year is going to be better for me, it is within my power to make it happen. I’ve stated this many times over the last 30 years and danged if I didn’t succumb to the wiles of misfortune anyway.

I learned the hard way in 2009 that a person cannot prepare for every eventuality successfully. However, each time something tragic happens, I am still optimistic that I will survive and in the long run, come out stronger. That too is up to me.

As a fundamentalist Christian with a partial and practiced Zen Buddhist mind, I still became entangled in a state of depression that kept me mentally chained most of this last year. No one can say with certainty how they will react or recover from something truly tragic until they have emerged on the far side, regardless of what they say beforehand.

Racking up over five hundred hours of overtime at the Plant kept my body busy enough, but mentally I ghosted most of the year away. I wasn’t as strong as I should have been for my bride and family and I’ve determined that 2010 would be different, albeit ten days into January, I am just now getting my plan into motion.

I’ve booked four days at Pedernales Falls State Park, out Johnson City way for late February and plan to camp with my brothers and friends more this year than any previous year, excluding my teen years. I camped for almost 3 months in Georgia with my brothers and life’s responsibilities prevent me that luxury now.

I’m going to call on my old friend and nemesis – exertion, to once again rejuvenate my mind. Exertion has never failed me and as I age I realize that exertion is the one constant in my life that has provided me with true physical mental health. As I told a friend recently, “I am not happy unless I am pushing myself physically to the point of exhaustion”. I guess I could ask my niece Tiffany, what kind of mental problem this is, since she has a Masters degree in psychology, but I probably won’t, as it won’t change anything.

Back in the Stone Age when I was young and strong and thought I could take on all comers, I ran and ran and ran and lifted weights, did karate, push-ups and pull-ups like a fanatic and it kept my demons at bay. In 2010 I will make fifty-eight years of age and these days my testosterone level is obviously not what is was, so I will simply tighten up the strings on my hiking or work boots put on my leather gloves and bang my feet on the trails and climb the ladders at work to get my mental buzz on.

I listened on the radio as the exercise sage and godfather of fitness, Jack LaLanne explained that even at 95 years of age, exercise is number one and nutrition is number two. According to his bio, at the age of 70 handcuffed and shackled, he fought strong winds and currents as he swam 1.5 miles while towing 70 boats with 70 people from the Queensway Bay Bridge in the Long Beach Harbor to the Queen Mary, so I think it is safe to say he knows what exercise can do for a person, both mentally and physically. He is full of vim and vigor which is defined as a healthy capacity for vigorous activity and forceful exertion.

Forceful exertion breeds a healthy capacity for vigorous activity and that is my simple plan for 2010 to get my mental health back and in the process my body will benefit also. Want to join me?.

Avatar - Brilliant or Anti-America?

Note: My sister Connie Byrd sent me this evaluation of the movie Avatar. I want to share it with my readers.

The movie, Avatar, is fascinating to watch. The special effects are really great…..especially because it is 3-D.

The story makes me madder every day. The story portrays Americans as greedy and uncaring of our own planet or that of other life-forms or the inhabitants. It shows that we have destroyed everything green on our planet, and our only interest in this beautiful, unspoiled planet populated by peaceful people, is to destroy the source of life and also, the god that nurtures it, in order to mine a mineral that is of great value on the Earth. It is humanistic, offensive and vile. Take note, that it is Americans and the United States Marines who are the bad guys. The only good people are scientists and a marine who lost his legs in combat and falls in love with a native girl.

I am really angry with obscenely wealthy Americans (James Cameron & Hollywood) telling us (you and me, who have made them rich) that we are greedy and telling the rest of the world that same lie. Americans are historically and continue to be the most generous people on the Earth. I have not heard of James Cameron distributing his great wealth to the needy. Have you?

You will not leave this movie with the emotional fulfillment that you had with Titanic or even the Terminator series. Initially, I would have given this movie 4 Stars. Because of the content and the very bad way it portrays Americans and our Military, I have to change that to 2 Stars, and no recommendation to see it, ever.

If you want to see a fun, exciting, suspenseful and worth-your-time movie, rent Star Trek. I give it 5 stars. Let me also say, I was an original Star Trek TV show fan in the 60’s, but have not followed any of the later series or seen any of the movies except one. This one, though, goes back to the basics and puts a whole new spin on things. I loved it.