Carole’s Cafe

Well, the picture isn’t the great find.  I’ve had Great-Grandma Minerva’s picture for a while.  What I found was information from my cousin who actually knew her.

His description was that she was a tall woman with the bluest eyes that he had ever seen and he hasn’t seen any that blue since.  And, she smoked a corn cob pipe. 

He was only 10 years old when she passed but he remembers buying plug tobacco for her to smoke in that pipe.  How things have changed!  I don’t think a little kid could buy tobacco of any kind today!

Grandma Minerva must have been pretty strong considering she was born in 1841 and the normal life span was 40 to 45 years.  She lived a full life, marrying at 18 and raising 8 children without the conveniences of things we take for granted and just “can’t live without”.  You know, central heat, central air, electricity, running water, washing machines, microwaves!  And she still lived twice as long as expected.  She passed away in 1923 at the ripe old age of 82.  

Just think of the history she witnessed with those blue eyes!!  WOW!!!!

There’s going to be a benefit for our friend, Billy Applegate!

• When? — Wednesday evening, October 8th, 2008
• Where? – Hill’s Cafe on South Congress, Austin, TX
• Who will be there?– Who knows?  But there’ll be special surprises for sure!!

 
Now you know there’ll be fun things going on!!  You really wouldn’t want to miss this even if it wasn’t for a good cause!!!  But, it is a good cause……for a great guy!!

So…..be sure to come out to give back to a friend that has given us so much!!!!

It’s always sad to hear a special friend is gravely ill and might not have much longer to live in our world.  We’re sad they’re going through the illness……we’re sad we could lose a good friend.   We’re glad that, if they leave us, they won’t hurt anymore.  But…..that doesn’t fill the hole in our heart as they get ready to go.

In the past two years, we’ve lost too many friends.  Now we have another friend who has been feeling poorly and might be leaving us way too soon.

If you’ve been around the exciting music scene in Austin and Oklahoma, you know Billy Applegate.  I haven’t known Billy nearly as long as a lot of folks, but every time I saw him he had a big ol’ smile and a hug for me……and always has a special place in my heart.

I knew who Billy was just from being around Kevin Fowler’s show and team.  But, he remembers the first time he “met” me.  We’d gone to a show at the Cotton Club.  I bought a CD at Billy’s merch table and walked away with my prize.  Later, as I came out of the Ladies’ room (Billy always liked to set up by the ladies’ room!), I heard someone call my name and, when I turned, there stood Billy……holding my credit card!

A few years later, I walked into Giddy Ups and there sat Billy talking to Sam Bentley.  As Billy grabbed me in one of his famous bear hugs and held on tight, he asked Sam, “Do you know how I first met this lady?” and proceeded to tell Sam all about the credit card…..with that big ol’ smile the whole time.

We went to a Doug Moreland and Jason Allen show at Poodie’s Hilltop.  Doug and Billy are great friends and have written a lot of songs together.  Doug always gives credit where credit is due….and every time he announced a song was written by Billy, we let out a whoop and applauded like crazy.  The crowd started to join in the fun.  I guess we might have been a “little” obvious.  Doug wanted to know if we were fans of Billy was because he was getting more applause for writing the songs than Doug was getting for singing them!

Another time, Dobie and I went to River Road Ice House for an open mic night hosted by Jason Allen.  We walked in and the place was packed!!!  Seems they were having Doug Moreland’s bachelor party there and all our favorites were in attendance.  We were wiggling our way through the crowd (the only way to get through!) when someone grabbed me around the neck…..not something you want to experience in a crowd of people that have been drinking all day!!  I didn’t need to worry, it was Billy!  Big ol’ smile and bear hugs!

There are so many “Billy stories” running around in my head.

Billy has a heart as big as Texas, too.  When I had my house in Kyle, I kept having problems with the darn fence.  No matter what anyone did to fix it, it kept trying to fall down!  I talked to Billy about it one evening and he said that, if I could wait, he was headed south in a couple of days and would swing by to see what it needed to be fixed once and for all.  Sure enough, a couple of days later I got a call at work…..it was Billy.  He’d not only checked it out, but decided to just fix the problem while he was there.  When I asked what I owed him, he said “Just buy me a beer the next time we run into each other”.

Billy, that fence is still fixed.  And, you can’t leave us yet……I still owe you that beer!

I’ve been thinking about all the reasons I love music and have come to the conclusion that I didn’t have a choice (thankfully!!)

When my Dad was a young father……long before my time……he loved to sing.  He’d sing while he was driving the truck on long trips.  He’d sing to his kids.  Shoot, he’d sing just to be singing.  When I was a teenager and all ga-ga about some new song on the radio, he’d try to convince it wasn’t a new song.  Of course, I’d argue with him (what did he know?).  Later, I realized he was right 100% of the time.  Oh how smart our parents get as we grow up!! He knew because he’d been listening to and singing those songs for years! 

Dad must have been a pretty good singer way back then.  He was offered the chance to become a professional singer.  Promotion……shows……records……everything!  This was before the age of TV and you didn’t have to great looks to make it big in music.  You just had to have a good voice to please the radio listeners and he had that.  Of course, I think he was handsome, too.

But, it was the early 1930’s……the Great Depression.  Dad was married with 3 little kids and more to come. He needed that paycheck……he couldn’t afford to gamble on maybe making it big.  There was food to put on the table, clothes to buy, doctor bills, and all the trials, tribulations, and expenses of raising a family.  So, he said no……and kept on driving the big rig.  He never quit singing though and I can still hear that booming bass voice singing Slow Poke to me when I was dallying around and not doing what I should be doing!!

Now, Mom was a different story.  She was like me……couldn’t carry a tune in a basket with a lid on top!  But she loved music.  And, when she could finally afford it, she started collecting record albums, 8-tracks,  and cassette tapes.  When Dad and I were out of the house, the TV was turned off and she’d have the stereo tuned up so she could hear it anyplace she happened to be in the house.  After Dad passed away, she would spend her evenings working word puzzles, or doing needlework, and listening to her music.   She had no idea which TV shows were popular……how could they measure up to her music?

What brought back all these memories?  Pictures, of course!  In Mom’s photo albums I found the three pictures shown here……protected in an album while family pictures were just kept in a box.  My Mom had her priorities straight!! .  (Hint:  Click on the picture for a larger view.)

• Jim Reeves:  Oh how she loved Jim Reeves!   She’d watch TV with Dad, but really perked up when the commercials for Jim Reeves or Slim Whitman collections would come on.  She ordered a set of Jim’s music and I’m pretty sure that’s where she got this picture.
• Boxcar Willie:  Another of those TV commercials introduced Mom to Boxcar’s music.  When she heard he was going to be playing at the McLean County Fair just 30 miles from her home (and only 5 miles from my home), she really wanted to go but wouldn’t ask.  So, as a surprise, we invited her over to go out to eat and stay for the weekend.  I think she was really looking forward to a steak at our favorite restaurant but forgave us when she realized she was going to get to see Boxcar!
• Leon Everette:   For two or three years in the early 1980’s, Leon played at the Leroy Fall Festival.  The first time we saw his name on the schedule, we didn’t have a clue who he was……his music wasn’t played on the local stations (ever!).  But, we decided to go check it out.  Besides, it was a festival and Andy would enjoy the rides and cotton candy and corn dogs and……well, you know, he was just a little kid!  But, when Leon started his first song, Andy fell into a trance and my Mom fell in love.  I doubt Andy still remembers, but Mom never forgot.
• Del Reeves / Marty Robbins / Everly Brothers / Statler Brothers:  There are pictures around here some where of all those folks.  I guess I just have to keep digging!

So, you see, I never had a choice but to love music.  Country music that is.  I enjoy all kinds of music, but when I hear country music, I feel “at home”.  My folks really did “raise me right”.

Fred Thompson and Rudy Guliani!!! 

I’ve watched and listened to a lot of speeches during the conventions this year.  There are excellent speakers in both parties……not the least of which is Barack Obama.  And I thought Senator McCain gave a classy speech tonight.  But, Fred and Rudy are still my pick to lead the country. 

Who can’t feel like all is in control when Fred Thompson speaks with that deep voice, that good ol’ boy southern drawl?  He could read a telephone book to us and we’d marvel at what a great piece of literature it is.  He’s so confident, then he must know how to fix all the problems of our world.  Look at job he’s done on Law and Order!  Have you ever seen anyone so fair and just?

Rudy Guliani had fun up there on the podium.  A man that seems to feel no matter how bad it gets, there’s something to smile about.  We can’t afford gas for our cars, we’re losing our homes, and our job just left for Mexico……or was it China?  But, Rudy’s joking……Rudy’s smiling…Rudy’s having fun!!  Now, if a man privy to as much info as he is, can still have fun…….why, it must not be so bad after all!!

Yep, I know who I’ve voting for!!!!  I don’t know where they stand on the important issues of the day, But they’ve got my vote because I like them!!

What?  Fred and Rudy aren’t nominated?  Well, shoot!!!!  Now what am I gonna do?

Seriously, folks, I’ve made my choice, but I’m still listening……just in case.  And, I hope you are too……and that you exercise your right to vote in November.. 

Who have I really chosen?  Well, just a select few know the answer to that and all three of them are here with me now.  Let me introduce you to my closest friends……please meet Me, Myself, and I.

I took off work today……nothing special planned, just wanted a day to myself.  And, I’ve enjoyed every minute except it went by way way too fast!

I worked on scanning more of my Mom’s pictures.  Thankfully, I’ve found three more pictures of my Grandpa and one of my Grandma.  Those pictures are so special to me.  Too bad they remind me I need to do some more work on Mom’s story.  It’s hard to share the pictures without giving the background story!

Then, I turned “techie” again.  (Sorry folks, I think it must be an illness with me. )  At least this time, I had a good……although personal……reason.  I found the negative of a picture of my brother and I when we were kids.  I wanted that picture!!

I’d read somewhere that if you put glossy super white paper behind a negative you might be able to scan it.  Nothing ventured……nothing gained.  So I tried it.  And it worked……kinda.  Obviously, what I got was a picture of a negative!  That’s it on the right.

I needed to make it a real picture, but wasn’t having any luck!  I needed a graphics program that would let me do more than modify the brightness and contrast.  I needed to “invert colors”.  But that type of software is very expensive and……after all…..this is a hobby!!  So I Googled it!!!

 I found a FREE software named Paint.Net and it does everything I need and more!!

The picture shown on the left is the result!!  Isn’t it wonderful?  I’ve cropped it for size, but……it worked!!

I think Mom said Jimmy was 6 and I was 3 when this was taken on Clyde and Mary’s porch.  I don’t remember it being taken, but this picture has played a big part in my life.  Guess that’s another story I’ll have to add.

Along the techie line, I found two Windows programs (again, they’re free!) you might want to check out, especially if your a blogger or have a lot of pictures.

The first is Windows Live Writer that allows you to compose your blog entry off line.  I really like it even though I’m connected all the time.  I can see that it would be especially helpful for a blogger that travels, and posts, a lot.  I’m still learning so don’t know if I’ve found all the little idiosyncrasies.  I’ll let you know.

The second is Windows Live Photo Gallery.  It’s like the Microsoft built-in Windows Photo Gallery only on steroids!  It has options to tag photos, add comments (that pull into Live Writer), edit pictures, make a movie, or even publish to your Flicker account.  It even has an option to make a panoramic view out of a series of pictures.

I also found a genealogy software, Legacy 7.0.  You can buy the “deluxe” version, but they have an excellent free “standard” version.  If you’re like me and just trying to keep straight who is related to who, the “standard” will do just about anything you ask of it.

Okay……enough of the tech-talk!!  I’m going to scan some more……in the morning!!

I’ve been working on getting all our old photos into a digital format in the hopes of someday being able to present them to my son and his family in an interesting form.  I think you might have picked up on that with all the “memories” I’ve been including on here.  There’s just is no way to look at old pictures and not start reminiscing!

Yesterday I stumbled across a dream picture……one I didn’t even know existed. It’s a picture of my Grandparents with my Mom and my oldest Aunt.  As I told in the story about my Mom being strong, Mom was estranged from her family when she was 15.  As a result, the only picture I’d ever seen of my Grandfather was one of him in his casket that my Aunts took for Mom when they couldn’t find her in time for the funeral.

Well……after settling down from the excitement, I decided to open my genealogy program to see just where I’d left off in my “serious” research.  As I was clicking through the generations, I realized I was missing the date of death for my Aunt.  What to do?  Google, of course!!  Well, one search leads to another (that’s how we spend so much time online!! ).  All of a sudden, I find a personal site with all kinds of information on my Great-Grandmother and her family.  Information that, until now, had been totally elusive!  I’d never been able to find anything!

It seems I have a long lost cousin (at least a couple of times removed) that’s a descendant of my Grandfather’s older sister!  You can bet I’ll be getting in touch with him.!

All this has made me want to get back into genealogy……or at least work on scanning more pictures.  Who knows what other jewels I’ll find!!  Think I’ll go get started!!

As I was surfing tonight, the “you’ve got mail” beep sounded and it was a cute email from an old friend I hadn’t talked to in ages.  Knowing he isn’t the type to be checking his email unless he’s home, I took a chance and gave him a call.

He thought I was calling because I’d heard what happened to him……which I hadn’t.  What a story!  Seems he almost died the first of this month from some strange amebosis infection.  I’d never heard of it (he hadn’t either!) so I looked it up in Google.  Pages after pages of search results……most NOT in English.  But the ones I could read were scary enough.

He’d been sick with the “flu” for a couple of weeks.  Then, while he was visiting his daughter in Denver everything came to a head and he collapsed.  They convinced him to go to the hospital.  Just in time!  This infection is a killer!

Evidently the problem was hard to diagnose.  They didn’t have a definitive answer but finally decided it was his gall bladder and made plans to remove it.  Thankfully, they called in one more consultant who figured out the cause of all the trouble.  Turns out the gall bladder surgery (or any major surgery) at that point would have just made matters worse!  Third……fourth……fifth……opinions aren’t a bad idea……Ever!!

They don’t know where he got the ameba as it can remain dormant for years.  And, they don’t know what “woke” it up.  In other words, they have more questions than answers.  However, they did say that it is more prevalent in people that travel internationally.  (I always did warn him to stay in the US!! )

Anyway, he’s fine now, a little weak, but on the road to recovery.  This was all a total shock to me and reminded me one more time that we can’t keep in close enough contact with our friends!!  There’s no way to know what will happen or when!! 

So, quit reading this and go call an old friend!!

Well, the Olympics are over……weren’t they great???   Now that was entertainment!!  And I’m not even a sports fan in even the most limited meaning of the words.  But it was fun, suspenseful at times, dragging at others, but over all a good relief from discussions of politics and weather.

Now, we have the Democratic and Republican National Conventions.  Do you remember the days when we didn’t know for sure until the last day who the nominee would be?  There was a sense of excitement……of the unknown……no matter what your party affiliation! 

This year we know Barack Obama is the Democratic candidate and Joe Biden is the vice president candidate.  Why do we have to wait til Thursday for the BIG announcement?  We could have had both Biden and Obama speak tonight.  Then, they could have all the caucus’, meetings, and what have you without us.  And, finally, on Thursday just surprise us with their chosen platform right before they go home.  Because, let’s face it, it’s too late for us to have any effect on what they decide.  We needed to be doing that for the past 19 months!!

Now, I’m an equal opportunity complainer, so lets look at the Republican National Convention that starts NEXT Monday.  Even though McCain hasn’t announced his running mate (unless I slept through the news report!), you can bet he knows who it will be.  Who knows…….maybe I should watch the Jay Leno show and see if he announces who it is while he’s on there.  In any case, lets have the announcement and speeches on Monday!  Then, all of them can go into their meetings to decide what policies they want to support and make that big announcement next Thursday.

Okay……I’m off my soap box.  Aren’t you glad I don’t get on it very often?

One thing that always comes out in the speeches are the “strong women (or men)” in the candidates lives that have influenced and supported them.  Well, I have a “strong woman” that has influenced me my entire life……my Mom.  I’ve written a little bit about it on a separate page.  Just click here or on the “Mom - The Strong One” link on the upper left side of this post to read a little bit about her.

oooooo……..oooooooo…….Jay Leno’s on.  Gotta go see if McCain announces his running mate.  Catch up with you later!!

First, I want to thank everyone for making my birthday so much fun this year.  All the phone calls, emails, MySpace comments and messages made realizing I’m another year old a little less painful!  And, who can forget Sam who just had to make sure everyone at The Stardust last night knew it was my birthday.  Believe me, Sam, the thought was appreciated, but it really was not necessary!!

Also, this week the ”mystery plant” has been identified by our dear friend, Jim Grabowske!  It’s a Palmetto Palm……probably a young one as palms go.  Left alone it will grow to 50 - 60 feet tall.  That might be a problem since it’s planted right up against the wall!  Another problem is that as it grows, and fronds die, they fall to form a “skirt” at the bottom of the fronds.  If not trimmed off, this “skirt” can be come the happy home of such pests as mice, rats, and ants.  Me thinks I’ll be contacting the landlord and let him know what we’ve learned.

I hate to have it cut back or removed.  This is the first plant I’ve managed to not kill or force into suicide to avoid my neglect!  Besides, I love all forms of trees and think we’d be better off if there were more of them.  But, the idea of damage to the building isn’t a pleasant thought……I like my little home!!  Even worse is the idea of those pests!!  That idea alone makes me want to get rid of it……history has taught me that mice and ants like exploring nearby houses and, lets face it, none will be as “nearby” as this one!! Yep, gonna send the info to the landlord!!