Dog Ear
August 29, 2024
eird little story for your blogging pleasure. Of course, I love to read (no shit, right?) And since I just had a week’s vacation, I’ve been plowing through books. My review stack is about six deep right now. Funniest thing, though. I’ve been watching James Garner in The Rockford Files. Great show that echos the old Private Eye Noir of the past. I’ve never really watched it but lived in the time (1974) and the place (LA) so it’s all there for me. Curious about the main star, I picked up a book, The Garner Files, Garner’s autobiography. Enjoyed it. […]
August 22, 2024
ou know, I think the thing about drunks and drug addicts is when you see them in their ragged states, hanging on at the margins of society. The sorrow from this comes from thinking about the lost potential – here was a person who fell through the cracks, who might have gone on to create great art, great items, great friendship and great loves, who, because of a weakness for drink or drugs, lost this chance. I think this every day while in the downtown coffee shop and watching the baristas take pity on the homeless who wander in, giving […]
August 8, 2024
n the early 70s, a singer named Dobie Gray released a song, Drift Away, that was a big hit. I remember being into it, playing the 45 over and over. In a nutshell, it’s a song that notes the way music can sooth us in our troubled world. You can say that it’s a noble ideal to hold, something that can bring comfort to us all. [Verse 1] Day after day I’m more confused Yet I look for the light through the pouring rain You know that’s a game that I hate to lose And I’m feelin’ the strain […]
August 1, 2024
o I’m sitting in the Banner Elk cafe, having my brew at 4200 feet. Interesting. My home cafe in Florida (Framework, on 17-92) is my place. The black joe is strong (need water as a chaser) and the grinding in the back makes me sneeze sometimes, but that’s okay. It’s a younger clientele, a bunch of middle-twenties/early-thirties people, most of them using the cafe as an office (sitting at laptops, a cold cup of coffee untouced at their side). There is always some homeless guy there (they change out every two weeks or so) but they generally behave and a […]
July 25, 2024
nteresting day on the road today. Coming home from breakfast with a friend, tooling along in the right lane of a two lane exit, not quite there yet. In my rear view, I spot a BMW FUV coming up hard behind me, maybe 90 to my 75. Of course, while he’s got all the room in the world, he changes lanes at the last second, clipping past my rear quarter for no better reason that it gives him a thrill to pass like a race car driver. Cute, except that we were entering a hard right off ramp going to […]
July 11, 2024
ack in my college days in the early, early eighties, a roommate of mine could often be found in the living room, watching a late night rerun of The Rockford Files. It had only just been cancelled and he was a fan. For those who don’t know what this is, it was a series from 1974 to 1980. The story centers on Jim Rockford (played laconically by James Garner), an LA private investigator who lives in a rusted trailer sitting in beach-side public parking. He gets in all sorts of jams, uses charisma to sometimes get out of them, and […]
June 26, 2024
verything is about recognition. It’s been said that the only reason anyone does anything is for money or respect. I’ve always wanted some heartfelt sign of respect. Oh, I’ve gotten it from time to time. My friend Greg gave me a great model railroad engine (sound and the works) for saving his life. The bloodbank gives me a $20 each time I drop a pint. Still, I’m always seeking it – a true cowboy tipping his ten-gallon hat and saying “Obliged” (and not after you move your liberal ass out of Texas but because, maybe, you saved him from an […]
June 20, 2024
y model train blogs seem to be popular. Every layout I visit knows I’m going to blog them. There is always a running joke about who is getting blogged this time. And then there are all those “On Sheet” pieces I write for another Facebook group, talking the this and thats of model railroading operations. I just checked tonight – there are 667 blogs (not including this one) on my site about trains. Thank goodness it wasn’t one less or it would set off some of the denominationals out there. But think about that – nearly 700 blogs about what […]
June 6, 2024
ith the advent of cheap yet reliable camera technology, people take pictures of everything now. For every train activity we do, I get at least twenty photos “snapped” of the action. No focus. No lighting hassles. Just point and snap. And who hasn’t seen the wave of selfies (where people block otherwise amazing vistas with their own smiling, V-fingered images) or food shots (I saw someone recently in a McDonalds snapping a photo of their burger). Pictures pictures pictures. And sure, I take pictures of things. When we went overseas, I took pictures of places I saw (without me in […]