Community Events

 

James made a choice to do something impromptu, just off the cuff. Tiffanee always moaned about him being so predictable.  So, I’ll show her, James decided.

The local historical holidays held in their town of Brand, Missouri, were insane. Annual Celebration of Composting? Yearly Harvesting of Brussels Sprouts? Slopping the Pigs Race? Good times.

James decided that this year he and his dim companions would create a new product line: the largest sound maker known. They stole the cannon from behind the barn scrubbing it inside and out. In the dark of night, they rolled it over to the center park and set it all up. 

First, James set up the fuse and black powder taken from Grandad’s old double barrel shotgun shells.  It took hours, but the rest of the crew were rounding up odd items for the projectile. Then came the afternoon, which would be part of the town's history.

Odd stuff, indeed. When afternoon came about, the community eyed James’ creation skeptically. But they gave him the okay to shoot it off. With the barrel tilted at a 50-deg. angle, they fired it off.  The barrel belched.

Instead of being a glorious showing of colors and toys, the cannon exploded, and all were covered with the stuff from within…Hair curlers, marshmallows, mismatched socks, ping pong balls, old shoes, strips of crepe paper, Christmas decorations, and other odd stuff like crayons, with containers of tempura paint stolen from the Sunday School rooms.

James and his crew slowly backed away and took off to quieter places.  Tiffanee had assorted underpants on her head and screeched “James! We are so done!"

This is from this past week's Wed. Words.

• Brand
• Veered
• Afternoon
• Impromptu
•  Holiday

•  Unaware
• Companion
• History
• Paintings
• Solace

 The Wed. words was a challenge by Delores Oenstra a decade or so ago. Then Delores handed the baton off to Drifting through life and Elephant's Child for each week's words.Go there!

Life has time line.

 

 really cheap wine

 "Life is too short to drink cheap wine" is now repeated often, but it is still has meaning. With that thought, life is too short to do many activities.  Here are a few I have compiled.  In the comment section, please add your own thoughts.

Life is too short to: 

...always order chicken from a menu because it is the cheapest entree.

...buy and eat CostCo or store bought sushi.

...use duct tape over and over to mend the same object; this indicates laziness, but it makes sense.

...be ignorant of history.

...be mean.

...eat burned meat (I happen to like burnt hamburgers and hotdogs.)

 

 I would so love this.

 

And then there are these:

...stay out of the rain.

...avoid stomping in a rain puddle.

...watch TV for hours and hours.

...play video games non-stop.

...miss a sunset.

...waste your allotted time.

...be bitter.

...hold a grudge.

...miss opportunities to learn.

...lose a friend by choice.

...forget those who helped you when you were helpless.

...accept rudeness from a check-out or store clerk. This is a good example.

rude grocery checker

 
...make judgments. (Only God has that right.)

...run away from problems. (This is a big one.)

...eat stale grocery products.

...use cheap quality toilet paper.

...buy store-bought pies.

...hold back love.

...sleep on an old mattress.

...give up on people, relatives.

...walk quickly through a rose garden.

...dismiss an art museum as "boring".

...to walk by a child without giving him/her a smile.

This list is probably short compared to what it could be.   

What could you add to this list?

 
“Life is special. The life you have is a gift. Live it. Live it now.”

Cliff Hakim

Sunset and Love on the Ocean

 

 

 

Some weeks had passed since the aborted proposal Winthrop attempted in the yellow plane.  Given the circumstances with Florence up-chucking and all, he knew he needed a new venue.

Win arranged for a boat and iced champagne with his Uncle Freddie.  As Win escorted a giggling Florence to the dock, he was sure this was a good idea.

They motored out a hundred feet, with Florence gazing at Winthrop in absolute adoration.  The sweat was dripping down his pale face as he resolutely stared out to the horizon; somehow Florence sensed that a special moment was upon her.

Cutting the engine just as the sun edged toward setting, Winthrop gazed into Florence’s eyes.  Her smile was all he saw before he spewed straight into her face---blaaagh.

Reference the following link:  The Yellow Plane

Source

 

 

 

 

Music Drove His Story

 
 

Kenny Hubbard at Homecoming at Pittsfield High School 

Kenneth Loren Hubbard was a farm boy in a small community who had talent and who was loved.  Kenny was tremendously talented, and by age 17, he and his band had traveled with great success. This a some of his story, a little long, but it gives a mental photo of his life. 

Sorry about the length of this biography. A man's life should not be a short story.


The following is taken from a group FaceBook site "Pike County...."

When I called Kenny about telling his story a few years ago he was very happy about the idea. He had wanted to tell his story for awhile but was concerned people would think he was showing off. I told him this is your story and you should tell it. I also told him by telling his incredible story it was not showing off and that many people were wanting to hear his story. I visited him several times and Kenny even sang a few songs. He still had a great voice. I enjoyed going to another place and time with Kenny... he was a wonderful, interesting, very nice man..

Kenny did big club shows as well as radio. He did shows with big names like Jerry Lee Lewis, Ray Price, Ferlin Husky, Brenda Lee, Fats Domino, Sonny James, Little Richard, Dion, Bill Haley and the Comets, and Roy Orbison. He played in Michigan, Oklahoma, Ohio, Tennessee, Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Pennsylvania and Texas.

He played the J Michael's Show a few times and the St Louis Hop three times. He also played at the opening of the Quincy Mall in the late 1950s.
Kenny said he met Fabian and Frankie Valli on the third floor of a recording studio in Philadelphia. An agent told him to look out the window and pointed at two young guys who were washing a 1954 Chevy. Fabian and Frankie came up to meet him. He said they were very nice and liked his song.

He described Fats Domino as a super nice guy. He played a show with him in either Iowa or Oklahoma, he could not remember which. Kenny said when he was on the road he didn't know where he was most of the time.. he said "I just went out and did the show."

After about a year, Kenny's mother Norma wanted him off the road,, she felt he was too young for that kind of life. At the time he was about ready to sign a contract with Imperial Records and move to Los Angeles. He said he was not happy but did leave the road and enlisted in the Navy. Later he understood why his Mother no longer wanted him on the road.

Kenny said his manager was stealing from him.. money, clothes, anything related to Kenny that could make his manager money. His record that did not go nationwide in the US did very well in Europe although Kenny wasn't aware of this until later years. His manager knew and pocketed the profits.

He said he had a great time the year or so he was on the road but he was young, just 17. Kenny said he seen and learned a lot adding more than a 17 year old kid should.

Kenny also loved to reminisce about his local band mates before and after his days of being road.

Kenny will be so missed.. my thoughts and prayers to his family and friends. May his Fan Club continue..

And now?


Kenny died 2020, at the age 78. He was born on Dec. 25, 1941, just as War was beginning. I knew him when I was about 5 yrs old, when he gave me a ride to his mother's house for a Sunday School party. I had a crush on him after that.

After leaving the road, Kenny was a "frogman" during the Bay of Pigs, when Cuba was supposed to be freed from Castro. I was in Norma Hubbard's house when Kenny called her to let her know he was safe after this adventure. We stood by her as she talked with him; the phone was a old wall hung phone. The town's phone operator Barbara had patched his call onto Norma Hubbard. 

 

Kenny Hubbard and Ed Franklin on the way to boot camp.

 

 

The Intruders