A Little Muscle

Hi Jack

On a recent trip to see my boyhood home and "stomping grounds" I was idling along in my pickup and caught a tiny bit of movement out of the corner of my eye. Sure 'nuff, it was a big ol' jackrabbit, convinced that he was hidden from view but I saw him twitchin' his big ol' ears.



If this had been the late fall, winter or earliest spring and I'd have had my trusty old .22 rifle instead of my camera, I might have been tempted to shoot my supper. (or breakfast; rabbit and scrambled eggs with biscuits and gravy...mmmm.)

Ol' Jack would've had to have been a bit younger for me to make the effort, as young jackrabbits are much more tender than the tough old codgers like this one. Young jacks are tastier than a cottontail for that matter. Face it, I would have had to have been 16 yrs. old again to have enjoyed being the mighty hunter, the frontiersman who can live off the land, eating prickly pear fruit as I did as a boy, knowing the best places where doves came to roost at night, the places where momma quail hens sheltered their babies from coyotes and hawks.


By-the-way, rattlesnakes are good eatin', tasting like chicken with the texture of deep fried catfish. I haven't eaten rattlesnake in years nor am I craving it, but I would eat it if hungry.

I haven't done it in years, but I expect I could still butcher a rabbit with no knife or other utensils. A quick nip with the teeth on the back of the rabbit's neck, then with fingers under the pelt, undress the carcass with one quick pull, turning the pelt inside-out. Carefully pinching the membrane that holds the intestines in, let them fall out away from the meat. Break off the legs (it might be lucky to own a rabbit's foot, but you're lucky if you can break them off quickly!) and then pull the hide off and if you've done it right, you can neatly wrap up the offal in the hide, roll in a ball and leave for some lucky coyote's midnight snack.

I'd tote my bounty home, slung from my belt, and just before I got to the house would stop at a red ant bed. Stepping on the head with my foot, I would pull that off and leave for the ants. They would have plenty of meat to eat for a while and be sure of surviving and making more ants for the horny toads to eat...and making sure there were plenty of horny toads, such a fascinating creature!

(red ant beds are great places to clean the frogs my sisters and I had to dissect, then clean, label and pin the bones to a piece of cardboard for sophomore biology)

I'd wash the meat in the sink, wrap in wax paper and put it into the fridge. The next morning, usually one of those crisp ones that makes your breath visible, perfect rabbit huntin' season, anyone that wanted could have some rabbit with their eggs, biscuits and gravy, prepared by momma's loving hands.

None of the Above

That would describe just about anything/anybody other than the author of this blog.

Let Her Cry - Hootie & the Blowfish

Your Vote DOES Count!

I've pretty much voted Republican since I became of voting age and when I didn't like the candidate that particular party put forth, I would either leave that selection blank or vote Libertarian. I have voted for a Dem. representative a few years back, an incumbent that was doing a decent job. I also used to vote for a few local offices held by "Democrats"; they usually ran unopposed. (it's a small town)

It was the election of '92 and while I had voted for Bush (sr) in '88, his "Read my lips..." fiasco made me turn away from him on his re-election. I was also disappointed he (Bush) kept Dan Quayle as his V.P. I didn't want to vote for Clinton because his sexual escapades were beginning to come to light. (I was just jealous.....just kidding.) Even though Perot was a Texan, I didn't think much of his candidacy and his reliance on charts and graphs to "prove" his points. (Shades of Al Gore!) I also didn't like his accent. -grin-

So, I cast my ballot for the Libertarian candidate, even though I knew nothing about him. (I like the Libertarian party's platform, but I'm not convinced it is realistic) I vote Libertarian a LOT for the state races, especially against an incumbent. I simply don't like someone staying in office too long.

I vote in Precinct 10, and when the results were published in the newspaper, I could see my vote REALLY counted, it was out there in black and white for all to see!

Beej & the Bear

This is my first scan job from my new scanner. I've already run out of ink, so I have to explore the other features.

The bear was...is....my friend elle's. She had owned this bear for years and years and sent it to me to keep me company. (I guess she thought Beej wasn't enough company) I put it on the back of the sofa, along with another little stuffed animal she had sent, but B soon found it and decided it was something good to chew on.

I stopped him before he did any damage and put it up . (need to send it back to her) Still, his expression when I caught him in mid-chew was priceless.

He's also the one who UN-straightened my wall hanging right behind him.