sawyer

From the Word of the Day

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sawyer \SAW-yer\ , noun;
1. One that is employed in sawing wood.
2. Also called sawyer beetle. Any of several long-horned beetles, esp. one of the genus Monochamus, the larvae of which bore in the wood of coniferous trees.
3. A tree or a part of a tree that protrudes above the surface in a body of water.

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I've never known a sawyer, but I've sawed wood, both literally and in the slang sense. I've read Tom Sawyer several times. I did know a guy named Sawyer, a drug dealer who lived a few blocks away. (I didn't purchase drugs from him, but it's a small town, that's how I knew) He made two mistakes; one was in selling drugs and the other was selling drugs within a block of an elementary school. The house is now occupied by a Pampa police officer.

Doing some online research, I found no mention of his conviction, so I can't say for certain that he was arrested, only my fuzzy memory seems to recall that he was and the charges were enhanced by the school's proximity. I also remember something about how the raid found a cache of arms and ammunition, along with listening equipment and low-light vision devices. Paranoia will destroy ya, so will hard drugs.

The guy was mentioned in this 2005 forum as being a suspect in a quadruple murder but the murderer was convicted was found and is in prison. Searching some more, I found an obit of Sawyer from '06 which means he isn't this NORML lawyer of the same name.

It's a shame, because now when I hear the following tune, I think of that guy instead of Mark Twain's book.

Tom Sawyer - Rush

Pampa's New Heliport

Pampa LifeStar heliport will be a 'lifesaver'

Several dozen people braved the weather Friday to break ground on the newest medical addition in Gray County that's being touted as a lifesaver.

Dr. James Hall, president of the Emergency Services Foundation of Texas, the parent company of Pampa EMS, said the $550,000 Gray County Heliport Facility to be built near the Pampa Regional Medical Center will house the LifeStar ambulance helicopter that now serves the eastern Texas Panhandle.

Two LifeStar helicopters serve the top 26 counties of the Texas Panhandle, the Oklahoma Panhandle, eastern New Mexico and the very southeastern part of Colorado. Last year, local LifeStar helicopters made about 896 flights, said Stewart Jackson, assistant director of LifeStar.

The majority of the heliport project, or $500,000, will be funded by the Texas Department of Transportation's aviation division thanks to a measure added to the state's general appropriation bill by state Rep. Warren Chisum. It gave Gray County the money to build the 8,000-square-foot facility at the hospital. Roughly $56,000 will have be funded locally as part of the grant stipulations, said Karon Wiedemann, director of grant management for TxDOT's aviation division.

Read the rest at Amarillo.com

afterclap

From the Word of the Day

afterclap\AF-ter-klap\ , noun;
1. An unexpected, often unpleasant sequel to a matter that had been considered closed.

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This word could make a vulgar joke that could apply to the definition, but....

Stuck Baby

Smiley Bebe

We used to have a part Chihuahua that would smile like this. Her name was Tina and she was also part terrier, as I recall. I remember she and I both getting in trouble for rolling in the dirt. (Hey, she was doing it and looked like she was havin' fun!)

She used to go with us on vacations and one summer - for whatever reason - she was left home. (Dad's relief for his vacation was going to feed and water her) I remember her being so upset and trying to follow us. When we got home, she was gone. We figured a coyote had got her, but quite some time later she was found with some people down in Miami. They had found her by the side of the road, several miles from our house. A friend of the family had seen Tina at a neighbor's house and told my folks. Long story short, Tina was thrilled to see us.

In the meantime, Tina had "hooked up" with a poodle and had some strange looking puppies.

I don't remember what happened to Tina, if perhaps she did have an encounter with a coyote or just died of old age. We had two puppies out of her (EDIT to add more info, thanks to my Big Sis, read comments if you like.) and wound up with Sugar - Tina's tiny poodle-like grand-daughter - for years and she finally died of old age.

malapert

malapert \MAL-uh-purt\ , adjective;
1. Unbecomingly bold or saucy.
noun:
1. A malapert person.

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"Unbecomingly bold or saucy"? I dunno, I kinda like saucy gals and especially bold ones.

Or gals that can make sauce.

Face it, I just like women.