Wednesday, December 31, 2008

 

Monster Model Reviews, Aurora Monsters ...

Dudley built a bunch of the Aurora Monster models in the early 1970's.


 

Vintage Marx Machine Gun 50 Cal US Army Toy With Box ...

Dudley had one of these as a kid. Any wonder I like guns to this day?


 

This Is The House Dudley Lived In ...




from age 7 until he was 9 or 10 years old. The address was 1607 Singleton Street. The house looks pretty much the way I remember it. This is the house where this memorable event took place. There was a playhouse in the backyard of this house when we moved in. It was kind of run down but fun just the same. We used it as a fort and a lot of battles were fought in and around there. When I was a kid, there were two giant sycamore trees in front of the house by the street. In the summer the seed balls would fall off of the trees into the yard by the hundreds if not thousands. My friends and I would collect them and use them as weapons in our battles. My good friend Russell lived on the other end of this street. He had a really neat tree house his father built him in his backyard. We used to spend the night in the tree house and would get up and roam the neighborhood late at night. I remember one summer night we were walking barefooted down the middle of the street after midnight. We had turned our flashlights off and were having a good time talking and enjoying being out rambling around. Russell started getting excited and I asked him what in the heck he was doing. He said I just stepped on something. We both turned on our flashlights in time to see a big hairy tarantula running from underfoot. I think we left our flashlights on after that.

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

 

This Is The House Dudley Lived In The First ...


seven years of his life. It is located at 4809 Earl St. Dudley can still remember the phone number we had way back then, 767-6865. It is funny I can remember that after all of these years. I can't remember half of the shit I did yesterday but I can remember an almost fifty year old phone number and address. From what I can remember the house looks pretty much the way it did all of those years ago. Just a typical three bedroom one bath house on a pier and beam foundation with a detached garage. It looks like someone took down the screened in porch my father had added to the back of the house and replaced it with a more permanent addition complete with a fireplace. I would like to know what my parents paid for that little house when they purchased it new back around 1954. Probably a hell of a lot less than the cost of a new car today. Prior to the subdivision being built, the land was a cow pasture covered in prickly pear cactus and mesquite trees. There was a huge mesquite tree out in the middle of the back yard by our swing set out past the big concrete patio we used to ride our tricycles and pedal cars around. You had to watch out for those thorns, they would stick and bite if you were not careful. I remember tearing apart the mesquite beans every summer, that was a lot of fun. If I wasn't doing that I was climbing on the Jungle Gym or playing in the sand box or seeing what other kind of trouble I could get into. I remember the square hole my father cut into the side of the garage so our dachshund "Prissy" could get in out of the cold in the winter time. I have an old black and white photo in a box somewhere of my dad out in front of this house before I was born pushing and old reel mower cutting the grass out by the sidewalk by the street. You know the old mower with no motor and revolving blades that cut the grass. Like the one from the start of Leave It To Beaver. Those were the days I guess but I don't know many guys who would trade in their gasoline powered Briggs & Stratton for a manual reel mower.

Monday, December 29, 2008

 

We Drove Through Wichita Falls On Our Way ...





to the Texas Panhandle. This was where Dudley and Big Sis were born back in the mid to late 1950's and where we lived until Dudley's father left. We moved to Fort Worth the summer of 1968 or 1969. The exact year is not clear. I do remember it was the summer after the fourth grade at Fain Elementary. Dudley's life fell apart when his father moved out and he has spent the rest of his life trying to put the pieces back together. I guess one should try to look forward and not back at the difficult times in one's life. As Dudley has gotten older and wiser, he has found the answers to some of life's questions but not all of them. Wichita Falls sure has changed a lot since we left. It was good to see Fain Elementary still standing. It was even better to see the same bike rack still in use where Dudley parked his 1966 or 1967 Coppertone Schwinn Sting-Ray bicycle some forty plus years ago. The small creek and bridge we used to cross at the corner of the school yard many years ago was no longer there. I wonder where it went? It probably took some time to fill in the creek with a storm drain and cover it up. Dudley's world came crashing down a lot faster that night over forty years ago when Dudley's father walked out of the door and never came back home.

Sunday, December 28, 2008

 

Deer Management Autobahn Style ...


Saturday, December 27, 2008

 

The President Elect's New Limo ...



Friday, December 26, 2008

 

Frank Is Staying With His Grandparents ...

in East Texas so he can do a little deer hunting this weekend. This morning he saw a pretty good buck run across an opening right by where he and his grandpa put out a jar of peanut butter recently. By the time he got his gun up to the window of the deer stand, the buck was gone. They are hunting in an area of woods that was partially logged a year or two ago. There are a lot of brush piles, blow downs as well as trees and underbrush in the area. They have some corn feeders out and the jar of peanut butter. This late in the season, the acorns have all been eaten and the deer are on the move looking for something to eat. It was real windy today and unseasonably warm. It is supposed to rain tomorrow morning sometime when a cold front blows through. I recently learned about using peanut butter to attract deer late in the season. A guy explained that you buy a large jar of the cheapest peanut butter you can find. You nail the jar lid to a tree about three and one half feet off of the ground. You then screw the jar onto the jar lid. After that, you take a knife and cut the bottom out of the plastic peanut butter jar. The deer will lick at the peanut butter until it is all gone or at least that is the claim. I hope it works, Frank has not killed a buck down at the farm in several years and I would like to see him get one this year.

 

Dudley Has Been Accused Of Having A Warped ...

sense of humor. I guess there is some truth to this but at least I am not as warped as some college students that live across town. Frank told me about seeing a house over by TCU where some college students had created a unique lighted Christmas display up on the roof of their house. They took a couple of those white wire life sized deer that people put in their front yards. They put them up on their roof with white Christmas lights which proudly shows the buck deer mounting the doe deer for all of the neighbors to see! Dudley did find the display pretty humorous but Dudley is guided by a certain amount of good taste and decorum. I wonder what their neighbors think? Dudley's daughter heard about it and wanted to see it so Dudley drove her and her friend Melissa over there tonight to see it and to try to get a photo for Dudley's Diary. It was not to be, the humping deer took the night off and were no where to be seen. I wonder if they forgot to pay their electric bill?

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

 

Merry Christmas From Dudleys Diary ...


 

Redneck Christmas Light Display ...


 

It's Christmas Eve Around The Dudley Domicile ...



Dudley's wife and daughter just made a last minute run to the grocery store. Dudley and Frank and Lizzie just got back from a trip to the rifle range. Frank wanted to make sure the .243 was still on after our hunting trip to the Panhandle. The gun was still dead on and is hitting about an inch high at 100 yards. Lizzie shot the deer rifle for the first time and did real good for her first try. She hit the target all four times and two of the shots were in the bulls eye. The other two shots were about ten inches high. After some more range time, she will be ready to try to kill her first deer next season. I can't wait until she can follow in her father and brothers footsteps and bag her first deer. We are going to have homemade enchiladas for dinner tonight. After we eat, we are going to have some hot chocolate and marshmallows. Then it will be time for Dudley to read " A Plantation Christmas" by Archibald Rutledge. Dudley has been reading this story at Christmas for his kids since they were old enough to listen. It is a great story set on a South Carolina Plantation and describes a Christmas deer hunt, with friends and family. It is Christmas Eve, Peace on Earth, Goodwill and let's not forget the reason for the season, the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

 

The Preferred Way To Relax After A Hard Day Of Deer Hunting ...



Monday, December 22, 2008

 

Get Your Kicks On Route Sixty-Six ...






If you ever plan to motor west,
Travel my way, take the highway that is best.
Get your kicks on route sixty-six.
It winds from chicago to la,
More than two thousand miles all the way.
Get your kicks on route sixty-six.
Now you go through saint looey
Joplin, missouri,
And oklahoma city is mighty pretty.
You see amarillo,
Gallup, new mexico,
Flagstaff, arizona.
Dont forget winona,
Kingman,
barstow,
san bernandino.
Wont you get hip to this timely tip:
When you make that california trip
Get your kicks on route sixty-six.
Solo
Wont you get hip to this timely tip:
When you make that california trip
Get your kicks on route sixty-six.
Get your kicks on route sixty-six.
Get your kicks on route sixty-six.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

 

Frank And I Made It Back Home Last Night ...



from our hunting trip up in the Texas Panhandle. We got home very tired but riding a high after what was no doubt the most exciting hunt we have ever been on together. We bagged a total of three deer for which we hunted hard. In a few days, will post in detail about the hunt on my secondary blog, Hunting And Fishing With Dudley. The country up near Shamrock Texas is beautiful wide open with views for miles from the ridges with many cultivated fields planted in winter wheat lined with tree rows that act as wind breaks to cut down on erosion. It is prime habitat for whitetail deer and turkeys. We ended up not going pheasant hunting as it took up all of our allotted time to bag the deer we took to the processor. The people we hunted with were great and Frank and I hope to go back up there some day on another hunt.

Thursday, December 18, 2008

 

Dudley And Son Made It Up To The ...


Texas Panhandle. We checked into our motel about 4:30 PM. Our motel is nice. We have wireless Internet and a large flat screen TV. Also has a refrigerator and a microwave. We have a nice view out the window of a large pasture sloping up hill with a bunch of trees. We are right across from the indoor pool and hot tub. I spoke to our hunting guide a while ago and he asked if we would like to do some pheasant hunting tomorrow after the morning deer hunt. I told him I would like to try. I told him we did not bring a shotgun. He said we could borrow his. They will be pen raised birds and should be fun to take down with a shotgun. I told him if my arms are too weak, he and my son can shoot for me. When we got about 25 miles south of Shamrock, we hit a cold front and drove into a fog bank all the way to town. I was so heavy we could not see our motel right off the highway. We saw the famous Conoco Filling station on Historic Route 66 coming into town. I think we are going to have a great time. Will post again tomorrow night!

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

 

Dudley And Son Are Heading Out In The Morning ...

en route to the Texas Panhandle to do some deer hunting for a couple of days. We are going to be staying in the town of Shamrock, just west of the Texas/Oklahoma state line on historic Route 66, The Mother Road. It will be great to get out of the big city and get out in God's great outdoors and do some deer hunting with my son Frank. We are both excited about hunting in an area of the state we have not hunted before. Dudley has hunted in East, Central, South and West Texas in the past. Should be a lot of fun. The photo just above shows the type of terrain we will be hunting. The open pastures are planted in winter wheat and the deer come out of the creek bottoms and windrows to feed. Should be a great hunt and we should be able to fill the deep freezer with venison for the year. Hopefully we will have more than we can eat so we can share in the harvest with family and friends. Will post some photos Friday night from the motel if we can get the wireless Internet to work on Franks Laptop computer.

 

How To Piss Off The Democrats, Got It From Ronald ...



You know what would really PISS OFF the Democrats...



Bush should resign now.



Then Dick Cheney, President (that would really PISS OFF the liberals)!!!



Then he appoints Condoleeza Rice as VP.



Then Cheney resigns two weeks later and ...



Condoleeza Rice, A Republican,becomes the first BLACK President and the first WOMAN President !

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

 

Frank Took The Jeep Out And Drove It ...





around the neighborhood the other day to keep the battery charged up. We are not driving it much right now, it has an oil leak and we need to get it in the shop to get it fixed. Will probably wait until early summer to put it in the shop. Then it will be time to take the top off and drive the Jeep like God intended. Used to enjoy driving it in the winter time especially when it snowed or sleeted. Now if we get that kind of weather, it would be easier to go in Frank's pickup, it has four wheel drive and the heater in his Chevy works a lot better than the heater in the Jeep. Dudley cleaned out his pickup today getting ready for our deer hunting trip. Dudley will be busy tomorrow washing and drying his hunting clothes and packing his duffel bag and getting our hunting gear ready. Frank will be working all day tomorrow so he will not be around to help. He will be here to load the truck and that is a good thing. The other guy that has muscular dystrophy that will hunting with us called, he is excited about the hunt as is Dudley and son. His son is not going to be able to go so it will be just the three of us hunting. He is planning on taking six deer. I told him my son and I were planning on taking two does each and a cull buck if the opportunity presents itself. He said that the ranch we will be hunting on has managed land deer permits so we will not be required to use the tags on our licenses. It looks like the weather is going to be pretty nice for our hunt. If Dudley can get the wireless Internet to work in the motel room, he will try to post some photos from the hunt Friday night.

Saturday, December 13, 2008

 

Dudley Found Out Some Good News Yesterday ...


which is great. We have not been using our walk in shower for over a month because it appeared the shower pan had sprung a bad leak and was putting water all over the bathroom floor every time we took a shower. I had a plumber come out and look at it and I showed him where the floor in the shower was loose along the wall where the water was accumulating. He did not test the shower pan and we both decided it was going to have to be replaced. Dudley had called and spoken to a tile man that had recently redone Frank's bosses shower. He did a good job and was reasonable in his rates. Dudley had decided to wait until after the first of the year to get this done. Dudley's wife was in the bathroom the other day and discovered that the water line feeding into the toilet was leaking. The floor must slope towards the shower because all of the water was running and standing along the shower wall. Frank got a wrench and tightened the connection and the water leak is fixed! Frank and I have both taken a shower and there is no water on the floor. This is great news which we could use around the Dudley domicile. Last night Dudley spoke to the outfitter we are going to be hunting with and the other disabled hunter and we have moved out trip up by one day. Dudley called and was relieved to be able to change the motel reservations without any problem. The lady was real nice and made sure I got a Handicapped-Accessible room on the first floor. Dudley called this morning and spoke to the deer processor the outfitter suggested we use. They normally charge 65.00 per deer for processing. The outfitter is wanting us to take at least two deer each. Dudley called and advised the outfitter is going to skin and quarter the deer for us and would they give a discount for this as well as a quantity discount. Dudley negotiated a price per deer of $35.00 per deer which is a bargain. This is for cutting the back straps and choice cuts into steaks and grinding the rest into hamburger and chili meat. We will have more deer than we can eat in a year. I bet Dudley can find some friends and neighbors willing to take some of the processed venison off of our hands.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

 

The Galati 35 inch Tactical Shotgun Case ...


I ordered for my Remington 870 Tactical Shotgun arrived today. It appears to be well constructed and best of all my shotgun fits in it. I had ordered a different case earlier from Cactus Tactical and when it arrived I was disappointed to find the folding stock on the shotgun would not quite fit in the case. I contacted their customer support and made arrangements to return the original case and exchange it for the case I received today. If you ever feel the need to order any tactical gear, I would highly recommend Cactus Tactical. A strong cold front has blown in today with winds gusting up to 30 mph and the temperature has fallen into the low 30's. The hunting outfitter that Frank and I are going to be hunting with in about ten days called me today. He said he was up hunting today where we are going to be hunting and that it was snowing hard and the wind was gusting up to 40 mph up in the panhandle. He said they were seeing a lot of deer. He said if the weather is like that when we go hunting, we will ride around in his hunting rig with the heater going and shoot out of the window. I told him that sounded good to me but that we would be sure to bring plenty of warm clothes when we go up there. He said when the weather is bad, the deer will bed down in the wind rows and you can drive down the road beside them and spot the bedded deer and stop and make a shot of about thirty yards. You can legally hunt from a vehicle in Texas if you are on a private road on private property. That is not the way I would prefer to hunt but being disabled, I will hunt however I can. Frank and I are really looking forward to our trip. I made the motel reservations last night. I got a non smoking handicapped accessible room with two queen sized beds with a 32" LCD television with free wireless Internet. We will take Frank's laptop computer and perhaps I will be able to do some mobile blogging like I did when we took a trip to Galveston.

Sunday, December 7, 2008

 

If You Believe In The Power Of Prayer ...


and I hope you do, please pray for Dudley and family. We are having a major crisis right now and we need your prayers and good thoughts. It is not something I can blog about but please keep us in your prayers. I may not be blogging as much as usual, Dudley has been through some tough times in his life but the last five days have been the most intense and painful in 49 years. We are all exhausted but believe with God's help and by pulling together, the storm will pass and surely brighter days are ahead.

Friday, December 5, 2008

 

Meet My Good Friend J.T., He Is A Young Man ...


I met last year when I went on a hunt for disabled deer hunters in Southwest Arkansas. He is about one year older than my son and is as nice a young man as you would ever want to meet. He killed his first deer last year, a seven point buck with a borrowed deer rifle. He made a shot of over 300 yards. He got bitten by the deer hunting bug but good and after last years hunt saved up enough money to buy a brand new deer rifle and scope. By opening day this year he was ready to go. He bagged a big ass doe a few weeks ago and has been hunting hard holding out for a buck. I had been talking or text messaging him almost daily and have been acting as his mentor of sorts. I had been encouraging him to keep letting the smaller bucks walk and his patience was rewarded the other evening when this big eight point buck walked out to join a herd of ten or twelve deer all ready out feeding in the green field. He made a perfect shot at 30 yards. He is getting this buck mounted also and will be hanging it up in his room beside the seven pointer. I am so proud of you J.T. for biding your time and putting the smack down on a bruiser of a buck!

Thursday, December 4, 2008

 

Happy Birthday Dad, Your Son Sure Does Miss You ...

1926-1985
Dad I hope you are far away from all of the trials and tribulations of this world. You lived your life your way and you made many mistakes no doubt but you left a son behind that loves you and cherishes the memories of the good times we had together, too few and far between as they may have been. As a father now, I understand that trying to make a living and life in general keeps us from doing many of the things we would like to do. You left behind people that loved you and remember you as they carry on with their lives and I think that is about the best anyone can really hope for in this world. I hope you are at peace and are in the mountains you loved catching trophy trout on your Granger Bamboo Flyrod. Rest In Peace Dad.

 

When An Engineer Owns A Dog, Got It From Annie ...


Wednesday, December 3, 2008

 

Might Be A Redneck ...


Tuesday, December 2, 2008

 

Hey That's My Truck ...


Monday, December 1, 2008

 

Daddy's Gonna Eat Your Fingers, Got It From Cary ...



This one is for everyone who...


a) has kids


b) had kids


c) was a kid


d) knows a kid


e) is going to have kids


I guess that means all of us!!


DADDY'S GONNA EAT YOUR FINGERS


I was packing for my business trip and my three year old daughter was having a wonderful time playing on the bed. At one point she said, 'Daddy, look at this' , and stuck out two of her fingers.


Trying to keep her entertained, I reached out and stuck her tiny fingers in my mouth and said, 'Daddy's gonna eat your fingers,' pretending to eat them.


I went back to packing, looked up again and my daughter was standing on the bed staring at her fingers with a devastated look on her face. I said,


'What's wrong, honey?'


She replied, 'What happened to my booger?'

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