I read that former talk-show host Mike Douglas has died. Click for article. I can remember seeing his shows during the 60's and 70's. He was the daytime version of Johnny Carson. His main rival on the daytime talk-show circuit was Merv Griffin. I always thought they bore a resemblance and had a very similar interviewing style. For those of you who remember these two I have placed a picture of each below. Do you know which one is Merv Griffin and which is Mike Douglas?
I saw Jack and Virginia Foshee at the cafe tonight. Mr. Foshee was my principal at Groesbeck High School. He was unlike any principal I had ever had. He was reasonable and would actually listen to the students. However, you could see in his eyes that he knew if you were giving him a line of bull. Karl Shiflett and I once speculated it was possible he had on occasion done the same thing to his Kosse teachers fifteen years earlier. Mr. Foshee was soft-spoken and always friendly. The toughest of the students respected him, and knew better than to cross him. I later got to know his mother, Doris, and saw where he had gained his personality. The Foshees are good people.
The Bremond I.S.D. has published a new dress code. Among the new rules are "Boys may not have earrings, straw, or any other object in their ears" and "Pajama bottoms of any kind are not permitted." I am just wondering if they are having a problem with boys wearing straw and other objects in their ears and students wearing pajama bottoms to school? Also, since it is explicitly stated that pajama bottoms are banned, does that mean you can wear your pajama tops? Why did the school board simply not say pajamas? I guess things have changed since my matriculation in 1975. I cannot remember a single day I considered going to school wearing pajama bottoms and adorned with a bunch of straw in my ears. Of course I never was a fashion trendsetter.
If anyone is in need of a sofa, there is one on the side of Highway 14 approximately one mile south of Kosse. You can't miss is as it is approximately 1.86 feet off of the shoulder. It is a beautiful stained cream color. Hopefully it did not have a headlight and radiator embedded in it overnight. Antifreeze green would not go well with the stained cream hue of this fine piece of furniture.
It is predicted to be over 100 degrees for at least the next week. Click for forecast. We are in the midst of the hottest weeks of the year so this is not unexpected. But knowledge of this does not help my scorched fingertips each time I buckle my seat belt upon first getting in my car.
The City of Kosse has issued an important notice involving current allowable water usage. It can be seen on the bottom of the Kosse Courier page. Click for notice from City of Kosse.
The world affairs horror story of the day involves the aborted threat by some radical British Muslims to blow up ten American-based airlines enroute from London to major east coast cities. The threatened airlines were United, American, and Continental. Click for article. Flyers can no longer carry on liquid-based items ranging from water to perfume. Officials are suggesting arriving at the airport three hours early for flights. I am sure most travelers would make this inconvenience trade-off for an assurance they will not be blown up across the Atlantic. Ryan is flying to Seattle on a Continental 757 Sunday, so it did not take long for this latest event to affect my family.
The walking trail at the Kosse City Park is now a reality, with restrooms, tables, and chairs soon to follow. This collaborative effort on the part of the City of Kosse and some of our more progressive citizenry is a reflection of Kosse's desire to improve the quality of life in our already unique community.
I read a number of online newspapers each day and among them is the Jerusalem Post. In order to read it I had to initially sign up as a subscriber and give them my e-mail address. As a result I receive a weekly bulletin, which often includes solicitation offers from their partner companies. Nothing unusual about that, in fact it is the norm. What I found unusual was the offer they sent out today. It is a contest where the prize is an expense-paid trip from New York City to Israel. Click here for offer. I'm thinking, who in their right mind would want to take a trip to Israel at the moment? Maybe they could throw in a one-day side trip to beautiful downtown Baghdad.
I met a couple of women this morning who are somehow involved in trying to sell the Bassett building next to my office. There is a brick embedded in one of the front columns with the inscription "Bassett" on it. When this brick is removed there is going to be a time capsule inside the column. I am not sure when this building was built but I would assume in the early 1900's. It will be interesting to see what is inside the time capsule.
I will be gone the next couple of days. The Kosse Blog will return on Friday or Saturday.
Among the offerings on this website is a section called "Believe It or Not". It consists of totally inane "Little Known Facts About the Kosse Cafe" and is obviously an attempt at low-level satirical humor (or so I thought). Click here for "Believe It or Not" section. Among the quoted facts is the following statement: "In order to be considered for eligibility as a Kosse Cafe burger, a cow must have won at least two ribbons at a nationally recognized county fair." The statement is accompanied by a ridiculous piece of clip art depicting the award-winning cow and her proud owner. Imagine my surprise upon discovering that my bovine-related fact has been added to the "Amazing Cow Facts" website of Great Britain. Click here for website. (It is about halfway down the page.) I feel quite honored that our prospective burger donors are being included in this list. Joining the Kosse Cafe's award-winning dogies on "Amazing Cow Facts" are offerings from the Georgia Farm Bureau Agricultural Facts website, the Oakland Education Agency's Mechanisms of Sperm Mobility website, Dr. Lorraine Day's website featuring case studies of recoveries from Mad Cow Disease, and the GoVeg.com website for humans opposed to devouring anything that does not have a stalk, stem, or root.
The rain finally arrived yesterday evening. While it was not enough to inspire my beginning construction on an ark, it was a very heavy downpour for quite a while. For once I timed my yard-mowing perfectly. My landscaping engineer, Donald Porch, had just finished my yard when the deluge began.
The Middle East is a mess at the moment. General John Abizaid, commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, and General Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee last week. They stated there is a growing possibility of civil war in Iraq and they had not foreseen this circumstance a year ago. According to this week's issue of Newsweek, there is a contingency plan in place by the Bush administration if it becomes the President's opinion that Iraq has fallen into all-out civil war. The plan is to move all U.S. troops out of Iraq so as to avoid being caught in the crossfire. Click for article. Unlike World War II, most American citizens are not directly affected by what former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich calls World War III. Or so we may think. The fact is the Iraq war has so far cost over $300 billion dollars. This represents $1000.00 for each American. If you have a family of four it has cost you $4000.00 (or more likely future generations who will be paying the debt). According to Forbes.com, there is a $25.00 per barrel "fear premium" in the price of oil today, so we have $3.00 per gallon gasoline rather than the $2.00 it otherwise would be. And now after all this is the growing possibility the place will become embroiled in a bloody civil war and we will leave. What a mess.
I read that Toyota has overtaken Ford as the second-largest auto seller in the United States market in the most recent quarterly sales figure reports. I saw a report on television that said the Ford Mustang is no longer classified as an American-made vehicle because the threshold of allowable foreign-made parts was crossed. On the other hand, the Toyota Camry (the biggest selling car in the U.S.) is in fact considered an American-made car because it is almost fully-produced at the Toyota plant in Georgetown, Kentucky. Click for website.
Stacy informed me that an eighteen-wheeler has flattened our 30-foot outdoor light pole. This is the second time our pole has met this unfortunate fate. The pole is located by the outside dumpsters so as to provide adequate lighting for the 297 community cats who dumpster-dive at the Kosse Cafe each night, but that's another story.
In this week's Groesbeck Journal was an article from the District Manager for the Social Security Administration. She referenced the Social Security website which gives categorized lists of the top baby names. Click here for website. In 2005, the top ten male names in the United States were Jacob, Michael, Joshua, Matthew, Ethan, Andrew, Daniel, Anthony, Christopher, and Joseph. As you can see, the Judeo/Christian heritage of our nation is represented in the majority of these names. The website also has a page which lists the top 100 baby names by state. I went to the Texas page and the list was much different. Click for page. The top ten names for males born in Texas in 2005 were Jose, Jacob, Joshua, Daniel, Christopher, David, Angel, Juan, Michael, and Anthony. I looked for my name and George was not even in the top 100. However, the Spanish derivative for George (Jorge) was ranked as number 55. Their lists only go back as far as the year 1960, so my birth year of 1957 was not included. I went to the 1960 list to see if George was on it. It came in at number 26 and Jorge was not in the top 100.
The annual Texas Sales Tax Holiday is ongoing through Sunday. I would imagine Wal-Mart and the malls are going to be quite busy. Most of the items on the tax-free list are apparel-related and since I never buy new clothes (why get rid of perfectly good leisure suits and bell bottoms?) I will be avoiding the hordes. Another shopping day I make sure to avoid each year is the day after Thanksgiving. The stores open at 5:00 a.m., and a crowd of determined consumers is inevitably crowding the front doors, waiting for that magic moment when the doors are opened and the stampede can begin. Venturing into a voluminous variety of veritable values, vying valiantly yet vainly for a cheap television is not among my desired activities.
I went inside the Kosse bank today for the first time in a few months. (My accounts are with our friendly bank but I normally use their night deposit.) It was my first up-close view of the interior renovations that were done a few months ago. It certainly looks professional and secure. Although I will have to say there was a certain charm to the old look; not as antiseptic. While in the bank I was able to visit with Mary Brantner. I had not seen Mary in quite a while and we had a nice conversation. She asked where I had been. I told her things run smoother at the Kosse Cafe if I stay in the background and let Stacy run the show. Stacy is an excellent manager and the cafe is a reflection of that.
I received a follow-up e-mail from Mike Wheal. I hope he does not mind its publication. He offers a good observation of our community.
George
Thanks for putting my comments online ! The leg will be fully healed in 6 or so months - I can walk on it now - but running isn't really an option. I do have a 4 inch piece of metal and 5 pins inside me as a full time reminder of my last visit ! Hopefully the next time won't be quite so eventful.
I'd like to thank you for the certificate - my point was 'tongue-in-cheek' as it were. I read your blog mainly to see how life in Rani's town passes by and to see how / what people think of the various issues that affect their lives.
The building of the mine and the power station can probably only mean growth for Kosse - but it would be nice to think that it will still retain its friendly uniqueness.
As I wrote in yesterday's blog, the Kosse Cafe gift certificate giveaway did bring to my attention the fact people are actually reading my daily musings. I received an e-mail today which brought great surprise to the widespread scope of the readership. It was a letter from Mike Wheal and it is self-explanatory.
Hi George
Just a short mail to let you know how much I enjoy reading your Blog each day / post !! Am I one of your furthest 'readers' ? (Central England)
How did I find it you ask ? Well, my girlfriend lives in Kosse (Rani Lauderdale) and I have visited Kosse several times in the last 2 years and eaten at the Cafe ! In fact, before I even visited for the first time, I'd heard so much about life in Kosse and 'catfish night' on Friday for Mary and John Lauderdale.
Whilst I am writing could you mention several things online for me ?
I visited Rani last Christmas and had the unfortunate experience of rolling a 4-wheeler over myself, breaking my 'tib, fib and shattering my plateau' - well - I wanted to stay longer with Rani, but next time I must find a less painful way of doing things...
Texan friendliness and hospitality really struck home though, the local school bus stopped to help me as did Mr Thunderburk. I would like to thank all concerned once again for the help they gave me that afternoon. (before I was taken to Waco for treatment). Also, a big thank you to Mary and John for a) making me feel welcome and b) helping me through part of the healing process.
But, mainly - and it would be nice to see this in print as it were, my deepest thanks to Rani for looking after me, sleeping at my bedside in the most uncomfortable looking chair for 5+ days and being the greatest nurse to one of the worst patients :)
I'd heard a lot of great things about Texas growing up, and my first time visiting really showed me how, probably uniquely amongst the 'states' - its identity is so solid. Maybe the only place where, when someone says "have a nice day" - they actually mean it ? --- now - a slight complaint !!
I am 6 hours ahead of you over here ! So how am I ever going to win my $10 gift voucher ? (which I will give to Mary, John and Rani !) or save for myself when I visit later in the year again !
With regards ! Mike Wheal
Mike's letter shows once again why Kosse is the little town with a big heart, and the Lauderdales' are one of Kosse's many class-act families.
Mike, in regards to your handicap in winning the $10.00 gift certificate-- It is true the prize was claimed within a very short time of the blog's posting. Therefore I am going to send Rani a gift certificate good for two catfish dinners that you and she can use upon your next arrival to Kosse. I hope your injuries have healed with no permanent damage and you can return to Kosse soon.
The winner of the $10.00 gift certificate to the Kosse Cafe was Carlos Smith of Kosse. I was gratified to see that people actually do read the Kosse Blog and I am not totally wasting my ranting and raving time.
I earlier mentioned my recent patronage of the newly-opened Bushwhackers Hair Salon under the ownership of Tim and Karen Partin. Tim and Karen are also the owners of Kosse Feeds. They have been a great asset to the growth and promotion of Kosse. Karen is involved in just about every civic organization I can think of and is always helpful, easy to work with, and friendly. There are a number of people like this in town and this is fortunate. Kelley McKinney-Self is another.
The Texas Education Agency released their district ratings report yesterday so I looked up the results for the Groesbeck I.S.D., the district which the Kosse kids attend. Evidently there are four categories; Exemplary, Recognized, Academically Acceptable, and Academically Unacceptable. The district as a whole was rated Academically Acceptable. Out of the four rated schools, three were rated Academically Acceptable and one (Groesbeck Elementary) was rated Recognized. Among the Bremond I.S.D. schools, two were Recognized and one was Academically Acceptable. Click for Texas Education Agency school ratings.
A new month arrives. August is our hottest month, the month that school begins, and the month of Elvis' death. People say they always remember what they were doing when they first heard news of significant events in America; i.e., the assassination of JFK, the bombing of the Twin Towers, for some the bombing of Pearl Harbor, etc. My hearing of Elvis' death was one such moment in my life. I was driving from Thornton to Groesbeck in my 1974 Chevrolet Vega when I heard the news on the radio that day of August 16, 1977. It was quite a shock. Click for website.
I am going to try something new in today's blog. If it gets a good response I will do it on a regular basis. This will only be advertised in this blog. I will mail a $10.00 Kosse Cafe gift certificate to the first person who e-mails me with their name and address and mentions the free gift certificate. Send your e-mail to georgerasco@tol-tx.com.
I see Fidel Castro has temporarily relinquished power to his brother, Raul. Click for article. The Cuban exiles in Miami are celebrating and hoping for his quick demise. It is strange how many of the cars are Cuba are 1950's-era American-made vehicles. You wonder how they have kept them running for so long.
