Thinking About Home and Wild Bill Hickok

The legend of Wild Bill Hickok began just outside my hometown at a place called Rock Creek station. (Southeast Nebraska) It was here that Wild Bill, by his own account, killed single handedly, nine members of a blood thirsty, cut throat McCanles Gang. Dime novels of the day led to it being called the greatest one man gunfight in American history. A battle Hickok survived with eleven bullet wounds.
What a story – how much of it is true –probably not much.
• Hickok became famous later and the facts changed after he became bigger than life. History forgot that he was charged with murder and released after a trial lasting a few minutes.
• Also his nickname changed from Duck Bill to Wild Bill, likely at his insistence, maybe at the point of a pistol if you insisted on calling him Duck Bill
• There never was a McCanles gang although David McCanles himself was a bully and not liked or missed by many.
• People who saw Hickok soon after the battle reported he had no wounds after the fight.
Anyway, so goes the tight line separating truth from fiction in the old west. Wild Bill went on to become a legend throughout the west. Including right here in Wyoming where he spent some time.

Love This Time of Year

I love this time of year, the days between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Everyone seems happy; people greet each other, kind of like the old days, so many people smiling and lots of people spending money on others. Wish it could last all year—but not the cold.

If this all sounds a bit sentimental, I’m and old guy and we old guys get sentimental this time of year. Well I’m off to by some presents for my grandkids.

Pearl Harbor Day

We should all remember this day in history. December 7, 1941.
My wife and I visited Pearl Harbor three years ago and it was one of the greatest experiences of my life. Every American should be lucky enough to some day visit.
When I was in college I had a history professor who told us that when he was a kid he thought he would never watch a parade without old men proudly walking by in their Union and Confederate uniforms. When I was a kid I watched so many old solders marching in their World War One and World War Two uniforms waving to us kids. I hope that there’re not all gone before all of us remember to say thanks. And not just to them but to all who served and are serving now.

Snow

Tomorrow is December; Christmas is just around the corner. We got 20 inches of snow this month and November is usually not a big snow month. Looks like we will have a very nice white Christmas this year.
I am in the process of inventing some kind of new snow blower one that will blow the snow back in the street after the city pushes it into my driveway every few hours.

HAPPY tHANKSGIVING

Thanksgiving was created to give thanks. After saying grace -thanks for the food- most of us forget about what we are thankful for.

Maybe it's about time we started spreading our thanks out a little more.

This is and old joke but since I am old and a long time school teacher I still like to tell it –every Thanksgiving

Asked to write a composition entitled, "What I'm thankful for on Thanksgiving," a student wrote, "I am thankful that I'm not a turkey."

Funny

Wyoming weather

Wow, no joke, temps in the 30s last night and 86 today--wonderful.

The Old Stomping Grounds

Took two weeks to travel through parts of Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and at last back home again in Wyoming and cool weather. My wife grew up in Texas and Oklahoma so we saw a bunch of her old stomping grounds. (Not sure the next generation will say stomping grounds but I still like the way it sounds. Great time but it is always great to be back home no matter where your stomping grounds are.
-N-