Ramblings
Below are some of my rants. They are just for fun. If you feel they are offensive, the best thing to do is to not read them.
Cafeteria Design
I wrote this ages ago. This rant shows my age because it is moot. School lunches are now packaged at a central kitchen and served in sealed compartmentalized plastic trays. However, I am sure this method of feeding the masses has not changed school design. California has a strange plan for designing schools. My brother-in-law, Carl, had the right idea years ago. The state should have ten school designs and the plans on file. No new architect for each building. But, that is not the case. I won’t try your patience by discussing the fact...
read moreSo, That’s Electric?
Most of you know that Ruth and I drive an electric car. My friend Tom, who does not tolerate nerdiness well said, “Is the sign big enough?” when he first saw the car. He didn’t ask if it was electric. When we first purchased the car, electric cars were not as prevalent as they are today. The following is a typical electric car conversation we might have experienced in those early days. Scene: Parking Lot. Hapless fellow wanders up and stares at the Electric Vehicle sign in the back window of the car. Guy: So’s, that...
read moreBlack Salve
I suppose most of us can remember things that parents did to keep us well. Our lives are filled with little sayings that can be of aid in situations of illness. Personally, I can never remember if you feed or starve a cold. This gives me little ammunition in case of a fever. One unique treatment in my mother’s family was Black Salve. Black Salve was what you put on a cut or scratch that was getting infected. I am not sure this is anything unique. A Google search instantly turns up many recipes for Black Salve. Aunt Arline was the keeper...
read moreBeckman Family Reunion
Where would George be if it were not for nostalgia? I suppose he wouldn’t sing songs like “Forever Young” when saying good-bye to sixth graders he had just spent 180 days with. He wouldn’t learn WWII songs on the piano and play them late at night. He wouldn’t write nonsense to friends, old and new. We hear of weather cycles. We hear of the 17 year cicadas. There are years of nostalgia. This year is my 50th high school reunion. This has put me in contact with friends I knew for a short time. One friend, Bill, has become somewhat a...
read moreVaccination Flumdummery
(It may be worth noting that this was written in April of 2014) I suppose this will hit some as meddling. I consider the actions of those I am about to describe as meddling. In the county next to us, Nevada County, 20% of the children in Kindergarten are there with a vaccination waver. This means that these kids don’t have the required vaccinations to enter kindergarten. I will make this simple. First, we must understand the herd effect of vaccinations by talking about a disease that has no vaccination; malaria. Malaria has been eradicated...
read moreBeckmans Decimate the Rain Forest
In the Paul Newman movie, Nobody’s Fool, his landlady, Jessica Tandy, constantly offers “Sully” a cup of tea: Mrs. Peoples: “Would you like a cup of tea?” Sully: “Nope, not now, not ever.” Ruth and I drink green tea every morning. This is because green tea is supposed to have antioxidants that will keep you healthy. Ruth really does not like to drink her tea. We have adapted the lines from Nobody’s Fool as follows: George: Do you want your tea? Ruth: I don’t want any tea now; I...
read moreMoonie Bugs
My Grandmother Sheely was a shy woman who’s love ran deep. Grandma taught me quite a bit, as I spent many afternoons with her after school. One of the things she showed me, in the powdery dirt under the oak trees, were moonie bugs or at least their little cones in the dirt. We didn’t have moonie bugs in Madera but at Calvin Crest, during 6th grade Outdoor Education, I was able to show the kiddies moonie bug holes and even was able to catch a moonie bug for one group. For the curious, moonie bugs are also called antlions. Some refer...
read moreVanWinkishing
It would appear that our children miss us when we are off doing what ever we do in the motor home. We always make a stop at our great friends, The Van Winkles, in Missouri. Apparently we “go absent” and do not communicate as readily as when we are at home. Of course, I write these pieces of nonsense but as you know they are not exactly informative. In fact I pride myself in giving as little information as possible about where we are or what we are doing. If I do write about an actual event, I try to let some time pass before...
read moreLakers?
Let me begin by saying that I don’t know beans about basketball. I know that March Madness is a big time for fans and am 98.35% sure we are talking college ball. This is because our Son-In-Law graduated from UCLA. Daughter Dearest hales from USC, so they have an interesting household. The deal there is if you buy a kid an item of Trojan Wear you have to get the kid an item of the Bruin ilk also. Driving though the Midwest, we see little town after little town. We know this because the high school team mascot is often emblazoned upon the...
read moreThe Wheelbarrow
The movie Raising Arizona stars Nicholas Cage and Holly Hunter. Great movie; early Coen brothers. The song “Away Out on the Mountain” (Jimmy Rogers, 1928) is used, especially the yodel part, which was whistled in the movie. Father, who passed away at 98, would be 104 years old. The other day I was pushing father’s wheelbarrow up the hill from the old barn with some dirt and thought about him. Not the 98 year old father but the one that used to push that wheelbarrow in San Dimas Canyon. He pushed it for miles. He would have...
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