On Memorial Day Turner Classic Movies ran 1968’s “Where Eagles Dare”, with Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood as “Leftenant Schaffer” who “…wears the shoulder flashes of the American Ranger Division…that speaks for itself.” The supporting cast is pretty damn good. Especially (and I admit to unapologetic bias) Ingrid Pitt (Heidi): and Mary Ure (Mary): They… Continue reading Two Salty Gals
"Hi Joe. I came by to see Bill." "He's out." "OK. I'll come back later." "No, he's jes’ on the back porch. If he wasn't here at all, I 'da said he was out and about." “About? About what? About to come back? About six feet tall? About to get a speeding ticket?" "No, ‘about'.… Continue reading Reflecting
I wrote the following post to my class West Point discussion list a while ago. Tonight was Ah-nulled Schwarzenegger night at the movies. I watched Conan the Barbarian since I hadn't seen it in quite a while. The film about Robert E. Howard's timeless character was filmed in Spain, some 16 years after Clint Eastwood's initial dabbling with… Continue reading “I’m so cold…so cold…”
On active duty in the Army I once tried to use chewing tobacco to stave off hunger. It worked. It wasn’t long before the names Levi Garrett and Beechnut were the titles of a daily staple. Chewing, the act of stuffing the moist, tasteful harvest of a tobacco field into my cheek, became a ritual. The… Continue reading Chew
Mom always had a fixation on correct etiquette, especially at the dinner table. Drove my Dad and me nuts. “Put your napkin in your lap”, she’d admonish. “Drape it over your left knee.” All Dad and I wanted to do was eat. In fact, between mouthfuls, he’d say, “Wilma, let the boy eat!” It wasn’t… Continue reading Napkins at the Table
Chalk Dust 