The JBG Truck

Another JBG "trademark" (see below) was his 1953 Chevrolet pickup truck with large "JBG" sideboards. I'm having the truck restored, as shown here. Supposedly, the restoration will be completed in January or February 2006. I'll post pictures of the final product.

The Bubba Mistake

This piece from the July 28, 2005 edition of the Valley Mills Progress speaks for itself. Valley Mills, Texas is about 10 miles from Crawford.

Penn Jillette -- This I Believe

I know next to nothing about Penn & Teller, but after hearing today's "This I Believe" segment on NPR, I suddenly have new respect for Penn Jillette. Here's an excerpt: "Believing there's no God means I can't really be forgiven except by kindness and faulty memories. That's good; it makes me want to be more thoughtful. I have to try to treat people right the first time around." Here's another one: "I don't travel in circles where people say, 'I have faith, I believe this in my heart and nothing you can say or do can shake my faith.' That's just a long-winded religious way to say, "shut up," or another two words that the FCC likes less." Check out the full transcript at: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5015557

The JBG Store

My grandfather, known to everyone as "JBG," owned and operated this general store in Valley Mills, Texas from the 1930's until his death in the mid-1990's. JBG's most successful marketing tool was his claim that the store's water fountain produced "The Best Water in Texas." The pipe carrying water to the fountain ran through the meat locker, and the frigid water sure took the edge off of a 105 degree summer day in Central Texas.

"The Center No Longer Holds"

Take a look at this article in the November 20, 2005 New York Times Magazine. The author posits that even though the majority now embrace Democratic positions on the issues, the Republicans have so thoroughly entrenched themselves in power that it will be nearly impossible for the Democrats to gain a majority in Congress any time soon. Reading this so soon after finishing up Al Franken's latest book, "The Truth, with Jokes," was a real letdown.

"Jesus Without the Miracles"

My buddy Curt faxed me a copy of this article in the December 2005 edition of Harpers. It's well worth the read. The gist of the article is that Christianity is a whole lot more palatable once you strip out (as Thomas Jefferson did) the references to Jesus' miracles and focus on his teachings. The Bible portrays Jesus as a megalomaniac who was more interested in persuading the world that he was the son of god. Redact all that stuff and a compelling philosophy is revealed.

Rattlesnake encounter

This is my Uncle Kent holding a rattlesnake he killed on his property near Valley Mills, Texas. My wife, two small children, and I were with Uncle Kent when he noticed this little fella stretched out on the road. Kent carefully straddled the snake and tried to cut its head off with a pair of pruners, but the snake coiled up and tried to strike, so I handed Kent a shovel, and he beat the viper to death. His policy on rattlesnakes is kill first and ask questions later. My friend David would agree with that approach; he unwittingly stepped over a monster rattlesnake on the adjacent JBG Ranch a couple of years ago. The snake wasn't too happy about being disturbed and made a beeline for me (or my wife, depending on who you ask) before deciding to slither off into the brush. That feller was about four times the size of the one shown here.