Thursday, August 18, 2016

Creatures of Habit





The other morning when going to prepare a bowl of oatmeal I noticed there was only one “A.C. Elliot Bowl” in the pantry instead of two.  There had been six to start with; but as the years have gone by their numbers have dwindled. 

You might ask, “How is it the bowls have a proper name?”, a reasonable question…

When I was a police officer working in downtown Houston my partner and I would occasionally have lunch at a small Chinese restaurant near the Eastex Freeway elevated.  I asked the owner where I could purchase bowls similar to the kind they had and was told to go down the street to a place called A.C. Elliot. 

There was no place called A.C. Elliot, nothing close as I asked her to step outside and point to the store.  She shook her head in such a way as to say, “Stupid cop can’t see the nose on his face”, as she pointed two blocks down to a wholesale house with a big sign out front, Asiatic Imports.  How could I have been so dense…

I’ve grown accustomed to placing two packets of instant oatmeal in my A.C. Elliot Bowl each morning followed by just the right amount of boiling water and a lump of butter. 

What has this got to do with the price of eggs?  (Pardon the colloquial expression)

My mother died this past Monday and there are so many thoughts and emotions running through my head as to make it spin.  When I noticed an A.C. Elliot Bowl was missing an odd thought came to mind; that of a desperately sick young woman looking out her window to see if there were any leaves left on the vine.  She had imagined that her life would end the day The Last Leaf fell off. 

A winter storm was blowing hard and most of the leaves on the vine blew off as evening drew near.  There wasn’t much hope any of them would last until morning as the young woman went off to bed, the look of death creeping onto her cheeks.

Much to everyone's surprise, upon opening the curtain one lone leaf had somehow managed to survive the storm as it bravely held onto the wall; but upon closer inspection the vine was no longer attached to the leaf.

A clumsy old alcoholic was found dead in the alley the next morning half buried in a pile of fresh snow.  He’d spent the night on a ladder in the cold and damp as he painted his masterpiece on the wall directly across from the young woman’s window, a perfect replication of the last leaf on the vine.  He’d created the miracle of hope for another individual with his last efforts.

Isn’t that an odd thought to come up with while making a bowl of oatmeal?

I’ll figure out how to manage the mix of thoughts and emotions that have landed upon my consciousness; it might take some time.  While driving to a job I won’t be able to call her on the phone as we pass the miles talking about the weather, the Astros, cats or what ever; that’s something I’ve come to enjoy these many years. 

We are creatures of habit.  Right now there’s an emptiness where something familiar is missing.  I’m so glad there’s at least one A.C. Elliot Bowl left in the cabinet.

This article has been cross posted to The Moral Liberal, a publication whose banner reads, “Defending The Judeo-Christian Ethic, Limited Government, & The American Constitution”.

Tuesday, August 09, 2016

Watching someone drop the ball



Last night during the Astros' game with the Minnesota Twins center fielder, Carlos Gomez, didn’t get the job done.  Perhaps that’s an understatement as he let a ball get by him and turned a single into an RBI two base error and permitted the batter to reach third. 

Bad as that was, Gomez managed to follow that botched play with yet another screw up as he lost track of a fly ball that should have been caught; but instead landed several feet away.  Remember the man on third, the one who should have been at first except for a two base error, that man scored and the batter ended up with a ‘gimme’ triple since the ball was ‘lost in the lights’.

I won’t print what the pitcher, Collin McHugh said, use your imagination; but it was captured on film for all who can read lips.  Let’s just say it follows the thought pattern of, “You have got to be kidding!”, only with a more common street verbiage and tone.

I mention this as a lead in for what’s going on in our country.  ‘We The People’ are standing on the mound as the ball(s) get dropped  over and over

We have an individual running for President of the United States of America who has managed to avoid being charged and prosecuted for crimes which would have the average individual before a firing squad, the gallows or serving life in prison without chance of parole.  

The FBI made their case against Hillary Clinton only to back off at the last moment and have FBI Director James Comey tell ‘We The People’ that the charges shouldn’t be filed because they couldn’t prove intent. 

Did I hear, “You have got to be kidding me”, or was it the cruder version as stated by the Astros' pitcher in last night’s game?

It should be noted, none of the felonies which Hillary violated in regard to lost email or improper us of email required ‘intent’; simply that the crime occurred, either by willful intent or neglect did not matter.

We could say the FBI and Justice Department lost it in the lights, much as Gomez let the ball avoid his glove. 

‘We The People’ are standing on the mound, figuratively speaking, watching this unfold before our eyes.   I can assure you my exclamation matched up with the Astros’ pitcher… and those who can read lips know what I said.

This article has been cross posted to The Moral Liberal, a publication whose banner reads, “Defending The Judeo-Christian Ethic, Limited Government, & The American Constitution”.