Kids B.O.B

I have decided, to start working on a project that has been in the back of my mind for quite a while. Currently if  we have to bug out, then Senior and I not only would have to hump our own gear, but the boys as well.
So with that thought in mind. I have purchased them new backpacks for school this year, and am using the old ones they have had for the past two years and turning them in to a kids BOB.

I have to think of ways to keep them both entertained, because whether it is for a natural disaster, man made, or economical reason, once we bug out young kids can get bored. So, in the bags I am working on for the boys, I added some paperback books, a couple of activity books and a mini etch a sketch. And a selection of their favorite Hot Wheels Cars.But, I have told them both the importance of keeping these bags, and it is not to be loaded down with toys.

Food wise, I put in some trail mix bars, bottled waters, and later I will add some beef jerky, and packets of fruit gummies. Senior and I have lots of Datrix bars in our bags, and a water filtration source should the need arise. And in our bags we also carry all the emergency medical supplies.

To maintain some sort of cleanliness and hygiene we put in baby wipes and some travel sized toiletries like toothpaste and a tooth brush.
Our kids like flash lights, so I am giving them their own headlamp + batteries. And we also put in a change of clothes, I will change these out in accordance with the seasons and climate.
Both boys were actually excited to help out in doing this little project. We were at Home Depot a while ago, and the oldest kept pointing out things he wanted to add.
So, having a BOB for kids is something to think about ,and if you havent done it all ready then I hope to have pointed you in the right direction....

Carolina Summers Pt. 2.... Pancakes and Creamed Corn

Like most old southern folks my grandparents had a garden, one that took up much of the back yard. They grew all sorts of vegetables: cucumbers, okra, tomatoes, squash, corn and lots of beans. They were in the garden from the time they got home from work until sundown and for most of the day on Saturdays. And during my summer visits we kids worked the garden as well. Nanason and Papa collectively liked to can. I remember a nasty looking concoction they called “Chow-Chow”  I just know it burned permanently on my brain, As an adult I still can not stand the smell of stewed tomatoes, corn, and okra all cooking in the same pot--it all just makes me shiver....

Papa, now he was a wiz…he could make the best iron skillet corn bred known to man. I have tried many times to replicate, but never have mastered it as well as he did. Apparently it all centers around bacon grease- There really wasn’t much that did not happen in that kitchen that did not involve the use of bacon grease- it was a staple item. Oh and Lard…I must not forget the Lard!. 

They both loved to cook and put out a spread. Back then Breakfast was breakfast, Dinner was lunch and Supper-well that was dinner. We would eat breakfast and then the preparation for dinner would begin, and so went the vicious cycle….

I wasn’t unlike any other 6 year old-. If it was green I wouldn’t touch it, like most kids vegetables were yucky, They were no mans land as far as I was concerned. So, one night for supper, Nanason and Terri tried to trick me.

It all looked yummy enough, and smelled delicious.  I inquired, and was told we were having pancakes, cream corn and sausage for supper.  “Wow pancakes”! I love pancakes… I notice Terri smirking and Nanason with a big smile.

 The spread was laid before us and we all sat down, said the supper prayers and proceeded to chow. I was terribly famished from a long day of playing, and breaking all child labor laws by working in the garden and picking beans. I piled 2 large pancakes on my plate with a side of cream corn, poured syrup across them and proceeded to dive in… One big bite in my mouth and my face turned from excitement to green… “Blah”!  I spit it out.  “What is your problem? “My brother asked.  “ this is no pancake, what is this ? It is horrible!”
It was by far the worse taste that was known to a kid…“Honey its fried egg plant” Nanason said. “I like it nanason” said my brother. I gave him a scowl. At least I have the cream corn I thought. I dug my spoon in and took another heaping bite. Blah again…"now what is this stuff? “   “Oh that would be the squash dear”

Uggg I was green,”This is the worst supper I have ever had!; “you can’t feed this to kids”.  My protests fell on deaf ears; thankfully I still had sausage and corn bread.  Her trickery was short lived, supper ended the table was cleared, I retreated to the confines of the front porch   and the taste of fried egg plant covered in syrup still lingering in my mouth  was nothing less then pure icky-ness…..

--To Be Continued….

Carolina Summers Pt. 1

Writing about my childhood summers in South Carolina is something I have wanted to do for a long time. However, I always have the problem of knowing what I want to say, but not knowing how to properly put it down..so I am going to give this little series my best shot.

I was never popular in school..in fact I hated going. I could count on one hand the friends I had..I was just a shy kid and not out going as a student I was mediocre at best, My parents never invested much time or attention in to my education. I just wanted to get through the school day and go home to my books and toys.

So, during those formidable years, I would watch the calendar because I knew when June hit, school was out, and I would be packed off to my grandparents in Easley, SC.  little Easley, nestled in the upstate area of South Carolina..I smile at the thought of it. I fondly remember its southern charm and the stores along Main Street, there was a Rexall Pharmacy, diner, movie theatre, furniture and clothing stores. Towns like these were the staple in South Carolina, it was like someone had just copied and pasted them across the Carolinas...

My grands were mill people..back then textile mills dotted the landscape. The Mckissick Family owned most of the mills in the area, they were a giant in the textile industry. The residential communities were mill homes, and everything  community related centered around the mills. My Papa worked at the Arial Mill  it was  at the bottom of their street. My grandmother however worked at the EllJean plant a bit farther away, hers was near Pickens. Everyone on that side of my family worked in the mills, all the neighbors worked in the mills, and if you didn't work in the mills then you had a family member that did. My father and uncle were the exceptions, they got out of Easley and joined the Navy- and that is how we ended up in Florida.

So on one particular June, I was 6. we had to always wait until Dad was off work to make the drive, so it wasn't until late evening before we could get on the road After many hours, we crossed in to Easley during the wee hours of the morning, and there it was the big hill that their house sat on. I can still see the little pebbled street.
 You crossed railroad tracks, passed the other little mill homes and stopped at the house on the top. Across the street was the vacant lot that held the old mill school. It had all ready been closed down and local kids ( me included) had managed to throw rocks through all the glass windows. graffiti covered the old brick walls.

We pulled in to their driveway and my Nanason ( as we called her) met us at the backdoor. I would jump out of the car and go running to hug her..I can still smell her and see her smiling face..her hugs were a joy and I never wanted to leave the comfort of her arms. She had all ready been up and had a hot breakfast waiting for us: home made biscuits, ham, pancakes, eggs...she had a whole spread ready at 4am! I swear she was Superwoman!
We would stuff ourselves silly then collapse in a soft bed while she and my Papa left for work. My cousin Terri was there, she was the lucky one I always thought because Nanason and Papa were raising her. She was about 12 years older then me..my mother always thought of her as the sour grape of our family because her mother did not want her, and my uncle had turned her over to his parents.

After he rested and when my grands were back home, Dad would leave to head back to Florida, leaving us there until at least the end of July. And those are the times when I could truly be a kid. I had no curfew-no nagging mother..My Nanason and Papa knew everyone on the hill and they knew us . Back then you didn't lock your doors or close up your windows, kids could leave the house at 8am and not return until dark.. the summers were long and hot and for a Florida kid there was exploring to do and adventures to be had..........  

----to be continued.

Lincoln Passage

A friend of mine was researching Abraham Lincoln and came across this passage from our 16th President. I have read it over a few times and put it in to perspective for how things are today in this country.

..."We have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace, and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us! It behooves us then, to humble ourselves before the offended Power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness".

-Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States

Where There's a Will, There's a Way..and A Weapon

All these cries for firearm bans, but lets not all forget that on 9/11 Islamic madmen high jacked planes and used them as missiles. They flew them in to the World Trade Center and killed thousands of innocent lives. Where was the outrage for a ban on aircraft?
Today in Texas, 14 people were killed in a traffic accident, where is the call for a ban on motor vehicles?

My point is this...as horrible as the theatre shooting in Colorado was, it was the intent of the individual to commit this crime. It did not  matter what he had at his disposal, he was out to take lives. This was a theatre that sat some 300 people, he could have easily thrown a bomb in, or wired himself with explosives, thus causing even more causalities. But he did not do that, he chose an AR-15 a shot gun, and some hand guns.  Yes those evil black rifles that the liberals of this country are so ready to place a ban on.

Partial blame also needs to rest with the movie and video game industries. Warner Brothers deliberately does not say the weekend box office numbers, not out of respect, but because they do not wish to be associated in any way with the shooting. I am sure that at no time over the weekend did any of their public relations people answer phone calls. 

WB has taken the crime fighting Batman, to a whole new level with the Dark Knight Series, they have transformed him in to a dark individual with a deep and tragic past, long gone are the days of Adam West as Bruce Wayne knocking and socking the bad guys. The movies are so violent, that we have not allowed our 2 boys who absolutely adore all things Superhero to watch any of the Dark Knight movies. Instead of laying blame with firearms, I believe that there are more parameters involved and they should all be addressed not just the gun issue.
And if the topic of gun banning is going to be discussed and try to be forced on the American people then so should the topic of banning every thing else in this world that causes bodily harm and or death.

We did do our homework and found some interesting stats from 2010...
and here is a link if you would like to read more : http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr60/nvsr60_04.pdf

Assault (homicide) by discharge of Firearms : 11,015
Heart Disease : 378, 270
Motor Vehicle accidents : 35, 080
Alcohol Induced Deaths: 25, 440

Our Federal government conducted the  Fast and Furious operation in which many innocent Mexican lives were taken along with two federal agents so where is the ban on government and the outrage? 

Gun Show Field Trip

This morning, Senior and I chose to go check out the gun show that was in town. We have been before, but not together since December. We dropped the kids off early with my parents..Senior decided to stay in the truck today..

We got down to the venue and met up with a few other friends; DUKE, PIRATE JIM and REBEL. One thing I have noticed in recent years is how long the line to get in has grown and, how fast the hall fills up. It opened at 9am, and by 11am, it was a shoulder to shoulder traffic jam . We also noticed today how much things have gone up...some of the prices on guns, and ammo was ridiculous, but none more crazy then a guy selling range bags..

Senior and I did not purchase any firearms today, but did get some odds and ends. I am putting together a little medical kit for my BOB, and found some Israel first aid items, got some kid sized para cord bracelets for our boys, and I purchased a very nice Roma concealed carry purse, its a messenger bag style which is what I was looking for. Senior picked up a ammo can full of 40 cal ammo... turned out to be about $.26 a round.

 But the best deal I got was on the "Enemies Foreign and Domestic" series by Matthew Bracken. I got all three books for 12.00 each..they go for 20.00 on amazon. Three years ago I borrowed the series from Stephen, and have since wanted my own copies...they are that good- and a MUST READ !!!  The sellers know Mr. Bracken and have been trying to get him to do a book signing at a future gun show, I hope he will accept and participate, I would like to one day meet him.

 

We found this to be the loneliest booth at the gun show:

Rebel And I came across this read...

Then we opened it:

 BAHAHAHA!!!!

Good God What a big Gun!!!  :

After walking around for a couple of hours, getting separated a few times, and debating over the purchase of a Henry Repeating Firearm..which we decided not to purchase, we left and Senior treated me out to lunch  : )

Theatre Shooting

Today I am saddend along with the rest of the nation about the theatre shooting. Our thoughts and prayers goes to those families who lost a loved one. All they did was go to see a movie, something that at one time or another all of us have done at least once in our life.

This will be turned in to more ammo for the anti-gun folks, and used to demoralize us law abiding gun carrying citizens. The MSM is all ready trying to jump to conclusions and make assumptions.The gunman was this, the gunman was that..he was in the Tea Party, he had one of those "evil black rifles" etc...  But I will have to remind those people that he could have used anything as a weapon. They found his apartment booby trapped, would it have been better had he thrown a bomb inside and locked the door?

This guys was infatuated with the Batman series, he studied the films, and studied the new trailer for the lastest film..he knew what he was doing and he knew how to incapcitate the crowd. Witnesses are saying he spoke not a word...just started shooting....I could not have imagined the chaos that unfolded inside the theatre...but again, our thoughts and prayers goes out to those families......