With the School Year coming upon us quickly, The Boss Lady and I decided we would take our Daughter’s Family on one last summer outing. We chose The Great Wolf Lodge Resort near Dallas. More Tales are likely to come from that adventure, and hopefully they will be about good/funny experiences.
48 hours before departing we decided to go buy a new clear plastic backpack in line with Resort recommendations. Once in the store more “needed items” began to appear to the point I went and got a shopping cart rather than try and hand carry all these unplanned additions.
Now to be VERY clear for two purposes: One, all the items “more or less” made good sense. And Two, I’ve got to live with the Chief Editor of these Tales! There were a few things left in that Mega Store when we departed. But there were sure a Big Batch more things placed in our vehicle than the original one item.
The real reason for this Tale may or may not be obvious to ALL the readers. Like many of you, this is not an isolated incident, and I should have anticipated the outcome. Mimi takes REAL good care of her Grand Babies. Along the same line of thinking, I am FAR removed from being uncared for and abused by that same Lady. So, it’ s probably best I stop this here Rambling now and quit while I am ahead!
Category: Hunting Tales from The Brasada By Dr. Johnnie Rosenauer
First Times
If you live long enough there are a WHOLE Bunch of First Times that come along. I will let each of the Kind Readers of this Rambling take that thought wherever appropriate for you! Because of the time of the year, School is beginning at many different levels. In our little circle we have a wide range of “new” experiences for some of those closest to us that are Far younger than The Boss Lady and me.
Our Youngest Grand Child started his first day of Pre-K and I am pretty sure it was harder on his mom than on him. We had spent the weekend taking their Family to Great Wolf Resort in Grapevine and our Three Grandkids all had a Whale of a Time. I know we came back plenty worn out from all the fun.
Our Middle Grand Child started 2nd Grade, and she was quite reluctant to return. The Oldest is a “Senior” at their Elementary School and excited to start the year as a 5th Grade Student Council Member. I spent some time with each of them talking about ALWAYS being nervous at the start of School, whether as a student or teacher.
Starting with the End in Mind
Right off the Bat let me admit that I have “missed the target” on creating Project Plannings many times for most of my Life. In fact, sometimes I think my nickname should be The Blind Sniper! This Moniker is due to the many false starts/misses I created by “jumping off” improperly in the start-up process. I recently was reminded of this tendency for myself and others when at an Introductory Meeting for a new Project at our Church.
Competent and Intelligent Members at this meeting started to focus on a variety of “details of implementation”. It was SO Similar to a whole lot of other gatherings in my past. Whether the creation of a Ranch brokerage marketing plan, a new course or textbook, a Doctoral dissertation, or a gazillion other activities, the “Cookbook” for Success shares a common beginning point. At least it does in my feeble brain.
Rather than focusing on the HOW or WHEN, why not start with the WHY( Purpose) of this effort, whatever that might be. Once a common understanding can be “hashed out and clarified” the necessary first and even further steps can be more clearly identified. I realize this may sound obvious to some of the fine readers of this Tale. But stop and ask yourself…how many times have you had to “back track” on some effort because you “got way ahead of yourself” in the process? The answer is likely FAR MORE than you wished were the case.
Looking Good or Seeing Good
I recently saw a T-Shirt for sale that said something along the lines that aging is one body part saying to other parts: “You Think That Was Bad? Watch This!”
To be very clear, I take NO credit for that phrase, but I DO RESEMBLE that remark!
The latest in my Replacement Journey is a scheduled Cataract Surgery. The Good Book. AKA The Bible, talks about as some of the people mentioned aged…their Eyes Grew Dim. I can sure relate to that.
After some extensive investigations into that piece of my anatomy, some options were given to me and the Boss Lady. We selected the least invasive choice. Time will tell IF the procedure will be successful. But the real dilemma that comes to my mind is these two combative thoughts: Will I See Better and/or will I Look Better?
Candid cameras in La Brasada
Making a reference to the TV show Candid Camera will definitely put me into the Official Old Geezer category. A quick Google check tells me the program began production in 1947 or 48. As a kid growing up in the 50’s, I recall watching it on the little black and white set we had that allowed 2 channel options. We thought that our lives moved to “high cotton” conditions where Channel 12 was added to Channels 4 and 5!
The show generally documented people’s behaviors in surprising and unusual contrived situations when they were unaware of the recording. It caused many a laugh for me and my family and was a “must see” part of our TV schedule watching.
Perfect Anticipation
I was blessed in my “growing up years” to hang around some Country Folks that had, what appeared to me, a Magic Gift when it came to certain things. For example, the was a big old bow-legged Cowboy that seemed to know what cattle were going to do WELL before they did it! When I asked my Grand Dad about this skill, he commented something along the lines that IF you Hang Around Long Enough and Pay Attention Well Enough, you could learn and get better at most things.
The same was true for a couple of Horse Trainers I sent my young colts to when it came time to “putting a rein” on them. I was fair at messing with them as Babies on up to getting them comfortable with saddles and trailers, but NO WHERE near as good as those fellows when it came time to “finishing them” out. I would often query these Master Riders about their abilities, and both would simply talk about getting a “feel” for what was going on between the ears of the horse. They also commented, in slightly different ways, that pulling off LOTS of wet saddle blankets made the horse AND rider a better team.
Wandering Around with a Tale Running through my Brain
Every so often someone will ask me the “source(s)” of the many Tales I have written over the years. IF you asked The Boss Lady, she would likely refer to some kind of Neurological Disorder from too many hits to my stubborn old hard head. Some from other athletes in sports and a good many from livestock over the 40 years of raising cattle and horses.
Whatever the origin, the ideas come from a variety of places. A long-forgotten memory or a scene from a movie. A comment from someone else, or just something I see in everyday Life. I honestly cannot give a clear and definitive answer. Some are quickly “put together” while others may need to “stew” for a while. Either way they ultimately come out in a Draft Form on paper. That is where my Chief Editor comes into play. She will do a review and “make things better”. For that I am grateful beyond words.
Continue reading “Wandering Around with a Tale Running through my Brain”
If You Are Not Smart, then Stubborn Might Do
There is NO ONE in their right mind, who has known me for long that would confuse me with Phi Betta Kappa material. I would sit somewhere between there, and the Barely Gotta Outta category! And depending on the subject, closer to one end than the other.
And I would imagine many of you Readers fall into that situation right along beside me. I have spent lots of time with individuals that were as close to a Genius as likely will come into my contact. From Subject Matter Experts to Outstanding Leaders, Gifted Athletes, Master Woodsmen, the list could go on for a LONG TIME.
Continue reading “If You Are Not Smart, then Stubborn Might Do”
Been to two goat roping and a rodeo
WAY BACK when I was young, and folks had just about stopped coming to town in their wagons and Model T’s, there was a common saying used in La Brasada. Or at least in the circles that My Clan ran in.
You Are Going to Wear That?
Up front, right off the bat, I am going to admit that my Bride, AKA The Boss Lady, married WAY DOWN on so many levels when she said YES over 3 decades ago. She has far more style, class, and good taste than me in so many areas.
But rather than further confess ALL my shortcomings, this TALE deals with clothing selections. It did not take very long for me to notice my “clothing options” had changed considerably not too long after we married. The Closet did NOT look the same at all!