Happy Valentine's Day!

Here's to finding love in a backwards world!

Halloween in February! (Graphic Image Warning)

Oh man. "It's not my fault," says the possible future president. "It was the 60's." View more here if you have the stomach for it.

Local Politics

Read about this man who's running for county attorney in Kermit. I suppose since it happened in Odessa (45 miles away) four years ago, they don't think we will notice or remember.

The Marfa Lights

This is for Anonymous. The Marfa Lights are about 130 miles southwest of us, and they're real. I've seen them.





This is funny. It's an alleged flying saucer on the ground in Odessa. It is OBVIOUSLY A WATER STORAGE TANK!

The Night I Got "Turned In" To America's Most Wanted

How do I start this story? From 2002 to 2006, before my wife found employment with the school district, I worked a weekend job at the local Pizza Hut as a delivery driver. This was in addition to my regular inventory gig during the week.

One Thursday night in 2005, I was on my way back from an inventory in Iraan, Texas, about 120 miles south of my home. Liz and Robert were at home. Liz heard a knock on the front door and opened it to find a U.S. Marshal standing there.

"Good evening, ma'am. Is your husband at home?" he asked.

"No, he's on his way back from Iraan," Liz answered.

"Do you have a recent picture of your husband, ma'am?"

Liz invited him in and showed him the most recent picture that was hanging in the hall.

"No, that's not the man we're looking for," said the Marshal. He thanked my wife and apologized for disturbing her. Apparently they had received an anonymous tip that a man named David Creamer, who had been recently featured on America's Most Wanted, was in the area and delivered pizzas in Kermit.

He doesn't look like me except for the glasses. His glasses are identical to the ones I wore at the time. He must have gotten his glasses at Wal-Mart just like me. And I did have a mustache at the time, but not a beard.

Interestingly, Creamer is a diabetic, which I am not. That condition must make life on the run even more difficult.

It wasn't until the Marshal left that Liz noticed the four other deputies on the porch, collectively carrying enough firepower to take down a brontosaurus!

"Is daddy in trouble?" Robert asked his mom.

About a week later, Johnny, the manager at the Hut, admitted to me that he knew the name of the customer who had "turned me in" because he (the customer) had been bragging about doing so. The guy who called the show is a security guard and fancies himself an amateur sleuth.

I still see this guy around town, and I've never spoken to him about the incident. I saw him at the grocery store on December 31 and wished him a happy new year. He wished me the same. I am trying to forgive him. Inwardly, though, I still say "G-r-r-r..."

Everyone at Pizza Hut thought the whole thing was funny. My household was not amused.

As for Creamer, he remains at large, probably stopping in from time to time at Wal-Mart to get his glasses adjusted. And probably ordering testing supplies from Wilford Brimley.

And as for me, it was just a coincidence that I decided to get different glasses and shave my mustache off.

How do I end this story? Well ... if you're a fugitive from justice, why not leave me a comment? Or better yet, just keep running...

And as for the rest of you ... say, doesn't that person delivering pizza in your neighborhood look a little seedy?

Omen?

From clintontracker.com:
Clinton Revels in Giant Win

Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton became a super fan of the New York Giants Sunday, reveling in their upset of the New England Patriots -- and even seeing an omen for her own political future.

"Super Bowl, Super Tuesday, we've got one down, let's get the other," said Clinton.
Clinton has said she's banking on the "New York team" to carry the day in football's biggest test, and in a mega-round of primaries next Tuesday. With their 17-14 win, the Giants held up their end of the bargain.

Clinton held a campaign rally in Minneapolis, but gathered with about 200 backers at a local sports bar to watch football's biggest event.

When New York scored the go-ahead touchdown with 35 seconds remaining, Clinton leaped up and high-fived some young people standing near.

"That was unbelievable," she said. "Oh my gosh."

Filing out of the room after the game, Clinton gushed to reporters.

"I'm so excited, I'm thrilled," said Clinton. "It was a fabulous game."

Her husband, former President Clinton, watched the game with New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson. Clinton cheered for the Giants and Richardson rooted on the Patriots as they watched the Super Bowl at the governor's mansion in Santa Fe, two days ahead of the state's Democratic presidential caucus.

Richardson spokesman Pahl Shipley said there was no talk about Richardson endorsing Hillary Clinton before Super Tuesday.

Groundhog Day

In the words of lightside-robyn.blogspot.com:

"It's really no surprise Punxsutawney Phil, the famous furry weather forecaster, saw his shadow today. Six more weeks of winter. Yea. But really, would we expect on Feb. 2 that winter would end any sooner than mid-March anyway?

The only thing I like about Groundhog Day is the movie of the same name that came out in the early '90s. If you haven't seen it, rent it. In the comedy, Bill Murray plays the main character, a somewhat bitter TV weatherman who has to cover the Groundhog Day events in Punxsutawney. Suddenly he finds himself stuck in the little town, repeating the same day over and over again.

It's interesting to see his character change. At first he indulges in anything he can -- from too many jelly doughnuts to too much alcohol -- knowing the next morning it will be like nothing happened and he starts over. Gradually, he begins to reexamine his life and priorities and finds a way to make the experience a positive one.

Wouldn't that be an interesting opportunity? If you could go back and re-live one day of your life, which one would it be? Would it be one of the great ones you want to keep experiencing? Or would it be one you'd want to go back to so you could change something about it? "