A Pot In Every Chicken

Porcupine Foreplay

I just read an interesting article in the BATHROOM READER WONDERFUL WORLD OF ODD.  It is the pre-sexual rituals of Porcupines.

Here is a brief summary:

When a female porcupine decides on her mate she will start moping around him. The male, when he realizes she is flirting  with him will follow her around singing in a whiny high-pitched voice.

Finally when the moment is ready the male stands on his rear two feet and hoses her with a powerful stream of urinal, drenching her from head to toe.

She then lets out her own high pitched scream and attacks and runs him off, or turn her body up exposing her non-quill area, which is an invite to get down to business.

Caution to humans:  Don't try this at home.

Speaking of Helicopters.

Above is me in a Naval Bell Helicopter, about 1963-4.

I was in HU-4 Navy Squadron for almost two years.  I worked in the Information & Education Office, I knew nothing about helicopters, only they made good photo props.

Our division officer was a helo pilot.  We did not see much of him, he came for about 30 minutes a day to sign various papers that we had ready for him.  Other times we think he spent his time helo training, and hanging out in the Officers room, I forgot the name of it.

When we got to know him we got to like him.  He considered us equals and would roll his eyes if we addressed him as "sir". 

He told us of his training, which he said most times included a fly-over of Cape May on the southern tip of New Jersey, which included flying over a nudist colony.  After he told us that we pestered him to take us.  He said Ok.

In the same type of Bell Helicopter pictured above he took me up in.  He did not take me over ther nudist colony at Cape May but did give me a thrill of a lifetime:

We got high up in the sky and he turned around to me, since he had earphones, I think I heard his radio voice say, "Watch this!" and smiled like a mad man.
He turned off the engine.


The propeller stopped spinning.  We started to drop like a rock.

I think probably turned off his radio and laughed like a maniac.

The faster we dropped.

I could only think, "Oh Shit!"

The closer to Earth he said something like, "Look!  No hands Ma!"

Then, very cloth to earth the helo slowed down.

What I didn't know at the moment but he explained was Auto-rotation.

Auto-rotation was that as the helo fell the air resistance began to turn the propeller.  And it got turning faster and faster.  When it got just a rock's throw above the earth the prop was turning to fast it gently sat us down.

I almost shit in my pants and the joke was on me 

The Bowery Boys & Keep Away

Remember The Bowery Boys?  They were in movies in the 1940s and 50s.  They hung out in the back room of a malt shop and some guy probably with the name "Pop" ran it.  It was the kind of black and white movie you would see at the movies before noon on Saturday.

I think every episode they had a tangle with the neighborhood bad guys every episode the Bowery Boys had something that the bad guys needed to complete their evil plan.  And it always came down with the Bowery Boys played "Keep Away" with the Bad Guys.  The Bowery Boys had great expert precision choreography when playing "Keep Away".

One time we were in Long Beach, California, and as we drove through town we saw a gang of hoodlums play "keep away" with a poor old man and his hat.  Just like the Bowery Boys.

NAZI POW Youth Camp

In many of our's lifetime.  

SUNDAY FUNNIES!! MAD's Version of SHERLOCK HOLMES

Ripped from the pages of MAD Comilcbook #7.  The text (loosely based on the stores by Sir Arthur Con;an Doyle) and the cover art is by Harvey Kurtzman.  The rest of the art by Will Elder.

Art Cars Palooza, Atlanta Street, Marietta, Ga

Homo What?

Speaking of Supreme Court Justices

On January 20, 1801, John Marshall was appointed U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice.

John Marshall had a sister named Hannah Elizabeth Marshall .

Hannah married Zachariah Petty. They are my ancestors.
So, John Marshall, Supreme Court Justice is an in-law of mine. How do you think I got my job at the Post Office?

Rocky and Benjamin Jan 20, 2020

Our son Rocky and his son Benjamin dropped by yesterday.

MLK DAY

HAPPY MLK DAY!

SUNDAY FUNNIES!! Last LI'L ABNER Comic Strip by All Capp, 1977

click to enlarge to read the balloons 

I read that this is the last LI'L ABNER comic strip drawn by its creator Al Capp (1909-1979).  The strip is dated November 1977.  Al Capp was getting to be a bitter about the production of the strip.  Actually Detective Fearless Fostick was a comic strip within in a comic strip.  If was Li'l Abner's favorite comic strip..

In the above comic strip reminds me the results of placing a species where it has no natural enemies.  Here is Georgia years ago the government officials imported kudzu from Japan to do help prevent soil erosion.  With no natural enemies it flourished and now is almost uncontrollable.  

Also I remember hearing years ago when Australia was under British control a wife of a British officer bought come cacti for her garden.  The cacti got carried away and became a nuisance.   Then the Bits imported rabbits to take care of the cactus problem.   Then, rabbits, with no natural enemy there became the problem.  Then snakes were hauled in to take care of the rabbits, and then they had a new problem.  I don't haven't heard the latest problem.

Play by Play

Video, Downtown Marietta Merchants Back In the Day

click below:

Benjamin and Folks

This morning going to the lab to have my blood drawn for medical reasons next week a man rushed past me to get into the elevator first.  Since we were the only two in the elevator  what difference did it make?  Because he rushed in first and and I tottled in in second I am closer to the elevator door so I will get out first, unless he knocked me aside, which he didn't.  He pressed the 3 button and I pressed the 2 button so we were not really racing at all, we had different destinations - he just wanted to feel  better about himself getting in the elevator first.

In the elevator he noticed his sweater and shirt was covered with dog hairs.  He mumbled something bad about his dog getting on him before he left.

"You are lucky."  I said.  "My dog died about four months ago."

His expression looked like he almost cried.  "I'm so sorry." he said.

Chicadees

Free Range Chicadee under the protection of my in-laws and Free Range Baby Chicadee under the protection of its mom Chicadee, about 1980.  Photo by me.

     

Oink!

SUNDAY FUNNIES! MAD'S PING PONG issuer #6

Every heard of KING KONG?  Of course you have!  Here is edit/writer Harvey Kurtzma's and artist Will Elder's take on it.


Be sure and click on each page to read the print so you will know what is going on, and seeing the picture enlarged will help too.

Varner Reunion 2011 Video

Just click below:

Natrional Oyster Rockefeller Day

Today, January the 10th is National Oyster Rockefeller Day.  So, go out and gobble down a dozen of those slimy creatures.

Before you eat the first one think about this:  What you are about to eat, probably swallow whole, is alive.  That is true, oysters are served alive.  I think it is done this way, because that is the cheapest way to keep them fresh.  After they are no longer living they begin to rot instantly.

But, on the upside, one may have an expensive pearl in it, right? 

Grandpa Frank Paris Hunter saved my life

On this cold frosty morning I thought of backing up to a fireplace. Wait! I have a little adventure that comes with this thought.
When I just turned seven we moved in my grandfather Frank Paris Hunter. His wife, my grandmother had just did. He and I became good friends. He kept his moonshine hidden in the coals underneath the house. Instead of fire wood we had a pit under the front porch that kept our coal supply and grandpa's whiskey and wine. The booze was our secret.
In the mornings Grandpa got up before anybody else and felt it was his job to butter the loaf bread slices and later Mama would slide the bread in the oven.
On cold mornings before anybody got up Grandpa started the fireplace with his coals. Besides the stove that wss the only heat source in the house.
I was usually the second one up. The first thing I would do is back up to the fireplace to warm my legs. The last morning I did that a hot red cinder popped out of the fireplace and my pajamas instantly burst into flames. It caught me by surprise and I panicked and screamed.
Instantly my grandpa, in his 70s threw me down and somehow beat the flames out.
I don't remember going to the hospital, which would have been the Old Hospital on Cherokee Street. As a general rule my parents believed more in home remedies over ER's.
But I do remember my legs being covered with blisters for weeks. Very painful.
But here I am about 70 years later typing about it.
The photo is my grandfather Frank Paris Hunter on the steps of his house, about 3 years he saved my life.

The Slob In Front of Me

I walked into Krogers and went to the pharmacy.  Thee was one person ahead of me.  They were waiting on him then.  Another guy, over to the side was sitting on a machine that tells your blood pressure.  He was a big guy and his ass was hanging out of his low bands.  His butt cheeks reminded me of two sleepy manatees  rolling around with the water current.
When the man  at the counter walked away the guy with the two manatees hanging out of the back of pants jumped up and sais step away a minute and someone takes your place!
I told him to go ahead.
He told me to go ahead, so I did.
He talked about he is an "old fart" now and he can do "damn what he pleases."
I think he was drunk or  or high. from some source.
II told him to go for it.
"How old are you?"  He asked and I told him.
The he told me he takes 9 medicines a day and his wife is sorry.
I gathered up my stuff and was leaving  as the clerk was waiting on him.
I heard him tell the the clerk that he has never voted before but he is this time.  He said he already
He registered and is going to vote for DONALD J. TRUMP!
And he added that he hopes Trump sends Pelosi to prison, as I walked away.

Orange Bully

A friend I made in the Navy over 50 years ago got a visit from the Thailand Police yesterday.   He and his native wife have lived there between 15 and 20 years. 

I got out of the Navy and he stayed in, rising in rank to a Warrant Officer. 

The local police that visited  said  they wanted to make sure of his security.  They said they are checking the security  of all Americans in this area because of recent developments.  They did not say what.

What has the Orange Bully went and done now?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BONNIE!

SUNDAY FUNNIES!! MAD #6 Tarzan again

Story by editor Harvey Kurtzman.
Art by John Severin.

Don't forget to click on page to make it readable and hopefully more sense.

Benjamin Batman or BB

Marietta Hangouts, Haunts, and Graves Video

Hanging out and haunts in Marietta, Ga.

Click below, layback and enjoy (or cringe):

Today we were sitting in a doctors' office waiting room. We were listening to two men, apparently not knowing each other, talk about weather, football, hunting, and Texas, where he was from and doing most the talking. The other man was easy going. I noticed he was wearing a dark blue business-casual type of uniform, he had a name tag: Cox, Chief.
After the guy doing most the talking left I asked the polite guy what was he chief of and he said the Cobb County Police. I jumped right in and said my father was Chief of he Cobb County Police and before that he was the Chief of the Marietta Police. He looked impressed.
We (Anna too) talked a lot about Marietta and Cobb County, how things have changed and so on.
Back to Daddy: He asked Daddy's name: "Ed Hunter". He asked when was Daddy chief of the Cobb County Police? Mid 1950s, maybe nearer 1960.
Chief Cox said, "That was before I was born."
I felt old. Maybe I should have called him "Sonny".
Small world.
Driving home and thinking about it, I should have asked him did he know my friend Lee Moss and Jerry Millwood, Cobb policemen (now retired). Picture is of Ed Hunter, Cobb County Police Chief.
I.

Lost on the Beach

Old

New

Sometimes when I wake up in the morning before my feet hit the floor I like to sort dreams from reality.

I'm told I wake up to a new world everyday, anyway.

 If I remember  my dream correctly Anna and I drove to the Gulf shore line and rented a motel room with a panoramic view of the view with water far below us waves splashing against the giant rocks and cliff, far below us. And to get to the shore we had to go down a shaky rickyly wooden steps that you had to be careful because some of the steps rotted out and after the trip that way we decided to call Uber to get us down there, not as romantic but safer. 

I don't think the Florida Gulf coast has any cliffs.

Then (in the deam) we went to  the row of fine dining establishments! The finest dining in the south! I'm not sure all that is true. I vaguely remember what is probably more closer to the truth. We binged watching a new re-done series on tv, LOST IN SPACE. We watched at least 3, maybe 4, episodes. The family on this uncharted plant is of course lost and of course named Robinson. And of course a robot strolls by and naturally takes up with the your preteen boy. And of course there is a evil doctor with no morals who is always up to no good. It is pretty good. Each scene change leaves a cliff hanger to be taken back up soon. If it was a book it would be a page turner.

Ham and Hambones

Today, cooking our blackeyed peas we threw a hambonet into the pot for extra flavor.

The hambone looked big and bold with ham clinging to it.

It reminded me of our late friend Brigitte who could do wonders with a hambone. She got so good she would go to the Honey Baked Ham store and just bought the hambone and made delicious dishes.

The big hams that the hambones supported reminds me of the Dog Patch Ham. The Dog Patch Hams were natives of Dogpatch (created by Al Capp) and were family members of Dogpatch citizens having a higher status in the family than the family dog.

The Dog Patch Hams got the Dog Patch families through famine time. Their gift was they just kept producing ham that its family members could help themselves too.

Li'l Abner and Daisy Mae took their Dog Patch to New York City for their honey moon. I forgot if a crook shot it or a mean bell hop at a cheap hotel shot it, but the whole story line was that Li'l Abner dropped everything and full attention to the ham. Of course all ended favoring the young newly married Yokums.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY Sally and Par!

Now, do another one!