Did You?

On This Date, August 16th...

1812: General Hull surrenders Detroit & Michigan territory to England. I read that Detroit is trying to make a comeback. It was suffering from 45% unemployment because the big ones of the auto industry moved to other locations, leaving the city high and dry. I think now the State Department is going over the legalities of the terms that General Hull surrendered Detroit to England in 1812 and say England won Detroit fair and square and it is now back under British rule as far as the U.S. is concerned.




1925: Fess Parker Fort Worth Texas Fess Elisha Parker was born either on August 16th, 1924 or August the 16th, 1925, take your pick. Wikipedia says he was born in 1924, on-line This Day in History says 1925.. He is probably best remembered for playing Davy Crockett and wearing a coonskin hat in the Disney movie. However, he also wore a coonskin hat playing Daniel Boone on a TV series. He also played James Andrews of Andrews Raiders in Disney’s GREAT LOCOMOTIVE CHASE, which sort of started here in Marietta but really got underway a few miles up the track at Kennesaw… or was the name of it Big Shanty then? Not long ago we were in Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta andread a sign said James Andrew was hung something like 40 or 50 feet from the sign, which would have been across Memorial Drive. I looked over to the spot the sign was pointing to and saw Fess Parker swinging at the end of a rope.




1977: Elvis Presley died of a heart ailment at Graceland at 42 and the music stopped.

A Good Deed for a Day

One morning while walking Willow not long ago, almost a half mile from our starting point, I noticed in a driveway what looked like a checkbook.

I didn’t touch it. We continued our walk.

We walked about 1.5 miles and were coming back and I started thinking about that checkbook looking imitation leather lying in that driveway. I shouldn’t have just let it stay there. I should have picked it up and carried it to the house and knock or ring and ask if it was their checkbook, or whatever.

OK, if it was still there, that is exactly what I will do I told Willow. She looked up at me and I’m not sure if she was panting or laughing at me.

The checkbook looking thing was still there. It was closer to the street than I thought. It was only about 18” up the driveway.

I picked it up and walked up to the front door. A climbing vine complex with leaves completely covered the front door. It hasn’t been opened in years.

I walked around to the carport, in between three cars in the upper part of the driveway. As I found out, the cars had no room to park in the carport. The whole carport area was covered with junk, old furniture, and toys.

There was a trail, sort of, that led to the carport-kitchen door. I felt like if I walked up to the door and rung the doorbell or knocked I would be intruding. Somebody at that house probably would rather people not see all that stuff.

I looked at my watch, “Besides, it is 6:30 on a weekend the morning.” I thought. “Being awaken at this time of the morning up may not give them a thrill either.”

So, I laid the checkbook down in the middle of the path leading to the door. When somebody came out they would have to step on it or kick it. … by the way, when I was easing it down I noticed money greenery – it had at least a $10 bill was in it, probably more.

I hope they got it. And if they did, I hope it was theirs.

Guarding America Against Americans

After Obama was declared the winner I think I felt the earth tremble a little. Maybe not, maybe it just felt like it. People living near older cemeteries reported that they also felt the earth tremble, but it felt like more than a mere tremble. I wonder why?

Which reminds me:

In July 1959 when I turned 18 there were a couple of things I needed to do. I had to sign up at the local draft board and I felt it was my duty to register to vote.

Where I registered is vague. It seems logical that the voters registration office would be at the courthouse. But, I think it may have been across what was then Washington Avenue (now Roswell Street) at an Army Navy store.

The owner(s) of the Army Navy store had some ties with the county government.

Either the courthouse or the Army Navy store I registered to vote. I brought my birth certificate and all that. I think probably all I needed was the statement “I’m Ed Hunter’s boy” .

But I did it the right way and so did the guy who authorized my voting eligibility. I think his name might have been Luther. He pulled out a worn sheet of paper with typing on it. He told me to me to read aloud what was typed.

It was Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address.

I started reading aloud, “Four Scores and Seven ye…”

I was interrupted by Luther, or whoever. “That is good – you pass!” He told me.

“I don’t have to read it all?” I asked.

"No. You said “FOUR” instead of “Fo’” – that is what I was listening for. If you had said “Fo’” then I would have to turn down your registration application. We can’t let all those crazy people vote – no telling what crazy they would vote for.”

Of course, that was a racist ploy to prevent blacks from voting. Before then, the south used the “Grandfather Clause” to prevent blacks from voting – it was another type of literacy test – but the problem with the literacy test a lot of whites failed it too. They added the clause that if your grandfather voted you can bypass the literacy test.” That was ruled unconstitutional, so in time they fell back to the oral literacy test – which in time was ruled unconstitutional also.

The guy (Luther?) felt he was doing a great service to America by not allowing a certain segment to vote. And I bet no amount of arguing could change his mind.

I cannot think of anything more un-American than refusing a certain segment to vote because you were scared of how they may vote.

Yesterday, if you happened to have been near the cemetery Luther is buried you might have heard deep down in the earth a muffled voice, “I knew this would happen!”

I'm Back!

Yesterday I reported for Jury Duty. I have not been on Jury Duty since the early 70s. Then I was on Jury Duty three times in the same year: The Grand Jury, a Superior Court jury, and a Pettit jury…. But it is all a blur.

We were to report at 8:00. Misjudging my time, I arrived at 6:45, One hour and fifteen minutes early. I reported to a dark room with no one there. I sat down and enjoyed the solitude.

About 7:15 in came a very decently dressed man that looked to be about my age. We buddied up for a while. He is a retired New York City detective. He was very gentle and polite. Now, he is also a preacher. He shared with me that he played hooky Sunday and he and his new wife headed to north Georgia to look at the leaves. He said he went to Blairsville and Brasstown Bald. Of course, he got a brief Hunter history lecture.

By 7:50 there were just a few people there- I told the detective/preacher there were not enough people to have one jury, forget about two. Then, in just ten minutes the place looked completely different. A lot of people had arrived. I don’t see how people can squeeze so close to the scheduled time.

Wait! After 8:00 more people arrived. Up to a dozen people dribbled in all way up to 8:55. Good Lord!

There were plenty of magazines and books. If you were sitting around doing nothing you find a paperback book to read – but I don’t see how you could finish those 500 and 600 page books in your short stay there… they also had a lot of magazines. I picked up and flipped through a National Geographic.

In the back of the potential jury people’s room was two coffee pots, one regular and one decaffeinated. On each side of the room in the back was a door. One had Women on it and one had Men on it.

In the Men’s restroom you can hear the lady on a speaker. There was a speaker above my head as I was standing at the urinal. I heard her say, “Raise your right hand and if you confirm what I say, say something like “I do” or “Affirmative” or whatever.”

Well, I could raise my right hand but then I would have to put my left hand to use. What if somebody came in would it look like I was mocking the whole swearing-in system?

I hurriedly finished my business, washed my hands and got out in the main room, just in time to mumble something affirmative.



And what is bad, apparently the kind hearted bailiff or jury clerk let them get away with it. Why even have a scheduled time?

They lady court clerk told us that the ten or so people that did not show up will be dealt with severely. Hah! I bet!

They called names and formed a group and left with them to the a courtroom. Then, they got up the names of another group, which included me and we went to another courtroom.

This time I was one of probably 50 potential jurors to be interviewed. The very nice looking judge-lady asked the questions. She was friendly smiling, sometimes laughing, and willing to overlook the blunders of us simpleton laymen.

She would ask a question to the whole group and then asked if it applied to you, then you raised your hand and you got to tell the details, and sometimes they were juicy – which we as potential jurors also had nose problems.

Like one girl had to tell about her four siblings who got into trouble – some serious, some not…… I think that fell under “Are you related to anybody that has ever been arrested?”

The judge told at the beginning if it was too embarrassing you could ask to approach the bench and have the counsel move in for better hearing – but nobody did that – everybody that qualified spilled their guts more or less…. And it was over 50% of the room.

I told about my daddy and they asked if anybody ever had a law enforcement person as a relative.

Not only did it seem over 50% had criminals as relatives, or they themselves, but also many of the same were CEOs, presidents, and department heads… the two groups overlapped.

A questionnaire was handed out. We were to stand up, one at a time and tell our answer to each question. They even wanted to know if you had any bumper stickers on your car, and if so what. We don’t have any bumper sticker on either car.

The lady next to me said she had a McCain – Palin sticker, one for the church she belongs to – one religious statement, one animal shelter statement and maybe another one. She interrupted herself and said, “They are all put on very neatly, not gaudy!”

About a dozen people had McCain stickers. One had an Obama sticker.

They wanted to know what your profession was, and if you are retired like me, you was to tell what you were retired from. When I said I was retired from the Postal Service the defense lawyer made a mark on his pad…. I think he crossed out my name.

My jury duty session doesn’t end until the end of this week. I have to call every evening to see if they need me the next day. I feel I need to hold a sign up saying, “Will be a Juror for Food”.

I May Be Gone For a While

I may be scarce this week. Maybe. Maybe not.

I have jury duty. The first day they might excuse me and tell me to be on my way.

On the other hand, they might keep me for a while to hand down some important decisions. I am wondering if I would look too pretentious if I wear a powdered white jurist’s wig during session.

Which reminds me, if they had arranged for my jury duty to be last week I could have went in a Halloween costume on Friday.

I don’t know at this moment if I will be available to do a posting in upcoming day (s) or so, or if I will be locked up for contempt of court of what.

Stay tuned.