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An independent Texas was born, 176 years tomorrow

Known as Mission San Antonio de Valero when it was built nearly 300 years ago, the Alamo is none worse for the wear in 2012.

Tomorrow is Texas Independence Day. For those who were not born Texans or were naturalized as ones either, the idea of a state having its own independence day sounds like something those crazy, egotistical Texans would just dream up. You know, kind of like the jackalope?

Texas independence is not all Davy Crockett in coonskin caps or Jim Bowie and his big ol’ Bowie knife. Neither is it all just the Alamo. There is, of course, the victory at San Jacinto that made the Texians the victors of their revolution. Previous skirmishes and all-out deadly battles also happened in places such as Goliad and Anahuac and Nacogdoches. The explanation for the Texas Revolution is also not as simple as it has for years appeared as it was taught in history to hundreds of thousands of Texas kids. Who knows just how involved were their eastern neighbors in the United States in defeating Mexico, which led to the U.S. eventually becoming a transcontinental republic and many will argue an empire?

Still, the Alamo is the real shrine of Texas Independence. The scene of the great battle that took place there more than 175 years ago. Many who are from other states and other lands think of the Alamo when they think of Texas.

It just so happens that I was across the street from the Alamo on business yesterday and two days before Texas Independence Day. I can attest that the Alamo remains a beautiful old structure with its wonderful shaded landscape.

I don’t fully remember the first time I saw the Alamo. I remember I was with my two Navy friends Buffalo Bob and Bob Fro. This was in our nation’s bi-centennial year, 1976. We were on the Alamo Plaza watching some older Latino fellow making some kind of craft we were interested in, or at least Buffalo Bob or Bob Fro were interested in it. It’s all kind of a fog these days and might just have been back then. But my head almost took a spin that cool winter afternoon when from the portable radio Sr. Artesano had sitting nearby blared “Deep within my heart lies a melody, a song of old San Antone … ” Yes, it was the “San Antonio Rose,” the signature song of Western Swing king Bob Wills. Talk about your feeling you were in separate reality.

It doesn’t mean anything, or in the parlance of the late 60s or early 70s of the 20th century, “It don’t mean nothing.” Well, yes, it does mean a double negative. ‘Scuse my smart-ass remark.

Why I mentioned this all I don’t know. The picture of the beautiful old Spanish mission, none worse for the wear almost 300 years after it was built, that I was fortunate to take yesterday kind of says it all for me.

For the rest of you, here is wishing you a happy Texas Independence Day, March 2, 2012!

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Back here discussing a few

You might have noticed I haven’t posted in a day or three. Ah, one word: “Verizon.” Long story and don’t want to talk about it right now.

I am on business in San Antonio overnight. Made the 4.5-hour drive from Beaumont on I-10. The speed limit was raised on most highways in Texas to 75 mph so more people will burn hydrocarbons. I can’t drive 55, but I can drive 75. For some reason, driving 75 feels like you are driving 82.5 mph. You know what I mean?

There are GOP primaries in Arizona and Michigan tonight. Whoopie! I will be watching NCIS x 2 and “Justified.” If you’ve not watched “Justified” on FX, you are missing a hell of a show. It is a very well-written, well-filmed and well-acted program. The first makes sense, of course, since it is based on Elmore Leonard’s novels “Riding the Rap” and “Pronto,” as well as the short story “Fire in the Hole.” That alone should make you want to watch “Justified” if you don’t already. I have already covered this subject before including the fact that the show has a cool Website with a couple of interactive games to help with that time you’ve been wanting to waste. Right?

As far as the primaries, if Mittens loses in Michigan — where his father was governor and CEO of American Motors (AMC) — then he’s stick-a-fork-in-the-toast done. Well, maybe not but it won’t make that nomination any easier to attain. George Wildken (where do they get all the weird names, Mitt’s name is Willard Mitt Romney) Romney also ran for the GOP nomination. He tried and failed back in 1968. That was when Tricky Dick Nixon was chosen for his first term.

I listened to Rush Limberjaw for about two minutes while driving today. He said there is no way that Obama will be reelected whether Romney or Santorum wins the Republican nomination. I think Rush sounds like he might be on the Oxy again.  I disagree, vigorously, with Rush’s ridiculous position just as I disagree that Rush is not a big balloon full o’ methane gas.

I’m back. Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back. That reminds me. I was zipping through the radio stations while driving to San Antonio and caught on a Houston urban music station a Zydeco version of “Movin On Up,” the old theme from “The Jeffersons” TV series. My friend Rene always called the show, “The Jeffersonians.” It was something to do. I am not for sure who recorded the Zydeco version.

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Gig watch

4.6556171875 gigabytes

As of 3:50 p.m. CST

Edging ever closer to Verizon’s 5 GB limit and extra dollars I need not spend.

It makes me wonder what effect over time it might have on Verizon if, and that’s a larger-than-Jupiter if, all who had the stupid limit on their wireless Internet plan would just shut off their computers? It never seems to work for gasoline boycotts so common sense gives me the answer that people won’t give up their Twitter or Facebook or whatever. Got to go now, as you may notice.

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Well, download me into an empty ketchup bottle!**

Downloads are the bane of my existence these days. Since replacing my hard drive, this and that and some more of this, has been showing up begging like a needy child: “Download me.” “No download me.” “Please, please, please.” Okay! Enough already.

These little annoyances would be just that, annoyances, were it not for the 5 gigabyte data cap on my present Verizon wireless Internet plan. That will change with the new 10 GB limit I signed up for today, along with the supposedly faster speed of my new 4G network, USB modem. Yes, I know there is a lot of jargon here and it means little to me, too, except in dollars and cents. In short, the 5 gigabyte plan I have has normally been enough for me since I don’t download “Gone With The Wind” or whatever else might eat a lot of data. I do like to download music but I don’t do a lot of it because of my 5 gig cap. Once breaking through that magic cap, my bill just gets higher and higher. I don’t like that.

Since I was due for an upgrade on my wireless plan I decided to go for an extra 5 gigabytes at a cost of $20 more a month. I also decided to forego unlimited text messaging and do the as-needed route for $0.20 per message. I didn’t have enough text traffic to justify spending an extra $10. As long as my friends and I text judiciously, I should be okay under my new configuration.

I have heard both good and bad about the 4G. That it is faster. That it isn’t. That it is contrary. Well, the 3G that I have has been all that as well. The speed has increased and has become more stable since 4G came to my town. So I shall give it a whirl. I have a few weeks to try it out.

Actually, I didn’t mean to sit here for this long, writing about all of this. I’m sure if anyone reads this the interest would probably land in the “Like Watching Paint Dry” grade, if not worse. But if you have soldiered on through it, I congratulate you and reiterate the rules here. After all, you must be the four or five regulars (Yes, our readership has doubled over the past five years.). And if you are a regular you know that the writing on EFD is meant to entertain 1) The writer and 2) Anyone who is left over.

I could have said in one sentence that you might not see much if anything here for a few days due to closing in on my current data cap.

But I didn’t.

**This is an expression of exclamation I just thought of which happens to have nothing at all to do with this post. It’s is the type of utterance my grandma — who was born in the late 19th century — used when she said:”Well I’ll swan!” Or maybe it was “Well I’ll swanny!”  Other than to gather that she meant, “Why I’ll swear,” or as I liked to say in the 70s and still do sometimes: “Wow man!”  I’ve not the foggiest what “to swan” means. Here is an educated guess. I don’t know why the ketchup bottle. It was just there.

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Santorum: The face of the once Grand Old Party

Never would I have expected Rick Santorum as front runner for the Republican presidential nomination.

I know it’s just February. I also know that several candidates have been out front in this race, or the weekly media buzz, that I really couldn’t have imagined. There was Rick Perry, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, Michelle Bachmann, and, of course, Willard Mitt Romney. Well, I suppose if Cain and Bachmann could generate excitement then I should have imagined that the same goes for Santorum. Still.

Of all the major GOP candidates, Santorum is the biggest demagogue. He also happens to be an extremely dangerous sort of demagogue. When it is convenient for him Santorum wants “big government” off our backs. He has no trouble, however, with government in our bedrooms and even in our private parts.

Santorum has railed against modern health care for women and infants such as blasting contraception and saying prenatal testing leads to more abortions.  

He portends to know what is in the hearts of people — President Obama in particular — and attack their “theology” even when they don’t know jack about it. His new press secretary said Obama had radical “Islamic” policies before she called back to the MSNBC program on which she was talking in order to say she misspoke. Don’t they all … misspeak?

Among the other trash talk which comes from the man his critics, me included, like to call “Man on dog,” is attacking environmental science that does not match his own beliefs.

I think he is a dangerous man because he doesn’t tend to consider the views, including the religious ones, of others. Those sentiments, which he has expressed endlessly are of an unbending evangelicalism that I fear he would try to put into law. I have no problem with tempered religious discussion in school, nor prayer. People are free to pray, in silent, just as millions do every day. I don’t believe religion should be mandated in public schools though, and if symbols of Christianity are placed in government facilities there should be no denial of other religious symbols including, yes, Islam.

Frankly, I hope Santorum is the GOP nominee because I believe the majority of Americans have trouble with the thought of his neo-Puritanical mindset injected into government. I don’t see the Republican nomination going to Santorum though. The big party men with the cigars and tons of money want someone with a chance to beat the black man. That’s pretty much the long and short of it. The old party rich and powerful will prevail, and if it not, we will finally see the destruction of the Grand Old Party. I’ve predicted such a split before, this is just another way it can happen.