MORE ON YESTERDAYS

I wanted to add a few things to yesterdays blog but knew none of you would read it if I just edited the other one so here is some more information. The eight geese referred to were shot with 10 shots from a Ruger .22.

The man whose funeral we went to Friday was a Pharmacist and trained race horses for a hobby--or a living--depending how you define it. All of his boys jockeyed for him. He always had tough horses and he always had horses at the big tracks like Phoenix, Las Vegas (when they had the track), Finger Lakes (in New York) and Shreveport (in Louisiana) and they always ran pretty well.

Some of you know and some of you don't but I rode race horses both as an exercise boy and as a jockey in 1970 and again from 1973 through 1975. I rode one of his horses a lot---we called him BIG-N-UGLY because he was over 17 hands tall and had a head that was way way way big. This was a funny horse---he could run a little (that means he was pretty damned fast) and was always at the front---but---he wouldn't finish passing the leader. He would just run eye to eye with him no matter how much you tried to bat (whip) him or hustle him to pass. There was a simple solution---tap him on the chin with the bat near the finish line---he'd reach his nose out there and pass most horses---I won a lot of races with him that way and they were all photo finishes that were won by a nose (and half a head). I really felt bad when that horse died---really. really. really. bad. I made a lot of money riding him and I really loved that horse.

In the church I belong to young men (19 year olds preferred) are expected to go on missions for the church and the parents are expected to pay for them to be out there. One of the things said at the funeral is one of his boys was talking and said it was a funny thing that when two of the brothers were on missions at the same time that they never had a string of horses win so many races and the winning continued for the entire two years. The Dad once asked one of his friends that if he was winning at the betting window if he needed to pay tithing on the winnings. His friend told him he thought so. At which he asked "Can I get some back when I lose?" I nearly died laughing.

He was a Scout Master---not mine though---and worked hard with the boys to make sure they got their Eagle Scout rank. After he quit being the scout master he continued pushing kids to get their Eagle---he pushed me along with my mom and dad but I didn't do it while I was in High School (yeah I was a brat and wasn't going to be pushed to do ahything---AND I STILL AM). I went to college when I was 17 and my roommate was also 17. You had to complete your Eagle requirements before you turned 18 at that time and I think you still have that long to finish. We were talking in the room one night and realized we would feel like quitters if we didn't get our Eagles so we went to work and finished them up. I will never forget him getting up in my court of honor and saying "You will never be sorry you completed this. You are among the elite young men of your generation. Less than one percent of the youth complete this requirement and you will always be able to say I DIDN'T QUIT. You can use it forever on your job applications and when ever people ask about your qualifications." He was right---I have used it---I still use it---and---IT HAS MADE A DIFFERENCE.

One other thing and then I'll let this go---a man came into his store one day and told him he had broken his leg in two places---he responded "Then stay out of those places!" The funeral went on like that for almost two hours. If you didn't at least smile at that comment you need to see a Doctor who will give you a prescription that will be filled by a pharmacist and you can only hope he has a sense of humor like this guy did.