Tuesday, February 28, 2012

HOME AND QUIET

A winter storm blew through Arizona yesterday and last night, leaving us with just a frosting of snow today.  The horrendous winds have finally calmed down somewhat but with the skies a leaden overcast it looks cold out there.  Better to stay inside if I can.  However I checked the weather forecast and saw a sudden warming trend on Sunday when the mercury is forecast to rise to 66 degrees.  I'm ready for that.

In the meantime, I've kept a cursory glance on Mitt "Richy Rich" Romney and Rick "I LIKE the 14th Century" Santorum as they careen madly around Michigan.  Arizona has its Republican primary today but virtually everyone including the candidates are ignoring it.  Most folks who were inclined to pick among the yahoos voted weeks ago, thanks to early voting.  I caught a glimpse of CNN today and their anchor/reporter was reduced to walking around with Joe Arpaio.  He's self-billed as the toughest sheriff around.  Locals think of him as either the most loved or most loathed public official.  There is no middle ground on Sheriff Joe.

SWMBO must have foreseen this political season and its affect on me as she gave me this book for Christmas.


She knew of my past affection for the good doctor so it couldn't have been a more perfect gift.  I'm reading it slowly so as to extract maximum satisfaction from it.  He was a joy.

Oh, on another front, I was nominated by my "brother", Tom, for a singular award the other day.  I accept.


In return for this honor I am instructed to tell you seven things about myself.  All right, here goes.

1.  I began life as a child.  Growing up in snowbound North Dakota made me a man by the age of six, when I was turned out (on ice skates) to make something of myself.

2.  My first writing triumph came in the first grade when we were assigned to write a (very) short story.  Mine concerned a rabbit escaping from a coyote and exclaiming "Whew!  What a relief!"  My teacher was impressed.

3.  In high school I discovered the dramatic arts and acted in two class plays.  This I carried into my abbreviated college career where I was in several plays, including "Hedda Gabler" and, less classicly, playing the lead in "The Gazebo".  In the latter theatrical gem, one of my fellow players was a young man named Dick Armey.  I am appalled to say he later went on to politics and became Majority Leader of Newt Gingrich's Republican House of Representatives.

4.  My interest in politics came when I was working at a radio and television station in Bismarck, North Dakota.  My boss had sent me to cover a tax conference.  I understood nothing but I came back and wrote a story for him to read.  He asked a couple of questions, to which I gave wavering and uncertain answers before exploding, "Damn it, Taylor, you're a good crime reporter but you don't know (expletive deleted) about politics!"  I figured my job was lost but later my boss took me for drinks and explained that I would just have to learn politics since our station was in the state capitol and the bulk of our news would be politics and government.  I learned.

5.  During my career, I attended (as a reporter or producer) six national political conventions and one mid-term national convention, as well as the 1969 inauguration of Richard Nixon.  Other than the first two - the 1968 Republican meeting in Miami Beach and the Democratic gathering in Chicago - the rest were all just long hours, a lot of work and exhaustion.

6.  I interviewed many politicians in my career, including a number of presidential candidates.  I believe I shook hands with all three of the Kennedy brothers (John, Robert, Ted) but my favorite interview of all was with an actor, John Wayne.  We went to his waterside home in southern California and he couldn't have been nicer to us, even allowing us to hold his Oscar for "True Grit."  He was dressed in seersucker trousers and a camelhair jacket but the thing that stood out the most to me?  He sounded exactly like John Wayne.

7.  I have been married to SWMBO (Judy) for about six weeks shy of 41 years now and, with some bumps in the road, it's been great.

Now, I am supposed to name several people to pass this award onto.
And so, after careful thought, I name:

Warren at Touch the Wind 
Jerry at Gently Said and
Dana (Bug) at Bug's Eye View

And with that, I'm going to join my pal, Jazz, for a little rest.



18 comments:

  1. I'm glad your encounter with "The Duke" wasn't a disappointment. I resented it when he won the Oscar for True Grit because i didn't think he was much of an actor and was being handed the award as a gift, especially since it was apparent he was ill at the time. I only saw the film recently and I must admit that he was actually very good in the role. My apologies, Duke!

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  2. I'm glad the passage of time softened your critique.

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  3. I enjoyed reading more about you - I'll have to consider what I'm going to reveal (I mean, what's left, after all?). Thanks for thinking of me!

    And now here is something freaky. I worked my cryptoquote puzzle as usual this morning & guess who today's quote was from? Yep - Mr. Thompson! He said: "Faster, Faster, Faster, until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death."

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  4. Hey brother-
    In our many years of friendship, I don't think I knew you had been a thespian. Maybe I did hear it once, but just couldn't remember. We've had a few conversations over the years where prevailing conditions could contribute to hazy or lost memories.

    Glad the old boss kicked you into a political awareness.
    You are a great political observer.

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  5. Actually, I thought I might be headed for New York and a career in theatre during my college days. Curious how one's plans change.

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  6. Partying with John Wayne. Not everyone can say that! Very cool.

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  7. Congratulations! You're not just a versatile blogger... you are a very versatile person. You've led a very interesting life Cat!

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  8. Glad to read about your numerous talents and about the people you met.
    One could say you have been acting as a journalist :-)

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  9. Excellent read! Thanks for sharing this about yourself. BTW, I nominated you for the same award several days ago. I thought I mentioned it in a comment. Maybe not....Oops. :)

    S

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  10. Congrats on the award, you deserve it. I envy your writing skills, something I have never been good at.
    I am ready for that warm up myself, although as winters go, this one has been mild.

    Yes, I am back out and about. Foot is all healed up and feeling much better. I don't seem to go out shooting as much as I did but that is not because of the surgery, it's because of laziness.

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  11. Scott - I may have missed it.

    Judy - Glad to hear (about your foot.) And lazy? I certainly know that feeling!

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  12. Dear Bruce: Congratulations on your Versatality Award. Good to be flexible~! 41 years; congrats too! Jazz is adorable, a tortoiseshell so pretty. Acting, Hunter S. Thompson and politics...that does show versatility indeed~

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  13. It has always amazed me how reporters can write against a deadline. I can't even come close to meeting blogger deadlines.

    Yep -- of course you got the award. You certainly deserve it.

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  14. Bruce, thanks for the shout out! --Warren

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  15. I finally responded to this on my blog - sorry it took so long!

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