The gunfight

This week marks the 130th anniversary of the "Gunfight at the OK Corral" in Tombstone.

By way of celebration (seems like the wrong word), I recently read The Last Gunfight, by Jeff Gunn.

I won't take the time to review it, but Field and Stream does a decent job of reviewing it here: Book Review: The Last Gunfight.

Mostly, I like this review because it has the sentence, "Let’s start with the title. It wasn’t the last gunfight in the Old West, and it didn’t take place at the O.K. Corral, and it didn’t change anything, but it probably is the real story of this infamous and deadly 30 seconds, or at least as close as anyone’s ever going to get to it."

I did skip a few chapters in the book so I could get to the gunfight, but it does have some interesting information about the gunfight and the lives of those involved in the years after the gunfight.

For those of us in Southern Arizona, an easier way to commemorate this relatively minor bit of gunplay that has become so famous would be to take a trip to Tombstone, billed as the Town To Tough To Die.

In Tombstone, you can see regular reenactments of varying and fanciful versions of THE gunfight, as well as see some excellent museums, and my personal favorite, the Boot Hill Cemetery, which includes a guide to the cause of death of many of it's occupants.

Unfortunately, as the reviewer said, it was far from the last gunfight out here in the west.

Taste of the Harvest Festival

On Saturday, November 5th, I believe we will head to the Tucson Village Farm around 10:00 am for the second annual Taste of the Harvest Festival.

The farm is a program of the Pima County Cooperative Extension and the University of Arizona that is designed to teach urban kids about where food comes from and, as their website says, reconnect young people to a healthy food system, teach them how to grow and prepare fresh food, and empower them to make healthy life choices.

Here is the info about the Festival:

Time	05 November · 10:00 - 14:00
Location	Tucson Village Farm 4210 N. Campbell Ave.

Join us for a free event at the Tucson Village Farm, featuring live cooking demos, free food samples, farm fresh produce for purchase, gardening tips, games and activities, raffle and a petting zoo!

Anyone want to meet us there in the morning? We already have important other plans in the afternoon.

This week

One of our instructors for this week plays the cop in the clip below. Just thought you would like to know.

*Warning....it has a naughty word in the clip. Do not watch if you are easily offended by the naughty word used in this video clip.*

Unmanly

I have discovered that the myth of losing your man-card at marriage is just that, a myth. You still have one. However, it is now a punch card, so you need to be much more careful about how often you utilize your manly rights.

I opened with this because my computer has been down for a week. Hence the extended silence on here. Not only is it inconvenient, but it makes me feel deprived of my manly freedoms. Yes, I still have access to a computer, but it is Diane's and it is in the living room.

So, when I use it, I have to compete with four other people that want to be on it at the same time. When I finally tell them that it is my turn, everyone wants to see what I am doing, make noise, etc. etc. No, I do not have it that bad, but it is inconvenient and feels less manly than when my own computer is up and running.

So, to salve my feelings, I am remembering another activity I was involved in that others might consider unmanly:

I was in the High School Choir

(In my defense, I also played football, was in wrestling one year, ran track one year, played baseball and had a bike)

Yes, from the 9th to the 12th grade, I was in the choir. And I liked it. And here are some random references to that class -

- In the 9th and 10th grade, Mr. Philo was our teacher. Mr. Philo used to get very frustrated with us and his face would turn red. Once I remember him yelling "GOD......." and then, not wanting to swear in front of us, adding a ".....BLESS YOU ALL." But, he did a great job of introducing us to different styles of music and challenging us in our singing.

- The band teacher taught the class for one year. I liked him, but I am still not sure how that happened.

- The teacher who started during my senior year used to coach rock vocalists so they could do their thing without ruining their voices. I am not that grand of a singer, but I can still boom out some noise and not hurt my voice.

- For our senior holiday concert thingy, the teacher had some guy names Jeff Sack sing with us. I next saw him in Tucson touring with Rich Mullins, a popular "christian" recording artist at the time. I reminded him that I sang with him in McCook, but he didn't ask me on stage.

- We went to State competitions with our choir. Who even knew there was such a thing.

Diane is out shopping now, so hopefully my using this thing to make this post doesn't result in another hole punched in my man card. I will leave you with the lyrics to one of the songs we did at state (with only the males) when the band guy was the teacher:

Soldiers’ Chorus (from Faust)

Glory and love to the men of old,
Their sons may copy their virtues bold,
Courage in heart and a sword in hand,
Yes, ready to fight or ready to die for Fatherland.

Who needs bidding to dare by a trumpet blown?
Who lacks pity to spare, when the field is won?
Who would fly from a foe, if alone or last?
And boast he was true, as coward might do, when peril is past?
Glory and love to the men of old, their sons may copy their virtues bold.

Courage in heart and sword in hand,
Ready to fight for Fatherland.
Now home again, we come, the long and fiery strife of battle over.
Rest i pleasant after toil, as hard as ours beneath a stranger sun.
Many a maiden fair is waiting here to greet her truant soldier lover,
And many a heart will fail, and brow grow pale to hear the tale of peril he has seen.
We are at home

New Bling Bling

I first became familiar with the work of Open Doors when I read the book "God's Smuggler" by a man named Brother Andrew. Brother Andrew used to smuggle Bibles into the former Soviet Union and then founded the organization Open Doors, which serves those persecuted for their beliefs worldwide.

I learned more about them when I was invited to join them on a trip to India to teach Church Leaders in several areas in that country. We went shortly after a pastor and his family were burned to death in their car by those that were unimpressed with the Pastor's belief system and the fact that he shared it with others.

Many of the men I met had stories of attacks on their families and fellow believers by those that were opposed to anyone freely believing what they choose to believe.

The organization has now started the One With Them initiative, to coincide with this years International Day Of Prayer. As they point out, 70% of the world lives where religious freedom is not an option. The One With Them initiative is an opportunity to show your solidarity with these people.

They are also offering, for free, the wristband pictured above. If you want to make the statement that you are One With those who share your faith, but not your freedom, you can order one up here: Get Your Wristband

You can show your solidarity with men like Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani in Iran. Originally sentenced to death in Iran for converting from Islam to Christianity, international outcry has caused Iran to rethink this verdict. Their rethinking has caused them to say that, "No, he was never sentenced to death." followed by them deciding that he was to be sentenced to death for extortion, rape and running a brothel, in spite of court records that clearly show that this was never mentioned until recently. Obviously, they want this guy dead for his beliefs. (read more about Pastor Youcef here and here).

So, I am proudly wearing my new bling bling, and you can too.