Telephone Poles, Bravo Coach Leach, Why 4th Thursday for Thanksgiving? Movie Review

For the past few months I have spent considerable time traveling by land in my Explorer. As a matter of fact with trips to Alabama, Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico I have logged over 6,000 miles. No, this is not going to be a boring travelogue or anything like that, but I did make a few observations while I was cruise controlling along the Interstate and State highways that I found myself on. As I was leaving Arizona, some where between Willcox, AZ and Lordsburg, NM I noticed these these very rigid telephone poles standing next to the highway were very straight and narrow, heading due East. This got me to thinking, what forest did these dudes come from, and how long did it take them to grow that tall. They were at least 50 foot tall and were so straight they looked almost pre-fabricated by man, and not nature. So, I figured they cut them down, took them to a saw mill and then shaved them off to get the real straight look. But I was amazed at how perfect they had made them look. The other thing I made note of is that the term telephone pole is really not accurate since they carry more electrical lines on them than telephone lines. I think that this is just a term that someone started using to describe them and it stuck. It then dawned on me that these poles are carrying lots of juice to other parts of the country and work on a 24/7 basis. No time off for them and they also do it just standing out there in the daylight and dark, through bad weather and sunny weather. What really got me was how straight they looked as you got a look at them from behind(this visual happened when they made their move South as opposed to East, the direction I was traveling). They looked like very tall soldiers standing at attention; however, it was hard to figure out who the general was since they were all standing in a row. But, someone has to be in charge and I figure that the general or colonel was standing some where at an intersection barking out the orders. It also came to my inquisitive mind that everything we see and come in contact with has to start from some where and has origination. Before these guys were shipped to New Mexico to carry telephone and electrical lines they had to be grown in a forest somewhere, so they were now many miles from their original home since there are no forests in this part of the state. After they were nurtured and fed they were harvested and processed, then shipped to their new home. Then after being put into service they carried communication and power to the vast population of their area. My conclusion here is that as we travel always observe everything around you and be appreciative of all those things that we take for granted. After all what happens when we don't have electricity or telephone capabilities? Yep, it gets very frustrating, so stop and hug a pole the next time you are on the road, they deserve it.

Generally football coaches are expected to win at all costs and in the large university programs are paid very well to do just that. Since major college football has gotten to big money oriented most football coaches of the major programs are paid in excess of $1 million per year, with the highest being around $3.5 million. Here in Lubbock we happen to have a major college football team that is a member of the Big 12 Athletic Conference. This team has captured the hearts of the football world and after beating arch rival Texas Longhorns, and number one at the time, Texas Tech University, captured the hearts and minds of the college football world. Along the way they have done what they are supposed to do, they have won 11 games and lost 1 game. Not bad at all for the tough conference they play. But the dilemma they have found themselves in now is that they are tied with Texas and Oklahoma for number one in the South section of the Big 12 Conference. So, there is the question of who should represent the South part of the Conference in the Championship game with the Northern half Champion, Missouri, and how should it be determined who the representative is. When Coach Leach, the Head Football Coach of Texas Tech was ask this question he provided a very unique and thought provoking solution. His novel solution was to pick the team with the highest graduation rates(of course Tech would win it hands down by that standard). He said, "The Big 12 Conference should have an executive session tonight, and just say, 'Are we about the student-athlete? Are we trying to edify America and make this a better place? Are we actually doing the proper thing and balancing the dual role of both being an athlete and being a student?" When they do that, I think they will find that no one's more deserving that the Red Raiders to win the Big 12 South." Since I am a product of a big college football program I must say that I really commend what Coach Leach as said here, and I can assure you that many coaches have academics as the last priority on their list for their athletes. While he was not a big favorite of the fan base in Lubbock upon his arrival I feel he has won the respect of the local population, not just for winning, but for having a great attitude towards the student athlete and teaching them to be responsible citizens in the future. The sad part about the selection of the team to represent the Big 12 South will be some goofy computer stats and/or the power of past winning traditions no matter the results of this year.

Funny thing happened on my trip to Alabama for Thanksgiving. As I was sitting in the trusty Explorer driving over 2200 miles for a slab of turkey and canned cranberry slices, I tried to remember why we celebrated Thanksgiving on the last Thursday of November each year. While I couldn't cough this little bit of trivia up I noticed an old newspaper from a little town outside of Lubbock, called Slaton, Texas and the newspaper was the Slatonite. When turning to page two I noticed the article, "George Washington Proclaimed First Official Thanksgiving." Well okay that is well and good but why the 4th Thursday? After reading the article it turns out that he really didn't proclaim the 4th Thursday. The story goes that after leaving the September 28, 1789 Congress for recess President Washington issued a proclamation naming Thursday, November 26, 1789 as the day of Thanksgiving, but not necessarily the 4th Thursday. Subsequent Presidents would then declare a new proclamation each year for Thanksgiving. It wasn't until Honest Abe Lincoln came along that Thanksgiving was regularly commemorated each year on the last Thursday of November. Now the plot really thickens and money starts to surface concerning Turkey day. In 1939 the last Thursday ended up on the last day of the month and there was concern that it would cut into the Christmas holiday spending(with the country coming out of the Great Depression as the time it could pose a problem to economic recovery), so FDR issued a Presidential proclamation that moved Thanksgiving to the second to last Thursday of November. But being we are in a democracy that didn't set well with 16 states who refused to accept that proclamation within their states. They still wanted the last Thursday of November, so for two years the US actually had two Thursday in November that served as the official Turkey day. Now the Congress of the US had to step in and a formal resolution established the 4th Thursday of November to be the official Thanksgiving day and that still stands. In fact it is a National Holiday. Now I wonder, have all holidays taken on that kind of confusion before being established? Also, we have to be proud that the Congress was able to do something good without spending billions to get it done.

Movie Review: "Quantum of Solace", ****, A very good movie and I really like Daniel Craig. Following in the footsteps of the other Bonds is not an easy thing, but Craig does it well. Of course this is a story of good versus evil and evil wanting to take over the world. A lot of action and unbelievable action scenes. There are two good looking Bond girls and of course he scores, at least once. Action fans will not be disappointed. Go see!! Rated: PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, and some sexual content.

greerman