MuttonChops

Hard work spotlights the character of people: some turn up their sleeves, some turn up their noses, and some don't turn up at all. ~ Sam Ewing ~ Recently, I stopped at an unfamiliar gas station and filled up the tank. The station was at a busy intersection, had plenty of pumps, and a good flow of customers. Still, it looked dingy and depressed. An older woman was in the cashier's booth alone and she seemed pleasant enough. I wouldn't expect her to be out scrubbing pumps or sweeping after dark, but surely someone would care enough to clean up a little. As I waited at the pump, I read the sign above my head. (I'm short so everything is above my head). The contrast between the signs' statements and the appearance of the station gave me cause to chuckle. I suppose someone found "a little better" way to put up the notice with duct tape. No matter what your job is, someone will notice if you do good work and a LOT of people will notice if you don't. The...

South Carolina ranks second in the nation for peach production , with California coming in first and Georgia third. On Interstate 85, just south of the North Carolina-South Carolina border, Gaffney, SC created a water tower that pays homage to this wonderful fruit. If memory serves correctly, Jerry Bledsoe , formerly of the Greensboro News and Record , wrote about this wonderful icon, noting it's similarity to an elephant's butt. I recently ventured south and grabbed my camera as I approached the border. Since I was doing about 70 mph and didn't have time to pull off the road, I snapped off a few shots and hoped for the best. My first photo was the typical highway approach shot. As I neared, I was in for a surprise. I had heard that this once desolate area had acquired some outlets and restaurants but I was quite shocked when I saw the stores. I suppose the famous elephant's butt has produced enough fertilizer to encourage growth. Someone was even clever enough to put a...

Yes - I said it and not politely. What IS it with people that tailgate? I am not a bad driver. I try to keep reasonably close to the speed limit and hope I don't get a ticket. I stay off the tail of the person in front of me, too. Yet there is always the driver that HAS to go faster than everyone else. They have the obsession of being first and can think of no one else but themselves. Sure, it's old news but today was an exception. I had my car worked on over the last week which was unnerving enough as I was without transportation for about 5 days. When I hit the gas, it would go but had started jolting or acting like it wasn't getting gas. The mechanic, who I have dealt with for 10 years, said it was probably the air intake thingy (he said it better than I can) and would be about $500 bucks for the part. Once he got into the engine, he said he felt it was just the hoses leading to the filter - much cheaper and easier to repair. There was a delay with the parts but I picked...

When I finished the video I asked my 19-year-old son if he wanted to see it. "Sure," he said. After watching it he said, "Good song." Such a dry sense of humor, that kid. "What about the pictures?" "I see them all the time." "What? My photos?" "No - trees - they're everywhere." I gave him a look. He chuckled in amusement and said, "Well, maybe after I spend eight months in the desert I'll be more excited about seeing pictures like that." He is going in the Army in a couple of weeks. He'll need that humor, just like I needed mine to raise him."