Disclaimer: everything contained in this blog is MY OPINION. Every attempt is made to present the truth through actual facts or to identify statements which are in doubt; otherwise there will be no deliberate presentation of gossip, rumor, or innuendo which can't be proven as factual.
When you get tired of roasted turkey, turkey sandwiches, turkey hash, turkey soup, turkey pie, go over to Carlito's and pig out on their excellent sampler plate.
The concept of giving thanks has been practised for centuries. The ancient Egyptians, Romans, Teutons, Druids, Aztecs, Mayans, African, and Asian cultures have all had some form of regular feasting and thanks, usually in gratitude or to propitiate their gods.
We most often associate giving thanks with a bountiful harvest. However, thanks-days in ancient times were often held to recognize the relief from peril or threat. For instance, when the Spanish Armada was turned away from England Queen Elizabeth I ordered a day of thanks.
Nowadays, the scholars argue about the date of the first Thanksgiving in America based on whether or not it was for religious reasons or to celebrate a bountiful harvest. Originally the differences between religious celebrations and bounty feasts were not distinguished because the two were commonly interchangeable, including aspects of both because religion was a part of daily life and ever-present.
In our own country, there is some question as to when the first Thanksgiving was held. The popular date and place is associated with William Bradford, the ship Mayflower, and the colony at Plymouth, Massachusetts in the fall of 1621. However, there are earlier thanks-giving celebrations of record.
The earliest of these seems to be a thanks-giving held by Francisco Vasquez de Coronado in May of 1541 in Texas. The location is claimed to have been Palo Duro Canyon, in the Panhandle. However, documents mention that pecans were gathered for the feast, and none have ever grown in Palo Duro. It seems more likely that the celebration was held in Blanco Canyon on the Brazos.
The Spanish in St. Augustine, Florida had a thanks-giving in 1568.
Texas has a further claim to another early thanks-giving. It was given by the explorer Juan de Onate to celebrate the survival of the Rio Grande expedition, which had endured months of severe hardship. On 30 April 1598, de Onate held a feast near what is now San Elizario and claimed the land drained by the 'great river' to be the possession of the Spanish King Philip II.
In Virginia a thanks-giving celebration was documented in 1607, and in Jamestown, Virginia in 1610.
The settlement of Berkeley Hundred's royal charter required that the day of arrival, 4 December 1619, be officially designated as a "Day of Thanksgiving" to God. Nearby Plimouth Plantation had a harvest celebration in 1621.
The Virginian Indians* of the Powhaten Confederacy, which included some 30 tribal towns, were at first disposed to be helpful and friendly and they and their white neighbors celebrated this first harvest together.
However, colonization began to displace the Indians. Fearing, with reason, further English expansion and confiscation of their lands, in 1622 the Indians appeared once again. They were unarmed and brought venison, wild turkey, and other food. The settlers welcomed them and prepared a feast. Suddenly the Indians dropped their peaceful pretense, grabbed any weapons at hand and proceeded to massacre their hosts.
The next fall, the Powhaten Confederacy chief saw that the English, although far outnumbered, were stubborn and with their superior arms were going to eventually take his lands. He approached the colony with the intention of making a peace treaty.
The officials of the colony welcomed the chief and arranged for him and many of his allies to be invited to a thanks-giving celebration. Innocent and unsuspicious, the Indians arrived. Having been introduced to liquor by the settlers and acquiring a taste for it, they were happy to see copious amounts of it served: they were even given containers of it to take with them.
Unfortunately, the colony physician Dr. John Potts had seen his chance and liberally poisoned the Indians' liquor. Over 300 of them died, but the chief escaped. There were no more communal thanks-givings with the Indians.
The first national Thanksgiving was declared by the Continental Congress in 1777. After that there were intermittent celebrations and dates set, but there was nothing official until a presidential proclamation in 1863. Finally, in 1941, federal legislation was passed making the 4th Thursday in November America's official Thanksgiving Day.
For whatever reason we celebrate Turkey Day, it is a family and friend time, a relaxed and happy time to give thanks with those we love.
Happy Thanksgiving!
*No, I am not politically correct. My Indian friends laugh at the idea that they're 'Native Americans' exclusively, insisting that anyone born in America is a Native American. Hence, I call them what they prefer: Indians.
Anita Huguelet McMurtrie
Wednesday, November 26, 2014
Tuesday, November 25, 2014
You Go, Johnny!
Disclaimer: everything contained in this blog is MY OPINION. Every attempt is made to present the truth through actual facts or to identify statements which are in doubt; otherwise there will be no deliberate presentation of gossip, rumor, or innuendo which can't be proven as factual.
Johnny Morris's lawsuit is going to court.
A lot of things are apt to surface in open court that city authorities might wish they were able to trivialize or sweep under the rug. Perhaps they should have thought about that when they offered an insultingly small amount as a mediated settlement.
These officials and their adherents appear to absolutely refuse to acknowledge that it wasn't WHAT was done, it was the WAY it was done. I understand that it's "the way things are," to quote one of these officials, and that some people believe any method which will get them what they want is ok. I don't have to agree with it.
What kind of people are they that would conduct city business in such a manner?
I think the mayor, two commissioners, an ex-commissioner, and the city administrator should have to experience the same longterm embarrassment and humiliation to which Morris and others in the Electra Police Department were subjected.
It's really too bad four of these are immune to being fired because along with everything else in this blog, it's my opinion that people with the ethics and morality displayed in this whole ugly affair shouldn't be allowed to continue to represent Electra.
P. S. I don't care about the monetary penalties if Morris wins. The city is insured, and in the case of personal suits against individuals, the townspeople aren't responsible for paying that. So all of you who are wailing about the cost and using that as an excuse to support the 'other' side and indulge in the famous negativity, think again.
Anita Huguelet McMurtrie
Johnny Morris's lawsuit is going to court.
A lot of things are apt to surface in open court that city authorities might wish they were able to trivialize or sweep under the rug. Perhaps they should have thought about that when they offered an insultingly small amount as a mediated settlement.
These officials and their adherents appear to absolutely refuse to acknowledge that it wasn't WHAT was done, it was the WAY it was done. I understand that it's "the way things are," to quote one of these officials, and that some people believe any method which will get them what they want is ok. I don't have to agree with it.
What kind of people are they that would conduct city business in such a manner?
I think the mayor, two commissioners, an ex-commissioner, and the city administrator should have to experience the same longterm embarrassment and humiliation to which Morris and others in the Electra Police Department were subjected.
It's really too bad four of these are immune to being fired because along with everything else in this blog, it's my opinion that people with the ethics and morality displayed in this whole ugly affair shouldn't be allowed to continue to represent Electra.
P. S. I don't care about the monetary penalties if Morris wins. The city is insured, and in the case of personal suits against individuals, the townspeople aren't responsible for paying that. So all of you who are wailing about the cost and using that as an excuse to support the 'other' side and indulge in the famous negativity, think again.
Anita Huguelet McMurtrie
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
Electra History
Disclaimer: everything contained in this blog is MY OPINION. Every attempt is made to present the truth through actual facts or to identify statements which are in doubt; otherwise there will be no deliberate presentation of gossip, rumor, or innuendo which can't be proven as factual.
I truly believe all towns should have a salaried historian. Of course, the problem there is finding someone immune enough to city politics and influences to actually ferret around for the truth instead of recording history as some of the townspeople are apt to want it to be. As it is, too much of our heritage is lost because it isn't correctly documented, or often not documented at all. For instance, who was the Thompson for whom Thompson Ward was named? How many people know who B.M. Dinsmore was? Who knows who put in the air conditioning at the Grand Theatre? Who now knows the story of Mr. Owens' capture by Clyde Barrow? That sort of thing is being forgotten-and it shouldn't be.
I understand there's new interest in the history of the old water well and building that used to be at the corner of North Waggoner and West Bryan.
Back in the bad old days, the various oil companies in Electra could always be counted upon when work needed to be done around the town. Men would volunteer and the company would provide the machinery, cement, paint and other equipment to get the job done.
When I was very small, my father loaded me into our old Chevy and took me downtown where he parked by what was then Piggly Wiggly. He told me I could watch, but I'd have to stay in the car.
Some men from the Texas Company were going to cement the old well that was in the back of the building on the southeast corner of North Waggoner and West Bryan.
Most of the building had a concrete floor, but a strip at the back only had wood laid almost on the ground, and under the center of it was what my father said was actually the first well drilled here.
There was a pipe, about 5 inches in diameter which stuck up through the sidewalk on the corner. If a rock was dropped down it, water could be heard splashing and gurgling way down, but that pipe wasn't the problem. The original site of the old well was inside the store, not sealed, and the moisture and fumes from it were rotting out the floor.
The Masonic Lodge met upstairs in this building and my father and the three other men who volunteered to fill in the well were Masons. The Texas Company provided a mixer and chute so that the concrete could be funneled in from an opening in the side of the building. The men had figured out how to do the job before they began and it didn't take them long to do it. The well was sealed and a new pad leveled up to the rest of the store's concrete floor was laid. Once the work was done, I was allowed out of the car to take a look. At one time, before the edge crumbled, my handprint could be seen in the concrete.
Some years ago someone came and asked me to show where the work had been done and tell what I knew about the old well. I did, not knowing that my information was to be used to apply to the State for an historic plaque. The information was turned over to someone else to write the application. It was rejected. However, the idea seems to have come around again.
People have a habit of re-writing history to suit themselves, as can be seen in the various histories of people and events in Electra now published, including that of the Grand Theater, which is a shame.
I'm not the absolute authority as far as Electra history is concerned, but I was there. So now I'm wondering just how accurate the 'new' history of that building will be.
12. Who hires unsuitable, unqualified people for city positions?
Anita Huguelet McMurtrie
I truly believe all towns should have a salaried historian. Of course, the problem there is finding someone immune enough to city politics and influences to actually ferret around for the truth instead of recording history as some of the townspeople are apt to want it to be. As it is, too much of our heritage is lost because it isn't correctly documented, or often not documented at all. For instance, who was the Thompson for whom Thompson Ward was named? How many people know who B.M. Dinsmore was? Who knows who put in the air conditioning at the Grand Theatre? Who now knows the story of Mr. Owens' capture by Clyde Barrow? That sort of thing is being forgotten-and it shouldn't be.
I understand there's new interest in the history of the old water well and building that used to be at the corner of North Waggoner and West Bryan.
Back in the bad old days, the various oil companies in Electra could always be counted upon when work needed to be done around the town. Men would volunteer and the company would provide the machinery, cement, paint and other equipment to get the job done.
When I was very small, my father loaded me into our old Chevy and took me downtown where he parked by what was then Piggly Wiggly. He told me I could watch, but I'd have to stay in the car.
Some men from the Texas Company were going to cement the old well that was in the back of the building on the southeast corner of North Waggoner and West Bryan.
Most of the building had a concrete floor, but a strip at the back only had wood laid almost on the ground, and under the center of it was what my father said was actually the first well drilled here.
There was a pipe, about 5 inches in diameter which stuck up through the sidewalk on the corner. If a rock was dropped down it, water could be heard splashing and gurgling way down, but that pipe wasn't the problem. The original site of the old well was inside the store, not sealed, and the moisture and fumes from it were rotting out the floor.
The Masonic Lodge met upstairs in this building and my father and the three other men who volunteered to fill in the well were Masons. The Texas Company provided a mixer and chute so that the concrete could be funneled in from an opening in the side of the building. The men had figured out how to do the job before they began and it didn't take them long to do it. The well was sealed and a new pad leveled up to the rest of the store's concrete floor was laid. Once the work was done, I was allowed out of the car to take a look. At one time, before the edge crumbled, my handprint could be seen in the concrete.
Some years ago someone came and asked me to show where the work had been done and tell what I knew about the old well. I did, not knowing that my information was to be used to apply to the State for an historic plaque. The information was turned over to someone else to write the application. It was rejected. However, the idea seems to have come around again.
People have a habit of re-writing history to suit themselves, as can be seen in the various histories of people and events in Electra now published, including that of the Grand Theater, which is a shame.
I'm not the absolute authority as far as Electra history is concerned, but I was there. So now I'm wondering just how accurate the 'new' history of that building will be.
12. Who hires unsuitable, unqualified people for city positions?
Anita Huguelet McMurtrie
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
"Who are You? Who, who, who, who?"
Disclaimer: everything contained in this blog is MY OPINION. Every attempt is made to present the truth through actual facts or to identify statements which are in doubt; otherwise there will be no deliberate presentation of gossip, rumor, or innuendo which can't be proven as factual.
This time when the city commission put their foot in it over City Park, there were not just two or three people who complained to me about it; there were dozens. And 100% of them told me they would never have voted for the bond if they'd known the fate of City Park. They not only stopped me on the street, and spoke to me in cafes, but came to my house, worried and upset, wanting something done.
Very probably that's why the bond backers were so sneaky about the involvement of the park before the vote.
What kind of people have we elected who would deliberately hide the proposed destruction of the park? And don't try to tell me it won't be ruined because any fool can see that it will be.
Ever wonder why our city authorities seem to prefer scandal, secrecy, and manipulation rather than simply abiding by the law and the city charter and telling the truth?
Here's a bunch of questions and rumored answers concerning City Park.
Question: Who would go to the senior citizens and electioneer about the school bond and call it 'information?'
Rumor: Could it be the same people who think the city charter is "just a piece of paper?"
Q: Who would ignore the law regarding public parks and permanent constructions in them?
R: Likely the same people who push and push and push to get something they want?
Q: Who would be so low as to start a false rumor concerning the school bond involving one of our teachers who is also a commissioner, and imperil her job?
R: Maybe someone in a tax-collecting entity which ought to ban politics and stick to business?
Q: Who might promise the people at senior citizens not to vote for destroying City Park, and then go and do just that?
R: Would our top cat do that?
Q: Who neglected to inform the voters of the complete plan for the new school, omitting the involvement of City Park?
R: Perhaps the people who'd already made up their minds to annex the park, and who knew there would be more opposition to the bond if the voters were aware of that?
Q: Who didn't investigate alternatives to annexing City Park?
R: Probably the people who didn't bother to canvass the property owners bordering the present school to see if they'd sell at a reasonable price?
Q: Who could have informed employees that they'd better look for another job because of politics?
R: Hm: would that be various individuals who have a track record of attempted intimidation?
Q. Who had the idea that housing for the elderly could be built at the flood-free, utilities- and traffic -ready Rattlesnakes Acres, but refused to consider it for the new school?
R. Could that be the same person who poo-poo-ed the danger of rattlesnakes, tarantulas, and blue rats amongst older people, but who reared back in horror at the suggestion of a school there because "the kids might get bitten!" ?
Q: Who, after I mentioned the Army Corps of Engineers in a Letter to the Editor, immediately claimed that the ACE had been consulted about moving Buffalo Creek?
R: Might it be someone who tends to manipulate facts to suit current situations?
Q: Who put biased school bond 'information' a the tax-collecting entity?
R: Have we been down this road before with election posters?
Q: Who believes these rumors?
R: Yours truly?
Q: Who are going to be laughing their asses off when Buffalo Creek goes wild during the next big rain?
R: Maybe me and anyone who ever went to EHS 1940-1970?
11. Who just really doesn't care if he upsets the townspeople and snottily brags that he can do anything he wants to?
Anita Huguelet McMurtrie
This time when the city commission put their foot in it over City Park, there were not just two or three people who complained to me about it; there were dozens. And 100% of them told me they would never have voted for the bond if they'd known the fate of City Park. They not only stopped me on the street, and spoke to me in cafes, but came to my house, worried and upset, wanting something done.
Very probably that's why the bond backers were so sneaky about the involvement of the park before the vote.
What kind of people have we elected who would deliberately hide the proposed destruction of the park? And don't try to tell me it won't be ruined because any fool can see that it will be.
Ever wonder why our city authorities seem to prefer scandal, secrecy, and manipulation rather than simply abiding by the law and the city charter and telling the truth?
Here's a bunch of questions and rumored answers concerning City Park.
Question: Who would go to the senior citizens and electioneer about the school bond and call it 'information?'
Rumor: Could it be the same people who think the city charter is "just a piece of paper?"
Q: Who would ignore the law regarding public parks and permanent constructions in them?
R: Likely the same people who push and push and push to get something they want?
Q: Who would be so low as to start a false rumor concerning the school bond involving one of our teachers who is also a commissioner, and imperil her job?
R: Maybe someone in a tax-collecting entity which ought to ban politics and stick to business?
Q: Who might promise the people at senior citizens not to vote for destroying City Park, and then go and do just that?
R: Would our top cat do that?
Q: Who neglected to inform the voters of the complete plan for the new school, omitting the involvement of City Park?
R: Perhaps the people who'd already made up their minds to annex the park, and who knew there would be more opposition to the bond if the voters were aware of that?
Q: Who didn't investigate alternatives to annexing City Park?
R: Probably the people who didn't bother to canvass the property owners bordering the present school to see if they'd sell at a reasonable price?
Q: Who could have informed employees that they'd better look for another job because of politics?
R: Hm: would that be various individuals who have a track record of attempted intimidation?
Q. Who had the idea that housing for the elderly could be built at the flood-free, utilities- and traffic -ready Rattlesnakes Acres, but refused to consider it for the new school?
R. Could that be the same person who poo-poo-ed the danger of rattlesnakes, tarantulas, and blue rats amongst older people, but who reared back in horror at the suggestion of a school there because "the kids might get bitten!" ?
Q: Who, after I mentioned the Army Corps of Engineers in a Letter to the Editor, immediately claimed that the ACE had been consulted about moving Buffalo Creek?
R: Might it be someone who tends to manipulate facts to suit current situations?
Q: Who put biased school bond 'information' a the tax-collecting entity?
R: Have we been down this road before with election posters?
Q: Who believes these rumors?
R: Yours truly?
Q: Who are going to be laughing their asses off when Buffalo Creek goes wild during the next big rain?
R: Maybe me and anyone who ever went to EHS 1940-1970?
11. Who just really doesn't care if he upsets the townspeople and snottily brags that he can do anything he wants to?
Anita Huguelet McMurtrie
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