The Odem-Edroy Times (Odem, Tex.), Vol. 58, No. 47, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 25, 2004 Page: 2 of 8
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Page 2 Issue 47
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Thursday, November 25, 2004
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Picture it: Thanksgiving 1621 with the Pilgrims, Indians, Wildman
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as well as continuing as
an excellent cooper.
He and his pretty wife
f Mary had a large fami-
ly of 12 and they were all
grand people.
Shortly after arriving in
^ the new colony, I met
several of John and
Mary’s Indian friends
gr bringing red cedar
baskets
full of
**** corn,
beans,
squash,
pump-
kins,
As Thanksgiving nears, I was
thinking of my first Thanksgiving
383 years ago up near Plymouth
in the north country. It was bitter-
ly cold, but my old buddy John
Alden had laid out plans for a big
three-day feed with the neighbor-
ing Indian tribes and I was
expecting a grand pachanga.
John was a cooper, or barrel-
maker, by trade and came over
on the Mayflower. In New
Plymouth, as they called it at the
time, he also became an accom-
plished husbandman, or farmer,
cucumbers, clams, fish, venison
and tobacco for the celebration.
The local Pilgrims were equally
busy, roasting turkeys and chick-
ens and preparing cornbread
dressing, cranberries, hams,
oysters and fruit pies while
secretly sipping on their cider
jugs. The Indians quickly learned
of this and joined in the chug-a-
lugging and...well just let me say
you.don’t want to get into a chug-
a-lug contest with a Redman.
You’re gonna lose every time!
Snapping Turtle was a
Wampanoag spiritual leader and
he and I shared severaf cigars
before the big feast was served.
He wore an animal skin breech-
cloth, snappy elkskin moccasins
and had three large eagle feath-
ers in his hair. This dude had
come to party!
Most Pilgrims were wearing
warm wool or linen clothing,
leather shoes and felt hats. I
must say the big buckles on their
hats made them look plum stu-
pid. The only other decorative
“jewelry” I noticed was ornamen-
tal shell or bone necklaces worn
by the Indian women. The
Pilgrim women seemed to
admire that jewelry greatly and
undoubtedly would be making a
run on Nieman Marcus or Foley’s
as soon as they became estab-
lished.
Meanwhile, I grabbed a stool
near Burley Beaver and asked
the whereabouts of his young
son Blue Fox whom I had not
seen since arriving at New
Plymouth.
“He’s at the war,” Burley
Beaver said grudgingly.
“In Iraq?” I asked.
“Yep, been over there six
months now and I don’t know
how~7riuch longer he will be
there.”
“What unit is he with? I would
like to write him a letter.”
“Oh, he’s not in the military.
He drives a supply truck for
Halliburton. He makes about a
hundred grand a year, three
times what most of those sol-
diers are being paid, but he also
gets shot at almost every day.”
“Oh my goodness, does he
have a flak jacket and a Kevlar
helmet?”
“Oh yeah, and I imagine he
has a pistol and a couple of
grenades in his lunch pail.”
“I certainly hope so, good luck
to both of you. Hey, Four
Canoes, what’s new with you?”
“Hello Paleface, not much, I
really took it in the buckskins at
the tribe’s casino last night.”
“Oh ye.ah, how much did you
lose?” |
“I don’t know exactly, but I
think I blew a couple of teepee
payments, several installments
on my plasma TV and the title to
my snowmobile.”
“Man, that’s tough. Does that
mean you don’t have a ride to
work at the sawmill?”
“As a matter-of-fact, it does,
but that’s not such a bad deal. It
will give me a chance to kick
back and catch up on all the
soaps.”
“Yeah, until they come to
repossess your TV.”
“Relax, Wildman, the moon
will come up again tomorrow and
there will be many more
Thanksgivings.”
“I admire your attitude, Four
Canoes, but I don’t thing you’ve
got the good sense God gave a
Billy goat.”
“That’s good, Wildman, you
ought to use that.”
“I just did. Before I go, would
you remind me how you got your
name?”
“You know that story very well.
I’m so danged big, the tribe said
that if I ever had to haul butt it
would take four canoes to get me
up river.”
About that time, Hanging
Chad wandered by smoking an
Old Gold. Chad was young, part
Pilgrim and part Indian and smart
as the proverbial whip.
“Hey, Chad, where you
going?”
“I just got a whiff of those fruit
pies the women are baking and
I’m going to swipe me one.”
“Oh, yeah, what kind you
after?’
“Huckleberry’s my favorite, but
I guess I’d settle for a blueberry
or pumpkin.”
“Sounds good, say who do
you like in the UT-A&M
Thanksgiving game?” *
“I guess I’ll have to take the
Longhorns. The Aggies remind
me too much of an old Indian
warrior who just ran outta run. I
think the Farmers gotta pass.”
“I’ll remember that and pass it
along to my friends. Say, Swift
Boat, would you pass me those
wild hickory nuts?”
Meanwhile, enthusiastic
young romantics Wild Turkey
and Firewalker were down by the
riverbank teaching all the
Bucklehead kids the well-liked
game of spin-the-gourd.
And so it all began in 1621.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
John Willoughby is a lifetime
resident of South Texan who
loves to travel. He can be
reached via email at
johnw@birch.net
a State of the region
United States’ leadership helps the world
Capital Highlights...
|gj g Mg m " " m - A
■A - - '/v
from the State Capital
:
AUSTIN - The Texas
Transportation Commission last
week approved a $21.5 billion
plan intended to reduce traffic
congestion in the state’s largest
urban areas.
The heart of the funding plan
is something brand new for the
state, the parceling of money to
metropolitan areas for trans-
portation projects that local offi-
cials deem a top priority. Since
the transportation agency’s cre-
ation in 1917, spending deci-
sions have been made based on
what the commission considered
the most important uses, not
necessarily what locals wanted.
Formally known as the
Metropolitan Mobility Plan, the
plan uses various new financing
options approved by the 78th
Legislature - including $3 billion
in bond sale proceeds - to lever-
age the necessary funding to
start badly needed construction
projects years ahead of previous
schedules.
For more information on the
plan, including specific projects,
check the department’s Web site
at www.dot.state.tx.us.
Rate decreases on hold...
A state district court ruled Nov.
8 that a portion of the 2003 law
allowing for immediate home-
owners’ relief was unconstitu-
tional, effectively putting a hold
on $243 million the Texas
Department of Insurance
ordered refunded to policyhold-
ers.
Insurance agency officials
said they disagreed with the
court’s ruling and were exploring
all legal options.
In August 2003, the agency
ordered State Farm to reduce its
rate by 12 percent and Farmers
Insurance by 17.5 percent. The
rollbacks had been on hold
pending legal challenges.
The Nov. 8 ruling applies only
to the immediate rate reduction
provision of Senate Bill 14. The
remainder of the 2003 reforms
are not affected, ‘ the agency
reported.
Heflin challenge looks
unlikely...
It’s looking more and more like
Rep. Talmadge Heflin (R-
Houston) will not challenge his
narrow 31-vote loss to Democrat
Hubert Vo.
Two clues: Based on the
seniority system, Rep. Edmund
Kuempel (R-Seguin) has been
assigned Heflin’s larger Capitol
office; last Friday, House
Speaker Tom Craddick appoint-
ed Rep. Jim Pitts (R-
Waxahachie) as chairman of the
House Appropriations
Committee. That was Heflin’s
job, one of the most powerful in
by Mike Cox
the Legislature.
More time in the class-
room...
When the 79th Legislature
convenes on Jan. 11, lawmakers
will face no shortage of hot
issues. Few bills will be of more
interest to parents of school age
children than Sen. Eddie Lucio’s
(D-Brownsville) recently filed SB
106.
The measure would allow
school1 districts to add 15 min-
utes or a half hour to the school
day. That would enable districts
to continue to meet the required
level of classroom instruction
while cutting six or 12 days off
the attendance calendar. School
starts could then be moved to the
traditional time of early
September.
Last September, the comptrol-
ler’s office estimated that the cur-
rent August school start dates
cost $790 million, factoring in
everything from air-conditioning
bills to lost income.
Rule of 85 talk...
The possibility of the
Legislature changing the state
retirement system’s Rule of 80 to
a Rule of 85 so far is merely a
rumor making the rounds of state
agencies in Austin.
No bills concerning such a
change have been filed.
Interested state employees can
keep up with the issue through
the Texas Public Employees
Association or the Employees
Retirement System.
by Juliet Wenger
Citizens of the United
States have spoken
Isysr
actions of our country with which
they do not agree.
Much of this relates to the Iraqi
Many stories as seen on
war.
“ I love the United States. It has
given me great opportunity and a
wonderful life. What I hope is that in
some small way I can be among the
many who will see a time that the
country has the ability to be true to
its values .
the word
“patriot” occa-
sionally in dis-
respect but
much more
often in great
respect. It
surprised me
when several
hundred peo-
ple have_
announced
that they no longer wanted to be
citizens of the United States and
were moving to Canada and
applying for citizenship.
People talking about moving to
Canada are giving the reason that
they feel responsibility for the
television sets about small chil-
dren and their mothers being
killed when they were not
involved in any way in what was
happening. They look instead in
the corruption of our government
and businesses and forget that no
other nation has ever had a civi-
lization with higher values. We
have cared about other nations
and been generous to them.
I love the United States. It
has given me great oppor-
tunity and a wonderful life.
What I hope is that in
some small way I can be
among the many who will
see a time that the country
has the ability to be true to
its values and feel a part in
reducing discrimination,
egotism and our faults that
still nag us.
No person or collection of
people has ever been per-
fect. Human nature is too
_ complex. Our expecta-
tions will be shattered
when we learn that a large num-
ber of its residents can no longer
take pride in it.
There is no way to predict how
different the world would be if the
United States is not taking a lead-
ership position.
Wishing you a Happy
Thanksgiving from the
Odem-Edroy Times staff!
Looking Back
Odem-Edory Times News
Twnety Years Ago -1984
•Junior members of the
Rocking O 4-H Club competed
in the County Food Show in Taft
Saturday. Jay Cass and Jan
Higginbotham received blue in
nutritions division. Bobby Smith,
Lee Ann Pittman and Angela
Smith took red and Sandy Syma
and Jennifer Jackson won red in
fruits and vegetables.
• Betty Mitchell of Odem
accepted a plaque as an out-
standing member of the year
with the San Patricio county
extension homemakers.
• Robert Spivey took fifth in
novice prose interpretation and
Velma martinez took fifth in the
honors in oratory division at the
Moody High school speech and
drama tournament.
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Tracy, Jimmy. The Odem-Edroy Times (Odem, Tex.), Vol. 58, No. 47, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 25, 2004, newspaper, November 25, 2004; Sinton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1055749/m1/2/: accessed June 9, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Odem Public Library.