The wind is blowin a gale and snow if fallin like wintertime at the "house of ole hoot" and---Calvin! Of course ole calvin is curled up on a blanket in Lil Dumplins chair---snorin! All this nasty weather gets me to bein lonesome for summertime.

Lookin back 50 years--summertime Sunday morinis. Smellin the home grow'd chicken fryin in the cast iron skillet. A big iron kettle full of home grow'd taters boilin, a pot of greenbeans simmerin with onion and bakon in it, a big apple cobbler bakin in the oven of the Home Comfort wood cookstove. The smell of that chik'n fryin is almost more than a countryboy could handle. Iced Tea in a 2 gallon bucket to top off all this good country cooked grub. Now, I don't know about the city folks who "eat out" at those resturants that call themselves "country cookin" but there ain't no comparison! Fresh chicken that doesn't have black bones and slimy skin. Green beans that ain't full of stems, leaves and worms. Apple cobbler that is even better than it smells or looks! Iced Tea made with sparklin clear well water and without ANY chemicals to "make it safe" to drink.

Now, back to the present. Home grow'd chickens that are not grow'd on chemical feed are the exception now rather than the rule. Hybrid taters, green beans, corn on the cob. The water is now "tainted" with farm chemical runoff that has polluted our streams, rivers and even the groundwater that feeds our wells. It seems "progress" has not progressed much further than the "midnight soil" of countrys over the pond. We are supposed to be the leader of the entire world in food production---and I believe it's probably true. What a heavy price to pay just to impress folks with that dubious honor!

In respect of all the bad things America is STILL the greatest place in the entire world to live! Almighty God has His Mighty hand on Americal for many years. We need to Lift Him up and be thankful in front of the world for His Mighty hand of protection. Thank God for America!

Old hoot. Matt.24:44

-- old hoot gibson (hoot@pcinetwork.com), February 26, 2002

Answers

HOOT!!! you're back. I ahve so missed you and your stories. I wanted to stop by the other lusenet forum you were on to say hello, but am so swamped with e-mails and work I never got to. take care and glad to see you again.

-- Bernice (geminigoats@yahoo.com), February 26, 2002.

Hoot........ so good to see you back. I remember those Sunday mornins too. Sometimes Sunday breakfast was fried chicken, milk gravy, biscuits and soft yolk fried eggs. Sure can make you hungry to remember it. We didn't know how good we had it. God bless ya!!!!!

-- kathy boice (blueeggs@united.net), February 27, 2002.