I AM DECLARING WAR!

by Richard Drake, Guest Writer

Several years ago I planted two pecan trees, a Choctaw and a Paper Shell.  Last year I was finally going to have a nice harvest but the squirrels got them.  Mostly, they just knocked the nuts off the branches and took a few bites. The ones that they missed two large black birds took care of them. I must have planted very tasty pecans because they don't bother the large native pecan tree in my neighbor's yard.  Native pecans shells are very hard so I guess the squirrels are very selective.

So I decided to take action.  During this past spring I put a wire cage around the trunks and wrapped them with a plastic mesh, called deer netting.   I started thinking about some tasty nuts this year; but no, the darn squirrels just viewed the netting like it was a set of stairs and climbed up and did their nasty job.  Talk about being mad.  I couldn't even find an appropriate swear word to use.

I just finished with Plan B.  I wrapped the trunks with shiny metal.  It's so slick that the little imps can't get a grip.  "No grippey, no climbey".  I will just have to wait until next year to see my results.  I got my handy pellet air rifle out of the closet.  I have tried to sight it in, but I guess that I just too excited about the 'tasty" stew.  I can't hit the bull's eye in the target.

For the birds when they return, I have another plan.  I am going to buy a 22 rifle.  Living in a strict home owner's association, I read the rules and no fire arms shooting is allowed except:  those land owners who live along the Brazos River can shoot feral hogs.  We live along the river and the trees are down hill from our patio.  I will claim that I was shooting at hogs on the river bank.  No one will ever know  the truth unless Marcia tells.  She won't tell unless asked a direct question.  She always tells the truth.

If anyone has a another idea, please let me know. Also, send your recipes for squirrel stew.

---30---for Mil's Place

Richard Drake 8/22/14

"DOVIE"

by Bobby Joe Snipes, Guest Writer

 For years I have fed birds in the back yard.   I have a special area where I do not grow flowers and it is perfect to throw out a cup full of milo or even a special bird mix.   The bird mixes have small millet seeds and therefore attract a lot of small wrens and sparrows.   Through the years, I discontinued with the bird mix and just threw out the milo.  The birds that were attracted most to milo were the doves.  

But when you attract doves you also attract their predators…. feral cats.   Gee, it was disheartening going out in the morning and seeing dove feathers all over the back yard.   So I became a cat trapper.   I carried dozens of feral cats to the animal shelter and eventually eliminated those bad boys and my dove population began to grow.   I had mourning dove, white wing dove and ring necks.   After some research, I learned that the ring necks were Asian dove or Collared Dove.   They were called "collared" because they had a black collar at the base of their necks and it looked like a “collar”.  

As time progressed,  I began throwing out the grain and standing close by to watch the birds.   Most would fly away when they saw me but a couple of the Collared doves would hang around and eat even though they watched me very closely.    As an experiment,  I started tossing a little grain in the feeding area and making a little pile by the sidewalk.   The two doves would eat their way toward the pile and then dive into the pile of grain.  So I decided to do the same but stay very close to the pile.   And cautiously they would work their way toward the pile but only one would come up to the pile while I was kneeled down close by and I named her “Dovie”.

But the progress continued and “Dovie” eventually would jump upon the sidewalk and eat out of my hand.  She didn’t like the grain piled up in the palm of my hand so she would strike it with her bill and scatter the grain on the side walk and then go peck the seed one grain at a time. 

This took a lot of patience because I would have to remain motionless.   The slightest move of a finger would startle Dovie and she would jump away and observe before she would come back. 

This love affair continued and Dovie learned to get my attention.   One time I was pruning my tomato vine and Dovie flies right down by me and coos.  At first I was startled because I did not know she was close by.   I would talk to her and she would cock her head and then fly over to her feeding spot and I would reward her immediately.  Now, sometimes she will fly to the cable line and set and coo.   Oftentimes she will fly over to the little bird house which is by the feeding area and sit there and coo or fly down to the feeding area….walking around pecking on the dirt like she was telling me it was time to eat.   

One day I was cleaning the floor mats out of my pickup in the front driveway, very busy, concentrating on my work.  I turned around and there was Dovie.   She was about a yard from me right down on the driveway.    I said “Well, Dovie, are you hungry?  Well, come on to the back yard and I will feed you”.   She followed me like a little puppy for about 10 yards and then flew upon the fence and then to the feeding area.   Now, when I am in the back yard watering the garden or puttering around, Dovie will fly down right at my feet.   I will talk to her and she will coo.    I start walking toward the little storage barn and she follows me to the barn.   I will grab a handful of grain and easily move toward the feeding area.  I always make her eat out of my hand first then I will very gently dump it onto the sidewalk. 

For two or three days a while back Dovie seemed to have a ferocious appetite.   She was begging grain several times a day and I told Betty that Dovie is eating like she is feeding some babies.    Well sure enough a few days after that I saw Dovie feeding her two babies.  The two young ones were flying but they were still depending on Dovie for a meal.   One of the babies will come down and feed by Dovies side…..Betty and I think that she is a little female staying close to her mommy.   The other baby which we think is a male does not show up…..we figured that he was out chumming with his dad and learning how to provide for himself. 

Yes, Dovie is still flying down at my feet and I talk to her and she coos to me.   I don’t understand her and she doesn’t understand me but both of us seem to sense that we are here to take care of each other.  The Bible says that God knows when a sparrow falls to the earth and I think God put Dovie here for a purpose.  

The Bible also speaks of doves in the New Testament as a sign of the Holy Spirit…..representing gentleness and purity.   Dovie makes going out to tend to the garden and flowers a real pleasure.  She gives me a gentle joy as I share in the greatness of God. 

           ----30----

 Bobby Joe Snipes, for Mil's Place, 8/22/14

"I FOUND NED!!"

by Bobby Joe Snipes, Guest Writer

At every 53 class reunion it seems like that grade school football game always came up for discussion.   And I always reminded the East side guys that West side won that big game and I did it in such a boastful manner that it always brought up the discussion of how old the players were and how big and how fast and how poor we were on the west side and how we beat the Clovis elite on the east side.

One interesting story that surfaced from Gerald Clancy, an east side player was that we had a big Mexican that played on our line that had a wife and two kids yelling for him on the side line.  Well......I think he embellished that story but it did have an element of truth.  You see…..West side of Clovis is where the low income folks lived and East side was just a half a notch higher but actually none of our parents had much money.

But the question that I always ask at the reunions "I wonder what happened to that blond headed kid…. he was left handed and could really run fast….his name was Ned?"  No one ever knew….and it was the same question about Don Grant.   Where did they go?  Both of them were sons of ministers.   It seemed like they just vanished.

About 15 years ago after I had retired from the mens clothing business,  I was surfing through some computer stuff and came across a program that was something like Classmate Locator.  I looked at and found it kinda interesting but I did recognize some of my classmates who had registered.  I did not register….I think it cost $15 and you could do all kind of searches.   I just dismissed it but a couple of months later , I came upon that program again.   I browsed through some of the inquiries and I noticed one that said something like "I attended the 5th grade at La Casita grade school in Clovis and I am trying to connect with anyone that went to La Casita in about 1946" ….  signed  NED  BIDDIX.

I looked at that and said------NED!    Could that be Ned?   You see….I did not remember Ned's last name.   He was just Ned.   Immediately,   wrote a note that something like this-----Hi Ned,  Are you the blond headed kid that played on the West side football team?   Are you left handed and in grade school you had a first baseman's mit and you wanted to be a professional baseball player?    I signed my name Bobby Joe Snipes because I was Bobby Joe all through school.  Now that is the beginning of a renewed boyhood relationship and it is with teary eyes that I share with you the joy of finding Ned.

Ned and I have shared dozens and dozens of emails, bringing each other up to date.   He married a cheerleader and I married a cheerleader.   Ned has three kids and I have three kids.

We have shared several stories about that East side-West side football game and here is one that none of you have ever heard.  This was a very important game for a bunch of little kids.  The tension was high and butterflies rumbled through our little tummies and the pressure was on.   I think I was more scared than anything else.   These guys were big and fast.   I played in the backfield with Ned and Don Grant.  They were fast and I was slow but I could block.  We were so intense that Ned drove roofing nails through his shoes so that he could get better traction.  He said that his Dad was not too happy with that procedure.  I am not for sure but I think it was Ned had an old WWII German helmet that he wore during the game. Hey…...this was all business and we were out to win.     And we did….Ned scored one touchdown and Don Grant scored a touchdown.  The score was either 12 to 13 or 13 to 14.  What a game….what memories.

Funny thing…..Richard Drake played in that game and I don't even remember him and he doesn't remember me.   Richard said he was a little fat kid that played on the line.  In high school,  Richard ran the 100 in 10 flat and was a star athlete in all three sports.  I also finally located Don Grant, he didn't play sports, stayed little all of his life.  He retired from the ministry and moved to Arizona.

And Now…..You Have the Rest of the Story!   Ned and I have a special relationship.  God has blessed us with great friends.  We have not seen each other in about 68 years but it seems that our friendship has grown stronger and stronger.   It is easy for me to see why Ned has many cherished friendships.  He is one tremendous kind of a Guy.

----30----
For Mil's Place: Bobby Joe Snipes
8/15/14

A FIVE-YEAR-OLD BASEBALL FAN

1939---THE CLOVIS PIONEERS PLAYED

  AT BELL PARK...

******************************

Time was, in the good old USA, when a dollar was

a dollar, some coins were real silver, and you could

buy a new car for $1000.

It was time of hard work, frugality---the country was

just beginning to recover from the clutches of the Great

Depression. There was little entertainment. Movies

were big attractions.

Baseball was big in my hometown of Clovis in 1939.

The Clovis Pioneers played at Bell Park. They were

in the West Texas/New Mexico League. 

There were eight teams in this league; along about

1939-40. I remember seven of them. They were:

Clovis Pioneers, Lubbock Hubbers, Borger Gassers,

Pampa Oilers, Amarillo Gold Sox, Abilene Blue Sox,

and Albuquerque Dukes. The eighth WTNM team I

have been unable to remember.

There was at least one other league operating then or

a bit later. Its name I can't recall, but Roswell, Hobbs,

Lamesa. El Paso, Odessa, Midland,  and San Angelo 

may have been in this one.

Dad took me to Bell Park once, when I was very small,

and we sat in the first base "bleachers"---splintery seats

as I recall. 

Maybe it was the bright lights, the green grass (mowed

so nicely), the fresh air, the pop of the bats, the jargon

flowing from the first base seats to the players, the raunchy

cigar-smoking fans...or even the cigar smoke itself...but 

I was forever hooked on baseball!

Alas, I may have been a young burden...Dad didn't take

me often. We lived behind the rustic laundry at 417 W.

Grand, and had an old Philco table radio. KICA broadcast

the games and I hooked a wire to the back of the radio

and to the window screen, trying to cut out the static,

so prevalent in those days....while my dad was out there

on the first base line. Having fun.

I remember a few Pioneer player names from the early 

forties--- Manager Grover Seitz; Dick Woldt, CF and

heavy hitter; Ray "Power" Bauer, RF, and home run

hitter. There was a really good pitcher named Blackwood

who pitched for the Dukes.

KICA broadcast some away games, using some sort of

teletype whereby the barest fact came through and the

announcer added filler details to make it sound as if he

were there. Like: "The pitcher steps off the mound and

rubs up the ball...and now he goes to the resin bag..."

One could always tell these games--there was no crowd

noise.

Later on, as we got older, and went to the games more, 

we kids wanted to get a foul ball...but the team owners 

had fast, mean kids recovering the balls landing on car 

tops, out behind the stadium. Few balls were ever lost.

Bell Park,  which seemed so big once--- seems so tiny 

today.

The Albuquerque Dukes' stadium of the 70's seemed so

big in comparison and it was remodeled and enlarged

circa 2000 and is a beautiful minor league stadium.

All us old Pioneer/Dukes fans out here in Albuquerque, 

have had to become Isotopes fans.

Growing up in Clovis, before TV, we didn't pay much 

attention to the Major Leagues. Our loss.

(As late as 1949, I remember seeing the friendly lights

of Bell Park shining brightly as we drove back toward

town from Broadview, after plowing all day in the hot

summer sun. The Pioneers were still operating...and it

gave a warm, friendly feeling...as we headed for home...

and supper...and some corn bread.)

*******30******

BY MIL

8/6/14

"A THEATER FULL OF LITTLE COPS"

"WHAT WOULD CLOVIS BE LIKE TODAY...
  WITHOUT THOSE EARLY LAWMEN?"
***********************


Think back. When was the last time you saw a 
theater full of little cops?

I reckon with me it was along about the spring of
'44....at the SUNSHINE THEATER---there at Fifth-
and-Main, SW corner...next to Thrifty Drug.

I saw a bunch of little cops there every Saturday 
morning at 9:30! In fact, I was one of them.

"What do you mean, Mil, "little cops?" Well, that's 
what we were---we were card-carrying "Junior Police,"
with many wearing grey police shirts with insignias
on the right sleeve---purchased next door at Levine's.

Here's the way it went down: every Saturday morning,
about a hundred Clovis boys, ages 10-12, met at the
Sunshine Theater. We had a briefing, police-style, down
at the front of the theater; we packed the first seven or eight 
rows.

The Chief of Police himself always came to talk to his
little troops about honesty, street safety, politeness,
helpfulness to others, keeping an eye out for crime,
and in general being good citizens, avoiding crime 
ourselves.

I never caught any PERPS myself, although I was
"carrying." I had my plastic .45 under my shirt.

I managed to avoid getting into any crime until, alas,
that spring night in 1951, behind Clovis High School---
the police "ran us in." (See MIL'S PLACE: "THE GREAT
CLOVIS HIGH SCHOOL CAPER.")

After our briefing from the Chief of Police (whom I 
remember to be Chief PENNIX or something similar,)
we watched a movie, serial, and cartoon; popcorn
was available for ten cents.

You can see how great life was for little boys in Clovis
in the forties. We had time to get a twenty-cent ham
salad sandwich at Woolworth's and get to the LYCEUM
THEATER in time for "Elmer's Tune" at 1:20 p.m.
********************
GENE WALKER, CHS '51, REMEMBERS THOSE TIMES:

I remember we had four movie theatres in downtown Clovis

in the 1940's....State, Lyceum, Mesa, and Lloyd Franklin's

Sunshine Movie Theatre in the 400 block on Main Street.

On Sat mornings, Lloyd and Dorothy Franklin had free

movies, serials, cartoons for grade school children.

Clovis Chief of Police, Nelson Worley, would attend with

a deputy each Sat and make a short talk on safety for the

children... He gave out cards making each child an honorary

Clovis Junior Policeman... I was in the fifth grade and I was

elected the 1st Chief of the Junior Police with Chief Worley's

approval. It carried no duties or responsibilities, but this

was an attempt to focus on keeping children safe, to consider

law officers as friends and helpers and to observe the laws as

they applied to children.

----30---

By Mil Moore and Dr. R. Gene Walker, CHS '51

for Mil's Place

8/3/14