How The Day Goes By (By)

The mornings start early, usually around daybreak. I either make coffee or pour a cup of coffee depending on who gets up first, me or my daughter. The next move is to go into the office and turn on the light. Tiger the office cat greets me with one of several levels of "meow". The low meow means she is glad to see me. The louder meow means that she is low on food and wants the food bowl filled -- NOW! Tiger's next move is to come in my direction and either jump on the back of my chair (not likely) or on the desk. Once on the desk she begins to rub on the paper tray on the printer, on my hand as it is on the mouse, or on the keyboard. Tiger the office cat can change things around with her cat-style rubbing on the keys. Then we play the "get out of the way game". I move her and she comes back again and again and again. Finally she gets tired of me and goes away to perch near my left shoulder if I'm lucky,or on the mouse pad if I'm not. By the time I've checked my email Tiger and I have come to a stand-off and I can get down to work.

I'm researching the service of the 141st Infantry Regiment, 71st Brigade, 36th Division in World War I. My grandfather was in Company H of the 141st Infantry. My project started in 1999 as a thread off of genealogy that I was researching. We have no family records, his discharge papers were misplaced years ago. Military records from 1912 to 1960 were burned in a fire in the records center in 1973, over 80 percent were lost. There is not much hope of finding his individual service record but the history of his division is interesting.

I go from link to link on the WWI websites and dig and find things that I can use. I am attempting to organize my notes into a novel. It will turn out to be a historical fiction or something along that line. I belong to the Golden Triangle Writer's Guild in Beaumont, Texas and we guide each other along in our endeavors. There is a lot to be said for a few people sharing ideas -- it works. At the rate my work is progressing I should be ready to publish about two weeks after the second coming of Christ, or later.

Usually about the time I'm deep into some website it becomes time to walk the dog (s). In addition to Tiger the Office Cat, we have Yogi Bear, a mutt from the Humane Shelter in Beaumont and Clutch the Cocker Spaniel from the East Texas Cocker Spaniel Rescue in Houston. Yogi is a 66 pound Chow-Rottweiler cross breed. He is a bundle of love that lives to be petted, eat and sleep. Yogi is hands down the most lovable dog that I have ever had. Clutch is 26 pounds of yet-to-be-determined whatever. He runs and guns and plays but he has a nervous side. He will bark at anything out of the ordinary and will let any sound outside interrupt his attempt at doing his business.

Once the animals are settled down I can usually get a little more work done. I juggle my wife in and out of my research/writing as time requires. About "noonish" I quit to eat a bite and read a little. When 2:00 rolls around I dive into the Jeep and go to pickup the first grandkid, Brooke. After I pick up Brooke at the Intermediate School I go to the High School and grab Jason. I either drop him off at work or bring him home as his schedule requires. When I get home it is time to start supper. In addition to the cat and two dogs we also have two kids and two grandkids that live with us.

Whenever possible I retreat into my world. It's not crowded in my world. It is a quiet place filled with "my things". I may put on my earphones and listen to the old country music from the 1940's and 1950's. I may read. I may do both at the same time. Mostly I just go to my world and lay back and try to let things go by. There is so much that we cannot control because they are the things of other people. I can only deal with my problems and the things of the world that jump into my face and confront me directly. They are varied and range from simple to complex. They would destroy me if I let them. I refuse to let them! I go to my world with my memories, it's not crowded there.

Come along with me and learn about World War I, old country music, and if you behave yourself I may let you have a glimpse of my world.