Monday, October 31, 2011

Onto November


I didn't really have anything planned to post today. I originally thought Brutus' shirt said 800 but then realized that it probably says "BOO." And I feel for Wilberforce and Hattie. I mean, if I lived in Cleveland I'd be terrified too.

Sunday, October 30, 2011

To the Moon, Wilberforce

A couple days ago, I bought a book titled Douglas County Historic Building Survey-A Photo Sampler at an antique mall and considering it's a book featuring pictures of old buildings and houses, I knew I had to have it. What interesting is that out of 115 entries in the book, 98 are still standing. I expected to see more houses and buildings on the National Register of Historic Places and buildings that I thought were historic. But the book does feature buildings I've never been able to get history on including this one that used to be part of a brewery.

I was a little disappointed that the Simmons Stage Station wasn't included in the book.
The Simmons Stage Station, a resting spot on the Santa Fe Trail along Highway 56.
It always seems out of character for Wilberforce to rail against his parents. But then again, Wilberforce just wants to stay up a little bit later and Brutus is making a Federal case out of it.

Saturday, October 29, 2011

Dog Eat Doug Is "Strange"

My local newspaper has a daily "column" where you can call or email and ask the newspaper questions and they will attempt to answer them. It's my favorite section. Today, this was in the paper:
Well, maybe Brian Anderson, who does Dog Eat Doug, thinks you are pretty strange. Dog Eat Doug is one of the better comic strips out there. In fact, it's extremely difficult to start a new comic strip as newspapers are leery about replacing time tested strips like Beetle Bailey, Hi and Lois and even the Peanuts reruns with newer strips that are as good or better. The sad truth is that a comic strip's popularity is still measured by how many newspapers it appears in and people voting in comic surveys don't want change--they want familiarity. Below are some newer comics that, so far, really haven't hit it big despite their popularity online.

Cul De Sac
Cul De Sac's creator Richard Thompson won the Cartoonist of the Year Reuben Award and Calvin and Hobbes creator Bill Watterson has gushed about the comic repeatedly. It's funny, poignant and smart and well-worth the read.

Scary Gary
I like Scary Gary. I know there are some people who don't but the idea of a vampire moving to the suburbs is just an interesting concept.

Brewster Rockit, Space Guy

Lio & Heart of the City
Both done by Mark Tatulli, Lio is unique because it rarely ever shows anyone talking while Heart of the City tends to have a lot of talking. Neither strip fails to disappoint.

Dog Eat Doug
Now compare these strips with the one that I routinely comment on and read every single without fail. The Born Loser
I'm sorry but I just don't see any comparison between them.

Friday, October 28, 2011

Aunt Fritzi Has Beefy Legs

Another abandoned house has bitten the dust. Roughly a year ago, a house sitting on land owned by a quarry was set on fire. The fire heavily damaged the house and the quarry seemed disinterested in keeping the house standing so when I drove by the other day, it came to no surprise that the house was gone.
I don't know when the house was built but shortly before the fire my friend Randy and I were able to go to the house and went inside to look around. There was no furniture--I think there was a mattress in one of the bedrooms upstairs but there were two reasons Randy and I didn't look around upstairs. One reason was the floor was literally covered in an inch of animal poop. After Randy and I left, I never went back except to drive by. At least I have pictures.
The fireplace in the house.
I hate when comic strips turn the panels to be vertical instead of horizontal. And there's something about how this is written that makes it's really difficult to read.

As of this writing, the weather in Cleveland is 47. Tonight is going to be a low of 37. Hattie is going to freeze her chubby Family Circus-esque legs off.

Thursday, October 27, 2011

My Pet Monster

It's about time for Halloween and I have decided that I hate it most of all compared to other holidays. And I have a kid. He never knows what he wants to be, when I take him to get a costume he leans toward the more expensive costumes. He's never really into it and for the cost of the $25 costume, I could a shit-ton of candy, which is really why he kind of cares about Halloween. To be honest, I was never a fan of Halloween either. I hated going to other people's houses and bothering them just to receive candy.

Here's the TV-movie "My Pet Monster" which I used to have on videocassette. It stopped working and I haven't watched it since.


I love the look of terror on Gladys' face. I don't, however, love the cliche that Gladys, big, strapping woman she is, being scared of a movie.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Gladys Is Mitt Romney, Brutus is Rick Perry

"Ed? This is Frank. I'm at the cemetery visiting the Overlook Man as I do on the first of every month and I think you need to get down here," Frank said.

"Why?" Bilko asked.


"Because he's gone!"


"I'll be right there," Bilko hung up and began heading upstairs.


"Ooh, where are we going?" Caitlin asked.


"You're not coming. This is work related."


"Then I guess I will just stay here and call Mom and say I'm bored then she'll come pick me up and take me home to where all my stuff is," Caitlin said.


Bilko pursed his lips and squinted. "Are you sure? We're going to be looking for a dead body."


"Is that supposed to keep me from going because that sounds awesome," Caitlin said.


Wanna read more? Stull #22 went up on Saturday. Read it!!

 Chip is apparently confused. Just because there have been an onslaught of debates doesn't mean the election is around the corner.* I wish it was because I don't think I can handle nearly another twelve months of this. And I don't think Wilberforce can handle his parents fighting every other week either. It should at least get interesting when the debates feature President Obama and whoever the Republicans decide on.




*The only elections taking place in 2011 are special elections to replace people who resigned. There are also some state legislation elections taking place.

Monday, October 24, 2011

Your Main Hand...?

Stull #22 is up. It'll be up until the sun scorches the planet so you can read it at any time but I'd really like it if you read it now.

This post is dedicated to my lovely and amazing wife, Audrey, on our anniversary.

I get that ambidextrous people can comfortably eat with both hands but from what I can tell observing people in restaurants and peering through windows is that left-handed people eat with their left hand and right-handed people eat with their right. The exception is when using a knife which you typically use with your main hand.

Anniversary Waltz

Our wedding cake, made by Muncher's Bakery
Two years ago, I got married. After my last relationship fell to pieces I wasn't really sure I wanted to start dating again but then I saw Audrey's profile on Yahoo! and from her picture I could tell she was attractive and, doing something that violated every fiber in my body, found her on MySpace and messaged her. We talked for a while but wanted to skip over the "online dating" thing and asked her out on a real date. We didn't really know where to go so we wound up going to Yello Sub, a popular sandwich spot in Lawrence, and while we ate we watched the Primary Presidential Election. Yes, we talked about politics on our first date. Probably not the best strategy but we're similar in political convictions so I think in a way it helped. Our date was pretty much over after that and she went back home to Topeka but we continued talking online. I began spending more time going to her place after work and on the weekends. I proposed to her in June and we made plans to move in together, which we did in September.

Cam, me and Audrey at our wedding in South Park.
All that happened within the relatively short timeframe of seven months. In those seven months, a lot of stuff changed and all of it for the better. Audrey is my best friend and my biggest supporter, with whatever I do. She stands beside me and I love her more each and every day. She accepted that I have a son and that I have custody of him which is something I don't think my other girlfriends were accepting of. Audrey is one of the main reasons I get up in the morning. She is the main reason I really do anything

To me, she is perfect. Her beautiful smile, her beautiful eyes, everything about her brighten my day and even though we've only been married for two years, it's been the best two years of my life and I look forward to many, many more.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

200 Acre Lake

"Is u." Well, despite that I would wager that it is pretty difficult to find a 200 acre lake for sale on one piece of property. I did a Google search for 200 acre lakes in Missouri and came up a nice list of lakes either owned by muncipalities (county, city) or as part of a planned community. Finding your own private 200 acre lake isn't impossible but improbable.

Bye Week? Read Stull

I'm beginning work on my webcomic today so I'm going to try to stay offline for as long as possible to work on it. Although I have an important post to try to get done for Monday so I don't really know how that's going to work. But, hey, you all should check out Stull #22, it posted yesterday and it is awesome.* If you don't read it then Stull may just have to come to a premature end.

Brutus clashes horribly with that chair.

As someone who doesn't like/watch/enjoy/care about football, this strip does not speak to me. In other comic strip news, Garfield uses the name Wilberforce.






*Your definition of "awesome" may vary.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Stull #22

Detective Bilko ran downstairs as quickly as he could to answer the door. He opened it and saw a young girl with short brown hair wearing a striped hoodie and carrying a suitcase. A rolling suitcase sat next to her on the porch.

"Oh, I forgot you were arriving today," Bilko said. "Welcome, Caitlin. Your Mom just drop you off? Not even going to say hi?"

"Mom's been kind of a pill lately. I think she's going through menopause or something," Caitlin said.

Bilko chuckled. "She's too young for that but that would explain our last telephone conversation."

"So has anything fun moved to town since my last visit?" Caitlin asked.

"We have a new swimming pool but that's about it," Bilko said as the phone started ringing. "Hello?"

"Ed? This is Frank. I'm at the cemetery visiting the Overlook Man as I do on the first of every month and I think you need to get down here," Frank said.

"Why?" Bilko asked.

"Because he's gone!"

"I'll be right there," Bilko hung up and began heading upstairs.

"Ooh, where are we going?" Caitlin asked.

"You're not coming. This is work related."

"Then I guess I will just stay here and call Mom and say I'm bored then she'll come pick me up and take me home to where all my stuff is," Caitlin said.

Bilko pursed his lips and squinted. "Are you sure? We're going to be looking for a dead body."

"Is that supposed to keep me from going because that sounds awesome," Caitlin said.




"Exhumed"

Bilko and Caitlin arrived at Tontzville Cemetery and walked to where the Overlook Man was buried and where Frank, Katie and John were standing and waiting.

"Thanks for coming so quickly," Frank said then noticed Caitlin. "And who's this?"

"This is my daughter Caitlin. She's visiting for the summer," Bilko said.

"Pleasure to meet you. I'm Frank York. And this is John Garner and Katie Anderson. We run the Rock Creek Township Historical Society."

"Yeah, that's cool. So we're looking for a dead body?"

"She is gung-ho," John said.

"I don't think it's a dead body. John is under the assumption that the Overlook Man was never really dead but in a hibernation-like state and then dug his way out from six-to-eight feet underground," Frank said.

"There is a possibility that he really was dead and is now a zombie," John interjected.

"I think the body was stolen," Katie said.

"Why would someone steal a dead body?" Caitlin asked.

"The person who killed him. When we first discovered the body we couldn't find a cause of death," Frank said. "I say a couple of us go back to the Society and a couple of us go out to the Overlook and..."

"The Overlook? Why would the killer take the body back to where it was found?" John asked.

"I don't know. What else can we do?" Frank yelled.

"Wait," Caitlin said. "Were you done with the body?"

"You mean, like, with autopsies and such?" Frank asked.

"Yeah."

Frank nodded.

"Then why would the killer exhume the body when it would probably never see the light of day anymore?" she asked.

Everyone was silent.

Katie turned to Frank. "Let's just all go back to the Society."

Frank nodded.




The five of them arrived back at the Society and noticed something odd. "Why is the door unlocked?" Frank pushed the door open and they slowly entered. Frank looked into his office and saw a man sitting in a chair wearing a tan overcoat and a tan fedora.

"Hello?" Frank said.

"About time. I was wondering if you would ever return," the man said.

"Is that...?" Katie asked.

"Looks like it," John said.

The man stood up. "Bernard Boicourt. Or as you know me, the Overlook Man."

"You're alive?" Frank asked.

"Since 1805. I was the founder and namesake of Boicourt and I participated in the End Road Massacre."

"But you'd be 206 years old. You can't be..." Detective Bilko began but was interrupted by Bernard.

"Standard laws of Earth and time do not apply in Stanton County. You, of all people, should know that. I stopped aging at age 65 and gained magnificent strength. The only downside is I do occassionally die but after awhile, I come back to life. I just wanted to let you know that I was the one to give you the book. What you were--are--doing is admirable. People need to know about the tumultuous history the county has had. Don't give up," Bernard stood up and walked past and opened the front door. "I'll see you around."

"Wait. How did you become immortal?" Frank shouted.

Bernard chuckled then left, closing the door behind him. Everyone just stared at the door.

"Should...Should I go after...?" Bilko began.

"What the hell is wrong with this place?" Frank sighed.

"This is going to be an awesome summer!" Caitlin smiled.


Next:
John and Katie take Caitlin around Stanton County.

Just Laugh and Walk Away


Yay! Brutus is at a fancy restaurant and he's not alone! I don't really get the joke except that either Wilberforce drinks way too much Starbucks or his parents do. And you would think Wilberforce would know that restaurants typically only have one size for drinks. Regular and possibly a kid's size.

I like his tie though.

Friday, October 21, 2011

We Get It She's Old


We've been hearing way too much lately about Mother Gargle's age. It's time to move on Chip and face the fact that you too are growing older. You need to quit obsessing about it.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

No. 28: Space Dork, Book One

1
Colonel Nicholas Bonaparte leaned back in his chair and propped his feet up on the console. He sighed, took a long drag off his cigar and quickly exhaled. He normally didn’t smoke a cigar, in fact he could barely stand them but he always smoked one before coming into port. In less than two hours, his ship, The Napoleon Giant, would be docking in Calgary, Canada.

Bonaparte was not his real last name. He had it changed when he was twenty-four to reflect his heritage. Not that he was a descendant of Napoleon Bonaparte but his ancestors had a habit of changing their names to reflect famous people. Bonaparte stared at the riveted steel-gray ceiling while continuing to puff on his cigar. He was 59 and still had good hair—straight black—and perfect health. After a two week rest in Calgary he was going to depart for his 75th expedition into the universe.

“Colonel?” yelled someone from outside in the corridor. Bonaparte fixed his ear in order to hear more clearly and determined who was calling for him. About a second before he figured out who it was, Corporal Anthony DuBecky and Major Clark Etheridge came into the room. “Colonel, we have those reports for you,” Etheridge said.

He handed Bonaparte a clipboard with a list of problems, accidents and used rations that the Giant used over the last five months. Everything seemed in order and Bonaparte quickly initialed the boxes next to lines that read ‘Used boxes of Eighty (80) cans of soup: 15’ and ‘Number of Crew Admitted to Sick Bay During Trip: 130’ and ‘Number of Deaths During Trip: 3’.

Although technology had been clearly advanced, these excursions into the distant ends of the universe were dangerous. Bonaparte’s crew always had the lowest number of fatalities in all of the North American Space Administration. Bonaparte handed the clipboard back to Etheridge and both subordinates left.

The North American Space Administration, or NASA was founded in 2119 when the United States’ NASA, the Canadian Space Agency and Mexican Space Program merged. Each ship basically housed 1 colonel, 2 majors, four captains, four corporals and 400 employees, or technicians. The technicians were the ones that really did all the work. Unfortunately, on this trip two corporals and a captain died because of a massive Scandia leak in the recreation room. When they arrive in Calgary, those people will need to be replaced by NASA.




First Technician Damon Gonzalez tinkered with Robot-2, the Napoleon Giant’s helper android. Every so often, as a screw is tightened, Robot-2 came alive with a piercing “Vreeet!”

“I hate it when they scream,” Gonzalez sighed. He closed the battery compartment and restarted Robot-2. “I’m sorry, 2 but we are going to need to replace you when we dock at Calgary.”

Robot-2 slowly booted up and turned it’s head toward Gonzalez. “Well…you’re…no…spring…chicken…either,” it said slowly as it’ artificial intelligence chip began running.

“It’s nothing against you but after 25 years, it’s time for the Giant to upgrade to the new Robot-6.”

“Despite my flaws, I am still a wonder machine. You, too, have been here for 25 years and I don’t see them replacing you,” Robot-2 said in a snide voice.

“That’s different, 2. I’m human and have years of experience whereas you are basically unable to do anything beyond your programming,” Gonzalez tried not to be too hard on Robot-2.

“Maybe not work-related but as for humans and their emotions, that’s something that cannot be programmed.”

“It’s that type of attitude that has kept you onboard this long. Come on, 2,” Gonzalez put his arm around Robot-2 and they both headed out of the door. “You’ve got lavatories to clean.”

2
Leroy Rizzo was driving toward Calgary with his sister, Haylie, in the passenger seat. “Are you sure you want to go through with this?” Rizzo asked.

“I’ve wanted to join NASA ever since I was a kid and I am going through with it. You should also look into this, you could probably qualify for captain or something.”

“People die on those expeditions, Haylie. I’m not gonna sign up for some cockamamie excursion into the unknown and be eaten by an amorphous blob,” Rizzo argued.

“It’s not that bad. I’m going to be on the Napoleon Giant which has had the fewest fatalities of all NASA’s ships,” Haylie defended. “Besides, most deaths are caused by space plagues than being an alien’s dinner.”

“But they’ve still had fatalities. I’m proud that you are following a dream but I don’t think this is worth it,” Rizzo said as the car crossed into the Calgary city limits. As they arrived at the NASA offices, Rizzo continued to complain about joining. They walked into the office and sat down in front of Sgt. Erik Thornehawk.

“Welcome to the North American Space Administration. What can I do for you?” asked Thornehawk.

“I’m Haylie Rizzo and I’m scheduled to join the Napoleon Giant.”

“Let me check here…” Thornehawk searched through a small stack of folders on his desk. “Here you are. All right, I have to ask you a few questions and we’ll get you set up with a badge. Nationality?”

“American,” Haylie answered.

“Do you know the skill level you’re going to be at?”

“I think third technician.”

“I’ll check to make sure. Anything to declare?”

“What do you mean?”

“Anything. A disease, fruit or vegetables, a monkey.”

“Oh. No.”

“Good. And are you healthy and ready to go through the training?”

“I though third techs didn’t do the actual work,” Rizzo interrupted.

“Third techs are the lowest rank on the ship but there’s always the possibility they will need to replace the first and second technicians,” Thornehawk explained. “All right, Miss Rizzo, if you’ll step right through that door, Elsie will assist you with getting your badge.”

Haylie entered the door and Rizzo stood stupidly in the center of the room. “Is there anything I can help you with, sir?” Thornehawk asked.

“God, no! I wouldn’t join this outfit no matter what. This job is a death trap!” Rizzo rolled his eyes and prepared to exit the doors. Before he could, a woman came in. She had shoulder-length black hair with subtle highlights. Her eyes made her seem stuck-up but as you looked at her smile, everything changed.

“Hi, I’m Maria Sanchez and I’m the new captain of the Napoleon Giant,” she said with a slight Spanish accent.

“Ah, Captain Sanchez. Do you have anything to declare?” asked Thornehawk.

“Nope.”

“All right, Captain, just go into that office and Elsie will assist you in getting a badge,” Thornehawk pointed at the same door Haylie went into. Rizzo watched Maria disappear through the door and paused for a couple of seconds. He went up to Thornehawk and cleared his throat. “Yes, can I help you?” he asked.

“Yeah, on second thought, is there any way I could join the Napoleon Giant?” Rizzo chuckled.




The three-mile long Napoleon Giant landed gently on the airstrip in Calgary. The crew emerged from the many doors and began congratulating each other on another mission well done. After about thirty minutes, the large group dissipated and the airfield was left silent. There was however, no rest for the captains. The captains immediately had to meet at NASA Headquarters and train the new recruits.

At HQ, Captain Anastasia Fielding took the new corporals, which included Rizzo; Captain Lou Schayer took the new captain, which only included Rizzo; and Captain Xin Huang took the technicians, which included Haylie.

Captain Fielding was a beautiful older woman with long brown hair tied back into a ponytail. She led Rizzo, another guy and the Giant’s current corporals, DuBecky and Kelly Nugent, into a small room and lined them up against the wall. “Welcome to the North America Space Administration. I am Captain Anastasia Fielding and these two are Corporals Anthony DuBecky and Kelly Nugent of the Napoleon Giant. For the next two weeks we are going to train you on the qualifications given to corporals,” DuBecky and Nugent walked up and stood next to Fielding. “The senior corporals will take it from here.”

“Greetings,” began Nugent. “I am going to be honest with you: being a corporal is a pain in the ass! You are in charge of overseeing all 400 technicians and all the technicians. Everyone will essentially be yelling at you…”

“If I wanted that, I’d go back home with mom,” Rizzo said under his breath.

“Corporals are the middleman between techs and captains. Despite being a messenger, being a corporal on the Napoleon Giant is not as bad as it is on other ships,” DuBecky admitted.

Rizzo rolled his eyes as the voices trailed off in his brain and he silently went to sleep, standing up and with his eyes open.

3
With less than an hour to go until the Napoleon Giant launches, Rizzo was in the Astro Bar downing shot after shot of cement bulldog. Sitting next to him was Corporal Manford Cardy, also a new corporal who was just sitting and nursing his third beer. “I don’t know why I’m doing this. I hate outer space, I hate working,” Rizzo voice, although drunk and slurred, was panicky.

“What did you do before this?” asked Cardy.

Rizzo paused for a second and nodded his head, “Bum,” he replied.

“How did you live? How did you make ends meet?”

“I lived in my mom’s basement and slept all day.”

“Wait. You have a college degree,” Cardy said.

“And a Ph.D. in neurology,” Rizzo revealed.

“Oh my God! Then why aren’t you a doctor or something?” Cardy shrieked. “You could be a millionaire with your smarts.”

“I hate working. That was the point of me being a bum. Now look at me. Following a woman I haven’t said two words to into space on a year-long journey. Have I lost my mind?”

“I joined so I could be closer to my girlfriend,” Cardy revealed.

“Oh, is she one of the new technicians?” asked Rizzo.

“No, she’s Captain Fielding,” Cardy smiled.

“You ol’ dog you,” Rizzo guffawed and downed one last bulldog. “Let’s get going. Space waits for no man.”

Cardy and Rizzo got up from the bar and left, heading toward the landing strip where the Napoleon Giant was waiting.




Bonaparte loved the sound his Giant made as it made it’s way through Earth’s atmosphere. Everything was perfect for what was to be the longest excursion the Giant had ever been through. Bonaparte walked through the corridors and inspected several things for a second time. On his way back to his quarters, Bonaparte ran into Majors Etheridge and Eric Hanson. “How’s everything boys?”

“Everything’s great, Colonel. The crew is all settled and ready to go to work once we pass the moon,” Etheridge reported.

“However, I regret to report that several of the crew show up on board visibly drunk, sir,” Hanson tattled in his British accent. “I suggest they be reprimanded especially considering two of them were corporals.”

“Oh come on, Major. We’re leaving for an entire year into the unknown of space. If a few want to down a couple of drinks to make it easier to get on board and say ‘good-bye’ to their home planet, then so be it. Quit being a douchebag and lighten up,” Bonaparte slapped Hanson on the back and entered his quarters.

Etheridge shook his head and walked away. Hanson continued to stand, at attention, in front of Bonaparte’s quarter’s door. He turned around, still at attention, turned his head around, stuck his tongue out at the door and plodded off down the corridor.




Rizzo and Cardy just happened to be assigned to the same room. Cardy was reading a book in his bunk while Rizzo stared out the window. “Didn’t you bring anything to kill time?” Cardy asked.

“No. I told you, this was a split decision. I wasn’t prepared for anything,” Rizzo sighed. “All you did was bring a book.”

“Yeah but it’s War and Peace so it’ll take me the better part of a year to read it.” Rizzo sighed a couple of times as he watched the Earth slowly get smaller through the porthole. “Could you stop doing that? It’s rather annoying,” Cardy asked.

“Sorry,” Rizzo replied as he waved ‘good-bye’ to Earth from the window of his new home.

Is Gladys Wearing a Bathrobe?


Muammar Gaddafi, the former leader of Libya who has been in hiding since an uprising earlier this year, has been killed. Gaddafi became ruler of Libya after a successful military coup in 1969. Gaddafi was killed by wounds received while being captured in Sirte.

I had an odd dream last night, not about Gaddafi but about my grandparent's old house. My wife and I were living in a house built behind the old house and someone stole a couple of chairs that were outside. I'm starting to forget the actual point of the dream and I know it had one but what was weird was that there was a parking lot also behind the house, not a big parking lot but one with six or seven spaces. And now I can barely remember any of the dream. I never remember any of my dreams anymore and it's kind of annoying as when I have a decent dream, it's very good and intriguing, like my creepy "sheriff of a deserted town with a wild horse" dream.

How late is this sidewalk sale open? Usually sidewalk sales are during the day, 9 to 5 or something like that. Apparently in Ohio, or at least the crazy universe The Born Loser occupies, sidewalk sales take place in the evening.

"And how's your Wilberforce, Gladys? Still perpetually 9-years-old? I knew vacationing at Love Canal while you were pregnant wouldn't be good."

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

I Thought Brutus Had a Leaf Blower


You would think the sight of Brutus holding a hair dryer and blowing leaves would be pretty self-explanatory but Mother Gargle just had to make sure I guess. Hey, Brutus. When you are done, bring that hair dryer over here.

Monday, October 17, 2011

Spread the Word

I did something stupid last night and spent most of the evening and into the night looking up creepy things online. I admit that I spent quite a bit of time online but I had never had these brought to my attention. I don't know where I have been while these have been circulating but I'm glad I found them.

Be Warned That The Following May Cause Lack of Sleep And/Or Insanity.

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Getting Old Sucks


In a shocking act of continuity, we've actually been hearing about Mother Gargle's birthday all week. Brutus has been making fun of her getting old and Mother Gargle has been lamenting about her getting old. It's been a hoot.

Saturday, October 15, 2011

The Monster at the End of This Post

There is a special Saturday post by me over at the DCR. It's mainly special because of the announcement near the end of the post so enjoy.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Adams Cemetery

Started in 1859, Adams Cemetery north of Lawrence is the final resting place of at least two dozen people. The cemetery is named for Martin and Nancy Adams who deeded the land to the people of Riverside School District No. 53 in 1875. In 1967 Riverside was consolidated with Lawrence School District to form USD 497 making Adams Cemetery the only cemetery in the state, possibly the country, owned by a school district. The cemetery has been neglected for decades--the school district unable willingly or financially to provide perpetual care for it. Local volunteers have attempted to clear out the weeds, brush, trees and other things that collect in the cemetery but they can only do so much. Adding to difficulty keeping the cemetery clean is the cemetery is hard to get to. It is landlocked by private property.

I first heard about Adams Cemetery in The Complete Tombstone Census of Douglas County, Kansas, a book published by the county genealogical society in the 1980s. In the book, they listed about a dozen gravestones and hinted at about a dozen more. The cemetery was rediscovered by a Boy Scout troop who were out hiking. The cemetery was mentioned as being located about a mile north of 4th & Michigan Streets and my initial outing to try to find the cemetery was uneventful as I wasn't even looking in the correct place. When the book came out Adams was located about a half mile north of Lawrence basically in the middle of a field. Now the cemetery rests just behind a subdivision.

Stone of Robert Hughes (d. 1862)
Adams Cemetery currently only has five stones still standing. One of them belongs to a Civil War veteran who died in 1862. Hughes didn't actually die in the Civil War. He came home to Lawrence on leave and got sick. His stone is somewhat protected by an iron fence but a chunk of his tombstone has been destroyed. Hughes' stone reads "Robert L. Hughes Son of Robert & Cathrin Hughes Member of L. Regiment Kansas Vols. Died Feby 16, 1862." The other stones belong to "Bertha dau. of D. & A.V. Freeman Born Dec. 23, 1873 Died Mar. 25, 1874", "Jenette L. dau. of B. & O. Gentry Died Jan. 26, 1871 Aged 24Ys", "Thomas Gentry Died July 7, 1864 Aged 22Ys" and "Burton Son of S. & LP. Stanley Died Sept. 22, 1877 Aged 3Ys, 3ds." There are several large rocks sticking out of the ground which are more than likely marking other burials but none have names or dates on them.

I was fortunate to be able to meander around this cemetery that has been neglected possibly since its creation. Here's hoping other people also get involved to help clean up this cemetery.



So Mother Gargle is turning 60. I'm pretty sure that Gladys is around 45 which means Mother Gargle had Gladys sometime around 16. Sigh. Babies having babies. And back then MTV didn't exist so they couldn't showcase Mother Gargle on Teen Mom or 16 and Pregnant.