The Big 3 Debacle

Though I am no graduate from one of the Ivies, and I am no captain of industry a thought has accrued to me.

The big three want monies to shore up lost funds, or margins that they have not been able to make due to the state of our current economy. My question is what if they could make this happen on their own? The plan I am laying out to you today I think could work, however as I stated before, I am not someone in the know, and I’m sure that someone down the pike has come up with this idea.

1. There are three key players in this matter. The Big three corps, the union’s, and the union member (employees).

2. The average member; we will call them that as it seems proper, make somewhere around 38K per year.

3. The unions are suppose to be there to be sure that the members rights are followed.

4. The big 3 executives want their products on the road.

So what is it that these three could do to lighten the hardship?

1. What if the Federal government asked that the two major portions of the above stated were to sit down and work out an employee owned partnership.

2. Members take pay cut by 25%. I know this may seem like a lot now, but in the end it will pay off. Keep reading.

3. The funds that the member loose from their pay, goes back into the big 3 and this is where they will become members owned.

Also offer a corporate buy out of those who are on the verge of retirement. Give them the choice to either take the buy out, or leave with some money in their pockets, or leave under mass lay off. The retirement plan should also be reduced by 25%, with the remainder going into a stock option investing back into the big 3.

Not only should the members have to take a reduction, the executives should also freeze any and all bonus plans for a term of no less then 5 years.

As I stated before, I am no finical wizard, nor am I an Ivy League grad but I think that if everyone makes the sacrifices, that they will come out on top. Any thoughts?

This Dog May Not Hunt.

Now everyone who reads this is going to tell me I’m crazy, well maybe I am just a little bit.
I would like to form a new philanthropic group much like the Shiners, or Masons.

While looking at a web site of one o my favorite stores on Worth Ave, I came up with the idea of starting a group based on the Household Calvary. It would be a group of gentlemen who are Anglophiles, and horsemen. No you do not need to own a horse to be a member. The group would do charitable works in their area to raise monies for different causes.

So far that’s all I have is a thought. Will advise later when I have come up with something more concrete.

The Train And A Promise

My Wife & Daughter

My daughter who turned five in late October has never been on a train. I can still remember when she was only a year old and I would sit her on my knee and pretend to be a train with the sounds of chugging along and a whistle just before we hit a tunnel.

She has gotten older and heavier now, and has now traded interest in the train for her My Little Pony CD collection.

Though Amtrak doesn’t come through these parts, I had promised to take her to Kansas City someday and take her on a train ride to DC. My wife hasn’t been to the north with the exception of NY, and NJ to see family, and I thought that this would be a great way to see it.

My wife beat me to the punch and purchased tickets to a Christmas train near here. It wasn’t a log ride, only an hour, but it was good to see that my daughter still has that love of the train.

Waspy Clothing Without The Pricey Tag.

Some WASP who may read this may scoff at what I am about to tell you. A friend once wanted to purchase a lot of Polo shirts but did not want to pay the retail price. I advised him to either to go on line, or visit Ebay as I have seen several lots of Ralph Lauren polo shirts for sale there.
He scoffed at the idea of purchasing shirts on Ebay, and would never do such a thing. Well I’m here to tell all of you, I DO NOT have a problem with purchasing new items on Ebay. One of my favorite stores on Ebay is Bari Men’s Wear. If you are in the market for Brooks Brothers, Canali, etc, this is one of the best places to find it.

As someone who lives in rural Arkansas, we do not have the stores in our area that handles this sort of apparel. One would have to travel to Chicago, or at the very least Dallas to find these sorts of items.

Not only is it a convenient way to shop, but the prices are much lower. Currently I am working on an $1’800. 00 blazer that I just may get for under $100.00. Is it worth it to me to spend the 18 hundred just to have the thought of, well I didn’t get it on discount. NO. They also have a huge assortment of ties, and name brand suits such as Kiton and more. So if you are in the market for a nice suit, or tie, they are worth a looksy!

How I Got Hooked On Cowboy Crack.

This is a funny story as to how I became addicted to cowboy crack. When I was a young boy of 13 I began to get into trouble at school, as most of us do. My parents were at their wits end, and had though about sending me off to school. When they decided to instead send me to live with my grandparents in TX.

To me this was not being a punishment, but a summer vacation. I could smell the fresh baked cinnamon rolls, and taste the home made ice creme my grand mother would make when we would come down for a visit. Boy was I ever wrong.

My grand father would wake me early to tend to stock, and other chores around the ranch. This was not the picnic I thought it was to be. I noticed my grand father would always take a pinch as soon as he hit the floor from his slumber. He would follow the same routine day after day. Wash up, and down to breakfast, still with this chew in his mouth. Though this is something I still to this day have not been able to master, nor do I ever think I will, he would eat his breakfast with the small pinch still between his cheek and gums. The off to work we would go.

One day I got brave enough to ask him what it was that he was putting into his mouth every morning. His reply, which I should have left it at this, was, "It’s grown folks business, and never you mind what it is." By this time my grand father’s healthy was starting to fail him and his doctor give him strict instructions to lay off the gin which he had been so fond of for the better part of his life. He took to hiding bottles of gin all over the house, which my grand mother, would find, and discard without saying a word. He too would say nothing to her of the matter, as he knew he was to be without.

One day I got my lucky break or what I thought was one. We were out tending to his hogs, when he stopped his old beat up Ford down the troll line. Reaching into the troll, he brandished a bottle of gin, took off the cap wiped it on his shirt, and took a drink. He then turned to me and said, "That’s between you and me." He then reached into his pocket, and told me what the tin was all about. He showed me how to snap the can, and take a pull. I chewed all summer long, hinging it from my grand mother.

I dropped it after I turned 15 and my grand father died, and thought I was out of the weeds until I went to college in NM. After I started running with my rodeo buddies, I picked up the habit again.

Vacation Spot Sea Girt

When I first started writing, I said that I would advise to nice places for vacation. My wife has come into a piece of property in NJ. I had been to NJ before when I had visited NY, and I wasn’t too impressed. No offence to those living in NJ, however if you give me a moment I’ll make it up to you latter in this post.

Sea Girt, NJ has the charm of the Hamptons, and Martha’s Vineyard, with out all the pomp. Not a very pricey place to visit, but if you plan to live in this village community you had better have a hefty wallet. It’s a quaint little sea side town and only half an hour from clubs, bars, and amusement areas for children. If you are a fisherman, this is yet another great place to fish as well. Though I have to give my props to Lake Worth, FL, as I have not found a better place for fishing.

If you are a shopper like my wife, and myself, know that any apparel that you purchase in NJ, there is no taxes to be paid on those purchases. In all the Jersey shore is a rather nice place to live or visit. However, if you are not use to fast traffic, be ready to be yelled, and cursed at if you are too slow at the tollgate. Also, something else I found to be strange, it is against the law to make a left hand turn in NJ.

You never know who you might see in Sea Girt, I have it on good authority that Ashley Dupre is a regular. Oh la, la…

The 20Xer

Some may know the history behind the Cowboy hat. Other may feel that it is meant only as a fashion statement, such as those that the famous hairdressers of LA, and New York would wear.
However, for those of you who do not know, the Cowboy hat was used to keep the sun off the roughnecks tending to their cattle. It was also used to fan a fire, or to pull water from a stream.
Though the days of having to pull water from a stream are long gone, the Cowboy hat still hold it's charm for what we Cowboys know as a dying breed.

The price of a hat will depend on the felt quality, which can range from a 2X to a 100X. What does this mean to the first time buyer of a new cowboy hat?

If one purchases a 2X hat, which usually the lowest on the spectrum, you are more then likely going to end up with the sort of hats that they sale to children at rodeos. These are not good quality hats, are not good for working in the sun, or pulling water from a stream.
May first hat, which my grandfather purchased for me, was a 7X. Its still in the lower but is still holding its shape to this very day. This is a hat that one can wear on the farm or ranch, and still wear to other events such as a rodeo, or a night out with the boys to your local dive bar. However, if your wife is refined like mine, don’t you dare even think about taking her out in this hat after you have been working cattle all day.

There other X’s out there that one can purchase to stay with in your budget. I have several that ranges from $150.00 7 or 6X to some that range from $350.00 to $600.00. These are going to be the 20 to 100X.

The 20 to 100X is what I call the cowboy pimp hat. You will mainly see these in places such as downtown Dallas on the heads of cattle, land, or oil baron. These are not meant for the trail or even a "decent" honky tonk but meant to show ones status in the community. Can people really tell the difference? You bet they can. The photo on this post is of a Larry Mahan 100X hat, which cost $650.00.