Many years ago I worked with a very nice fellow down in Carlsbad, NM…A colorful fellow who could tell very good stories and every day seems like he had a good story to tell. My favorite  story went like this: He was sent down from Denver to be the new terminal manager for Continental Airlines. He was a young man, new family and pretty near broke. He needed some money very badly to move his family to Carlsbad and set up house keeping. Some of the Carlsbad residents told this fellow that the banker he was using was very tight and critical about loaning money and to get a loan from him was like pulling teeth. He felt like he should use them as they were the bank his company used. He had never had a loan before and was scared as he could be about the upcoming encounter with this banker to try and secure a loan to move his family. Never-the-less, he charged on and he was scared and concerned waiting for the banker to see him. Sure enough, the banker raked him over the coals about savings, managing his money, repaying loans and the need for bankers to verify the character of the individuals borrowing money and on and on went the lessons of being a good citizen but he finally said, “well, ok, you seem like you will be a good risk, now what did you say your name was?” He told me he thought and thought, thinking “now what the hell is my name” and his name would not come to him. He said, “Sir, you talked me out of borrowing any money”  and walked out of the bank. He got outside the bank and thought, “what the hell is my name?’ Shortly, he said he snapped his fingers and said, “oh yeah” saying his own name out loud. He said, “So, I went across the street and borrowed the money from the other bank in town.”…. I have laughed at that story every time I think of it. I also borrowed money from that banker and he was tough. Folks around town still remember who it is….If you are familiar with Carlsbad, you know you have to go back many, many years to find when Continental Airlines served them,  huh? I think it was just after the Air Base closed there just after WWII..I hope you liked the story…Pete

In the Fifties in Alabama the school were segragated…But we had a few black friends during our teen years, two that we hunted, swam, and fished with pretty regularly. I rolled those two guys into one character and called him Homer. Most of the stories involving him are based on fact and in the Final Chapter of the book  is mostly true. In chapter three, there are a couple of stories, one about the wreck of the Chevy Panel Wagon was told to me as a true story, but I changed the characters and then the story of about us working at the sawmill is dang sure facts. But anyway, I think this chapter turns out pretty well and I hope you will enjoy taking the time to read it.

Chapter 3 Homer and Frog Giggin’