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Cricket’s Thoughts

Cricket's Thoughts

Watermelon Carnival Tradition

The Watermelon Carnival in Water Valley, Mississippi is the last major activity of the summer before school starts and one that my daughter Haley and I traditionally go to every year. It is one of my favorite mother daughter days that we have.

This year we were headed straight for the petting zoo because it has always been her favorite when she suddenly announced that she was really too old for it now. HUH?

Reluctantly, I turned to see what had her attention.

She was determined to climb the wall, so we did an about face and headed the other direction. As we neared the wall, my mommy instinct started to kick in and I almost hoped that she would chicken out.

The closer we got to the wall, the higher it looked, but she was absolutely determined to try and climb this thing.

She marched over to the guy and handed him her five bucks and got herself hooked up with the safety equipment. She turned around to head over to the wall, and suddenly stopped.

The look on her face was absolutely priceless. Clearly, she was starting to realize how high that wall really is!

That wall looks a lot higher than I thought!

Nevertheless, she started climbing that dang wall. It didn’t take long for me to see that it is a lot harder to climb than it looks!

Between the strength needed to work your way up the side and 100-degree weather, she had her work cut out for her. When it was time to work her way down, she just pushed off the wall and let the pulley rope bring her down. I think that was the best part for her.

It wouldn’t be the Watermelon Carnival without stopping at the food vendors to find funnel cake and we were both ready for an ice cold drink by now. Funnel cake is so wonderful that it should be a sin.

By this time we were both a bit lazy and just wandered through all the booths, stopping to take pictures now and then and greet old friends.

We were just about ready to head back to the car and call it a day, when I looked over at Haley and asked one more time if she were SURE she didn’t want to stop at the petting zoo for old times sake.

Okay, she may be too old for it, but dang it, I’m not!

Off to the petting zoo we headed!

Are you my mother?

When a young calf tried to steal a kiss from her, I had the best laugh in a long time. It really did look like it was asking her if she were his mother. Once there, Haley wasn’t in a hurry to leave and she took the time to feed each and every animal, except the turkey.

She has never liked that old turkey too much.

When someone tells me that it cost too much money to spend one on one time with their child, I never quite understand it.

Maybe I am lucky that Haley has always enjoyed the simple things in life, but the grand total for this wonderful day, was just $18.00 and that was only because we kept buying more feed for the animals!

See the rest of the pictures from our day at the Watermelon Carnival.See More Watermelon Carnival Pictures!
See the rest of the pictures from our day at the Watermelon Carnival.Watermelon Carnival Pictures 2007

Thanks For Being A Part Of My Life!

Cricket Walker

Cricket's Thoughts

Cameras Can’t Lie

It is very rare that you will see me take part in controversial topics in groups or forums. This is not because I am not willing to take a stand for those things which I believe in, but rather that the online venue often resorts to name calling and flame wars, instead of productive debates allowing people to reach their own conclusions.

Occasionally though there are times that my thoughts are so strong concerning a topic, that right or wrong, I just feel I have to say something. This is one of those times. Today I was browsing through a popular forum and found a discussion using race as a possible reason behind the failures of our federal government following Hurricane Katrina. It was also mentioned that cameras can’t lie.

Cameras do not lie, but they also do not tell the whole story. The world witnessed the devastation of Hurricane Katrina on their televisions, but the pictures they were shown were those that the media chose to share. Those of us that lived it, often saw a very different story than the rest of the world did.

An example of this in Louisiana was the tragic death of 34 nursing home residents in St. Bernard Parish. The world watched Aaron Broussard’s tearful outburst on national television concerning four days of cell phone calls begging for help coming from that nursing home. He blamed the federal government for those deaths. The truth was that there were no cell phone calls begging for help following the storm. The residents died the day the storm hit.

Cameras may not lie, but Aaron Broussard lied.

Thirty-four residents of that nursing home drowned August 29th. In my mind it was not only tragic, it was criminal, because of what happened BEFORE the hurricane struck.

What the cameras did not tell you (until much later) was that local authorities notified the owners of the nursing home of the mandatory evacuation MULTIPLE times BEFORE the storm hit. They offered both the means and the opportunity to protect the residents of that nursing home. The owners of the nursing home did not to take action.

This is just one of countless stories in which the media reported one story, but reality was quite different.

I am not a resident of Louisiana, so I will not comment on how I feel their local government handled the crisis.

Here in Mississippi though, our residents depended both on local government and on each other. When our governor told folks to get the hell out, most folks took him at his word and did. In the vast majority of cases, all people, regardless of skin color or economics, were provided both the means and the opportunity to leave.

One primary difference, may have been the history of Mississippians banding together to help each other, rather than just waiting on someone else to show up and do it for us. Family helping family. Neighbors helping neighbors. Strangers helping strangers. This continued in the aftermath with countless trips made into devastated areas to bring folks to safety, often times into our own homes.

This attitude continues today in the massive rebuilding of the communities.

Cameras do not lie, but frequently they do not show you this side of the picture, because these folks out there truly doing their part to make a difference are not famous celebrities. They are just everyday folks doing the right thing.

At some point, I believe that we must also consider our own personal responsibility. If you were a parent, faced with this situation and were given somewhere between 24 and 48 hours warning, would you not do everything within your power to bring your children to safety, even if it came down to putting emergency supplies in a backpack and heading north on foot?

I am not saying that the Federal Government didn’t make devastating errors. There is no question about that. They did. It is simply my humble opinion that skin color and economics did not play a role in our government’s failure to respond in an organized and timely manner.

Thanks For Being A Part Of My Life!

Cricket Walker

Cricket's Thoughts

Extended Tour of Hell

Dear Lord,

Okay, I am certain you are trying to teach me something here, but a hint or two on what I am supposed to be learning would sure be nice.

I know that sometimes I am not supposed to understand, but Lord, I am a pretty slow learner. If you could maybe just point me in the direction you are trying to lead me, I would be forever thankful.

And Lord?

I was wondering…

I have really had enough of this extended tour of Hell and have really figured out it is not where I would ever like to be. Ya figure you can bring me topside again anytime soon?

Cricket Walker

Cricket's Thoughts

Much Better Than This

In college I took an advanced writing class. I remember my first paper. It was like my first website. I thought it was so good! I had received straight a’s in every writing class I had ever taken, and I just knew she would gush about how wonderful it was.

Instead, in huge red letters, across the top of the paper, she wrote, “You can do much better than this, start over.”

Uggggggggh!

I saved every paper in the class and hated her through every one of them. At the end of the semester, she called me into her office to compare my first paper, with the last one I had written in her class.

I could not believe the difference. It was as if I were reading the work of two totally different writers.

She told me how proud she was of me. I was floating on cloud nine. Then, once again, while pointing to the final paper, she said her now famous dreaded words, “You can do much better than this, start over.”

Remembering this story today has reminded me how much I love writing and learning. It’s time for me to take my writing serious again. I want to find more ways to do much better than this.

I would love to find this teacher to thank her. She taught me to never stop learning.

Thanks For Being A Part Of My Life!

Cricket Walker

Cricket's Thoughts

Jack and Lady Katherine

The puppies are growing so fast that it is hard to remember anymore that they used to be so small they almost fit in one hand. They are 4 1/2 months old now. Their personalities have remained the same.

Jack (a.k.a. Chunk) still has to be bribed with food if you want to take his picture, but he won’t pretend to be happy about it.

He is however thrilled to embarrass the living daylights out of me by dragging one of my bras (and another on his head) into the living room when company is here.

Click here to view close up of Jack (a.k.a. Chunk)
View Close Up of Jack

Lady Katherine loves the camera and will pose for you at absolutely no charge, but she won’t let you wash that mud off her nose.

Click here to view close up of Lady Katherine
View Close Up of Lady Katherine

Jack is pretty easy to please. If you keep food nearby and a warm bed to sleep in, his is happy. Katherine however is at her happiest when she is either digging a hole (hence the mud on her nose) or antagonizing her brother.

Thanks For Being A Part Of My Life!

Cricket Walker

Cricket's Thoughts

Life Is Truly Good

Raising two puppies together must be a little like having hyperactive twin two year olds in the house. If you take your eyes of them for even a moment, they find their way into trouble.

Chunk loves chewing the cord to the electric blanket the moment I look the other way. Thankfully Spring is coming so I gave in and put it away until next winter. Once we got that situation under control he decided to check out what happens when you lick the electrical outlets.

Good lawd . . .

Yes, I went out and bought the safety covers for all the outlets.

Lady Katherine has a mission in life. She spends the vast majority of time seeing how many different ways she can find to irritate the living daylights out of Chunk. Her favorite way to provoke him is to grab one of his ears in her mouth, hold on tight and run like heck. Then of course the sibling wars begin from one end of the house to the other.

Life is truly good!

Thanks For Being A Part Of My Life!

Cricket Walker