4-25-01

I've got friends in low places

April twenty-fifth in the year of our Lord, 2001

Greetings from BFE...

Pass this e-mail along and discover the joy of spamming.

A little old business from last week.

First, I would like to thank everyone who e-mailed me after my inaugural newsletter. Second, I would like to answer a few questions that arose from that inaugural mailing:

These are actual questions from e-mails I received.

Q.) What does BFE stand for?

A.) If you don't know what BFE stands for you're just SOL.

Q.) I noticed several typo's in your newsletter. Are you retarded?

A.) Well, it's not a confirmed diagnosis. As for the typo's...yeah, so whaat?

Q.) Have you ever tried writing comedy?

A.) You mean on purpose?

Got a question or comment, drop me a line at: racox@officetex.com

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What a week...

What do you think the three most stressful things in life are? I read this some where, and it seems correct to me: 1.) moving 2.) the death of a loved one 3.) vacation.

Yep, I go on vacation next week (which of course could lead to the death of a loved one). Only my spring vacation isn't really a vacation in the true sense of the word, it's what most folks would call work. Some of you who know me, know that I do a little cattle ranching on the side. So one week of my vacation time each year is spent branding my calves, and reciprocating with the neighbors that help me. Branding is special time of year, and neighboring (helping neighboring ranches with their cattle work) is a time honored tradition out here in BFE.

I really do love it, there's a special camaraderie among cowboys that is hard to describe. It's something that you find in team sports, unless of course you're the L.A. Lakers. It's gritty hard sweaty work, spiritual in a way, and fun. Branding is a time to renew friendships, to gossip about who's screwing who. It's a time to eat home cooking. A time to be one with nature, or fight her tooth and nail. It's about sadistic cowboy pranks, and good natured laughter. It's the prowess of your youth, or the glory of your age and wisdom. It's stories, about bronc's rode and cowboys throwed. It's what I used to do in my younger days, and it's fun to get back there every now and then.

Back when I was cowboying for a living I didn't appreciate branding time the way I do now. But it is a little different these days, you see now I have an office job, and you cannot imagine the flak I'll take over this. All with a smile of course. Cowboying is a proud profession, not everyone can do it, or I should say, do it right. It takes real skill, common sense, and uncanny courage. It's a man working among things he has absolutely no control over, animals, weather, markets...bankers. It takes a sense of humor, and a good dose of humility. Those that have really done it for a living maintain the respect of their comrades long after they've moved on to greener pastures. In a cynical world there's something comforting about that.

So even though I'll take a lot of good natured ribbing because of my "cushy" office job, I'll be among friends, and I'll give as good as I get. Provided I can get there at all with a wife, two kids, four horses...and a partridge in a pear tree.

Pray for me...

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The Cox Family kid quote of the week comes from my son Rhoan, age 4: When he attempted to shovel some pennies into his Big Bird Penny Bank he discovered they were falling right through. He turned the bank upside down and found the plug missing from the bottom. He then looked over at me and asked with an absolutely straight face. "Daddy, where's Big Birds butt plug?"

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Three more weeks until I serialize my novella "Sword of God" on this list, so if you know anyone who might enjoy a twitchy little tale with a good twisted ending, send them my way.

Last week I promised news. Unfortunately the news is not good, and since I'm not Dateline NBC, I think I'll just hold off until I have something good too tell you folks. Until then just remember the adage, no news is good news.

Until next week, don't let the bronc's get out from under ya',

R.A.

"We don't rent pigs!" ~ Gus, Lonesome Dove