Tuesday, December 19, 2023

GUARD DOG IS FREE!!!!

 I am a regular reader of the Comics Section of the Denver Post - I don't follow all of the strips [some seem pretty lame to me], but I am a fan of Mutts, and all of its characters including Guard Dog.

 

 Breaking the chains: Creator of comic strip 'Mutts' frees his Guard Dog  character after decades

Guard Dog - Our Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame
 

 

From Patrick McDonnell, the creator of Mutts:

NEW YORK (AP) — Something is different on the comics pages this week. In the panels of “Mutts,” there’s the long-delayed sight of freedom.

Patrick McDonnell, the cartoonist who draws the popular strip, is freeing his character Guard Dog, liberating an animal who has become for decades a symbol of the cruelty of dog chaining.

“I think it just hit me that I can’t do it forever and that it has to happen,” McDonnell told The Associated Press ahead of the publication of Thursday’s panel showing Earl’s owner kneeling beside the dog and announcing: “We have to remove this chain.” On Friday’s strip, it will be gone.

“I had a vague idea what the story was going to be, but I finally took some time and said, ‘Well, what is that story?’ And I was happy with what I came up with. So I said, ‘Now’s the time to do it.’”

“Mutts” premiered in 1995 with two heroes — the small canine Earl and the feline Mooch, fond of saying “Yesh.” There’s also Woolfie, Sid the fish, Crabby, Sourpuss and Butchie, the ever-vigilant owner of the Fatty Snax Deli.

Guard Dog was added about a year after launch as McDonnell explored the idea of having an antagonist for his heroes.

“I started in my sketchbooks drawing a tough dog,” he says. “I drew a big gruff dog and I put a studded collar on him. And then I drew a chain. And when I did that, it changed everything. I realized that it wasn’t a villain. It was a tragic character.”

For years, Guard Dog sat in the unmowed grass of a neighborhood lawn or howled at the moon, alone and philosophical. In one strip he holds a piece of paper that reads “Guard Dog’s To Do List” with only one item: “Remind people of man’s inhumanities.”

Doozy, a neighborhood girl, regularly visits the mutt on her way to and from school, bringing something to brighten his day: an umbrella, treats, a hug, a kind word and a reminder that he isn’t alone. One frigid night, he was shivering and she brought a blanket and a kiss.

Fans of Guard Dog would regularly plead with McDonnell to free the mutt but the artist was also lobbied by animal welfare groups to keep the dog chained as a way to increase the spotlight on the issue.

“I always felt like, ’Geez, if I inspired even one family to bring the dog in the house, that it was worth doing. I know it was tough on the readers and it was tough on Guard Dog,” he said.

“You know, whenever I drew him in my sketchbooks or if I did a talk, I always drew Guard Dog free. So part of me felt like he was an actor playing a part.”

n the lead-up to Guard Dog’s freedom, McDonnell crafted a multi-comic seven-week storyline in which the owner of Guard Dog moves away, leaving the dog utterly alone. The other animals and kids rally to save him.

“Mom,” says Doozy in one new strip. “They kept him on a chain and then they left him alone to suffer. I hate people.” Her mother responds: “But what about those who devote their lives helping animals like Guard Dog?” Doozy, still in tears, reconsiders: “I love people.”

As of 2022, 23 states and the District of Columbia have laws on dog tethering or chaining, with variations on the length of time, the weather and what type of collar can be used, according to a study by the Michigan State University College of Law. In addition, many cities and counties have implemented their own laws that restrict or regulate tethering and chaining.

The landing page for “Mutts” has resources on adoption, on animal welfare groups and how to advance anti-chaining legislation. McDonnell was a member of the board of the Humane Society of the United States for 18 years and currently serves on the board of The Fund for Animals.

“I can’t wait to draw a happy Guard Dog,” he said. “He still has this great dog heart — loving life and loving the characters who visit him. It’ll be nice to see him in ‘Mutts’ without the chain.”

 

 Guard Dog | Mutts Wiki | Fandom



Wednesday, October 18, 2023

DALE LASATER 1943 - 2016

Rancher Dale Lasater remembered for his devotion to cattle, land | News |  gazette.com 

 

For several years while I was working at CU-Colorado Springs, I had the honor and privilege to serve on a committee with Dale and Janine Lasater to select recipients for the Lasater Family Scholarship.  The committee would review the applications of seniors in the Big Sandy/Simla region, and then gather for an elegant dinner at the Briarhurst in Manitou Springs.  After dinner we would meet with each applicant, and then set about the difficult task of ranking them - difficult because ALL of the applicants were truly exceptional with so many accomplishments in a variety of endeavors.

When I retired from UCCS, I lost track of the Lasaters and the scholarship program, although I was pretty certain that things continued.  Recently I thought that I would try to catch up, and was very much saddened to learn that Dale had died in a horse riding accident at the Lasater Ranch.

Beefmaster Breeders United Hall of Fame Inductees Honored by Beefmaster  Cowman

 Dales obituary briefly covers the multifaceted life of a gentleman renaissance cowboy:

Our treasured husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend died suddenly this past Friday afternoon following a tragic horse accident on the Dale Lasater Ranch (formerly The Lasater Ranch) at Matheson, Colorado. Dale was a well-known Colorado cattle rancher and conservationist. Dale's life will be celebrated at a Memorial Service with reception following on Saturday, October 22 at 9:00 a.m. at Our Lady of the Pines Catholic Church, 11020 Teachout Road, Colorado Springs, CO 80908. Dale is survived by his beloved wife Janine, sons Alex (Fiancé Sarah Cannady) and Tom Lasater (Spouse Peiching Lasater), two grandchildren, Thomas and Elizabeth, as well as brother Laurence Lasater of San Angelo, TX, and brother Lane Lasater and sister Sally Lasater of Boulder, CO. Dale's life touched many people throughout the worldwide ranching and land stewardship community. Dale was a beloved and visionary figure in his field, carrying on four generations of cattle breeding and ranch management. In 1986 he took over management of the Lasater Ranch in Eastern Colorado, founded in 1948 by Tom and Mary Lasater. He broadened and deepened his parents' commitment to working holistically with nature and the environment, producing organic grass fed beef cattle of the Beefmaster breed developed by his father. Dale and his brother Laurence made presentations about the family philosophy of cattle breeding and range management around the world. Dale worked throughout his career to implement conservation of irreplaceable Colorado short-grass prairie and other range environments. Dale was raised on The Lasater Ranch in Falfurrias, Texas and Matheson, Colorado. After graduating from Princeton University in 1965, Dale spent a year studying as a Fulbright scholar at the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and then spent two years working with a cattle improvement program with the Peace Corps in Colombia. Prior to taking over the family ranch, Dale worked as general manager of International Cattle Systems, a diversified livestock company headquartered in Kansas. Dale is a past president of the Pikes Peak Cattlemen's Association, and served on the board of directors of the Colorado Cattlemen's Agricultural Land Trust, the Texas Cattle Feeders Association, and the National Cattlemen's Association (predecessor of NCBA). He was a founding board member of the Holistic Management Colorado Branch. In 2002, Dale was awarded the Slow Food Award for Biodiversity in Turin, Italy. In 2012 Dale was awarded the Stuart P. Dodge award for lifetime achievement by the Palmer Land Trust. Dale is the author of Falfurrias (College Station, Texas A&M University Press, 1985) and the editor of Flatrock (Colorado Springs, Master Publications, 2001). Dale's memory will be treasured by all those touched by him and he is profoundly missed. Contributions in Dale's memory may be made to the Lasater Scholarship Foundation, 35437 Highway 24, Matheson, CO 80830. Photo by Watt M. Casey, Jr.

 We would all be fortunate to have a eulogy such as this:

Eulogy for Dale Lasater Mass

Our Lady of The Pines

Greetings,

I loved Dale as a brother, as so many people did. He was like that for me, easy to like, easy to love. But not always. He was a man of grace, of deep insight into many things, but especially people and cattle. He was the most influential person in my life. And he was that for many, many people. Dale Lasater is a giant among men, which is what makes it so hard today to even come close to describing him and his life. It is one of the greatest honors for me to be standing here. To put it into context, someone on the phone calling me about Dale said, “ The world just lost one of its greatest men”. And for all of us who knew him, that is not an overstatement.

I realized yesterday that besides being one of my closest friends, he is the oldest. He called me mano, short for hermano (which also means hand), and I called him bro. Bro Dale. Dale bro. I met him for the first time in 1965 when he taught my siblings and me fifth grade in Mexico on our home ranch, on his way to Argentina as a Fulbright Scholar just having graduated from Princeton University. He was relentless in and out of the classroom. Classes started at 6 am and ended at noon. He led us on horse pack trips on weekends into the mountains. It wasn’t enough to ride on horseback after class, we had to ride bareback, going for ten or more miles to look for arrowheads, and crystals or over the next hilltop. During the midday break he made us run on foot to the airport trap and back (two miles), with him in the lead, and then rewarded us with limeade with no sugar when we got back. He insisted that we write succinctly and to the point. He tortured us with his expectations and boundless energy and imagination. But let me tell you, it was fun.

Much later while I was a university student, we met at a Foundation Beefmaster Association convention in Reno and stayed up all night planning an epic horseback trip through Copper Canyon in Mexico – his idea. At the end of the night, instead of getting a little sleep, he insisted that we go climb a hill outside town to watch the sun come up. He was like that; endless, boundless energy in his pursuit of an unquenchable thirst for life. We never fulfilled that dream, but it became the focal point that inspired scores of letters afterwards between us. And many of you know how he liked to write letters.

In 1989, he invited me to come to Colorado to work with him at the Lasater Ranch. My family and I spent ten years with him, which led to our starting our ranching business in Colorado. If it wasn’t for him, I’m not sure what we would be doing right now. Moving here was a turning point in my life, giving me an opportunity to live my dream. I realized one day while we were in the Lasater Ranch office together that I needed to write down one thing every day that I learned from him because there was so much coming from him: the way he used a word, God, marriage, faith, bulls, wives, traditions, family. I grew accustomed to his laugh and how he could keep you going long after you thought it was time to stop. I can hear his yipping now as he sits up there bestowing his smile upon us.

His family and his marriage to Janine was holy ground to him. It was his highest priority. Today I see his sons Alex and Tom sitting here with their loved ones. He loved you both. He was very proud of you. I see in you the reflection of a lot of Dale’s qualities. I see his light, his darkness, his grace, his roughness, his gentleness, his anger, his brilliance, his love and faith and his goodness. But, as you know, your pa was a not a day at the country club.

No, he was something entirely different. He was so many things. He was a man of deep intelligence and contemplative thought, yet he was a man of the earth. He could write books and just as easily, go out and sort a pen of cattle. He could lead discussions about genetics as easily as he could talk about a poem. The cowboy and his family were as important to him as the financier. He was a man of God like no other whom I have ever met. He was one of the most consistent and giving members of his community that there ever was. And he had a sweet tooth like no other. My son asked me day before yesterday, “Are you going to talk about how he liked sweets?” And he went on to describe an occasion at a cattleman’s gathering when he passed Dale coming the other way. He said, “He had a plate in his hand and on it was not just one piece of desert, but a well rounded selection of every choice there was on the table.” And Duke said he just grinned as he walked by.

After attending Princeton, spending time in Argentina, he fell in love with a beautiful woman named Janine from Spain and they were married in Mexico City and have celebrated life together in marriage ever since. I can remember meeting you for the first time Janine, when he brought you to our home in Mexico showing you off, the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Soon after, he began his career in the cattle industry working in the cattle feeding sector, and you moved to Kansas to build a major feed yard, leasing ranches and growing an international agri-business as the CEO. However, the corporate world did not suit him.

A desire to write a book about his family’s legacy, “Falfurrias” a story of his grandfather – Ed Lasater’s life, his love of the family ranch by Matheson, Colorado, the foundation Beefmaster cattle herd and his family called to him and he and Janine moved their family to Colorado Springs. It was a place that he had always wanted to return to live, work and preserve. We all know that the future holds the unknown and embedded in it is always change, and always unpredictable. He knew this and still he worked hard to preserve the health of the land and his family’s ranch. And even though the energy and weight and tolerance and patience and extreme amount of time that he devoted to it were of almost super human proportions, this was what he wanted to spend his life doing. And he did. He spent every waking hour, in one form or another, trying to make it better, and he chose to do this over many many other things that he loved and was gifted in. Such as writing books.

I learned in the time that I spent working with Dale, that there were many reasons for his returning home besides this. Last week, I was working bison and was watching the flow of the herd across a hill in the rolling South Dakota prairie, down into a draw. It was raw and beautiful and Dale came flooding over me. I thought about how he would have appreciated bison if he’d been around them more. But he loved cattle. They took up his life. And he loved the people who came with cattle. He took personal interest in each one of us, not just because we might be customers, but because it was the way he related to life. People were the threads that made the tapestry that was his life. They are the colors, the organic stuff that he used to weave. He had so many relations with people of all dimensions, color and walks of life. He found people who needed help, whether it was a marriage in trouble, a severe sickness, or someone who needed to talk about their faith. He was consistently involved in local and state level cattle grower associations. He told me once that he didn’t have time for all the demand coming from different organizations, churches and groups in his community. But he did it anyway.

But it was also the land that pulled him. He loved open rangeland and especially the high prairie of eastern Colorado. It was one of the first things he took me out to see when I moved to here. I distinctly remember wondering what he saw in this flat, desolate place, but over time it has grown on me as it did in him as a boy looking for arrowheads on the ranch, working on horseback moving cattle, trotting around exploring. So when he went out on his horse last week, it was not the hard work or the many long hours of toil in the night that drove him. He went out to simply be in this land that he loved. To ride and breathe it and see the spread of prairie grass and deer and whatever else he came across. He was in his element when he was out there riding. He was taking time to be alone on the back of a horse in the majesty of what he saws as God’s creation.

Dale was a man of unfaltering faith. He took the hand that the Lord offered him and he moved in his life using the light of forgiveness and love in his heart. He used his faith to change things in himself that he wanted to change, he used it to open the hearts of other men and families. He never expected anyone else to follow his footsteps, but gently offered the opportunity to share his faith, and in his belief in the Lord as our savior. He knew there is an afterlife in heaven and I know he is there now, watching us and listening. He knew that he was going to a better place that is overflowing with top tier bulls, the deepest of green grass prairie land and good Mexican food with plenty of dessert. If we become angels in heaven, Dale is surely one now. And if he indeed liked flying around on horses as much as we think, I imagine he surely likes zipping around with his own wings now.

As I think about the time I have spent with Dale and what we have talked about and done together, I always come back to his relationship with cattle. I think cattle and cattle genetics put the brightest spark in his eye. He was unshakable in his work in the development of the Foundation Beefmaster Herd that he believed was based around linking genetic selection processes directly to their natural environment: nature and the natural rhythms of life – boiling the elements of cattle selection and culling to their most fundamental order. It is no wonder that Dale’s genius was his ability to reduce things to their simplest element. He took his father, Tom Lasater’s adage, “The most difficult thing in cattle breeding is keeping it simple” to the ultimate degree. He made no exceptions with animals that did not pass benchmarks in fertility, conformation, disposition, weight or hardiness, the five standards of the Foundation Beefmaster herd. He constantly sought ways to refine his insight into culling and selecting cattle by inviting professional cattlemen he respected such as Watt Casey, Guillermo Osuna, Bill Finan and Gale Evans among many others to spend time on the ranch talking and evaluating herd sire prospects. He believed that longevity was an important benchmark in the long-term economics and functionality of a beef cattle herd on open range. I have never seen anyone move the way he did around cattle, nor anyone select bulls the way he could.

So as we remember Dale, let us remember the gifts that he left us, the example he set, the standard that he used for living his life. The gifts that he left us are faith and forgiveness. Let us remember his sense of humor, his adoration of his wife and sons and grandchildren. His love for this land and for traveling in it on the back of a horse is a gift he gave many of us even if we may not enjoy it in the same way that he did. Let us remember his work with the land to make it sparkle and vibrate with life. Let’s remember the love he had for cattle and all animals, the part of him that drove him so ferociously. Let’s celebrate his life by crying and laughing together, knowing that he is still with us, and always will be.

Duke Phillips III

October 21, 2016

Thursday, August 25, 2022

I WANT TO DANCE

I previously posted about a song I wrote entitled I Want To Dance.  You might want to click here to see the lyrics, the chords, and some nice pictures that go along with lyrics.   At one gathering of some musician  friends, we played the song and I thought "This would be quite pretty with a small group including guitar, bass, mandolin and fiddle.  Well, dreams do come true!  This year I attended Colorado Roots Camp as a real camper rather than an RMMC volunteer as I had done for a dozen years.  One of the things that campers are encouraged to do is to perform a song on Student Concert Night, on the last evening of Camp.  This gives one the whole week to get nervous!  However, the professionals who are the instructors during the week are quite willing to help out, so I recruited Rolly Brown on guitar, Matt Weiner on bass, Keith Yoder on Mandolin, and Katie Glassman on fiddle.  And being such accomplished pros, we went over the song for about five minutes and they had it down - which is obvious in the video.  I was the only one who screwed up a bit!!  Many thanks to Michael Shainline for this video.  [I'm not sure why the embed doesn't seem to work....]

 
 

Thursday, December 30, 2021

DENIZENS OF THE BINS

Goodwill Outlet Store | Goodwill North Central Texas 

Not too long ago, Rhonda "discovered" the Goodwill Outlet Centers, fondly referred to as "The Bins."  As you can see above, stuff is indeed loaded into blue bins on rollers.  The bins are the last stop for items donated to Goodwill but did not sell in a regular Goodwill Store.  Because Goodwill gets so many donations, I believe that some of the things that end up in the bins never go to a store but rather go directly to the bins.  If you looked at the link above, you will note that whatever you find is sold by the pound.  Most amazingly to me is that there are three Outlet Centers in Denver that are open 8 to 8 six days a week and 9 to 6 on Sunday - and - a new row of bins is rolled out every 15 to 30 minutes!  There are two main sections of bins, one for clothes and the other for miscellaneous stuff, and I do mean miscellaneous!!  After the bins are picked over, the next stop for all of the stuff is either a recycling center or a landfill.

The first point about the bins is that it is a very sad commentary on consumerism in our society.  While some of the stuff is worthy of being pitched, there is so much stuff that clearly has utility.  Indeed, we have seen many things that are brand new with their original labels and price tags.  It would take way too long to list all of the various stuff that ends up at the bins, and sadly a lot of useful stuff gets rolled away.

The second point about the bins is that most of the "shoppers" are resellers who are there many hours per week.  We have chatted with a few of these denizens of the bins, and they generally have specific things that they are looking for.  Most resell on eBay or Poshmark, but some have flea market booths or consign with resale shops.  For Rhonda and me, it is pretty much a scavenger hunt!  And a good Mennonite one at that since it's $1.49 a pound!!  Much of what we get is for family and friends, but we do find some nice resale items, such as Longaberger Baskets and high-end sports equipment.  I keep my eye out for the latter because Play It Again Sports and the Boulder Sports Recycler are good places for sales.  Here is a great tutorial for how to shop at the bins - and one point that I would add from our perspective, don't try to compete with the "pros" who make a beeline for specific items - the shoe grabbers are the worst!!!  We generally wait for the initial madness of the dash to a new set of bins settles down, and then proceed to dig through - heaven knows that there is plenty to dig through!  And there can be some interesting findings at the bottom of the bins - I once found a Walmart gift card that had $25 on it!

We have kept for ourselves, kids and grand-kids a variety of very nice shoes, boots, jackets, clothes, tools, kitchenware, and crafting materials, as well as bought some things for gifts and for resale.  Examples of sports resale items - Flylow, Volcom, Spyder, Gorsuch, Northface, Columbia, Fossil and Obermeyer jackets, Eddie Bauer clothes, Smith sunglasses and goggles, Pearl Izumi jackets, Burton outerwear and snowboard bags, Merrill and Sorel shoes, Riedell Emerald skates, Orvis fishing gear, and so on.  Bottom line is that we are keeping a few worthwhile items from being trashed, and come out a bit ahead with the resales!



Tuesday, November 16, 2021

COACH

 

W. Hettler | Obituary | Goshen News

W. Hettler | Obituary | Mineral Wells Index 
 
And My Favorite, Although Coach Looks A Tad Serious!
 
 A View From Planet Boulder: THE GREATEST GAME IN THE WORLD - PART 1

 

Wilmer James [Jim] Hettler


Jim died at 1:15 a.m. Wednesday, November 10, 2021, at his home in Goshen.


He was born June 14, 1929 in Whiteford, Michigan. His parents were William Lavern and Annabelle (Holmes) Hettler.


He lived the first six years of his life in Whiteford before moving to Fort Wayne, Indiana. He graduated from South Side High School in 1947 before enrolling at Ball State Teachers College in Muncie.


After graduation, he served in the U.S. Army during the Korean Conflict. He was assigned to the Medical Corp. and served as a Physical Reconditioning Technician involved in the treatment of the returning wounded. He served at Brooke Army Medical Hospital in San Antonio, Texas, at Percy Jones Army Hospital in Battle Creek, Michigan and at Camp Pickett Army Hospital in Blackstone, Virginia.


After his service, he spent 33 years in Public Education in Michigan and Indiana, primarily in the New Paris/Fairfield School System. He was a Secondary Teacher, Coach and School Administrator during this time.


He retired in 1986 and spent the rest of his life in the Goshen, Indiana community. He married Ruth Rae Bowen, in Bowling Green, Ohio, on April 3, 1955.


He is survived by three children, Ronald James (Robin) Hettler, Lubbock, Texas; Celia Anne (Douglas) Holte, Sheboygan, Wisconsin and Amy Lynn (Thomas) Yoder, Elkhart. Ruth and Jim were blessed with 15 grandchildren; 35 great-grandchildren; sister, Edith Marsh, Sarasota, Florida; brother-in-law, Dale Nelson, Chula Vista, California and sister-in-law, Celia Ribas, New Jersey.


Preceding him in death are his parents; wife, Ruth and brothers, Merle & LaVern.


A gathering will be 2-4 & 6-8 p.m. (EST) Friday, November 19, 2021, at Rieth Rohrer Ehret Funeral Home, 311 S. Main St., Goshen. Services will be at Grace Bible Baptist Church, New Paris (the old high school/elementary school) on Saturday, November 20, with military honors beginning at 11 a.m.
Burial will follow at New Paris Cemetery at a later date.


Memorial donations may be directed to the Fairfield Alumni Association or Goshen Hospital Hospice.