A CROSSWORD puzzle clue and answer in Monday’s ‘Texarkana Gazette’ had a Howard County connection.
The clue: Young lads.
The answer: Shavers.
It’s been awhile since I heard a young boy referred to as a ‘Little Shaver.’
Here’s the connection: When Howard County was formed from bits of surrounding counties in 1873, the first sheriff was not from here. He was “General” R.G. Shaver appointed by his ole buddy the governor. He is buried in his itchy wool Confederate uniform at Center Point. At some point after the Civil War, Gen. Shaver had to flee to South America to escape an indictment for being an organizer of the Ku Klux Klan in Arkansas. That’s rumor, of course. But with the election of the new governor all was forgiven and he came back to Arkansas and a ready-made job in a brand new county (Howard County is the state’s second-youngest).
The general had two talented granddaughters who made and sold clever little boy dolls which were called ‘Little Shavers.’ Get it?
The dolls caught on and a whole bunch were sold. The name became a part of our culture, at least for awhile.
One of the granddaughters took the dolls to a fancy New York City department store. And she eventually became CEO of Lord & Taylor.
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OUR GOOD LUCK continues to multiply exponentially (that’s a clever description I heard at the gas station). At my home it was too hot to go outside for anything, so I stayed inside where it was cool. I hope you were inside, too.
That meant we had to watch television and right now television is a vast wasteland (that’s a clever description I just made up). I could’t even find reruns of the ‘Brazilian Butt Lift’ paid programming so I checked with the sports channels.
OUR GOOD LUCK. This past weekend we had the opportunity to watch reruns of the Arkansas-Texas A&M game. The Arkansas-Mississippi State game. Arkansas-LSU. That was on the SEC channel. Over on the Longhorn Network we got to see not one, but TWO Longhorn games with the Hogs, including — gag — 1969. The games all have something in common.
I was afraid to look, but I am fairly positive that ESPN must’ve replayed (several times) the College World Series games between Arkansas and Oregon State. The dropped popup which any Little Leaguer could have handled, was replayed and replayed and replayed and replayed. Well, you get the idea.
Now you can see how I became the #1 Fair Weather Hog Fan. It’s because I am so tough. I can take losing more often and better than most other people.
The only good thing was that I don’t think they replayed us losing again to Missouri in football. Missouri? Again?
No matter what the new coach does, it will be an improvement over how things had become.
One guy I know (he came in a close second in the Fair Weather Razorback Fan contest) pointed out that when Arkansas hired Houston Nutt waaaaaaay back when, “All we wanted was someone who could beat SMU,” is how he remembers it. He is right. SMU was coming off the football death penalty. They couldn’t beat anyone. Anyone except Arkansas.
After a few more coaching fumbles we got Burt Bulemia who couldn’t beat Missouri, and Missouri was so bad they couldn’t beat anyone in the SEC except you-know-who.
This new guy is going to be fabulous, I tell you.
I am so excited.
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A FEW YEARS AGO, a gent who was an elected official in an adjoining county asked me: “How does Nashville do it?”
He was referring to another crowd-pleasing event in the Nashville City Park. The event had enticed him to journey from a rival county to the Howard County seat, and he was obviously impressed. And jealous.
I told him that this town for some reason had plenty of persons willing to volunteer their time and talents to make nice community events happen. They don’t just happen, they happen AND they are first class.
If this guy was still alive, he would have been appreciative — and envious — at the 2018 Stand Up for America gala in the city park.
The newspaper’s thanks to the folks with the chamber of commerce for making Nashville a town to envy, again.
And, as usual, the number of non-paying persons OUTSIDE the park was approximately equal to those inside who supported the event by paying the admission.
Tsk, I say. Tsk, tsk.
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THINGS I LEARNED from opening email: I read that 4,153,237 people got married last year. Not to cause any trouble …. but shouldn’t that be an even number”?
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WORD GAMES. The twins: Skin and Bones. They’re wasting away. Please, somebody make them eat.
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HE SAID: “Tricks and treachery are the practice of fools, that don’t have brains enough to be honest. “ Benjamin Franklin, statesman and inventor
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SHE SAID: “I have a theory about the human mind. A brain is a lot like a computer. It will only take so many facts, and then it will go on overload and blow up.” Erma Bombeck, newspaper columnist
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SWEET DREAMS, Baby
