KAYLA

They say the best things in life are free. Well, you could debate that with a rich old bastard who can buy a basketball team. But does his dog watch over him night and day? We found her in a classified add, FREE PUPPY. We drove over to Roswell to see her. Her name was already Kayla, so we let it stick. She was aggressive and refused to come to me. I'd had Chinese food just before going to her home. The pork rib in my cargo pocket was too enticing. She came for it and we've been buddies ever since. Two years later she still sniffs my pockets for treats.

Kayla is a Catahoula Cur AKA Louisiana leopard dog to breeders, Hog Dog to boar hunters. Catahoula's are a strong working breed. They go way back, probably came with the natives when they came from Asia. Very popular with the Choctaw. The State of Louisiana anointed them as their State dog in 1979. Not bad for a local mutt that didn't come over on the Mayflower. 

No mater what I'm doing she's always about. Watching from a shady spot, sneaking through the mesquit brush or romping in the river. I call and she's there, I go to town she follows me to the gate and waits until I return. When I'm working in the Garage she's napping near by. When I nod of in my office chair she'll get up and nudge me awake then go back to her resting spot. Apparently, her job is to keep me awake to do my job.

She amuses me to no end when she barks and growls at thunder and lightning. I've had big mail dogs that run and hide from the gods but not her. She will challenge the Mighty Thor until the storm fades to a drizzle.

Well that's all I had to say. She doesn't do any goofy Face Book tricks she just watches over me night and day and that's OK.

APP TO THE BEYONDER

No one has written an App to let you call beyond the veil with your smart phone yet. Until they do we know not what lies on the other side. So we're left with fearing the inevitable or facing the grim reaper with grimmer determination to stay one step ahead of his soul reaping scythe.

A year ago I found myself knocking at Death's door when my arteries closed up. Since then I've come to realize your time on this plane is fleeting. Rather than burrow deep into a tunnel of despair I say build a tower of defiance. Build it with bricks of compassion and mortar of humor.

This blog is a prime example of what I'm getting at. Genetically speaking I'm living on borrowed time. All my familial predecessors croaked in their sixties given that DNA marker I could stroke-out any minute. As that great sage Alfred E. Newman so aptly put it “What me worry?” I've embarked on a whole new career path. Writing, blogging, social networking all new skills I'm teaching myself. After decades of running small businesses it's a real shift in direction for me.

Up to now the vetterSverse blog has been about my life, but I don't want to ride the pale horse alone. Along the way I've met a number of fascinating people. These extraordinary individuals exemplify the kind of perseverance and humor that I'm key-stroking about. I will invite them to opine on whatever subject I'm writing about. Their life experiences and expertize should make for interesting discussions. So keep reading friends and you'll meet some truly unique characters.

ARE WESTERNS DEAD IN THE DUST?

Tragically classic westerns are dying a slow painful death but not from the occasional Hollywood blunder like the Lone Ranger. They screwed that one up twice, you'd think they would get it by now. You don't take an iconic hero and make him into a punk. You'll piss off the core fan base in the first five minutes of the film.

No we can handle occasional screw ups, westerns are dying because of fans like me. You see we grew up with westerns dominating the big screen and TV. The real Lone Ranger {Clayton More} and Tonto {Jay Silverheals} were thrilling. We actually played cowboys and Indians in the back yard with toy colts and not with a joy stick. Before the PC Pigs that is. We went to rodeos wearing our Stetsons and boots. We have ridden a horse that didn’t require a quarter in a slot. But we’re disappearing fast and that's the issue. If westerns are to survive they must adapt to the new audience. 

Oh there’s a few real cowboys left in the ranch lands of Texas, Nevada, Wyoming and Montana, the other day I saw one riding a pretty paint through Tularosa, New Mexico. A while back an old timer in his 70s rode in strapped in chaps, boots and trusty six gun. A throwback to a vanishing way of life and so too is the classic western were the Duke and Clint ride into town bust out with a .45 and cap the bad guys then ride out. 

Mystic Canyon Ranch where I live and have been writing crossbreeds a SciFi series with a western flavor, is open range. My lady neighbor is always riding her horse on my land hunting for stray cows. You don't usually equate women with being fans of westerns and maybe they're not so big on all the gun-play. But they love horses and many romance stories are set with a western backdrop. As a writer I'm always interested in the female perspective. A lot of equestrians are female, like my pal Linda Ischer from Las Vegas who was a rodeo queen. These days she works for a booking and talent agency www.bookitinvegas.com. 

Linda. “Yep I use to rodeo and gymkhana here in Vegas for years, then once I bought my paint mare I got heavily into paint horse shows then into breaking and training for some time.”

KCV. “Who's your favorite western stars?

Linda. “Oh wow that's a tough one. The iconic John Wayne has got to be my all time favorite. Though if it was historic I would say Jessie James, he-he, and you can't deny Clint Eastwood in the Good the Bad and the Ugly, then there is Cat Balloo.”

KCV “Well you covered it with the Duke, The bad boy, Spaghetti Westerns and comedy. Lee Marvin won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for best actor for Cat Balloo 1965, it's a classic. Now I know you are a big fan of fantasy and horror, but what shows do you watch now that have a western influence?”

Linda. “I love fantasy and horror for sure. I do enjoy Hell on Wheels it has that bad ass feel to it. Breaking Bad has a bit as well and I know it really isn't a western influence but for me I find a bit of the old school western aspects as well as fantasy in the Walking Dead and Revolution as well.”

KCV. “The Walking Dead is a great example of a horror western. In it's premier episode the lone sheriff rides into town wearing a big hat on his head and big iron on his hip. The Zombies represent the traditional antagonists of the western gunfighter; outlaws, banditos, Indians take your pick. So what about the gun-play is that a factor? Do any shooting yourself?”

Linda. “ Of course gun-play is a factor lol, yes I have done some rabbit hunting a LONG time ago he-he. A friend of mine let me try his double barrel shotgun once, and yes he set both barrels so when I pulled the trigger it knocked me square on my 110 pound ass, lmao.”

KCV. “Now that would have made a great You-Tube video. I was way off on the gun-play angle. Should have known better what with all the female action stars blasting away.”

Linda. “Lol this is true for those women who are not insecure, the insecure ones only want the romance aspect ( not that it's a bad thing lol ) but a bad ass woman who knows how to handle a gun is pretty exhilarating and yes a manly man; the bad boy. Ohh very nice.”

KCV. “Thanks for your input I've learned that what appeals to men about a western is universal with the ladies too. At least the ones that ride, shoot and love those smoldering outlaw types.”

So we've seen shows like Dead Wood, Hell on Wheels, Lonesome Dove and Unforgiven, draw critical praise and an audience, but good rope operas are far and few between. One of my favorites is Young Guns 1 & 2 best Billy the Kid flicks ever. Sadly however the classic white hats vs the black hats western is fading into the sunset. 

However, the concept of the Old West as a setting for mixed genera stories is booming like a mining town in old Nevada. Recently American audiences have been entertained by a stamped of mixed genera Sci-Fi and horror westerns.

The Sci Fi channel's Defiance is nothing more than Gunsmoke in the future. The lawkeeper is your {Matt Dillon}. Defiance is your {Dodge City} and of course you have his girlfriend running the saloon and brothel {Miss Kitty}.

Quentin Tarantino is noted for mixing his genres, Kill Bill is a perfect amalgamation of spaghetti western, samurai martial arts and anima. Other Sci Fi and horror films cut from rawhide are John Carpenter's Vampires and Cowboys and Aliens. And lets not forget all the time travel flicks where the traveler goes Old West. Back to the Future 2 comes to mind.

Some stories are flat out western no matter what the setting. Here's a good one, A lone gunman {Bruce Willis} rolls into a dusty South-West village near the Mexican border. The town is divided into two armed camps of brutal Chicago style gangsters. Soon the enterprising gunman is working for both sides and the streets run red. Will he be “The Last Man Standing”? 1996

Does that plot sound familiar? Then try this one. A lone gunslinger {Clint Eastwood} rides into a dusty South-West village near the Mexican border. Ruled by two rival families engaged in a bloody feud, the gunslinger hires out first to one then the other. It won't be long before he has a “Fist Full of Dollars} 1964.

Ah but the fun didn't begin there. Yojimbo 1961. A Ronin Samurai {Toshiro Mifune} wanders upon a village divided by two rival gangs. Soon he's working for both... well you get the drift.

In my rambling way I eventually get to the point. A western is a western is a western, no matter how you dress it up. 

Cowboys may be old fashion but their influence is timeless and crosses all borders. So I wouldn’t write off the old time gunfighter just yet. Some of the toughest most enduring heroes ever put to screenplay came riding out of the dry dusty American west. They've been shot, stabbed, staked out over ant hills, blown up with dynamite, and pushed of cliffs into raging rapids. But those steely eyed bronc busters keep coming back for more.

TREE TOP TRIPPIN'

Mystic Canyon has been an inspirational setting for me to sit and write as I lookout from my studio window down into the raging untamed Tularosa River. The trees the wildlife; I really soak it up each morning as the sun rises. A mighty cottonwood grows just beyond where I work. Its massive trunk splits into five strong boughs like a giant's hand.

Now that we have grand children and great grand children dropping in for visits the notion of a tree house has been simmering on the back burner for sometime.

Other bigger projects have kept the tree house way at the back of the line but recently we decided to kick it up to the front. At first it was just going to be a deck with a safety fence but that soon gave way to a floor with a shade. I started working on it by gathering up a lot of leftover construction materials. I had some lumber and roof sheeting from an old structure we'd torn down. I calculated that we could keep it a green project by using at least 80% culled and reclaimed wood and re-purpused materials.

“This shouldn't take more than a week to build. Then I'll get back to work writing Crossbreeds 4: Pharaoh's Fountain,” foolishly said I.

That one week turned into two then three and so on. Then we took the RV to Vegas and picked up Joe Eagle Eyes and Benny the Badger clearly I needed help finishing this project and their expertize on what rowdy little boys liked was needed.

Once the fever took hold we decided this tree house should be accessible to all from toddlers to the elderly. Even Kayla the dog can climb in with the handicap accessible bridge.

Then as projects often do it began to grow. The wife wanted walls to keep the elements at bay so we added huge view windows made from re-purposed display glass.

“I want three stories,” said she. Bigger it grew with a basement in the bough and a sun-deck on the roof.

An emergency trap door into the basement should zombies storm the fort, an absolute must.

All the kiddies must have swings. What tree house would be complete without a tire swing?

After two more weeks of intensive building and testing the tree house meets their tough standards.

 

 

With the carpet laid and the handmade mesquit furniture moved in the little tree-top log cabin is finished. Nestled comfortably in the mighty cottonwood’s knurly hand. What a view of the river, what a wonderful place to party.

“And what about Macayo the Macaw? Should he be left out?” Nay say I.

Well the boys are back home and off to school and tranquility has returned to Mystic Canyon. It seems a shame that all that labor went to building such a fine little cottage just for the occasional kid traffic. I could have my steaming pot of Jasmine tea in the mornings right here in the canyon. Maybe hang a few decorations around and plug in the lap top.

Now where did I leave off? Oh yes chapter sixteen; Lazarus Zurga's reptilian blood is warmed by thoughts of vengeance as he hatches a fiendish scheme to rid himself of Griffin Trueblade and his stalwart crew...