Wednesday, January 2, 2008

Good Gifts for a Southern Boy

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So I must have been really good this year, I got some great gifts! I’m gonna tell ya what I got so next year if you need to get a forty-five year old southern boy a gift maybe this will give you some ideas.

A Fifty dollar bill don’t suck. With it Stacey got a bottle of tequila and I got a bottle of vodka. Oh what joy!

I live to eat and eat to live, so a cook book is always something that makes me happy. I received a book written by Alice Waters. If ya don’t know who she is do your homework it won’t be hard to find info on her. She has done more for plain old sensible living today then anyone I can think of. She also makes it taste great.

I love to read as well as eat. Irvine Welsh has written many books, some made into movies. This guy is the shit. I took two days off and just read this book, “If you liked school, you’ll love work”. Once you get into some of these short stories, you start to see and love his command for the different dialects of the English language.

Another book I was gifted was Beat, by Christopher Felver. Of course it’s all about the Beat artist. All the usual suspects are accounted for. Mr. Burroughs graces the cover, how fitting, being that he was the “grand daddy” of the beat generation. If that is in fact the word to use, cause that generation has inspired so any artist for the last 55 years, that I consider that movement alive and well. A lot of the bands I listen/listened to rank William S. Burroughs as a huge influence. I could go on and on and on about these guys, the Beats, starting with Kerouac and easily coming up with all kinds of current artist that carry on with that attitude. The book is laid out in a scrap book format, lot’s of photos and nice, neat, short stories with some of the shots.

I love bacon. We all love bacon, even if you don’t eat bacon or pork product, you love bacon, you just don’t yet know it. Bacon, a book by James Villas was a gift from a friend that is in love with good food and knowing how to prepare it. He has taken taken classes on the fine art of Bar-B- Q-ing and has fed me some of the best food I have eaten, I can’t wait to get into this book. I have read a book by Villas before and enjoyed it. He is straight forward and no nonsense, just telling it like it is.

Food stuff is always good to get. Oils, vinegars, cheeses and wines. All good things that I have already been enjoying, and sharing with friends.

I got a couple pieces of art. A small fish print, which I will use as an idea for a painting soon. It’s a fish standing upright, on it’s tail and it is sporting a nice top hat. I also was lucky enough to be given a Pig carved from wood. It is awesome and will also be ripped off, I mean used as inspiration for a painting.

I got a lot of nice stuff and I am used to that. Life for me is so full. I try not to take it for granted. I try to remember to thank God everyday and let Her know how greatful I am. I am so lucky to wake up everyday and know I am gonna get to do what I do, whatever that might be, and to have a life surrounded by such great people. I realize just how lucky I am. I know I am the most fortunate person in the world.

Happy New Year to everybody!