Even though I went to grade and high school just north of St. Louis, I’m a redneck from the Missouri Ozarks. I was born in the Ozarks and have spent all of my adult life on the fringe of the Ozarks. I have not lived in town for over 40 years. I’ve worked construction, farmed, ranched, and rodeoed for a living. I am a ‘dyed in the wool’ redneck from the Ozarks.
If you haven’t noticed rednecks live by a code.
You have to have a pickup and dog. To go along with the pickup you need several trailers to haul whatever might come up in the next 20 years. Guns are required as is a tractor. Rednecks respect the flag. They stand when the National Anthem is played. Seldom protest anything and abide by the golden rule. They tell the truth.
Rednecks brag about their hunting and fishing successes, the size of the diesel engine in their pickup and the tools in their shop. Bragging is their right and their heritage.
With one exception - Never ever brag about your kids or your dog.
They will almost always make a liar out of you. I’ve seen it happen time and time again.
I had dogs long before I had kids and I learned this lesson the hard way. Ever have a hard headed bird dog? That sucker will do everything perfect until you brag on him.....then right in front of your buddies he'll flush a covey or run off and you spend the rest of morning looking for him.
Well, the time has come when my kids are no longer kids. My daughter Tara turned 30 this week so she’s officially off the kid list. Austin is 18 months behind and although he may not want to be officially called an adult, I am going to call him one.
So I'm going to brag –
Tara is moving forward in her career in Hospital Administration with a new position at Yale-New Haven Hospital in New Haven, Conn. She has her undergraduate degree from Westminster College and a Masters from Washington University and has never ceased to amaze me with her drive and motivation. The Yale folks are lucky to get her.
Austin submitted his Master’s Thesis this week at Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany. He has his undergraduate degree from Jacksonville University in Biology and several years of sea time on fishing and research vessels in the Bearing Sea, Baltic Sea and the North Atlantic. Austin is an independent spirit and his ventures demand my respect.
Tara and Austin – You guys make us proud.
You're still a puppy.
