Who needs bird dog when you have a little brother?

 Larry, Dr. Larry Olson and my brother, loved to hunt and fish.  In fact, I would say we hunted at least once a week during quail season, and we hunted those giant red squirrels when we were not hunting quail.

Larry was always a great shot, and he used a 410 shotgun and then a 20-gauge bolt action as he got older.  I always had a pump 12-guage and Larry could shoot faster and get more birds every time.  Frustrating!  Now part of the reason he got more is probably the fact I was his birddog.  I was always the one crawling down the creek jumping the covey while he was on the ridge.  Now that I think about it, when he came home from South Carolina and we went fishing every time, he would guide the boat and he was always in front with the best position.  He also caught more fish, every time.  Something about jumping the covey of quail was great fun for me.  I truly enjoyed listening for the rustling of leaves and grass as the quail would try to run rather than fly.  It was also interesting to me that when you would stop, they would stop running and then if you walked really slow you could get close and then they would fly.  If you have never experienced it, it is hard to explain the thrill of hearing them pound their wings to get started then as they got going, and they were exceptionally fast, they would stop flapping their wings and just float between the trees and brush.  Incredible!  Another facet was you could hear them chirping, bobwhite-bobwhite.  It was as if they were talking like a human.  It was so clear and distinct.  

We hardly ever hunted with bird dogs like Larry Travis or Cam Lanier or Dr. Merrifield (from Ponca) but we had loads of fun.  One time we were over at the gambrel barn across the road from Don Conner's house and I heard a tremendous noise in the grass.  I promise it was the largest covey of quail I had ever seen.  I believe it was close to 200 quail.  Being a kid, it was probably closer to 50 or 100 but it was exciting.  I bet Larry and I hunted that group for over an hour with NO dogs.

What may surprise most folks is when I first remember hunting, I was about 7 and it was for squirrels.  Larry and I both used 22 rifles back then.  Mine was a bolt action single shot and Larry had one that carried about 10 shells maybe 16.  He and Billy Snyder (my first cousin) had fancy rifles.  The hardest part of that was cleaning the squirrel.  But mom could fry it and make gravy that was the best eating you can imagine.

Well, I better go, but what do you learn in the Osage?

• Bird dogs are for fancy hunters.
• Country life is the best life. 
• You cannot avoid the fact that only God could create something so great as the outdoors.

Thanks for listening,

Gary

gary.olson@finaciti.com

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Don Conner and it just can't happen today

 When you grow up in the largest school district in the state of Oklahoma there are some interesting facts you have to understand.

• When it is the largest does not mean it has the number of human beings.  As I have said in the past, I had 5 sometimes 6 in my first 7 years of school and we never had pre-school or kindergarten or even a day care center.
• The bus ride to school can take 30 minutes to get to Grainola even though it is only 4 miles from home to school.  And if you are going to Shidler for the last 5 grades (56 in that class) the bus ride is about 1 hour 15 minutes and we only lived 14 miles from the school.
• The bus driver, Don Conner, smoked a cigar every morning and evening ON THE BUS.  Actually, it smelled pretty good, but he always kept the window partially open.  Now I have to tell you that Bob Scott drove the bus a few of those years for Grainola and Lizzi (his wife) was the cook for the school.  Bob was also the janitor and kept the coal burning heaters going.
• Another thing about Don, and I am not sure what all is true, is he was an excellent shooter and competed nationally in skeet and clay.  My understanding is that he shot 498 out of 500 and still placed second nationally.  At least it is a good story.  Don and his wife and two kids, Ida and Joe, lived about 1 mile west as the crow flies from our house and they had about a 10-acre pond behind the house and a very cool porch / house and a great big barn.  One time the barn got hit by lightning or at least it exploded into flames from fermented hay and everyone around Grainola ran over there to save the house.  Joe went on to own the Fairfax Chief (newspaper).

Ok, back to Don and family.  I never knew if Don worked but he had some land which was leased to the Coopers and some of it was leased to mom and dad.  His wife did a lot of writing, particularly about the Osage Indians.  Joe and Ida were much older but Joe, who passed away in 2023, was my brother's age and became an Eagle Scout.  My mom was always proud of Joe as he was in the Boy Scout club that my mother led.  Don was always a little cranky at us kids on the bus but for some reason I liked him pretty good until one day he got mad at our dog for chasing the bus.  That always bothered me but he kept Bob and David Harris from picking on me so that made him pretty cool.

Well, what do you learn in the Osage?

• Smoking a cigar on the school bus was not going to kill us.
• Thinking Don was such a famous person gave me something to look up to.
• Sometimes not knowing the entire truth about someone is not all bad.
• We all need folks to look up to, that sets a good standard.  It might even make you want to smoke a cigar.

Thanks for listening,

Gary

gary.olson@finaciti.com

finaciti.com

Why can't you take a turkey to church?

 They use fowl language.  Get it?  Fowl not foul.

We all know some turkeys in our life and in fact at some point I suppose I have been one of those turkeys.  In fact, I can remember a few times when I stuck my size 13 foot in my mouth and wished to this day, I could take it back.  In fact, I grew up with a poem that is about the biggest lie ever told:

    Sticks and stones 

    will break my bones

    but words will never hurt me.

A couple of lessons on this one.  First, I have always been able to get over a hurt foot or arm or a physical ailment, but those words can stick with a person for a lifetime, good and bad.

As I have mentioned before, Aunt Gladys Snyder, dropped a few words on me that changed my trajectory in life.  Aunt Gladys made me think I was smart (that was lucky since I am not as smart as she thought).  Jack Gilbreth, my first football coach, gave just a few words of encouragement that helped me overcome my insecurity about my size.  I was always way too big for my age until about the 9th grade when a few folks caught up and even surpassed me like.  Mrs. Head (of Head Country fame and high school English teach fame) made a point how nice I dressed, and it made me think twice about how I looked each day.  David Goldenberg made the comment while working at EDS/Ross Perot's old company that I was a fast thinker.  it just made me feel good about myself (that is called a blessing).

But second, what about those discouraging remarks by someone?  Don't those hurt?  Don't they last?  Sure do!  I don't even like to give them the time of day.  Bitterness and resentment, in my mind, can kill a person.  At least it can make it where you/me just does not want to be around them.

So what do you learn in the Osage?

• Words can hurt, be careful, thoughtful and caring
• A few kind words can make a person not have to get a nose ring (do I need to explain?)
• Give a lift up in life, not a lift out (give someone an encouraging word every day of your life and you will be more encouraged than you can ever dream)

Thanks for listening,

gary.olson@FINACITI.COM