Monday's

A Monday after a weekend has got to be the most routine day of the week. Nothing unusual seems to happen, except for out in Liberty Hill - that's the night they have their Cowboy Church! But basically the day starts, you go through it, and it ends. My day was more of the same ... looking for work, combing the Want Ads on the computer, checking the job sites, etc. A call from my mother-in-law for a trip to the grocery store, pick up the kids at school.

At the grocery store it's business as usual. Everybody's running around grabbing a few things for the week ... nothing big. Payday's coming up on Friday. That's when the big shoppers come out! Today, though, it's a day to get the items you forgot that you need for supper.

In The Old West:
Picture an Old West town, somewhere near 5:30pm. The streets are pretty much empty. Not much breeze blowing today ... gentle whisps of cool are in the air. Nothing to stir the dust, though. The sidewalks are almost empty. An occasional rider, or a wagon rig might pass through, but it's slow today. You wander on over to the hotel and head for the dining room to order up a cup of coffee.

As you sit down you notice maybe one other person in there, an older gentleman just passing through, having an early supper. Most of all , except for a little chatter coming from back in the kitchen, it's quiet. You finish up your coffee and toss a buffalo nickel onto the table. Even though it's just coffee, it's always nice to leave a little somethin' for the waitress.

As you step out onto the street, it's apparent that the sun's going down sooner today ... a sure sign that we're moving towards winter. The evening air is starting to cool. You know it's time to head home for supper. Nothing happening today in town, for sure. Charlie over at the 'livery stable has already got your horse ready. Things must be slow there too! Not much wasted on words here. A simple nod. He wishes you a good evening. You tip your hat. He smiles.

As you reach the edge of town and head for the ranch, you realize that you like these times of the year. All the chores are done! Most of the cows shipped out earlier today on the train, so you won't have to feed them for the winter. The extra cow hands left yesterday for some winter hunting. And you've got some free time to yourself!

It's just you and the wife now ... it's going to be quiet. All of a sudden there's an emptiness deep in your stomach, like the feeling you get when you suddenly remember that you forgot something. You know the feeling? You've forgotten something ... and it's fixin' t' come back to you, and you just know it's not good! "Oh no!" You promised your wife you wouldn't be late for supper! She was plannin' somethin' special! You guage the horse up to a trot. As you round the North end of town's trailhead, you can see the house ... smoke is already gently rising from the chimney. You'd better get a move on. She's already started cookin' supper! A gentle nudge of your heels, a simple flick of the reins, and like any good horse should, your horse is off to a run ... don't wanna be late!

G'night ya'll!

Don't forget to trim the lanterns.