A little on "Billy the Kid"

William H. Bonney born William Henry McCarty, Jr. was born on November 23, 1859 and better known as "Billy the Kid", but also known as William Antrim. According to legend, he killed 21 men and the first of those on April 1, 1877 at the age of 18. Bonney, was described as being friendly and personable and favored an unadorned Mexican sombrero. Billy was relatively unknown during most of his lifetime but was catapulted into legend in 1881 when New Mexico's governor, Lew Wallace, placed a price on his head for the murder of men, cattle rustling and theft. He was known to use the Colt single action .44 and Colt double-action .41 caliber called the “Thunderer.” He may have also used the .38 caliber version called the “Lightning.” But a Winchester '73 rifle was his weapon of choice. Noted for escaping more than once when being detained, it wasn't until Pat Garrett was elected sheriff /US marshal that Billy was brought down on July 14th, 1881 at the age of 21. He was buried the next day in Fort Sumner cemetery.

There have been a lot of debates over about the history of  Billy the Kid's death--was it true or not. Did Pat Garrett really kill Billy? Was Billy alive and well living in Hamilton County Texas as Ollie L. Roberts "Brushy Bill" in the 1940's? A petition was even brought forth to exhume Billy and his mother for DNA testing to prove his death, but the petition was denied. With no DNA testing or real proof and the fact the Pat Garrett's grandson said his grandfather never got Billy the kid, we may never really know? What do you think?

I've watched movies over the years related to Billy the kid, but most do not tell the real story but only bits of it. Billy had a bad childhood with no father and his mother dying when he was young. Trouble started for him at an early age and he ended up hanging out with the wrong crowd. What is little known is that he was very likeable and the men he did kill were far worse than he ever thought about being. Movies such as Young Guns has a bit of the story right but if you read the history of Billy, there is a lot more to the story than shown on television of course. He's a very interesting read and regardless of all the truths or myths, Billy the Kid still remains a hero to those who love the old west and the cowboys found there.

Copper

I just loved the two years of this series. I hate that it was not picked up for a season three. Made no sense at all to me, so I bought both DVD's of each year of the series so I can watch again when I want to. I must be addicted to the time post civil war years and this is when this series was set. It played on BBC and again I just do not get why it didn't get another season. Anyone else out there watch this one?

Setting an Example

I have written since I was very young but it has only been the last 3 years that I have been writing the stories that have been in my head for years now. It has been a shorter time that I have been pursuing publication. I often wonder if in scrambling to find time to write and the fact that I have a full time job as a nurse, am I neglecting my girls. I heard a quote from Katie Couric once that said something like "when you work full time as a mother, you never feel like you are a good mother or a good employee." I think I am guilty of both, toss in writing into the dark hours of the night, and I have to wonder sometimes if I am doing anything right. But somehow we have found a happy medium in life where it works for me and my family. My kids are happy and healthy and we take time for fun on the weekends. When I first started this publication journey, both my girls drew pictures for me related to what I write. Take a look below. I now keep these in my writing notebook to remind me of what is most important, but as I have been reminded by several writer friends, I am also setting an example for my girls to follow their own dreams.



Dakota's Gunslinger.







Shiloh's Horse and Wagon.

The Chuck Wagon-Enchilada Dip

Enchilada Dip


2 pounds of ground beef (Or chicken or turkey)
1/2 diced Vidalia onion
2 cloves of minced garlic
2 cups of enchilada sauce
2 cups of grated cheddar or Monterrey jack cheese
3 TBS of ground Cumin


Tortilla chips
Tomatoes
Sour Cream


Brown the beef and drain. Add onions, garlic and cumin and cook until onions are tender about 4 minutes. Stir in enchilada sauce and top with grated cheese, cover and allow cheese to melt. Garnish with tomatoes and sour cream as desired and eat with Tortilla chips or flour tortillas.




Yum Yum, that's what's on the Chuck wagon for this month. Let us know what you think!

Cowboys in History: Wyatt Earp

Wyatt at age 5 with his mother

Wyatt at age 21

Wyatt at home age 75-1923






Over the years the shoot out at the O.K. Corral has been depicted as one of the most amazing gunfights in western history, though few realize it wasn't all television depicted it to be.
On Oct. 26, 1881 the feud between the Earps and local cowboys, Ike Clanton, Billy Claiborne, Tom and Frank McLaury continued with death threats against the Earps adding up. Virgil Earp, acting marshal of Tombstone at the time deputized Wyatt Earp as assistant marshal, Morgan Earp was already Deputy City Marshal and Doc Holliday was deputized for the said event, which began around 3:00pm. The group headed toward Fremont Street where the threatening cowboys had been collecting in wait in the lot between Harwood House and Fly's Boarding House and evidently a photography studio. The most missed item on made for television reenactments is the fact that the Earp's were only about 6 to 10 feet away from the others as the gunfight began.
Ike Clanton and Billy Claiborne fled the gunfight where Tom and Frank McLaury along with Billy Clanton stood their ground and were killed. Morgan Earp was clipped by a shot across his back that nicked both shoulder blades and a vertebra. Virgil was shot through the calf and Holliday was grazed by a bullet. The gunfight in Tombstone lasted only 30 seconds, but it would end up defining Wyatt Earp for the rest of his life, much to his dismay.
The last surviving Earp brother and the last surviving participant of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Wyatt Earp died at home at 4004 W 17th Street, in Los Angeles, of chronic bladder inflammation others labeled as prostate Cancer on January 13, 1929 at the age of 80. His Associated Press obituary described him as a "gun-fighter, whose blazing six-shooters, were for most of his life allied with the side of law and order".
 
Tombstone is one of my favorite movies due to the fact there was Kurt Russell (Wyatt Earp), Sam Elliot (Virgil Earp), Bill Paxton (Morgan Earp) and Val Kilmer (Doc Holliday)--nothing wrong with the line up! "I'll be your Huckleberry."



Kevin Costner as Wyatt Earp showed some of Earps younger years and is one of my favorites as well.




What are some of your favorites?

My Writing

Once I got Sawyer's Rose and All But The Fall submitted for the unpublished Maggies, I went back to Sawyer's Rose and re-edited the entire story and got it off to my wonderful critique partners. (Thanks Maggie and Kim) So now I wait and will then take the time to make what corrections/advice these Ladies offer-and hey, they know what they are doing. So I will be hitting Sawyer's Rose once more before sending him off to various editors. My goal had been to have this done by May 1st of this year, but I have to keep thinking about how much I've gotten accomplished and that the effort at one more edit will hopefully pay off. Time will tell on Sawyer, but in the mean time, I have been reworking All But The Fall to add a bit of fluff to that story. My goal is to have it ready by October when I attend M&M, where I hope to get two or more pitches and I will have both stories to pitch. I might have said some of this in a previous post but somehow writing about it lets me know where I am heading.


So as this posts, my family and I are leaving for a week at the beach, where I hope to edit at night once we return to the condo after the days activities. My goal is to continue editing through All But The Fall for enhancing the story even more. Actually, my goal is to enjoy the beach and my family and the writing will be here when I return, but maybe I can sneak in a bit of editing when the day runs into evening and we are sitting around. Oh, the life of a writer...even when I am actively enjoying something my mind will stray to this character or that story line and how I can make it better. I have a magnet that says, "I am not daydreaming, I'm plotting." And so...stay tuned!!!

Cowboy Bedroom

Just a few pictures from our bedroom. Since I've been writing about cowboys and love that theme all together, I changed the bedroom décor to match about a year ago. Thanks Hobby Lobby! (They have good cowboy stuff!)