June 5, 2006
Good to go, good to come back. Back in the desert where I belong. Flew in this morning from Wichita on an 8:30 A.M. flight, landed at nine, our time (an hour and a half flight). Got back in the office at noon.

Yesterday, we took off from Meade at three, and climbed up Highway 54, through Fowler (where my parade wagon driver’s farm is), Minneola, Bloom, Kingsdom, Bucklin and Greensburg (“Home of the World’s Largest Man Made Well”), Haviland, Wellsford, Pratt (great little town, two story Gingerbread Victorian for sale at $79K), Cunningham and Kingman. Yes, there is a sister town in Kansas named Kingman. I remember staying there in the late 1950s with my parents on a return trip from Iowa and wondering if they knew about us out in Arizona. I seem to remember asking the motel manager and him making some snotty remark about us copying them.

Got back into Wichita at about 6:15 and went by Wal-Mart to get all my film developed (I was afraid of running six rolls through the airport security X-Rays). Dropped off the film and took Rob Brandhauer and Ed LeRoy to Outback Steakhouse ($85 biz account). Picked up film on the way back to the Hyatt ($26 something, biz account). Got up this morning at six. Long weekend. Really fried, but I can’t top my new friend on the Fort Worth Police Department. Tom Weiderholt got off his Gang Unit shift at five on Friday, drove eight hours to Meade, got in at around four in the morning. Got up at seven, performed all day Saturday and Sunday. By the way, Tom is 11 months from retirement. Anyway, after the awards ceremony at the Dalton Gang Hideout on Sunday, Tom went back to the Lakeview Hotel, laid down for three hours, got up and drove back to Fort Worth in time to go on shift this morning.

And you thought I was crazy about this stuff.

News From The Front Lines
James T. Blincoe from Green Valley, AZ called to subscribe today and decided to become a TW Maniac. He also ordered 4 back issues. He mentioned that he has difficulty finding TW on newsstands, but did find it in a barber shop. He asked me to let you know that he enjoys True West Moments!
—Carole Glenn

Another One Bites The (Conglom) Dust
We just learned that Active Interest Media acquired American Cowboy magazine. Flagship titles are Vegetarian Times and Better Nutrition; they also own Southwest Art and some log home titles.

“If it is once again one against 48, then I am very sorry for the 48.”
—Margaret Thatcher