New Year, New Mountains to Climb

 January 1, 2025

   Damn it feels good to type that five in there. I am so glad to see '24 go. It was a rough one and we lost some good people and I'm just relieved we are still standing and have a chance at another go around the sun. Pardon my French, but it was like a sheet show, or a rolling dirt bag tsunami.

Daily Whip Out:

"2024 Was A Rolling Dirt Bag Tsunami"

Here's to Another Go!

   As you may have seen yesterday, I am noodling a sister publication for True West. It would only come out twice a year and be subscription driven, no newsstand. This gives us a chance to produce something beyond what you can consume on your phone. Put another way, go where they ain't.

Volume I, Number 1: The Battle of The Little Bighorn

   Oh, and oversized: 11" X 19," and here is some of the feedback I have gotten so far:

"You had me at Little Bighorn! And 11 x 19, these eyes aren't getting any younger. Happy New Year!!"

—Anonymous (Boxlip Darrell?)

"I've heard of Mountain Gazette and thought once about submitting. Do you recall, some years back, Wild West was going to produce a series of limited magazines or books or something that had expanded scholarship by Bob Palmquist about Tombstone? Something like this might offer people the ability to expand on things they normally wouldn't be able to do in TW or, like MTN GAZETTE, write about things that are 'Western' related, but not directly history. So, maybe an article by Hutton about his life and career? An article or photo essay by you about your artistic evolution? An article from Matt Bernstein about his hiking adventures in the West? Something niche, but using the same flavor of TW. I love the idea. Plus, a boost in sales never hurts."

—Erik Wright

"In a new journal I'd like to see you not beat the same ol' dead horses. The Shootout at the OK Corral has been done to death.  I'm a little soured on True West because I gave you a good article on Tom Powers and his Coney Island Saloon, which I've never seen an article on anywhere that I know of. If you didn't want it, you should've just said so because it's been tied up for years now. You acted like you wanted it."

—John LeMay

   Hey, John LeMay. I'm sorry. We do want that Tom Powers piece. Can you resend it? We've been so busy rerunning articles on the O.K. Corral we must have missed it.

"A hero is one who knows how to hang on one minute longer."

—Novalis