It's a hard life,,,you can have it.

It's been tough to post lately, I guess everyone has those times. There are lots of stories that come to mind, however, motivation doesn't come with them.

The Redneck Phd. Stories I have written, I feel show a side of some people that the average person will never know. Lots of yuppies like to call folks from the country red necks, because they're different in dress and experience. I bet if you called AD a red neck he'd hand you your head or insult you so artfully it would sound like a compliment. Call Lawdog a red neck, and the old hairy eyeball would be enough to make you stop and think. Call me one and I'll say thanks and go on my way laughing at your ignorance. Most people have never seen a real Red Neck on his home turf, if they ever do, it'll likely scare them so bad they'll feel faint. Country doesn't mean red neck.

The sadly departed red neck in the following story was awarded his RedNeck Phd. Posthumously. Funny how many of those there are.

We called him Big Hairy, you can spell that however you like. It's not his real name, just a fair description. He was about six four and ah…. unkempt, unmown perhaps. Long hair, long beard, both white, saggy jeans, dirty tee shirt and a faint (mostly) aroma. Think Treebeard with a stagger. I hate to say it but Hairy was a drunk and a trouble maker.

He would work at about anything through the week, but come the weekend he was sure to drink till the money ran out, and he had no credit.
He was working on a bulldozer for a local company. All they gave him to work with was worn out tools that tend to slip off and make you bang your knuckles. He was swearing and raving at some reluctant bolt when he decided to take a breather and talk to a friend of mine. He stalked over and offered an apology in advance of his next effort. " I just wanted to tell you that if you see something shiny going across the sky, it'll be this pull bar, and the next thing you see will be me running after it to bring it back, it's the only one I have." Hairy had a sense of humor, he could laugh at himself. He wouldn't invite you to join him, but he knew he was messed up.

I met him on several occasions both social and professional. I've pulled him out of wrecks, gone to his mothers house because of his depression, and transported him from one facility to another. On one occasion we tried to get him to take is meds, it worked because he took the whole bottle. We checked and all he got for the effort was a severe case of the trots.

He was involved in a wreck, not and accident, a wreck, it was inevitable. He was brought to the ED and put in a trauma room, where, as with most drunks, he got defensive. He was sure something bad was going to happen, because it always did when he was at fault. The staff at good ole' Stump Water General Hospital are almost family. They are all caring professionals. One of the nurses was trying to get some basic info from Hairy and he raised his fist and threatened to hit her. I was nearby and was obliged to warn him, if he hit the nice lady, I would tear off something the Doctor couldn't sew back on. He put his hand down and kept his eye on me until he was released. He could be reasoned with, you just had to put it in terms he could deal with.

He always drifted from one job to another, everything from mechanic to commercial fisherman. Down East we have offshore boats that go out for a week or two at a trip for reef fish, Snapper, grouper, sea bass and some real deep water fish like golden tiles. I don't think any locals would have hired Hairy on their boat because he was known to have issues. A couple from out of the area hired him cause they didn't know any better. All went well till Hairy got into the beer. I never heard much about that night, I will guess the conversation turned to his life and times or his family. He got pretty upset and decided his life was to much trouble or too bad to live. Some time in the night, forty or fifty miles at sea, Hairy went over the stern and swam away in the dark. Obviously he was never found.

Hairy didn't have a lot going for him, neither did he have a lot against him, what he seriously lacked was judgement. Good choices would have made his existence bearable.