Today in History, February 18 - It's in the nickname

sunrise on the mountain

February 18, 2018

Today is one of the few days a year I know I won't open a manuscript-in-progress and work on it. Today is Daytona Sunday. 

My enjoyment of NASCAR began way back in the day when my Uncle Bob would take my cousin Linda and me with him to the local dirt track. I'm sure I thought the dirt track was great fun but you won't find me at one now. Dirt in my hair is NOT my thing. Linda and I could also pick any Sunday to sit in our Aunt Libby's backyard and watch the cars at the local dragstrip, too. Our county has a long and storied history of a vibrant car culture.  

NASCAR has gone through a lot of changes since the 1970's, some good, some bad. NASCAR is a single-family owned franchise - an oddity in the realm of sport. Sometimes they make crazy stupid rules but my sense of it is they don't want another death during a race. NASCAR is a lot tamer than it used to be. 

On this date in history, February 18, 2001, NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt, Sr. died in a crash on the last lap of the Daytona 500. I think Darrell Waltrip summed it up best: "Live by the push, die by the push." I think he was talking in a more metaphysical sense when he said that, nevertheless, Earnhardt earned his nickname of The Intimidator by perfecting "the push." He did a lot of "blocking," too, and we all saw how badly that ended. 

I wasn't a Senior fan, although I did like Junior. "My" driver was always Terry LaBonte (#5). I just liked the way he drove. They called him The Iceman for his seemingly unflappable style and coolness under pressure. Terry didn't go out and deliberately wreck other drivers. Later, they called him "Iron Man" for the number of consecutive starts he had over his career. After Terry retired, I started to pay attention to Tony Stewart. You know. The guy they called "Smoke" for his temper. I loved his outspoken attitude and fearlessness in telling the France family (NASCAR owners) the truth. Alas, he too retired. 

You know folks in the South love their nicknames. If you earn one, wear it like the badge of honor it is.

But there was hope. Stewart partnered with Gene Haas to create Stewart Haas Racing, which has four drivers. And one of those drivers is Kevin Harvick. I kinda slid into paying attention to him and now he's my driver. Happy Harvick is what Darrell Waltrip calls him. I think they should call Harvick "The Instigator" but that's for another blog. 

It wasn't until this morning that it struck me that Kevin Harvick is the driver they tapped to take over the #3 ride when Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was killed on this date back in 2001. 

So here we are with this year's Daytona 500 falling on the date in history, February 18, of Senior's demise. I can just hear those chatterbox announcers now. 

Maybe, just maybe, I'd be better off writing today. 

KC Kendricks
www.kckendricks.com

PS. The spousal unit will be cheering for Kyle Busch. They call him, "Rowdy." 

The Kendricks 600 - it's not NASCAR

April 15, 2015

The Kendricks 600. It might sound like NASCAR  but it's not. It's blog number 600 here at Between the Keys. 

When I was in the planning stages of doing the 2015 A to Z Blogging Challenge, I was pretty sure number six hundred would fall right in the middle of things and so it has. The question was do I mark the day or let it go? If you're reading this, you know the answer. 

I decided that instead of making #600 part of the A to Z, I'd do a separate entry to commemorate the occasion. 

So 600 blogs. Egads. One would think I had nothing else to do.

KC
Blog #1 from 1/1/2008

July Fridays

July 11, 2014


It's a lazy Friday afternoon in my world. I'm sure there are things I could and should be accomplishing, but it's Friday. It's July. Concentration is a problem right now. 

Looking at my To-Do list didn't inspire me. In fact, it made me yawn. And that's the To-Do at the day job, too. I worked my butt off this week and I'm mentally bushed. With an hour to go, do they really expect to get a lot out of me? Probably.

Guess what? Not happening. I simply crammed too much into Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday to be able to function now. I hope this passes by the time I get home later this afternoon. I've got lots to do!

There are two special projects on my desk at home and I need to finish both of them so I can get back to work on my own stories. AND the Beachcombers PAX I signed up for a while back finally got another three participants so now it's a "go" for next year. I said I would only do two PAX stories a year and now this will be three for 2015. Deadlines are not my friends,

Then there is the little project of updating all the *(#!&^ links here at Between the Keys. It's making my wrist ache. Not a good sign. 

And My Sexy Saturday. Do I want to hop in at the last minute and go for it? Don't know. Can't focus. Need a nap.  

I'm sure it will all work itself out, one way or the other because it's Friday. And it's July. 
And it's the best reason I know of to relax and let what will be, be. 

KC
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The Kendricks 500

May 11, 2014

This is blog No. 500 here at Between the Keys. I wanted to mark the occasion with something special but several weeks of serious consideration hasn’t produced many suitable ideas. Between the Keys is where I lay it all out – all the personal stuff, all the opinions, all the gripes, all my hopes for those I love and for the future. I wanted blog #500 to be something profound.

I’ve concluded I should tell myself “Good luck with that” and move on, so I will. At least a wee bit. Bits and Pieces that is.

It’s Mother’s Day here in the US of A and I plan to go see Mom and take her a card. I generally search the racks for the perfect card but I never seem to find one that satisfies me. Mom loves every card I get for her just as I love (and keep) every card from her. I don’t think it’s a prerequisite for her to like them just because she’s my mother but maybe she thinks it is. This year it’s a Hallmark card, but some year’s it’s been Dollar Tree. If the message comes close, then I don’t care about anything else.

Changing gears, we’re now the proud? owners of a John Deere 1023 sub-compact tractor. I’ve bought cars with 15x more horsepower for a lot less. The spousal unit is happy. Me? I can see where it will make life on the mountain easier, but damn. There’s gold plating somewhere on that bitch. Has to be for the amount of money we shelled out on it.

A few years ago one of my sister-in-laws gifted us with a yellow lilac bush. It’s blooming and it’s purple. Go figure.

I just finished a story called Dreams to Sell . Dreams to Sell is about finding your dream house and someone to share it with.

If you’ve followed along you know I like American muscle cars and NASCAR. I’ve watched Danica Patrick with interest and she’s doing pretty well this year. It’s tough to be a lady and like fast cars. People think you’re crazy. No. It’s the vibrations. (just kidding) Being backed by Tony Stewart is a plus for her, too.

The sun is shining and the front porch is calling to me to take a cup of coffee outside and watch the grass dry. So this is it for the Kendricks 500. Maybe by the time we reach 600, I’ll find something profound to share. 

KC Kendricks

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Holidays and horoscopes

May 27, 2013

Happy Memorial Day to you! If I seem a little perky on a day where we remember and honor those who have sacrificed so we have our freedoms, it's that I have something big to celebrate this year. This Memorial Day, one of my own is home from his second tour in Afghanistan. God is good to return him to us safe and sound.

We're back from a fast trip south to my brother-in-laws home to celebrate his birthday. We hopped in my trusty Charger at daybreak Saturday and headed out. I was behind the wheel for most of the five hour drive and let me tell you - people on I95 are nuts. The stretch between just below Fredericksburg all the way to the King's Dominion exit was NASCAR at its best. I stayed with traffic, well above the speed limit, and people still passed me!

(To the guy in the black Charger with the big Hemi who slowed down, pulled up beside me, waved, and took off like a rocket from an 85mph start- funny dude. I get it. Those 400 horses needed a run. You're still an idiot to do that in traffic. Bet that baby wouldn't be pretty as scrap metal.)

The birthday party was nice. It's always good to be with my partner's family and especially nice when all five siblings are in the same place telling the same old stories about each other again. It would be annoying to hear the tales over and over except that I understand the love they share and that the distance between them sometimes weighs heavy. The instant sharing of texts and photos are great, but I see it on their faces - nothing beats a real hug.

On the way home Sunday morning we learned something else. We hit the highway before seven a.m. and there were Virginia state troopers with radar guns everywhere on Rt.64. Didn't see any on the way down, but I counted eleven with someone pulled over and another eight lurking with radar guns. Moral to the story - the next time we go south, we're not heading home until noon. My honey is very careful when he drives my car (yeah, it's the one time he's afraid of me because if he puts a scratch on my car........). He set the cruise control and we were fine.

I hate to use the word "obligation" when speaking of family, but the language is what it is. With the family obligations over, I'm now on vacation for the next week. So I get this as my horoscope today:  Your head is swimming -- but it's not an intellectual failure! Your energy is just out of sync with the ideas you have to confront, but you should be back in the game in a couple of days at the most.  Really? This is news? No, this is vacation brain. I shall embrace it. I busted my arse to beat a June 1 deadline so I could enjoy my home and play for the entire week. I still have more than a few years until I can retire, but this week is a practice run!

So that's my news from the mountain this morning.

Peace to us all.

KC

http://www.kckendricks.com

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Georgia on my mind

October 4, 2012

It’s been many years since my partner and I vacationed – together. His health suffered more than a few blows in the last decade, and leaving home wasn’t something he felt strong enough to do. I took off with girlfriends from time-to-time to save my sanity while he stayed home and held the fort. These days he’s in a good place so here we are in Savannah, Georgia, to visit his son. I’ve already learned a few things.

One: I need some new toys. My old dinosaur laptop is great for writing prose on the patio, but not for much of anything else, like Google Earth.

Two: Savannah sucks for cell signal. I can’t go anywhere around home and LOSE signal and I can’t go anywhere down here and FIND one.

Three: I hate the glare on the screen of my digital camera and phone. Whose “better idea” was it to go from a viewfinder window with NO GLARE to this set up? Someone fixed something that wasn’t broken and Kodak bought into it. No wonder they’ve had difficulties. Surely I can find a digital camera with a screen I can see in any light and at any angle.

Four: Never, ever, never leave home without a stick of Tide-on-the-Go!! Some of us can manage to spill [fill in the blank] all over ourselves. Welcome to the club!

Five: Speed limits are made to be exceeded. I’m in NASCAR country. I don’t really have to explain this one, do I? (No, but I will. I didn’t get a ticket. I did the speed limit and got passed by everyone on the highway. It was embarrassing.) 

Six: I really need to get a Kindle Fire so my honey can have my trusty Kindle2. He needs his own toys. 

But all whining aside, and tongue out of cheek, the trip’s been good so far. Our hotel room is nice, the historic district of Savannah is fascinating and beautiful, and the family is healthy and happy. It’s good to see them face-to-face instead of on facebook.

Tomorrow, while the family is at work and school, we’re going to visit the waterfront and be tourists. I’m looking forward to lunch at the Irish pub and taking my partner’s credit card for a walk. I might even buy him a T-shirt. Maybe we can even find a spot where I can get a cell signal and call home to check on the folks.

And I plan to take lots of inspiration photos for new stories. I’ve got ideas and I can’t wait to get back to work. Good thing I have the dinosaur with me. 

KC