BUNKHOUSE RAMBLINGS

[cowboy316]

GB
now thats cool i got some stuff from my grandma after my grandpa passed and in there was a comb case i made hi when i was like 9 and he carried it till the day he died so great memories with old leather work like that
 
Cowboy316

[GunClick Rick]

I know how ya feel GB,lost my dad 2006,my uncle last Christmas also,his brother.Gramps,grandma,pop and uncle all gone now,that was the whole family.To hard to think about too long..Got my pops knife and it's all i wanted,cuase i got it for him years ago.That is a real nice memory ya have there,give it a rub now and then

[Johnny McCrae]

Montana Slick asked if I was a Scotsman. Actually I'm Slovenian and Czech. He got me thinking again about how I picked my Alias. It was pretty easy for me. Lonesome Dove is my favorite movie and Gus McCrae is my favorite character. My first name is John.

It would be interesting to hear how other Pards have picked their Alias.

Here is Johnny McCrae's story.....

Johnny was born on June 24, 1825 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Vince & Annie McCrae. Johnny’s father owned a cigar factory where Johnny worked as a young boy.

His uncle, George McCrae had migrated to Tennessee in 1824 and eventually to Texas in 1827 where he enlisted in the Texas Rangers and rose to the rank of Sergeant. Johnny was able to visit him in 1839 and also in 1842. Johnny idolized his uncle and set his lifelong goal to become a Texas Ranger. His father had other ideas and sent Johnny to business school in Chicago with hopes of Johnny helping him run the family business. After a year and a half of business school, Johnny Went back to Milwaukee and told his father he was going to Texas to join the Texas Rangers with his uncle George.

Johnny joined the Texas Rangers in 1851. Johnny’s father begged his brother George to keep Johnny out of harm’s way and he was relegated to office chores mainly record keeping and bookkeeping. Johnny begged his Uncle to reassign him to the field but to no avail. In 1852 Johnny’s life changed when his uncle was killed while out on patrol. Johnny was assigned to field duty and he eventually rose to the rank of Sergeant.

When the hostilities broke out between the North and South, Johnny went back to Milwaukee and enlisted in the 6th Wisconsin (Iron Brigade). Johnny was wounded at Gettysburg and mustered out of the Army in 1865. He was now forty years old and did not want to go back to Texas or Wisconsin. After stints as a Stagecoach Guard, Sheriff’s Deputy and Saloonkeeper, in 1876 He ended up in Deadwood, South Dakota working in a gold mine as the paymaster rising to the position of Mine Superintendent. In 1890 Johnny resigned his position at the mine and retired. He headed for Wyoming and Montana.  Johnny spent the next three years hunting and fishing. It is now 1894 and his 70th birthday is approaching......

I'm from Milwaukee. My parents names were Vincent and Anne. My grandfather had a cigar factory in Milwaukee during the 1920's. My Dad worked there as a boy. I'm sixty nine years young.

[JD Alan]

GB, that boot key holder is a wonderful keepsake. That's a great legacy to have; working leather as long as you have, and knowing you made something that your dad valued. I lost both parents in 2005, six weeks apart. They missed their 60th anniversary by just a few months. A guy could not have had better parents than I did, whcih is a real gift. Thanks for sharing your story. JD

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

 Howdy GB

     I think your Dad must have treasured that  little boot key chain, when my Dad passed away, My Mom found things that I had made for him, he had them in a special box with other things he valued. Thanks for sharing this with us GB.

                      Regards

                   tEN wOLVES  

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

Howdy Johnny McCrae

       That was a great story Pard, I never thought about that being old Gus's last name, you couldn't have picked a better handle to put yourself under, and your story was interesting too, You should try writing a book, LOL, I think you would do well at it.

        Regards

      tEN wOLVES 

[Ace Lungger]

Howdt Pards,
 I like Johnny idea! Mine is a little more complex than Johnny' Im going to have to tell you all about myself, for this to ad up. I was born in the year 1955, I am a born and raised farm boy, As soon as I was big enough I strated helping my father do the farming, along with raising cattle. All threw my school years i made the best effort I could to play sports. I was just not very good at any sport, but since I liked them all, i went out for all of them. I found out early in life, that no matter how hard I tried at sports, i just wasn't good enough to be a starter, except for Little Leauge Baseball, and the only reason i got to be a starter was because I was the caughter, and no one realy wanted that position! On my 11th birthday I got a 22 single shot rifle. It was 1966 and I think the gun was $49.95, that was a lot of money in those days, gas was 17 cents a gallon, smokes were 25 cents, and a 16oz glass bottle of Pepsi was 10 cents!! I am sure that other kids got a allowance but I never did! I did odd jobs on the farm for our neibors and made my spending money that away! I don't know how long my dad had boot leged wild rabbits down to New Orleans, but him and one of the neibors bought rabbits in Nov. & Dec. and they would take them to New Orleans for Madi graw!
I got paid $1.50 per rabbit, but they had to be head shot, anywere else and it was 50 cents, so I made sure that my shots were right on, lot of money deference between 50 cents and a $1.50!!! After that first year of rabbit hunting, I realized that I had found one thing I was good at, that was shooting a gun! Didn't matter, rifle or shotgun I was a natural shot. Now when it came to shooting a pistol, that was a difference story!! Took a lot of hard work over the next 10 years to be half decent with a hand gun.
 Now we can get to my cowboy name. I can't tell you why, but I allways liked Doc Holliday!! I figure he was a under dog, he lost his mother at 14, and around that time he came down with the same diasese as his mother, TB. Doc was a very well educated man, he also was a Dentist, but because of the TB, most people didn't want to be around a (Lungger) that was what people were called when they have TB.So Doc became a professional gambler and gun slinger, somethings just go toghter, one of those Pro-Quoate things! Although Doc was acussed of being a murderer and crook, that was never proven!! And I believe he wasn't, I don't believe that Wyatt Earp would of been a good friend to Doc if that were the case!
 Being the type of person I am, and my life's history, I feel as if I would of made a decent sidekick for Doc Holliday. To no a vail, I could not use the name Doc Holliday, for if I would of use the name Doc Holliday, in my option that would be bragging!! And I don't need that complication in my life!! So I took the Ace from the deck of cards and the Lungger because of the TB.
Later
ACE
I'll Be Your Huckleberry!

[Gun Butcher]

  I get the feeling that their is a lot of the storyteller in all the pards on this forum. Keep them coming I am enjoying every one of them.

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

Howdy Gents

    My handle of tEN wOLVES fIVE sHOOTER came by accident, I was known as The Handgunner since back in the 70's, so I pick that as my SASS name, but I was told the that the name was already being used, and I should pick a few others, so I did, only to find out they were being used too , so I needed to do some thinking, my wife has some Comanche Indian in her heritage, and I have always loved Wolves, and had a high bred wolf as a pet, and I shoot two six guns, but only load 5 rounds in each one, so this a fiction Avatar.

   The story goes, there was a fierce fighting man, that was married to a beautiful Comanche maiden, he lived with the tribe for several years, learning there ways, this was in the years of 1874 through 1883, waring tribes would some times attack the tribe from time to time, and this fighting man would defend his people by killing more of the enemy warriors than any of the other warriors, after the first fight, the Comanche Chief chose a name for him, it was tEN wOLVES  because he fought like ten wolves, and the the rest was Five Shooter, because he knew how to use his guns so well, and his guns shot only 5 rounds each. so he became known as
" tEN wOLVES fIVE sHOOTER "
  As time went by he became a spokesman for the Comanche people, and also worked as a scout for the Army at times, he worked as a Deputy then Marshal, in some of the rougher cow towns, he was known for his quick wit and fast guns, and was able to tame most rowdy towns without having to shoot or kill anyone, because of his reputation, he then went on to be a US Marshal, and finished out his years in Idaho.

        This is all BS, but it is fun  

             Regards

        tEN wOLVES      

[Johnny McCrae]

Howdy Ten Wolves,

That's quite an interesting story. Many thanks for sharing it with us.

Old McCrae says he remembers having a drink with you at a saloon in Cheyenne back in 1891.