Rapp or Reacher?

With the passing of Vince Flynn this week those of us who read his books and love his characters are saddened.  Personally, I also enjoy tremendously the work of Lee Child.  I still cannot accept the fact that Tom Cruise played Jack Reacher even though the movie itself was a pretty good adaptation of the novel One Shot.  Brad Thor and Daniel Silva are two others that I have enjoyed in that genre.

But Rapp and Reacher have been my favorite tough guy fictional personalities who take care of problems.  They tell me that real men always want to take care of problems.  Which is my favorite?  It is hard to say really.  I love Mitch Rapp and his no nonsense approach to dealing with problems with finality.  I love Reacher because he is big, tough and tender at the same time.  5 guys surround him and he wonders if it is going to be a fair fight, for the other guys.

As I have read about Vince Flynn through the years I have been impressed with his life, his character, his love for his family and respect for our American Heritage.  Many eulogies have been written the past few days and I mourn as a fan and someone who respected his work and his desire to succeed.  His wife and children are really in my thoughts.  I realize there probably will not be another Vince Flynn coming along.  Mitch Rapp will be in one more Flynn book that comes out this Fall.  As a tribute I guess I will start with Term Limits again and read all his books and have myself a Flynn-a-thon.

Yapping Dogs

This morning is lovely on the benches of the everlasting hills.  There were a few weeds to attend to, peach trees to water, some vegetables to tend to.  Nothing that couldn't be done in an hour or so.  As I write this the Sun has still not crested the mountains above our home.  Sounds tranquil, doesn't it?

Yapping dogs.  There ought to be a law against them.  Those pesky yapping dogs that have no reason to bark and seem to be without a brain.  There ought to at least be a class kind of like driver's ed, it could be called dog ed, or something like that.  There would need to be a least a full week on what to do if you dog is incessantly barking at 6 AM at somebody 60 yards away working on their own property.

I cannot imagine that all the other surrounding neighbors fail to hear the little beasties.  And the owners must have earplugs in or something because it doesn't seem to cause any reaction.  The thought came to me that their should be some device, a whistle or something that one could blow that would cause sufficient discomfort to the dogs that it would cause them to stop; of course without doing any damage to them.

Is their something about the little yappy dogs that can cause one's skin to crawl.  A big woof from a labrador or something like that doesn't seem so bad but the higher, repetitive pitch of the little canines is like fingernails on a chalkboard.  I must be alone in this because I have little yappers all around me.

The Glory of Their Times

I have read a lot of books over the years on baseball.  I would be hard pressed to come up with one that is better than this classic.  Honestly, I had never heard of this book before, but I came across the title in some blog and decided to check it out.  It is a fantastic read for anyone who has some appreciation for the history of baseball in the United States.  The author followed through with a personal desire to interview baseball players who played in the early 1900's.  So in the early 60's he sought out some of these old timers, traveling thousands of miles and spending a few years of his time.  He tape recorded the interviews and with little editing he has created a timeless baseball masterpiece.  This is one I give a heart felt recommendation.  It would be a great Father's Day gift for any dad who loves baseball.