As told by...

New Year's Market Days: More Art on The Mountain

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 18:01:00 +0000

Not sure how many others are doing it, but Yours Truly will once again be out on the porch painting during Market weekend.

Weather Underground says we should remain clear, sunny, highs from 58-65 and lows in the upper 50s. Real good weather, folks, the kind to make you want to jump in the truck and come to Canton!

The fabulous feathermaye will be working on our papier mache projects--more about that later...

Stay tuned to the blog next week to get your updates from this weekend.

Remember, ART HAPPENS HERE!
"ART'S COOL"

Shop Canton, experience The Mountain.

The Future By Design: How modern society allowed their own Da Vinci to come and go before they knew it...

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 19:08:00 +0000

That's right, Modern Society, you read the title correctly. But, that's just the way we roll, right?

Just because a guy comes along once in a great while with brilliant vision and a direct approach to problem solving, does NOT mean we should take any notice, should we?

When a crazy dude like Jacque Fresco invents hundreds of life-changing instruments and just...(gulp) gives them away with no particular care that the folks he's giving it away to are getting rich, well, that's just not reason enough for us to even look his way, is it?

I cannot tell you what to think, folks. But I know genius and I know what makes perfect sense, at least to me...

Take a look at "The Future By Design", a film about Jacque Fresco made by William Gazecki, and you tell me he's not... Our Da Vinci

His vision contained in "The Venus Project" is astounding, to say the least, and gives Your's Truly a sense that we can always start over and make it better. America has always done that very thing. Why stop now?

The Next Big Thing: Part Two

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 17:32:00 +0000

Here I sit, content that by clicking on my facebook, stumbleupon, digg and twitter buttons and launching my thoughts into the ether of the web that I'm doing it right; that I'm current; using the latest... Oh, but no, wait! Suddenly, or so it seems to me, there are new apps and sites that I should be pushing off into.

But, what about the ones I already use? I've gotten good results, thus far anyhow, by using them and my God, just how much time do these folks think I have to click this button, then that one... I mean, hell, I just want to write and hopefully have a few people read and understand...you know: Get it.

My scenario-forming brain goes into auto-overdrive in moments like these; I start forming Orwellian tales out of mass, social idiocy, which we are just prone as hell to do, as a national species, so-to-speak.

Imagine your great grandfather, for instance. Suppose he had to get up every morning and chop wood. Talk about a thankless job; but imagine, if you will, that one morning your Granddaddy got up and heard the sound of a chain-saw going off in the distance, and then saw trees and limbs being chewed off at an alarming rate. How quickly would he decide that he just had to have that chain saw?

Of course, that's the reason any of it works. We're so damn easy, it's silly, really. Our species can come up with some really incredible shit. A lot of it works, and we, as a whole, have little or no resistance to the impulse of "Making life more comfortable." Hell, we refined the ART of convenience.

I was reminded this week, as my Houston Texans went down the tubes--thanks guys--of a sad fact about human nature... One that I've gotten all too familiar with: We will go after what we want, even if we have to ignore what we need.

Back in my sales days, I once made a call to a household, a young couple just in their second year of marriage. I presented a product to them that would have taken money they were spending, and put it back in their pockets. They nodded, agreed, and went as far as to say: "Man, we really need us one of those..."

In the end, they declined, stating that they could not afford it at the time--and get this: "We can't even afford a new crib for the baby yet, she's sleeping in the box that the new TV came in..." Quietly, I nodded and said little else but my goodbyes. There is no reasoning with such thought.

This blog may be nothing more than my own lashing out at the instability of an up-side-down world that puts an application in front of me, encourages me to learn and use it, then makes it obsolete just as I get comfortable with it. However, all lashing and thrashing aside, I still have a point to make: Who's running this show anyhow?

More coming in Part Three!

The Next BIG thing...

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 17:47:00 +0000

It has nothing to do with what day it may be, you can not go through a day now without seeing, or being exposed to, what is being claimed as: The Next Big Thing.

This morning, The Fabulous Feathermaye and I sat down here at our desk as we usually do, getting our various settle-in chores done, fetching the water from the well, and all that...

Once ZEAL was downed and coffee was in hand, I looked over and saw feathermaye dabbling around on a new site. Every three or four minutes she would get excited, say: "Look at this!" and turn her netbook my way to show me an image.

"What is that site, Baby?"

"It's call Pinterest," she said. "It's the next BIG thing."

You should understand that for years feathermaye and Your's Truly have spent our days sitting beside each other, a computer screen, and whatever the "Next big thing" was at any given moment, there in front of us, usually with my sweet wife showing me what's what about one site or another.

Generally, I give these things only slight awareness, enough to allow me to come back to it later, when my brain is ready to get around another, Next Big Thing.

Personally, I find it hard to get all worked-in and comfortable on one site or another(like say: Diggit, or Stumbleupon, or even Twitter), at least effectively--as it ties in with this Blog and my other life interests.

The constant changes, however, also direct my mind to another issue that seems suddenly obvious when I look askance at our NEXT BIG THING culture: No wonder A.D.D. is spreading--seemingly--like some sort of strange STD that has just popped up on the social horizon.

How do you find the time to come to terms with all this new...stuff?

More to come in the next issue of "The Next Big Thing"

Art Blog: To freely go after your ART, if you dare...

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 01:43:00 +0000

The free pursuit of ART is a demanding task. Everyone of us who has ever exhibited talent in one artistic form or another understands this, pretty much instinctively. The comforts of Suburban life add stress to these demands; comfort levels offered to us by the "American Way of Life" pose both logistical, as well as character issues that must be dealt with before we can set out in our pursuit.

But, once you have cleared the way for you to finally get your ART on, there are a few things to remember...

We should all do well to remember that MOST artists live in obscurity. Those accepting that fact move on with their WORK, stepping into, perhaps, their true roles in life.

Today's artists must work their ART, regardless of circumstances (typically among the poorest, financially); it is a magnificant obession that will often collide with life in the 'real world', such as it is...

Artists are attracted to each other, since misery loves company; we find joy simply pushing our elbows together over a bottle of cheap wine; hours pass speaking of perspective, or subject, composition or point of view. Philosophy is wrapped around our discussions, having understood that most of the great philosophers were also, practically speaking, without great means.

Artists are very familiar with pawn shops and flea markets; possessions are merely funds we carry around and use as long as we can, then sell when survival is at stake. In the America we find ourselves surrounded by today, ART is, for the most part, too soft a subject to think about buying into. Lay offs, industrial closings, mortgages that can not be paid and how our childred all seem to have developed A.D.D. are far more important subjects, they are the snarl that kills the ART in most of us. Few of us ever, move beyond those limitations.

Taking one of Walt Whitman's walk alongside nature with notebook under arm and no care about shaving, apperiantly, is merely a romantic notion, until you try it. To step out into the raw world without the protection of "The Herd" strikes terror in the hearts of most suburbanites. The folks one might encounter 'off the grid' are not, generally speaking, the sort you want to find sitting beside you, or sharing a bottle of cheap wine at that cozy bistro table on that favorite sidewalk you know so well... But they are the salt that flavors the world, the subjects of our expert eyes.

It's ours to record, or illustrate or sing about in one way or another. We are leaving the details behind that someone, one day, will find and study.

Art Blog: What to do when your IPR is taken by someone in China? Part Two

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 18:30:00 +0000

It's really cool to see resolution come between parties in conflict...

I'm happy to report that the IPR issues mentioned in Part One of this blog have been resolved by the collective efforts of friends and support here on the good ole WWW. Not only did all of you respond to Lisa, and others who expressed concerned over loss of their IPRs, AliBaba.com responded as well, pulling all the content that the offending seller had used. Justice is served, without armed conflict, police, bureaucracy or other Bull.

Score one for Art, for Freedom and E-commerce!

Great to see how it can be when we all simply play nice...

Art Blog: What to do when your IPR is taken by someone in China?

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 18:04:00 +0000

We have a facebook friend who is rather influential to The Fabulous Feathermaye:

Her name is Lisa J. Lehmann and her small, well-written about company is known as: Studio Jewel

Lisa just joined the ranks of victims of Intellectual Property Theft. A seller out of China, listed on a popular site, just reached out, over the WWW and grabbed all of Lisa's advertising and designs of a particular piece that she not only conceptualized, designed, and executed, but also promoted (with pictures of her OWN DAUGHTER).

To see her hard work simply taken and used, seemingly with complete impunity, by anyone, well...disheartening is not even close. The e-commerce giant that hosts this thief was raved about recently by the likes of CNBC.

You can help, if you will...

If you go to this site Lisa will give you the details through which you can also register your voice in protest.

Photo Blog: Making our Business Sign from green-pickings...

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 20:32:00 +0000

About a week away from our third Market Weekend here on The Mountain, The Fabulous Feathermaye and I finally landed on a name for our new ART Shop:

ART'S COOL

We thought it would be a great time to start working with recycled items; why not start out green?

We walked around The Mountain and picked
up random junk and dead fall...

Some stuff, like this old broken table, had to be taken apart...

Once that was done, we assembled it with
other debris to make this...

Really cool (green) sign...

Art really is cool, at Art's Cool
Canton Mountain, Canton Texas

Shop Canton, Experience The Mountain!

ON THE MOUNTAIN: Inspiration is a very close companion...

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 21:24:00 +0000

On quiet nights, the trees up here will speak to you. Some here call the phenomenon "The still, small voice", while others nod, take a deep, involuntary breath and...let go the contented sigh.

You can see the ideas running around behind their eyes; I should know because everyone I met when I first came saw it in mine...and still do.

If you are aware that you are searching, the feeling hits you, as it did us, as soon as you put a foot on the ground here. It is hallowed ground the many who have been here for years.

Inspiration, we've come to find, depends upon limitations. The "Slip-stream of consciousness" that artists dip their imaginations into can often harden its approaches, barring entrance until you say the magic word.

We came here with our limitations: Out of work and homeless sums up the situation. The kindness of friends and the love of family has helped us find this perch, where we can gather what we will before we leap back into whatever life has in store for us.

We discovered a remarkable truth about this place: despite our limitations, our lack of funds and even the limited ability to cook, eat and do dishes in the same building, our focus keeps gravitating to inspiration, rather than all that might hold us back, circumstantially.

We've found no barrier here. Rather, we've opened a limitless source. We can dip into these waters at any moment. A constant flood of ideas, continuously scrawled on whiteboards, notepads and even napkins, come like ghosts who've finally found someone who can actually hear what they are saying... Inspiration speaks here.

Not everyone is affected as such. We've met those who set foot here and can ONLY SEE PROFITS. Sadly, the rest of us already know they are doomed, and they will, eventually fall away as so many others have over the years since those early days when this place was first conceptualized.

The ghosts of those originals haunt this hill; ghost hunters come on a regular basis to photograph orbs, collect what evidence they can of the beyond; who knows if it's really the ghosts of some artist, or some old settler still looking to trade his horse, or even some Native American who would love to see his sacred grounds left undisturbed. When you are up here on The Mountain, you can feel the energy, all one needs to do is... Tune in.

Shop Canton, experience The Mountain!

As always, we wish to thank you for following this blog. You can always find us on facebook as you stumbleupon the web looking for stuff to digg. If you would be sweet and give this one a TWEET!

ON THE MOUNTAIN: Art's Cool debuts and I try my hand...

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 22:59:00 +0000

I've always wanted to sit outside, on some crowded sidewalk, painting as people come and go around me. This past Market Days weekend I did just that.

S Bond outside of Art's Cool

For weeks, I had been looking down the street that extends to the left of our porch (Here at the Little Red School House). There is a door down there, the only thing along the view that is truly Perpendicular to the street. The other doors and windows are all facing the street, and thus nearly hidden from view.

Just how to paint that special doorway has been on my mind a lot over the weeks leading up to Market. I took pictures to study, in various lights, and then put together a simple paint kit, something akin to Bob Ross meets Jerry Yarnell and they fight to the death, sort of deal... Anyhow, I had paint, brushes, and a good idea, I hoped.

I figured, quite obviously, that to become successful with ART here on The Mountain, I need to get plenty of material on display. The Art Buying public can be a fickle lot; one never knows when or where they will be moved to purchase. I can only count on the fact that THE MOUNTAIN calls people up here in some special way, and that what I'm capturing, hopefully, calls them to take it home with them, a part of The Mountain to call their own.
.
We had a few pieces ready as Market came:

Plus some of the awesomeness that can only be Feathermaye:

as we opened the new studio/shop: Art's Cool...

Sign made entirely of random debris we found laying around on the hill

So, after two afternoons, I had this finished:

Porches on Lazy Days Lane
by S. Bond Herndon

It's clear that we've got a ways to go yet. We need walls full of Mountain, and that's what we'll spend this next month working on...

Once again we thank you for following this blog. You can always find us on facebook as you stumbleupon looking for stuff to digg. Please be sweet and give this one a TWEET!

Thanksgiving...: unemployed, homeless and happy as a tick on a hound dawg

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 22:27:00 +0000

The holidays have always been a source of comfort to Your's Truly. This year, I'll celebrate my tenth year of marriage to my fabulous wife, I'll turn 53(but feeling eighteen again in so many ways--Thank you ZEAL!), and I have four fantastic, ADULT offspring, two beautiful and quite lively little granddaughters and a dog named Starbuck (after Lt. Cm. Starbuck of Battle Star Galactica).

All of the above is the stuff of life, the surroundings that bring us comfort and the true sense of belonging to a family.

The writer inside of Your's Truly spent the morning looking back at what has happened to him during the past year...

This Blog began because I published a Book and as we worked to build excitement, learned how to effectively promote a work of such nature over the WWW, and found out just how much we needed to break away from the old routine before we could really get it going... This little blog was birthed, with little real expectation on my part. I just didn't understand how, exactly, a blog needed to be...well...blogged.

Feathermaye kept at me to read other bloggers that were out there, the ones that had kept it up, built a readership by finding a topic that people would enjoy following along with. Dooce, well, she's THE DOOCE, and perhaps the best example I've had to follow, closely along the heels of THE BLOGGESS, who uses humor like nobody's-bidness. I read and followed, and kept sticking up little pieces of writing that spoke to me, whenever they sparked up a little literary flame.

In August, the event I'm Most Grateful for, strange as it may sound, happened when we were laid off from our cushy little job and we lost the roof over our heads, medical insurance, as well as income. It was our chance... we realized quite clearly, to go ahead with our plans.

I'm so grateful for the confusing events of the summer because it brought real focus to this blog on my part. We found The Mountain, and a new world of subject material. I began to see how to create a blog audience, and since last November, I'm proud to say our readership has grown over 100%. I'm like a kid again when I wake up to see how many of you have taken a look at the latest post.

I'll most likely put up a few more posts like this, as the season progresses; I get all warm and fuzzy this time of the year.

Thank you all for following! You know you can always find us on facebook--Thanks Zuckerberg! It would really be sweet if you give this blog a Tweet!, as you Stumblealong looking for something to Digg.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE! HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL, HOWEVER YOU CELEBRATE THEM.

The Fountain of Youth?: Why is S Bond back to his fighting weight?

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 00:57:00 +0000

In June, I was diagnosed with Polymyalgia Rhuematica. The pain medicine and steroids I was prescribed became a mess of trying to balance doses while beating back the constant flair of pain. By the time we were laid off in August, I was NOT responding as I should have been to the steroid treatment, and the pain medicine made me sick when I had to take it, sometimes three and four times a day. My doctor was cautionary to upping my steroid to four doses, when one or two is normal. I simply was not responding to the treatment.

The lay off brought me in contact with someone who gave me a bottle of ZEAL. At first, we thought it was just another energy drink, trying to find its way into an already crowded market. But, we were tired at the time, facing some deadlines, and we tried it. The next morning, we were running around trying to find the woman who had put those little bottles in our hands.

In the two months we have been taking our daily ZEAL, my pain medicine remains an open prescription, but I haven't had to refill it. My steroid dose has been cut in half, and about to be half that again! More than anything else, ZEAL has allowed me to simply FEEL GOOD, without taking in more crap, or having to fight open a bottle of potentially habit forming drugs.

(click on image to view larger)

I could have cared less what was in it, at first. But when I discovered what ZEAL actually is, I was tickled to find that one little serving gives me the equivalent of over $400.00 worth of vitamins and nutritional supplements. It even contains five of the known, naturally occurring cancer fighting agents.

My breathing, my blood pressure, not to mention all the issues about my heart disease (three heart attack survivor here) have also become much simpler to control. No wonder I feel good.

I will NEVER go a day, without my ZEAL. And, of course feathermaye has something to say about ZEAL too!

ON THE MOUNTAIN: a mountain of subject matter...

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 01:29:00 +0000

It took the fabulous feathermaye and I exactly two seconds of standing on this Mountain to realize that we were looking at ART WORLD:a place full of subject material right out of an artist's dream...

I mean, c'mon... this place is a time warp, what would you do if you found
all this around you? Got paint? Got a sketch book? A camera?

This one, and a couple of others are set ups for a few pen & ink pieces

Classic walkways that disappear around

irresistible corners...

In reality this bump of sand was once

the playground of artists

The aged wood, shapes...tickle the sketcher's eye...

Old West meets our age...

all yours to capture

look up...

look down...

Art is waiting for you here...

This place has been home to painters, photographers, and World Class Sculptors. Street performers and glass blowers with chainsaw art wielding husbands. Musicians, dancers and (like your's truly) a few novelists. This fertile mound is now ready for its next colony of artists to form. They only need set foot here once...

If you've been a starving artist working shows and traveling from here to there, you need to add Canton, and The Mountain, to your plans.

If you have a closet full of paintings, or a garage full of furniture that you've reclaimed and turned into fantastic works of art, you just might find the place where it all comes together, here, were ART HAPPENS every 1st Monday of the Month "Market Days" here in Canton, Texas.

Shop Canton, Experience The MOUNTAIN!

A few words from feathermaye: Have you had your Zeal today?

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 17:58:00 +0000

Over the last couple of weeks I've gotten a couple of phone calls and several emails with basically the same message: You're looking so much thinner in your pictures! Are y'all eating okay? Do you need anything?

Bless your hearts. Every one of you who has asked and even those who have just wondered. As if feathermaye would ever miss a meal!

So. Yes, we are eating okay. Not great stuff, necessarily, but plenty of it. We are not starving to death, despite how skinny my legs look in those purple sweatpants.

And really, what other color would you expect my sweatpants to be?

Life on The Mountain has naturally introduced an increase in our exercise level, which helps our struggle for daily wellness. Survival-mode menus, though (once you've eliminated the zero value fast foods), are sparse by design and should serve to remind you that we should not be living to eat, but rather eating to live. It's a hard cycle to break out of, admittedly, but we are currently proving that it can and SHOULD be done.

Shortly after arriving on The Mountain and making friends, we were given a sample of a product that contains the same nutritional equivalent as all of the supplements and vitamins listed below. That's over $400 worth of products, on a daily basis, to get the nutritional elements our bodies need to thrive.

Just this image should be enough to startle you when you realize that these are proven, key elements to maintaining your physical health, and each one is recommended to be taken on a regular basis! How in the world are we supposed to afford the time it would take to shop for and consume these products, or acquire the money it would take to keep them stocked FOR OUR WHOLE FAMILY to be healthy?

It shouldn't be expensive to be healthy! Getting what your body needs to thrive should not be an intimidating task to be dreaded every day with dry, hard to swallow and tasteless (or worse!) products.

So, passing on the good deed some new friends have done for us, I want to share this nutritional miracle with the rest of my friends. And Scott's friends. And their friends' friends. This works, folks. And we are shining examples.

Click for larger image

Zeal is a simple solution to complex nutritional needs. The triple benefit of Enriching, Restoring and Protecting our bodies doesn't require dozens of pills and supplements every day. With the new superfood foundation of Rice Bran, Zeal delivers everything your body needs to maintain its own wellness, and helps to purge the stuff we don't need that we get from our environments, food choices and bad habits. In one simple drink every morning!

And yes, not only have Scott and I taken the wellness pledge with Zeal, we've become so convinced by its effects that we have signed up to be distributors, too. But here's the truth: I didn't sign up thinking I'd sell Zeal--I signed up knowing that I would get a 15% discount on my own supply. Even if I never sold a single bottle of Zeal, I would continue to take it on a daily basis. But each week, as I feel and look better, and as my moods and energy levels are more easily maintained, I've decided it would be very selfish of me to not share it with you.

If you'd like more information about Zeal and its associated wellness products, please visit our website at feathermaye.zealforlife.biz. There you'll find lots of links to all of the Zeal supporting information, contact information for us, and ordering information, if you are so inclined.

And Zeal has a 30-day money back guarantee, so you've got nothing to lose.

Have you had your Zeal today?

a feathermaye photoblog: This is Canton, This is The Mountain Pt.1

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 16:26:00 +0000

By now, you've become a fan of feathermaye's eye, just like yours truly. Here in pictures, my fabulous, Artist wife begins to show you what this place is all about...

- This is Canton -
Lots such as these are all over and surrounding the city

- This is The Mountain -
During 1st Monday weekends, no autos on The Mountain

- This is Canton -
A tribute to the General Stores of old, in the heart of the city

- This is The Mountain -
Simply stated: Just cussin good junk!

- This is Canton -
A fine, historically rich Texas town with strong traditions

- This is The Mountain -
A special place, where art happens everywhere

- This is Canton -
A special place, with special shopping, artists flourish here
amid the strong influences of Texas' past...

- This is The Mountain -
Many successful artists came here to enjoy the special energy, The Mountain just
makes an artist WANT to go the extra mile with their work...

Much more to come in the next issues from The fabulous feathermaye! Art happens here every 1st Monday Trade days. Shop Canton.... Experience The Mountain

Once again we would like to thank you all for following this blog. Your support is our motivation. Look for us on facebook, and you can find me stumblingupon every week looking for things to Digg. Please be sweet and give this one an extra Tweet!

ON THE MOUNTAIN: Art Explosion, INCENDIARY new work by Feathermaye

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 08:59:00 +0000

Okay, so I'm a bit self-prejudiced since she is, after all, my lovely wife...However, I'm the grandson, and son, of artist-women-folk; good ones. I know good when I see it with my eyes.

and so, I'm quite proud to announce that the Herndons have gotten their ART ON!

Next Market Weekend will be the official unveiling of feathermaye multimedia's "MOUNTAIN ART".

Here's just a taste folks: Another masterpiece by feathermaye...

Waiting in the Wings: by feathermaye

We hope you'll drop by to see our ~~work...~~ fun!

Stay with the Blog for more great photo art, news from Agony...Texas, updates about The Mountain, and much, much more!

Shop Canton, experience The Mountain!

We invite you to follow our little blog here, and thanks to all who've just joined in on the fun. You can always find us on facebook, and I'm known to Stumlbeupon great notions that I Digg. And, hey, if you'd be so sweet, please give this one a Tweet!

ON THE MOUNTAIN: It's all about the PORCH

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 04:33:00 +0000

It really doesn't matter what sort of place you get on The Mountain, as long as it has a really great porch...

Plenty of porches left here...Come claim one of your own. Art, happens here every 1st Monday Market. Shop Canton, experience The Mountain!

Another day of Agony... Texas

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 07:10:00 +0000

THE AGONIZING TRUTH (Cir. 378 and growing!)
Agony, Texas 11.09.11
Jackson Tuck Editor

Last known picture of Travis age 12

Thelma Drylander tops 107! One of Agony's oldest citizens reached a new milestone today. Congratulations to Thelma whose son Travis (Age 76) only recently the subject of a missing persons investigation, discovered to be hiding out 'On the Mountain' in Canton, Texas. Still no recent updates as to why, exactly, the former Radio man, and son of centenarian Poker Champion Thelma Drylander, is doing in that part of the state, where the controversial writers S. Bond Herndon and his wife Feathermaye are reported to also be "hiding out" on that sandy little hill in Canton.

A Very 'Tuck' Wedding: Wedding plans continue for the latest social event here in Agony, another Onyx/Tuck wedding.

Johnny Tuck, currently head of 'Tuck Land, Livestock and Mineral' announced today that the wedding is back on! His son Dewitt, engaged to Onyx Oil heiress Natalie Onyx, was reported as missing, not long after the infamous Drylander incident.

Dewitt Tuck was found in an abandoned school bus just south of Sonora. He was suffering from exposure, and had no memory of going off, nor how long he had been gone. "I figure I was drugged and carried off out yonder..." Tuck told the AT. "Either somebody give me something... Or I just got carried away and took too much of one thing or another."

The wedding will go on as scheduled. services to be held at the New Life Emmanuel Methodist Church of the Everlasting Reformed Baptist Savior, here in Agony. Both the Tuck and Onyx families invite one and all to the Tuck ranch main house for the big BBQ and reception.

Deaths:
Noland Pickertell, a long-time Agonite and former constable was found dead in his home on Black Tea Street. It appears to investigators on the scene that Pickertell fell at his home, and was impaled upon an old horseshoe stake. "Punched right through his spine..." The County Coroner told the AT. "We figure he lay there that-a-way for hours, maybe longer, before he finally succumb. Tough old bird..."

Citizen fined for Hot tub use in Drought. Doug Diddle of Sagebrush Ave was issued a fine for his constant filling, draining, and re-filling of his huge hot tub. "It's worth it..." He told the AT.

Did You See the UFO?
At least sixteen calls came in to the constable's office on October the 7th. The calls all came around or just after nine pm, according the Cletus. "Folks were sure fire scared, I tell you what..." The Constable told the AT. "I rode around a while, but didn't see anything, like they was talking about."

Market Weekend: Part Two

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 17:06:00 +0000

Throngs of shoppers flood Canton

Over a Million visitors flooded the town below us, but only a few thousand ventured up this hill. That's in part due to the fact that most of what happens up here, happens at night. However, low crowds during the day are also due to the fact that the word about the place is not getting out, any more. That's part of the role we've assigned ourselves...

You've all witnessed how we have fallen in love with this sandy bump in East Texas. We can't let it lose its identity as "The Best kept Secret in Texas". No, sir, and we ask not for one dime, we just want the word to get out; we want stale and out-of-date websites that still draw hits at the top of search engines, to be replaced by hits that filter through this blog, by you, our faithful followers. After all, this is about getting your attention, and trusting that if it moves you to do so, you'll not hesitate to pass it along to your own networks. Hey, that's what a blog can do...

But for all of the ones that found their way up here...

LZ putting the final touches on her evolving dream

TWIRL! a Photography Boutique premiered this weekend and I watched, grinned and even twirled my-own-self as the vision that was only last Market Days referred to by its central story line: "Miss Lilly's Closet", metamorph'd, in serendipitous fashion, to become 'Twirl'. Feathermaye Multi-Media even zipped together a really cool sign with Laurie's script design in lights that made the joint pop even more.

Like a magnet people were drawn to the elaborate Zebra Tree set, wondering what, oh what, could this be... Then, about sundown on Friday, it took off as the first set of girls flooded in, chose outfits and got to twirling while The Divine Mz. Z, feathermaye, and even a reserve photographer (Becky Mottolese) put their creative eyes behind Mz. Z's designs and directions, and as spectators stood agape in the street watching, the dance that is 'Twirl!' flowed, organically, magically. By 9:00pm Saturday, the artists were spent, dragging...

Be sure to check out Part Three in the next issue!

As always, we would love it if you follow this blog,and you can always find us on facebook. Often, you'll stumbleupon us, but if you'd be so sweet, please give this one a Tweet! Digg it!

Market Weekend: Part One

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 03:36:00 +0000

That's right, we rented this little Red School House, right
here on The Mountain: Current HQ for
feathermaye multimedia

IF you're just joining us, I'll begin by telling you that we are hiding out on The Mountain, here in Canton, Texas.

You'll also find several additional blogs here on the site about The Mountain, Canton, and what, exactly, The Herndons are doing on this hill.

The Texicans were in full swing:
led flying, pistols popping
every hour!

Now, for everyone else in the Posse...

Lecia's Designs were a natural crowd stopper...

We had us a root'n toot'n, shoot'em up weekend here on The Mountain. Our guest Artist Lecia Zinna set up a small exhibit of her work and met many fellow artisans that love coming here, not only for the exposure to thousands of eyes during Market Days, but also for the camaraderie shared by an artist's contemporaries, regardless of their art, we all starve, we all crave the company of others with similar aspirations, however lofty, or simple they may be...

More about this weekend coming in the next issue!

As always, we would love it if you follow this blog, and you can always find us on facebook. You can also find us as we Stumbleupon and if you'd be so sweet, please give this one a tweet! Digg it!

A MOUNTAIN of B n Bs: Oh yes, staying on THE MOUNTAIN is what it's all about...

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 00:09:00 +0000

I know I've already told you about the little B&B we are staying in: The Mardi Gras is but one of many similar Bed and Baths, or in some cases Bed and Breakfasts that dot the Calliope-like mix of structures on this hill.

Mountain B&Bs are a mainstay here; many of the shoppers and night clients of THE MOUNTAIN are those staying in these quaint little sleepers. They've shopped all over Canton during the day, and after dropping their bags in their B&B, are once again ready to take to the hill for some night time fun!

At the base of the hill, you'll find great places like: The Long Branch Hotel where Tony Lewis runs, what has been voted: one of The BEST Hotels in Canton for the last eight years. Tony also puts out an excellent breakfast buffet, with all the trimmings for his guests.

Buffalo Girls is as rustic as they come...Old West charm in the middle of the twenty-first century. That's the point of this place. There's even a scheduled Shoot Out in front of the porch, usually lined with spectators as THE TEXICANS start slinging led.

As you move up the hill you'll see more and more of the smaller B&Bs. Right next door to us is The Big Easy, another of the festively decorated B&Bs. Pink Debbie owns the Big Easy and a few others as well. She's from Deep Down in Louisiana, where they make Mardi Gras floats and gowns. Some of those very same gowns are on display in various B&Bs around The Mountain. The artwork alone on these gowns is incredible!

This would be the longest blog in history if I tried to put up shots of all the B&Bs here... Instead, I've tried to put in a wide range of styles, since the styles can very from boxy old shot-gun design to something akin to a fort built by Spanky and the gang, or even Butch and his gang--I wasn't thinking of Sundance and Butch, but them too.

No matter the architecture, it fits with the general idea of The Mountain: FUN.

After all, Mountain B&Bs are about having a nice, comfy, or even cushy place to flop after you've dropped from all the shopping!

I'm including a list of all the websites and their respective booking sites for you to choose from. We really hope to see YOU on The Mountain soon!

http://themountainatcanton.com/mountainlodging.htm

http://oldmillmarketplace.com/modules/content/index.php?id=6

http://www.cantonmountain.com/modules/content/index.php?id=4

http://www.cantonmountain.com/modules/mxdirectory/singlelink.php?cid=155&lid=1419

As always, we would love to have you follow this blog, and if you'd be so sweet and give this one a tweet!

We also stumbleupon, can you Digg it?

Off to Look for America: ways and means to pay for your adventure...

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 15:16:00 +0000

No one is standing there ready to hand out advice when you set out to see if you can find America. You accumulate it as you go; sometimes folks you encounter along the way will offer up some useful tidbits, time or money savers that help--but most of the time, it's trial and error. And, we've got a lot of ideas. But, that's how it goes...

The Fabulous Feathermaye and I have finally concluded that WE are going to have to jot down the notes that others can follow. Some of it is silly, sure, some of it can really make a difference. As I've said in earlier blogs: We are operating from a very thin precipice... avoiding mistakes can be the difference in staying in your budget, or going hungry.

Of course, the best way for a Blogger/Novelist/Humorist/Satirist to pay for his or her room and board, is by Advertising!

I don't want to make too much of this; after all, the last thing I want to do is alienate my readers, just to make a buck. Besides, no readers=no blog=no advertising bucks to keep going with.


Does ANY insect repellent actually work?

My Fabulously Brilliant wife has taken great pains to shop for the right sort of advertising clients, not based upon how much we can make; but rather upon the sort of products or services that I'm already talking about in the blog.

Beyond that, we had to decide if the product or service is something that we can actually get behind, actually promote, in other words: Would we use this ourselves?

A very wise man named Judge Ziglar (yes, that one, the brother of Zig) told me once that it's always important to remember the last four letters in the word "enthusiasm". The Judge told Yours Truly that those four letters actually mean: I Am Sold Myself. Ergo, we now have some new affiliate advertisers that we not only care about, but feel their product lines are unique and fit well with our over-all theme. And, just so you know... Judge Ziglar once sold TV sets in rural Mississippi, before there were any TV Stations!
He also holds the world's record in sales of Pots and Pans, Insurance, you name it. The man knew what he was talking about. That's the sort of advice you tend to keep...

We will diligently report any and all new products that we come across as helpful or useful. And, we hope to develop long term relationships with our affiliates, as we open up the rest of our web pages in the near future.

Allow me to introduce our new affiliate sponsors!

The Fan Zoo is, simply stated, a Sports Memorabilia distributor, based out of Vancouver, Canada. Their overall mission, however, is so much more. From their website:

The Fan Zoo is committed to "Connecting Athletes with their Communities of fans" through:

Sports Memorabilia signings
Hockey player events with local children and youth
Hockey schools
Outfitting local sports teams

All our sports initiatives have a societal impact on local organizations or individuals.

The next company we're now working with, and equally excited about, is SpiceBox Ltd. As promised on their website:

SpiceBox creates high quality books and activity kits, designed to foster learning, friendship, fun and laughter.

This mission is very special to Feathermaye and me. Also, knowing that many of you have artistic interests and hobbies, and a few of you are STARVING ARTISTS like us, we really couldn't turn away from the chance to do business with such fine folks. These cool art kits are a fantastic way to expose your talent to different media, without investing a fortune! We love to go look at their product line...

**I also want to mention that both The Fan Zoo and SpiceBoxBooks.com reached out to us personally in response to our application for affiliate advertising. Both companies took the time to visit this website and ask questions to determine how well we fit together. These are exactly the sorts of relationships we hope to foster over the coming years.

Stay tuned for the next edition of "...ways and means..." to hear about some of our other sponsors, like Minimus.biz (which you absolutely NEED when living life in survival-mode), and FiveFingerTees.com, your ultimate resource when you need some ridiculously awesome t-shirts.

Be sure to look for us on facebook. And, it would really help OUR cause if you click to follow this blog. Please be sweet and give this one a Tweet! as you Stumbleupon to your next brilliant find...Digg it!

Travis Drylander is Found Alive!: Search for seventy-six year old radio man is over

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 21:08:00 +0000

THE AGONIZING TRUTH
Circulation (319) AGONY, TEXAS
Jackson Tuck Editor

Drylander, always a large man, rumor has it
that he's dropped hundreds of pounds and is
getting involved with The Mountain, in Canton
Texas

Long time Radio personality and owner of KGAY radio, here in Agony, Travis Drylander was reported to be both alive, and well. Drylander told the AT: "I just had to get outta town. I followed the Herndons to this place. I like it, and I'm staying. That's all..."

Folks here in Agony were shocked to hear of Drylander's seemingly clandestine jettison of his home town. "I've known Travis all my life. He never much came outside, much less ever left town. Shoot...I didn't even know the fool could drive!" Clim Stanton told the AT.

The Cuts of Agony "The Big Nothing"

"I figured he wondered off into the Big Nothing," Sam Carmichael told the AT. "We searched out yonder for days and didn't find enough to feed a chigger, much less somebody Travis' size..."

Drylander was always a large man at least until this last year, where a few scattered reports surfaced of Agonites seeing Travis as he slimmed down.

"Man would not come out if people were about," Mimi Lutz of Lutz' diner told the AT. "Travis always comes in about three, or four in the morning, depending on how many folks would be in here, sitting in the diner. Last few days, we ain't seen him any."

Why Drylander would go so far as to follow Novelist S. Bond Herndon as far away as Canton, Texas no one may ever know.

We made a quick phone call to Herndon about the report and asked if he had anything to add. "Well, we're about to need a radio man up this way..." Was all the controversial writer had to say about the matter.

Off to Look for America: Remember to thank those that help...

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 18:45:00 +0000

One of the most unexpected benefits of setting off to look for things that make you want to just BE FREE UPON THE FACE of The EARTH, are the people that come out of no where to help. As near as I've ever been able to tell, it's a very organic thing...

Post Katrina found us, and a lot of
other Houston area folks digging
deep of their time and anything
we could spare.

With supposition, I can clearly see how others want to reach out. We certainly have given whenever we had it. Usually anything above our basic needs, we've given, in one form or another. Especially in a time of great need.

Some might even ask: "How can you ever expect help when you won't give it yourself?" I know most of YOU give whenever you can. It's not a solitary notion--THANK GOD.

As The Fabulous Feathermaye is always quick to remind me: It's never easy accepting HELP from others... After all: we're supposed to be self-sufficient...Right? But, that's the sort of thinking that leads to disaster!

Survival Rule #1-- never turn down help!

Rule #217 in effect

Feathermaye is assembling all the new rules we've come up with or against, as the case may be. Such as Tip #217 for living in survival-mode: When you wake to a sudden downward shift in the temperature, be prepared to add layers and carry on.

There are lots of things like that which we'll be passing along.

So we say thank you, to the wonderful people who have helped us along the way, and have welcomed us into the bosom of THE MOUNTAIN. I promised not to call them all out by name since they would only be embarrassed by the recognition...they give without thinking twice.

Meanwhile...Work is piling up, and ~~I've~~ we've got to get back to it!

Remember: Come see us on THE MOUNTAIN as soon as you can. If you're an artist who has been following, send us an email if you would like to plan a trip down to attend, and participate in a Trade Day Weekend.

Artists who wish to know more about, or just ask questions about THE MOUNTAIN please feel free to contact either Heather@feathermayemultimedia.com or sbond@feathermayemultimedia.com

We are always happy to talk about THE MOUNTAIN...

Remember you can always find us on facebook, (THANKS ZUCK!). We welcome you to follow this blog. Please be sweet and give this one a Tweet! as you stumble through your day...can you digg it?

The REAL Housewives of Agony...Texas

noreply@blogger.com (S. Bond Herndon) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 21:53:00 +0000

THE AGONIZING TRUTH (cir 319)
Sunday October 23rd 2011
Jackson Tuck Editor

Local Housewives Shoot for Stardom

Mrs. Nayland Tuck

Six local Housewives announced today their intention to shoot and market their own TV Reality Series: The Real Housewies of Agony...Texas. "We got the idea from feathermaye..." One source within the group told the AT, mentioning the wife of controversial Novelist S. Bond Herndon, who was also the target of a record number of lawsuits just last week.

Mrs. Tank Mortson was
once a screen actress...

"She's always thinking up ideas like that..." Willa Wadswood, one Agonite Housewife, added about THE FABULOUS FEATHERMAYE. "She's the one that pointed out how we folks here in Agony have an advantage, when it comes to marketing and branding..." Wadswood went on: "Like how her husband used the play on words in the title of his new book: A Week in Agony...TEXAS"

Herndon's controversial book tells all the
secrets about Agony...Texas!

Willa Wadswood

Not one of the "Real Housewives" I spoke with today was prepared to do more than speak about the Herndons kindly. None of these women chose to participate in the lawsuit. "We think the whole lawsuit business is just foolishness on the part of some around town..." One Housewife insider wishing to remain anonymous told the AT.

Norma Sipes Lead Cashier
Greasy Dollar General Store

"We plan to start production sometime in the next few months..." Norma Onyx told the AT. "We're still working on our screen tests and such as that...feathermaye said we should take our time with it..."

Y'all remember Norma when she was the lead majorette on the Agony High Marching Band and Bugle Corps. Of course, she still works over at the Greasy Dollar store, over by the oil patch.

Evidently, these women are serious about putting this pilot together, and then sending it up for consideration with the available networks.

Little Anna Dixon folks!

"It's going to be a feathermaye production, to start with..." Little Anna Dixon told the AT: "They do all that sort of stuff, plus they write books and all that...it's all just so exciting! Jerry, my husband, went and bought me a new semi-automatic for this weekend's hunting!

The only Onyx in the competition?
Where's Olyandra?

Not to be outspoken, Millicent Onyx also tossed her hat into the ring of contenders, even though she has been widowed these last seven years. "I still consider myself a 'housewife', Milly told the AT. "Who's to say otherwise? I've done nothing else for the last forty years!"

What do the women of the Agony Poker Club have to say about "The REAL Housewives of Agony...Texas"? That and more in the next issue!