San Patricio County News (Sinton, Tex.), Vol. 98, No. 26, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 30, 2005 Page: 2 of 10
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San Patricio County News
Thursday, June 30,2006
Armadillo: Is it an ugly Mexican handbag or a buzzard’s favorite road pizza; the Wildman weighs in
that armadillo “tasted pretty
good a lot like chicken,"
Sonny jumped in to tell them
no, he and a friend once
came upon a dead
horse that had some
found throughout Texas, except
for western Trans-Pecos area.
Actually, armadillos eat a
wide ‘ variety of food, ranging
from insects to plants. They par-
tin ilarly likp ants hfiPtlfis and
along creek banks, but in the
sandy soils of east Texas they
are found almost everywhere. In
the Edwards Plateau the critters
generally are known to congre-
gate in the cracks and crevices
that thought in Austin. The time-
warped hippies who keep that
city weird have adopted the
armadillo, transforming the crit-
ter into a cute, friendly cartoon-
ish, burnt orange toy, key chain
\
unusual movement
around it. “We chun-
ked a rock that bounced
off the dead horse and six
armadillos ran out its
rear end. They had
been feasting on car-
rion or maggots."
I have
eaten
some
m u y
Did you know the Texas State
Critter could also be an ugly
Mexican handbag or a buz-
zard's favorite road pizza? But
down at Auntie Dee s in Driscoll
the armadillo issue is very much
unresolved. Sonny Schubert’s
if it's a Texas barbecue king's
tasty “other white meat" or just
another leprosy-carrying critter.
After a couple of Sonny’s early
morning gathering weighed it
b u e n o
cabrito
and armadillo off
South Texas barbecue pits, but I
think I’m going to pass on the
Hoover hogs the next time I see
any coming off the pit after hear-
ing Sonny’s story.
But, there’s no telling how
many Indians and early Texans’
meals were made out of the
football-size critters. Mexicans,
too, as the nine-banded mam-
mals range from South America
to Oklahoma, Kansas and
Louisiana. They^are known to be
grubs, but also eat the flesh of
dead animals when they can
find them. With their strong
claws for digging and protection
they can also cause quite a bit
of damage to vegetables and
melons.
While I’m slamming the crit-
ters I should also mention that
folks in the South commonly
called them "grave diggers" as
they were thought to dig into
human graves for dinner. The
armor-shell critters also estab-
lished quite a nefarious reputa-
tion as predators of quail, chick-
en and turkey eggs.
I’ve seen plenty of them in
the Texas brush country and
actually know where a couple of
newly dug ’dilla holes have
recently been dug just east of
Alice, but I didn't know that
armadillos were so fond of water
and like to congregate in the
vicinity of steams and water
holes. In central Texas, the
majority of their dens are found
of the limestone outcroppings in
the area.
Yes, Wildman, armadillos get
thirsty too!
Armadillo moms bear four off
spring in March. Always, four
not another number, and all of
the same sex, male or female.
The quadruplets are developed
from the same egg, you see.
The young are born with their
eyes wide open and within a few
hours they are walking. They
begin to accommodate their
mother on foraging duties within
a few weeks.
There are about 20 varieties
of armadillos including giant
armadillos that thrive in
Venezuela, Paraguay and
Argentina. That species can get
to about 1*10 pounds and meas-
ure 1.2 meters long. Hey,-
Ginpbili, hang some doors on
them and we’ll splash on some
lime green paint, and turn them
into Argentina taxis!
They would probably love
and stuffed animal. Not to men-
tion the scores of Central Texas
kickball and soccer team who
have adopted the critter in sud-
denly becoming “Dillas!”
Yes, that cartoonish logo on
their uniforms tells us they are
official team members of the
University Co-Op Dillas, the
Pecan Street Bakery Dillas, The
Tavern Dillas, the Lamme’s
Candies Sweet Dillas, the
Central Market Critters and the
Katz Never Closes baseball
squad, The Nine-Banded Nine.
Okay, you get my satirical
drift. But, give me a call if you
want to run up to the state soc-
cer championship later this
month and catch the Driftwood
Dillas against the Pflugerville
Fleas. They Dillas ought to eat
’em up! - ——-— --
Finally, I must pay tribute to
World Headquarters. Now don’t
go looking for that place. Like
the Alamo, Armadillo World
Headquarters has fallen. Janis
is dead; Willie’s playing golf,
Waylon’s who-knows-where and
i___. i k r.nn'1 boon nn tme
Kenneth Threadgill, the late
graybeard of epuntry music,
country cooking, longneck drink-
ing and the founder of Armadillo
Jerry Jeff hasn’t been on this
planet in decades although his
likeness is probably hanging
around the Broken Spoke.
If you missed the heyday of
that old armadillo armorv you’re
just gonna’ have go vyait on the
next cosmic ride. But, not to
worry, they’re keeping Austin
weird, and who knows, Rickey
Williams might just open up a
Dilla-theme gin joint on Sixth
Street the next time he shucks
the Dolphins.
Or, maybe Jerry Jpff summed
in all up in his “ Viva Terlingua"
LP immortalizing songwriter
Gary P. Nunn’s London
Homesick Blues with the refrain:
“I wanna go home with the
Armadillo. Good country music
from Amarillo to Abilene. The
friendliest people and the pretti-
est women you've ever seen. ”
John Willoughby is a lifelong
resident of South Texas who
loves to travel. Readers may
email him at johnw@stx.rr.com.
Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, the 2005 NCAA Baseball have ever had!
How about them Texas National Championship by Sincerely,
Longhorns and Adrian Alaniz beating Florida in two straight Bill Telford (a.k.a
(former Sinton Pirate) winning games? Best NCAA finals we Sinton Godfather)
the
July 4th holiday remembers historical days
The anniversary of the adop-
tion of the Declaration of
Independence by the Continental
Congress, July 4, 1776, com-
memorates the birth of a great
nation. July 4th ia a legal holiday
in all the states. On the day inde-
pendence was declared John
Adams wrote to his wife a letter
which has become historic. "I am
apt to believe,” he wrote; “that
this day will be celebrated by
succeeding generations as the
great anniversary festival. It
ought to be commemorated as
the day of deliverance, by
solemn acts of devotion to God
Almighty. It ought to be solem-
nized with pomp and parade,
with shows, games, sports, guns,
bells, bonfires, and illuminations,
from one end of this continent to
the other, from this time forward
forevermore."
Although July 4th is celebrat-
ed as America’s official split from
Britain's rule and the beginning
of the American Revolution, the
actual series of events show that
the process took far longer than
a single day.
See History, page 10
Improving emergency medical care, reducing cost
County
Judge Glen
Guillory is
searching for
ways to improve
tocal emer-
gency medical
runs in the
Coastal Bend
while holding
down costs. One
of the possibili-
ties is to have an emergency
center in Rockport. He
explained that several thou-
sands of dollars a year can be
saved if ambulances did not
have to make frequent runs to
Corpus Christi. Fffe added that
he does not think a complete
Juliet
Wenger
hospital in Rockport would be
cost effective at this time; how-
ever, with the growth in this
area, it could become so. His
opinion is that the needs of the
lesser cases can be met ade-
quately at an emergency med-
ical center. The critical cases
could be given immediate atten-
tion and patients transferred to
area hospitals if necessary.
.Another way he believes
local government can save tax
dollars is close communication
between entities in govern-
ments and action being taken
when possible on a regional
basis. Judge Guillory is using
methods he has learned in his
international business experi-
ence. There can be a difference
of opinions, but if all 12 repre-
sentatives work toward the
same goals, they can find con-
sciences ana move on. Working
together also establishes friend-
ship and trust in one another. It
gives a broader vision that helps
in achieving common goals.
This was the belief on which
the Coastal Bend Council of
Governments was founded and
has been shown to accomplish
what was intended. Satisfaction
in knowing that the cooperation
has been successful is another
tie between the public officials
who are trying to achieve the
greatest amounts with limited
means available.
. v* ••
• k • m 4
EVERYONE
LOVESA
PARADE.
Voice your opinion.
Write a letter to the editor.
Governor Rick Perry says no to Texas Military Commission
Mike Cox
AUSTIN — The
Legislature con-
vened in special
session at noon on
June 21 and a
short time later
adjourned for the
week.
That’s because neither cham-
ber has anything to consider yet.
In the near term, the real work
on the school finance issue will
be at the committee level, and
those bodies began meeting
right away last week.
The other vetoes...
In addition to his $35.3 billion
line-item veto of education fund-
ing for the next biennium, the
governor vetoed another $1.7
billion from the budget.
One of the cuts, amounting to
$7 million, eliminated a small
state agency — the Texas
Military Facilities Commission.
The commission’s major reason
for existence has been obtaining
land for Texas National Guard
facilities and managing them.
Those duties will be folded into
General's
the Adjutant
Department.
The governor took a bigger
chunk out of the Texas
Want some PR? Make a list...
Every two years, Texas
Monthly magazine gets a
splash of ink by naming the men
Department of Criminal Justice’s^ and women it considers the 10
budget, vetoing $19.8 million
earmarked for contracting
inmate bed space in county jails.
Troopers do more than write
tickets...
In addition to booking drunk
drivers and writing up speeders,
Department of Public Safety
troopers seized 38 tons of mari-
juana as the result of traffic
stops in 2004, the DPS reported.
“Thanks to our regular patrol
activities,” said Col. Thomas A.
Davis Jr., "DPS took 90,000
pounds of drugs out of circula-
tion and put thousands of drug
smugglers behind bars," i
Though marijuana' made up
the biggest percentage of the
DPS’ seizures last year, troopers
also found 3,000 pounds of
cocaine and 191 pounds of
speed, the department esti-
mates the total street value of
the seizures to be $156 million.
best and 10 worst legislators.
The magazine’s 10 worst are:
Sen. Gonzalo Barrientos (D-
Austin); Rep. Dwayne Bohac (R-
Houston); Rep. Mary Denny (D-
Aubrey); Rep. Al (No Suggestive
Cheerleaders) Edwards (D-
Houston); Sen. Mario Gallegos
Jr. (D-Houston); Rep. Kent
Grusendorf (R-Arlington);
Sen. Chris Harris (R-Arlington);
Rep. Terry Keel (R-Austin); Rep.
Phil King (R-Weatherford) and
Rep. Robert Talton (R-
Pasadena.)
Selected as the 10 best law-
makers; Rep. Dianne Delisi (R-
Temple); Sen. Robert Duncan
(R-Lubbock); Rep. Charlie
Geren (R-Fort Worth); Rep. Dan
Gattis (R-Georgetown); Rep.
Fred Hill (R-Richardson); Sen.
Steve Ogden (R-Bryan); Rep.
Jim' Pitts (R-Waxahachie); Rep.
Mike Villarreal (D-San Antonio);
Sen. John Whitmire (D-
Houston); and Sen. JudjtJhL
Zaffirini (D-taredo) "
For the record, that’s seven
Democrats (four worst; three
best) and 13 Republicans (six
worst; seven best.)
Parks & Wildlife offering
“free” vacations...
If you want to spend some
time in one of Texas’ 10Q-plus
state parks this summer, all you
have to do is volunteer to do a
little work. In exchange, you get
free access.
Volunteer positions range
from being a tour guide to a park
host. The hosts can set up their
RV at a park and camp free for a
month as a reward for running
campground counts, being avail-
able to answer questions from
park visitors and collecting
trash. >
For details on the Texas
Parks and Wildlife Department
volunteer program, call 512-
389-4893 or e-mail
Ca'rol yn .Gonzales@
tpwd. state, tx. us.
San Patricfo County News
P.O. Drawer B • 113-117 S. Rachal Ave. • Sinton, Texas 78387 ■ (361)364-1270
L MEM UK
2005
TEXAS PRESS
ASSOCIATION
JAME8 F. TRACY. JR.
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Co-Publlahera
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EdHof
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Amoc. Editor/Reporter
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Community Editor
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Sporta Editor
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PRODUCTION
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TWE SAN PATRICIO NEW? (u6PS 480440) la pub-
llahad waaWy avary Wedneaday wltti a Thuraday
datallna by San Pattern PuUMUng Co. me.
(361)364-1270
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Tracy, Jimmy. San Patricio County News (Sinton, Tex.), Vol. 98, No. 26, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 30, 2005, newspaper, June 30, 2005; Sinton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1123953/m1/2/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Taft Public Library.