Driving To Paris & Seattle

If the Seattle Space Needle were in Texas it'd likely wear a cowboy hat, like the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Texas. There is no elevator or stairway to the top of the Paris, Texas Eiffel Tower. Since there is no way to get to the top there is no revolving restaurant spinning under the cowboy hat. That's a shame. An equally shameful irony is the fact that there are no French restaurants in Paris, Texas. Several restaurants sell French Fries, though.

I've had another bout of insomnia. I've been up since a bit past 3am. I think this morning is an improvement over yesterday's early wakeup that'd been caused by a horrible nightmare where I was chased by 6 Giant Ugly Fat Women who were trying to eat me.

At midnight it was 58. It is 60 now. The pool should have warmed up a bit from yesterday's frigid ice.

My Mom and Dad are coming to Texas in January. So, I've decided not to go to Phoenix for Christmas.

Speaking of road trips. Despite having said, and totally meaning what I said, that being, that it'd be at least 10 years before I returned to the Pacific Northwest, it looks like I'm going to be up in the Seattle zone in January or February. Likely after my Mom and Dad leave Texas.

The last time I drove up to Washington was in August of 2001 for my Mom and Dad's 50th. I got back to Texas a few days before 9/11. A month or so later Mom and Dad were here for a week.

When gas cost in the $4 a gallon zone it seemed ridiculous to drive 5,000 miles. But now, driving is cheaper than flying. And way more fun. It only takes 3 days of easy driving to get up to Washington. First night, Pueblo, Colorado, second night, Twin Falls, Idaho, early the next day's afternoon, Seattle.

I've only driven north in the dead of winter, once. It was awful. That time the route went north through Oklahoma and Kansas. In Kansas there was a lot of snow and ice on the freeway. It was slow going. So, for the drive back, that time, I decided to get the driving south part done by taking I-5, which only gets icy in southern Oregon and northern California, but usually is not too bad. That time there was no ice. Mom and Dad lived in Yuma then. That was the last time I spent Christmas with them. That was a fun Christmas.

Racial Tensions In Paris After Black Man Killed

A memorial service is being held today for 24 year old Brandon McClelland in Paris, Texas. McClelland was killed in what is being called, by some, a brutal and racist hate crime.

Paris is in East Texas. East Texas is also where Jasper is. About a year before I moved to Texas Jasper became infamous due to the horrible murder by 2 white guys of a man named James Byrd. Mr. Byrd was dragged to his death beneath a pickup.

Brandon McClelland was killed by being hit by a truck and dragged underneath the truck for about 70 feet.

Apparently Paris, Texas has a long history of tension between black and whites and the killing of Brandon McClelland has raised tensions once more.

When I moved to Texas, soon after the James Byrd murder, I thought I'd be living in a place where I'd experience racism up close and personal for the first time in my life. To the contrary I've seen nothing but people getting along well with each other during my entire time in Texas. I've not experienced anything even remotely that seemed at all racist.

The 2 men charged with killing McClelland, Shannon Finley and Charles Crostley, were friends with McClelland. They were all drinking buddies.

Paris is a dry Texas town. The three drinking buddies wanted beer. So they headed up to Oklahoma. On the way back, drinking beer, likely drunk, an argument broke out over who was sober enough to drive.

McClelland tired of the arguing and said he'd walk home. He took some beer and took off walking. That's when the driver of the pickup ran into and over him, dragging him 70 feet to his death.

The New Black Panthers are in Paris calling this a hate crime. Others say the only resemblance between the Paris crime and the James Byrd murder is both were black men and a vehicle was involved with 2 white men in it.

Finley and Crostley are in jail, charged with murder and evidence tampering. They drove through a car wash to try and remove McClelland's blood. This is not the first time Finley has been charged with murder. In 2003 McClelland copped a plea to manslaughter and was sentenced to 4 years.

Ironically, during Finley's previous murder trial the man he is now accused of killing, Brandon McClelland, pleaded guilty to perjury for providing a false alibi for Finley. McClelland was sentenced to 5 years probation and did some jail time when he violated the terms of his probation.

All of this could have been avoided if Paris was not a dry town. It's time to end prohibition in Paris.