Thursday, July 4, 2013

Willie Does Hardy

by Pa Rock
Holiday Reveler

Nick and Boone and I drove to the small touristy town of Hardy, Arkansas today.  Hardy is on a beautiful stretch of river and has an abundance of flea markets and antique stores.  One of my finds today was a rough old paperback copy of John Knowles classic novel, A Separate Peace, which I bought for a dollar and promptly gave to Boone - informing him that it was required reading.

The big news in Hardy is that Willie from Duck Dynasty is coming to town tomorrow.  While I realize that hillbilly reality shows are all the rage in many parts of the country, they appear to be especially popular in the Ozarks.  It's very disheartening to note that once reputable and distinguished networks like The History Channel, Discovery, and A&E now fill their broadcast schedules with that mindless twaddle.

I have never seen Duck Dynasty, but my boss back in Arizona gushes about what a great show it is.  I did some checking up on Willie Robertson on the Internet today.  He and his parents, and maybe a sibling, own Duck Commander, a company that makes duck calls.   Willie is worth  a cool twenty million dollars.  The show plays to an average of eight million viewers per episode, and sometimes reaches as many as ten million.

Last night we watched a reality show about a group of bearded hillbillies in rural Ohio running around at night with guns and night-vision goggles as they searched for the "legendary" Grassman, some sort of giant who might or might not be a Sasquatch.

These shows are scripted, though my writer son assures me that they are not penned by professional writers - and at times the phoniness just comes blaring through.  Somehow, I am reminded of Barnum.

I looked at two properties today - a house on two acres located next door to Nick, and a ten-acre farm that sits four miles nearer to town than Nick's place.  The first place would require a lot of work, but the farm has a nice home that is move-in ready.  It has several outbuildings, all with electricity and even one with water.  It comes with all major appliances and eighteen chickens - and it is priced right.

Somebody needs to tell me that I don't need a ten-acre farm - and I need to hear it quickly!

Happy Independence Day!

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