It’s a whole ‘nother world down here, but I kinda like it. I’ve only been here twice, but I dropped by Ben’s Western Wear, bought a shirt and said “hey” just like I was a regular.

Last year I told you all about my friend, Holmes Easley, who died of colon cancer in October of 2003 (if you haven’t talked to your doctor about a check-up or been shamed into it by watching Katie Couric get a colonoscopy on TV you REALLY should give it a thought).

Don’t worry…I’m not inserting a topic-related photo here.

Anyway, Holmes named the Alexander Library in Cotulla in his will and they had a dedication for him on Friday the 11th. They kindly scheduled it in conjunction with the annual Wild Hog Cook-off and I’m easily enticed by pork, so I hit the road in a hurry to participate.

Now Holmes was a dapper fellow with a lot of talent and recognition, but pin-stripes and loafers aside, he was just a kid from a small Texas town so I got great delight at the front page of the Frio-Nueces Current which mentions Holmes on the left while announcing “Ready for the pigs…” on the right. You can take the boy out of Texas, but….

Clara Jo and the staff of the library did a bang up job with the 71 boxes of stuff that they received, building a case for the Emmy, framing his costume and scenic designs. I gotta tell you, though…it’s odd to see stuff that used to be all over someone’s house now enshrined as historical objects.

I know it looks like I’m off to a disco…clearly the camera didn’t approve of stripes. Everyone’s a critic.

Billy Cotulla (from the town’s namesake family) had me and Holmes’ cousin (and my friend), George, out to his ranch for dinner on Friday. Clara Jo and Holmes’ high-school Spanish teacher, Valda, joined us with their husbands and it was really nice…kinda homey. Billy has a lot of town-related family history to talk about and share so it all seemed very “Texas”.

Cook-off day dawned bright and HOT (to me at least, everyone else seemed fine with it.) After huevos at Garcia’s in Dilly, George and I drove down to town and stumbled across a parade on Main Street…

…before heading out to the fairgrounds to scarf on pig. And what a pork-fest it was. I made it through Wild Hog Ribs, Wild Hog Chili, Wild Hog Taco’s and Wild Hog sausage before I was Wild Hogged out.

Carmel has nothin’ on these folks in the food department.