So, my biological father as been gone for a year. In that time we have all said our good-byes and even had a large Memorial Service for him in Cimarron, NM. His ashes will be interred at the Texas State Cemetery next spring – something that would have made him giddy.

Everyone has a Bob Burns story. Everyone. I just heard this one recently (this is Brad Newberry’s account of the events) and thought I would post as it is pretty good and really sums Bob up:

“Bob was county judge and overseeing a commissioners court meeting.  Paris, TX had a “very brief” television station and they were filming it.  Bob was already sideways with a couple of the commissioners but one in Particular was Ronald X.   We had an over crowding problem in the jail and when Bob addressed the number of inmates total, Ronald said “why don’t you just read each inmates name and why they are incarcerated”?  So, Bob began going down the list.   When Bob got to one certain name, Ronald said. “Oh…won’t you just tell everyone who he is kin to?”  (apparently to Ronald, which was unknown to Bob at the time)

Bob was confused and asked Ronald why and he said “you know why”. But Bob was still confused so he took a recess.  The tv crew began to put cameras away etc.  Bob called Ronald up to the bench.  He said what the hell is this about and things got heated.  Bob had a reputation as a gun carrier and Ronald said “oh are you gonna pull a gun in me?”  Bob said “I don’t need a gvn for your ass”. And Ronald said “you can kiss my ass” and Bob slugged him right in the mouth.   The sheriff grabbed Bob and the county attorney grabbed Ronald.  The tv people grabbed their cameras but were only able to get the end of it.   I was driving to junior college that am listening to the radio and they had a news break saying there had been a fight between the county judge and a commissioner.  I knew Bob was sideways with a couple of them so I turned and drove to courthouse.  I went in and his secretary Nadine let me in. He was smoking a cigar at his desk and was sitting in the dark.  Is asked him what happened and he said “I knocked fire from his ass, but Katie is gonna kick mine”.   He remained sideways with several of commissioners…

Now, Katie was Bob’s very tiny and very proper wife. For a man that served two tours in Vietnam as a marine and who would fight a grizzly bear if it offended him in any way, for him to be afraid of her reaction to his behavior is very telling 🙂

I miss Bob. I miss his pipe, his drawl, the boyish twinkle in his eyes when he was being naughty, his cigars, his stories, and I morn the missed opportunities and despise the thief of time that came with his sudden and untimely passing.