In the Cold Gray Light of Dawn

Now some people are gonna’ ask “where in the world is he going this week?” However, if you follow any bluegrass music you’ll know that’s a line from one if not several bluegrass songs. It fits kinda’ where we’re at in the old seasonal flow charts. We’ve really been extremely lucky the past few weeks to have some unseasonably warm weather instead of those old cold bitter gray days that we all know are coming. As in any weather discussion in this great state the wind is always part of the equation and of course on those dreary bitter cold days the wind can have a real bite. As an old cowboy friend of mine used to say on those cold days when they had to doctor wheat pasture cattle he’d say “it’d sure be a son of a gun a’ horseback today.” As you might imagine, and some of ya’ actually know some of my cowboy friends, I did clean that up to get it a little more G-rated. Unless things change drastically this winter has treated us pretty well up to this point, no major ice storms, yet, no snow, just a generally mild first little bit of winter. I t kinda’ makes me want to skip the whole works and go right into spring but just as I talked about back in August we knew it wouldn’t be hot forever and we know we got some old blue northers coming. It’s just kinda’ always that way and for the last nine years, in my life at least, that cold gray light of dawn has been the bell weather that leads us to the Capitol.

It seems that its always bitter cold when session kicks off, and each session develops its own personality kind of along in that February stretch, but as we get through that first thirty days or so there’s a faint light way down at the end of that tunnel that indicates spring is coming. Stock show season gets in high gear, political rhetoric heats up (I’m not sure that’s not the REAL cause of global warming) and you kinda’ know spring is on the way. As I’ve said many times there is a definite rhythm to the Earth, to the seasons, and to just about everything including legislative session. I’d like to think its getting a little easier to fan that bronc because we’ve been ridin’ em’ going on ten years but as with any living, breathing creature with a mind of its own it’ll have a jump or a pitch or a twist that you haven’t seen yet. There are parts of it that are as predictable as the sun coming up in the East and then there’s those unexpected ducks and dives that make you think “how in the world am I gonna’ stay on this sun fishin’ son of a gun?” We know what some of the tricks this year’s session is gonna’ try but we don’t know everything and that’s kind of what keeps it interesting. My prayer is that as I have gotten older and more experienced the bumps and bruises won’t be quite as bad and the Flim Flam Man won’t have quite as easy a time tricking me.

There’s a whole bunch of those young bucks standing by the chutes ready to saddle up in their brand new suits and spit shined shoes and they all think they can ride a tornado and for some of them that’s what its gonna’ seem like. But they’ll learn just like the rest of us learned, some faster than others, and they’ll gain that valuable experience. Some of them will score and some of them won’t and spring will come just like it always does and hopefully in the next four months or so, we can do some good things for the State, we’ll have a wetter spring and the world will keep turning. For now we’re staring out at the cold gray light of dawn and looking forward to spring and of course, session.

Now, for you older folks like me you’ll understand most of this imagery and for you youngsters out there there’s always Google when you read this and wonder “what the heck is that old timer ramblin’ about?” Hope everyone had a wonderful start to this New Year, hope the wood rack is full and the old diesel is plugged in. We’ll see ya’ next week.

If you would like to contact me at the Capitol, please do not hesitate to call 1-800-522-8502 or email me at donarmes@okhouse.gov

And here’s a little something to think about as you go down the road:
Nothing beats experience for sweatin’ fat off the brain.~Author Unknown