MHS Biology teacher, football coach, OLD BULLY!  Back in high school ( a few years ago - 45) he was strict, funny and from my perspective, a good coach.

 So, what happened when you grew up Coach Capello?  Did being reassigned leave you bitter?  What happened to your ethics, sportsmanship, and  just plain common decency?  A young coach, Ric Trevino,  came in , lifted your team out of the dumpster, replaced all the things you took when you left, and brought winning back to Edcouch Elsa basketball.  His reward?  You hounded him from day one telling him you would get your job back come November (election time-school board), each year.  In 2010 your District record was 3-11 and you had missed the playoffs for two years.  Your career wins were at 966 yet other reports credit you with 982.  How, when, where?  In your quest for 1000 wins your ego has gotten so big that you've lost sight of what is really important, the students.  Have your skills deteriorated so much you had to have another coach rebuild a winning team so you could swoop in and claim it as your success?

In April 2015, Coach Trevino was approached with the idea to let you be "Honorary" coach so you could get your wins, hopefully reaching 1000.  He asked for time to consider it.  May brought the decision to decline the offer because he believed you (Capello) were not trustworthy, had no respect for the current program in place and it would not benefit the players.  In mid May Coach Trevino was approached again.  During school hours, a board member called him and requested a meeting at a nearby bar. The call was made to the school which records such calls.  The Athletic Director and Coach Trevino met with this board member and the deal had changed. The board wants to give you the job for 1 year so you can get your record number of wins.  He offered Coach Trevino a bribe- a 4 year contract with incentives.  With all his dignity, Coach Trevino said no.  He couldn't put his team on the line and trade all his hard work for that; he told the board member he had been offered another job.  The members reply? "one call from me and you will no longer be that districts #1 choice".

By the end of May even this board member came to admire Coach Trevino for his honesty and ethics.  The Board voted unanimously to keep him him with no strings attached.  Bittersweet and too late as he could no longer tolerate your manipulative and undignified actions or tolerate those who put political favors ahead of what the children of the community need.

Mr. Capello, why were you on campus quizzing players before the job was posted on May 29th;before you were named coach? Why did you want to take inventory when there was nothing to inventory when you left? A press release was in sport section June 18th that you had been hired.  Were there any other applicants? Any other interviews?

As for Coach Trevino, whose reputation you have tried to stomp on, he will continue teaching and will instill good sportsmanship, pride and the proper work ethic to succeed in his new team.  Another school has benefited from the the disgraceful power grab that you have perpetrated.  Edcouch Elsa voters should make it their business to  check school board addresses and ethics. I fear both, in some circumstances, are fake.

As for me, a former student and admirer, I will no longer hold you in high regard.  You no longer impress me.  I will only pity the bad sport and old bully you have become.  I hope the team does well in spite of you.

For you MHS'rs.. Ric Trevino is the son of David Trevino, Trumpet MHS Mighty Eagle Marching Band.  And yes, I do have my facts straight.

This post won't be about my beautiful family, friends, or relatives.  This post is about saving America, i.e, The United States of America. (cue patriotic music).  I was  at  meeting last night and heard a man say "Republicans have a hard time promoting our agenda because we are too busy working".  Some of you will be offended by that, and I'm not saying that their aren't plenty of working Democrats, but the conservative people in this country ARE busy working.  Working to support those who won't.  Now, the American citizen is coming under attack from the very people elected to help our country. Have you looked, really looked at things that are being signed by Mr. Obama?  Agenda 21....this is becoming a big threat to land owners across the nation.  Under the misguided pretence of saving the environment...your property can be taken away by the government and you can be banned from stepping foot on it!  Ridiculous you say, never you say?  It's happening and as Americans and especially Texans, we need to be on guard, watchful and ready to stop this craziness. Water meters on private wells, small creeks and rivers seized and the owners banned from getting within 6 feet of it, all done legally.  Now we must step in and challenge these so called "Advisory boards" that are "protecting" the land we own.  The best way, the American way, is to be an involved individual.  Be nosy, be interested, ask questions, research information, find out what is going on in your area.  Do we really think that proponents of Agenda 21 will leave the oil fields alone?  Do we want our property, oil fields, rivers, forrests, and mountains owned and regulated by the government?

On that note....do you want your healthcare regulated by the government?  Do you understand that Obamacare will punish you if you don't have insurance?  Do you understand that some services will be out of reach if you are elderly?  Do you understand that it is your RIGHT to have or not to have insurance?  Do you know you actually get a better rate at the Dr.s office if you don't have insurance?
What is Obamacare really about?  Control...that's what our political machines are all about...control.  Folks, along time ago, people came across the ocean to escape the very things that are happening in the United States now.Let us remeber that Abraham Lincoln in 1861 at his inaugural address reminded his "dissatisfied fellow countrymen" of his OATH to "preserve, protect and defend" the Constitution.  Now we have a President who attacks that document and it is up to us and citizens to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States of America, so we can remane land of the free, home of the brave.

Hope....hope for the future, hope for the present, hope that things turn out okay. Isn't that a big thought, a big word, a big "idea"?  Elections are done, Christmas is on its way and everyone is hoping for the best.  The best.  If you are political it is time to put away the disappointment and move forward to change the things you perceive to be wrong.  No, I didn't say give up but move on.  Maybe that means that you get more involved with local politics, school issues, church issues, whatever has been bothering you the most.  Maybe it just means to go on living, providing, and hoping (there's that word again) for a future brighter than you expect.  Maybe it's time to return to church or start going to church or maybe just including God in your everyday life.  Tis the season! and without Him, there would be no celebration or season or much hope.

On a lighter note, we had a fun Thanksgiving, how about you?

A bounce house was a GREAT idea!!!! Ryan and Caleb had all kinds of fun, Amanda got to rest while they did, Morgan helps measure something with Dad and Epaw and Caleb enjoyed the slide and football tag with Mom, Susie!

This is Morgan.  Do you like her giant necklace?  Those are the letters to her name that generally hang on the wall in her room.  On this day, they were in a box in her new room!  Ryan, Susie, Caleb and Morgan have returned to the Valley.  Sad that their escape from here was so short, glad that they are closer and I can see them more!!!  I am trying real hard not to be a pest and let them settle in.

Here she is again, helping Epaw, although I think she is looking for the bunny that Epaw said was under the storage room.  Epaw is her best friend and they are crazy for each other.

Caleb wasn't home but here is a photo of him.  This was his second day of school. No, there wasn't a Norther that week.....it's just cold in his room.

On another note.....If you normally don't vote, please change your mind and do so this year.  Our country is in dire need of that "change and hope" promised by the man holding the highest office in our country.  He hasn't been able to produce it and won't in 4 more years.  We need to get our respect back as a Nation and as individuals.  Counting on the government to support us isn't going to do that, it will do nothing but slide us closer to socialism.  We don't need to be a "Robin Hood"' nation.  Do you really think the tax burden will be on the wealthier citizens?  The middle class always shoulders the burden.  Small business is being drowned in paperwork and quotas and now our government is demanding that we provide health insurance.  This used to be a "perk" you got with a job, not a requirement.  How is charging someone $1200 for not having insurance supposed to help them?  If they can't afford insurance, how are they going to afford the fine?  At present, I don't have insurance and I pay less for my Dr. visits than those who do.  Shouldn't we be changing the insurance industry?  It has become such a huge business because of law suits...but that's another story.
A closing remark.....let's stop sending aid to countries that are harming our embassy personnel and that don't like us....we could use that money at home and to buy a little freedom from China.

Letting go....

It's summer time and I suppose everyone is feeling the heat! Here is a great way to beat it! Or, maybe this way....

Spending family time at the Frio helped but wow, it's still hot!

Love my grandkids, they are sooooo cute! And yes, I am partial!

Which brings me to something else......letting go.....I have been trying really hard to just "let go" of things that bug me, large or small.  If you've tried it, you know what I mean when I say it is hard to do.  How do you let got of the anger when someone hurts your child mentally or physically? (whatever their age) How do you stop the angry response when someone speaks to you condesendingly (sp?)? How do you over look being over looked?  I am not an openly religious person, guess you would say I am "closet" religious, I think it's my business and not particularly anyone else's.  Ive been thinking alot about Jesus lately and maybe it's just my thoughts,but I think the one of the greatest things he did, and perhaps it is a miracle in it's own right, is "let go".  Think of ALL the things He had to "let go" of!  Talk about tremendous faith in what His Father was telling him! So in my quest to "let go".....my hurts, wounds and injuries seem easier and less troublesome  when I think of His.  Lord help me, I will get better at "letting go". 





I remember my first Christmas adventure with Grandma. I was just a kid. I remember tearing across town on my bike to visit her on the day my big sister dropped the bomb: "There is no Santa Claus," she jeered. "Even dummies know that!" My Grandma was not the gushy kind, never had been. I fled to her that day because I knew she would be straight with me. I knew Grandma always told the truth, and I knew that the truth always went down a whole lot easier when swallowed with one of her "world-famous" cinnamon buns. I knew they were world-famous, because Grandma said so. It had to be true. Grandma was home, and the buns were still warm. Between bites, I told her everything. She was ready for me. "No Santa Claus?" she snorted...."Ridiculous! Don't believe it. That rumor has been going around for years, and it makes me mad, plain mad!! Now, put on your coat, and let's go." "Go? Go where, Grandma?" I asked. I hadn't even finished my second world-famous cinnamon bun. "Where" turned out to be Kerby's General Store, the one store in town that had a little bit of just about everything. As we walked through its doors, Grandma handed me ten dollars. That was a bundle in those days. "Take this money," she said, "and buy something for someone who needs it. I'll wait for you in the car." Then she turned and walked out of Kerby's. I was only eight years old. I'd often gone shopping with my mother, but never had I shopped for anything all by myself. The store seemed big and crowded, full of people scrambling to finish their Christmas shopping. For a few moments I just stood there, confused, clutching that ten-dollar bill, wondering what to buy, and who on earth to buy it for. I thought of everybody I knew: my family, my friends, my neighbors, the kids at school, the people who went to my church. I was just about thought out, when I suddenly thought of Bobby Decker. He was a kid with bad breath and messy hair, and he sat right behind me in Mrs. Pollock's grade-two class. Bobby Decker didn't have a coat. I knew that because he never went out to recess during the winter. His mother always wrote a note, telling the teacher that he had a cough, but all we kids knew that Bobby Decker didn't have a cough; he didn't have a good coat. I fingered the ten-dollar bill with growing excitement. I would buy Bobby Decker a coat! I settled on a red corduroy one that had a hood to it. It looked real warm, and he would like that. "Is this a Christmas present for someone?" the lady behind the counter asked kindly, as I laid my ten dollars down. "Yes, ma'am," I replied shyly. "It's for Bobby." The nice lady smiled at me, as I told her about how Bobby really needed a good winter coat. I didn't get any change, but she put the coat in a bag, smiled again, and wished me a Merry Christmas. That evening, Grandma helped me wrap the coat (a little tag fell out of the coat, and Grandma tucked it in her Bible) in Christmas paper and ribbons and wrote, "To Bobby, From Santa Claus" on it. Grandma said that Santa always insisted on secrecy. Then she drove me over to Bobby Decker's house, explaining as we went that I was now and forever officially, one of Santa's helpers. Grandma parked down the street from Bobby's house, and she and I crept noiselessly and hid in the bushes by his front walk. Then Grandma gave me a nudge. "All right, Santa Claus," she whispered, "get going." I took a deep breath, dashed for his front door, threw the present down on his step, pounded his door and flew back to the safety of the bushes and Grandma. Together we waited breathlessly in the darkness for the front door to open. Finally it did, and there stood Bobby. Fifty years haven't dimmed the thrill of those moments spent shivering, beside my Grandma, in Bobby Decker's bushes. That night, I realized that those awful rumors about Santa Claus were just what Grandma said they were -- ridiculous. Santa was alive and well, and we were on his team. I still have the Bible, with the coat tag tucked inside: $19.95. May you always have LOVE to share, HEALTH to spare and FRIENDS that care... And may you always believe in the magic of Santa Claus! Have a blessed Christmas and that 2012 will be prosperous for all!   I took this from an email I received......and I want to explain how you can tie Santa to religion.  You see, Saint Nicolas was born in the third century of our era, and died in the year three-hundred and forty-five. As a young boy he was made Bishop of Myra, patron saint of mariners, money-lenders, thieves and children; protector of travelers, turners, dyers, coopers, boatmen, bootmakers, sayers, seedmen, mercers, merchants, Greeks, cities, Jews, packers, spinsters, pirates, Russians, pickpockets, haberdashers, children, fishermen, pilgrims, prisoners, parish clerks, sailors and unwedded maids; defender of the Faith and maker of many true miracles.  In those days, families would often put their stockings outside to dry and St. Nicolas was known to put money, fruit or trinkets in the stockings of children.  For the years that I read my "Night Before Christmas" books to elementary and Jr. high students, I always asked if they believed in Santa Claus and when a few said no, I explained why they were wrong.  Sure, like so much that we modern day people touch, Christmas has become commercial and gaudy....but it's up to you to put the Spirit in the Season.  Today, you can ask my own children if they believe and they will tell you yes! (They are 25 and 30) Because when you stop believing.......he stops coming. I'm a Helper.....and I believe..... do you?

Tis The Season.....

The weather outside is dreary, no rain, no fog, just bleary. Don't think we will ever see rain, maybe snow, I don't know, I don't know.

Getting into the Holiday Spirit has been difficult this year, but, the cold weather is certainly helping!  Now if the stores would have the things they advertise, people wouldn't be rude, gas/diesel prices would go down, and I could win the lottery.....ahhhhhh it would be grand!
For today..... I will settle for my loving family, healthy and happy and anticipating Christmas.

Get in the Spirit! Life is too short to be Scrooge!  Merry Christmas!!!