Cactus Jack Calder

This is the recipe I have used with success. 1/2 cup Hellman’s Mayo 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese 4 tsp Italian bread crumbs 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Open chicken breast packages and rinse in cool running water. Lay out on one paper towel and pat dry with another towel. Lift off towels and place in baking pan sprayed with PAM. Add Mayo and Parmesan in a shallow bowl and stir together. Spread Mayo mix over the breasts, sprinkle bread crumbs over Chicken. Place pan in oven to bake at 425 for 30 minutes. The

Birdgun, Don’t leave home without it running you through a check list, sort of like an “Auto Pilot”. CJ

Six gun, I have a magnet bar, about 2’ wide, with a broom handle and wheels that just keep it from rubbing on the floor. This has helped me in the past. It is from my remote control plane hobby. Lots of small screws in RC Planes. CJ

Joe, Thanks, I enjoy it. When I get started on a figure I tend to work too long and begin to make mistakes. I’m trying to learn not to push it to long. I forgot to say these are all knife carvings. I don’t sand off the cut marks to a smooth finish . I like the look of the figure with the obvious carving marks. CJ

This is Obviously he is not finished. He will be the Ranch Foreman, having his morning coffee before assigning work to the hands. Both the Sheriff and the Foeman are from a different basic design. A little more human proportioned than the first two. You can see that he needs a hat. I’ve used separate pieces of wood to add things like the hats, saddle and guns. I’m still experimenting with the painting. I’ve used hobby acrylics from the craft stores so far. I also need to improve the faces. The Sheriff is really a hard case. They are all about 5” tal give or take a smidge. C

This is the Sheriff. He lost his horse and had to walk. He isn’t too happy right now. CJ

This Red the Roper. Someone said the rope is in a hoolihan throw. I looked it up once, it is a real thing though I may have spelled it wrong here. Same body type as the gunfighter. CJ

This my gunfighter. He is based on a design for chunky gnome like figures. CJ

Joe, That is good work. Especially as it is your first attempt. I like the scale details. I’ve been doing small figures for a while. Just like you I just dove in. You might find some hints on YouTube videos if you haven’t already looked there. The videos have helped me. I’m not doing lifelike, more caricatures that give a feel for the subject. Been trying cowboys lately. Keep up the good work it will become addictive. CJ

If I did that to my Grandkids I’d never see them again. We don’t have street lights. CJ

Cheyenne, I’ve been through there many times. My younger son lives in Rochester, NY. Williamsport is on my way to visit him. By the way I almost forgot one of the best treats is PB spread on a slice of Lebanon Bologna and rolled up in a tube. Mmmm gooood! On the other hand my wife would slice a sweet gherkin pickle in quarters lengthwise, spread some cream cheese on the Lebanon and roll the 1/4 pickle slice inside. She’d serve it as an hors d'oeuvre with other finger bits. Her folks were from Carbon County, Weissport, PA , north of Allentown. I can’t spel

Riding with my Dad one day a young lady cut the corner so much she came bumper to bumper (no actual collision) with our car. Dad stopped and waited for her to back up. At first she yelled and hollered that he should get out of her way or she would call the cops. No cell phones back then I wondered if she was planning on knocking on someone’s door to ask to use their phone? She finally backed up and Dad followed her 6-10 “ until she began to get back into her own lane. Dad could get hard headed sometimes. After that he told me “If you ever pull a stunt like I just did, following someone to forc

My Dad always said: Spring is Sprung The grass is riz, Where last year's Crazy driver is! I think he was trying to tell me something. CJ