How much are top VA dogs going for? - Page 4

Jeffrey:  The point was not that rich people do not give.  I know that many do.  The point was that they could give even more, if they didn't spend two million bucks on their daughters wedding, and then do it again a couple of years later when "it" doesn't work out.  Just my opinion and I am allowed that, aren't I?

Also, if this show bothers you, just change it.  Myself and others are allowed to have a conversation, aren't we?

beetree:  small world. I have met Jack Welch before.  My neighbor back in the Cleveland area, is a relative of his and they were having a family function/gathering, and I was introduced to him, back in 1986 I believe.  I can not speak about him being an a...hole as I did not talk with him that much, but I will say that from what I have seen and read about Bill Gates, I believe he is one super, super rich person.  Does a lot of good.  Unlike that idiot Ted Turner.  Yea, sure, he promised a billion dollars to the UN, but that was only to embarass the U.S. and us.  Long story and I don't feel like going into it.

Sometimes it comes down to who is doing the buying, and not the price.  OJ or M. Vick could not buy one of my puppies for any amount of money (really, any amount), but Bill Gates could buy one for one dollar.  All three could afford excellent care, but I care who owns my pups.

As many here know, I collect old comic books.  The actor Nicholas Cage also collects comic books and has bought a couple from me over the years, costing a few thousand each, although I believe he is now selling his collection, or has already sold it.  Maybe he grew up .  I have seen it on the internet being touted as the "Nicholas Cage Collection".  Just because he used to own them, they are demanding a higher price than the same book would if I owned it. 

Another odd fact about rich people.  In my twenty's, I raised and raced homing pigeons.  So did the black country music singer Charlie Pride.  Well, back in about 1980 or so, Pride bought a pigeon for $250 thousand dollars.  Not from me though.  Darn it. .  I wno longer race pigeons, but I believe that there may have been recently, a million dollars paid for a pigeon or two.  I know comic books that could bring that, easily.

Jeffrey,

I actually can agree with you on some of your points. I feel I am on the cusp of the haves and the have nots, and lately, since I have more than not, my have not friends have taken an attitude, even though I have not! Did you get that?

Do Right,

Homing pigeons for a million dollars? They better hope there are no hawks flying about! Out here in the east, coopers and sharp shinned hawks are aplently!

I'd stick with with the comic books if I were you! But seriously, provenance, is what they call it in collectability terms, I think. And it does create value.

he he.  When you buy a pigeon for lots of bucks, you never let it out of the loft.  You just breed from it.  I understand provenance, but it is usually used in the sense of showing how it is authenticate (its history, proving where it originated and that it is genuine), but I understand your point.

Another weird fact.  I possess a piece of hair that is from Abraham Lincoln.  I have 21 pages of "provenance" showing how it came through the years from him to me. 

Stop laughing

Do Right,

Hair from Abraham Lincoln? Cool---we could see a clone of Honest Abe!  <grin>

I love reading your stories. :)

-Melanie

Melanie:  I wish I could tell some of my experiences from the military (got captured by bad guys in Cambodia during the Viet Nam "war" and I slide down a steep drop into a river as they were walking me and some others through the jungle, and they didn't even notice I was gone in the dark, but when I got tired of running and went to sleep, I woke up in the middle of the bad guys "camp", or stories about while working undercover as a narc or as a Strike Force detective.  The time the guy pointed a gun at me and told me I had to use the heroin I was buying before I could go, or the time I was out picking up hookers and this guy on the sidewalk winked at me, or the time I picked up two hookers at once for a "show" before they serviced me, and my guys (other detectives) intentionally were not where they were supposed to be, leaving me with two naked girls pawing me and I was frantically driving to find my guys, to effect the arrests, or the time when I was in uniform and a guy got the drop on me and pulled the trigger on his gun twice, point blank in my face, but his gun failed to work because it was rusty, and I killed him.  Also about being honored by the U. S. Congress for a couple of things (and this was pushed by Dennis Kucinich, (who I think is just plain weird and I would never vote) who was the mayor that hired me in Cleveland back in 1980), or............all heck, I could go on forever.

Yep.  Good times.  I miss them.  I should not have retired.  Damn it.  Life is so boring now, but I had my time and now it's the time of others.

Anyway, if you would like to read about Lincolns hair, here is an Ebay link to the person I got mine from many years ago.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ABRAHAM-LINCOLN-AUTHENTIC-ASSASSINATION-HAIR-SIGNED-COA_W0QQitemZ170148672945QQihZ007QQcategoryZ14428QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

do right---you should write a book

you lived in cleveland in 80? hummm... i was born in 80...lol...sorry, just had to thro that in there.....

but back to cleveland...my mom was raised there...her whole side of the family still lives in ohio....how long did you live in ohio, were you raised there?...know any johnsons?  ever heard of matchstick JACK? thats my grandpa, there is a museum there for him...built tons of things like working carolsel's <spell?) and trains..etc....all out of thousands of matchsticks....

No.  Never heard of Matchstick Jack.  Sounds like quite a character.

Born and raised in Cincinnati until age 18.  Joined the military, and when it came time to re-enlist, they offered me a choce of duty station so I said Cincy.  They came back and said that it was one of the few places not available, where else would I like to go.  Since I'm not the brighest light bulb on the Christmas tree, I said the next closest big city, Cleveland (I'm terrible at geography).  Ended up there and took the police test while still in the military.  Later when I got out of the military, the Cleveland Police offered me a job and I jumped at it.  Lived there for about 30 years and retired to Hillsboro, which is about 45 miles east of Cincy.

Tell you a funny story.  After I had been a Cleveland cop for about eight years, I took the Cincinnati police test and did well.  I had to take a polygraph test and during the test, they asked me if I had ever tried marijuana.  I answered truthfully and said yes, twice in Nam, 16 years earlier and had not done anything since or else.  The immediately stopped the test and said that I could leave now, they didn't want me because of drug usage.

One week later in Cleveland, I was promoted to detective and transferred to the Narcotics Unit and worked there for nine years.

And one of our Presidents admitted to doing the same thing.  Guess I should have said that I didn't inhale. 

Funny how life is.

Do Right:

My brother-in-law loves Honest Abe! Actually all things Civil war really. He also collects autographs of Declaration of Independance signers, the Red Sox baseball team and the Boston Celtics, (Larry Bird, that's the one I think!)

Gosh, is it beard hair or head hair? For Abe I mean? Want to sell a strand or two? With provenance of course!

Sorry 'bout that laughing thing, keeps my face looking young!

Well, the short part of the story is that the doctor that worked on Abe when he was assasinated, saved the hair that he shaved away in order to work on the Presidents head, and that is where mine came from, with the paperwork showing the provenance throughout the years.  I am not the only person who has some, of course, and it is possible that it is not really his.  But the provenance looks good and what the hey, it could be.  Makes sense.  If someone would save a half eaten sandwich or a sweat stained napkin from Elvis, surely someone would save the hair from the Civil War President.  Additionally, back then, there weren't a lot of photographs about, and many people saved locks of hair of their loved ones and such.  It was done quite often actually.  So, maybe it is and maybe it ain't, but I believe it is genuine.

Of course, I also believe my wife is a good girl. 

P.S.  I have an 8 x 10 photo of Larry Bird autographed by him.  He and Magic Johnson were my favorites.  Never got Magics signature though.

While I'm here I'll tell you a story that your brother-in-law  might appreciate.  True story.

A few years back (I forget what year), the NBA All Star game was held in Cleveland and even though I was working as a Narc at the time, and had long hair and a beard, I got a part time job working in uniform at the Hotel where the players were staying prior to the game.  It was the year when they had the best 50 players of all time coming together to get a photo and stuff.  It was a big deal.  Bird was there, heck, everybody who was anybody was there.  I was assigned to work the lobby, right in front of the eleveators that took the guests up to their rooms and I met many celebrities as they were waiting for the elevators to go up.  Across from the elevators was the hotel barber shop and to my right as I faced the elevators was the hotel restaurant.  So many things happened there with celebrities that I could type all night, but I will concentrate on one particular thing.  As game time was approaching, I was told to get one of the elevators and take it up to the 19th floor and pick up all the players from that floor and escort them down to the waiting bus which was going to take them to the Gund Arena.  I was told not to let any non players on the elevator, going up or coming down.  I did so and the players who got on my elevator were Patrick Ewing, Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, Penny Hardaway, David Robinson, and a couple of other players (I'm drawing a blank right now but their names will come to me).  Anyway, as we were going down to the lobby, Barkley looks at me and says "Ya know, if this elevator falls and we all die, you won't even get mentioned in the news".  I laughed and said, "You're probably right, but my wife doesn't even know who you guys are and she will cry for me".  Barkley then said, "Point well taken".  Then they all laughed.