Sometimes it takes that weird twist of fate for two people
to meet. They usually come from different backgrounds and seemingly have
nothing whatsoever in common. Joe and
Bill were those two people.
Joe Hoosier worked with my wife Susie at Callahan’s General
Store in Austin, Texas. Susie was the buyer and the animal health department
head and Joe was her semi-retired, assistant. Joe was an old retired truck
driver who couldn’t stand to sit still and needed something to pass the time
until real-retirement set in. He had cowboyed some in Oklahoma and other areas
and knew horses and cattle like the back of his hand. In other ways he was a
quasi-renaissance man who wrote poetry and was a bit of a philosopher in his
own way. He never met a stranger and I
can’t imagine that Joe ever had an enemy.
Callahan’s General Store is an Austin, Texas institution
that has been around since the 70’s.
Susie told me that local and national celebrities alike frequented the
store for boots, hats and other western gear. I called on the store for a short
time when I was a Coastal Ag rep and once missed Lady Bird Johnson by 30
minutes one day. She came into the store, complete with her Secret Service
detail and shopped for Buffalo Grass seed. Rick Perry, governor of Texas,
filmed an election advertisement at the store.
From time to time Austin business people, politicians and
other types would have social events that took advantage of the western
heritage that Austin and Callahan’s offered. They would treat the guests to a
barbeque and western themed party and also outfit the guests in western attire.
Callahan’s would get a call to come out and fit the guests in boots, hats and
other cowboy gear. Joe would usually be one of the employee’s that helped out.
His personality and gift of gab was all that the guests needed to feel at home.
Joe would take the guest’s hat and boot sizes and have them looking like John
Wayne or Barbara Stanwyck in short order.
One time Joe told me that they were asked by Dell Computers
to provide this service for some Dell guests and their spouses. Joe packed up
dozens of boots and hats of various styles and went out to where the party was
staged and began turning city slickers into cowhands in a manner of minutes. There
were a about 10 or 20 people from the tech industry at the party waiting their
turn to be duded up. One by one they would sit down with Joe and get themselves
outfitted with hats and to quote Gary P. Nunn, the great Texas singer/songwriter
who wrote “London Homesick Blues”, a pair of “manly footwear”.
One guest seemed out of place more than the rest and he hung
out toward the back of the group. He was the last one to sit down with Joe and
get sized. Joe asked the man his name and he meekly said, “Bill”. With the loud
and gravely voice Joe was known for, he said, “ Alright then Billy boy, lets
get you cowboyed up fer this here party.” Joe found Billy a slick pair of boots
and a sweet hat and slowly he began to loosen up. He started laughing at Joe’s
jokes and Texas witticism’s and the two quickly became friends.
At the end of the evening, Joe was packing up the extra
boots and hats and Bill walked up to him and thanked him for his help and
hospitality. Joe told him, “Billy, it has been my pleasure. If you ever get
down this way again, give me a ring and we’ll go chase some cows”. Bill smiled,
thanked Joe and left for the night.
As they were packing up to leave, Joe commented to the other
Callahan employees, “That was one fine gentleman. A little squirrelly lookin’, but
still a really friendly fella’ once he eased up.” They all looked at Joe with
dazed looks and asked Joe, “You didn’t know who that was?” With the wit that only
Joe had, he said “Well don’t leave me hangin’. Who was he?” They all looked at
each other, laughed and in unison sounded off together, “That was Bill Gates!”
Unfazed and serious as the day is long, Joe asked, “What the hell is a Bill
Gates?”
I’ll bet next time Billy boy won’t have to ask who Joe
Hoosier is.
No comments:
Post a Comment