The Legend-News

Monday, 2000 April 10 : Volume 3, Number 14

Convoy 2000 Tip Of The Week

Do not turn left at Albuquerque. Although the distance to Santa Fe is only 58 miles, the proper way to approach the town is via Raton Pass, and we ain't goin' anywhere near there.

On the other hand, be sure to check out the itinerary at the Convoy 2000 Information Page. The arrival of warmer weather unfroze Alan's brain: he remembered that we'd be travelling through four time zones on our way east, and adjusted the times accordingly. We're still making the trip in five days, too, except for the possible strays who get lost and win up in Omaha.

This Week in C.W. McCall History

1971 April 9: Jack Frost is born. [Coincidentally, I have a cousin who also shares this birthday, but I can't reveal the year or she'll hurt me. -- Ed.]

There's Still Time To Get "Real"

Just a reminder: The Real McCall: An American Storyteller is still available from American Gramaphone for US$9.98 plus $4.50 shipping. Send check, money order or credit card information to

American Gramaphone
9130 Mormon Bridge Rd
Omaha, NE 68152

or call them at 800.446.6860. That's a 24-hour order line.

It's Not Theft, It's Inspiration

TechRen.com isn't much of a web site. Lots of text, a few pictures, but that's about it. None of that exciting multi-media experience. Well, I've been planning and doing some work, and I've started a second site, TechRen.net.

TechRen.net is hosted on a Linux server running Apache, which means that there are many features available to me that I don't have at TechRen.com, such as server-side includes and my own cgi-bin directory. (I'm learning to write Perl scripts.)

You've already clicked over to TechRen.net, haven't you? What? You're still reading this? Well, if you were looking at TechRen.net, you might notice something interesting about the main page. Last week, on the "Other Wild Places" mailing list, there was a discussion about phrases from C.W. McCall songs, phrases that have become somewhat known in the world at large. I've swiped that idea, and you'll notice that each time you visit the main page at TechRen.net, "C.W." says a phrase, or a line or two, from one of his songs. So far, only "Wolf Creek Pass" is being used, but I'll be adding most of the songs to the source file.

I plan to eventually move the C.W. McCall stuff over to the new server, but that will take a few weeks. The overall site design will be a bit different, and hopefully easier to navigate.

Song A’ Th’ Week

I think that spring is here. According to the calendar, the vernal equinox was about three weeks ago, and we've had some warm days since then. But then there's the three inches of snow that fell last Friday, and the temperatures are back in the 40s. And despite the less-than-ideal weather, I've still got to start mowing the lawn this week.

The Little Brown Sparrow And Me

(C.W. McCall, Bill Fries, Chip Davis)
From the album Wilderness

One green April mornin', when I was a young boy
I lay by the window, a-watchin' the rain
And I wondered if ever the sun would come shinin'
So I could go somewhere to play

Then down from the sky flew a little brown sparrow
And he lit on the branch of an old willow tree
And he sit there, watchin', as I lay wond'rin'
Just the little brown sparrow and me

On a green April mornin', when I was a young boy
And little brown sparrows were free

Then he looked in my window and he spied his reflection
There was the willow, there was the sky
And he wondered if ever the sun would come shinin'
And which was the way for the sparrow to fly

Well, he spread out his wings and he flew to the window
Fast as the wind, sure as could be
But the sky in the window was only a wishin'
For the little brown sparrow and me

On a green April mornin', when I was a young boy
And little brown sparrows were free

So there by the window, the sparrow had fallen
He died on the ground in the cold April rain
And I wondered if ever the sun would come shinin'
And someone could only explain

Then I laid there and saw the wind blow through the willow
And cover him over with yesterday's leaves
And there in the rain, I cried for a sparrow
For a little brown sparrow and me

On a green April mornin', when I was a young boy
And little brown sparrows were free
On a green April mornin', when life was a window
For a little brown sparrow and me