Dr. Doug's Web Log
Dr. Doug's Mental Health Clinic
Guided Group Therapy on the Terlingua Ghost Town Porch
See ya' on the porch...
Welcome to my Wide Open Mental Health Clinic here on the Terlingua Trading Company porch!  Just go through that door over there and the nurse will provide your favorite ice-cold medicine for a small fee. 
Come back here with your medicine and find a place on one of those benches.  I'll guide you through this group therapy session, and I guarantee you will feel better very soon.
Now tell me... What do you think of the view from this porch... Did you know Terlingua is the world's largest open air insane asylum? Yes, and I'm the only mental therapist in this entire borderland region, as far as the eye can see.  This is a task no other therapist will do, a fate of unending hardships.
      But I'll do it, so let's get started.  Do you love your mother?  Is there something bothering you?  How does that make you feel?  I may be able to help you.
My advice is... Live free, take your medicine, and be very, very happy.
Hey, look over there... What a babe!
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Don't worry, be very, very happy.
Please sign in and leave me a message... Or not.  I realize some of my patients prefer anonymity.
This page was last updated: May 9, 2012
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Thirty-six years ago I visited Terlingua with my brother, fell in love with this rugged, resource scarce, hardscrabble, merciless land, and decided to live here for the rest of my life.  With no money, no car, no house and no job, it was difficult to even find water.  I stayed wherever I could, in caves, in abandoned buildings, in a bus...
I survived most of the time with no steady job as a free man, lots of times that meant sleeping under the stars.  I learned to enjoy my freedom, take my medicine like a man, and to be very, very happy.
I work in downtown Terlingua Ghostown and at the El Dorado Hotel. 
This is where you will find me, on the Terlingua Trading Company Porch where I conduct my world famous Open Air Guided Group Therapy Sessions with the many needy patients we find in the Big Bend Area.
Please visit my other webpages here:
Dr. Doug sez:
Dr. Doug's History Lesson

In the 1500's most people got married in June because they took their yearly bath in May, and still smelled pretty good by June. However, they were starting to smell, so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odor. Hence the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married.

Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water.The man of the house had the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other sons and men, then the women and finally the children. Last of all the babies. By then the water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it. Hence the saying: "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water."

Houses had thatched roofs -thick straw- piled high, with no wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm, so all the cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof,  When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip and fall off the roof. Hence the saying: "It's raining cats and dogs."

There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house. This posed a real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppings could mess up your nice clean bed. Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the top afforded some protection. That's how canopy beds came into existence.
The floor was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt. Hence the saying, "dirt poor." The wealthy had slate floors that would get slippery in the winter when wet, so they spread thresh (straw) on floor to help keep their footing. As the winter wore on, they added more thresh until, when you opened the door, it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entranceway. Hence the saying:  "a thresh hold."

In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that always hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and added things to the pot. They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat. They would eat the stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold overnight and then start over the next day. Sometimes stew had food in it that had been there for quite a while. Hence the rhyme: "Peas porridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old."

Sometimes they could obtain pork, which made them feel quite special.  When visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show off. It was a sign of wealth that a man could "bring home the bacon."  They would cut off a little to share with guests and would all sit around and "chew the fat."

Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high acid content caused some of the lead to leach onto the food, causing lead poisoning death. This happened most often with tomatoes, so for the next 400 years or so, tomatoes were considered poisonous.
Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt bottom of the loaf, the family got the middle, and guests got the top, or the "upper crust."

Lead cups were used to drink ale or whisky. The combination would sometimes knock the imbibers out for a couple of days. Someone walking along the road would take them for dead and prepare them for burial. They were laid out on the kitchen table for a couple of days and the family would gather around and eat and drink and wait and see if they would wake up. Hence the custom of holding a wake.

England is old and small and the local folks started running out of places to bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would take the bones to a bone-house, and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. So they would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the graveyard shift.) to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be "saved by the bell" or was considered a..."dead ringer."

In the 1400's a law was set forth in England that a man was allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb.  Hence we have 'the rule of thumb'

Many years ago in Scotland , a new game was invented. It was ruled 'Gentlemen Only Ladies Forbidden'.  And thus, the word GOLF entered into the English language.

The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime time TV was Fred and Wilma Flintstone

Coca-Cola was originally green.

The cost of raising a medium-size dog To the age of eleven:  £ 10,120.00

The first novel ever written on a typewriter, Tom Sawyer.

Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king from history:

Spades - King David
Hearts - Charlemagne
Clubs -Alexander, the Great
Diamonds - Julius Caesar

111,111,111 x
111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321

If a statue in the park of a person on a horse has both front legs in the air, the person died in battle.

If the horse has one front leg in the air, the person died because of wounds received in battle.

If the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes.

Q.. If you were to spell out numbers, how far would you have to go until you would find the letter 'A'?

A. One thousand

Q. What do bulletproof vests, fire escapes, windshield wipers and laser printers have in common?

A. All were invented by women.

Q. What is the only food that doesn't spoil?

A. Honey

In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes. When you pulled on the ropes, the mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to sleep on. Hence the phrase...'Goodnight , sleep tight'

It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that for a month after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their calendar was Lunar based, this period was called the honey month, which we know today as the honeymoon.

In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts....
So in old England, when customers got unruly, the bartender would yell at them 'Mind your pints and quarts, and settle down."  It's where we get the phrase: 'mind your P's and Q's'

Many years ago in England, pub frequenters had a whistle baked into the Rim, or handle, of their ceramic cups. When they needed a refill, they use the whistle to get some service. 'Wet your whistle' is the phrase inspired by this practice.

I cdnuolt blveiee that I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd what I was rdanieg.  The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in what oredr the ltteers in a Word are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is that the First and last ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a Taotl mses and you can still raed it wouthit a porbelm. This Is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by Istlef, but the word as a wlohe. Amzanig huh?

And that's the truth. Now, whoever said History was boring!
2011 4th of July Parade
Every year this has become a time honored tradition.  As you can see everybody is having a great time. The 4th is one of Terlingua's most favorite holidays.  There were no fireworks displays due to the state wide ban on fires, but there were some water ballon battles.  Pictures from James Ezell, thanks!
i Viva Terlingua!
What? Me worry? What? Me Worry?Where'd everybody go?Gig 'em Aggies!
Dr. Doug's World Famous
Open Air Guided Group Therapy Sessions
on the Terlingua Trading Company Porch

http://historicterlingua.homestead.com
Click on picture to enlarge, Esc brings you back
Photos by Kristinna Blanchard
Terlingua Moon is the area's weekly newspaper. Click on the Yellow Full Moon to see the latest issue:
Excuse me, are you alright?  You look a little queasy.  How many fingers do you see?  Yes, four is correct.

Perhaps you got a little hot.  Just sit back on that bench, I'll be right back with some ice cold medicine, and we can talk about it. 

I'm Dr. Doug, and I specialize in making people happy. See, you're feeling better already.  Come along then, I'll show you around Terlingua, and I guarantee you will soon be much happier...
© 2009 Douglas Blackmon "Dr. Doug", all rights reserved.
Photo by Kristinna
Dr. Doug presides over another Group Therapy Session on the Porch.  Notice the musical accompaniment and the lively conversation sparked by liberal doses of medicine, Dr. Doug's lively and magnetic personality, and the magic of the Chisos Mountains.

There is not an unhappy face in the crowd.
Photo by Kristinna
This cowboy will be back.

He may have left his rock collection, boots, medicine and smokes, but he would never abandon his dog.
Eagle Webula
Locally Cosmic Connections
Dr. Doug

Borderline Mental Therapist

Donate to Dr. Doug's Research

Please help Dr. Doug find the secrets of happiness hidden away in the desert mountains.  Medicine is expensive out here, and Dr. Doug uses a lot of it, not only for himself, but also for his many indigent patients.  Your generous contribution will ensure continuous Group Therapy Sessions on the Porch are available for the needy.

Send your cash, check or money order to:

Dr. Doug's Mental Health Research Fund
% Douglas Blackmon
HC70 Box 205
Terlingua, TX  79852

Dr. Doug and his patients thank you!
Kristina's Farewell Party

Kristina Blanchard has been miraculously cured of terminal unhappiness and has been released from Dr. Doug's Mental Health Clinic, the world's largest open air mental asylum, to return to her home in upper state New York. 

You'd have to slap her to knock that smile off her face, but Dr. Doug does not advise such action.  Part of her prescribed therapy was to let out her aggressions using a bullwhip. 

In the accompanying video she is seen practicing as Dr. Doug supervises the therapy session.  At the end of the video, do we witness a classical case of Freudian aggression towards the Doctor? His intuitive cane based defensive posture demonstrates strong Kung Fu.

Dr. Doug and all the other patients love her and will miss her very much.  Farewell Kristina.  Dr. Doug is already misty eyed.

This is his great quandry. His miraculous successes return to productive society, his harder cases stay longer and sometimes become locals.  But we survive out here. 

iViva Terlingua!
Terlingua Stingers
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Dr. Doug's email is: 
dr.black7@yahoo.com
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Dr. Doug's Web Log

Big Bend and Texas Mountains Travel Guide

 by Dr. Doug on 03/23/12

My friend and noted West Texas Publisher Mercer Black announces the Online Version of Big Bend and Texas Mountains Travel Guide. 

The digital media kit for Big Bend & Texas Mountains Travel Guide is up and live. Download the rate card and insertion order. View the distribution list, the slated editorial, advertising rates and specifications, etc. It's all online.

http://www.bigbendtravelguide.com/

Deadline is April 15.
Big Bend & Texas Mountains Travel Guide
bigbendtravelguide.com

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Tales From the Terlingua Porch in FIFTH printing!

 by Dr. Doug on 03/23/12

My friend Blair Pittman has recovered very well from his accident last year, and is back in the book business.  His popular book "Tales From the Terlingua Porch" is in it's fifth printing, and you can get your copy online at his wife Jean's bookstore in Alpine, TX.  It only costs $9.95 and is considered required reading by the locals.

http://www.fsbooks.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=29

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Stop Killing Wild Burros in the Big Bend region of West Texas

 by Dr. Doug on 03/10/12

Less than 300 wild burros remain but Texas Parks and Wildlife intends to kill these nationally protected burros to the "maximum extent possible". The national protections do not extend to this State-held land. What Texas is doing may be legal, but we think its an atrocity.

This horrid policy is carried out quietly, behind the scenes, with efforts to keep visitors to the Big Bend Ranch State Park from realizing wild burros are there and wild burros are being killed. We want the world to know how Texas chooses to kill their own living legacies of natural, cultural and historical heritage of their State, the region and America.

Only 5,800 wild burros are held in the protected areas managed by the BLM. Texas has their own small but vitally precious relic herd of wild burros, documented as laying claim to these lands as their ancestral home for hundreds of years. Officially, the Parks Department states that these wild donkeys harm the resource of the Park.

As evidence they provide ancient documents from 1974 and videos produced by the US China Lakes Naval Base where a 1981 court case revealed the base killed 648 wild burros illegally. In addition, Parks staff have stated on the record, that they needed to kill these wild burros to ensure that the Desert Bighorn Council would release restored "native" bighorn to the park.

The bighorn are a high profile species that are prized by big game hunters. Their restoration is heavily subsidized by private individuals who believe that the wild burro is an "enemy" of the bighorn. The hunting permits for the bighorn are sold in an auction format, with the highest recorded winning bid being $152,000.

Texas is killing wild burros to make way for hunting opportunities for wealthy hunters. The local community supports bighorn restoration, but not killing wild burros. We stand with the community to stand up against these powerful forces that have refused to hear pleas to keep the wild burros, alive.

Texas Parks and Wildlife does not have any real justification for killing these wild burros, you have labelled them as invasive. We call them precious, living symbols of our nations cultural, historical, and natural history. Stop killing wild burros!

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Memorial For Terlingua Rick Stevens

 by Dr. Doug on 02/14/12

Terlingua Rick Stevens passed away Monday morning Feb. 6th.  Memorial Services will be held Saturday, March 24, 2012, 12:00am until 9:00am at Pop's Place in Kerrville. 

Geoffrey Cope  http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000482430468  is the main contact.  Rick's Facebook Memorial page is here:  http://www.facebook.com/events/370849339611687/

We miss you already Rick.

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Terlingua Ghostown welcomes another soul to heaven.

 by Dr. Doug on 02/12/12

We lament the passing of "Terlingua Rick" Stevens in Kerrville last week.  He had adopted Terlingua Ghostown after being released from the Veterans Hospital.  In his youth he was a war hero, and was wounded in action.  He suffered intense pain for the rest of his life, only semi-alieviated by strong pain killers prescribed by physicians.  Whenever he was out of the hospital he recovered in Terlingua, rotating several times through the years.  He found another refuge in Kerrville amongst a kind and gentle people, and there he was known as "Terlingua Rick".  We knew him here as "Rick".  We remember and miss you Rick, welcome back to Heaven.

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When in Marfa, Dr. Doug gets his medicine here:
When in Alpine, Dr. Doug gets his medicine here:
Dave Safrit rowing down the highway
Terry Anderson
Terlingua Weather
"It is better to know nothing and KNOW you know nothing than to think you know something and don't." 
Socrates wrote that in Greek 23 centuries ago.  Funny how it still applies...
"I call my home "Ice Station Zebra".  It's cold as hell in the winter, and hot as hell in the summer,  but we survive down here..."

Dr. Doug is one of the characters in the Award Winning Video "Ghostown: 24 Hours"
Awards

* Emmy Award - Outstanding Achievement in Documentary
* Emmy Nomination - Oustanding Achivement in Editing

* Winner, Best Documentary - Chicago Int'l Reel Shorts Film Festival
* Winner, Best Documentary - Dam Short Film Festival
* Winner, Best Documentary - Thin Line Film Festival
* Winner, Best Documentary - Seguin Film Festival
* World Premeire - DC Independent Film Festival
* Terlingua Premiere - La Kiva, Terlingua, Texas
* Austin Film Society Showcase - SXSW Film Festival
If you find you are the one, come see me for an open-air group therapy session on the Porch.  I guarantee you will feel better after therapy.
                                                Dr. Doug

This is Dr. Doug's famous
Wide Open Mental Health Clinic on the Porch