What About Me?

October 2nd, 2007 at 12:47pm B Jon Traylor 199

I have a group of close buddies I get together with every year. We all grew up together in a small town in West Texas. Usually, we do Vegas, but we grew tired of the crowds and the heat and the long lines and the cab fares. So, this year, we did something different. We rented a condo in N. Lake Tahoe and we partied and gambled and played in Reno, and both north and south Lake Tahoe. I've been thinking about this last trip often, and I finally sat down to write a reflection of what I came away with, albeit a somewhat selfish reflection. Enjoy:....

When I was a kid, sometimes my grandad would put me to bed...

my mother was gone, but there was a picture of our famed horse Lady Bug

up above my head.

Then Dad would come in, and kiss his little man

with whiskey on his breath, and a bottle in his hand.

He'd talk about Honor and the things I should know

and he staggered a little as he went out the door.

I can still hear the soft western winds in those mesquite trees.

And all those boys back in Texas still mean the world to me (after all these years).

I guess we are all gonna be what we are gonna be.

What do you do with good ol' boys like me?

Nothing can make a sound in the night

like the wind does.

But you ain't afraid if you are

washed in the blood like I was.

With the smell of mesquite and cedar through the window screen,

and Hank Williams and friends to keep me company,

I had the light of the radio by my bed,

with the freedom sounds of the '80's rolling in my head.

Even so, I could still hear the soft western winds in those mesquite trees.

As I look back, it was those boys I ran with, even in Reno,

that made me free, made me, me.

And I guess we'll all be what we are gonna be,

but what do you do with boys like me?

When I was in school I ran with a kid from across the tracks.

I was there with him when he loaded his car and headed to L.A.,

and I knew for certain he'd never be back.

I thought I was smarter than most, and I could choose.

I learned how to talk like the man on the 6 o'clock news.

When he hit nineteen, he hit the road,

but it doesnt' really matter how far he or I go.

Because, you see...

we can both still hear those soft winds

in those mesquite trees.

And all those boys like him still mean alot to me.

I guess we are all gonna be what we are gonna be.

What do you do with good ol' boys like me?

B. Jon Traylor -- '07

Entry Filed under: Carbondale, Travel, Family, Poetry, The West, United Post

21 Comments Add your own

1. reckless G | October 2nd, 2007 at 1:51 pm

Lovely Jon!

I'd like to hear that set to music by Jimmy Ibbotson.

FYI You are one of my very favorite godd ol' boys.
2. reckless G | October 2nd, 2007 at 1:53 pm

I mean good, not godd of course. Unless that was a Freudian slip!
3. Mitch.Mulhall | October 2nd, 2007 at 7:53 pm

I'd listen to damn near anything set to music by Jimmy Ibbotson... what you wrote is a very personal, expressive verse Jon. Hell, I admire your gift for self-expression as much as I enjoy Ibbotson's. G is right, you and Jimmy should collaborate. How good would that be?

Cheers,
4. revcoop | December 5th, 2007 at 6:29 pm

This is a joke I guess. Ibby would go nuts. Don Williams

wrote and recorded this 20 years ago.
5. Wharf Rat | December 6th, 2007 at 12:37 pm

Even a born-again cynic like me hopes there is a plausible explanation for this.
6. Wharf Rat | December 6th, 2007 at 12:41 pm

Don Williams' song:

When I was a kid Uncle Remus he put me to bed
With a picture of Stonewall Jackson above my head
Then daddy came in to kiss his little man
With gin on his breath and a Bible in his hand
He talked about honor and things I should know
Then he’d stagger a little as he went out the door

CHORUS:
I can still hear the soft Southern winds in the live oak trees
And those Williams boys they still mean a lot to me
Hank and Tennessee
I guess we’re all gonna be what we’re gonna be
So what do you do with good ole boys like me

Nothing makes a sound in the night like the wind does
But you ain’t afraid if you’re washed in the blood like I was
The smell of cape jasmine thru the window screen
John R. and the Wolfman kept me company
By the light of the radio by my bed
With Thomas Wolfe whispering in my head

When I was in school I ran with kid down the street
But I watched him burn himself up on bourbon and speed
But I was smarter than most and I could choose
Learned to talk like the man on the six o’clock news
When I was eighteen, Lord, I hit the road
But it really doesn’t matter how far I go
7. mwalker | December 9th, 2007 at 8:29 am

Wharf Rat- Good catch, I'm beginning to wonder how much content on B.Jon's other blogs are "borrowed". B.Jon- if it isn't your original idea or it's fiction then say so. This is pretty bad to claim this wonderful song as your own. My father used to love Don Williams and I grew up on his music, this is pathetic.
8. revcoop | December 10th, 2007 at 4:58 pm

whose catch? A little credit?
9. Mitch.Mulhall | December 10th, 2007 at 9:58 pm

Look, you chime in on a Marty Robbins' tune and I'll sing along, and I haven't heard a Robbins' tune since the sixties.

Did Jon plagiarize a Don William's lyric? Hell no. I think he typed familiar lyrics from his mind, with a spin on his own life. You can get your panties in a twist about this if you like, but the only time you're wasting is your own...

Cheers,
10. mwalker | December 10th, 2007 at 10:32 pm

revcoop-my apologies, your catch.
Wharf just reeled it in.
Mitch- I get it that you have Jon's back, but there is a problem here when these "familiar lyrics" are claimed to be his own. If they aren't yours don't take credit. That's all I'm saying. There is such a thing as intellectual property, just give credit to the originator. This site has so much to offer, that it would be a shame to have it tarnished by regurgitating "familiar lyrics". Let's all be original, that makes this place so great. By the way...my boxers are fitting just fine thank you.
11. Wharf Rat | December 11th, 2007 at 2:11 am

Mitch,

I'm quite surprised--you are the last bastion of precision in the world of the written word. Now I'm not going to cast aspersions against B. Jon, because he's a class act and I have no doubt he will rectify the situation. However, this is clearly plagiarism. You, of all people, know that.

If revcoop hadn't pointed out the referential author, we'd all be living in a green submersible.

--WR '07 (personal spin on meaningful words from John, Paul, George and Ringo)
12. Mitch.Mulhall | December 11th, 2007 at 8:42 am

WR, mwalker, revcoop,

I'd call this plagiarism if in fact that's what I thought it is. I talked to Jon about this the other night, and I'm pretty sure he borrowed that lyric liberally from a distant memory. I'm not going to stand in the way of anyone who wants to declare plagiarism, but I do recommend you talk to Jon about this before you do.

Cheers,
13. Wharf Rat | December 11th, 2007 at 10:32 am

Mitch,

I'm aware of the fact that Jon believes this came from his subconscious. My point is that it doesn't matter whether it occurred by design or by accident.

plagiarism (n): the unauthorized use or close imitation of the language and thoughts of another author and the representation of them as one's own original work.

There is no plagiarism exception for subconscious patterning. You may recall that Kaavya Viswanathan had her novel pulled and lost her book deal over a similar situation. Her explanation:

KAAVYA VISWANATHAN, Author: I completely see the similarities. I'm not denying that those are there, but I can honestly say that any of those similarities were completely unconscious and unintentional, that while I was reading Megan McCafferty's books, I must have just internalized her words. I never, ever intended to deliberately take any of her words.

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/entertainment/jan-june06/viswanathan_05-02.html

It doesn't matter that it was unconscious and unintentional--it's still plagiarism. The passage Jon attributed as his own work should either be deleted, or credit should be given to the writer of the Don Williams song.

I hope Jon continues to write on this blog. I always look forward to reading his submissions and I'm not trying to make this a personal attack against him. However, out of respect to Mr. Williams and the other readers of this blog, the situation needs to be corrected.
14. Mitch.Mulhall | December 11th, 2007 at 1:07 pm

You are correct in saying that without attribution Jon's post constitutes plagiarism. That said, plagiarism is a pretty hefty charge to levy against a blogger. It speaks directly to a person's credibility. I personally am not willing to stamp Jon with that scarlet letter. It's just a hunch, but I suspect this thread is sufficient admonition.

Object lesson: Cite early and cite often.

Cheers,
15. mwalker | December 11th, 2007 at 1:40 pm

Mitch- yes, plagiarism is a pretty hefty charge as you said, but why should bloggers be held to any different standard than anyone else? I'm sure that Jon will either delete or edit his post to cite the proper author, but I maintain that if it's not your thought don't take the credit. This site clearly allows people from different walks with different opinions to express themselves and their points. With this freedom to blog also comes the responsibility to be truthful when something you write is not your own. You can decide if you want if this "speaks to a person's credibility" all you want, but the point still remains that if it's not your work don't take ownership. Let's maintain the gift of freedom on the blog by acting responsibly. Jon has the opportunity to correct this so we can all move on...I'm willing to give him the chance.

Peace~
16. Wharf Rat | December 11th, 2007 at 2:07 pm

Perhaps I am misunderstanding you, Mitch. I first thought you were saying that it is not plagiarism because it was unintentional, which you now seem to agree is incorrect. That takes care of that problem.

The second issue, which is where I am perhaps misunderstanding you, relates to what (if anything) should be done. I am interpreting your remarks to mean that the issue should be dropped, that it is an unfair charge, and that because it is unintentional it need not be corrected. If that is indeed what you are saying, then I disagree. Like I said, I think the post either needs to be deleted or modified with the appropriate attribution.

Since you do raise a good point that this discussion implicates Jon's credibility, I will make this my last post on the topic. Perhaps I-Con will handle it in appropriate editorial fashion.
17. Mitch.Mulhall | December 11th, 2007 at 2:58 pm

What I'm saying is, yes, empirically this post is plagiarized.

That said, I heard Jon answer the question, "Did you plagiarize this post?" Having heard his answer, I am willing to give him the benefit of a doubt. I do not think what Jon did in composing this post warrants yoking him with the "plagiarist" label.

Perhaps Jon will settle this by a) following any or all of the great suggestions in this thread, and b) answering the question above for the benefit of the larger Aspen Post community.

Cheers,
18. Wharf Rat | December 11th, 2007 at 3:24 pm

[Having heard his answer, I am willing to give him the benefit of a doubt. I do not think what Jon did in composing this post warrants yoking him with the "plagiarist" label.]

It sounds to me like everyone is in agreement on that. Congrats on the promotion, BTW.
19. B Jon Traylor | December 12th, 2007 at 11:53 am

Hello. My name is Bobby Jon Traylor. I'm a product of West Texas and a local business man in this valley. I write here quite a bit, but I also am not very good at checking in to view "comments." I don't write for comments, I just write.
Last Thursday, I checked my email, and there were several email notiications regarding a recent post titled
"What About Me?'
I read the comments, via email, and honestly, I was about knocked out of my chair. If I had been on a horse, perhaps I would have been knocked outta my saddle.
These comments bothered me more than you could possibly imagine.
I read the words and accepted them as part of an old Don Williams song. Many of the words in that piece were from Don Williams. Many of those words were from my heart, my intellelect. But the theme was indeed Williams'.
At about 2 a.m. later that night, I was laying in bed, trying to figure this all out. I was thinking about my
Dad, his experiences, my brief life with him,etc. And I started to hear all those Don Williams songs, the Marty Robbins songs, the George Strait songs, the tunes from Bob Wills and theTexas Playboys, etc.
I realized that that particular song made alot of sense to me. Those lyrics stayed with me for the next 20 or 25 years.
I came home from my yearly gettaway with my buds, and those thoughts were very much in my head. I didn't even know that what drove those thoughts were some lyrics from an old Don Williams song from my childhood.
Its funny that my father was a big Don Wiilliams fan, because as I look back on his life, as I knew him, his life, his character was very much indeed like many of William's songs.
I may not be much, nor may I ever be. But I'm confident in knowing that I'm about as stand up a person as you will ever know. I'm honest, and that fact alone is what will perhaps limit me the rest of my life.
I have two college degrees, and I want to go back and get a doctorate, One of my degrees is in English, with an emphasis in American Lit and creative writing. I know a little something about plagerism. I will have never, ever, knowingly plagerized any person's work, anytime, anywhere. I have too much stupid pride to even consider doing so.
My post was a good piece. It was real,. it was me. I'd like to stop here and say thank you to Don Williams for helping me be me, for helping me accept that there is much more out there I'm trying to understand and accept. I'll be
40 in a month, and I'm in a pretty good place.
-- J
20. Wharf Rat | December 12th, 2007 at 1:29 pm

Jon,

With all due respect, your poem is virtually identical to the song. The structure, the words--barely a discernable difference.

B. Jon: Then Dad would come in, and kiss his little man
DW: Then daddy came in to kiss his little man

B. Jon: with whiskey on his breath, and a bottle in his hand.
DW: With gin on his breath and a Bible in his hand

B. Jon: He'd talk about Honor and the things I should know
DW: He talked about honor and things I should know

B. Jon: and he staggered a little as he went out the door.
DW: Then he’d stagger a little as he went out the door

B. Jon: I guess we are all gonna be what we are gonna be.
DW: I guess we’re all gonna be what we’re gonna be

B.Jon: What do you do with good ol' boys like me?
DW: So what do you do with good ole boys like me

You can't take ownership of that writing, no matter how inadvertent it was, nor how much you might relate to those passages. Look, man, I know this is a hurtful thing to discuss, but you received a lot of praise for that passage and but for the fact that revcoop recognized it as a Don Williams song, you would be incorrectly holding it out to the world as your original writing.

You stated in your explanation "My post was a good piece. It was real, it was me." That may be the case, but it was not your writing, and you need to either retract the piece or credit authorship to the Williams songwriter. I understand your feelings are hurt, but you need to do the right thing out of respect for the original author.
21. mwalker | December 13th, 2007 at 7:59 pm

Wharf Rat- You're right on.

I completely agree with what you said especially "it was not your writing, and you need to either retract the piece or credit authorship to the Williams songwriter. "

Jon- I get what you did, but regardless of the intent or process this is not your work. You need to retract it or credit the correct writer. I do not need a degree in English to know that you cannot claim this as your work. I'll be happy to move on after you stand up and do the right thing. Please fix this...

Peace~