Peg & Pubs
Peggy Amante has worked on several projects with Joe including several documentaries and promotional films, an independent production, and the health education multi-media presentation Peggy did as part of her studies for a Master of Public Health degree.
She studied sync/sound film at Rice Media Center under Oscar nominee and award winning documentarian James Blue and, for the required “epic film”, did a 3-sound track documentary on the hog auction at Port City Stock Yards in Sealy, Texas.
The film covers the arrival of the hogs, their experience being whipped through the auction ring as buyers from major meat packing companies bid by lifting a finger or nodding a head in response to the auctioneer’s patter, and their subsequent fate. In compliance with federal regulations, the boar hogs have their tusks removed – otherwise they would kill each other during shipment. This removal is accomplished with an instrument that is about as non-discriminating as the hedge clipper it resembles. The film documents, as well, the “foaming at the mouth” and the hogs’ hysterical cries. The boars recover quickly, however, as when they are put in the holding pen – with female hogs – they do indulge their instincts. The film closely follows this “procedure”.
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Peggy knows dirt
For years, Peggy has spent her vacations and her money on travel. In addition to numerous trips to Europe, and to South and Central America, Egypt, Turkey, Asia and other relatively normal venues, she also engages in adventure travel. She has been to 6 of the 7 continents, done white water rafting in Africa, New Zealand, Chile, and the U.S., has canoed through hippos on the Zambezi River in Zimbabwe, been flipped out of a raft into 41 degree water in Chile, hiked in Ireland (and had to be rescued by Irish Mountain Rescue after the first day – horrendous embarrassment ), hiked near the ice pack and glaciers in Patagonia, crossed the High Atlas Mountains of Morocco in a Land Rover, and walked and rode camels in the Sahara (the walking was the preferred mode of transportation!) Her most recent adventure involved white water rafting in Papua New Guinea, a tropical infection, and several days in a 3rd – or maybe 4th – world hospital. Her ambition, as yet unrealized, is to travel the Silk Road and sleep in a yurt.
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She likes the French
She makes repeat trips to France and Ireland, the first because she has many friends there, the second because of friends and also because it’s the home of her ancestors. In addition, the owner of MacCarthy’s Bar was part of the rescue team that brought her down the mountain after the hiking mishap in Ireland and Peggy visits Adrienne as often as possible and “stands a round” for those of the Mountain Rescue group who can be rounded up.
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Five kids? Jeez Peggy!
One would never know what a wonderful mother Peggy has been to her five children if you listened to them telling the stories they’ve made up and enhanced over the years – about how they had to fix their own meals from the time they were four years old, how they had to walk to school barefoot through the snow and up hill both ways, how she sent them from Phoenix to Los Angeles alone on a Continental Trailways bus when they were barely out of diapers (of course, the world was different then), and how the grandparents who were supposed to meet them when they arrived at midnight in a sleazy part of town were waiting at the Greyhound station instead. But all’s well that ends well and the children still speak to their mother.
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More about Peggy
Ok, I think Peggy is being way to modest. She wrote the intros to herself above, what do you think? Is she being too modest? Let's go over some of these photographs, shall we? The top one is of her after an all day drinking party in a pub (see story above) in Ireland, with a NUN! Peggy doesn't look like she's limping to me! The next one doesn't really show what happened after this photo was snapped, but Peggy does have a scar from that trip that she doesn't talk about. The next one is of Peggy of course, somewhere in Chile, on the rapids. Don't ask me which one is her in that little raft, but if I had to guess I would say she was right up front. The next one is another all night drinking party. This time off the coast of Ireland in the Aryan Islands. Not sure who the guy is but look at all of those kegs! The photo at the very top is of Peggy looking out over the "Fields of Athenry". Don't ask. The little pictures on the top left are of Peggy doing various things. There is one of Peggy and I when we were in Ireland and I think it's when I took her to the hospital emergency room that turned out to not be an emergency and there were all of these drunk Irish people in there after a long night of drinking. Not quite sure what happened to the Nun. I'm sure she was there though. Now, Peggy will question whether or not people know if I'm making this up or not, which I am, kind of. Ok, Peggy didn't drink all that beer, she doesn't even drink! The Nun story is true though, just look at the picture, she's leaning. And she does have five kids though, jeez, five kids, can you imagine? And they all still talk to her!!! I think. But, I couldn't do this documentary without Dave and Peggy. Well, without Peggy anyway. Dave is having way to much fun!
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