Hey people, another story from the Lou about fear. I've recently finished another book called The Good Wolf. It is really off color but a very good story.  I went back and forth on if I should have it published or not because of the content and what people may think about me. It exposes thoughts that I'm not comfortable sharing with others. Then I channeled my inner Lou. What would Lou do? Lou would plow ahead with reckless abandon and not give two hoots about what anybody said, he would just do it. That thought gave me strength so I went ahead and published it on ibooks because that is what Lou would have done and would have wanted me to do. Blame Lou!! Just kidding. I love you and I miss you dad. I dedicated the book to you so I hope it sells 10 million copies so everyone can know what a special man you are.

My mother and I wrote a book called Sex out of Wedlock. It was the story of how my mother and father met. You can purchase the electronic or paperback version from Authorhouse.com. The feedback has been tremendous because of the situation surrounding their eventual marriage. The story is as unbelievable as the two characters in it. I was in charge of revamping the book because my mom was struggling with content. I read how she wrote my dad and it was close but it didn't get the "essence of Lou." She allowed me the freedom of writing him how a saw fit and he just came to life in my hands. At the time I was revising it, I had no idea how sick he was because he didn't tell anyone. He would die before it was published and I used the money he left me to get it published because it was too good a story to not be heard. By the time I finished with my dad and his brother Carter, my mom and I were laughing out loud thinking about those two jokers. She said I hit them right on the head. I had to write them as if they were at 20 and 25 years old, but for some reason it wasn't hard. My uncle Carter did a wonderful job in arranging my dad funeral and we are forever grateful to him. They loved each other tememdously and had come to rely on each other for everything. You would never know it by the way they talked to each other but it was all love.  Brothers to the end.

One day the guys at Preston decided the were going to take over the institution on one of Lou's off days. Bad decision. They were holding the staff hostage and they weren't going to let them go until their list of demands were met. Keep in mind my mom told me all  these stories and she had no reason to lie because they weren't on the best of terms when she told me. Lou immediately went up there and started banging on the door. "Open this G@# D#%& door!!" or something to that effect. They opened the door and I think they were more scared that they called him on his day off. Dad proceeded to talk the kids (men in their early 20's) down, get all of the staff out of their without any injuries and restore order in the institution. I know these stories sound ridiculous but it all happened. There are very few guys left to corraberate these stories because the life expectancy of a correctional officer is about 59 now, up from 54. If you knew him, the stories become realistic. There is a term in law enforcement called private cid. Presence, Verbal, Touch, Conrol, Intermediate and Deadly. It's called the use of force continum. Usually in an institution if you have the P and V, then you don't need to use the D. Lou had penty of P and V and that is why he never got injured in 25 years behind bars. 

Now that I know this website is here, I will be dropping in stories from the Lou from time to time. I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed living them. Some of them will seem very far-fetched but they are all true.

More stories from the Lou. My dad started a boxing team in the Youth Authority to stop the violence. How does that make any sense? Pull up a chair. His theory was that all the guys that used to get beat up would join the boxing team and learn how to fight. He was correct. Nobody wanted to get beat up by the wimpy dude so they just left them alone. He told me there were more fist fights but very few stabbings. When people are incarcerated, they are going to fight. Period. It is the nature of the beast. He understood that but choose to channel that into fists not shanks. Not only did this guy have a ring built, he used to drive the kids out to the fights with nothing more than a signature. These kids (18-25 yr. old men) were facing serious time. No handcuffs, no shackles, nothing. Only him and his skinny, lanky, goofy son by his side. I didn't even give it a second thought. I thought that was the way it was supposed to be. I didn't realize he was the only one doing it in the state and probably the nation. That is what I call respect my man! Of course his guys knocked everybody out they fought because what else did they have to do in jail but workout and train? Plus they had an awesome trainer who had a better understanding of people and athletes than most coaches could ever have.
     I used to play basketball with the guys in custody all through high school on the yard and in the gym. They knew I was his son and they could have killed me if they wanted but no one said one harsh word to me the whole time. I was "Little Boyd."  When I got a basketball scholarship, those guys celebrated like they got a scholarship. He retired in 1990 and told me the place was headed for disaster and once again he was right. He said the philosophy changed over the years. "We are supposed to work with the kids, not against them." It somehow became staff versus the wards and it got to the point where they began a practice of locking the wards in little cages and putting up fences in between the wards and the staff's work stations. The problem started when they began hiring people 2 years older that the wards they were watching. The state also wanted everyone to be college graduates and have perfect credit. You can't send angels to watch devils, the staff got eaten alive.  They eventually fired everyone that gave him a hard time because Lou was right. They ran the place right into the ground. Dad would not and could not throw away anyone because he knew how that felt growing up. I'm sure some guys got knocked out in the early days in '65 when he started but I'm sure they had it coming. I bet the guys that got knocked out didn't even hold a grudge because they knew they had it coming too. To know Lou is to love him. Thanks Dad for seeing the best in people and teaching me to do the same.

It was about 1998 and I was coaching kids at my Alma Mater in Stockton. These kids were giving me the blues. I couldn't handle them because they were a disobedient, knuckleheaded group. I immediately called my dad who was in Alabama at the time. I told him I needed help because these kids were wearing me out and sure enough he came as usual. Lou Boyd worked in the Youth Authority for 25 years and specialized knuckleheads. When he arrived, he was pure Lou. The kids immediately cussed him out the first day and told him he wasn't their coach. I've never seen my dad  happier. He lived for this stuff. He ran them into the ground but nobody quit. He whipped those kids in shape in about two weeks and they loved him to death. We went on to destroy everybody in the San Joaquin Valley that year and placed second in the Section. They cried and wanted us to come back and coach the next year. I asked Dad how he did it. He told me, "Ced, you are coaching them the way you wanted to be coached, not the way they need to be. You didn't have to be pushed but most kids do and if you don't, they will blame you if they don't succeed." I immediately understood what he meant. He was not their friend, he was their coach. He was not my friend until I was in my 20's, he was my dad. Thank you Dad for being man enough to be my Dad and not my friend. What I needed was a Dad and you were a great one. When I needed a friend you were a great one of those too.

Lieutenant Boyd was the worst golfer on earth. From the grip to the finish and everything in between. But that isn't the whole story. This man believed, I mean he truly believed, he was one move away from playing professional golf. If that move was him morphing into Tiger Woods, then yes, he was one move away. I have never met a more optimistic and positive person in my life. He believed in me and my sisters to the point that we believed we could accomplish anything. Most people have no idea what that is like. This man wouldn't even say the words "can't" or "discouraged". He told me that isn't in the Boyd's vocabulary. To have a man like that in your corner growing up does wonders for your confidence. I work with kids because of him. I'm writing books because of him. He just didn't set any limits on what you could or should do. I miss his big laugh, gap toothed smile and his, "It's going to be alright Ced. Don't worry about it." If you are lucky enough to have a father like my dad, thank your lucky stars. He was an absolute original and the world was a better place with him in it. Keep swinging'em Lou and I'll see you on the other side and I'll still beat you!!

friend of Elizabeth Waters, Lt Boyd's sister wrote at
2011-04-17 20:28:38Liz,
My prayers and thoughts are with you and your family.