Arafart dies

Until they say otherwise.

Sad End

There was this regular customer that I knew. He came in regularly, usually with a friend.
Last week sometime he was talking to his son on the phone when he stated he was not feeling well.
His son asked if he needed help, he said no. At some point the son became alarmed enough to suggest calling the paramedics.
For some reason, this man had it in his head that they were coming to take him away to an institution.
So, he shot himself.
He was 101 years old.

Not again :(

Somebody I knew died yesterday morning. I didn't know until just now. She was way too young, and had some health problems. By all accounts, it was a miracle she lived as long as she did.
Damn :(

Pierre Salinger 1925-2004

Although he was well known before I was born, I thought it significant to mention this. I had no idea he thought a missile brought down TWA 800.

Christopher Reeve 1952-2004

Holy shit.....

Veteran Hollywood reporter Nikki Finke has learned that actor Christopher Reeve is dead, according to sources close to the actor. He died suddenly Sunday. News of his death has not been reported publicly yet. His family will make an announcement Monday at the earliest.

**Update 6:11 AM PDT- He died of heart failure.

Ironies surrounding the passing of Rodney Dangerfield

On the day he died, this was the joke of the day on his website:

"I tell ya I get no respect from anyone. I bought a cemetery plot. The guy said, "There goes the neighborhood!"

A family statement reports that when he died at 13:20, his favorite Frank Sinatra album was playing.
He died during the song "Come Fly With Me."

Here are the lyrics:

Come fly with me, let's fly let's fly away If you can use, some exotic booze There's a bar in far bombay Come fly with me, we'll fly we'll fly away

Come fly with me, let's float down to Peru
In lama land, there's a one man band
And he'll toot his flute for you
Come fly with me, we'll float down in the blue

Once I get you up there, where the air is rarefied
We'll just glide, starry eyed
Once I get you up there, I'll be holding you so near
You may here, angels cheer - because were together

Weather wise it's such a lovely day
You just say the words, and we'll beat the birds
Down to acapulco bay
It's perfect, for a flying honeymoon - they say
Come fly with me, we'll fly we'll fly away

Rodney Dangerfield 1921-2004

Here was a classic I liked:

"I tell ya.... I get no respect. Yesterday I hurt my back. I went to the doctor and he says I can't lift anything over 5 pounds. Now I can't take a leak!"

Mt. St. Helens Erupts

She's Blowing- just saw it on TV.

"Daddy, Is This a War?"

Three years ago, at this moment, it all started.
On the first anniversary of 911, the Reno Gazette Journal asked people to submit their experiences on that infamous day.
This is what I submitted, and they published it. I am surprised the link still works :)
You can also find out what my real name is ;) People usually don't believe that's my name because there was an infamous author by the same name.

Here it is, with what I really said in parenthesis.

http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2002/09/10/23475.php?sp1=&sp2=&sp3

I awakened at 6:15 AM that morning to the very concerned voice of Ross Mitchell on KKOH- in my haze I remembered the words "Fire- explosion- World Trade Center."
I jumped out of bed and turned the TV on to the sight of one of the towers on fire. Without realizing a tape was being shown, I saw the shadowy silhouette of the second plane come roaring in and exploding in the second tower.( I yelled "HOLY SHIT!!)

Soon, my then-10-year-old daughter Rachel was awake. Sensing my horror she asked what was going on. As I did my best to explain this to her, I heard

"We have confirmation of an explosion at the Pentagon" on the TV.

We sat and watched … by this time I had hung my American Flag outside.

Then the first tower collapses … we saw it live on TV … I am getting angry and sick to my stomach … then news of United Flight 93 crashing in Pennsylvania. ( I said "JESUS H. CHRIST!")

I am asking out loud "What in the hell is going on??"

I start wondering if I should keep Rachel home from school but decide to send her anyway.

As the second tower collapsed around 7:28 a.m. I remember gasping a 4-letter word,( I yelled "OH FUCK!!"), and then my daughter says something that really blew my mind, making me realize how mature and aware she is of things.

She asks, "Daddy, is this a war?"

Quite stunned, I looked at her and simply said, "Yes."

She then muttered, "Somebody messed with the wrong country!"

Forgotten by the pacifists

There was this email debate going on about whether we should have attacked Iraq or Afghanistan, and I got pissed off. The more I wrote this, the more angry I got. Here is what I said:

While everybody blasts the USA, nobody is demonstrating against Saddam, or British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

This is about anti-americanism, and anti-"Bush-ism".

Has anyone seen the
perverted sexually oriented protest signs of the President ? That makes
the
famed photo of bin Laden and Bert from "Sesame Street" look intelligent.

Funny how when Clinton said Saddam must be stopped in 1998, nobody batted
an eye. Now that we are taking his suggestion- it is suddenly "Rabid
Cowboy" Bush.

Funny how Clinton wasn't a "Rabid Pervert" when he was "doing his thing"
in the White House.

Funny how when Clinton and NATO were clobbering Belgrade for about 70
days- there were no demonstrations.

Funny how when Clinton attacked an aspirin factory in Khartoum, Sudan-
nobody batted an eye.

Nearly everybody killed there was black- but nobody
gave a hoot. Now Bush is a so called Racist for "wanting to kill Iraqis."

Yet Clinton is touted as "The First Black President." He killed more
blacks in Africa than any president.(By virtue of attacking the asprin factory in Sudan)

If we followed the mindset of "war is not justified in any case", we would
still have slaves and plantations, and the Civil War would not have
happened.

Funny how Bin Laden kills blacks in African Embassy bombings, and people
of all races and nationalities on September. 11, 2001; and nobody
demonstrates against him.

Oh- but I forgot- September. 11, 2001 doesn't exist in the minds of
liberals and pacifists.

In their minds- we deserved the attack.

The two large holes at ground zero do not exist in the minds of liberals
and pacifists.

They feel the Pentagon attack was justified because it is "a military
target."

A hole in a hallowed field in Pennsylvania means nothing to them either.

The blood of 3000+ murdered people crying from the ground falls on their
deaf ears.

The sickening thuds of those who fell to their deaths meant nothing to you pacifists.
You're probably pissed they littered the ground, and the burning towers polluted the air.

Those who are of this mindset have no defense to this, therefore they
become shrill and start name calling and blowing smoke to cloud the
issue.

Yet- if they are so ashamed of this country, and demonstrate against it
and
everything it stands for; why do they hide behind the American Flag and
claim "freedom of speech" ?
Isn't that called "hypocritical?"

Somewhere Over Pittsburgh

Continuing with tributes to 911 with another poem.

Somewhere Over Pittsburgh by Ralph Dahma* * Something happened Tuesday morning, Somewhere over Pittsburgh.*

We may never really know
Just exactly what transpired,
But this much is surely so:
A Nation was inspired.*

It was just another morning,
When from Newark they departed.
Then suddenly, without warning,
It seemed Armageddon started.*

They were businessmen and mothers,
Not soldiers in the sky.
Fathers, sons and brothers,
Just like you and I.*

"Should I watch the movie, or just rest?"
Seemed to be their biggest worry.
No one knew there'd be a test,
Or that this would be their moment of glory.*

Something happened Tuesday morning,
Somewhere over Pittsburgh.*

Someone shouted 'They've got knives!'
The movie no longer mattered.
Their dreams, their plans, their lives,
In an instant could be shattered.*

Those who could, picked up the phone,
To say I love you, perhaps farewell.
But soon they learned they weren't alone;
The whole nation had entered Hell.*

Was it really true?
They've destroyed New York's Twin Towers?!?
And then right away they knew,
They had minutes, seconds...not hours.*

'We need to do something now,
We need to act as one.'
'Let's take a vote, let's figure out how,
But we know what must be done.'*

Something happened Tuesday morning,
Somewhere over Pittsburgh.*

Where did they get the courage just then?
Was it from family, from church, from school,
from*friends?
Whatever the reason, they acted like men,
And bravely stood up, as Americans.*

There must have been a battle,
But neither side would yield.
The plane began to rattle,
Then slammed into a field.*

They didn't plan on being heroes,
But what heroes ever do?
Now the rest of the world knows,
What Americans, united, can do.*

So if your hero is some celebrity,
Or the guy who can hit one out,
Look to the skies above the Steel City,
And remember what heroes are all about.*

Something happened Tuesday morning,
Somewhere over Pittsburgh.*

For here's the rest of the story,
And the reason these folks we espouse:
Somewhere over Pittsburgh, Tuesday morning,
These brave Americans saved the White House.*

The Power of One

Another poem from 911. I am unsure of who the author is.

As the soot and dirt and ash rained down,
We became one color.
As we carried each other down the stairs of the
burning building,
We became one class.
As we lit candles of waiting and hope,
We became one generation.
As the firefighters and police officers fought> their way into the inferno,
We became one gender.
As we fell to our knees in prayer for strength,
We became one faith.
As we whispered or shouted words of
encouragement,
We spoke one language.
As we gave our blood in lines a mile long,
We became one body.
As we mourned together the great loss,
We became one family.
As we cried tears of grief and loss,
We became one soul.
As we retell with pride of the sacrifice of
heroes,
We become one people.

We are
One color
One class
One generation
One gender
One faith
One language
One body
One family
One soul
One people

We are The Power of One.
We are united.
We are America.

Not our Father's Germany

This made some waves, and I wish I could post the photo that came with the message.
This was when Germany was helping us out, before they became sissified.

This is an e-mail from an Ensign stationed aboard the USS Winston
Churchill...

Dear Dad, Well, we are still out at sea, with little direction as to what our next priority is. The remainder of our port visits, which were to be centered around max liberty and goodwill to the United Kingdom, have all but been canceled. We have spent every day since the attacks going back and forth within imaginary boxes drawn in the ocean, standing high-security watches, and trying to make the best of our time. It hasn't been that fun I must confess, and to be even more honest, a lot of people are frustrated at the fact that they either can't be home, or we don't have more direction right now. We have seen the articles and the photographs, and they are sickening. Being isolated as we are, I don't think we appreciate the full scope of what is happening back home, but we are definitely feeling the effects.

About two hours ago the junior officers were called to the bridge to conduct
Shiphandling drills. We were about to do a man overboard when we got a call
from the LUTJENS(D185), a German warship that was moored ahead of us on the
pier in Plymouth, England. While in port, the WINSTON S CHURCHILL and the
LUTJENS got together for a sports day/cookout on our fantail, and we made
some pretty good friends.

Now at sea they called over on bridge-to-bridge, requesting to pass us close
up on our port side, to say good-bye. We prepared to render them honors on
the bridgewing, and the Captain told the crew to come topside to wish them
farewell. As they were making their approach, our Conning Officer announced
through her binoculars that they were flying an American flag.

As they came even closer, we saw that it was flying at half-mast. The bridge
wing was crowded
with people as the Boatswain's Mate blew two whistles-Attention to Port-the
ship came up
alongside and we saw that the entire crew of the German ship were manning
the rails, in their dress blues.

They had made up a sign that was displayed on the side that read "We Stand
By You". Needless to say there was not a dry eye on the bridge as they
stayed alongside us for a few minutes and we cut our salutes. It was
probably the most powerful thing I have seen in my entire life and more than
a few of us fought to retain our composure. It was a beautiful day outside
today. We are no longer at liberty to divulge over unsecure e-mail our
location, but we could not have asked for a finer day at sea. The German
Navy did an incredible thing for this crew, and it has truly been the
highest point in the days since the attacks. It's amazing to think that only
a half-century ago things were quite different, and to see the unity that is
being demonstrated throughout Europe and the world makes us all feel proud
to be out here doing our job. After the ship pulled away and we prepared to
begin our man overboard drills the Officer of the Deck turned to me and said
"I'm staying Navy."

I'll write you when I know more about when I'll be home, but for now, this
is probably the best news that I could send you. Love you guys.

Email Angst

This is some emails that came my way in the hours and days after 911. I edited names out so they may remain anonymous.
The first series of messages came from somebody who lost a friend in the Pentagon Attack. I'm pretty sure I knew the victim also, just not as well.

This person I met in Germany almost 16 years ago, she is like my sister,
best friend and confidant. I feel robbed!!

She has red hair, 4 kids and a husband who is in pieces.

She is 45, from SanBernadino, but I think she may be buried at the
military cemetery. Her son told me today that they may not even have remains
because of the jet fuel. I can't believe all of this.

I just talked to her husband and daughter, he is falling
apart,.............the worst damn thing is that there is absolutely nothing,
nothing that I can do or say to make him feel any better, nothing. I just
listened to him cry. I feel so empty.

I am really worried about that, he depends on her so much! He was
breaking apart on the phone, and did mention that he can't go on much longer
without her.

--------------------------------
This came from a sane liberal friend of mine:

It's time to exercise ALL of our Military options !!!!!!!!!!!!!!,Anyone affilliated with Terrorism !!!!!

--------------------------------------

From Elmendorf AFB,Alaska:

I can't begin to tell you all the stuff I am seeing, all the cargo
planes on the base next door are going crazy moving "equipment", it could be
rescue supplies, or maybe something else? Who knows where it is going, the
airstrip is under heavy security. There are soldiers guarding the water
towers, and the powerplants. IT is very creepy. It reminds me of desert storm
only in fast forward. I sure don't want to relive that but it looks like it
is coming.

Monday and Tuesday

I don't know who wrote this, but it came in an email on September.20,2001. I need not say what day it refers to- you can figure that out. I know that this came to me on the day my parents flew to Atlanta, 9 days after that Terrible Tuesday.

On Monday there were people fighting against praying in schools On Tuesday you would have been hard pressed to find a school where someone was not praying

On Monday there were people were trying to separate each other by race,
sex, color and creed
On Tuesday they were all holding hands

On Monday we thought that we were secure
On Tuesday we learned better

On Monday we were talking about heroes as being athletes
On Tuesday we relearned what hero meant

On Monday people went to work at the world trade centers as usual
On Tuesday they died

On Monday people were fighting the 10 commandments on government
property
On Tuesday the same people all said 'God help us all' while thinking
'Thou shall not kill'

On Monday people argued with their kids about picking up their room
On Tuesday the same people could not get home fast enough to hug their
kids

On Monday people picked up McDonalds for dinner
On Tuesday they stayed home

On Monday people were upset that their dry cleaning was not ready on
time
On Tuesday they were lining up to give blood for the dying

On Monday politicians argued about budget surpluses
On Tuesday grief stricken they sang 'God Bless America'

On Monday we worried about the traffic and getting to work late
On Tuesday we worried about a plane crashing into your house or place of
business

On Monday we were irritated that our rebate checks had not arrived
On Tuesday we saw people celebrating people dying in the USA

On Monday some children had solid families
On Tuesday they were orphans

On Monday the president was going to Florida to read to children
On Tuesday he returned to Washington to protect our children

On Monday we emailed jokes
On Tuesday we did not

It is sadly ironic how it takes horrific events to place things into
perspective, but it has. The lessons learned this week, the things we
have taken for granted, the things that have been forgotten or
overlooked, hopefully will never be forgetten again.

Have You Forgotten ?

Here are the lyrics to Darryl Worley's song about 911. I can't imagine the fortitude it takes to sing this without losing composure. I can't even listen to that and stay composed.

I hear people saying we don't need this war I say there's some things worth fighting for What about our freedom and this piece of ground? We didn't get to keep 'em by backing down They say we don't realize the mess we're getting in Before you start preaching Let me ask you this my friend

CHORUS 1
Have you forgotten how it felt that day
To see your homeland under fire
And her people blown away?
Have you forgotten when those towers fell?
We had neighbors still inside
Going through a living hell
And you say we shouldn't worry 'bout Bin Laden
Have you forgotten?

They took all the footage off my T.V.
Said it's too disturbing for you and me
It'll just breed anger that's what the experts say
If it was up to me I'd show it every day
Some say this country's just out looking for a fight
After 9/11 man I'd have to say that's right

1st CHORUS
Have you forgotten how it felt that day
To see your homeland under fire
And her people blown away?
Have you forgotten when those towers fell?
We had neighbors still inside
Going through a living hell
And we vowed to get the ones behind Bin Laden
Have you forgotten?

I've been there with the soldiers
Who've gone away to war
And you can bet that they remember
Just what they're fighting for

2nd CHORUS
Have you forgotten all the people killed?
Yes, some went down like heroes in that Pennsylvania field
Have you forgotten about our Pentagon?
All the loved ones that we lost
And those left to carry on
Don't you tell me not to worry 'bout Bin Laden
Have you forgotten?

Have you forgotten?
Have you forgotten?

911 Observance

This coming Saturday will mark 3 years since we were attacked.
I will make numerous posts about it this week. I do not give a shit about political correctness, so if PC is your thing- deal with it.
One thing that rubs me the wrong way is how people call it a tragedy. A tragedy to me seems to be a word associated with an accident.
It was an act of war.
We were psychologically raped that day. Our innocence was lost.

Laura Branigan 1957-2004

Damn....this shocked me. Her website says it was an aneurysm in her sleep on Thursday.

http://abcnews.go.com/wire/Entertainment/ap20040828_1898.html

Great Grandmother- 1923-2004

As I eluded to a few days ago, my daughter's maternal Great-Grandmother was in failing health.

The end came at 3:23 AM yesterday. She was 81.

:(

First Day of School

My daughter's first day of the 8th grade was yesterday.
Seems like all I did was sign this, sign that, read this- etc etc.
She was happy to go back :)

Medevac Helicopter Crashes

This is one of those stories that royally sucks.
Five people were killed when their medevac helicopter crashed shortly after takeoff from Battle Mountain, Nevada enroute to a Reno hospital. The dead include an 11 day old baby, the mother, pilot, paramedic, and nurse. The helicopter vanished shortly after 11:30 PM and the wreckage was found by Search and Rescue from N.A.S. Fallon about 8:30 AM yesterday.
They say the chopper flew into a mountain at full speed and exploded on impact.

What seems dumb to me is I could not find it on any local news websites. I read it on websites from Seattle, Melbourne, Australia; and Palm Springs.
My daughter saw it first on the "crawler" on the bottom of the screen on Fox News.

http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2004/08/22/78639.php?sp1=rgj&sp2=umbrella&sp3=umbrella&sp5=RGJ.com&sp6=news&sp7=umbrella&jsmultitag=umbrella.rgj.com

The Waiting

For about 9 months last year, I saw my grandmother waste away from Alzheimer's Disease.
In 1997, for a few months we watched as my maternal grandfather went into a cancer induced tailspin.
Right now my daughter's maternal great grandmother is slipping away at age 81.
It's hard to know what to hope for. I don't like seeing people die, but don't like them to suffer.

Julia Child 1912-2004

I liked to watch her- but it was hard to understand what she was saying sometimes.

**Update- I saw on the news tonight that she was actually a spy during WWII. She fell in love and married another spy and moved to France. Pretty strange!

1952-2004

I have seen alot of people die young in the 8 months, but it's still a shock when it happens.

This lady I knew had a rare form of cancer- usually exclusive to black men, and she was a white woman.
She was told she had 6 months to live- back in 1998.

Overnight she went from a hefty woman to skin and bones. She tried to say it was a purposeful weight loss, but my dad, who spent 23 years working in various Air Force hospitals knew better.

I thought she was on a rebound, but in the past few weeks she deteriorated rapidly.

Cancer is such a bitch.

Nineteen Years Ago Today

The date was August. 2, 1985....

I was living in Dallas,Texas. The day was a typical Texas summer day, hot and humid.
During the previous weeks I had experienced some trouble walking, so I had a late afternoon appointment with an orthopedic surgeon at a hospital near the DFW airport.
During the appointment I learned that I may need spinal surgery due to a herniated disk, but more tests were necessary. This was unusual for this 20 year old (at the time) and I was somewhat startled by it.
I left the hospital, somewhat in a daze.
It was about 4:45 PM- as I leave the hospital it was like being hit by a tidal wave of humidity and heat.
Cottonball type clouds pock mark the sky above, usually the sign of a chance of thunderstorms- just typical Texas weather.
Planes fly in the distance to land at DFW.

About 6 PM the sun disappears as it begins to set lower in the orange hazy western sky.
It is blocked out by a monumental thunderhead that is sitting above the airport. The rain underneath is so thick it looks solid black from where I was at- in the Garland area of Dallas.
The storm seems to die as quickly as it formed.

I never could have realized the horror of what I was witnessing.
About 11 PM I turn on the radio on to Dallas station KRLD and hear the words "the Dallas County Medical Examiner confirms 123 dead in the crash of Delta Airlines Flight 191 at the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport."

I was speechless- I was so damn close to it not even 90 minutes before it happened. I am so glad I did not witness it. The "solid black" I referred to was actually the smoke.
The thunderstorm brought the plane down and brought attention to "wind shears."
Ultimately, the death toll rose to 137, and the DFW area came together in a miraculous way, lines of people donating blood, etc.

There were some bastards who tried to take advantage of it though. As it came down the L-1011 skidded across a freeway and broke apart. Some morbid sons of bitches nearby looted the dead bodies of passengers who were dumped out of the plane as it broke apart.

More sensible people near by executed some Texas Justice on these turdballs and attacked them and made citizen's arrests.

Although that was a dark day in the city of Dallas, the good in people made it easier to deal with.

Two weeks later, when I left Dallas to come home, I flew over the remaining wreckage and saw the scars left in the ground.

As my plane leveled off, I reached into the pocket in front of me and pulled out a news magazine to read.
On the cover it said "Death In Dallas."
*Rolls Eyes*

August Already?

I can't believe that it's August already.
The last few weeks I keep waking up at 3 or 4 AM, and can't get back to sleep. Now it is almost 7 AM and I am ready to go back to bed >:(

July 4th

I wonder how many of us have read the Declaration of Independence or the US Constitution.....

Some good links for July 4th:

Text of the U.S. Constitution:

http://www.house.gov/Constitution/Constitution.html

Declaration of Independence:

http://www.archives.gov/national_archives_experience/charters/declaration_transcript.html

Biographies of the Presidents:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/

Presidential Trivia:

Presidents who died on July 4th:

John Adams July 4, 1826
Thomas Jefferson July 4, 1826
Yes- on the same day- just a few hours apart.

James Monroe- July 4, 1831

Marlon Brando 1924-2004

I have never seen his early movies, but the one movie I saw with him in it was....

Apocalypse Now.
He plays a crazed Green Beret colonel, and Martin Sheen is sent to kill him. By the end of the movie, I wondered if he was all that crazy. The classic phrase which summed up the insanity of the war that Brando said in the movie was

You teach young men to drop fire on people, but you won't allow them to write the word "Fuck" on their airplanes because it's obscene."

Ray Charles 1930-2004

I didn't know he was ill :(
I wanted to see him the last time he was in Reno, I wish I did now :(

Ronald Reagan 1911-2004

Ironic that this happens on the eve of D-Day's 60th Anniversary.

On Nov. 5, 1994, Reagan said, "I now begin the journey that will lead me into the sunset of my life. I know that for America there will always be a bright dawn ahead."

Reagan Worsens

"Ronnie's long journey has finally taken him to a distant place where I can no longer reach him," Nancy said.

One Month Old

It has been one month already since the birth of this blog :) I enjoy it- and have been surprised by the number of visitors from locations all over the world. Recently I have seen visitors from Thailand and Japan.

Memorial Service

Well today was the service for Kenny....

It was quite good- as those type of things go.
There was a time for people to go up and speak- I was tempted to, but didn't.
Public speaking isn't my forte.
They had a photo of him in the front of the chapel.
There were people I have worked with for years and it was strange to see them in a different light.
I brought plenty of tissues- for myself and those I sat with.
I think it was great that the management allowed us to go to it :)

Number 200

Thanks to my 200th visitor- at 10:24 AM PDT- from Hereford, England.

Visitors

I see I have had quite a few visitors- almost 200 now, so I guess I am doing ok :) Is there anything anyone wants me to talk about, other than what I do already ?
Feel free to post suggestions.

The Mourning After

Yesterday and today have been quite strange. I have awakened in the middle of the night and the first thing I think about is the death of Kenny....

To illustrate, here is a little background. Kenny was mentally challenged, but a helluva worker. Unfortunately some took advantage of that. He just recently observed his 10th anniversary with us.
He was actually quite humorous. About 18 months ago he had congestive heart problems and more recently had surgery canceled due to an enlarged heart.

A few months ago he failed to show up for work, and he seemed to be looking bad. It turns out he overslept. Back then, as did happen Sunday, when he failed to show, we became alarmed and went to check on him.
I told a co-worker back then that his not showing up scared the hell out of me, because he was in some obvious discomfort and looked bad.
I even made the comment then that I was worried one day we would "talk about him in the past tense" if he didn't take care of himself.
However, recently he was on a rebound, and told some people he hadn't felt this good in a long time.
In fact, he last worked on May 6th. On Saturday he was seen walking somewhere.
On Sunday about 7:10 AM I noticed he was not at work, one of our people went to check on him.
There was no answer, then somebody else tried to do the same.
The boss said "We should do a welfare check on him."
So about 8:20 I called the police, and they were more than willing to do that.
A deputy came in about 9:10, he went into the office. The door closed for about 10 minutes. Several of us looked at each other and shook our heads- so we knew in a way what was going on.

I found out at 11 AM as I was leaving for lunch, and the rest of the store was informed in an employee meeting at 2:30.

Yesterday (Monday) they had moments of silence twice which I thought was appropriate.
You could have heard a pin drop.

Kenny 1961-2004

This morning about 7:10 I realized a co-worker had not showed up. One employee left to go to his home, but he did not answer.
I called for the sheriff to do a welfare check on him. They entered somehow.
He died in his sleep :(
He was 42.

Number 100

At 10:29:38 Pacific Time, visitor #100 from Irving, Texas made an appearance here :) Thanks to all :)

Pat Tillman 1976-2004

This guy turned down a multi-million dollar contract with the Cardinals to join the Army Rangers, and now he has been killed in combat in Afghanistan :(

http://www.knxv.com/news/index.asp?did=9409

*UPDATE
In his honor, I am posting the link to the "Ranger Creed."

http://www.benning.army.mil/rtb/ranger/CREED.htm

Can You Hear Me Now ?

Good !
Welcome to my corner of the blogging world :)
Things might look disjointed right now, but hopefully I can figure it out.
I want to thank Jane at http://www.burnt-fuse.com/weblog/
and Andrew at
http://ambientirony.mu.nu/
for helping me get started on this.
Will be back later on- :)
dr