....that was tickling the back of my brain.
Lt. Kevin Kelley Leads His Men
When the reports came in about the BFD ladder accident. I called Jen and asked if Billy was there, no he is still on Purchase Street at Headquarters. I called "T" to ask who was killed. Was it someone from Charlestown? No. Lt. Kelley was lived in Quincy but was OFD. I was remembering some connection. Then I came to me that the Discovery Channel had done a special "Firehouse USA:Boston". It was back a few years ago. I had watched and I was sure it was Huntington Ave that was featured.
It was and Adam posted vid showing Lt. Kelley in action. I'm going to post it because in my opinion.....this is how you should think of Lt. Kelley.
One of Adam's commenters posted another video from the series on YouTube. (Tissue alert, Sherri.) the second half of this vid (2 minute 55 second mark and beyond) which shows Kelley at a family party with his wife and three daughters choked me up.
There are more on YouTube.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Lt. Kevin M. Kelley, BFD
My condolences to Lt. Kelley's family and his family in the BFD.
Lt. Kevin M. Kelley
Quincy, Mass
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Lt. BFD, Kevin M. of Quincy, formerly of Dorchester, January 9, 2009. Beloved husband of Gloria (Perez) Kelley of Quincy. Loving father of Susan Kelley, Christine Kelley and Maureen Kelley, all of Quincy. Son of the late Thomas J. Kelley, BFD and Margaret B. (Grant). Brother of Patricia Trezenka and her husband William of Quincy, Peggy Paulli and her husband Peter of Millis and Kathleen Nazzaro and her husband James of Braintree. Uncle of six nieces and nephews. Kevin's family gave him the most enjoyment in his life. They loved traveling together and took frequent trips to Disney World and cruises to the Caribbean. He was especially proud of his three daughters. His second love was the Boston Fire Department. Kevin is a second-generation firefighter and the 4th most senior Lieutenant on the job. He could have worked anywhere in Boston, but because of his nature, he chose the busiest firehouse in Boston. He was well respected amongst his peers, active in the union and loved going to work. Kevin had a great sense of humor, loved to tease and possessed a tremendous work ethic. He was a member of the following organizations: Boston Firefighter's Local 718 of the IAFF, Boston Firefighter's Charitable Association, Boston Fireman's Relief Fund, Boston Fireman's Mutual Relief Association and the Boston Gaelic Brigade. He was a 1973 graduate of Don Bosco High School. Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend the Funeral Mass in St. Ann's Church, Wollaston, Wednesday at 10:00 A.M. Visiting Hours in Keohane Funeral Home, 785 Hancock St., QUINCY, Tuesday from 4:00-8:00 P.M. Burial in Cedar Grove Cemetery, Boston. Donations in memory of Lt. Kelley may be made to the Boston Firefighter Local 718 Burn Foundation, 55 Hallet Street, Dorchester, MA 02124. Call 1-800-Keohane or see www.Keohane.com for directions & online condolences.
At the firehouse, seeking solace
By Megan Woolhouse and Matt Collette
Globe Correspondent / January 11, 2009
When firefighter Glen Campbell woke up yesterday morning, the world was different, he said. His longtime friend and mentor, the man who "taught me everything I know," had died.
There was little question as to where he needed to be: the red-brick firehouse on Huntington Avenue where he and Kevin M. Kelley had once worked together. Like so many other Boston firefighters yesterday, he went to the station for camaraderie and whatever comfort could be found.
"We just hang together, be together, and tell stories," Campbell said, standing in a crowd of firefighters who gathered at the station yesterday. Looking at the other somber firefighters as they shared remembrances and the occasional hug, he said, "Sitting at home is not going to do it for us."
The firehouse on Huntington Avenue was a refuge yesterday not only for firefighters, but also for a community shocked by the sudden loss. The people who live and work in this neighborhood amid imposing hospitals, sprawling college campuses, and apartment buildings know the firefighters of the Huntington Avenue station, the firefighters who respond to countless false alarms, minor medical calls, and apartment fires.
And the firefighters got to know their neighbors, throwing open their doors in warm weather, playing basketball on nearby courts, and pulling the occasional prank on a passerby.
Kelley's death pulled back the veil, a grim reminder of the mortal risks that come with the job.
Flowers, cards, and mementos piled up outside the building yesterday. Cars slowed as they passed. A young woman jogging by halted abruptly and gasped at the sight of the memorial's makeshift cross bearing Kelley's name.
Girma Belay, executive director of Roxbury Tenants of Harvard, which owns Mission Park where the crash occurred, said he knew Kelley and the firefighters involved in the crash.
"I can tell you, we felt like one of us were lost," he said.
Black bunting hung along the exterior of the station, and the flag atop the building was at half staff. The middle bay where Ladder 26 used to sit was empty. Station Captain Arthur Johnson said being with other firefighters yesterday at Kelley's beloved firehouse where he spent so much of his time seemed like the right thing to do. The two were working together Friday just before the call came in. Johnson said he knew something had gone terribly wrong when he heard yelling from his radio.
"The guys from the back [of the firetruck] were saying, 'I need help!' " Johnson said. "I knew it wasn't good."
Some firefighters at other stations who knew Kelley heard the screaming on the radio but could not leave their posts. Other firefighters said yesterday that even at the height of the crisis when the truck was rushing out of control down the steep hill, Kelley thought to sound an air horn to warn motorists and pedestrians of the danger.
Campbell said it was Kelley who mentored him and helped him move up in the department. He is now a lieutenant. Recalling his friend, Campbell's eyes filled with tears.
Kelley liked to tell stories, long ones that he could drag out.
"You wouldn't get the full story until you were ready to leave in the morning," he said.
Johnson described Kelley as a "family man first," with his dedication to the station "a close, very close, second."
Bonded by the long hours spent together and the ever-present possibility of death, firefighters at the station said they knew many of the details of Kelley's home life, his wife, and three adult daughters and how he used to take them to Disney World as children.
Lieutenant John Soares, his voice cracking, added: "His family, they don't know us as much as we know them."
Campbell said he and several other firefighters had visited Kelley's family and planned to visit Robert Bernard O'Neill. O'Neill was in the driver's seat when the firetruck went out of control on one of Boston's steepest hills Friday afternoon. He was released from the hospital yesterday.
Two other firefighters received minor injuries.
Yesterday, people in the community offered their sympathy and support.
Richard Craven, who works nearby at Children's Hospital in the parking department, stood quietly in front of the station in the bitter cold with his 13-year-old daughter, Alana. He wanted to pay his respects, he said, even though he didn't know Kelley or the other firefighters at the station other than seeing them respond to emergencies at the hospital.
"I feel a kinship with them," he said. "These people have a thankless job and I'm just a regular citizen trying to show my respect."
Nancy Clerveau, who lives on Mission Hill, said firefighters are always responding to false alarms and to calls at halfway houses in the neighborhood. She said she points the firefighters out to her two grandsons whenever they're out, calling them "role models."
One of her grandsons, 6-year-old Exavion, was accompanying her on a trip to Star Market.
"He wanted to be a firefighter. . . . And his brother, too."
She shuddered to think what could happen. "And I can see myself just sitting by the phone, pulling out my hair," she said.
Derek Miller, 21, a student at Northeastern University who lives nearby, passes by the fire station daily, where it's not unusual to see the firefighters open the big doors and pull chairs up to the sidewalk in warm weather.
"I see them out there all the time, they're always there," Miller said.
He recalled falling for a prank in front of the firehouse one day.
"I remember I was walking by, and I see a five- or ten-dollar bill on the ground. I set all my stuff down, and I reach down to grab it, and it zips right by. And I look up, and I see they pulled it away - it was connected to a piece of clear wire. They're all right inside the station, and they were laughing."
At Il Mondo Pizzeria on the corner of Huntington Avenue and Smith Street, Shukri Ighrayev said he felt sadness.
"They were doing their jobs," he said. "I'm here - I make pizza. I'm in no danger."
Twenty-three-year-old Siobhan Soucie, who lives near the scene of the crash on Mission Hill, said she got to know the firefighters at the Huntington Avenue station walking home when she was a student at Northeastern. Yesterday, she brought a bouquet of flowers, wrapped in pink, green, and orange tissue paper to leave with the others piled in front of the station.
"I think they're a bunch of great guys," she said. "You feel safer 'cause they're around."
*********************************
Note - If you are going to make an asshat comment about the BFD union, or possible causes of this accident.....or worse, assess blame, don't bother. I will not publish any comment in this post that I feel is inappropriate. You want to exercise your free speech, drop me an email and I'll open a post for you. But not in this one.
Lt. Kevin M. Kelley
Quincy, Mass
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Lt. BFD, Kevin M. of Quincy, formerly of Dorchester, January 9, 2009. Beloved husband of Gloria (Perez) Kelley of Quincy. Loving father of Susan Kelley, Christine Kelley and Maureen Kelley, all of Quincy. Son of the late Thomas J. Kelley, BFD and Margaret B. (Grant). Brother of Patricia Trezenka and her husband William of Quincy, Peggy Paulli and her husband Peter of Millis and Kathleen Nazzaro and her husband James of Braintree. Uncle of six nieces and nephews. Kevin's family gave him the most enjoyment in his life. They loved traveling together and took frequent trips to Disney World and cruises to the Caribbean. He was especially proud of his three daughters. His second love was the Boston Fire Department. Kevin is a second-generation firefighter and the 4th most senior Lieutenant on the job. He could have worked anywhere in Boston, but because of his nature, he chose the busiest firehouse in Boston. He was well respected amongst his peers, active in the union and loved going to work. Kevin had a great sense of humor, loved to tease and possessed a tremendous work ethic. He was a member of the following organizations: Boston Firefighter's Local 718 of the IAFF, Boston Firefighter's Charitable Association, Boston Fireman's Relief Fund, Boston Fireman's Mutual Relief Association and the Boston Gaelic Brigade. He was a 1973 graduate of Don Bosco High School. Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend the Funeral Mass in St. Ann's Church, Wollaston, Wednesday at 10:00 A.M. Visiting Hours in Keohane Funeral Home, 785 Hancock St., QUINCY, Tuesday from 4:00-8:00 P.M. Burial in Cedar Grove Cemetery, Boston. Donations in memory of Lt. Kelley may be made to the Boston Firefighter Local 718 Burn Foundation, 55 Hallet Street, Dorchester, MA 02124. Call 1-800-Keohane or see www.Keohane.com for directions & online condolences.
At the firehouse, seeking solace
By Megan Woolhouse and Matt Collette
Globe Correspondent / January 11, 2009
When firefighter Glen Campbell woke up yesterday morning, the world was different, he said. His longtime friend and mentor, the man who "taught me everything I know," had died.
There was little question as to where he needed to be: the red-brick firehouse on Huntington Avenue where he and Kevin M. Kelley had once worked together. Like so many other Boston firefighters yesterday, he went to the station for camaraderie and whatever comfort could be found.
"We just hang together, be together, and tell stories," Campbell said, standing in a crowd of firefighters who gathered at the station yesterday. Looking at the other somber firefighters as they shared remembrances and the occasional hug, he said, "Sitting at home is not going to do it for us."
The firehouse on Huntington Avenue was a refuge yesterday not only for firefighters, but also for a community shocked by the sudden loss. The people who live and work in this neighborhood amid imposing hospitals, sprawling college campuses, and apartment buildings know the firefighters of the Huntington Avenue station, the firefighters who respond to countless false alarms, minor medical calls, and apartment fires.
And the firefighters got to know their neighbors, throwing open their doors in warm weather, playing basketball on nearby courts, and pulling the occasional prank on a passerby.
Kelley's death pulled back the veil, a grim reminder of the mortal risks that come with the job.
Flowers, cards, and mementos piled up outside the building yesterday. Cars slowed as they passed. A young woman jogging by halted abruptly and gasped at the sight of the memorial's makeshift cross bearing Kelley's name.
Girma Belay, executive director of Roxbury Tenants of Harvard, which owns Mission Park where the crash occurred, said he knew Kelley and the firefighters involved in the crash.
"I can tell you, we felt like one of us were lost," he said.
Black bunting hung along the exterior of the station, and the flag atop the building was at half staff. The middle bay where Ladder 26 used to sit was empty. Station Captain Arthur Johnson said being with other firefighters yesterday at Kelley's beloved firehouse where he spent so much of his time seemed like the right thing to do. The two were working together Friday just before the call came in. Johnson said he knew something had gone terribly wrong when he heard yelling from his radio.
"The guys from the back [of the firetruck] were saying, 'I need help!' " Johnson said. "I knew it wasn't good."
Some firefighters at other stations who knew Kelley heard the screaming on the radio but could not leave their posts. Other firefighters said yesterday that even at the height of the crisis when the truck was rushing out of control down the steep hill, Kelley thought to sound an air horn to warn motorists and pedestrians of the danger.
Campbell said it was Kelley who mentored him and helped him move up in the department. He is now a lieutenant. Recalling his friend, Campbell's eyes filled with tears.
Kelley liked to tell stories, long ones that he could drag out.
"You wouldn't get the full story until you were ready to leave in the morning," he said.
Johnson described Kelley as a "family man first," with his dedication to the station "a close, very close, second."
Bonded by the long hours spent together and the ever-present possibility of death, firefighters at the station said they knew many of the details of Kelley's home life, his wife, and three adult daughters and how he used to take them to Disney World as children.
Lieutenant John Soares, his voice cracking, added: "His family, they don't know us as much as we know them."
Campbell said he and several other firefighters had visited Kelley's family and planned to visit Robert Bernard O'Neill. O'Neill was in the driver's seat when the firetruck went out of control on one of Boston's steepest hills Friday afternoon. He was released from the hospital yesterday.
Two other firefighters received minor injuries.
Yesterday, people in the community offered their sympathy and support.
Richard Craven, who works nearby at Children's Hospital in the parking department, stood quietly in front of the station in the bitter cold with his 13-year-old daughter, Alana. He wanted to pay his respects, he said, even though he didn't know Kelley or the other firefighters at the station other than seeing them respond to emergencies at the hospital.
"I feel a kinship with them," he said. "These people have a thankless job and I'm just a regular citizen trying to show my respect."
Nancy Clerveau, who lives on Mission Hill, said firefighters are always responding to false alarms and to calls at halfway houses in the neighborhood. She said she points the firefighters out to her two grandsons whenever they're out, calling them "role models."
One of her grandsons, 6-year-old Exavion, was accompanying her on a trip to Star Market.
"He wanted to be a firefighter. . . . And his brother, too."
She shuddered to think what could happen. "And I can see myself just sitting by the phone, pulling out my hair," she said.
Derek Miller, 21, a student at Northeastern University who lives nearby, passes by the fire station daily, where it's not unusual to see the firefighters open the big doors and pull chairs up to the sidewalk in warm weather.
"I see them out there all the time, they're always there," Miller said.
He recalled falling for a prank in front of the firehouse one day.
"I remember I was walking by, and I see a five- or ten-dollar bill on the ground. I set all my stuff down, and I reach down to grab it, and it zips right by. And I look up, and I see they pulled it away - it was connected to a piece of clear wire. They're all right inside the station, and they were laughing."
At Il Mondo Pizzeria on the corner of Huntington Avenue and Smith Street, Shukri Ighrayev said he felt sadness.
"They were doing their jobs," he said. "I'm here - I make pizza. I'm in no danger."
Twenty-three-year-old Siobhan Soucie, who lives near the scene of the crash on Mission Hill, said she got to know the firefighters at the Huntington Avenue station walking home when she was a student at Northeastern. Yesterday, she brought a bouquet of flowers, wrapped in pink, green, and orange tissue paper to leave with the others piled in front of the station.
"I think they're a bunch of great guys," she said. "You feel safer 'cause they're around."
*********************************
Note - If you are going to make an asshat comment about the BFD union, or possible causes of this accident.....or worse, assess blame, don't bother. I will not publish any comment in this post that I feel is inappropriate. You want to exercise your free speech, drop me an email and I'll open a post for you. But not in this one.
Adding Cinnamon
Have I ever told you about the crazy shit I take? No, I don't mean the Revlimid. I mean the vitamins, etc.
When I was being good and Atkins-ing, I took a multivitamin and a super-B and biotin. I had read biotin helped people on low carb diets or people who didn't process carbs correctly.
So then I go to the physical in June and she tells me that I am completely vitamin D deficient. So, she puts me on a prescription strength D for a while and when that's finished I am advised to take 1000 mg of D per day.
Then came the MM DX and based on input from doctors and what I have read I added some stuff.
Biotin - 1000 mcg
Ester-C - 500 mg with 55 mg calcium
(2) "D" - 2000 IU each
multi-vitamin
"E" - 400 IU
"B" super complex - that's the one Jen and I both notice if we miss it for any amount of time, we feel sluggish
alpha lipoic acid - 200 mg - this is supposed to help with neuropathy which my meds can cause.
Magnesium - 250 mg - Dr. Miller recommended this for leg cramps
Plus generic Prilosec for heartburn.....they were all peeved with my use of Rolaids, too much calcium.
Low dose aspirin for the CVTs and PEs I could be at risk for.
Now I am adding 1000 mg of Cinnamon.
I thought about germanium based on some stuff someone sent me, but Memorial Sloan Kettering says don't, so I won't.
And maybe something called Resveratrol, it's got grape seed extract....can't hurt.
It's probably just voodoo....but what the hell.
25 mg Revlimid81 mg LD aspirin
When I was being good and Atkins-ing, I took a multivitamin and a super-B and biotin. I had read biotin helped people on low carb diets or people who didn't process carbs correctly.
So then I go to the physical in June and she tells me that I am completely vitamin D deficient. So, she puts me on a prescription strength D for a while and when that's finished I am advised to take 1000 mg of D per day.
Then came the MM DX and based on input from doctors and what I have read I added some stuff.
Biotin - 1000 mcg
Ester-C - 500 mg with 55 mg calcium
(2) "D" - 2000 IU each
multi-vitamin
"E" - 400 IU
"B" super complex - that's the one Jen and I both notice if we miss it for any amount of time, we feel sluggish
alpha lipoic acid - 200 mg - this is supposed to help with neuropathy which my meds can cause.
Magnesium - 250 mg - Dr. Miller recommended this for leg cramps
Plus generic Prilosec for heartburn.....they were all peeved with my use of Rolaids, too much calcium.
Low dose aspirin for the CVTs and PEs I could be at risk for.
Now I am adding 1000 mg of Cinnamon.
I thought about germanium based on some stuff someone sent me, but Memorial Sloan Kettering says don't, so I won't.
And maybe something called Resveratrol, it's got grape seed extract....can't hurt.
It's probably just voodoo....but what the hell.
25 mg Revlimid81 mg LD aspirin
My Two Cents
At Key Moment, Diverse G.O.P. Leadership Choice
WASHINGTON — As the nation is on the verge of inaugurating its first black president, the Republican Party is facing a telling choice: whether to elect its first black chairman.
The contest for Republican Party chairman comes as Republican leaders seek to figure out what the party stands for, as well as what face to put forward as they struggle to avoid shrinking into a party of Southern white men in an increasingly diverse country.
The six candidates are four white men, including two from the South, and two black men: Michael Steele, the former lieutenant governor of Maryland, and J. Kenneth Blackwell, the former Ohio secretary of state.
******************************
J. Kenneth Blackwell, the former Ohio secretary of state. - unfairly tainted by election fraud questions. I know it's unfair, but that's life.
Michael Steele, the former lieutenant governor of Maryland - here's the one I want.
Katon Dawson, the South Carolina Republican chairman - poor judgement
Chip Saltsman, the Tennessee party chairman - poor judgement
Saul Anuzis, the Michigan chairman - no name recognition, not even from me
Mike Duncan, incumbent - not for nothing, but Mike Duncan presided over a losing team.
I am not just picking the least unappealing. I like Steele. I like what he has to say and how he says it.
Besides Michael Steele likes puppies.....you can't overestimate that demographic, can you?
WASHINGTON — As the nation is on the verge of inaugurating its first black president, the Republican Party is facing a telling choice: whether to elect its first black chairman.
The contest for Republican Party chairman comes as Republican leaders seek to figure out what the party stands for, as well as what face to put forward as they struggle to avoid shrinking into a party of Southern white men in an increasingly diverse country.
The six candidates are four white men, including two from the South, and two black men: Michael Steele, the former lieutenant governor of Maryland, and J. Kenneth Blackwell, the former Ohio secretary of state.
******************************
J. Kenneth Blackwell, the former Ohio secretary of state. - unfairly tainted by election fraud questions. I know it's unfair, but that's life.
Michael Steele, the former lieutenant governor of Maryland - here's the one I want.
Katon Dawson, the South Carolina Republican chairman - poor judgement
Chip Saltsman, the Tennessee party chairman - poor judgement
Saul Anuzis, the Michigan chairman - no name recognition, not even from me
Mike Duncan, incumbent - not for nothing, but Mike Duncan presided over a losing team.
I am not just picking the least unappealing. I like Steele. I like what he has to say and how he says it.
Besides Michael Steele likes puppies.....you can't overestimate that demographic, can you?
Yet Another Reason To Delay A Stem Cell Transplant
Like I wasn't already on the fence.
Research shows cell's inactive state is critical for effectiveness of cancer treatment
The basic thrust of the story is that research at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center has uncovered a possible pathway toward maintaining a cell's quiescence.
Why is that important?
Quiescence is a state that allows bone marrow cells to escape the lethal effects of standard cancer treatments.
Sounds like a leg up to me.
It also sounds like I have more reading and thinking to do.
Research shows cell's inactive state is critical for effectiveness of cancer treatment
The basic thrust of the story is that research at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center has uncovered a possible pathway toward maintaining a cell's quiescence.
Why is that important?
Quiescence is a state that allows bone marrow cells to escape the lethal effects of standard cancer treatments.
Sounds like a leg up to me.
It also sounds like I have more reading and thinking to do.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
"24"
Jen & I are excited.
"24" is back in boop, boop, boop, less than 24 hours, lol.
The vid is old because season 7 was delayed, but it's still the story line.
This is a vid from the Fox website.
Fox's official "24" website has a countdown clock. I wish I were more tech savvy, I would put it over here.
"24" is part of my *before* life. I associate it with the gym - as in dashing home or to Jen's from the gym to watch. I associate it with blogging - I mean the kind where I write about stuff other than my illness..........and all my whining.
When Jen and I were shopping today we picked up "24" viewing party stuff. LOL We went to Sam's Club with my company's card. We spent an ungodly amount of money. But we had to. We are finally in synch and ready to go back on Atkins Monday. And putting in the effort to go to Sam's Club and Walmart saved us a ton of money. Have to be careful with the do-re-mi. It never works when we aren't together. We also hit Walmart, so we don't have to go shopping for weeks! We discussed "24" in the checkout line and Jen mentioned being disappointed in last year's story. I asked if she meant to actual series or the movie "Redemption". She made a dismissive gesture and said Jack hadn't killed enough people in "Redemption" (we are quite bloodthirsty). Plus she didn't believe the Irish guy was "Special Forces". She doesn't think he is a worthy contemporary of Jack's. Plus he isn't actually Irish, lol.
"Oh, come one, he killed plenty!"
The cocked eyebrow and the evil smile "Plenty? Like Good-n-Plenty?" I burst out laughing. "Because that would be a lot if it was Good-n-Plenty."
"Come on! Jack killed that guy with his thighs after they burnt his face! You see there's quantity and there's quality." She was laughing at me, so I couldn't look at her while I was making my argument. LOL But it was a solid argument! If you don't believe me, see 1:23 of this YouTube vid.
Blogs.4Bauer rated the episode at "Final Kill Counter Update = 17 points (14 kills, 3 Dammits)"
That's another thing I miss, Blogs.4Bauer. Lot's of good stuff there.
It will be a fun weekend....but starting Monday it's meat, meat, meat and the gym.
Until Monday though.........it's Jack and Tony (Jen is soooo upset he is "dark") and M&Ms and pasta. The standard "carb coma".
Good good guys, good bad guys.........it's probably too much to hope for that SecDef Heller shows up, huh?
"24" is back in boop, boop, boop, less than 24 hours, lol.
The vid is old because season 7 was delayed, but it's still the story line.
This is a vid from the Fox website.
Fox's official "24" website has a countdown clock. I wish I were more tech savvy, I would put it over here.
"24" is part of my *before* life. I associate it with the gym - as in dashing home or to Jen's from the gym to watch. I associate it with blogging - I mean the kind where I write about stuff other than my illness..........and all my whining.
When Jen and I were shopping today we picked up "24" viewing party stuff. LOL We went to Sam's Club with my company's card. We spent an ungodly amount of money. But we had to. We are finally in synch and ready to go back on Atkins Monday. And putting in the effort to go to Sam's Club and Walmart saved us a ton of money. Have to be careful with the do-re-mi. It never works when we aren't together. We also hit Walmart, so we don't have to go shopping for weeks! We discussed "24" in the checkout line and Jen mentioned being disappointed in last year's story. I asked if she meant to actual series or the movie "Redemption". She made a dismissive gesture and said Jack hadn't killed enough people in "Redemption" (we are quite bloodthirsty). Plus she didn't believe the Irish guy was "Special Forces". She doesn't think he is a worthy contemporary of Jack's. Plus he isn't actually Irish, lol.
"Oh, come one, he killed plenty!"
The cocked eyebrow and the evil smile "Plenty? Like Good-n-Plenty?" I burst out laughing. "Because that would be a lot if it was Good-n-Plenty."
"Come on! Jack killed that guy with his thighs after they burnt his face! You see there's quantity and there's quality." She was laughing at me, so I couldn't look at her while I was making my argument. LOL But it was a solid argument! If you don't believe me, see 1:23 of this YouTube vid.
Blogs.4Bauer rated the episode at "Final Kill Counter Update = 17 points (14 kills, 3 Dammits)"
That's another thing I miss, Blogs.4Bauer. Lot's of good stuff there.
It will be a fun weekend....but starting Monday it's meat, meat, meat and the gym.
Until Monday though.........it's Jack and Tony (Jen is soooo upset he is "dark") and M&Ms and pasta. The standard "carb coma".
Good good guys, good bad guys.........it's probably too much to hope for that SecDef Heller shows up, huh?
The 2008 Weblog Awards
****UPDATE - I forgot "Best New Blog"......BostonSoul!!!!!******
I have been remiss in not posting this earlier.
There are several categories, here are my picks. (I have been voting, so I am not a total slacker).
You can vote once a day from each computer you have access to.
The Armorer is a contender for "Best Midsize Blog". Please follow the link and vote for "Argghhh!".
Bubblehead is a contender for "Best Up and Coming Blog". Please follow the link and vote for "The Stupid Shall Be Punished".
"Best Military Blog" has several entrants that I read......it was tough......but I am going for "The War On Big Tobacco".
Then we branch out to "Best Canadian Blog" and vote for "The Torch".
Thank you for your support.
I have been remiss in not posting this earlier.
There are several categories, here are my picks. (I have been voting, so I am not a total slacker).
You can vote once a day from each computer you have access to.
The Armorer is a contender for "Best Midsize Blog". Please follow the link and vote for "Argghhh!".
Bubblehead is a contender for "Best Up and Coming Blog". Please follow the link and vote for "The Stupid Shall Be Punished".
"Best Military Blog" has several entrants that I read......it was tough......but I am going for "The War On Big Tobacco".
Then we branch out to "Best Canadian Blog" and vote for "The Torch".
Thank you for your support.
I've Not Been Completely Useless
I've actually been keeping up with one NYR.
Lia from HomeFront Six came up with this.
Footprints in the Sand
We are going to read the Bible in a year.
I did this a long time ago when Frankie was a baby. You couldn't put him down for anything. I can see now indulging that quirk has set me up for a lifetime of nonsense, but at the time......
Anyway, I spent many evenings on the couch, Frankie dozing on my chest and me, reading the Bible.
I told someone I was doing this and they said "Where are you going to buy a Bible and how you can be sure it's for Catholics?"
"Hello? I own a Bible, thank you very much."
"Oh. How are you going to find it in your house?" The renovation continues to cause much chaos and I wasn't that organized before it began.
"It's in the bookcase, top shelf. I have always been able to put my hands right on it." It's a little misshapen. I stick stuff in it. Prayer cards. Notes from Father Mahoney. There are flowers from Mama Kelley's funeral and from Marie's (my mother-in-law, a lovely woman), etc. So I have to hold it carefully.
Anyway, I've been keeping up.
Lia from HomeFront Six came up with this.
Footprints in the Sand
We are going to read the Bible in a year.
I did this a long time ago when Frankie was a baby. You couldn't put him down for anything. I can see now indulging that quirk has set me up for a lifetime of nonsense, but at the time......
Anyway, I spent many evenings on the couch, Frankie dozing on my chest and me, reading the Bible.
I told someone I was doing this and they said "Where are you going to buy a Bible and how you can be sure it's for Catholics?"
"Hello? I own a Bible, thank you very much."
"Oh. How are you going to find it in your house?" The renovation continues to cause much chaos and I wasn't that organized before it began.
"It's in the bookcase, top shelf. I have always been able to put my hands right on it." It's a little misshapen. I stick stuff in it. Prayer cards. Notes from Father Mahoney. There are flowers from Mama Kelley's funeral and from Marie's (my mother-in-law, a lovely woman), etc. So I have to hold it carefully.
Anyway, I've been keeping up.
Mark Steyn Slays Me
I always get a giggle from this guy. Love how his mind works!
Nuts [Mark Steyn]
In The Los Angeles Times, Joel Stein pooh-poohs mass peanut hysteria:
01/10 09:55 AM
Nuts [Mark Steyn]
In The Los Angeles Times, Joel Stein pooh-poohs mass peanut hysteria:
Indeed. They've got real nuts that really are trying to kill them. Speaking of which, this snippet from Gaza in The New York Times gets to the heart of the matter:We did agree that it is strange how peanut allergies are only an issue in rich, lefty communities.
"We don't see this problem much in African American or poor communities. So there's something going on here. We don't see them in Ecuador and Guatemala," Christakis said.
A study of Jews of similar demographics and genetics in Britain and Israel found that British kids were 10 times more likely to have peanut allergies than Israelis. That's probably because Israeli kids have other things to be afraid of.
Hamas is a mental illness masquerading as a nationalist movement. When I was at Gitmo a couple of years back, one of the most philosophically interesting moments came during a conversation with the camp's mental health doctors on how you tell when a suicide bomber is feeling depressed.“Why are you so happy?” this reporter asked. “Look around you.”
A girl who looked about 18 screamed as a surgeon removed shrapnel from her leg. An elderly man was soaked in blood. A baby a few weeks old and slightly wounded looked around helplessly. A man lay with parts of his brain
coming out. His family wailed at his side.“Don’t you see that these people are hurting?” the militant was asked.
“But I am from the people, too,” he said, his smile incandescent. “They lost their loved ones as martyrs. They should be happy. I want to be a martyr, too.”
01/10 09:55 AM
Unwarranted
****UPDATE - This story is being discussed many places. One aspect is in this post over at CDR Salamander's place.*****
The Navy occassionally names ships after people who are still living.
If they warrant such an honor.
For example, former President George H. W. Bush. (See post below.)
However, the ridiculous proposal being discussed at the Phibian's place has me steamed.
Bubblehead is discussing it too.
And Galrahn.
Navy Names Virginia Class Submarine USS John Warner
This is wrong.
Wrong.
Wrong.
I don't give a fat rat's ass what Mr. Elizabeth Taylor (h/t Mike, Phib's emailer) has done over the years. He negated any possible good he may have done with his poor treatment of CDR Lippold.
That's right........I hold a grudge.
So?
The Navy occassionally names ships after people who are still living.
If they warrant such an honor.
For example, former President George H. W. Bush. (See post below.)
However, the ridiculous proposal being discussed at the Phibian's place has me steamed.
Bubblehead is discussing it too.
And Galrahn.
Navy Names Virginia Class Submarine USS John Warner
This is wrong.
Wrong.
Wrong.
I don't give a fat rat's ass what Mr. Elizabeth Taylor (h/t Mike, Phib's emailer) has done over the years. He negated any possible good he may have done with his poor treatment of CDR Lippold.
That's right........I hold a grudge.
So?
USS George H. W. Bush CVN 77
Today the USS George H. W. Bush was commissioned. NORFOLK, Va. — It's the perfect gift for an old Navy flier: 1,092 feet of flattop.
"What do you give a guy who has been blessed and has just about everything he has ever needed?" asked President George W. Bush from aboard the Navy's newest ship. "Well, an aircraft carrier."
The USS George H.W. Bush, a steel-gray vessel longer than three football fields and built at a cost of $6.2 billion, was commissioned Saturday with its namesake, the 41st president, and other members of the Bush family on hand for the ceremonies at Naval Station Norfolk.
Adorned for the day with red, white and blue bunting, the USS George H.W. Bush is one of the Nimitz class of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, the largest warships in the world.
"The ship that bears our dad's name is more than 95,000 tons of aluminum and steel," Bush said from a podium tucked under the flight deck. "She will carry nearly 6,000 of the finest sailors and Marines in the world. She represents the craftsmanship of many skilled builders, and thousands of hours of preparation."
"What do you give a guy who has been blessed and has just about everything he has ever needed?" asked President George W. Bush from aboard the Navy's newest ship. "Well, an aircraft carrier."
The USS George H.W. Bush, a steel-gray vessel longer than three football fields and built at a cost of $6.2 billion, was commissioned Saturday with its namesake, the 41st president, and other members of the Bush family on hand for the ceremonies at Naval Station Norfolk.
Adorned for the day with red, white and blue bunting, the USS George H.W. Bush is one of the Nimitz class of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, the largest warships in the world.
"The ship that bears our dad's name is more than 95,000 tons of aluminum and steel," Bush said from a podium tucked under the flight deck. "She will carry nearly 6,000 of the finest sailors and Marines in the world. She represents the craftsmanship of many skilled builders, and thousands of hours of preparation."
Read the rest here.
My favortie line came from the christening back in '06.
“She is unrelenting, she is unshakable, she is unyielding, she is unstoppable,” Bush said, lauding the warship’s state-of-the-art design before pausing for a punch line aimed at his mother’s well-known steely constitution. “As a matter of fact, probably should have been named the Barbara Bush.”
Here is video of the former President touring the ship.
Congratulations to former President Bush and I wish fair winds and following seas to her crew.
Godspeed Captain O'Flaherty!
Friday, January 09, 2009
Sorry For Not Posting
At the suggestion of a commenter I joined the ACOR - Association of Cancer Online resources.
In specific, the Multiple Myeloma listserv.
It's been like drinking out of a fire hose.
Things are rolling.
My biggest laugh was last night during Jeopardy. The category was abstract art. I was getting my ass kicked when they put up a picture. It was nothing more than a black canvas in a frame. It's supposedly something famous.
Jen was crying laughing, which set me off. She was gasping that she would have paid anything to be at the opening and saying to people "Do you see it?"
We are so gauche!
In specific, the Multiple Myeloma listserv.
It's been like drinking out of a fire hose.
Things are rolling.
My biggest laugh was last night during Jeopardy. The category was abstract art. I was getting my ass kicked when they put up a picture. It was nothing more than a black canvas in a frame. It's supposedly something famous.
Jen was crying laughing, which set me off. She was gasping that she would have paid anything to be at the opening and saying to people "Do you see it?"
We are so gauche!
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Crazy Traffic Last Night
So I liked "Seven Pounds" so much I wanted to take my mother. Grace said she and the girls were going to see it Tuesday night. Perfect! Jen and I would pick our mother up and meet her there.
Jen and I got a late start leaving home, instead of 5 pm we left at 5:30 (for a 6:50 show in Revere), so we called Grace and asked her to get Mum. No problem.
Then we ran into heavy traffic heading into the city. We weren't too worried, this usually clears up before the Liberty tunnel....after six....on a Tuesday. But instead, it kept getting worse. We were baffled.
Finally there was one clue. Signs said they had the Mystic River bridge down to one lane. We thought that was stupid to start such construction so early in the evening, but we'd just go 16 or 60. But those were no better. 93 was total stop and go, it took us forever to get off at Sullivan. We could see the lanes winding down to get into the Mystic and they were packed.
Then we get a text from Debbie asking where we are. We told her Sullivan and she said they were in City Square....behind us!
"Don't get on the bridge!" LOL
I made an executive decision. "Turn around, go back to Papa's. I'll order pizza."
So we hung out at our parent's house instead. We always have fun together.
When Jen and I headed home two hours later, the Mystic River bridge onramps were still jammed. Glad we were headed the other way.
Jen still wanted to see a movie, so we went to "The Day The Earth Stood Still"
Ehh. That Reeves kid is no Michael Rennie. "You will forgive me if I speak bluntly."
Plus you can't beat that creepy music in the original.
Klaatu barada nikto.
Jen and I got a late start leaving home, instead of 5 pm we left at 5:30 (for a 6:50 show in Revere), so we called Grace and asked her to get Mum. No problem.
Then we ran into heavy traffic heading into the city. We weren't too worried, this usually clears up before the Liberty tunnel....after six....on a Tuesday. But instead, it kept getting worse. We were baffled.
Finally there was one clue. Signs said they had the Mystic River bridge down to one lane. We thought that was stupid to start such construction so early in the evening, but we'd just go 16 or 60. But those were no better. 93 was total stop and go, it took us forever to get off at Sullivan. We could see the lanes winding down to get into the Mystic and they were packed.
Then we get a text from Debbie asking where we are. We told her Sullivan and she said they were in City Square....behind us!
"Don't get on the bridge!" LOL
I made an executive decision. "Turn around, go back to Papa's. I'll order pizza."
So we hung out at our parent's house instead. We always have fun together.
When Jen and I headed home two hours later, the Mystic River bridge onramps were still jammed. Glad we were headed the other way.
Jen still wanted to see a movie, so we went to "The Day The Earth Stood Still"
Ehh. That Reeves kid is no Michael Rennie. "You will forgive me if I speak bluntly."
Plus you can't beat that creepy music in the original.
Klaatu barada nikto.
Monday, January 05, 2009
So Far...So Good!
I didn't actually go to sleep until 0500 this morning, but I slept until 1300.
I felt great!
The tremor was crazy, but who cares?
I worked. I had dinner with Jen. I frosted the crazy cake.
It was all good.
I felt great!
The tremor was crazy, but who cares?
I worked. I had dinner with Jen. I frosted the crazy cake.
It was all good.
I Took A Pill At Midnight
Now it's 0145.
It's steroid day and they upped it to 40mg, which is where I started.
Should I take another?
I am wired for sound.
It's steroid day and they upped it to 40mg, which is where I started.
Should I take another?
I am wired for sound.
The Cake Is Cursed!
I haven't had this much trouble with a cake in forever.
Wait, I haven't baked a cake from scratch in forever.
Anyway.....
Jen was home. I got the mixer. I made dinner for the boys. Frankie was a little nervous and asked me why I was cooking so much. I laughed and looked at him quizzically. Then it hit me, the last time I cooked this much was when my neighbor was dying a few months ago.
"Frankie, everyone is ok."
"Cool"
He went back to the game.
After dinner I called Jen to see if she would cook the cake. The one thing I am just really awful at is timing. I have stood right in front of the oven and still burned cookies. Of course it could have something to do with the fact that I was standing there reading a book.....
Anyway, I put the plastic lid on the pyrex mixing bowl full of batter and drove the 750 feet - I know I usually say 400 feet, but I actually counted the house lots between us the other day. Turns out it's 750 feet - I'm also bad at estimating distance. When I got there I looked down and the lid was loose. Cake batter all over the seat. I grabbed my gym bag and pulled out a T-shirt "Matty - Paratrooper of Love! (BTW, go read this post - I thought it rocked! It's really from Huffington Post, but I'd rather send you through Matty. Although....you should read the whole thing.....well use your best judgement, it really is a compelling answer to the foolish "disproportionate response" blather. Which, BTW, Juan Williams slipped into the panel discussion on Fox News Sunday this morning. Every time I hear it, I want to tear my hair out! Usually I am alone in the car and I start screaming and ranting like a lunatic.) and tried to sop it up. It was all over the seat and the book I am reading.
Guess I will have to buy my mother another copy of "The Given Day" - which I absolutely love!
Wait, I haven't baked a cake from scratch in forever.
Anyway.....
Jen was home. I got the mixer. I made dinner for the boys. Frankie was a little nervous and asked me why I was cooking so much. I laughed and looked at him quizzically. Then it hit me, the last time I cooked this much was when my neighbor was dying a few months ago.
"Frankie, everyone is ok."
"Cool"
He went back to the game.
After dinner I called Jen to see if she would cook the cake. The one thing I am just really awful at is timing. I have stood right in front of the oven and still burned cookies. Of course it could have something to do with the fact that I was standing there reading a book.....
Anyway, I put the plastic lid on the pyrex mixing bowl full of batter and drove the 750 feet - I know I usually say 400 feet, but I actually counted the house lots between us the other day. Turns out it's 750 feet - I'm also bad at estimating distance. When I got there I looked down and the lid was loose. Cake batter all over the seat. I grabbed my gym bag and pulled out a T-shirt "Matty - Paratrooper of Love! (BTW, go read this post - I thought it rocked! It's really from Huffington Post, but I'd rather send you through Matty. Although....you should read the whole thing.....well use your best judgement, it really is a compelling answer to the foolish "disproportionate response" blather. Which, BTW, Juan Williams slipped into the panel discussion on Fox News Sunday this morning. Every time I hear it, I want to tear my hair out! Usually I am alone in the car and I start screaming and ranting like a lunatic.) and tried to sop it up. It was all over the seat and the book I am reading.
Guess I will have to buy my mother another copy of "The Given Day" - which I absolutely love!
Sunday, January 04, 2009
Is The Cake Not Meant To Be?
I put in too much sugar.
Ok, we'll just adjust the rest of the ingredients and there will be cupcakes too.
I fried the handmixer.....well Bill and I fried the handmixer, lol. My wrist was getting tired, so Bill was standing there just drinking a beer during a break in the Celtics game. I handed him the mixer.
"Is it supposed to be this hot?"
"No, stop and let it cool."
Too late.
It wasn't the real handmixer. I can't find that. So I was using the pulse/shake mixer. You know me....."inappropriate and unprepared"......it says so under my name at the top.
I called down to Jen's. She's not home.
Good thing I have keys, lol.
Do I need a ski mask and a black turtleneck for this mission?
Ok, we'll just adjust the rest of the ingredients and there will be cupcakes too.
I fried the handmixer.....well Bill and I fried the handmixer, lol. My wrist was getting tired, so Bill was standing there just drinking a beer during a break in the Celtics game. I handed him the mixer.
"Is it supposed to be this hot?"
"No, stop and let it cool."
Too late.
It wasn't the real handmixer. I can't find that. So I was using the pulse/shake mixer. You know me....."inappropriate and unprepared"......it says so under my name at the top.
I called down to Jen's. She's not home.
Good thing I have keys, lol.
Do I need a ski mask and a black turtleneck for this mission?
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