tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62188893488331777002024-03-08T02:00:11.124-08:00CuZev - Copper Wulff Cassi Creek Seasonsslenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.comBlogger1712125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-70473069051106428272015-07-15T19:09:00.002-07:002015-07-15T19:09:52.624-07:005 July 2015 Hike with Mike finale<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
1</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The months from March to July have
been heavily weighted toward the hope of acquiring a new neurologist
to help me manage Parkinson's. The contract neurologist at moutain
home quit providing consultant services and the VA's back up (hiring
outside physicians and paying for vets to be see) kicked in. Highly
unsatisfactory. I arrived at the appropriate office, already a month
behind schedule and needing new scripts for my meds. What I got for
VA's money was a referral to a university clinic 5 hours distant that
would not see me until next January. I tried to tell him that I
could not schedule the appointment – VA has to approve that
expense. He told me to come see him after I was seen in the
Vanderbilt clinic.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I wasted no time in contacting my
primary care doc. I am not about to let some LMD throw me into a
university clinic that would take a year to repeat a diagnosis and
then lose my records in their system. I hope I've opened a shit
storm over this. If not, I fully intend to. VA has its own movement
disorder consortium and I can telemed that clinic. We'll see what
happens.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Tremendous fatigue has set in, paire
with sleep ditsturbance. Makes it hard to anything some days and
difficult on many others</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
My daily hikes with my down stream
neighbor, Mike, have ended. We set out as usual about 0900 last
wednesday, 8 july. 0.3 miles down the road he simply fell over
backwards, no pulse, no respirations, no motion, no words. I was
about 3 steps in front of him when I eard the noise his head made
when it hit the pavement. Complicating the scene, it was at a sharp
curve in the road and the side we were on was overgrown with weeds so
that remaining where he fell would have put us both under the wheels
of the first vehicle coming our way.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I managed to flag a car, get the
driver to drive to a point with cell service and call 911. The she
flagged traffic. I did the first response things, airway,
pre-cordial thump. Nothing worked. He was dead when he fell over.
EMS arrive in about 10-14 minutes and lined and shocked him before
tranporting him 28 miles to Johnson City. He was pronounced there.
I had one contact number for his business partner. Called that
number and intiated the cascade. Memorial service Saturday</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Rather a bummer of a week.</div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-13350316331381948862015-03-24T13:48:00.002-07:002015-03-24T13:48:49.749-07:0024 March 2015 Rich sound<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The latest iteration of hearing aids
is now in. The part of the case inside the ear canal is gold plated.
This is in hope that I will be able to wear them without the plastic
case will not irritate my ears.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Of course, the technicians who clean
and tepair audiology aids immediately dubbed me “gold ear.”
Can't blame them for the nickname. I'd have hung something similar
on someone else if they met the criteria. Have to admit that this is
a great opening for creating a new “James Bond” film title &/or
villain for said movie.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Have at it friends.
</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-27826203795227413602015-03-21T10:40:00.002-07:002015-03-21T10:40:20.159-07:0021 March 2015 67 and still kicking<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I've received quite a few messages
wishing me a happy birthday. In an effort to thank everyone, I'm
taking this route and posting this note.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
To family members, thanks for all the
support. It's nice to have you in my world.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Further, to all my FB friends, fishing
friends, and those who flesh out surprisngly diverse intersecting
groups of people who I share opinions or disagreements with, thank
you each. There is room to fish with friends on our stretch of
Cassi Creek.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
To my Compendium friends, I cherish the
longevity of this group and look forward to keeping on truckin' down
the road with you. This has been one of the longest associations of
people in my existance. Truly an amazing group of friends and
compatriots. I may be markedly slowed by Parkinson's, but the music
makes a major difference in my desire to keep listening.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I find that I need more time to read
various posts, articles, etc. now. The time it takes to respond is
also lengthened. I'm not ignoring or avoiding the world beyond my
computer, just requiring longer to compose and proof every thing I
write.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Discovered this past week that the
claim for VA benefits I filed via the local TN veteran's service
agency was improperly filed and somehow vanished into thin air. So
Monday will begin a new claim process based upon the increasing
severity of my particular brand of Parkinson's. It seems that the
consultant who contracted with VA for neurology services did not
document the progression of my symptoms, leaving that to a
progression of residents, none of whom ever saw me more than once as
they rotated through the neurology service. The contract consultant
has left VA and I must now begin again with another physcian who
practices in Kingsport. This is going to involve arguing with VA
about mileage compensation.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
That's all the outgoing traffic for
today. Thanks, stay well, keep dancing!</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-72651507460287768342014-12-22T12:03:00.002-08:002014-12-22T12:03:05.860-08:0022 December 2014 Norma Jean Baty RN<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Following a
14 year battle against follicular cell non-Hodgkins lymphoma, she succumbed
this morning to a malignancy that has no cure.
She’s already written her own obituary,
I can’t top that and won’t try. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Her nursing
career stretched 50 years, beginning during WWII. She completed over 10,000 hours as a hospital
volunteer after retiring from nursing. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
We’ll miss
her. </div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-37540870518222017902014-11-11T10:03:00.002-08:002014-11-11T10:03:12.992-08:0011 November 2014 And the guns fell silent; if only for a brief moment<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There’s
always supposed to be a formal time and date to cease hostilities between
opposing forces. There’s always supposed
to be a treat or formalized agreement signed by dignitaries who know that the
life span of that document will be somewhat less than the time required for all
signers to travel home. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are
always changes in borders defining which combatants now control which bits of
terrain, unless one combatant happens to be Israel. Of course, many of the problems in today’s
middle eastern wars stem from the final actions of the allies as WWI ended and
the old empires were carved up and handed around as bonuses to the Allies who defeated the Central Powers.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
WWI ended
with the loss of millions of soldiers as the methods of slaughter were improved
by industrial design. The battle field
became more lethal than anyone could have imagined but the use of maneuver
units remained based upon methods dating back to the earliest recorded
conflicts. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
WWII followed
on quickly as the technology of mass murder evolved into methods of killing
that were truly apocalyptic in efficiency and hellish in nature. As always, WWII ended with the declaration
that future wars would now be impossible, as no people or nation wished to
bring about so much death and horror into the world. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We rapidly
discovered that such hopes had no foundation in reality. We’ve failed to enjoy a decade that was not
marked by wars in some manner. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There’s no
reason to believe that the future will be any less brutal. We’re ramping up to recycle the war in
Iraq. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There have
always been the thin red line, the long gray line, historic combat units
tracing their histories back to some war, some land seizure, some national
insult, religious intolerance, or any other event that one can imagine. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’ve played
my part in this eternal game. I’m among
the luckier participants. I left the
game with all the moving parts intact.
The injuries I received were less visible and less audible. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Today,
Veteran’s day, remembrance day, what ever name you know it by, once again
honors the fallen and advances that slight hope that the next time we hear the
guns fall silent, they will truly remain silent. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-36779292655104876662014-11-07T12:46:00.001-08:002014-11-07T12:46:34.289-08:007 November 2014 Though it isn’t really war, we’re sending 1500 more<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The news today is infuriating. We are now committing another 1500 of our men
and women in uniform to the false hope and unreachable goal of building an
Iraqi army that won’t desert of turncoat on the field of battle. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We’ve spent
billions on this task during the Bush/Cheney invasion of Iraq. We’re no planning to spend 5 billions more as
the Obama gang tries to prop up a tottering façade of a nation and its armed
forces. With the GOP slated to take over
Congress, we’ll spend the dollars to
continue our role in sucking petro bucks out of Iraq and into the offshore
accounts of the energy barons of the 1%.
Those are the dollars that were supposed to pay for the Bush/Cheney
invasion of Iraq. Remember? Those are the same bucks that vanished by the
shrink wrapped pallet every time another smoke screen obscured vision and a
neo-con bag of bull shit filled the fans of Fox News.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Though it isn’t really war, we’re sending 50,000 more to
help save VietNam from Vietnames.” Tom
Paxton. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Only a short effort to update Paxton’s lyric - “Thoug h it isn’t really war we’re sending
1500 more to try to save Iran from
Iraqis.}</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTyqoV1d2Ys</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Today is the
anniversary 97<sup>th</sup> of the Great October Revolution. Fittingly, it is also the birthday of Lev
Davidovitch Bronstein (later Leon Trotsky – father of the Red Army.) Where is he now that we really need him?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-4865661157624694012014-10-17T14:03:00.002-07:002014-10-17T14:03:26.642-07:0017 October 2014 Congress demands Ebola action<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We now know
of three cases of Ebola that were diagnosed in thes Unites States. One was a visitor from Africa. The other two are nurses who worked with th
primary patient. 300, 000,000 Americans
are now panicking about a disease that they will most likely never
acquire. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Congress,
guardians of the people, so they say, has been stumbling all over itself to
make it appear that they are doing something to provide for the health and well
being of Americans. They held a high
profile, televise conference yesterday whit each member asking essentially the
same questions that they failed to listen to as the various agency doctors
tried to answer. It was apparent that
the elected, exalted members had no ghost of an idea about virology,
epidemiology, logistics as related to delivering health care, or a host of
other things that determine whether or not we can properly diagnose and treat a
virulent hemorrhagic fever caused by a virus that has a very high mortality
rate. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Over the last
decade, Congress has refused to adequately fund CDC, NIH, and other research
treatment facilities and program. They
spent much time insisting that we should have a single medical person
overseeing and guiding the various effots to handle a potential Ebola outbreak
similar in nature to the Spanish influenza that followed WWI and killed millions. However, Congress still continues to block
the appointment of very highly qualified
candidate for Surgeon General because he made an anti-gun comment. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yesterday,
some of the GOP insisted that Obama should use the National guard to contain
and control ebola patients and ebola quarantined citizens in some sort of
isolation camp. Sound like black
helicopter? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The various
hospitals are more or less prepared but the corporate nature of most of our
hospitals will result in inadequate and dangerous work safety for health care
workers when the MBA goons start buying cheaper, inadequate personal protective
gear for employees to use. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then, of
course, the rumors are bound to
emerge. After all, we’ve already seen
countless claims that Obama is a Kenyan socialist determined to destroy America
and hand it over to Islamic fundamentalists.
Is it, then, so difficult to believe that he might secretly bring in
Islamic terror babies infected with ebola at birth so that Sharia law can
replace our existing laws? After all,
Ebola is an African virus.</div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-12829180998258114532014-10-15T09:17:00.002-07:002014-10-15T09:17:55.481-07:0015 October 2014 blackmail photo<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’ve been
looking for this photograph for a long time.
I recalled its existence but not as many of the details as I
thought. A visit with my mother and
sister, Suzanne, led to an afternoon spent prowling through old photo
albums. This little gem popped out, and
I jumped on it, secured it, and now intend to use it for my own nefarious
purposes. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Every family
seems to generate blackmail photos. I
spent a fair amount of energy avoiding all photography events. On the other hand, my mother has quite a
large collection of photos taken during her high school days and during her
nurses training at Jewish Hospital in St. Louis MO where she was a member of
the Army Cadet Nurse Corps during WWII. Generational
gaps narrow down quite a bit when the younger folks get to see the older ones
when the older ones were younger. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
While I didn’t
discover any blackmail photos, I got to see her as she was when she was young,
single, and in the pipeline for service in a combat theater. That’s somewhat of a unique view, one that we
early Boomers should try to establish for all the families who had members in
similar situations. There’s really not
an equal opportunity for Gen X and Millenials as there is no large national effort
such as WWII that involves the entire populace in a common effort. Korea and VietNam differ due to the smaller
numbers of men and women who wound up in those wars while the nation largely
ignored the troops unless directly related.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I promised
some of my Compendiot friends that I would post this photo if I ever located
it. So, here I was about 1972 along with
older daughter Caitlin. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pI8VF5HtvQg/VD6d2j9JCRI/AAAAAAAACtI/FXY6tmq2FSs/s1600/sl%2Bstriped%2Bpants0001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pI8VF5HtvQg/VD6d2j9JCRI/AAAAAAAACtI/FXY6tmq2FSs/s1600/sl%2Bstriped%2Bpants0001.jpg" height="482" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shapetype
id="_x0000_t75" coordsize="21600,21600" o:spt="75" o:preferrelative="t"
path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" filled="f" stroked="f">
<v:stroke joinstyle="miter"/>
<v:formulas>
<v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0"/>
<v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0"/>
<v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1"/>
<v:f eqn="prod @2 1 2"/>
<v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth"/>
<v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight"/>
<v:f eqn="sum @0 0 1"/>
<v:f eqn="prod @6 1 2"/>
<v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth"/>
<v:f eqn="sum @8 21600 0"/>
<v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight"/>
<v:f eqn="sum @10 21600 0"/>
</v:formulas>
<v:path o:extrusionok="f" gradientshapeok="t" o:connecttype="rect"/>
<o:lock v:ext="edit" aspectratio="t"/>
</v:shapetype><v:shape id="Picture_x0020_0" o:spid="_x0000_i1025" type="#_x0000_t75"
alt="sl striped pants0001.jpg" style='width:398.25pt;height:300.75pt;
visibility:visible;mso-wrap-style:square'>
<v:imagedata src="file:///C:\Users\Stev\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtmlclip1\01\clip_image001.jpg"
o:title="sl striped pants0001"/>
</v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]--></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-65321270632434816002014-10-02T14:39:00.002-07:002014-10-02T14:39:22.065-07:002 October 2014 Xin Loi Dau Tieng<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The mail today included a notice that the Army has rejected
my attempt to have my records corrected to reflect wounds received in August
1969 while serving with the 1<sup>st</sup> Infantry Division in Dau Tieng
VietNam. This effort was refused despite
the description of the event by a former soldier in the same unit. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When I first asked for the record mod in 2002 I had no knowledge that anyone else
could partially corroborate my claim. This
summer I stumbled across a book written by my former comrade in arms. He wrote about the event in a book published
in 2011. I was able to contact him and
he agreed to provide what support he could in reopening the claim. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Since then, I’ve
also made contact with the unit’s former XO.
He remembers me but was not present on site that day. He and I talked by phone and he provided a
lot of information to fill in blanks and illuminate situations. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I intend to
meet with the author sometime before year’s end. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
While my
medical records indicate shrapnel injuries, visible on X-ray, there is no
documentation that I acquired the shrapnel in-country. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’ve no
further reason to pursue the matter any further. </div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-91657849970853271832014-09-13T08:55:00.000-07:002014-09-13T08:55:12.906-07:0013 September 2014 Uncle Sam needs your help again<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Come on all
you big, strong, men; Uncle Sam needs your help again…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So go the opening words of The FISH Song by “Country Joe and
the Fish.” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The song
linking the nature of foreign war with the San Francisco music scene of the
middle 1960’s is indelibly stamped into the gray matter of much of the Boomer
generation. The song was penned by Joe
McDonald, a veteran of the U.S. Navy. I
had committed it to memory before becoming one of those “helping Uncle Sam.” I can still pull up the lyrics and the melody
with no hesitation. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Of course, I
can also easily recall the increasing numbers of troops poured into S. VietNam,
and to the air war over N. VietNam. I,
and thousands of others who had reason to be concerned, watched the presence of
U.S. troops in S. VietNam begin with advisors on the ground to help the S.
Vietnamese build an army that might actually stand a chance of fighting the
Viet Minh ( later Viet Cong) and the PAVN forces that reached southward of the
17<sup>th</sup> parallel. The loss of
advisors led to security forces to protect the advisors. It then became necessary to defend aircraft
on the ground and the troops that had to service the aircraft. In just a short period the number of U.S.
troops had climbed to over 100,000 in country.
By the time I vacationed there, the total sacrificial boots on the
ground exceeded 500,000 pairs. Over
3,000,000 men and women serving in uniform for the U.S. took part in the ground
and air wars that lasted ( for the U.S.) from 1954 – 1973. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Despite the
millions of tons of explosives, napalm, and white phosphorous dropped from the
skies over VietNam and neighboring nations, there was nothing to cause anyone
other than LeMay and his disciples to imagine that a ground war could be won by
air strikes. It didn’t work in Europe
during WWII. It didn’t work in
VietNam. War always comes down to the
level of the infantry unit. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now we are
seeing the same arguments put forward to justify a return to Iraq and
surrounds. Despite more tons of ordnance
delivered by manned and unmanned airframes, ground is still captured and held
by the queen of battle. If we allow ourselves
to be sold another excursion to Iraq with side trips to Syria, we’re only
proving once again that our political leaders have no awareness of U.S.
military history; or that of any other nation. However, ideology is not something that any
number of troops can eliminate. We need
to take another hard look at the cost of our military involvement in the Middle
East, at which companies and which countries benefit from U.S. troops bleeding
and dying, and what sort of effort can be expected and demanded by surrounding
nations. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At least, in
the VietNam, we were smart enough not to step into the same swamp twice. It appears that we are going to make that encore
mistake now. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
"Give me an "F"!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-41788646606759209492014-09-11T11:41:00.002-07:002014-09-11T11:41:37.409-07:0011 September 2014 question of the day where were you<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: #F6F7F8;">At home in Palmetto FL. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: #F6F7F8;">Watching buildings fall,
people die, and the porosity of our borders exposed to a populace that had been
allowed to believe in the inviolable safety of life in the U.S. as compared to
other western nations.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: #F6F7F8;"> At the same time we
were watching the rapid development of TS Gabrielle as it bore down on us. What
normally would have been an around the clock news event in 2001 was mostly
ignored by the media that was repeatedly following every pronouncement to
extinction. The usual flight out of the storm's path that would have jammed the
airlines as the wealthy left their waterfront homes did not take place due to
the national ground stop</span>.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-26770526240450813842014-09-09T10:50:00.002-07:002014-09-09T10:50:29.410-07:009 September 2014 obsolete music media<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Music, specifically genres of music, cycle in and out of
popularity. The mechanism to store and
replay music have their own histories. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The earliest
storage media I have seen/heard, was the cylinders that brought voice to Edison’s
phonograph. They had very limited
capacity and were prone to damage. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Next, in my
awareness at least, were the wax 78 RPM discs, widely recalled as “platters,” “discs,”
and records. These also had limited
storage capacity. They would shatter if
dropped or otherwise allowed to contact hard surfaces. They would deform if they were allowed to
become to warm. They reinforced the 3.0
minute playback format and gave rise to the term “disc jockey.” We have about 15 “78’s” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Spin-offs
from the 78 RPM format gave us the 45 RPM single and the 33 & 1/3 RPM
album. These two products were made of a
vinyl compound, less likely to shatter but still prone to heat damage. We still have about 200 of these “33’s” in
the house. We programmed a two hour live
broadcast using only “33’s” for WMNF radio in Tampa some year back. We currently have a turntable that can play
all of our old wax and vinyl records</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Reel-to-reel
magnetic tape, residing on large reels attracted some tech weenies. Mag tape is limited in durability, easily
damaged by heat, dust, and other insults.
Storage requires a narrow temperature range and low humidity. Tape aficionados quickly learned how to
splice tapes. The tapes became larger in
width, allowing more channels per tape.
Thousands of VietNam veterans bought large reel-to-reel systems at
PACEX, only to discover that the heat and humidity of VietNam, allied with the dust
of the dry season, could eat tapes and decks in a very short time. Many of these systems were handed down to
troops rotating in. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
About this
time, cassette storage began to worm it’s way into the storage market. Automobile audio offerings were the 4 and 8
track cassettes. There is no viable
market for these leftovers. They may
still be seen at the random flea market booth and at some estate auctions. Prone to heat damage, irreparable if broken,
We have none. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The 8 tracks
were replaced by the 2 track cassette recording capable of holding up to 90 minutes
of music/cassette. These were easy to
produce cheap to buy at the lower ends of quality, and were favorites of
concert tapers who used them by the thousands. Somewhat easily spliced if
broken, heat sensitive, the automobile dashboard soon became a home away from
home for commercial record label offerings as well as what came to be called
bootlegs. We have quite a few of these
in the house. Audio quality could be
very high for analog storage. It could
also be dirty and next to unlistenable.
There was a great variance in soundboard feeds and audience tape
quality. We have two tape decks that will work if cleaned and tied into an
amplifier and receiver. Neither vehicle
will play these.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The CD, CD-r.
DVD storage formats appeared next. Cheap
to manufacture, heat sensitive,
originally thought to be a cleaner form of digital storage and replay compared
to analog sources, the CD’s were later discovered to degrade with time. Again, we have many around the house. The recently traded Pathfinder contained both
a cassette deck and a multi-disc CD player.
The Tucson has a single CD player, as does the Xterra. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This brings
us to the point of flash drives, small devices holding immense amounts of
data. The audiophiles prefer a lossless
digital storage system such as “FLAC.”
Most younger people, non-boomers, prefer an MP3 format. It allows more data compression – greater numbers
of stored items per unit. They may not
be able to discern the difference in a lossless and lossey playback. Certainly, their lifelong exposure to high
volume life has degraded their hearing; most of them have yet to discover this
as they continue to boost the volume pots on all sources of audio input. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Xterra has
a USB connection that allows me to feed audio into the dashboard player. This
replaces the 10 cd’s I had stacked and permanently resident in the Pathfinder. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Currently, I have about 40 GB resident on two
flash drives to use in those instances when the local FM public station is not
proving my preferred content. The player
is satellite capable but the buy in and maintenance fees are more than I care
to assume right now. The process now
requires ripping CD’s and cross-decking them to the USB for the Xterra. I don’t want to pay to stream of download
music that I already own in a usable format.
Nor do I care to have the music I prefer lost in some “service” that
will form a new string of popular singles and albums such as is currently
marketed to younger generations. I’ve
earned my right to be cantankerous and complain about “modern music.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-46392465943802526002014-09-06T08:17:00.000-07:002014-09-06T08:17:00.780-07:006 September 2014 Try to remember<div class="MsoNormal">
Or try not to remember</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jV-fnarDho">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jV-fnarDho</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The formative
years of my youth included quite a lot of music. I listened to the jazz musicians – big bands,
small groups, and the random soloist.
The musical theater spun its own list of songs that received popular radio
play time and were often covered by various vocalists. These were often saccharine in nature,
mawkish beyond repair. “Try To Remember”
fits that category all too well.
Unfortunately, it is also one of those songs that sticks to your brain
like napalm. Long after it has been
heard, the echoes keep rolling around inside your brain like the smell of hellfire
on tree lines. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That’s sort
of a capsule encompassing the music and culture of my younger years. The later years of the folk revival generated
many “folk” groups putting a smooth outer surface on older songs, linking in
some nostalgia, and touring from college to university to small club venues,
carrying their polished, largely apolitical harmonious offerings to people who
still preferred acoustic music powering songs that could be shared among party
attendees putting away one last scotch and soda before traveling homeward. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The bland
nature of those songs was in direct conflict with the political and cultural
events of the period. The folk music
stuck around until Dylan introduced his electrified material, The Beatles cut
Sergeant Pepper, and the generational demand to be heard shared airtime with
the spread of FM stations in the bigger markets. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Think of
1965-66, there’s still a lot of folk influence to hear in the antiwar lyrics of
the day. But the touring groups still
have their niche available. By the end
of 1976, there’s no folk music to hear beyond the late night public radio shows
that are becoming something of “old soldiers’ homes” for a generation’s folk
musicians. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The culture
has changed markedly as has the music. “Sympathy
for the Devil?” Nothing better describes
the nature of the VietNam War. Add in “Fortunate
Son” and “Morning Dew,” and the history is easily recounted. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But despite
the change in my listening habits and the absence of the bland and mawkish from
the radio and the streamed networks, every time September rolls around, the smell
of distant napalm and the barely audible sound of “Try to remember” crawls into
my consciousness. I can’t predict how
long it will stay, repeating, looping, demonstrating the longevity of mediocre
music and the pervasiveness of random memories.
I’ll try to suppress the song.
But that’s much more easily said than accomplished. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, it’s
early September, the leaves are already beginning to change and to fall. The days are getting shorter, the nights
longer, and behind “Try to Remember,” I can already hear some syrupy voice
ushering in the next season with “Oh it’s a long long time.” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Enjoy it or
not, these earworms keep gnawing their way into memory. What surfaces in your mind that you can’t
eject or erase?</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-91058517019851069652014-09-03T09:06:00.002-07:002014-09-03T09:06:07.020-07:002 September 2014 The executioner’s face is always well hidden<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A second American
journalist has been brutally murdered by ISIS. There is a third captive journalist already in the queue. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The U.Ss
media and that of other Western nations have chosen to not air the entire video
due to the graphic and grisly nature of the murder. Wat we Americans are allowed to see is a
fragment of the ISIS video that shows a docile victim, wearing an orange
jumpsuit ala Guantanamo, kneeling in the dirt while the supposed executioner
waves a knife around and promises more “executions” of Americans and other
Westerners. This seems to be the same
murderer who beheaded the journalist Foley last month. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This hostage
taking and subsequent murder of the
hostage by Islamic terrorists has to be stopped. This murder of U.S, and Western allies must
not be allowed to determine the course of politics in the Middle East. Islamic fundamentalist must not be allowed to
rampage, pillage, and rape their way to a statehood that would drag the
regional culture back to the 8<sup>th</sup> century. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To begin, the
ISIS killings are not “executions” but murders.
Executions are carried out by nations with legal systems that are acting
in accordance with constitutions and legal frameworks. ISIS is not a nation, the Koran is not a constitutional
document. Thus, the act of killing
hostages is murder and should be treated and discussed as such by our media and
our government. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have no
compunctions concerning the hunting down and execution of ISIS killers by our
government or those of other Western nations.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In this age
of resurgent anti-Semitism brought about in part by the repetitive bloody
sacrifices of Gazan and other Arabs by their fundamentalist Islamic leaders and
funding of the continual wars against Israel, the U.S., and other western
nations, it becomes important that the pro-arab political correctness that exists
widely across the U.S. be reversed and that the true brutality of ISIS, Hamas,
Hezbollah, and the other gangs of thugs and brigands sponsored ultimately by
Iran be honestly depicted as the murderous cowards that they are.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What our
media shows us is a much watered down glimpse of murders of unarmed,
helpless hostages using a particularly
brutal and painful means. The murderer
and any other gang members in sight have their faces covered tp prevent them
being identified by physical or electronic means. This is consistent with many of the propaganda
video emanating in the middle east.
Most, if not all the participants have their faces covered. They apparently lack the courage to be known
when committing rapes, robberies, murders, kidnappings, and other crimes that
would cause them to be arrested and tried in a country with a functional government.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Dylan
provided the title line today. He also
provided the tag. When the West has
grown tired of fundamentalist Islamic depradations, it will finally inite in
action against them. ISIS and others
need to know, “it’s a hard rain gonna fall!”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-37824230689058099572014-08-28T16:38:00.002-07:002014-08-28T16:38:36.692-07:0028 August 2014 The women are smarter<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It is
interesting to connect with men I served with in VietNam. The bits and pieces of our every day existence ,
which we assume would match fairly closely, seem to have been less well matched
than we think we recall. Even within a
company sized unit the discrepancies are much more evident to me today than
they were then. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The EM, once
assigned, tended to remain with the same
subunit. The Officers were shuffled
around more frequently. They needed both
staff and field assignments to further their career goals. I can recall that I served under three
company commanders. Yet I can only put a
name and face to one of them. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As a medic, I
had far less negative or confrontational with African -American troops than others did.
The major confrontations occurred between the senior NCO’s – men with
WWII, Korean, and Vietnam experience – and the young African Americans who were
draftees and too often unqualified for any of the military occupations
specialist training slots, other than 11Bravo – Infantry. They wound up in line companies for the
larger part of their tours. They might
wrangle a short period just before DEROS to fill guard posts, push LIP day
laborers, help with camp sanitation, etc.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My job was to
take care of everyone in the company, not just those who shared my lack of
melanin. In doing that I had to be able
to triage on the fly and reassess the situation as necessary. I also had to listen to what people were
telling me on the surface and deeper down.
People who were sent to enlist in order to avoid being sentenced to jail
did not view their participation in the South East Asia War Games as necessary
to advance their futures in the “world.”
They made it clear to the Senior NCO’s that they had not respect for
their authority and no intention of doing anything not necessary to their own
eventual DEROS and ETS. Inside the wire,
racial relations were iffy among younger troops. Outside the wire, the hostilities were
usually in abeyance. Cooperating with
the leadership group tended to make one more secure in their chances of a safe
trip home. More later</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-76540752458341198352014-08-26T13:08:00.000-07:002014-08-26T13:08:00.227-07:0026 August 2014 Stir the memory pool and see what remains<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
From 1968-69
only a few names made the journey back with me.
I spent much of my tour avoiding friendships and even casual
acquaintance. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This month
has been unusual. Two names have floated
to the pool’s surface and I’ve been able to make contact with them in one
manner or another. It’s been a very
interesting period of reconnection. One
of the names belongs to a Sgt who worked in the S-3 shop, doing 12 hour
days. The other, to a Lt. holding
multiple responsibilities that kept him sleepless. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Though we
three were all assigned to the same company, our duties kept us largely
separated. The nature of the company was
that it had more officers than most companies in an infantry company. The brigade commander and his staff expected
to be served by the non-staff EM and officers.
The company HQ personnel were responsible for the needs of the entire
company as well carrying out the security, communications, logistics, motor
pool, health care, and other tasks that keep a military unit operational. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
The
Sgt. and I got along well. The Lt. and I
got along well. The Sgt. and the Lt. don’t
recall each other. Although we lived
within meters of each other, we were, at any given time to be at three different
parts of our AO, depending upon what the Brigade was doing under direction from
Division. Neither the Sgt or I recall
many names not related to our duties.
The Lt., by nature of his duties, probably had more contact with the EM
and NCO’s than either the Sgt or I. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in;">
It
will be interesting to see what these contacts lead to. </div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-1277933939861067302014-08-24T09:49:00.002-07:002014-08-24T09:49:49.055-07:0024 August 2014 Safe all weapons before entering<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In 1969 I was
nearly done in by a M134 minigun mounted on the back of an M37 ¾ ton truck. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://olive-drab.com/images/id_m37_xb4_david_rollins.jpg">http://olive-drab.com/images/id_m37_xb4_david_rollins.jpg</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The gun malfunctioned and expended 40 or so 7.62 mm rounds
in my direction inflicting multiple shrapnel wounds on me. There was no one at the truck when the gun
found it necessary to execute a solo performance. I am interested in finding other incidents of
spontaneously firing M134 miniguns. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
From this image, it is apparent that physically rotating the
barrels will cause unintended firing. I
have to wonder if severe repetitive
vibration could cause the same malfunction. At the time I was wounded our 8 inch
howitzers were executing a fire mission from Dau Tieng RVN<span style="font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">. </span><span style="background: white; color: #252525; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt;">According to the operators
manual, the M110's typical rate of fire was 3 rounds per two minutes when
operated at maximum speed, and 1 round per 2 minutes with sustained fire.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The
concussion generated by firing these howitzers was incredible. Buildings, bones, and teeth were rattling
from the overpressure. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b229/DDonSS3/AH-1%20Ft%20Campbell/100_0221.jpg">http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b229/DDonSS3/AH-1%20Ft%20Campbell/100_0221.jpg</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.tactical-life.com/magazines/tactical-weapons/unleash-the-dragon/">http://www.tactical-life.com/magazines/tactical-weapons/unleash-the-dragon/</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;"> “In the M134D the internal clutch assembly feeds
ammunition into the feeder/delinker only while the gun is being fired. Upon
releasing the firing circuit, the gun continues to rotate briefly, thus
expending and ejecting all ammunition remaining in the chambers. This ensures
that no ammunition remains in the chambers, thereby mitigating the risk of a
cook-off in a hot gun or an accidental discharge during servicing. Dillon’s
innovative design also negates the need to remove five separate components, in
order to ensure that the gun is clear of ammunition (as was required with the
old M134 system). They achieved this with a two-piece safety sector/top cover
allowing easy access to the internal components, as well as physically
interrupting the mechanical firing mechanism. By simply removing these two
inter-connected components, the gun is then rendered completely safe and can be
easily inspected.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;">If anyone knows of
similar minigun incidents, please let me know<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-91675843660778373942014-08-22T12:52:00.001-07:002014-08-22T12:52:41.721-07:0022 August 2014 No mud little manure lots of heat<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yesterday’s
excursion to the fair is behind us. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We found a
very close parking space but had to pay an addition 2 dollars above the public
parking. We wound up in the parking lot
of a Masonic lodge that appeared to have been, formerly, a church of some
brand. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We wandered
through some of the commercial and 4-H exhibits. All the baked goods were secured behind glass
doors in display cases along the walls.
I did wind up being offered a sample sugarcoated pecan. One of my least favorite nuts, but I smiled
and ate it. The TN Wild life resource
agency has a great permanent exhibit there.
The display path enters a cave high in the TN mountains. When exiting,
the topography and biosphere is what is found bordering the Mississippi
river. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We’d planned
on an early dinner, finding sustenance either at the philanthropic organization
booths or from the midway venders. By
the time we got to the far end of the fairground, we were hot and dripping
sweat, tired of standing on concrete, and not able to justify paying for greasy
food that neither of us wanted or needed.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The
fairgrounds were much cleaner than I expected.
There was no mud, very little manure except in the animal barns, and the
midway was just warming up, so that the combination of velocity, g-forces,
caffeine and grease had yet to have affected many riders. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There was no
rain yesterday. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Today, woke up to 70°F temperature at 0630. Dog days are back. The morning hike with Mike was like walking
into a steam bath. I did find sufficient
energy do all the mowing. Trimming
remains for tomorrow.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-29677968555561502092014-08-21T10:15:00.002-07:002014-08-21T10:15:50.779-07:0021 August 2014 Mud, manure, and grease<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Appalachian Fair, Washington County TN’s end of summer celebration
of children returning to schools that are too hot to inhabit is in full swing
this week. The return to school dates
are a hold-over from the days when children were required to help with planting,
harvesting, haying, and the other tasks that kept farmers busy. This anachronistic practice is now slaved,
not only to agriculture, but also to high school and college football programs. With local schools trying to match college
semester and break calendars, the school years are now impacted by how many
days football teams are allowed to practice before fall semesters begin. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
IN most parts
or the U.S. county fairs take place in late July and early August, with winners
in the various competitions progressing to state fairs for further
judging. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This
scheduling usually results in such fairs taking place in sweltering heat and humidity. The local weather will determine whether dust
or mud is the determinant ground condition.
Even in devastating drought conditions bringing ankle-deep dust, there
will be isolated areas of mud that result from animal care chores. Mixed with both mud and dust, the amount of
manure created by the livestock exhibits is sufficient to guarantee that it
will be tracked all over the fair grounds to ensure that every attendee will
carry some home on their shoes, even if they did not view the animal
barns. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The midway
with its neon, loudspeakers, and mechanical amusements carries its own
aroma. Mixed with the barnyard miasma is
the airborne grease that boils off from countless deep fryers that provide the
unhealthy breaded products that pass for midway food. So factor in the smells of dropped or
discarded food, spilled soda, and the vomitus found beneath the carnival rides. Suddenly the animal barns don’t smell as bad.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We are bound
for the fair this afternoon. We’ll take
advantage of “Seniors” day to half our admission price. We’ll wander the grounds, view the beasts,
look for something less noxious than the norm to provide some sort of dinner,
and avoid walking near or beneath the rides.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There is a
large slate of local and more widely known performers. We don’t recognize any of the listed
performers and won’t be paying to attend outdoor music events. We’ll skip the monster truck races (cancelled
last night due to thunderstorms), the monster truck and tractor pulls, and the
demolition derbies. When one considers
that this is a race week at Bristol, every trip onto the public roads is too likely
to result in demolition. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The forecast
for this afternoon calls for highs in the upper 80’s and a 50% chance of
thunderstorms. The uniform of the day calls
for shoes that can be washed if necessary upon return.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-44993128458456365312014-08-19T13:55:00.001-07:002014-08-19T13:55:15.150-07:0019 August 2014 Which wire do I cut<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Xterra
goes back to the shop tomorrow. The
monitor for the reverse cameral has to
be fixed so that it is either on intentionally or non-active. I do not want the bright blue screen it
displays telling me that there is no video feed. Driving at night with that either in my face
or reflecting off the windshield is
frankly dangerous. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I received no
information from the seller about returns, repairs, problems with installation
or any other matter. What I did discover
was that Amazon regards them as a third-party seller. In order to get a replacement unit I must
send the entire unit to Amazon so that they can return it to China. Since I paid more than the unit is worth to
have it installed, I have no desire to pay to have it un-installed so that I
can pay return shipping. I received
e-mail from the seller thanking me for my purchase, offering yet more worthless
connection tips, and telling me that all problems can be resolved in a friendly
manner. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
They have
provided me no way to contact them.
Amazon has no way to contact them here or in China. We are not amused. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Our mechanics
think that they can insert a switch or relay to provide a fix. We’ll see what tomorrow brings.</div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-57481213513483105372014-08-16T10:03:00.002-07:002014-08-16T10:03:23.932-07:0016 August 2014 Beware the ides of august<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Forty-five
years ago, in the wilds of New York, the Woodstock music festival took
place. While 400,000 people attended,
closing roads to the site, and creating national news, I and about 400,000 – 500,000
others were far more concerned about the war in VietNam. I was in the last month of my tour, sweating
out the days at Dau Tieng. I knew
nothing about the music festival until I saw a very small item in “Stars &
Stripes” just before boarding a plane out of Bien Hoa. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Compare and contrast, if you will, the two groups: festival
attendees and troops. The two
populations were roughly equivalent in numbers and mean ages. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Woodstock is recalled for the size of the crowd, for
recreational drug use, for unprepared attendees, for ferrying performers in and
out of the venue by helicopter, for on-site medical care, for torrential rain
and mud slides.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Vietnam was notable for recreational drug use, helicopter
transportation, on-site medical care, for torrential rains and mud. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In VietNam the preferred drugs were ethanol and pot. The military has a long history of tolerating
ethanol abuse. Pot use was likely to get
one a court martial and a trip to Long Binh Jail (LBJ) At Woodstock, LSD, pot, ethanol, and almost
anything else one can imagine was at least marginally available. T</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Most of the 80 arrests at Woodstock
were made on drug charges involving LSD, amphetamines and heroin. Marijuana smokers, estimated to be the
majority of the audience, were not arrested at Woodstock.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Helicopters
ferried the performers to and from the stage and their off-site lodging. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Helicopters
were our lifeline in VietNam. Everything
moved by rotary wing aircraft. We were
picked up for insertions, provided close air support, resupplied with
ammunition, food, and water, medevac, and
sometimes extracted by those marvelous vehicles and their heroic crews. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Medical care
at Woodstock was mostly minor ER in nature.
There were three births, three documented deaths, and not a lot of other
documented injuries/illnesses. In VietNam,
the gamut of injuries and illnesses included malaria, dysentery (amoebic and
bacterial) intestinal worms and othe parasitic infestations. Battlefield injuries were immediately
infected, including burns, blast trauma, lacerations, gunshot and shrapnel
wounds that harvested parts of young men without concern for their lives. The use of helicopters as air ambulances was
responsible for saving many injured who would not have survived any slower
means of transport to surgical hospitals.
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At Woodstock,
there was heavy rainfall catching many attendees with no rain protection or
insulation from the resulting water and mud.
Large mudslides were created and provided communal amusement. In VietNam the SW monsoon was still in
effect. Troops lived and worked in mud,
ankle-deep or deeper. Rain was always a
factor during the SW monsoon. The troops
in the field were always uncomfortable, hot,and wet or cold and wet until the
monsoon direction reversed and the conditions changed to hot and dusty. No one in the field would have enjoyed
mudslides. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The festival
ended after 3 days, leaving a mountain of trash behind for the promoters to
clean up.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
. In VietNam the war
was ongoing. The process of “Vietnamization,”
shifting the burden to our unwilling and often incapable allies was beginning. The drawdown was initiated, making it even
more likely that some small action somewhere might interfere with our
departure.. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
I was treated to a
ten day drop, courtesy of Nixon and Kissinger. I prided myself on being resistant to
superstitions. However, after some
shrapnel injuries early in August, I stayed close to a bunker at nearly all
times. I avoided all crowds except a ETS
party held for a flight warrant officer on the roof of Michelin plantation
building where we consumed champagne and watched the fast movers work over Nui
ba Dinh. That, to the best of my memory,
took place during Woodstock. We had great
fireworks to watch. </div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-50956379936601484342014-08-13T12:49:00.002-07:002014-08-13T12:49:53.160-07:0013 August 2014 They’re rollin’ out the guns again<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Iraq has been
a nest of vipers since it was created at the supposed end of WWI. The continual tribal and religious conflicts
that keep it internally in turmoil are now made more complex by the invasion of
even more fundamentalists striking out of Syria and bringing widespread murder
with them. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Iraqi
national army, which was supposedly trained to fight and defend the patchwork
nation of Iraq, at a cost of billions to U.S. taxpayers dropped their weapons
and bolted at the first sign of contact by the invading ISIS. This allowed the invaders to further arm
their forces by capturing weapons and other hardware left for the Iraqis by the
U.S. when it officially departed Iraq. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now, with the
Iraqi army a joke, unable to defend it’s own nation, there are an unknown
number of U.S. military advisors and diplomats still in Iraq. These people must be protected and that task
requires a real military, not our untrustworthy pseudo allies who spend their
training time chanting Shia slogans aimed at the Sunni who comprise ISIS. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Currently we
are blowing holes in the ISIS convoys and positions to prevent them reaching U.S.
personnel. To make matters even more
difficult, the ISIS sunni have been killing any non-Muslims they capture by
invading the towns and small cities on their route to Bagdad. They are trotting out the convert of die
modus operandi. They are offering this
choice minorities who still live in Iraq.
Thousands of Yazidi have fled en-masse to a mountain near the Syrian
border. They arrived there with no food,
water, medicines, or suitable clothing.
The ISIS promptly surrounded the mountain with intent to kill them
all. The initial plan to massacre was
partially prevented by units of Iraqi and Syrian KURDS. To prevent mass deaths among these refugees,
the U.S. has been targeting ISIS, dropping ordnance on their lines using drones
and Navy aviation. With some decrease in
the AA capacity of ISIS, we have followed on with air drops of
necessities. Kurdish units have escorted
or convoyed some thousands of Yazidi to Syria; then to Kurdish Iraq. The current estimate waiting to be rescued is
around 40,000. This is an extremely
large number of people to evacuate to safety.
The burden is going to fall upon our military. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The current
plan is for the U.S. to deploy more advisors to determine how many actual
refugees there are and how best to extract them. What ever method is chosen, it or it in
combination with plan B will require our troops to return to combat roles in
Iraq. The total deaths attributed to
Bush/Cheney is still growing. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There is no
hope for any real unification of Iraq.
The Sunni invaders are behaving much like the Germans who invaded
Ukraine and Russia. Even more
disturbing, the minorities report that their own neighbors are helping to round
up and execute the minorities. This is
horribly reminiscent of the Holocaust. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Meanwhile,
back at the kibbutz, the Israeli/Hammas cease fire is once more not
holding. Rockets were fired into Israel
today from Gaza. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
ISIS has been
an effective and mostly cohesive force in Syria and Iraq. Hammas has a large store of mostly inaccurate
ballistic rockets. But both of these
groups must eventually realize that they are outnumbered and massively outgunned.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“ You can
hide in the caves, they’ll be only your graves, but you can’t get away from the
guns!”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-52064590353143920302014-08-09T10:10:00.001-07:002014-08-09T10:10:24.429-07:00<div class="MsoNormal">
9 August 2014 Where
talk is cheap and vision true</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
19 years ago
Jerry Garcia died of CHF complicated by sleep apnea, diabetes, and decades of
substance abuse. He was honored,
eulogized, memorialized, and ushered into the pantheon of R&R demigods in
suitable fashion. There was the public
and usual fight among the heirs and
descendents. His wife at the time of his
death was grasping for control of his property and wealth. The post mortem fight grew so ugly that his
body was cremated, and ashes scattered without notice to his previous
wife. Another aliquot of ashes was
dumped into the Ganges for reasons no one really knows. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There will be
lots of tribute band memorials tonight.
While I’ve heard a lot of tribute/cover bands since Garcia died, I’ve
never discovered a replacement for the music Garcia gave us. I know a singer-songwriter or two who take me
to many of the same places. I encourage
them whenever I can.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This has been
a week for medical appointments. I’ve
seen my primary care physician. She
ordered routine lab studies – all normal -, and ECG – the usual variant
artifact that I’ve had since my 20’s showed up – a chest X-ray – haven’t had
one since 2002- and sleep studies. I
generally have no problem getting to sleep but I wake Gloria up during the
night and wake up feeling tired. This
may be due to PTSD, Parkinson’s, or something entirely different. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Yesterday I
left for VA/Mountain Home at 0700. I
hoped to have the X-ray performed before my 0900 and 1040 ophthalmology
appointments. Radiology can be horribly
backed up when the service is PRN.
Surprisingly, I was at the radiology desk at 0800 and the images were
completed by 0815. So off to the eye
clinic for visual fields, retinal photos,
and then the wait for the actual
eye exam. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Following the
eye clinic, I wandered down to the audiology department to ask for a new
consult and new hearing aids. The
audiology dept is now operating on a walk-in and wait basis for
evaluations. I seem to have no further hearing
loss compared to three years ago. They
ordered new hearing aids. September
should see them here for fitting and programming. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I renewed my
offer to participate in audiology research.
Doing so won’t reverse my hearing loss but it might help some one
else. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Picked up
Chinese food in Johnson City and home for an enjoyable dinner. </div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-16286375084480254712014-08-01T15:16:00.001-07:002014-08-01T15:16:01.840-07:00<div class="MsoNormal">
1 August 2014 Looking
back for safety</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The major
chore this week, beyond the usual household tasks, involves looking into the acquisition
of a reverse mirror for the Xterra.
Given the decreasing range of motion that defines how far I can turn my
neck to either left or right, some sort of amplified view should be
available. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are a
large number of these products on the market that need to be investigated and evaluated. I don’t want to buy a piece of junk, but I
don’t want to spend a fortune to provide rear vision. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Dinner will be yellow squash baked with romano cheese.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218889348833177700.post-60316430932523083182014-07-27T12:57:00.002-07:002014-07-27T12:57:27.593-07:0027 July 2014 Aging heroes<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The heroes of
my youth have largely departed for their final landing zones. As with all flesh, they age, decline, and
depart after they have passed on their particular bit of wisdom &/or other
impact to the society that they helped form by their existence and their
actions. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
YMMV as we
say. Your mileage may vary and my heroes
may well be your archetypical demons. I
have a fairly broad range of qualifications for hero status. Mine include jazz musician, folk singers,
songwriters, some teachers, naval officers, WWII bomber crew members,
submariners who fought in the Pacific.
You’ll find Dr. Jonas Salk in the list, David Ben Gurion, Golda Meier,
and a few dozen others whom I think made the world a better place in some
manner.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Some decades ago
I happened across a comic strip hero or two who lived in the Sunday papers or
on the shelf as comic book characters.
Discarding the usual costumed supernaturally powered characters, peel
back the layers to “Prince Valiant.”
Valiant was running around as an itinerate hero when I had yet to enter
grade school. He maintained his contact
with comic reality by aging a bit as his adventures became more dangerous and
his social life opened new world for his enjoyment. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Heroing, as a
profession is similar to all occupation young men engage in to impress young
women with the hope that they will be physically rewarded with bed, board, and
lodging for a night or a year. Obviously
a hero who ages to quickly will grow grim-faced and be less pleasing to the
young ladies. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Like most
such heroe, Valiant needs to find some reward in the brief periods when he ends
one adventure and begins the next. There
has to be a next to keep the story going and the home fires burning
quietly. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The local
paper just added Prince Valiant to their Sunday comics. Gloria and I were commenting on the long
history of the comic strip. Though
Valiant is married and has married children, he is rarely home. He appears to spend most of his time out with
the boys. He’s been allowed to age
gracefully in a slow and distinguishd manner; tall, powerfully built, rescuing
damsels while his wife stays home raising the kids and running the castle. Lately, she’s been having her own adventures,
traveling about with her own retinue of females who solve their own sets of
problems. One has to wonder if there is
a hidden story in the colored ink. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It seems that
this group of regal women have aged much more slowly and still have a powerful capacity
to bend the mend to their wills. The
strip if much more about their deeds and exploits now. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Valiant is noticeably
older, somewhat grizzled, and though still heroic in nature, the body has been
used too hard for too many years. His hair
is graying, his armor has more rust, his shield more knicks and divots. As for the “singing sword.” When drawn from scabbard, these days it
grunts more than sings. </div>
slenonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14531911462203419616noreply@blogger.com0