For all the single ladies out there

For single ladies in a hurry to get married, here's a quick piece of biblical advice: Ruth patiently waited for her mate Boaz. While waiting on YOUR BOAZ, don't settle for ANY of his relatives: Brokeaz, Poaz, Lyinaz, Cheatinaz, Dumbaz, Cheapaz, Lockedupaz, Goodfornothinaz,Lazyaz, or Marriedaz and especially his third cousin Beatinyoaz. Please wait on your Boaz & make sure he respects Yoaz.

Happy 7th Anniversary Linda

Seven years ago today Linda & I were standing in front of a beautiful waterfall on a gorgious day in Maggie Valley, NC with quite a few family members present. The service done by Miss Caroline's Wedding Chapel and she really knows how to make everything special.

That evening all went across the street from our motel to "Carolina Nights" a dinner theater that served us a great dinner while we watched a live show of great music, dance, comedy and patriotic numbers.

In the morning we all went to Joey's Pancake House and that is all they do so they know how to do it to perfection and are only open to lunchtime. You are lucky to find a parking place there in the morning. After breakfast most everyone decided to start the long journey back to eastern NC except for Linda's daughter Beth and my grandaughter Ashley who accompanied us on our honeymoon to Gatlinburg, TN.

We made so many memories during that week and have a DVD of the activities including the complete wedding so we can go back and hear the sounds and enjoy the scenery anytime we want to.

Linda has changed this old man's life dramatically in a lot of ways. We have traveled to so many places and seen so many wonderful areas of this beautiful country and that is something I never did before meeting her. She helped me discover what living is really like. But that is Linda, always thinking about someone else.

The first seven years has had it bumps along the road but together we have weathered the bumps and came through stronger and happier.

Thinking back all I had heard her mention she wanted that she didn't have is a Verna Bradley purse so that is what I gave her and today we will be going to one of our favorite places to eat, Olive Garden. And while we are in the area we will be visiting Aunt Katie to make the day perfect. Happy Sunday everyone.

What was I thinking - Part 4

I had heard many times, mostly from the Bible, about lepers and the dreaded disease that was so bad at one time. One of the girls that worked on the compound suggested I go to visit the lepers near the city so I convinced another guy to go as well. It was safe since you have to be around it for a period of time to actually develop the problem.

The residents here had to have a way to support themselves and this group made tiles for floors and walls. The colors were amazing and I was so impressed with how talented they were. It was kind of shocking to see people there with stubs where fingers and toes used to be. Probably the worst sight I saw while in Viet Nam was the man who had a hole in his face where his nose used to be. The specific area was so lovely compared to the city itself. There were palm trees and it was actually on the coast so the shore line was in sight and the beach made it look more like a resort than a leper colony. It made me think so differently after that whenever I would read anywhere and see the word leper.

After I returned from my 30 days at home that meant I only had another 5 months to spend there and then I could go home for good. Spending that extra 5 months over there allowed me to get out of the Army earlier that I would have ordinarily. Those 5 months really went by pretty quickly. I mentioned about not really being in danger which was not entirely true. I also mentioned about hoping that the locals that worked on the compound were loyal to us and didn't try to harm us. Besides the boy I mentioned that was captured while I was away there was also an incident where someone on the way to the mess hall found a trip wire attached to a hand grenade by the LP gas tank behind our mess hall. If that has gone off a lot of guys could have died. Some guys left the country in bad shape due to self inflicted problems like terrible strains of STD from having sex with prostitutes or overindulgence of alcohol. One of my friends, Chuck, was on the roof of our quarters where we had a flat roof for lifting weights or relaxing in the breeze. He was chugging whiskey and walked off the roof onto the cement below and had to airlifted out. Don't know what ever happened to him.

Towards the end of my tour over there as I neared June of 1970 the danger got closer to us and I will never forget the evening when a morter round went off close enough to throw rocks and debris into our compound. That was too close. So, even though I had made friends with some of the locals and the children at the orphanage, I was ready to get out of there. Even today I often wonder what ever happened to my friends and wish I could go back to Qui Nhon and see first hand how things have changed. I can tell from the internet that Viet Nam is a tourist destination today. I think that is a good thing.

So, arriving back at home for the second time finding my daughter, Pam, is almost 1 year old by then. Quite a change for this guy to take in. I made the transition and got on with my life. Like any marriage it had it good times and rough times. Along the way I had 3 more daughters, one that would only live 5 days back in 1971. Surely there were many times I thought to myself "What were you thinking" but I did have 3 great daughters that I am so proud of even though after 33 years of marriage my wife decided one day (2 days before the World Trade Center disaster) that she had had enough and left leaving me and our youngest who was 17 at the time to fend for ourselves. There has been so many changes in our lives since that time, fortunatly for the good. There is good in everything if you just look for it. That's my story and I am sticking to it.

What was I thinking??

It was back in February of 1968 and I was 20 years old having a good old time in Indianapolis, Indiana stationed at Ft. Benjamin Harrison Army Finance School. After basic training at Ft. Bragg and being agrivated at Ft. Jackson, SC I was now actually having fun.

School was from 8 to 4 and after that I pretty much could do whatever I wanted to do. So on the weekends I would get a room at YMCA in town and enjoyed being in civilian attire and interacting with people other than soldiers, namely USO girls. Don't get me wrong, they were really nice girls that helped you keep from getting bored by playing board games and even taking us roller skating. Gave me a break from the Army routine.

All was going pretty good until one day I received orders reasigning me to Viet Nam. The dreaded tour. Well, back home I had this girl friend in NC so I broke the news to her and her immediate response was that we should get married. Now bear in mind that I was just 20, stupid, inexperienced and gulible. I fell for it and swallowed it all, hook, line & sinker.

Now of course I was a buck private, without a vehicle. Happens though that I had a cousin stationed there with me that I had never seen that actually lived near where I lived back in NC. Somehow I convinced him to drive me to NC on a (3 day pass) so I could get married. We traveled all night through the mountains of West Virginia and made it home. My dad let me use his car so we hurried over to Tarboro, NC shopping for rings and then tried to line up her preacher to marry us. Turns out he was gone fishing, true story. She attended the Pinetops Baptist Church. Well we had to scramble and found that the Methodist minister was available so we lined him up. My folks met us there along with her mother, since her dad never went to funerals, I mean weddings. The service lasted about 15 minutes and off we went to Rocky Mount, NC about 20 minutes away for the quickest honeymoon on record.

My cousin & I make it back to Indiana and what do you think happened. I got more orders recinding the Viet Nam orders. This time for Ft. Ord, California. All that and I am not going to the war zone after all. So here I was, married, a buck private making (less) than $100 a month headed for California & trying to understand how I am going to get her out there and we survive 3,000 miles away from family & friends. More to follow.......

It's Kleenex Time

I have a couple of friends in the blog world that touched my heart with a post each lately that I just felt like they needed to be shared. Each one has a posting of a precious letter given to them by their husband.

Barb's husband died but before he departed he wrote her this wonderful piece sharing how much he loves her. Read it slowly and feel the love.

Mel and her husband just completed one of many moves because of her husband's work and she received this letter from him and also needs to be read slowly and feel his undying love towards Mel.

I know they will touch you as they did me. Enjoy.