Into Spaghetti Westerns again

Back into expanding collection. Got me a Christmas gift certificate to Amazon, and I'm gonna make it happen!!!

5 Questions for Atheists

1. If there is NO God, why do they think about him so much? Isn't true atheism simply disbelief? It seems you actually have a personal vendetta against anyone who believes in God and think it is your place to convince them otherwise. Why?

2. If there is NO God, what caused random particles to coalesce into matter and then become life?

3. If there is no God, why do we even have a concept of God? Do we often, as humans, consider altering our lifestyles based on an unknown, unrevealed, non-existant, concept no one has ever considered? If not, who put it in the human mind that there was a creator God in the first place?

4. If there is no God, then what is the true purpose of life? Only serving selfish desires? Without God, or a higher moral authority, what is to keep us from simply becoming selfish pleasure-seeking monsters? Nothing.

5. If there is no God, where did morality and decency come from?

My music!

I have posted a bunch of my music online now. I want to get this stuff heard. Here is the link to get to my channel here!

Go and have a listen!

JFK assassination anniversary

One week ago was the 48 year anniversary of the Kennedy slaying in Dallas. I still am convinced Oswald acted alone, and that the conspiracy theories are bunk. I assume I will always think that since i have been firmly on both sides of the argument. I once was convinced of a conspiracy. However, the more I dig into it, the more I am convinced (without any doubt) that the tragic events in Dallas are the sole resposibility of Lee H. Oswald. If you aren't convinced, please read my 55 questions for conspiracists elsewhere in this blog. God bless JFK!

Update: Motorcycle

Yeah, I went ahead and took the plunge and got a motorcycle. I have wanted one for as long as I remember. It is a red 1978 Yamaha 400. It is just right for what I need it for. I am planning to take a motorcycle certification course pretty soon, and then I'll get officially lisenced to ride. I've taken it around the block a few times and yep, it's fun to ride.

Update: Drum set

I bought a nice drum set. It is my first real drum set. I had a play drum set when I was a kid (which was probably the greatest gift I ever recieved), but I never truly mastered the instrument. Anyway, I have a drumset now. One thing for sure, it really makes me appreciate drummers.

My Academy job went away

After a few weeks, my Academy job went away. It was an ok job. But it wasn't all that great. My last day was in early September.

Sore throat - Laryngitis

Here I sit with a sore throat and laryngitis. It makes it very tough to teach 1st graders when you have a sore throat. My voice is almost completely gone. I'll let you know when it gets better...

Wow! No posts for July!

Hey I just noticed that I never posted anything for the month of July! It is my birth month, so I tend to enjoy that! Anyway, I had a great birthday on the 26th! I received:

Sun Records CD set (Dad)
Jerry Lee Lewis CD set (John)
Conan anthology (Randy)
Red Earth cake (Dad & Barbara Sessions)
A Party at La Patio in Universal City
A Camera (Izzy helped me buy it)
A nice lens for my camera (Izzy)
Various other nice things here and there!!!

All in all a great month!

Got Me A Second Job

Got me a little second job over at Academy. I officially started on June 22. Right now, I am a cashier. I enjoy it! We stay very busy, but I enjoy people so it's cool. Plus, I've always liked Academy!

Clarence "Big Man" Clemons has passed

The Big Man has passed. Clarence was like a big teddy bear. He was also the emotional heart and soul of the E Street Band. This is a huge loss. I can't even imagine the void that will be on the stage when Bruce next performs live. Clarence will live forever in the hearts, minds, and radios of millions in the music of Springsteen, and his side projects. Big Man, you will be sorely missed!!!!

By the way, I started my blog about a year after the death of another E Street Band legend, the great "Phantom" Dan (Danny) Federici (he died in 2008). I never acknowledged his passing. I want to do so now. I imagine Danny and Clarence rocking out right now up in R&R Heaven!



Clarence and Danny...

Warren Zevon is the man!

I have been a fan of WZ for many years. He writes a lot of darkly humorous and ironic lyrics. His songs are hook laden and cool! He has a nice baritone voice, and he is very talented, he plays the piano, guitar, and harmonica.

Clarence Clemons

The "Big Man" has suffered a stroke. I hope he makes a full recovery. I fear, not to sound pessimistic, that he will never really be the same. God bless "The Big Man" Clarence Clemons!

I Hate Rude People!

Rude people suck. I face this a lot when I eat at restaurants, or mostly when I go into a store to buy something. Everything is run by kids so they don't give a hoot about customer service and they develop what I call "Retail Face". It is the zombie-life expressionless blank stare worn by retail employees who hate their customers (the one's who make their job necessary, by the way).

Here is an example of retail face:

The Things They Carried - By Tim O'Brien

 

Here is a book I can heartily recommend!!! This is a dynamite book about Vietnam, and war in general from the perspective of the grunt soldier. You will be doing yourself a favor if you track down a copy of this book and read it!!!

Johnny Cash

Who can compare to Johnny Cash? No one. He was a legend in his own time. More charisma than ought to be allowed, more talent than most, a unique sound, a human story, and a major songwriting and song-interpreting talent. Long live Johnny Cash!!

Bee Rock by Sam Walk

This photo is taken from the top...looking down on Highway 6 (to Clifton). I enjoyed sitting here with my legs dangling off the mountain and enjoying the pretty view. Often, there would be farmers working in their fields...livestock feeding...and cars driving by. It was very exhilarating. I've taken .22's, 30/30's and shotguns up on the mountain, but never killed any creatures. Just plinking around...often across the highway into the Bosque river. I made sure no one was in the area I placed my slugs. There were times when I'd sit with my binoculars and watch people fishing or walking along the river. It was also fun to look at people driving by in their cars and see if I recognized them.


On a few of my trips I packed a hammer and small chisel to Bee Rock to carve my name or initials into the rock. You can see where I flattened out a spot for my name and then others crowded theirs around mine. I have no idea whose initials these are. Sometimes I would also paint my name on the more difficult and dangerous ledges that I would crawl out on. I didn't deface the mountain...just a small brush and some red paint and the initials SW. Nothing obtrusive. Just a reminder that old Sammy had gone where few dared to go! It was said that in the 1800's local Indians would station scouts on Bee Rock. I wandered all over that old mountain, but never ran across any arrow heads or other artifacts from that particular era.


This is as far as you could go on the ledge supporting the old cedar tree. I have climbed up to the next small ledge you see...using the tree...and then on to the top. It was quite a drop to the ground below. I made most of the trips to Bee Rock by myself and a few with certain chums. I would often carry water, a sandwich, banana and cupcake with me and spend the entire afternoon just wandering around Bee Rock. Sometimes while I was up there...other young people would climb up and I would track them and make little noises that would confuse them and hopefully spook them a little...especially the girls. No one ever discovered me while I was doing this. Wow! How the years do fly by. Now, I entertain myself playing golf. - Sam Walk 2011

Wacky Death #987

A dude named Richard Hughes [aged 43] from Ohio, was removed from his house and later died at the hospital. He had sat in his "La-Z-Boy" so long he was literally fused to it. Which answers a question no one wanted to find out about first hand: What happens when you sit in a chair for two years? Answer: You get covered with fecal matter and urine and your skin fuses to the chair.

Several Firefighters and a police officer had to cut a side out of a home Sunday to extricate a man from his residence.

Firefighters were the first to arrive at the scene after receiving a call of a general illness. When they got there, they had to call police for assistance to help get Hughes out of the house. Hughes was described as being overly obese.

Police said the man had been sitting in the same chair for two years, in his own feces and urine, and was living in what were said to be "deplorable conditions".


Richard Hughes, who looked something like this completely other man, was very fat

Here's more about it:

The morbidly obese man died in the hospital after he was cut out of his home as he has been fused to his recliner he sat in for two years

Wheeling Hospital in West Virginia confirms the death of 43-year-old Richard Hughes of Bellaire, Ohio.

The man’s girlfriend called the paramedics on Sunday after she found him unconscious.

The man was wedged in his recliner where his skin was fused into the chair from prolonged sitting.

Rescuers had to cut a hole in the wall of his house to get him out as they could not immediately remove him from the chair.

Fire-crews carried the 43-year-old man out of his house. He was rushed to Wheeling Hospital in a critical condition but later died, officers said.

The health officials reported that they found the man sitting in his own faeces and urine covered in maggots at the house on Sunday.

The girlfriend admitted that she had been feeding him by hand since he became too big to get up.

He insisted that his girlfriend feed him food and soft drinks.

Sources told the local Bellaire TV channel that the man insisted on eating, drinking and sleeping in the chair.

Hughes’ friends said that he had been complaining that the arthritis in his knees were too painful every time he tried to move.

One friend said: “I tried to suggest him going to the hospital and getting his legs checked out, but he wouldn’t do it. He said he didn’t like doctors. So you can’t force somebody to do something that they don’t want to do.”

Health officials said three people were living in the house.

One officer said it was the worst thing he had ever responded to.

Another health official said after coming into contact with the obese man he’d been forced to throw his uniform away.

City health official Jim Chase said, “The chair was very filthy, a lot of odor to it. Going in the house, the house was not clean. The living room where the man lived in his chair was very filthy, very deplorable. It’s unbelievable that somebody could live in conditions like that.”

Landlord, Lou Ann Bennett says that the 346 pound man used to be active until his knees started hurting, then he got in the chair and wouldn’t move around.

She said she hadn’t noticed his appalling condition because he’d been hiding himself under a blanket whenever she stopped by.

She says he needs to be left to “rest in peace”.

Speaking of Zombies...

Did you know that Zombies are [sorta] mentioned in the Bible? Check this out...

Events surrounding the death and resurrection of Jesus got very weird. The gospel writer Matthew records that many strange things occurred. Including the following which is recorded in Matthew 27:52-53.

It states:

"The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many."

When is says "fallen asleep" read "died". So for a while you have the bodies of the dead wandering around in the "holy city".

Weird stuff!

Wacky Death #890

This really is a strange death. The lady's name was strange. oop, I mean... Strange. Jennifer Strange to be exact. She was participating in a contest to see who could drink the most water without going number 1. Problem is she suffered from accute water intoxication and died.

Very very odd, or should I say Strange.

Wacky Death #456

How would you like to have some of your entrails pulled out of your body through your rectum? You wouldn't? Well, I'm sure 6 year-old Abigail Taylor didn't want it to happen either, but it did.


Abigail Taylor - sad victim of a bizarre accident

It seems she sat on a drain in her neighborhood pool and it sucked so hard on her little body that a good portion of her intestines were sucked out. Also damaged beyond repair was her liver and pancreas. I can't even begin to imagine how horrifying it must have been for her. I am so sorry for her and her family.

It takes the cake for one of the most bizarre deaths I've ever heard of.

Zombie Movies

I love them zombie flix! I now present Mike's top 10 ZOMBIE FLIX!

01. "The Walking Dead" the TV series
02. 28 Days Later
03. 28 Weeks Later
04. Dawn of the Dead (2004 Remake)
05. Dawn of the Dead (original)
06. Night of the Living Dead (remake)
07. Resident Evil
08. The Crazies (remake)
09. Shaun of the Dead
10. Zombieland (?)

John Cleese on Threat Levels in Europe (Funny)

ALERTS TO TERROR THREATS IN 2011 EUROPE: BY JOHN CLEESE (former member of Monty Python)

The English are feeling the pinch in relation to recent terrorist threats and have therefore raised their security level from "Miffed" to "Peeved." Soon, though, security levels may be raised yet again to "Irritated" or even "A Bit Cross." The English have not been "A Bit Cross" since the blitz in 1940 when tea supplies nearly ran out. Terrorists have been re-categorized from "Tiresome" to "A Bloody Nuisance." The last time the British issued a "Bloody Nuisance" warning level was in 1588, when threatened by the Spanish Armada.

The Scots have raised their threat level from "Pissed Off" to "Let's get the Bastards." They don't have any other levels. This is the reason they have been used on the front line of the British army for the last 300 years.

The French government announced yesterday that it has raised its terror alert level from "Run" to "Hide." The only two higher levels in France are "Collaborate" and "Surrender." The rise was precipitated by a recent fire that destroyed France’s white flag factory, effectively paralysing the country's military capability.

Italy has increased the alert level from "Shout Loudly and Excitedly" to "Elaborate Military Posturing." Two more levels remain: "Ineffective Combat Operations" and "Change Sides."

The Germans have increased their alert state from "Disdainful Arrogance" to "Dress in Uniform and Sing Marching Songs." They also have two higher levels: "Invade a Neighbour" and "Lose."

Belgians, on the other hand, are all on holiday as usual; the only threat they are worried about is NATO pulling out of Brussels.

The Spanish are all excited to see their new submarines ready to deploy. These beautifully designed subs have glass bottoms so the new Spanish navy can get a really good look at the old Spanish navy.

Australia, meanwhile, has raised its security level from "No worries" to "She'll be right, Mate." Two more escalation levels remain: "Crikey! I think we'll need to cancel the barbie this weekend!" and "The barbie's cancelled." So far, no situation has ever warranted use of the final escalation level.

John Cleese - British writer, actor and very tall person

Nick Lowe

Nick Lowe is great! He is a gentleman of extreme talent, at playing several instruments, producing, and writing songs, and performing. A true triple threat! He gets better with age! Here he is in his 1980's heyday!

Alice Cooper

I dig Alice Cooper. He is a cool dude. He is a true original. Very unlike any other before him, but often imitated since. He is still going strong! Here is Alice Cooper in character: 

 Here is Alice Cooper (Vincent Furnier), regular joe:

His theatrical personae is quite entertaining. It is intended to shock in an over-the-top way the horror genre. In real life he is an avid golfer, a part time actor, a restauranteur, a philanthropist, and believe it or not a professing Christian. He is also VERY successful. He has had 11 top 40 hit songs, including 3 top 10's, and his albums have sold millions all over the world.

Last Meal Requests by Notable People

Prior to execution the condemned are given their last meal. Any reasonable request is honored, if possible. Here are some people's last meal requests.

Adolf Eichmann declined a special meal, preferring a bottle of Carmel, a dry red Israeli wine. He drank about half of it.
Aileen Wuornos declined a special meal, but had a hamburger and other snack food from the prison's canteen. Later, she drank a cup of coffee.
Allen Lee Davis: 350-pound "Tiny" Davis had one lobster tail, fried potatoes, a half-pound of fried shrimp, six ounces of fried clams, half a loaf of garlic bread, and 32 ounces of A&W root beer.
Andrey Chikatilo: porridge with a small piece of beef.
Ángel Nieves Díaz declined a special meal. He was served the regular prison meal for that day, but declined that as well.
Barton Kay Kirkham: Pizzas and ice cream, "because you get cheese, meat and everything in one meal. Not so much fuss."
Bruno Richard Hauptmann: Celery, olives, chicken, French fries, buttered peas, cherries, and a slice of cake.
Charles Peace: A hearty breakfast of eggs and a huge amount of (very salty) bacon.
Clarence Ray Allen: Buffalo steak, Kentucky Fried Chicken, sugar-free pecan pie and sugar-free black walnut ice cream.
Danny Rolling: Lobster tail, butterfly shrimp, baked potato, strawberry cheesecake, and sweet tea.
Dennis Wayne Bagwell: Medium rare steak with A1 Steak Sauce, fried chicken breasts and thighs, BBQ ribs, French fries, onion rings, bacon, scrambled eggs with onions, fried potatoes with onions, sliced tomatoes, salad with ranch dressing, two hamburgers, peach pie, milk, coffee, and iced tea with real sugar.
Desmond Keith Carter declined a special meal, but had two cheeseburgers, a steak sub, and two Cokes from the prison canteen, for which he paid $4.20 from his prison account.
Dobie Gillis Williams: Twelve candy bars and some ice cream.
Donald Snyder gained over 150 pounds in an unsuccessful bid to be unable to fit in the electric chair. He requested pork chops and eggs "and plenty of 'em!".
Edward Hartman: A Greek salad, linguini with white clam sauce, cheese cake with cherry topping, garlic bread, and a Coke.
Eric Wrinkles: Prime rib, a "loaded" baked potato, pork chops with steak fries, rolls and two salads with ranch dressing, served three days before execution because Indiana State Prison found that condemned inmates tend to lose their appetite near the end.
Francis Crowley: Steak and onions, french fries, apple pie, ice cream and melted ice cream.
Gary Gilmore: A hamburger, hard-boiled eggs, a baked potato, a few cups of coffee, and three shots of contraband Jack Daniel's whiskey.
Gary Lee Davis: Chocolate and vanilla ice cream cups, shared with the prison superintendent and a manager.
Gary M. Heidnik had two slices of a cheese pizza and two cups of black coffee.
Gordon Fawcett Hambly, who suffered from indigestion, a lobster salad.
Henry Martinez Porter: Flour tortillas, T-bone steak, refried beans, tossed salad, jalapeño peppers, ice cream, and chocolate cake.
Ignacio Cuevas, perpetrator of the 1974 Huntsville Prison Siege - Chicken dumplings, steamed rice, sliced bread, black-eyes peas, and iced tea.
James Edward Smith requested a lump of dirt, which was denied. He settled for a small cup of yogurt.
Joan of Arc: Holy communion.
John Albert Taylor: Pizzas "with everything."
John Allen Muhammad: Chicken with red sauce and several cakes.
John David Duty: A double cheeseburger with mayonnaise, a foot-long hot dog with cheese, mustard and extra onions, a cherry limeade, and a large banana shake.
John Wayne Gacy: A dozen deep-fried shrimp, a bucket of original recipe chicken from KFC, French fries, and a pound of strawberries.
Joseph Mitchell Parsons: Three Burger King Whoppers, two large orders of fries, a chocolate shake, chocolate chip ice cream, and a package of grape Hubba Bubba bubblegum, to be shared with his brother and a cousin.
Judd Gray: Chicken soup, chicken, mashed potatoes, celery, stuffed olives and ice cream.
Karl Eugene Chamberlain: A variety of fresh fruit and vegetables, cheese, lunch meat, deviled eggs, six fried cheese-stuffed jalapeños, a chef salad with ranch dressing, onion rings, french fries, a cheeseburger, two fried chicken breasts, barbecue pork rolls, an omelet, milk, and orange juice.
Karla Faye Tucker: Banana, peach, and garden salad with ranch dressing.
Keith Zettlemoyer: Two cheeseburgers, fries, chocolate pudding and chocolate milk.
Lowell Lee Andrews: Two fried chickens with sides of mashed potatoes, green beans and Pie a La Mode.
Lynda Lyon Block declined a special meal, and spent her final night reading the Bible and listening to an oldies radio station.
Mark Dean Schwab: Fried eggs (over easy), bacon, sausage links, hash browns, buttered toast, and a quart of chocolate milk.
Martha Beck: Fried chicken, fried potatoes and salad.
Michael Bruce Ross (of Connecticut) declined a special meal, but dined on the regular prison meal of the day: turkey à la king with rice, mixed vegetables, white bread, fruit, and a beverage.
Murl Daniels: Orange juice, grape juice, fried chicken, fried oysters, chili, potatoes, Limburger cheese, bread and butter, vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup, chocolate cake and coffee.
Perry Smith and Richard Hickock: Shrimp, French fries, garlic bread, ice cream, and strawberries with whipped cream.
Odell Barnes: "Justice, Equality, World Peace."
Peter Kürten: Wiener schnitzel, fried potatoes and a bottle of white wine. He requested seconds and received it.
Philip Workman: He declined a special meal for himself, but he asked for a large vegetarian pizza to be given to a homeless person in Nashville, Tennessee. This request was denied by the prison, but carried out by others across the country.
Rainey Bethea: Fried chicken, pork chops, mashed potatoes, pickled cucumbers, cornbread, lemon pie, and ice cream.
Ricky Ray Rector: Steak, fried chicken, cherry Kool-Aid, and a pecan pie — which he did not eat, because he said he was saving it for later.
Robert Alton Harris: A 21-piece bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken, two large Domino's Pizzas (no anchovies), ice cream, a bag of jelly beans, a six-pack of Pepsi, and a pack of Camel cigarettes.
Ronald Clark O'Bryan's last meal request consisted of a T-bone steak (medium to well done), french fries with ketchup, whole kernel corn, sweet peas, a lettuce and tomato salad with egg and French dressing, iced tea, sweetener, saltines, Boston cream pie, and rolls.
Ronnie Lee Gardner: Lobster tail, steak, apple pie, vanilla ice cream, 7-Up, and watching The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.
Ruth Snyder: Chicken Parmisan with alfredo pasta, ice cream, 2 milkshakes, a burger from Carl's Jr, and a 12-pack of grape soda.
Saddam Hussein: The Times states that "he refused their offers of cigarettes and a last meal of chicken." Other sources state a variety of meal options.
Stephen Wayne Anderson: Two grilled cheese sandwiches, one pint of cottage cheese, a hominy/corn mixture, one piece of peach pie, one pint of chocolate chip ice cream, and radishes.
Ted Bundy declined a special meal, so he was given the traditional steak (medium-rare), eggs (over-easy), hash browns, toast, milk, coffee, juice, butter, and jelly.
Teresa Lewis: Two fried chicken breasts, sweet peas with butter, a Dr. Pepper and German chocolate cake for dessert.
Timothy McVeigh: Two pints of mint chocolate-chip ice cream.
Velma Barfield declined a special meal, having a bag of Cheez Doodles and a 12-ounce can of Coca-Cola instead.
Victor Feguer requested a single olive with the pit still in.
Wesley Baker: Breaded fish, pasta marinara, green beans, orange fruit punch, bread, and milk (this was what was on the prison menu that day).
William Bonin: Two pepperoni and sausage pizzas, three servings of chocolate ice cream, and three six-packs of Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

(Snagged from Wikipedia)

The Amazing Echidna

Have you ever heard of an echidna?

No?

Well, here are some fun facts...

1. They have spiny tongues which help catch their prey.
2. They can live up to 50 years.
3. One of only two known species of egg-laying mammals (the platypus is the other).
4. They are excellent borrowers. But don't ask for it back.
5. They mostly eat ants, termites and sometimes kittens.
6. Named after a monster in Greek mythology.
7. Their bodies are covered with thick spines like a Porky-Pine.
8. It curls into a spiny ball when threatened, which makes them easier to kill.
9. Their rear feet point backwards, stupid things.
10. The males have a 4 headed penis, naughty naughty.
11. They are lousy company in bed.
12. They enjoy dark ambient music.
13. They taste like chicken.
14. Can be used to clean tough floor stains.
15. They explode when hit directly with a 50 caliber round.

Awesome.

Mike Walk ca. 1980

 

Here I am. Mike Walk. This photo was taken at Jackson Middle School sometime around 1980 or so. Notice my #11 shirt. Notice my baleful gaze. It says "Don't mess with me, Jack!"

Astor to Philip's Right Eye

One of my favorite stories (I find it rather hilarious) is found in an old book called "Ridpath's History of the World" by John Clark Ridpath (1901). He tells of how King Philip II of Macedon (father to Alexander the Great) lost his right eye.

"During the siege of Methone, King Philip of Macedon had the misfortune of losing his right eye. While the king was standing some distance away from the castle, an arrow flew from the rampart and straight into his right eye. When the arrow was inspected it had a note attached to it which read "Astor to Philip's right eye." Further investigation revealed the whole story. It seems an archer named "Astor" had recently volunteered his services to King Philip, who rejected his offer. Astor, it seems, had told Philip that his skill with a bow was so great, he was able to kill a bird in flight. The king, thinking this was just false bragadoccio, rejected Astor with the remark "Well, well... I shall make use of you when I go to war with the starlings." Following this rejection, Astor had joined the Methoneans and shot the arrow which validated his skill in an unforgettable way." [paraphrased]



Whether the story is true or not I don't know. What I do know is, this Astor fellow really made his point (pardon the pun).

By the way, forensic scientists who decided to accurately recreate Philip's face came up with this:

Looks kinda like Richard Dreyfuss with a messed-up right eye (presumably the result of the efforts of Astor, the disgruntled archer).

Allergy Update!

I feel better. My sore throat is gone. Just have a bit of chest and nasal congestion. Other than that... hunky dory!

Wacky Death: # 879

Jerome Irving Rodale, an American pioneer of organic farming, died of a heart attack while being interviewed on the Dick Cavett Show in 1971. During the intervew Rodale was seen to close his eyes and slump down into his seat. Cavett quipped "Are we boring you, Mr. Rodale?", before realizing the man was stone dead. The show with Mr. Rodale's death was never broadcast.

Rasputin (The Monk)

Rasputin! He was a very odd fellow. He held the Romanov family in his mystical yet greasy grip. Although he often looked like he could really use a shower, he apparently had a certain charisma that endeared him to the Tzarina (The Tzar's wife). Not only that he was reported to have "powers" that could "heal".

The Tzar in question was the doomed "last Tzar" Nicholas Romanov II (the one who ultimately was gunned down along with his whole family). Anyway, those loyal to the Czar and Mother Russia had decided to get rid of Rasputin for the welfare of the Romanov royal family. Little did they know it would turn out to be harder than they thought.

A group of conspirators met and hatched a plan. On December 16-17 at 12:30 a.m. the killers, along with Rasputin, met in a cozy little basement dining room in the Yusupov palace. There, poisoned pastries and wine awaited the mad mystic. After first refusing, he decided to eat up, and ate enough cyanide to kill ten men. Two hours later, he was showing no ill effects.

Time to go with plan B. It was decided, after the shock and awe of his seeming imperviousness to lethal poison, that perhaps shooting him would be quick, fast, and easy. So, a guy named Prince Felix Yusupov (one of the conspirators) came in and shot Rasputin in the chest. After a while they decided he was dead, and ready to be dumped into the nearby Malaya Nevka river. Though they figured they better wait for a while til it got later, you know, to avoid being seen.

When Felix went down to look at the body, he was surprised that it was actually still warm. He was also surprised to see Rasptin's eyes begin to open and shut. Then he was REALLY surprised when Rasputin got to his feet and lunged at his assailant! Yep, he was still alive! The other conspirators rushed down to the basement to see that Rasputin had escaped into the courtyard, running for his life.

What followed next was another assault. During it, Rasputin was:

Shot in the back. (he was still crawling)
Shot in the head. (he was still crawling)
kicked repeatedly in the head. (he was finally still)

Then the conspirators dragged Rasputin's seemingly lifeless body back into the palace. There it was noticed that, yep, he was STILL ALIVE. So, they savagely beat him in the head with a dumbell. Rasputin, the mad monk, sat there, propped in a chair, a gory mess. Convinced he'd expire any second along the way, they decided to go ahead and dump his body in the pre-planned spot (off the Great Petrovsky Bridge). Rasputin's blood splattered carcass was wrapped in aheavy cloth and wound up tight in rope. He was trundled off in a car trunk to the river side. There the conspirators heaved his body into the icey Malaya Nevka River. Unfortunately they hadn't weighed the body down. They watched a moment as the huge hellish bundle just, more or less, floated away.

They figured they got away with it, but a few days later his body was recovered from the frigid waters of the Malaya Nevka River. Investigators soon rounded up all those responsible.

The conspirators ultimately got off with slaps on the wrist, but rasputin's killing was not popular with the masses. It was seen as another abuse of power by an out of control aristocracy.

Czar Nicholas later abdicated, then was slaughtered, and then the Marxists took over control of Russia. The rest, as they say, is history.

One more thing. Rasputin's body, when it was found, was frozen in a way that revealed that he had managed to free his arms and was attempting to untie himself before he died.

After being poisoned, shot three times, and bludgeoned, his official cause of death was listed as drowning.

Click here for a post-mortem picture of him

A Camping Nightmare

This would definately be my camping nightmare!!!

William Arnold Walk

Here are a couple pictures of my Dad's dad. He was known as Arnold, though his full name was William Arnold Walk. Later he was known primarily as Bill. He was a lifelong military man and served during both world wars.




This is (L to R) William A. Walk, Ara Walk, and Stewart Walk.

Dad's Stories: Memories

Hello children. Just before going to bed...I thought I'd put something together for you to look at and enjoy. As you know, I spent a majority of my military assignment as Fort Sheridan, Ill., 5th Army. Your mother and me lived off base in a small community just outside the main gate.

This is obviously an old shot of the fort, but I worked in the small addition just to the right of the entrance that ran under the tower...on the ground floor. More than once I had to climb the stairs to the top of the tower to check our transmission equipment.

During World War II, I discovered that they had a radio station control room and one adjoining larger studio, in the tower. It's sound proofing material was still on the walls. I would often go up there and ruminate about how they would put radio shows on the air and wish I'd been there at the time. That would have been handled by the AFRN...Armed Forces Radio Network.

It was a beautiful army base and sat right on the Lake Michigan shoreline. The fort had a private beach for army personnel that your mother and myself would frequent. In the winter it got cold as Alaska and large mounds of ice would form on the rocks along the shoreline, as the big waves crashed against it. Lake Michigan, is a huge lake and all you could see was water as you looked out.



The first car that we owned was a little Nash Rambler convertible. We had it financed at the bank where your mother worked in Evanston, Ill. It looked very similar to this car (shown below) of the same make and close to the same year...except ours was black and didn't have whitewall tires.
It's the car that the muffler fell off while we were driving it back from the used car lot to Highland Park, where we lived at the time. After much arguing and debating...the used car place put another muffler on the car for half price. I didn't have the money to properly maintain the little car or repair a bad leak that developed in the radiator. So, I wrote home and borrowed $400.00 from Granddaddy and bought an old Packard. As you can imagine, he never asked for the money to be repaid. Money was in short supply for us, but we didn't want to constantly bother our families for help. Right before payday, things got really desperate, but we always made it through.

Our next car was a Packard...similar to this one.


Ours was a four door and once again the color was black. This is the car that we drove back to Texas in...after I got out of the army. We were pulling a U-Haul trailer and it's a wonder that it made it back to Meridian.

I'm sure these difficult times...made Kathy and me very close and very dependant on each other. Your mom never fussed at me because I didn't make enough money or the times when we didn't have much to eat.

I vividly remember an incident right before my army payday, where we had three dollars and needed food. Our plans were to pick out some cheap wieners, buns and a can of beans. However, when it came time to check out, the wieners were priced wrong, and were top of the line. So, your mom had to give the buns back and just get the wieners and beans for supper. Your mother, who had gone into the store to shop, while I stayed in the car with Johnny, came out of the store, got in the car and started crying. I asked, "What's wrong babe?" She said, "I messed up and bought the most expensive wieners, so I didn't have enough money for hot dog buns." I patted her hand and told her that was all right, it could have happened to anyone, especially us! She quickly got over it and we finally decided that the whole thing was not only ludicrous, but very funny -- to be that broke and eating the most expensive wieners you could buy. For years afterward, when we were shopping at the grocery store, I would tell your mom, "Now babe, don't get the most expensive wieners they have, we still can't afford them.

Those were the days. Through out our marriage things were usually tight for us financially, but we always had enough to get by on and along with lots of love in the family...we made it just fine. Your mother was a magician at coming up with good meals...when money was short. She was the best wife a man could have. I want you guys to always remember the good times and the abundance of love in our family. Remember too, all those wonderful Christmas mornings and dinners. Love in our family, was something that was never in short supply.

It's blesses me tremendously when I get with you children and just sit back and look at you and see what a wonderful job your mother did in raising you. Each of you children turned out to be wonderful, husbands, wives and great parents. I'm so very proud of you and always will be. In a sense, as long as I have you...I still have your mother...because you are the product of our love and a very unique and wonderful marriage. I love you all very much, Daddy.

Dad's Stories: Ball Lightning!

When I was young boy, the family was in the living room of our house at 607 Bosque Blvd., listening to a radio program. All of a sudden, the hair on our arms stood up and we experienced a very odd sensation. We all sat where we were, totally bewildered by the phenomena. Suddenly and without any warning...a hazy ball of fire, about the size of a person's head entered through an open window facing the north. While the family sat in stunned silence, with eyes the size of hen eggs, the electrical sphere moved rapidly across the room and exited out a bedroom window on the north side of the house.

After it left the room, we became very animated and excitedly moved around the room all talking at once. "What was that," someone blurted out. My daddy said, "It was ball lightening!" In my confused state of mind, I thought I had just seen the Holy Ghost move through our living room. No one was hurt by the incident, but I guarantee you that we never again had family "radio" time during a severe thunderstorm.

I'm sure my face looked something like this:


From then on, whenever it commenced to lightening and thunder, my mother would immediately say, "Turn off the radio! (later the TV). For years, if there was a forecast of thunderstorm activity, day or night...my mother would go all around the house unplugging anything that was connected to an outside antenna.

I saw one other instance of "ball lightening" in action. As a teenager, one of my hobbies was listening to shortwave radio, I usually had a long wire antenna strung from the top of our house, out to our garage. My mom was convinced that one day it would draw a lightening strike that would burn down our home. One night during a terrible thunderstorm and following a loud "crack" of thunder, I observe a nebulus ball of fire run down the antenna wire and dissipate near the garage. After this particular incident, I purchased a "lightening protector" device for my antenna, that would immediately send to ground any direct lightening strikes which might hit my shortwave antenna.

In my entire life, I've never seen such violent thunderstorm activity as we used to have in Meridian, Texas. It was unbelievable, really.

Mike Walk for President!

President Obama has shown us that an unqualified man CAN ascend to the office of president. Therefore, I have decided to run for president in 2012. That will give me a while to get my stuff together. I obviously think I am the best man for the job, and look forward to a spirited campaign. I would like to thank all those who have worked so tirelessly to get me where I am today. Here's to America! The best nation on Earth!

Homo Erectus

It tears me up when scientists try to sculpt and depict our "ancestors".

Looks pretty close.

I'm gonna say that if he looked like the image at left, "Homo Erectus" was just a man.

Retro Outer Space Books

I have always enjoyed old outer space book. During that period from the 30's to just before we landed on Mars (Viking) in 1976, everything was still possible. As we began landing on planets and satellites, it became more and more aparent that there was no other life in our solar system. With each discovery, the fantasies died. But not in our imaginations! So now we can look back at the wide-eyed wonder and speculation, when anything was possible. Here is a great blog that collects info on all these books. Awesome stuff!

http://dreamsofspace.blogspot.com/

My Wife Izzy

My lovely wife Izzy. We have been married for 5 years!

Yesterday we cleaned the Garage!!!

Dad's garage needed cleaning. So we did it. We spent ALL day (11:50 a.m. to 8:15 p.m.) cleaning that sucker! It looks great! Here are some pics of the event!

Here is the way the garage looked before. Junk piled high.



The yard after the garage disgorged its contents...


Here is the way it looked after our day long effort.



Randy did yeoman's service!












Here is the U-Haul filled with junk and garbage!



Here is (L to R) Randy, John, and Mike... the cleaning crew.



On Monday, John and Randy will empty the U-Haul at the local landfill!

Over and out!

** UPDATE **

According to John, the junk and trash in the U-Haul weighed 1.21 tons!!!!