Happy Birthday Gordon DuCette. I found some childhood photos with your name on them and I added them to some I took recently. Don't let anyone call you old, if they do, you have my permission to hit them with your cane. I hope your next year around the sun is even more fun and you have many more.
"It was bad enough when the TSA agents would go through your underwear in your luggage. Now they're going through your underwear while you're wearing it."
Latest Airport TSA Screening Statistics August Statistics On Airport Screening From The Department Of Homeland Security: Terrorists Discovered 0 Transvestites 133 Hernias 1,485 Hemorrhoid Cases 3,172 Enlarged Prostates 8,249 Breast Implants 59,350 Natural Blondes 3
Today, something to think about…….A new report by the General Accounting Office found that over the past five years, the TSA spent about $900 million of our money on behavior detection officers. They’re supposed to be able to spot high-risk passengers who exhibit suspicious behavior, like severe stress, and pull them out of line for extra screening. And what did we get for nearly a billion dolla...rs? Well, out of all the passengers pulled aside for extra harassment, only 0.59 percent were arrested. Mostly for things like suspicion of having drugs or undeclared currency. But how many were actually charged with terrorism? Zero. Not a single one. In light of the complete lack of results, the GAO recommended that Homeland Security cut funding for the behavior detection program. But the DHS “did not concur.” Of course not: in Washington, total failure is no reason to cut funding. But is it any wonder that law-abiding taxpayers are showing signs of severe stress?
Today is my sisters birthday! Wish I could be with her to enjoy her cake and ice cream, but maybe this silly song and old photos will bring a smile to her face and many good memories will fill her heart. Happy Birthday Sue- thanks for all you have done for me and being such a wonderful sister.
Below are a couple photos that proves I was her Big Brother,
taken in North Dakota
Below is a video I made in 2014 before I made the above- rather than trash it, I posted it here and deleted other blog page.
Today is my brother in laws birthday- Happy Birthday Dale Gamble. Dale let Jan stay at their home in Tacoma when Jan and I first started dating at the State Basketball Tournament back in 1973. He retired from the Air Force and we always enjoy visiting him when we can get over to Montana. Hopefully this spring we can make it over to see him again. Happy Birthday Dale. Studies have shown those who have the most birthdays, live the longest.
Happy Valentines Day! I hope you don't mind if I use this space to say Happy Valentines Day to my wife, Janice! Memories are so important and so wonderful. Sonny and Cher sang a song in 1965 called I Got You Babe. Jan bought me a stuffed heart that plays I Got You Babe for Valentines Day a few years ago- it still works. I met Jan in Sept. of 1971 and we married in April of 1974. . I added a few photos of us to refresh some memories that we may have shared. I truly hope you have a Happy Valentines Day!
My wife is always so clever on Valentines Day. Several years ago she go me this singing puppet that sings "I Got You Babe"- it still works, and thus this years video for her. I remember one year she drove to the Rock Island Scale where I was working in a Full Gorilla Costume to hand me my Valentine. Another favorite that finally wore out, but we still have was a stuffed bear that would record messages for each other and then to listen to. One year she hired someone to sing for us as a surprise while we dined out at Visconti's. Last year she filled our bedroom with Helium Valentines Balloons- only to find it really scared our Bird when he entered room.
Yesterday she baked Valentine Heart Cupcakes that are so good!
When you are with the right person, every day is Valentine's Day!
Happy Valentines day, hope you all get some...... Chocolates that is
Back In 2006 I made a video called Be Safe- a reminder to think about safety and be safe. No one plans for an accident, they happen so fast, and can be costly in so many ways. So often we forget we need to be safe at home- I still remember when Jan caught her wedding ring finger on a closet support bracket- it actually broke one of the two rings of her wedding ring- and left her finger swollen and sore. She had to have the rest of the ring cut off and had to wait two weeks for swelling to go down before they can fix ring. I did that myself over 35 years ago when my ring got caught on a truck mirror. Sometimes I think with all the nice weather, we forget about safety- so today- a reminder to myself- slow down and Be Safe!
Fun Things To Do At A Safety Meeting
Spill coffee on the conference table. Produce a little paper boat and sail it down the table.
Arrange to have a poorly-dressed young woman with an infant quietly enter the meeting, stare directly at your boss for a while, burst into tears, then leave the room.
Stand up and act indignant. Demand that the boss tell you the ‘real’ reason this meeting has been called.
Complain loudly that your neighbour won’t stop touching you. Demand that the boss make him/her stop doing it.
Bring a hand puppet, preferably an animal. Ask it to clarify difficult points.
Give a broad wink to someone else at the table. In time, wink at everyone. Sometimes shake your head just a little, as if to indicate that the speaker is slightly crazy and everybody knows it.
Stay behind as everyone else, including the boss, leaves. Thank them for coming.
A worker accidently sliced off all of his fingers. Refusing to panic, he stuffed his hands in his pockets and carefully picked up his fingers with his lips, hoping they could be reattached.
The paramedics arrived to see the man standing there with 10 fingers protruding from his mouth. As they headed to the hospital, the driver asked his partner how the man was doing.
"Oh, he's fine," the paramedic said, "but you better floor it. I don't know how long before the guy he swallowed suffocates."
Learn from the mistakes of others. You won't live long enough to make all of them yourself
When one engine fails on a twin engine airplane you always have enough power left to get you to the scene of the crash.
A 'good' landing is one from which you can walk away. A 'great' landing is one after which they can use the plane again.
I had the most wonderful mother in law. Not only did she raise a fine daughter, but helped us in so many areas. Six years ago she had to give up her two dogs, and house she had lived in for years, to move to Assisted living in Wenatchee. What an adjustment that must have been. We took her to Emergency room for a heart attack only to find out she had several blood infections, and later to have her fall in her room. The infections and drugs caused some interesting mood swings. Growing old does not help either. She was very resilient and tough- Cats are not the only ones with 9 lives. We thought we were losing her several other times before. I am thankful for our wonderful hospital, the staff that took care of her, the many who prayed for her, and A God who is truly watched over her. Thanks for your prayers. God is good. We are thankful for the many pages we could share with her and looking forward to the next page in Heaven. This video is from four years ago, and written/sung by Steve and Annie Chapman.
I love making videos, and with over 180 posted on youtube.com- I am sure you can understand if I forget and make duplicate one- I forgot I used the song pages turn for another video, so rather than delete the video, why not post it on my blog first? You will not find it on youtube.com. I actually redid the video with another song so it was not a big deal. This video is of the DuCette Family and some new photos I just acquired.
History is interesting to me. I often wonder if our life would be changed if we knew we could have been killed but were allowed to live by a flip of a coin? Actually our fate is not decided by a flip of the coin nor do I live in fear of dying. I know God will protect until it's time and someday he will call me home when its time. I even believe my steps can be ordered by the Lord. I never knew Buddy Holly – I was 4 years old when he was killed, but I enjoyed his music and added some photos to some of his songs last year that I wanted to play for you today. Also a history lesson is posted below for you.
On a cold winter's night a small private plane took off from Clear Lake, Iowa bound for Fargo, N.D. It never made its destination.
When that plane crashed, it claimed the lives of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J.P. "Big Bopper" Richardson and the pilot, Roger Peterson. Three of Rock and Roll's most promising performers were gone. As Don McLean wrote in his classic music parable, American Pie, (annotated) it was "the day the music died."
Performing in concert was very profitable, and Buddy Holly needed the money it provided. "The Winter Dance Party Tour" was planned to cover 24 cities in a short 3 week time frame (January 23 - February 15) and Holly would be the biggest headliner. Waylon Jennings, a friend from Lubbock, Texas and Tommy Allsup would go as backup musicians.
Ritchie Valens, probably the hottest of the artists at the time, The Big Bopper, and Dion and the Belmonts would round out the list of performers.
The tour bus developed heating problems. It was so cold onboard that reportedly one of the drummers developed frostbite riding in it. When they arrived at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa, they were cold, tired and disgusted.
Buddy Holly had had enough of the unheated bus and decided to charter a plane for himself and his guys. At least he could get some laundry done before the next performance!
That night at the Surf Ballroom was magical as the fans went wild over the performers.
Jiles P. Richardson, known as The Big Bopper to his fans, was a Texas D.J. who found recording success and fame in 1958 with the song Chantilly Lace.
Richie Valenzuela was only 16 years old when Del-Fi record producer, Bob Keane, discovered the Pacoima, California singer. Keane rearranged his name to Ritchie Valens, and in 1958 they recorded Come On, Let's Go. Far more successful was the song Valens wrote for his girlfriend, Donna, and its flip side, La Bamba, a Rock and Roll version of an old Mexican standard. This earned the teenager an appearance on American Bandstand and the prospect of continued popularity.
Charles Hardin "Buddy" Holley (changed to Holly due to a misspelling on a contract) and his band, The Crickets, had a number one hit in 1957 with the tune That'll Be The Day. This success was follwed by Peggy Sue and an appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. By 1959, Holly had decided to move in a new direction. He and the Crickets parted company. Holly married Maria Elena Santiago and moved to New York with the hope of concentrating on song writing and producing.
Dwyer Flying Service got the charter. $36 per person for a single engine Beechcraft Bonanza.
No, the plane wasn't named American Pie. It only had serial numbers, N3794N.
Waylon Jennings gave his seat up to Richardson, who was running a fever and had trouble fitting his stocky frame comfortably into the bus seats.
When Holly learned that Jennings wasn't going to fly, he said, "Well, I hope your old bus freezes up." Jennings responded, "Well, I hope your plane crashes." This friendly banter of friends would haunt Jennings for years.
Allsup told Valens, I'll flip you for the remaining seat. On the toss of a coin, Valens won the seat and Allsup the rest of his life.
The plane took off a little after 1 A.M. from Clear Lake and never got far from the airport before it crashed, killing all onboard.
A cold N.E wind immediately gave way to a snow which drastically reduced visibility. The ground was already blanketed in white. The pilot may have been inexperienced with the instrumentation.
One wing hit the ground and the small plane corkscrewed over and over. The three young stars were thrown clear of the plane, leaving only pilot Roger Peterson inside.
Over the years there has been much speculation as to whether a shot was fired inside the plane which disabled or killed the pilot. Logic suggests that encased in a sea of white snow, with only white below, Peterson just flew the plane into the ground.
Deciding that the show must go on at the next stop, Moorhead, MN, they looked for local talent to fill in. Just across the state line from Moorhead, in Fargo ND, they found a 15 year old talent named Bobby Vee. The crash that ended the lives of Holly, Valens and Richardson was the break that began the career of Vee.
Tommy Allsup would one day open a club named "The Head's Up Saloon," a tribute to the coin toss that saved his life.
Waylon Jennings would become a hugely popular Country singer.
Dion di Mucci would enjoy a long lived solo career.
Inscribed on Ritchie Valens' grave are the words, "Come On, Let's Go."
I posted this in 2015 and perhaps you would enjoy an update on some of the names mentioned during this crash. I was only 4 at that time of crash.
Bobby Vee was born April
30, 1943 and died October 24, 2016 from Alzheimer’s
Tommy Allsup would one day open a club named
"The Head's Up Saloon," a tribute to the coin toss that saved his
life. Tommy
was born November 24, 1931 and died January 11, 2017 from complications of a
hernia operation.
Waylon Jennings would become a hugely popular
Country singer.Waylon was born June 15, 1937 and died Feb 13, 2002 from diabetes complications
at age of 64.
Dion di Mucc was born in 1939 and I believe is
still living as of this update. In December
1979, there was a radical spiritual change in Dion, who had become a born-again Christian.
Today is Four Chaplains Day; THE IMMORTAL CHAPLAIN
Did you know that today, February 3, is "Four Chaplains Day," as established by the United States Congress in 1988?
Seventy years ago, at 12:30 A.M. on February 3, 1943, the bell on the U.S. Army Transport Dorchester rang twice and never sounded again. The troopship, a converted luxury cruise ship, was carrying 902 servicemen and civilian workers from Newfoundland toward Greenland. An enemy German U-boat 233 submarine torpedoed the Dorchester, and 672 young men died because of it.
Four more would have died, except for the sacrifice of four Army chaplains.
As the ship was going down, the four men of God -- a rabbi, a Roman Catholic priest, a Methodist minister, and a Dutch Reformed pastor -- gave away their life jackets. They were last seen on the deck of the ship, arms linked, heads bowed in prayer, as they went to their watery graves in the North Atlantic.
In the end, a man who tries to save his own life will lose it, and a man who tries to save others will save it. Are you living a life without your life jacket on? Are you willing to give your jacket away to someone in need?
Today my brother and his wife celebrate their 24th Anniversary! Happy Anniversary and many more. I added a few photos to a silly song that I hope bring back memories and a smile to your face. I don't think we celebrate Anniversaries enough- so have a great day and always keep working on many more.
