The Wall That Heals

It is a 3/4 scale replica of the actual Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C. that travels around the country. This stop in Manchester was put together by the Manchester Elks Club. Unfortunately, Goolag or Blogger or YouTube is being stupid and won't let me embed the video I wanted to place here, so I have a link to it instead.

The Wall That Heals - Visitor Experience

On Tuesday the 17th, I was part of the very large motorcycle escort from the staging area at the defunct Enfield Square Mall, to the wall's destination at Charter Oak Park in Manchester. This first photo is from the middle of the motorcycle group on I-91 southbound by exit 45. You can't see the truck hauling the wall far ahead in the distance. Me and the two guys I rode with are ahead in the group somewhere. There were lots more bikes behind the photographer. CT State Police closed the highway so everyone could get on, and then ran blocking for us for lane changes and interchanges. The ride went I-91S, to I-291E, to I-384E, and then we got off at the Main Street Manchester exit. We got a little jammed up getting on I-384 due to crossing traffic, but everyone made it through safely.

This part of the event was meant to also act as a homecoming parade for the Vietnam vets. Main Street in Manchester was full of people and there were tons of school children from the local schools cheering and waving flags. Someone shot this video of the parade and posted it on the town's Fakebook page. I lifted this picture of yours truly rolling by on The Beast from about the 1:45 mark.

We rode all the way up Main Street to the intersection of East Center Street, turned right on East Center, and then right again onto Spruce Street riding all the way south back down to Charter Oak Road. That put us directly across from the entrance to the park and our final destination. When everyone parked and dismounted, we gathered by the truck for a group photo and thank yous from the organizers and town officials. Afterwards, everyone mounted up and rode a few blocks back up Spruce Street to Bissell Street and the Elks Lodge for a fantastic complimentary meal. Needing to do some yard work later on, I chose to just head home instead of riding more with some of my co-workers that are members of the "Riders of Fire" motorcycle club.

Wednesday was the day they assembled the wall. I had a 24 hour shift at the FD so I could not go to lend a hand. This is pretty cool; members of Gold Star Families in attendance get to help carry the panel containing the name of their loved one that was KIA.

There was a coastal storm spinning around in the Atlantic off the coast of Cape Cod and the weather forecast was for rain Wednesday night and showers on Thursday. Instead, the high pressure system to the northwest kept it all away. Thursday morning was bright and sunny so I decided I needed me a dose of wind therapy. I decided to head down to the wall for my own private visit. That bright and sunny turned into hot and sunny, and temps that were supposed to be in the low 70's pushed up to 89. I arrived just before 11 AM and the whole place was packed with people and cars with the lots full. But as usual, there is always room for motorcycles, so I got parked and started walking down to the crowd. All of a sudden, a C-130 screamed overhead at about 500' and I realized that was the flyover for the official opening ceremonies! I went down to the seating area just as it was starting and stayed for the whole thing which lasted a little over an hour. Afterwards I thought I would get my visit in but there were too many people in my way. My wife and I had a meeting with a financial planner the next day and planned to visit the wall after having lunch.

So that's exactly what we did. Went to our meeting first, had a yummy lunch at Hana Sushi, and then went down to Charter Oak Park. The crowds from Thursday were gone, and we had our choice of where to park and see what we wanted when we wanted.

I only know one name on the wall, Whitney T. Ferguson III. He was from the town I used to live in and a school chum of another Vietnam Vet I know personally. The first thing we did was find what panel he was on. Its 29W, Row 7. When I tried to get a picture of his name on my visit to The Wall in D.C. it was up so high I had to blindly hold my camera as high as I could standing on tiptoe. It had taken several tries to get a decent shot. I was easily able to photograph his name on the 3/4 scale wall.

I have not seen this display since 2002 when it was set up at Coventry High School on the athletic field. I forgot it was engraved stone like the original. For some reason I thought it was laser etched or just printed on metal. This allows visitors to do rubbings just like the full scale memorial. The visitor guides were walking around with pads of paper and pencils for anyone desiring one to do their own rubbing.

Here is a panoramic shot I took of the entire length of The Wall. Click it to big it.

There is more to see than just the wall. The trailer the wall comes in is also a Vietnam War museum. There are windows on the sides of the trailer containing artifacts and displays. One thing that was on display was this 1970 draft lottery numbering system table. We plugged in my birthday and I would not have been drafted if I were draft age. My baby brother, on the other hand would have.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This plaque was set on the ground in a small cordoned off area. It is a duplicate of the one in D.C.

The last thing I photographed was the most touching. It is the empty seat set at the dinner table for those MIA's or POW's.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The wall will be going to Bridgeport next. The escort will go from staging in Westport to Bridgeport. I will not be doing that escort run. It's well outside of my normal PGR A.O.

 

I apologize for not getting this post up sooner. I started it on Saturday the 21st while on duty at the FD, but got hit with ambulance calls and never got back to it. Sunday and Monday were days off which were booked up with stuff to do. I am back on duty today and finally got it done.

 

Say Her Name

Aubrey Ashleigh Premo

Let me explain....

Yesterday was day 2 of my normal two day off rotation at the FD. Since I took care of half the yard work and some other errands on Wednesday, Thursday was going to be a motorcycle outing again this week. The plan was to prep the yard for mowing later in the day by blowing off the leaves that are already starting to fall, allowing the grass to dry completely. Then I could head out to see if I could convince one of my co-workers to hop on his bike and go get some lunch. I find that I have been more successful showing up at peoples door on my bike than making a phone call or sending a text. He wasn't home but I found his car parked at his town firehouse. I called him thinking he was inside, but he was out of town working a dive recovery from a weekend boating accident. So I was on my own. I decided to once again head for the shoreline, heading for the CT/RI border town of Pawcatuck, where I could pick up U.S. 1 and head west to Mystic this time. That would take me past the roadside seafood stand called The Sea Swirl for lunch. $22 and change for a fish sandwich, fries, and a large drink, but boy was it good! The only thing I don't like about that place (which I had forgotten) is there are no restrooms, not even a porta-potty. Kind of a necessity when stopping for food especially on two wheels. I hate eating with a full bladder but what could I do? As I was finishing my lunch a car pulls in and parks head in near the table I was sitting at. The male driver was drinking a fucking beer. He knows I saw him but he must think since I am a biker, I'll just be cool about it so he downs the rest of it. I decided to delay my departure to see what these people were going to do. Driving a bike can be hazardous enough without a known intoxicated driver being on the road in the vicinity. They got out to order food and it was obvious that the female passenger was drunk as she stumbled over to the outdoor sink to wash her hands. They order food and knowing they would have to wait for it, that's when I started getting ready to leave so I could be well away from them. She sits on a bench and he goes back to the car, opens the trunk, and grabs another beer. Busch Light... and I see he is wearing a casual shirt that is imprinted with the Busch Light logo all over it. What does that tell you? I know what it tells me, this guy is a functional drunk with a beer in his hand all the time. And these two are not young dumb teens, they are in they're late 40's or early 50's! He gets in the car and sits in the passenger seat to drink his beer, kinda eyeballin' me. I was so tempted to report them, but that would take time and I.... looking out for NUMBER 1 (me) decided to just get the hell away from them. I headed west on U.S. 1 and turned north on RT. 27 past Mystic Seaport and The Mystic Aquarium. There is a large Shell station with a mini-mart and restrooms just before the aquarium access road, so I stopped to perform some hydraulic recycling. I continued up RT. 27 to the end and took some very nice back roads I know through Ledyard and Preston heading north toward the Norwich area and then on to home.

In my travels towards home I passed the road side memorial for Aubrey. I drive by it regularly and have noticed recently it was overgrown, and the cross had fallen over. I had planned to grab some yard implements and make a special trip to clean it up, but on impulse I decided to stop and see what I could do. Here are the results.

Click it to big it

 

I cleared the overgrowth by hand. The weeds were easily moved/removed, but the mushrooms and toadstools looked nice in place. The cross is made of steel painted white with decal letters spelling out her name. Most of the decals are gone, so later I will come back to clean off the old adhesive and replace them. I found a rock 3X the size of my fist which worked perfectly to hammer the cross back into the ground, The sign with her name and picture was bent over so I straightened it back up. The sunflower ornament had fallen over as well, so that got put back up.

Here is the back story of her accident that I found out through my FD connections. She was working at Day Kimball Hospital as a PCT (patient care technician) while attending nursing school to become an RN. She was engaged to be married, had a brand new 2019 Harley-Davidson and was out for a nice September afternoon cruise with her fiance'. He was following behind her on his bike when the accident happened right in front of him. According to my sources in EMS, she was killed instantly. There was nothing anyone could do to save her. I had been out on my bike that Sunday as well, and drove right through there going the opposite direction less than 2 hours earlier. When I was at home, I heard on the scanner that there was a motorcycle accident on RT. 89 in Mansfield, but did not closely listen to the call. After being home a few hours, my wife and I were headed out for dinner going out that way. When we got to Laurel Lane, the road was closed and we turned around to take another route. I could see the scene from where we turned around and it just looked like a tree down across the road. I didn't put two and two together. It was only later that I found out that it was the motorcycle accident and that it was a fatality. The news reports said that Aubrey was "struck by a tree branch." Bullshit, she was crushed to death by a whole large tree. Interestingly, tree crews had been working in the area, removing and trimming trees that could take down power lines the previous weeks. Did they miss taking down this tree or somehow otherwise cause this accident? Who knows.

As a biker with The Patriot Guard Riders, I know how important memorials and services are. It is sad that Aubrey's memorial has fallen to the wayside but I understand people move on with their lives. As a fellow biker that works in emergency services I feel a special kinship to those who meet their end while out enjoying God's Creation on two wheels. I guess I will take on the role of maintainer and try to keep her memorial visible and fresh anonymously. Only my blog and X readers know about this, no one in meat space does.

Oh No, Not Another FUDD!

This past Saturday evening we had a bonfire at my house and had several friends over. Because of work, weather, wildfire conditions, and activities requiring us to get up early the next day, this is the first one we've had all year. I started burning late morning, by lighting off the brush pile that has filled my fire pit since last fall. I continued to feed the pit with downed tree limbs supplemented by firewood. My stack of firewood was pretty wet, forcing me to place firewood standing on end inside the rock fire ring to dry out before being placed on the fire pile. As the firewood dried out and put on the fire it was replaced with more wet wood. Every now and then a few seconds of forced air with my hand held leaf blower turning it into a blast furnace ensured the fire kept burning well all night long. I'll pre-dry a quantity of firewood before the next fire.

What prompted this post is finding out someone in the fire service I have known for 40 years is a raging FUDD and a BUTTER and I never knew it. In case you're new to my blog, or firearms, or The Second Amendment, here's a couple of definitions:

FUDD:  Especially those veterans that spout their anti-gun views because "muh service"

BUTTER:  "I believe in The Second Amendment, BUT nobody needs/should have ______"

I am a Second Amendment absolutist, meaning if you can afford it, you should be able to purchase it, straight from the manufacturer WITHOUT ANY GOVERNMENT KNOWLEDGE OR INTERFERENCE. And I do mean EVERYTHING! F-15 fighters, nuclear powered submarines, M1 Abrams tanks, Blackhawk helicopters, etc. Every single federal, state, or local gun law that prevents, prohibits, or otherwise restricts ownership or use of ANY ARMS is an infringement. PERIOD. FULL STOP. The ATF should be immediately disbanded and dissolved, and every employee from the janitor to the director should be put on trial for crimes against American Citizens. And no, The Second Amendment wasn't written to protect hunting and target shooting, but to prevent a tyrannical out of control government. All enemies, foreign and domestic so The Oath goes.

We were seated around the fire and there were several conversations going on. The individual that is the subject of this post was seated next to me. His wife usually comes but she was under the weather. All of a sudden I get a text from a member of my sportsman's club that lives in town. He had fallen at his house and injured himself earlier in the day requiring EMS transport to the hospital. He texted me and asked (jokingly) why I wasn't there when he needed me. I explained I wasn't on duty, but as a joke I would send him my schedule so he only hurts himself when I am working. A guy sitting across from us is also a member of my FD and my sportsman's club. I told him who got hurt, which prompted my friend next to me to ask "Oh, you belong to a shooting range?" I told him I did and that I am the club secretary. He starts telling me he had bought a 9mm pistol years ago but hasn't fired it yet. I asked him if he was carrying it (bad idea if you are not intimately familiar with a firearm for EDC)? He said no, he never would, it's just for the house. I told him he should join me at my range and shoot it, and that I carry all the time. Oh boy, that's when all the FUDD rhetoric spewed forth. He said he'd never carry because it is so restrictive. I told him we live in a stupid clown world and the stupid can find you anywhere, so I carry everywhere regardless, including across state lines. Then he voiced his support for a total "assault weapons" ban because "nobody needs such a thing." I told him no one should be determining the needs of others. Boy he really lit up at the mention of infringements against The Second Amendment, and said something like "screw the Second Amendment it was written for muskets and I am sick of hearing about The Constitution." Wow.... I knew right there that this conversation was potentially not going to remain civil, and used the pause to get up and add firewood to the fire, just dropping the whole subject. I value his friendship more than trying to convince him at 77 years old how wrong he is. The rest of the evening was enjoyable and he actually left the gathering first.

This is the root picture used on X to create FUDD memes. Ol' Pop-Pop wearing a blaze orange hunter cap. The number of firearms I own would be derogatorily called an "arsenal" and the several cubic feet of ammo called a "cache" by such an individual.

 

"I have a .22 rifle, a bolt action .30-06, and a shotgun. That''s all that anyone ever needs. Concealed handguns are the tool of the criminal"

I actually had a FUDD (a former chief of my department) say those very words. But then he would go on to say that a .45 ACP 1911 was the best handgun because he killed a guy in Vietnam with one, and 9mm anything was crap. I tried to explain modern 9mm ammo and handguns are nothing like what the Germans used with their Lugers. He didn't care to discuss it so asked him if I could just shoot him with the 9mm I carry. He was not amused and called me a fucking idiot for carrying a gun all the time. I told him maybe he was the fucking idiot for not carrying a tool to defend himself, because a concealed firearm in a proper holster harms no one. Another conversation ended by me walking away.

Three P.G.R. Funeral Flag Lines

Yesterday I reported for Patriot Guard duty at the CT Veterans Cemetery in Middletown for two funerals back to back. Staging time for the first one was 12:00 and the second one was set for 13:00. I arrived on "The Beast" early as usual, with my first stop at the admin building to use the restroom. I spotted the area in the cemetery where the others were gathered and moved over there to park. There were three freshly dug and readied graves for cremains right in a row nearby. While we were just hanging out the funeral director shows up and informs the Ride Captain that there is a funeral prior to the two we are there for, and the family is asking if we would stand a flag line for their loved one as well. Now the P.G.R. will never just show up, or come on hearsay, we must be officially invited by immediate family of the deceased. Since we were already there and the mission kinda met the criteria, we assembled our flags and got in place just as the procession was arriving. There were only 12 mourners but about 20 P.G.R. members, and the family was extremely happy with what we did. It was a little unusual because the urn was a his & hers side by side holding two sets of cremains. Therefore, because the husband was the veteran but the wife wasn't, no military honors were performed. It was a simple burial.

The next two burials proceeded as usual, with an honor guard rifle team firing 3 volleys, a bugler playing taps, and two Army soldiers doing the flag. When there is a casket, the casket is draped with a flag right to the grave. That flag is 5' x 9' and specially made for draping a casket. It is never meant to be flown on a flagpole. It is lifted from the casket and folded 13 times into a triangle for presentation to the family. When there are cremains, the flag arrives already folded and placed with the urn. The military honor guard then picks up the flag, unfolds it, smartly snaps it open horizontally, pauses, then refolds it into the triangle for presentation. I have heard it so many times I know it by heart:

"On behalf of the President of The United States, The United States Army/Navy/Air Force, and a grateful nation, please accept this flag as a symbol of our appreciation for your loved one's honorable and faithful service."

The Marines (fucking crayon eaters 😆) have their own version that goes like this:

On behalf of the President of The United States, The Commandant of The Marine Corps, and a grateful nation, please accept this flag as a symbol of our appreciation for your loved one's honorable and faithful service.

After military honors are rendered, religious burial services are then held. It seems all the ones I've ever been to were Christian or none. Raised a Catholic, I know that one really well and usually includes "The Lord's Prayer" and the 23rd Psalm.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us,
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. (Catholic prayer ends here) 

For thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory,
forever and ever. (Other Christian denominations)

Amen.

 

The Lord Is My Shepherd

A Psalm of David.

23 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
²     He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
³     He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
    for his name's sake.

⁴ Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
    I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
    your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.

⁵ You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.
⁶ Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
    forever.

 

One of the final prayers is called the "Eternal Rest Prayer" and goes like this:

Eternal rest grant unto him/her, O Lord,
and let Your perpetual light shine upon him/her.
May his/her soul and the souls of all the faithful departed
rest in peace.

Amen.

While it is entirely recited by the priest, the second line is said by all in attendance.

 

Over the past six years of Patriot Guard duty, I have learned more about funerals than I ever thought possible. For someone that deals with death on the job regularly, attending all these funerals seems to provide a sort of closure. Most of the people I deal with that die are strangers anyway, just like the funerals I go to. It kind of evens out.

There Must Have Been A Grant

Because these things are popping up everywhere in towns in my area, on both local and state roads. Solar powered electronic speed sensor signs that provide feedback to the driver.

Once upon a time, these were only seen in school zones or problem areas. They also used to show your actual speed no matter how fast you were going. It was once my favorite game, to announce loudly "My Favorite Game!" and romp the accelerator as soon as I spotted one, much to the dismay of my wife that would ask "Do you have to do that?" My personal best was in a 25 MPH school zone in MA on a Saturday afternoon with no one around reaching a smokin' 74 MPH. But no more. DPW and DOT tyrants have ruined my fun and obviously the fun of many like me.

Some of the signs now simply don't turn on or go blank at certain speeds. The one closest to my house does both at 50 MPH. Others say "SLOW DOWN" or "TOO FAST" and some have attention getting strobes. I have seen a couple of strobes set up with alternating red and blue, I guess to make you think its a cop? The signs are obviously user programmable, so my new favorite is this one:

Aw... unhappy face because I am ignoring the speed limit

These are more rare but fun to find... I made the sign unhappy. HA! HA! There was a rumor once upon a time that these things had a camera that took a photo of your license plate so you could get a ticket in the mail, but that was just bullshit.

Speaking of bullshit... on I-84 East in Tolland there is an overhead electronic sign that normally reads how long it will take you to go the 19 miles to the MA border. It also changes to give traffic and weather advisories. Speeds on that stretch of highway with a 65 MPH speed limit usually run 80+, yet the sign ALWAYS reads 19 miles in 18 minutes, never the true reading. The math for a true reading would be:

Distance x 60 / Actual speed = Time

So 19 x 60 = 1140 divided by the legal speed limit of 65 = 17.54 minutes rounded up to 18

where a true reading would be

19 x 60 / 80 = 14.25 minutes (rounded down to 14?)

The gubmint nannies have always told us that speeding doesn't make much difference in travel time, and it is so unsafe. Oh yeah? I would call 4 minutes over 19 miles a significant time savings and I usually crank along at a good clip. State police in Kommiecticut don't run radar traps anymore, even on this holiday weekend. They only bother with the really high speed and aggressive drivers. I was monitoring C.S.P. Troop C at the firehouse Friday, and they issued at least 4 BOLO alerts for high speed aggressive drivers IN THEIR AREA on I-84 from the MA border down to exit 64 in just a couple of hours. I don't have to worry about a speeding ticket. Even if I did get pulled over, my Kommiecticut fire department ID shows next to my license in my wallet and unless I did something really bad, acts as a "Get Out Of Jail Free" card.

Jury Duty 5-14-24

I lived in my previous house in another town for 16 years. During that time I was summoned for jury duty at least 4 times. Two of those times I called the courthouse telephone number the night before and heard a recorded message stating my presence in the court was not needed, and that my obligation had been fulfilled. But twice I actually had to appear in court and go through the screening process. Both times I was rejected for reasons that were quite amusing. One was a civil case where a guy was suing everyone under the sun because he was injured at work. When they asked me my opinion about punitive damages I brought up the idiot woman that held a scalding hot cup of coffee between her legs while she drove away from the McDonald's drive-thru and was burned, receiving millions in punitive damages. I asked if the injured party had his medical bills taken care of which the attorneys assured me they were. The guy cut his face but you could not even tell because he was not disfigured in the least. He fell and hit his head on the garage door window which broke and cut his face, so they were suing the company (Jiffy Lube), the corporate and company management, the builder of the building, the architect, the manufacturer of the door, the manufacturer of the window, etc. STUPID! I got bounced for more than just my statements though, since I was friends with the manager of that Jiffy Lube, brought my company van in there regularly, and the plaintiff's law firm was a customer of my company. The other one was a criminal case of assault of one inmate against another in the state prison system. The defendant sat 25 feet away in front of me looking right at me. The attorneys asked if I could be fair and impartial. I told them absolutely not, because he was a convicted criminal and incarcerated, and therefore a liar because everyone in prison is innocent. Plus I was pretty sure they had him on video six ways from Sunday beating the crap out of his fellow inmate. I was thanked for my honesty and sent on my way.

This was the second time in 19 years in my present residence that I have been called. The first time was like previous times, where I called the courthouse and told I would not have to appear. This notice for jury duty arrived in late March, and in Kommiecticut it is now in the form of an actual court summons. Once upon a time, certain potential jurors were automatically excused right off the bat like cops, firemen, EMT's, doctors, lawyers, etc. No more. Only legislators and officers of the court are automatically exempted (how convenient they have exempted themselves from this burden) and anyone 75 or older can choose to be exempt. You can reschedule your date for any reason, but eventually you will have to appear. I filled out the online juror questionnaire promptly and waited for the notice to come in the mail of how to proceed. The notice with the phone number to call the night before came in the mail about a week before I was scheduled to appear.

Now, I don't really give a shit about doing my civic duty in a *GUN FREE DEATH ZONE like a courthouse that is staffed and guarded by unarmed Judicial Marshall's, with one exception... to engage in Jury Nullification. If I am ever called for a case involving non-criminal self defense and the use of deadly force, I will do everything possible to serve on that jury and cause a hung jury and mistrial. No one that uses deadly force to protect their loved ones or their castle should ever even be charged. But this is Kommiecticut and they will try to prosecute you to the fullest if they think they can build a case. And I don't care how they try to make jury service sound like it is such a glorious thing to do. It is a burden to your life, family, and employer, and it's even worse if you end up sequestered.

On Monday evening the 13th I called the courthouse number... and groaned. The recording said to report to the courthouse Tuesday morning and get checked in by 08:30, and also recommended packing a lunch. Lucky for me it was a scheduled day off so I didn't have to deal with my employer. I packed a lunch like I usually do for work anyway and grabbed a breakfast sandwich at the local convenience store for the road. The courthouse is just over 20 minutes away and I got there early not knowing what the parking situation was. It turns out it is a large open lot right across the street from the courthouse with free parking. I stayed in my truck until I saw a Marshall unlock and open the front door. I left my cooler with lunch in my truck figuring that is where I would eat it at lunch time, and also unloaded and secured my firearm so I could easily enter the *GFDZ which uses airport style security measures. I got in and headed up to the 3rd floor Jury Assembly Room. I carried a book, my summons, a banana, and a bottle of water. You are allowed to have your cell phone so I also had that to read my blogs and be on Twitter. But they warn against posting ANYTHING about the case on social media.

I sat in the room for about 40 minutes as other jurors continued to check in. There were a total of 40-50 people and a mixed cross-section of age, sex, and ethnicity. After everyone was checked in and attendance was verified, the Judge came in to address us for about 10 minutes. I could not believe how young he was... maybe 40? After he left we had to watch a pair of videos. A brief one about jury service, and how honored we should be that we were chosen, which to me was nothing but YAY RAH RAH pro jury propaganda. The other one was about bias, and how everyone has them, but need to suppress them concentrating only on the evidence presented. They beat the phrase "Awareness is Fairness" into the viewer with every person in the video repeating the phrase over and over. Another long period of waiting in the assembly room and then we were herded down stairs to the 2nd floor to the courtroom. They held us in the hall for 10 minutes and then we were lead into the courtroom.

We were seated in the gallery for a few minutes and then told to stand and raise our right hand to be sworn in. We were seated again and introduced to the prosecutors, the defendant, and the defense attorney. We were given the simple facts of the case; the defendant's significant other had a restraining order against him, which he proceeded to violate six times over the span of a week by "contacting" her, whatever that meant. There was never any violence, only "contact." He plead "Not Guilty" and desired a trial.

Now I have an opinion about those useless pieces of paper called restraining orders. They are mostly gotten by women against abusive men. So ladies, if you're gonna get one, back it up like this. When he comes to pay you a visit, you be ready to ventilate with extreme malice. Otherwise it is fucking worthless.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anyway, back to my story. The prosecutors then read a list of names of attorneys, witnesses, researchers, investigators, etc. anyone that may be associated with the case. If you knew any of those people you were to raise your hand to let them know, get questioned, and possibly be excused. Two people raised their hand, and the defense attorney stated there was one more person that did not speak up but should have. The attorneys were then called up to the bench to confer with the judge. The two that raised their hands as well as three other people's names were called and ordered to stay in the courtroom, while the rest of us went back up to the Jury Assembly Room to wait.I don't know whom the third individual was and don't care.

Lunch was supposed to be at 1 PM and I was getting hungry. At 1:10 the clerk and a Marshall came in and she read off several names, but not mine. They were told they could leave for lunch and be back by 2:10 PM. Now my being hungry was turning into becoming "Hangry" as I figured I was going to be called back downstairs at some point and my belly would be growling loudly while answering questions. Nope! As soon as those people left, the clerk said, "If I did not call your name, your jury service is over and you may leave for the day. "WOO HOO! I AM OUTTA HERE!!" I left the building and took off in my truck to eat my lunch under a shady tree in the state park I would pass on the way home... which is exactly what I did. Because I actually appeared in court in person, I am exempt from jury duty for the next three years and will be receiving a certificate of proof in case I get called in error.

I got home, changed my clothes, and headed out on "The Beast" for some much needed wind therapy. I ended up at my baby brother's house some 30 miles away whom I haven't seen in a while. My sister-in-law was there too since she works from home. We had a nice visit for a couple of hours before I filled my gas tank and headed home.

*GFDZ = Gun Free Death Zone

TDS Is Worse Than China Coof

Although I never agree with her politically, I do enjoy reading Comrade Misfit's blog Just An Earth-Bound Misfit, especially on Sunday mornings with her regular feature of Prop/Jet/Rotor Noise featuring military and sometimes rare aircraft in flight. I mean she is obviously a Pink Floyd fan, so....

But her post today cracks me up. The title is "Don't Let Them Live in Your Head Today" yet that is exactly what is going on with her and every other TDS sufferer. All the D/S/C propaganda media and Faux News wanted Nikki Haley to win, but there was and continues to be no way. I wish I could stomach an hour each of CNN and MSNBC to watch the meltdown post Iowa of Trump's historic win, but I am on shift for the FD and hunched over the toilet puking makes it hard to fulfill my duties.

As always, I wish Comrade Misfit well, and just imagine how much better the country would be if she and all the other TDS sufferers held the D/S/C's feet to the fire to follow The Constitution, actually improve the economy, close our borders, crack down on crime, etc. etc. instead of directing so much negative energy to one man and his supporters.

Been A Couple of Wild Weeks

I started composing this post on December 23rd, but have had so many interruptions between emergency calls, other things that have drawn my attention, and then the hustle and bustle of Christmas it is FINALLY finished.

 

I'm going to try to do this in chronological order of the photos. I know it has been a few weeks since I've put up a blog post, but don't worry... I have been trolling and shit-posting the hell out of #Libturds of all kinds on X (Twitter). Amazingly, I have not been suspended. Elon Musk has really reigned in the SJW censors they had on staff.

Over Thanksgiving weekend, I found out my cousin Christopher was here in New England visiting his mom, family, and friends. He served in the Navy on the west coast and left with full retirement, only to be immediately hired by the DoD because of his expertise. He still works for DoD but lives in South Carolina. I text poked him when I came across this photo at my brother's house. I am just a little older than he is. This photo is from Easter 1965 and was taken at my Memere's house. He and I are in the foreground, me on the left and him on the right. From left to right was my Memere, his mother, my mother, my aunt Terese, my maternal grandmother (Nana) with my sister on her lap, and in the back my uncle Donald. I have no idea who was in the high chair. My cousin and I tried to get together over Thanksgiving weekend, but it never happened because I had to work. I broke his balls for sneaking up here without telling me. We'll try again over the summer.

 

 

 

On November 28th, snow bands off of Lake Erie made their way across PA and NY/NJ to my neck of the woods. They call it "mood snow." This didn't amount to much more than what's in the video.

Next, this is yet another fine example of shitty Duracell batteries as documented by me a year ago with this post. I thought I had purged them from everything I own.... guess not. On December 2nd I went to put away my brush fire gear for the season and this EverReady headlamp wasn't working. This is what I found when I opened it up. The batteries are dated 2027. Into the garbage it all went. The other day, I discovered yet another device with Duracell batteries that was just starting to leak, my Midland clock radio that is our severe weather alert. What tipped me off that there was an issue was the battery indicator was not at full as it was supposed to be. I dumped the batteries and was able to clean the battery compartment and terminals to save the device.

The headlamp battery compartment

 

I was in WalMart the other day to buy some spare EverReady Energizer batteries for stock. As I approached the battery display, a woman ahead of me grabbed a package of Duracell AA's and accidentally knocked several to the floor. As I helped her pick them up, I told her of my problems with Duracell and how we at the fire department have swapped them all out. Plus the Energizer's were a couple of dollars cheaper. She put the Duracell's back, grabbed the Energizer's, and thanked me.

On December 4th, my chicken flock got one of their favorite seasonal treats, the large pumpkin we buy to set out with the mums for fall decorating. Using a large knife, I score the skin in several places and smash it open on a large rock in the chicken yard. They attack it immediately and get a few days enjoyment out of it. All that's left are paper thin pieces of the skin.

On December 7th, my shift partner and I did a transport to Hartford Hospital just before lunch time. The decision was made to save our lunches back at the firehouse for the following day and stop at one of our favorite places. I always get their "Burnt Ends" with two sides, cornbread, and a drink. We were so hungry we ate most of it driving back from Hartford. I was in a food coma later that afternoon.

We had a couple of heavy wind and rain storms. The first one was while I was on duty Sunday the 10th and Monday the 11th. The western part of the state got the worst of it but we were double staffed at the FD just in case. We made sure all the apparatus was fueled, and all the saws were running good. I found three saws with skunky old gas in them and replaced with fresh 2-stroke mix. We got several inches of rain and the local river was near the top of its banks. Only one call for tree/wires down.

 

For the past 40 years we have had a live tree, cutting our own at a tree farm. $85 again this year, but it is full, lush and green. My wife finished up with the it and did a fantastic job as usual. She weaves the lights in and out from the trunk so the entire tree is lit, not just the outside. 1500-1700 lights on the tree this year, she lost count. She also decorates an artificial tree in the corner of the dining room. That tree belonged to my parents and is pretty good for a fake. It is a themed tree, decorated with only Santa ornaments.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Exactly a week later Sunday the 17th into Monday the 18th we got another wind and rain storm, which hit the eastern part of the state worse this time. I was not scheduled to work and decided I wanted the time off right before Christmas. If it wasn't right before Christmas, I would have grabbed at least one extra shift. We lost power at the house just before 9 AM and with the storm howling there was no chance a power crew was coming out to fix it. I reported it to Eversource and went outside to set up my generator. I got fucking soaked but at least we had electricity again. Because of the wind and rain still occurring, I set up the collapsible shelter I fabricated to protect the generator from the elements. I listened to my scanner as my department and all the surrounding ones got hammered with calls. EMS calls, flooded basements, trees and wires down, etc. Once the storm went by, things calmed down big time. Just after sundown, power crews were on my road. Normally we don't get power back until all the main feeds are repaired, but this time the main feeds sustained no damage. I looked at my meter around 7 PM and the display was lit. I called my neighbor to let him know power was back on because after I shut mine down I heard his still running. I brought everything into the garage to cool down so I could re-fuel and stow the equipment. The rain gauge showed 5 5/8" total. I dumped it at 5 inches and we got another 5/8" as the storm wound down. The flooding was way worse this time with the local river in the parking lot of the firehouse only about 30' away from the building.

3 1/2" at 07:00, this was at 09:00

 

Below is my latest mortgage statement. I could not imagine trying to buy a house right now thanks mostly to the economic disaster we live in now. We pay less per month than what people are paying for a 1-bedroom apartment in a nice complex. My daughter is now living in a 3-bedroom apartment on the 3rd floor in a multifamily house in the city of New Britain with a roommate and is paying $1500 per month. We have anywhere from $200K to $230K of equity depending on which market analysis you look at. Our house was built for us, moving in April 2005, and we paid about $277K. As you can see, the biggest chunk of my monthly payment (and unfortunately the one that fluctuates) is the escrow for taxes and insurance. For whatever reason, the monthly payment dropped $40 per month with the latest escrow analysis. We re-financed in early 2021 to get the 3.125% rate because every month Chase was inviting us to refinance. Of course, they wanted us to cash out a ton of equity but we just re-financed the balance, leaving the equity alone.

Redacted (OF COURSE) mortgage statement

 

Finally, our Christmas celebration was nice and quiet at home with my wife's brother who lives in a group home and stayed with us for a few days and my daughter. My wife's other brother and his family went to Florida to spend Christmas with The Old Man so we got together with them before they left. My brother and his gang went to Vegas for Christmas. It was nice to be home since the FD schedule is different now meaning I do not work all 5 days M-F. I was off for Thanksgiving and will be off for New Years.

Turning Meme's Into Reality

H/T to Midwest Chick over at Non Original Rants (one of my favorite daily reads) for the Sunday Meme Drop this morning and this little gem.

So of course, I just had to change the name on my 06:00 alarm on my Android phone.

It helps to be reminded to oppress others when you are not actually an oppressor

 

At home I use my Midland Clock radio that also provides my severe weather warning. But at the firehouse when I go in at midnight, I'll set an alarm on my phone for the 06:00 shift change so I am up when the next person comes on. If we get hammered with calls over night or both of us are doing an 18 hour shift, I will sleep in for a couple of extra hours and get up if there is a call or whenever.

FYI... I will have no computer access until August 27th, so no new posts until then.

Update Of Turkish M2 Ball

Since it is hot and sticky outside today and the grass is not drying out from the storms early this morning, there will be no mowing today. I will hit it after my 18 hour FD shift tomorrow evening. Today makes 40 years of wedded bliss for us, so we are going out to Foxwood's for an awesome dinner, just the two of us. When we get home I have to don a duty uniform, prepare my bunk duffel, and food for the day tomorrow because I go in for midnight. I am usually at the firehouse by 22:30, stow my food, make up my bunk, and catch the last of the late news turning in before 23:00. If there is an earlier call and I respond I go on the clock right then. I'll set an alarm and get up at 06:00 if there are no overnight calls and there is a shift change. Otherwise I will sleep in to make up for getting woken up in the middle of the night.

So, in anticipation of an upcoming range day, I spent some time in the nice cool basement de-linking some more of the Turkish M2 Ball ammo I got from Tacticalshit.com  The cardboard case is divided into three partitions, so I figured I would finish the first partition and use the space to store the Ziploc bag of machine gun links. In my previous post I described how easy it is to accomplish. I grabbed a piece of scrap PT deck board and clamped it in place on one of my Stanley Workmates. I placed a small bucket on the floor to my right to toss the links in. The .30 cal ammo can I have my M1 target ammo and accessories in was in front of me for the M2 Ball rounds to go into, and the pile of 4 round assemblies are sitting on the end of the board by the ammo can.

Below is a closeup of the end of the board where I dimpled it with a punch to keep the bullet point from sliding away as I pressed down.

Rather than taking a chance on chewing up my hands and fingers I wore a pair of gripper gloves to perform the de-linking operation.

Each 4 round assembly took only seconds to take apart. Links tossed in the bucket, rounds in the ammo can. Being dissimilar metals (steel links and brass cases) there was no electrolytic caused corrosion that made the components stick together or have to be cleaned. IMHO this ammo was properly stored in a dry environment. When I was done, this is what was left for the future; two partitions of ammo with the bag of links.

I sealed up the cardboard box with packing tape and labeled it with a Sharpie. Hmmmm.... a dilemma; where am I going to store a cardboard box of ammo? While my basement is nice and dry, all of my ammo in my large steel storage box is stored inside individual sealed 30 and 50 caliber ammo cans. So I made room in my super fortified and alarmed gun closet in the living area above grade. I just had to move some hard handgun cases around. As for the ammo can full of M2 Ball...

It already had a spot in the ammo box. Without counting I should now have about 132 loose rounds. The 6 loaded clips with cardboard covers are the Greek ammo that is going to be used for comparison. The white box are M1999 blanks and lying on the cover is the blank adapter. Years ago, we had a miniature poodle that my wife had trained to retrieve ducks. We would train him in the yard where my wife would throw the dummy duck high in the air, I would fire a blank, and as the duck fell she would yell "GET IT!" and he would get it and drag it back. The yellow device allows me to shoot my M1 as a single shot rifle. It locks down the bullet follower and allows the bolt to move freely to manually load a round and then automatically eject the brass. To remove it from the rifle you simply hold the bolt back and press the clip ejection button on the left side of the receiver and it pops out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I put a tape label on top differentiating the Turkish and Greek ammo head stamps. When I uploaded this picture I realized I incorrectly put "MKE 82" instead of the actual "MKE 83".  I'll fix it at a later date.

Stay tuned for the upcoming range report on how this ammo functions and performs. When I get a range day depends on weather, work, and family obligations. I should have multiple opportunities before Labor Day.

Do Big Bugs Freak You Out?

Last night as I pulled into the firehouse for my midnight shift, this was fluttering around the front entry under the lights. It landed on the concrete in front of the door, and stayed put as I opened the door to get this photo.

Click it to big it. A Polyphemus Moth. It was at least 6" from wingtip to wingtip

Here is a link to a page about it.

Earlier in the week, there was a large Luna Moth hanging around out in back along the wood line. My partner almost ran it over when he was leaving, so I let it climb onto my hand and I moved it to the leafy thicket.

Yummy!

I've been on shift today since 22:30 last night, and got up at 06:00 for the shift change for my incoming partner. OMG... she is so young, but IMHO fully capable. It is strange to work in the fire service with someone born after 9-11. My own daughter was already 18 when my shift partner came into this world. I have actually met her parents and they are bikers, so OK in my book.

I had a leftover baked potato and some kielbasa, so with a couple of fresh eggs from my birds cooked over medium with some Mexican style shredded cheese and an English Muffin, I had a good breakfast.

I did the potato and kielbasa in the toaster oven for 10 minutes under the broiler, while the English muffin went in the 4-slice toaster and I fried up the eggs. Perfectly timed to all be hot and ready at the same time. I thought about turning the potato into homefries, but opted to just halve it with sour cream. I washed it down with an ice cold cup of milk. Real milk... like I have drank all my life... from a cow. Not from a nut tree, oat field, or soybean plant. As an aside; I was the oldest of 3 kids in an intact nuclear family of five. We went through 5 gallons of milk a week. It came direct from the Moser Farms dairy store right in town. They sold a 5-gallon jug that fit in the refrigerator with a spigot at the bottom. We also bought the rest of our dairy goods from them, and went to their soft-serve ice cream stand once a week in the summer.

Not Even The Same Area Code

While watching Newsmax this morning, they showed footage from the recent state dinner at The Whitehouse in June. There he was, the 1st Criminal, glad-handing with assorted VIP's and a thought occurred to me.... who in their right fucking mind would purposely be seen and photographed with that piece of shit? Like the title states, I don't want to be anywhere near him or any other criminal for that matter. Guilt by association? I don't need the added aggravation.

There have been times in the ambulance transporting a patient of questionable, uh... shall we say standards. They lost, misplaced, or don't have a phone and want to make a call. If there is no ALS Paramedic on board, I have to use the app on my phone to contact the receiving hospital. I tell them a lie that I need to keep the app open for the hospital only. If there is a paramedic, they are responsible for using the app, and so I lie again saying I just don't have my phone. I do not ever want my phone number appearing in the call log of some criminal's phone while being scrolled though by law enforcement, and then have to explain it. I got into an argument with another department member (who is a total jackass anyway) that told me I was "heart-less" for not letting others just use my phone. My response was "good, I will send them to you to make their phone call." Boy, you shoulda heard the excuses.

How Humid Is It?

After the tropical downpours of yesterday, this is what the windows at the firehouse look like. Heavy condensation on the outside of Pella double pane insulated windows.

I came on at 06:00 and the outside air is thick and soupy. The A/C is on throughout the station so it is cool and comfy. Ambulance calls won't be bad, but being outside for any length of time or at a fire will suck.

I Almost Became A Tranny

Well, I guess a more accurate description would be a eunuch, since I wouldn't be cross-dressing or asking people to use made up stupid pronouns.

I went on an ambulance call yesterday at one of our apartment complexes. When I knocked on the door, the door wasn't latched and swung open a few inches. Much to my surprise, a large pit bull shoved it's head through the opening right at and against my groin. I was not injured, but I used my best Drill Sargent voice and commanded the occupants to "CONTROL YOUR DOG!" They weren't too happy to be yelled at about their supposedly "friendly" dog, as I was axed "Why you gotta be like dat?" as they pulled it backwards into the apartment and closed the door. The person we were there to see opened the door and squeezed out through the opening so the dog wouldn't get out and the rest of the call was a routine transport.

I documented all this in my Patient Care Report, and then had a phone conversation with the Chief so he was aware. We both agreed that if that had been a state trooper that came to the door first, the dog would have gotten a lead pill in the noggin, no ifs, ands, or buts. They should be happy they just got told in a loud voice to control their dog.

A Couple Of Items

Monday I was out on "The Beast" to run an errand and then help out a friend with his Goldwing. It was a warm and partly sunny midday, with thunderstorms in the evening well after I got safely home. My riding bud has been laid up since winter, and is no closer to riding after stints in the hospital and rehab facilities. I don't think he will ever be able to ride on two wheels again, so I went over to dust off, start, and take his 2015 Goldwing out for a short run. It already had and still had a full tank of fuel when I got back. He came out in the blazing heat with his walker and sat on his bike side-saddle, and then barely made it back into the house without collapsing. I thought his girlfriend was gonna kill him for that. I let his bike cool down and hooked up his battery charger and put the cover on. On the way home I had a revelation. I stream iHeart Radio on my cell phone, connected to my bike via a Bluetooth adapter. I happened to be streaming the iHeart 70's channel and something felt really familiar. Not deja vu but just very familiar. OF COURSE.... I KNOW WHAT IT IS!!

The earlier model Archer Road Patrol Bike Radio I had

I got one of these for maybe my 11th birthday. My siblings had later received the newer round red model. They were AM only, mounted to the handlebars of your bike, and had an electronic horn. There was a large round yellow reflector on the other side. We spent all summer riding our bikes from just after breakfast until dark every single day it wasn't raining. All of us had our bike radios tuned to WDRC AM-1360 in Hartford listening to the pop hits of the day, and what they play on iHeart 70's is exactly what they used to play on WDRC. Just before the WDRC noon news break every day, the DJ (I believe it was Ted Dalaku) would say the day's "sandwich of the day" (which was usually a gross combination of foods and toppings) and then loudly proclaim, "It's LUUUUUUUUNCH TIME!!!" followed by the news jingle and noon news with Walt Dibble. After the noon news it was music with commercial breaks until late afternoon drive time when news and traffic would be at the top and bottom of the hour in between music. While I was heading home on my motorcycle Monday listening to my streaming tunes, I was mentally transported back to summer vacation 1974 as a 12 year old kid riding my bicycle. Oh if only I could have 3 months off every summer to do nothing but have fun like a kid again with no worries or cares as an adult.

Today would have been Cassidy Wofford's 35th birthday. Who is she you ask? She was a PT I once transported that attempted to commit suicide by lying down in the middle of a dark back country road. Luckily an alert motorist spotted her and called 911. I won't go into any more detail, but she is the primary reason I do not like what I call the "sad little girl call." To me the "sad little girl" is 13-22 years old, depressed, suicidal, crying her eyes out, most likely abused, a cutter, and I am probably meeting her because of a suicide attempt and a law enforcement 72 hour psychiatric hold in the ER. While there have been many others, she is the one that I probably should have sought counseling for, it was that upsetting. I am much better on these calls now, even though I still would rather drive the boo-boo bus and let someone else tech the call.

Cassidy during one of her few happier times.

Cassidy had moved out of state; to Kentucky I believe, and finally, sadly committed suicide on May 28, 2011. At 35 she would have been only 3 years younger than my own daughter. I think about her on both days; her birthday and death day. 

Happy Birthday in Heaven, Little One. You are not forgotten and although you never knew it, you touched someone that really did care for you.

GREAT NEWS!

For me anyway. Had my post MRI consult with the orthopedic doc today. NO SURGERY! He reviewed my case notes and the MRI and pointed out the tear to me (see image below).

Click it to big it. My personal info was scrubbed and those are my notes on the slide.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It turns out (no surprise) I had no idea what I was looking at when I got the results a week or so ago, but then, I am not a radiologist. The doc then performed a physical examination and manual manipulation of my knee. I winced a little for some lateral motion and he said there was no point going further and causing me unnecessary pain. Because I have been basically pain-free for the last six-weeks right after the injury and able to do normal stuff outside of work there is no way insurance was going to pay for what amounts to preventative arthroscopic surgery. He recommended just a cortisone shot, ice if I need it for post-shot pain, and a follow up visit to his office in six weeks. I've never had a cortisone shot before, it felt weird. It was a 3 inch long large gauge needle and the syringe held about an inch of white cortisone. He numbed the injection site with lidocaine and buried the entire length of the needle into my knee joint (smartly I might add) by my kneecap. It didn't hurt at all but I felt the pressure of the juice going in. The doc said as long as I don't firmly plant my right foot and then twist, I should be fine going forward without surgery. He said I still may need surgery at some distant future date, possibly a full replacement because there is some thinning of the cartilage and arthritis that isn't going to get better on its own. Hopefully that will all be after mandatory retirement as an interior rated firefighter. I told him I would do my best to be cautious with lifting and such so as not to repeat this mess.

This means that as of Monday, I will be up on a ladder cleaning my gutters, get out on "The Beast" for a post-injury ride, and get out in the canoe with my FIL to do some fishin'! My next scheduled shift was supposed to be an 18 on Sunday, but that is a day before authorized. Therefore I will be on duty Thursday as my next scheduled shift. I can't wait!

UPDATE 6-14-23 @ 21:00 EDT: I have taken the doctor's advice and put an ice pack on my knee. It's just a bit sore from the cortisone shot, and I figure if I do it now maybe it won't wake me up out of a sound sleep at Zero-Dark-Thirty.