An Ounce

Have you ever been in one of those situations? You know… You are trying to get somewhere, or accomplish a task, or find an answer … and you just feel lost, or blind. So, you stop and look for help. You try to comprehend where you are, and how to get where you need to be. But all you learn is that you can not remain where you are. So, you just keep pressing forward (or pressing in the direction that seems like forward) with no idea if you’ll find what you are looking for.

This analogous story explores that situation. It is set in the mid 1800s. A simple farmer was trying to get home on a January evening. Dark seemed to come on earlier than normal. The sky was dim and hazy, and there was a cold bite in the air. Gratefully he was dressed for the cold, but he worried that his family might be getting low on wood for the old cook stove they used to heat their 2-room house.

The snow began to fall, gently, like cotton. Big wet puffs drifting down and covering the mud that colored the snow and ice that had fallen a week before. It had been nice to have a day or two with temperatures above freezing – but the wet shallow mud was bothersome – and left dark stains and puddles along the track he was following to get back home.

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In 1955 a beautiful fire truck was manufactured in Allentown, Pennsylvania. This Mack model B-85 was a ladder truck and was of course the classic red.

Like any classy red vehicle from the 1950s – it was, of course, a convertible! And to offset its bright red color, the truck had silver chrome bumpers, shiny silver chrome sirens, an old-fashioned signal bell mounted at the left front, and red lights all around. It is the kind of rig you could easily imagine dashing to the rescue with a Dalmatian in the center seat, lights flashing, sirens blaring, with firefighters hanging off the back.

This awesome open-top fire truck was placed into service with the volunteer fire department in the little town of Woodsboro, Maryland – not too far from Baltimore and Washington, DC – where it became known as Truck 16.

As the nation collectively experienced the nightmare of September 11, 2001, a call came to the Volunteer fire station in Woodsboro, Maryland.

It was later in the day on the 11th, the towers had collapsed, the pentagon was burning, and one passenger jet had flown into the ground in an open field, just up the road in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

“We need truck 16 now, at the pentagon, it’s the only truck that can do the job – get here – now!” the caller said. ....

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On occasion, society celebrates the Anti-Hero. You know, the one who catches the imagination as a romantic rebel, or the scam artist that takes advantage of the ‘evil’ rich. Characters like the noble Robin Hood or the affable scoundrel who sold the Eiffel Tower (twice).

This is not one of those stories.

The story begins with a novelty item, the Golf Ball Finder, called the “Gopher”. The item has a plastic pistol grip with a telescoping metal antenna sticking out in front of it, which swiveled to-and-fro… it even had a small battery powered electronics board inside.

It was claimed to work like a dowsing rod – only better. Their ad states, “It is tuned to home into the elements found in all golf balls”. The pitch jokingly continues, “Please don’t ask us for the theory of its operation. That’s the main reason we have not applied for patents which would expose this technology. It’s also a great novelty item that you should have fun with, especially for the golfer who has everything.”

Unfortunately, from the 1990s to as late as 2018, including recent Middle East conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, somebody thought, “I bet they are going to need a way to detect bombs! Let sell them this useless novelty item – the Gopher Golf Ball Finder – we can repackage it as the ADE-651, or Magic Wand as the terrorist began to call it, we’ll pretend it will detect bombs!

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5 Decades ago a man-made object was propelled through the atmosphere, to who knows where, faster than any other article – ever.

This thing was traveling so rapidly, nobody even saw it go, and nobody knows wear it is now. Might be somewhere here on earth, might be in orbit, might even be on its merry way though the cosmos like the voyager space probes. But it’s not communicating to anyone where it’s going, or if it will ever come back.

What is this thing? You might ask.

A muscle car.

A dragster.

A fighter jet.

A missal.

A bullet.

Nope – Nope – Nope, Nope, & Nope.

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There is a remarkable icon in the collective consciousness of America.

The all-American soldier who was brave, patriotic, strong, and relentless against all odds. It is the outstanding Character G.I. Joe.

G.I. Joe – what a man. What an action figure to fuel the imaginations of little kids.

Here is the unlikely story of hero G.I. Joe the true hero whose courage and daring on the battlefield, during the battles of World War 2, is truly worthy of the legendary reputation.

G.I. Joe became a highly decorated member of the U.S. Army for service during the Italian campaign.

Here is what happened. In October 1943 during the fighting around the Village of Calvi Vechia British infantry were fighting to dislodge German forces from the village. Allied Air forces were requested to bomb the town to assist the British, and liberate the town.

Everything was going to plan – sort of – as the Brit’s 56th (London) Infantry Division took Calvi Vechia well ahead of schedule. Unfortunately, they liberated the town just before the US had launched a planned bombing campaign, to clear the way for them. Which meant American bombs were going to rain down on British soldiers and the residents of Calvi Vechia

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You’ve heard the idiom, “if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again”. There is wisdom in this idea, of never giving up. But, on occasion, the value of such dedication is in what you learn from the effort in trying to succeed – though success may not be achievable.

Here is an Example.

In the late 1950s, Cuba, an island nation just a few miles south of Florida, in the United States, was in the throes of a revolution led by a man named Fidel Castro. Up until that time, Cuba had been quite the playground for the American elite – and a big moneymaker for US organized crime syndicates.

By the early 1960s the Communist hero, Castro, became the supreme dictator. Well, things don’t work the same in a communist system (cause the government owns everything) and the fun was over. The mob lost their huge money-making operations, the well-off lost a favorite tropical destination, and the US had a new neighbor. A new neighbor that was not at all appreciated.

No worries, the intelligence services would take care of in due time. NOT

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James Harrison had been doing it for over 60 years. In that time, he has done it over eleven hundred times. And on the 11th of May 2018, at age 81, he did it for the last time.

What did he do? It was no big deal, he just quietly saved over 2.4 million lives. And then he stopped. Hang on to the end to find out why he stopped executing his live saving sideline.

This is the story of how it started - and ended.

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Ever had one of those mornings when you just didn’t want to get out of bed?

Ever felt like you’d like to just lie down and sleep for a few days?

Ever had to face a tough situation and wished you could just go take a nice nap and not wake up until the issue has passed?

I would have to say yes to all three – Sleep is one of the best ways I know to end a busy day. And it can be such a wonderful escape. Not only that, sleep is necessary for humans. Good sleep promotes healing and recovery for the body. Often it can give us a place to retreat from stress, and it allows our brain to reset. Good and regular sleep helps reduce of depression and lowers the risk of suicide. And how often have you gone to bed with a puzzling problem on your mind, and awakened in the morning with a fresh perspective, and a solution.

But there was an unusual event that began on a very cold day in Sweden, in 1876. It was the evening of February 22, A young lady fell asleep – ok falling asleep is not that remarkable – but this girl stayed asleep for 32 years! She started her epic nap when she was 14 years old. It ended 32 years later, when a startled and confused 46-year-old woman woke up.

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To help direct his boys' attention during church services, his dad gave him some paper, and a few crayons, and encouraged him to create a picture.

The boy did his best. But still, he wiggled and squirmed and just kept talking – as quietly as he could - to the characters he was placing on the paper - and his dad, who watched patently over him. Apparently whispering was not something the boy was familiar with.

When the picture was finished, he excitedly showed it to his father, and pointed out the characters and other things he had made with the crayons. Then he began to note the colors he had used. It was surprising how well he spoke considering his age.

But then, he paused a little, and then said, “... and this is yeh-woah. I know that’s not how you say it, I’m trying, but it’s as good I can do it."

This is when the lesson starts.

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You’ve heard of the ‘Butterfly Effect'. That suggestion that proposes that if a butterfly flaps its wings in Colorado in just the right way, at just the right moment, it sets off a potential set of subtle events – a chain reaction if you will, that causes a hurricane to blow ashore in Georgia a month later.

Annie Oakley experienced one of those butterfly effect incidents. It happened in a fraction of a second, she made a perfect rick shot that everyone walk safely away from. But if she had missed her target, there are 2 world wars that might not have happened.

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