Mom's Day

It's Mother's Day and those of us who have lost our Moms are missing them more.  We wish our Moms were here so we could let them know how well things turned out and to see the Grankids as they become young adults. 

Mom is in Heaven and keeping tabs on us I am sure but it would be nice to have her here to enjoy the day.

Mom, we miss you and love you.

Loyal K-9 Pal mourns his master, US Navy SEAL Petty Officer 1st Class Jon T. Tumilson

I arrived home late yesterday after spend 5 days traveling from Bagram Air Field, Afghanistan to Boston, via stop-overs in Kuwait and Ft. Benning, GA. The relief for my safe return by family & friends is obvious.

Along with the family, my three 4-legged children were overwhelming joyful upon seeing me. They are the truest companions as they show unbridled joy at our daily return home, and know that we miss them when we are gone. Dogs have an inate ability to know our true emotions and they respond in like kind.

Here is another display of loyalty, and it should be no surprise to me our anyone else who values our K-9 pals for all they do to enrich out lives.


Loyal Dog Mourns, Lays at Casket of Fallen Navy Seal - Dogster.com
08/24/2011

The dog of slain Petty Officer Jon Tumilson refused to leave his side during the Navy SEAL’s funeral earlier this week in Rockford, Iowa. The heartbreaking photo taken by his cousin, Lisa Pembleton, shows Tumilson’s dog Hawkeye lying by the casket.

Navy SEAL U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Jon T. Tumilson was among the 30 American troops killed August 6 when Taliban insurgents downed their Chinook helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade. At his funeral in Iowa, his dog Hawkeye paid his last respects, walking up to the casket, lying down in front of it, and heaving a sigh.

Pembleton wrote on Facebook that Hawkeye was Tumilson’s loyal pet who wouldn't leave his master’s side during the funeral in Rockford, Iowa.

“I felt compelled to take one photo to share with family members that couldn't make it or couldn't see what I could from the aisle,” Pembleton wrote.

Thanks to our friend Maria Goodavage at Dogster for sharing this with us

Just when you thought you had problems.....perspective is provided

Greetings all from lovely Camp Run-a-muck....I'm here on training/INDOC and found they allow us access to the Web....The tales of us being isolated like GITMO were greatly exaggerated.

Just when you thought your own problems were a burden, you are reminded about how bad things can get. I am not thrilled with the state of the economy (Who is?)- When the best place for a degreed, seasoned HR professional to do his work and get compensated as he should is in a "war zone", it can make one doubt the words from the "empty suits" who bleat about the recovery.yeah, "Recovery"....rriiigggghhhtttt

That brings me back to the issue at hand....just when you feel your own issues are daunting, you get a reminder from the "Big Guy" upstairs that others have issues that are more serious and will challenge them even more than you can imagine.

Here's a piece of the missive I got from a good friend of mine Jim, regarding his wife Mary (they are my daughter's God Parents along with being life-long friends)-

OK, friends, here's the scoop on Mary.

She has a tumor (cancer) in her pancreas. It has constricted the bile duct and invaded some other parts of her upper digestive area.

The doctor at the hospital is one of the foremost in this field...he only does pancreatic tumor removal...two per week for a number of years now. He thinks Mary has a very good chance of surviving the removal...honest, he said it exactly that way...the surgery will take place shortly

After that, she'll be in the hospital for a week and then confined to bed for another 2-3 weeks, depending on how quickly her body recovers from the surgery. The doctor says it is one of the most involved, complicated, and serious surgeries done these days - including open heart and brain surgery, which I asked for a relative comparision to and he obliged, saying, '...this is right up there with those procedures - only a bit more difficult...lengthy, too...4-6 hours...if all goes well.'

Once Mary has recovered sufficiently from the tumor removal, then chemo and radiation treatment begin, most likely within 8-10 weeks of the removal procedure.

He was quite direct in asking me - yes, me, not her - if I was ready for the challenge...'This is only the beginning,' he said, 'You're in for a battle but I think we will win.'



Kinda puts things in perspective, eh? The broken car, the late credit card payment or your Boss acting like a jerk sseemed like large issues until you walked a mile in Jim & Mary's mocassins, eh? And I was worried because I have to go back to AFGHANISTAN...what the hell was I thinking?

Right about now, my buddy Jim would likely walk single-handed into Taliban Country with an old .22 caliber squirrel rifle than take this on but he will take on this battle and win. Jim doesn't know the meaning of the word " QUIT"....it ain't in his dictionary.

So tonight, when you hit your knees, tell GOD to love Mary & Jim...tell him to take care of her and heal her. Please.

I love Mary & Jim and I hope that you can say a prayer for her. When you are done, hug your loved ones and tell them that you love them. No one but the Almighty knows how much time we have and I just want to make sure you don't miss the chance to tell those you love how much they mean to you. We never know if we will get the chance later on.

Thanks and God Bless.

Three Doors Down - Love me when I'm gone

A great song....They let the troops know that we appreciate everything they do and the sacrifice of being away from home.

Dedicated to the troops, far from home protecting freedom around the world....