In Memoriam

One of my personal favorite blues/R&B artists, Bobby "Blue" Bland, has passed away:

He left the world a richer place thanks to his music.

In The Rear View Mirror

Another icon of my disco days has passed on:



Boogie on, Mr. O'Day.  Boogie on!

In Memoriam

It's taken a few days to process the news from my Biker Blogson that dear friend Donny "Walrilla" Smith had passed away.  That one took my breath away.

For those who had the pleasure of meeting him at a blog meet, I'll always remember him in the kitchen whipping up two of his down home Texas specials:

A steaming, spicy bowl of Texas red...

... and...

... a sweet and tangy slice of Vinegar Pah (Pie)

A do-rag wearing biker boy with a heart of pure mush, Camp BlownStar will never be the same without him.  

My thoughts and prayers go out to his family, who he loved very, very much.

Vaya con Dios, mi amigo.

Full Stop

Fan of Taylor Swift or not, I defy you to get through this video without shedding a tear:



Simply heart-breakingly lovely.

In Passing

The boxer who first made me fall in love with the sport has passed away. 

Vaya con Dios, Señor Stephenson...

Drive-Bys

In the shock poll of the day, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has pulled into a statistical tie with Mitt Romney in the former Massachusetts governor’s backyard, New Hampshire.

Why is this a shocker?

Look -- fiscal conservatives are terrified that Romney will be the Republican candidate, based on his performance as governor of Massachusetts. To those of us who lean more to the center on social issues, Bachman is a loon. Sadly, Perry has repeatedly shot himself in the foot during debates. Cain is rapidly falling apart on his tax plan, foreign policy and the freak show of women accusing him of sexual harassment.

I'm not happy with any of these, but if I have to hold my nose when I pull the lever in the voting booth, I'm going to do it for the person who's least likely to harm the economy any more and most likely to do some good. And that simply is not Obama.

It's a pretty awful field of candidates when Palin's choice not to run is starting to look like a crying shame.

(And, FWIW, here's the guy I'd have been thrilled to back.)
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“We had it put in his hand because that is what he came for,” said another son, Dr. Robert Hoshizaki.

Get out your hankies.
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This sounds like a pretty cool gig, indeed:

Gigwalk, a free app for iPhone and coming for Android, pays users small fees to perform tasks for companies that need local eyes and ears on the ground. Microsoft Corp.'s Bing, for example, enlists Gigwalkers to photograph businesses for map listings. Navigation service TomTom uses Gigwalkers to verify turn restrictions or bridge heights. Several consumer packaged-goods companies send Gigwalkers to retailers to ensure their products are being displayed properly....

Most gigs pay as little as $4, but as Gigwalkers become more experienced, they accumulate "street cred" that enables them to access more challenging jobs, such as photographing hotels or testing mobile apps, that pay up to $95 a pop.

If you live in Chicago, South Florida, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, New York, Philadelphia or Seattle, you might just want to check it out.
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I just don't understand people sometimes:

And if you think about what you would have done in a situation where you caught someone you love and respect in that position, is it really so obvious, as the chest thumping punditariat proclaims, that you would have leaped into the shower, beaten the snot out of him, and frog marched him to the police station after you rescued the kid? Really? You'd have done that to your father, your favorite uncle, your best friend, a beloved mentor?

Yes. I would.

I am appalled at this line of thinking:

I'm sure at some level they worry about other kids Grandpa might be touching--but they also worry about what would happen to Grandpa in jail, and the rest of his family in the court of public opinion.

Quite frankly, you'd do far better in the court of this public's opinion if you turned your perv of a Grandpa in to the authorities.

Can we stop making apologies for all of these people for their unwillingness to stand up for defenseless children? This just sickens me.

In Memoriam

Yes, my company was touched by 9/11.


Received today from our CEO, this reminder:

As we approach the 10th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks, I ask you to share in remembering and honoring a former colleague, John Jenkins. In 2001, CRA (Charles River Associates) established an annual employee award in memory of John, who perished on September 11, in recognition of the talent and dedication he brought to his role as Corporate Office Services Manager and to CRA. Each year, we ask employees to nominate a colleague who displays strong corporate citizenship, has a positive attitude and can-do spirit, and contributes to the overall good of the company, which all speak to the kind of person who John was.

Bumping into John around the office was a real treat. He always had a smile and time to talk about any topic that excited you. People remember how they got a warm welcome to his office, good conversation, and great laughs. John worked for CRA for a short period of time, about 1.5 years before the 9/11 attacks. He led our facilities, office services, and travel operations, and was key to keeping our daily business needs humming along with some fun along the way. As Jim Burrows once wrote, “He was the most visible person in this firm; recognizable to employees in Boston and in each of our satellite offices to a greater degree than any other individual. He successfully managed two domestic and three international office start-ups, a data center build out in Boston, and our Washington, DC office relocation—all within a six-month period. John liked to live life at its fullest. His upbeat mood made everyone around him feel good. He accomplished a great deal in his time at CRA and left many, many friends.”

Many of John’s contributions continue to have a legacy at the company and that is a great tribute to the kind of person he was. The employee suggestion box at CRA was John’s idea. And while we have formal volunteer committees today, John supported community service years ago by bringing an internship program for underprivileged high school students to CRA. When people questioned these ideas, John smiled and made them successes.

A few colleagues have been kind enough to share what they remember about him:

Bea Fischer-Bean, Administrative Coordinator in Boston, said, “John was a very funny and caring person. He always had a smile on his face and was ready for a laugh. He loved the opera—Tosca by Puccini—and to snorkel and scuba dive. He never liked saying goodbye (to the point where he would keep an endless collection of things).”

Maria Rivera, Senior Facilities Manager in Washington, DC, said, “What was most obvious to everyone about John, who was my boss at the time, was how social he was and how he loved the opera and wine (we used to tease him about that). He was a really funny person full of laughter and he would help everyone. He used to organize volunteer activities for CRA, like planting trees at local schools.”

Marybeth Celorier, who was CRA’s Controller at the time and is now the Director of Finance at Foley Hoag LLP, shared, “John was a special person. He was full of life, even in the worst moments, and was always smiling no matter the obstacle. Every Friday night after work, a group of us would get together for drinks at a local restaurant/bar, Washington Square Tavern. We always sat in the same spot and John would stick to his staple meal—steak and potatoes. Our group had a lot of fun and laughs; the restaurant has a brass plaque in his memory. The night before John left on his flight, we were sitting in my office on the 33rd floor in the John Hancock Tower and he was trying to get me to go with him on the business trip. We both enjoyed taking photos and he was going to spend time later in the week taking pictures around Los Angeles. He said good-bye and said he would be back. He was a wonderful friend. John wouldn't like that we are so focused on him but because of him, we are more focused on those around us and their importance to us.”

This year, nominations for the John Jenkins Award will be accepted until September 30th. I hope you will participate by nominating a colleague.

To submit a nomination, click on the link below. You will be asked to provide a brief paragraph describing the contributions of the individual you are nominating (note: Officers are not eligible to receive this award). The nominations will then be presented to the Executive Committee for final decision, and the award will be presented in October.

Thank you for taking the time to remember John and to honor the contributions of our colleagues.

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It is wonderful to see my company honoring the memory this special man every year. We should never forget any of those lost their lives that day.

Drive-Bys

The weather here has been lovely today... just... freaking... lovely.

Current conditions

70°F

Thunderstorm

RealFeel®:

67°F

Humidity:

88%

Winds:

S 16mph

Pressure:

29.79°Hg

Visibility:

8 mi.

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Do you have a BoA or Chase credit card? Then you may want to pay attention to this:

If you have a credit card account with Bank of America or Chase, two of the nation’s largest banks, a major security flaw has been exposed that could make your information vulnerable to an Internet crook – or even a nosy neighbor.

Consumer advocate Edgar Dworsky of ConsumerWorld.org, who discovered the flaw, says anyone who knows your phone number and has the last four digits of your Chase or BofA credit card number might be able access your account.

Here’s the flaw Dworsky uncovered: When you call a bank’s automated credit card account information system, the computer uses caller ID to compare the number you’re calling from with the one on the account (usually your home phone).

At BofA and Chase, if the phone number is a match, the verification process is streamlined. Rather than requiring the entire credit card number to be entered, the caller can usually access the account with only the last four digits. In some cases, a zip code is also required.

“The last four digits of your credit card number are just out there so predominantly,” Dworsky says. “If you look at any sales receipt, it always has those last four digits.”

In order for someone to take advantage of this security loophole, they’d have to trick the bank’s computer to make it appear the call is coming from your home phone. Internet “spoofing” sites make this incredibly easy to do. Con artists have been using this technology for years, and it is how those British tabloid reporters were able to hack into so many voicemail systems.

Yikes!
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Here's a very interesting four-part article on the state of high tech manufacturing, and why it's less and less likely that it'll happen here in the states. While the focus of this article is mainly on Amazon's Kindle, the very effects it describes is evidenced in this article on GE moving its X-ray business to China.
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From Joan of Argghh! a three hankie weeper. Seriously. Don't click on the link without an entire box of tissues at hand.
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Graumagus has finally resurfaced. Yay! Now we can once again enjoy pithy posts such as this.
The man truly does employ a unique turn of phrase...
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Update: Folks ending up here run the gamut from searches on "ass burgers" to "examples of inviolability of human dignity."

Y'all are an interesting bunch.

In Memoriam

A southern Illinois man who survived the 65-mile forced World War II trek known as the Bataan Death March has died.

Pyatt Funeral Home in Pinckneyville says Albert Brown was 105 when he died Sunday at the Friendship Manor nursing home in Nashville, Ill.

Brown was a Nebraska native who had been a dentist before the war. The artillery officer was among 78,000 prisoners of war that Japanese troops forced to walk from Bataan province near Manila to a POW camp in 1942.

Thank you for your service and your sacrifice, Mr. Brown.



Godspeed and God Bless.
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Update: Wouldn't you know the Brits would do a lovely tribute to Albert Brown?

In Memoriam

Another amazing hero of World War II has passed away:

http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifA World War II heroine spy who topped the Gestapo’s wanted list after her daring exploits behind enemy lines helped pave the way for the D-Day landings has died aged 98.

Nancy Wake, who inspired the film Charlotte Gray after becoming one the Allies' most decorated servicewomen for her role in the French resistance, passed away in a nursing home in London yesterday.

After reading Beyond Silk and Cyanide several years, I've always had tremendous respect for the spies, British and American, who risked their lives under incredibly difficult circumstances. Very, very few made it home again.

God speed, Mrs. Wake.

In Memoriam

God bless and God speed to all who were lost, American and Afghan alike. Prayers sent up for their families.

In Memoriam

In the words of fallen hero Marc Alan Lee:

"I think the truth to our greatness is each other. Purity, morals and kindness, passed down to each generation through example. So to all my family and friends, do me a favor and pass on the kindness, the love, the precious gift of human life to each other so that when your children come into contact with a great conflict that we are now faced with here in Iraq, that they are people of humanity, of pure motives, of compassion."

One way you can help? Support families of fallen heroes by purchasing the Tea Are The World CD/DVD package, the Tee Shirt or the complete set.

Get this, folks — around 100 musicians across America flew or drove, on their own dime, to Deltona Records in Florida to record “Taking Back America.”

Frank Starchak, Deltona Records owner, music producer, and engineer, is famed for recording Tupac Shakur and numerous other celebrities. FREE of charge, Starchak recorded and produced the 100 musicians singing “Taking Back America” and mastered the 44-song double-CD set included in the Tea Are The World package.

Emmy-winning TV producer Norvell Rose informed me that he and his son, Conner, both in Virginia, would be arriving at the recording session to produce a music video and a “Making of Tea Are The World” documentary — all for FREE. Both the video and the documentary are now included on the DVD included in the Tea Are The World package.

Professional distributor Tom Horn offered to distribute Tea Are The World FREE of charge.

Singer Lisa Scott Kelly joined Debbie Lee to shake the trees and find funds for manufacturing, our only expense. Everything has been donated....

Please do not think I am dissing other fundraisers by simply stating a fact. With some, when the dust clears, as little as 10% goes to the charity. 100% of the proceeds from the sale of Tea Are The World go to the benefits bestowed upon the families of our fallen soldiers by AmericasMightyWarriors.org.

It's not often that you can do a good thing and get so much in return.

In Memoriam

Frank Buckles, the last of the WWI doughboys, has passed away:

Frank Woodruff Buckles, a onetime Missouri farm boy who was the last known living American veteran of World War I, has died. He was 110.

Buckles, who later spent more than three years in a Japanese POW camp as a civilian in the Philippines during World War II, died Sunday of natural causes at his home in Charles Town, W.Va., family spokesman David DeJonge said.

A total of 4,734,991 Americans served in the military during World War I, from 1914 to 1918.

"I always knew I'd be one of the last because I was one of the youngest when I joined," Buckles told the New York Daily News in 2008, when he was 107. "But I never thought I'd be the last one."

God speed, God bless and thank you for your service, Mr. Buckles.