Always Remember!

I woke up this morning, which is usually a good thing, and I had a tremendous feeling of dread. It lasted for about five minutes before I realized that it is only Friday - not Saturday. At first I lied in bed and thought, "the weekend is over already?!" I "lied" in bed because I still have another day left in my weekend. I bet a lot of people lie in bed on Valentine's Day. Now I know the feeling I can expect tomorrow morning when it IS the day to go back to work. Part of the problem with the day's confusion was that Fabio doesn't have school today because of  "teacher's institute" or whatever they call it these days. Monday is President's Day and they have no school that day so, somehow, teachers manage to get extra days thrown in to make for four-day weekends. I am not slighting the teachers; you gotta get whatever you can get whenever you can get it.

If at all possible avoid the movie Parental Guidance. It is one of the worst pieces of crap that I have ever seen. Yet,  I cannot turn it off because I cannot believe how bad it is. Actually, Grown-Ups may have been a bigger piece of doody than this one; could be a tie. Bette Midler and Billy Crystal both have talent but, acting doesn't appear to be one of those talents. Billy should have stuck with stand-up and Bette should just sing. Oh, there is a 60-year-old Long Duk Dong (good guess on the age MITM - I just checked IMDB and Gedde Watanabe, who played Dong, is 59).

Cha Cha and I are going to record the new load of Dirty Laundry Podcast tonight. What better way to spend Valentine's Day than to do something you love to do with the co-host of your life? She must be thrilled. We did some of the traditional V.D. stuff last night; dinner and a movie. Because of that we have more to talk about on the show: Cha Cha's Whining, Matt News, a restaurant review and a movie review.

I think that South Carolina has the best state flag. Arizona's and California's are both pretty cool too. I am not sure where that came from but, it is something I have always felt very strongly about.

Six years ago this afternoon (15:05) was probably one of the worst days ever in the town that I have called home for 20+ years. I remember it like it was last night. 25 people were injured (most of them shot) and five young people were violently murdered before the shooter killed himself. As I drove home from work that day I could see the helicopters circling above the town. I switched the radio station to the Chicago all-news station and heard what was going on. From one moment listening to some pop song to the next moment feeling like someone took a sledgehammer to my chest. When I got out of my truck at home it sounded like an audio clip from Apocalypse Now when the helicopters were storming the beach. The shooting was all over but all I could hear was helicopter blades whirling. I now work at the same place where this craziness (literally) occurred. Some nights I walk alone in the halls where these people were murdered (though it is a new building it has the same name and is on the same site). I read their names on the wall that was erected to remember them. Some times I will even sit on the bench for a few minutes facing their names and think about these young people that I never knew. I guess it could be called a reflecting wall - at least for me. Every time I walk past this wall I always slow down and read their names and I think about how the parents and loved-ones must have felt receiving the news of their child/sister/brother/cousin/mother... being killed. That, to me, would be the ultimate horror. Even though I am not a religious person I will occasionally say a silent prayer (I figure it can't hurt anything other than my hypocrisy). I try to imagine the fear that all of the people that were in the vicinity must have felt. I know I have always been a bleeding-heart and that is not going to ever change. I never understood why being a caring, sensitive person was a bad thing. I am proud that the job that I have now, in some small way, helps prevent things like this from happening again. This is one of the reasons why I take my duties so seriously.

What's the deal with Illinois and violence on Valentine's Day? Did Al Capone (responsible for the St. Valentine's Day Massacre) and this guy (I will not dignify him by using his name) not feel loved?

I have got to get some stuff done. I took a break while writing this and went and cleaned the kitchen. The dishes are being washed in the dishwasher right now. While I was down there I vacuumed the stove. I am talking about the stove top! Who in the Hell has to vacuum a stove? A person who goes out and leaves a 17-year-old and a nutty 60-pound puppy Home Alone! Have a great Valentine's Day. I am happy to have you as a valentine. TTTT...MITM (bleeding heart out) TA! Just now thought of the bleeding heart / Valentine's Day connection - fate is a funny funny thing.