Good morning everyone,

Janice, these pictures are a hoot! I can’t wait to see what they come up with this year!

Our temperature is the same today as it was yesterday but the dew point is only 63 degrees so it is not nearly as humid as it was yesterday. We have a chance of showers in the forecast today so we’ll see.

I’m glad it’s Friday so I can sleep in tomorrow. I didn’t sleep very well last night so I hope I can stay awake for work today! I’ll have to keep moving around. This weekend, if we don’t get too much rain, I need to go out and clean up in my garden from all the work I did on my landscaping. I also need to weed. It’s amazing how fast those weeds grow! Once I get the whole thing straightened up I’ll take some pictures to send to Janice so you can all see my masterpiece. My backyard is looking good!

I hope everyone has a great day!

Margie

So . . . I’m thinking to myself, what’s the attraction of burning up a giant chicken? Hmmmm. Okay, I got nothing. Must be a guy thing ’cause I know if I showed my husband this he would completely get it!!
Morning, Margie. Guess what, it’s still hot here – surprise!LOL Actually, they are saying we might get a little rain this weekend and perhaps slightly cooler temps. How strange to look forward to the possibility of temps in the low 90’s!! Hang in there my fellow Texans, maybe this means we’ll be in t-shirts and shorts at Christmas.
Don, I saw on the other thread the news about your daughter. So sorry to hear of this, be assured you have another prayer warrior on your side.
Have a terrific day, All. (Happy Chicken Inferno, Janice!!)

Thank you Gina.
With the 40th anniversary of the moon landing I must tell a story. James Webb was head of NASA and bet President Kennedy $20.00 that we would put a man on the moon in less then ten years. James Webb was married to Patsy Webb.

Patsy moved in with her son and daughter-in-law in her later years in Hopewell NJ. About 10 years ago when she was in her 80’s my lady friend and I were asked to take care of her one Sunday when she was going to be home alone. We took her to church, then out for breakfast and then I took her to see the Charles Linburgh house which is also in Hopewell. First she said she wondered which window the ladder was put to. Then she said he was such a nice man. When the Apollo 11 astronauts went to the white house for dinner Charles Linburgh was there also as was Patsy and James.

Here I am with Patsy, who on her walls had the $20.00 bill signed by President Kennedy, another frame with the patches from the uniforms that went to the moon, and here she had met Charles Linburgh and had dinner with him at the white house. That blew my mind.

Looks like a good enough reason for a party to me. Whatever floats your boat! Good food…good friends…and a giant chicken! Does life get any better than this?

Gina, I hear ya on that HOT thing. It has been a pretty brutal Summer. We did get a little rain here yesterday (but not at my house) and that cooled things off. We’re not supposed to get even in the 90s for the next 3 days. 84 to 87 for a high!!! That is almost unheard of for MS in July. I did read on AccuWeather yesterday that this is supposed to be a cooler than normal Winter for the East Coast and down through the South and even into Texas. I would welcome a cold Winter…cause t-shirts and shorts at Christmas is no fun!

Hey Margie. When you get done with your backyard, come on down and work on mine. The dry weather has just about killed everything, and I simply can’t afford to water it all. Lots of patchy, brown spots in my yard that used to be grass.

George, you rented space in my head when you mentioned “Disco Inferno”. Now I can’t get that tune out of there no matter how hard I try. HA!

Mornin’ bloggers. Hope y’all are having a great Friday.
Gwen

Very cool!!….Made me smile….

Bad news here…We are having to bury our first tomato field because of the late blight….

No promises either that we wont lose our entire crop of them…

Hey Don,
Great story about Patsy Webb! I love those kinds of stories.

Gwen (and Gina),
Those long dry spells are rough on everything. I had to water some of my flowers in my backyard because it’s been very dry around here for a number of weeks. We’re getting some much needed rain right now so at least I won’t have to water anything this weekend. Fortunately, I have a small yard so it’s easier to take care of. My garden takes up my whole backyard and I only have a small front yard. That grass has been getting brown so I’m sure it’s enjoying this rain. I wish I could send some of the rain down your way and also to Gina–I feel for you folks! Gwen, you’re not the only one who’s had “Disco Inferno” in your head. I’ve been singing that ever since George’s post yesterday!

Dawn,
I’m sorry about your tomato crop. That must be very disheartening. I hope you don’t lose the whole crop.

So in closing, all I have to say is burn baby burn! (Sorry, I couldn’t resist sharing those memorable lyrics with everyone!)

Margie

O man! I want to fire the CHICKEN!!!

Tony

Love your story about Patsy, Don.
My husband is involved in homeland security/disaster planning and as such one of his areas of responsibility is NASA/Houston, so he has been there several times coordinating with officials there. Most memorably, he was allowed to walk around the original control center there, the part tourists just get to see through glass. He is a weather/space geek already so he loved the opportunity.
Here’s another indication of the heat we’re having. I am paying bills and just opened a record setting power bill – over $300!!! Yikes.
Good afternoon, Friends.

OK, as promised, follow this YouTube link to hear the chickens singing and dancing to “In the Mood”….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dINDPBAm32o

George Spink
Los Angeles

Hey George,

I hope I don’t have nightmares about dancing chickens after watching the “In the Mood” video! I saw a link to another video that featured the “Great Gonzo” conducting a bunch of chickens clucking the “Blue Danube Waltz” so I clicked on it–boy was that a mistake! Now I’ll really be dreaming about chickens–yikes!

Margie

Eat more chicken!

To change the pace, follow this link to view Paul McCartney and his band singing atop the CBS marquee when he appeared on Letterman the other day. Paul still sings and plays bass beautifully!

http://www.cbs.com/late_show/video/mccartney.php

George Spink
Los Angeles

On the morning of Friday, Nov. 22, 1963, I was in my first-year of graduate school at Stanford. My class in advanced probability theory began at 11 o’clock.

About ten minutes into the class, one of my classmates came running into the class crying, saying “The President’s been shot! The President’s been shot.” She was a cute, freckled-face girl who often sat by me. The professor asked her to calm down. Instead, she turned and ran out of class. The professor then reminded us that it was the weekend of the big Stanford-Cal games. Rumors ran rampant every year, he reminded us. He then showed us mathematically how unlikely it was that the President had been shot.

After class, some friends and I headed to the Student Union. We saw that the TV lounge was jammed. Walter Cronkite was talking about what had happened in Dallas. Then he paused…. Cronkite then told us that President Kennedy had died. He removed his eye glasses and wiped tears from his eyes. Like almost every one in America, Cronkite was deeply saddened by the assassination of President Kennedy.

On the following Monday, our probability professor openly apologized to our classmate for not believing her when she told us JFK had been shot.

George Spink
Los Angeles

Evening folks, well morning in this case. It was a beautiful day in the OV. This guy overdid his workout earlier in the week, and has had a bad knee since then, but I’m swifty on the mend.

That chicken deal is interesting, will enjoy hearing more about it this week when JD returns.

Don I’m sorry to hear about your daughter, thinking positive thoughts for her and you. Also an amazing experience about Patsy Webb. Thanks for sharing.

Now we hear Walter Cronkite has passed away. I recall one of the last times I noticed him on tv, this was back when Clinton was president and he was on some boat with the Clintons on Martha Vineyard. Perhaps a bit of a open bias……

Yes Cronkite let it be known he was a liberal well AFTER he retired ….

But during his career he was the epitome of the best.

Jouralism these days just sucks these days…far too much bias and opinion and slant….In comparison to the high quality job of his era

We have gone from Cronkite being “the most trusted name in news”….to no one being the most trusted name in news….

Most dont trust any outlet or any one person all that much these days…

Dawn, I agree with you! During the coverage last night about Cronkite, they kept talking about how he told you what you needed to know while maintaining impartiality – it’s a testament to his fairness and ability that we didn’t know his personal politics until after his retirement. You are right, there’s no one around like him anymore.

Gina…I do believe in part that the responsibility lies with we viewers as well…

I think we are in an era where people are more interested in having their views, biases, opinions and politics validated, then to be presented with facts, context, and the big picture…and will watch whatever they are drawn to for the very reason…They want to be able to agree with what is being said or have someone agree with how they feel/think…

Personally I am not interested in agreeing with any particular public figure…It’s not a goal nor a necessity for me…

I just want the facts, the context, the background so I can make my own informed opinion….Im not interested in someone in the public area telling me what I need to think or feel about any given subject…I can do that on my own…I just need accurate information…

Makes it hard sometimes because that is not what in on TV anymore and that is because it doesnt draw in viewers…

JM.02

Comment by Wenchie
July 18th, 2009 at 1:42 pm

Personally I am not interested in agreeing with any particular public figure…It’s not a goal nor a necessity for me…

Wenchie, you are absolutely correct! I couldn’t agree with you more. I resent Fox News anchors Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck because they use their programs to air their own right-wing views. I no longer watch either of them.

I understand that Sean Hannity is one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet. That doesn’t surprise me. But he has bashed and blasted President Obama on every program since Obama announced his candidacy so many months ago.

To be “fair and balanced,” I suggest that Fox News anchors keep their opinions to themselves during their regular program time. During the last five or ten minutes, they could have a segment called “In My Opinion” or, in Glenn Beck’s case, “In My Humble Opinion,” because he has so much to be humble about….

My favorite anchor at Fox News is Shepard Smith. He presents “the facts, Ma’m — just the facts.” The only time I’ve seen Shep go after someone was when he reported on former Illinois Gov. Blago, who rightly deserved Shep’s joking around about him.

George Spink
Los Angeles

Hey George,

You’re mixing up FNC’s hard news shows with their opinion shows. Shepard, along with many other anchors during the day, report hard news, but Hannity, Beck and O’Reilly have shows that are different. They’re more opinion oriented shows so of course you’re going to get their opinion on things. We live in a free country so you’re free to not watch them if you don’t like them. Many times Sean Hannity does go overboard with his Obama bashing so I don’t always watch his show or I turn it off if it gets too bad. I don’t like Obama, but constant Obama bashing really does get on my nerves. We’re free to watch or not watch so there are times when I turn off the shows, even the hard news shows if they have things on that I don’t like–and that’s usually too much Obama this or Obama that. That’s where I stand.

Margie

Hey George just heard the lovely Julie Banderas on Fox 541pm est. mention your tweet about Cronkite.

George, Margie etc I feel Obama should be challenged like Hannity and O’Reilly, you listen to other networks and you would think he was the best thing that ever came along. He did and said what ever it took to pull the wool over the voter’s eyes. People need to be reminded daily of what or what he’s not doing, and promises broken. In my view from the North he is rushing far too fast in his policies, it’s almost like he thinks he only has four years to get everything passed because he knows he will lose the next election, I know most new governments do a lot in the first hundred days of being elected but the pace he’s going is dizzy, as we have discovered most of the fossils in Congress and The Senate doesn’t read the bills coming before them, because they likely wouldn’t understand them if they did read them unless a member of their staff explained it to them. The majority of the people in Congress and the Senate are dumb as a post, listen to them for awhile in what they say, how they say it, and what jobs they had before they got to be elected, plus some of them in the Senate need to go off to the retirement home, of course they don’t do much anyway while there. Same can be said for our Canadian parliaments.

Hey Peter,

I agree with you about many of the members of the House and Senate! I don’t think half of them know what they’re doing. It drives me crazy that they vote on things without even reading them! If you look at Obama’s poll numbers, they’ve been slipping steadily which tells me people are finally coming to their senses and realizing where this country is headed. I hope members of Congress come to their senses, too!

Margie

Don’t know what impresses me more . . . that Julie Banderas read George’s “tweet” or that he tweets in the first place. You go George!!!

I write my senators and congressman about every up coming vote. If you go to congress.org and at this website you can register to track your senators and congressman by email. You see how they voted and what bills are coming up. I aways let them know how I feel on what they are going to vote on. I make it simple. If I’m against something I say…If you vote yes on such and such bill I will go door to door to campaign for the person running against you in the next election. If I support something I say so.

Hi Don, That is a good way to do it. In Canada you can do something similar.

If tweet’d to Julie but she might send the polce after me. lol I read she has a relative who ran for President many years ago.

I generally like the content of FOX, but at times they spend too much time on such people as Cronkite. I watched footage of his stuff years ago, and thought they were pretty Democratic leaning even before he came out of the Donkey’s *ss.

Plus Fox needs to quit reairing stuff from earlier in the week during Saturday/Sunday, people tune in to catch the ongoing news, not reruns, CNN got into doing that, and look where they are today, bottom of the ratings. In addition need to stop running the Saturday morning business repeats for the two hours, I’ve found myself tuning into CNN just to get a bit of news to wait out the business repeats. News, news, news is why I tune in.

Isn’t voting on a bill without reading it similar to a doctor doing surgery without looking at the x-rays first? Only in D.C. Our esteemed Congress just passed a fee to be charged to foreign tourists. The funds raised by this fee will pay for a campaign to help promote…..you guessed it, more foreign tourism! So in those logical minds in D.C., they are irritating the people with a new fee that they are trying to get to visit here more? Alomst sounds like a Monty Python sketch or a scene from the movie “Dave”. I sometimes don’t think our Founding Fathers are spinning in their graves, but are more likely throwing up at what they see. Just my $.02.
I hope all are having a great weekend. The temperature here today was only 95. First day not to reach triple digits in a while. Yippee!
George, I watched the clucking “In The Mood” video and laughed….but later had nightmares! It was funny. Thanks for the link. JB

Very cool George that Julie read your tweet!!..

I remember Julie Banderas when she was Julie Bidwell at WFSB in Hartford!!

Comment by Peter Plumley
July 18th, 2009 at 4:42 pm

Hey George just heard the lovely Julie Banderas on Fox 541pm est. mention your tweet about Cronkite.

Wouldn’t you know it? The one time I missed Julie she mentions my Tweet! Well, at least she mentioned me, so I got that going for me….

George

Comment by Margie Gacki
July 18th, 2009 at 4:18 pm

Hey George,

You’re mixing up FNC’s hard news shows with their opinion shows. Shepard, along with many other anchors during the day, report hard news, but Hannity, Beck and O’Reilly have shows that are different. They’re more opinion oriented shows so of course you’re going to get their opinion on things. We live in a free country so you’re free to not watch them if you don’t like them.

You’re right, Margie. Hannity, Beck, and O’Reilly are “opinion” shows, but they claim to be “fair and balanced” and are anything but. Of the three, the only one I watch now and then is O’Reilly. I could care less what the others have to say about anything.

Having written for newspapers for a long time, I know reporters should tell a story and editorialists should offer opinions. The point is to keep them separate and not mix them up.

Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity mix them up every time they are on the air. O’Reilly often does. All three should know better. “Fair and balanced” couldn’t be farther from the truth with these three right-wing zealots!

I exercise my right not to watch them. I’ll take TCM to Beck any day and Rachel Maddow to Hannity any time.

Sad about Walter Cronkite I was not the target audience lets see he retires in 1981 I was 6 years old turned 7 that August. The fact that he turned out to be a liberal type does not surprise me. I heard that comment about the Vietnam War after the Tet Offense in 68? The reason I like Fox News is simple they are what they say they are that is Fair and Balanced. Olberman can call the women all the names he wants I’m watching O’Reilly over him anyway.

Janice

Interesting pics of the chickens now I want some chicken either BBQ’d or fried up from Browns (local chicken place in Chicago)

I think its a fair statement to say the line between reporting a story and editorializing became blurred, really blurred, a long time ago.

And IMO to the detriment to all of us. There is a place for both but they should be clearly defined and separated so that the average citizen, who doesnt understand the difference, doesnt get confused.

I know people who think that what Beck, Hannity, OReilly, Olbermann and others like them, are doing is news. It’s not.

Im not making judgements as to these men personally. I dont know them so am not in a position. But the style of shows they have are not news show, not by a long shot, and many fail to realize that.

Personally, I watch Campbell Brown. OReilly and Olbermann are far to emotionally over-the-top for my taste and are into the heated shout-fest go-round. Not to mention they spend too much time targetting other outlets and more often than not have become the story.

Not my cup of tea.
No thanks. I dont enjoy that in my personal life and have no desire to watch it my leisure. I prefer focusing on the news of the day and long term issues.

Goes to show, though, that there is an audience for the type of shows they put on. Because people do tune in to them. And with OReilly its quite sizable for cable news.

(In truth most people dont really care about the cable news outlets…You take 310 million people in the states and what a couple million tune in? Nothing to get all excited about in the big picture.)

Comment by Wenchie
July 19th, 2009 at 7:06 am

I think its a fair statement to say the line between reporting a story and editorializing became blurred, really blurred, a long time ago.

You’re absolutely right, Wenchie! Walter Cronkite and his contemporaries reported the news, period. That’s not the way it is on most Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC shows. It isn’t likely that the next Walter Cronkite will emerge from these three networks.

Ted Koppel, the first and long-time host of ABC’s “Nightline” was certainly in the Cronkite tradition, but Ted stepped down a couple of years ago. Was he then last?

Someone who blended reporting and humor brilliantly was Mike Royko (1932-1997), whose daily column appeared in the Chicago Daily News, the Chicago Sun-Times, and the Chicago Tribune (at different times). Chicago and Illinois politicians feared Royko. If he caught them doing something they shouldn’t, Royko murdered them in print, using his terrific sense of humor to bury them.

Mike’s column was syndicated nationwide, so I’m sure many of you are familiar with him, too.

How I wish we had someone like Royko on television news today….

George Spink
Los Angeles

Hey Dawn and George,

I have a question for the both of you. If you dislike Fox News so much, why to do participate in a Fox News blog? I think there are plenty of fine reporters on FNC but I know I won’t find them On O’Reilly or Hannity. Those are opinion shows so you get all kinds of opinions–that’s what they’re supposed to do. For hard news, I watch Shepard or Jon/Jane, Martha/Trace, Megyn/Bill–there are plenty to choose from. Since Fox is number one in just about everything, there are plenty of people who enjoy their shows. By the way, cable doesn’t get the ratings that on air programs get simply because not everyone in the country has cable service.

Hey to all the other bloggers out there! I hope everyone is having a great weekend. It’s been rather cool in Cumberland this weekend. It’s been rather cool in Cumberland for most of the summer, actually. I won’t complain. I’m certainly saving on my electric bill, which is nice. I feel sorry for all you folks in Texas with all the heat you’ve been having and all the excess electricity you’re paying for to stay cool. I hope you get some cooler temperatures soon–hang in there!

I hope you all have a great afternoon.

Margie

Hi, Margie,

You keep missing the point of what I have been saying. I’ll make myself very clear:

1. I like the same Fox News anchors you do: “Shepard or Jon/Jane, Martha/Trace, Megyn/Bill” and a few others.

2. I dislike Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity. I like Bill O’Reilly sometimes.

3. I love Janice Dean! She is a fine weather person, has a terrific sense of humor, and dances better than anyone else. I like her blog and those who blog here. I intend to keep blogging here.

If you have problems with any of these three points, Margie, well, I can’t help it. Let it go! Move on….

George Spink
Los Angeles

Margie…

You said…

“I have a question for the both of you. If you dislike Fox News so much, why to do participate in a Fox News blog?”

I would need for you to point out to me where I said that? Please dont attribute comments to me that I have never made…

Im talking about the blurring of news and editorializing and it’s across the board with the outlets…Its not unique to FNC to be honest…I see it everywhere…FNC’s evening program is just more prominent because of the ratings those shows draw…

I think one of the best at FNC when it comes to reporting is Bret Baeir…Brit Hume too is top notch as is Chris Wallace…I find Bill Hemmer also very good at his skills as an anchor…
Cathrine Herridge…Jennifer Griffin, Mike Tobin etcetc…

Please…I would appreciate it if you dont put words in my mouth. Just take what I said at face value and not slant it to mean something else that I didnt say…….That is called projection and I am not a big fan of it..

Thanks
Have a wonderful afternoon

George…

Yes Ted was of the older school for sure…
Watched Reliable Sources this morning as they had many who knew and worked with Cronkite on..Bob Shieffer, one of his producers from years gone by..etc

Including a fav of mine…Bernie Shaw…Loved the discussion of how news has changed over the decades…the ways and where fore’s etc…

Talked about the evolution of news of when it was just 2, then the 3 networks,,,and then the advent of 24 hour cable news….

Was a very interesting look at the media …past and present…in general…

Margie!!

You stirred a curiousity in me about cable service in the USA so I had to go a hunting…

According to Nielson Wire in Feb 2009 ..90% of all households have either cable or satelite TV..

Only 10% now a days are strictly broadcast..

Trying to think back when I first got cable??
Goodness seems ages ago…sorta like the rotary phone ..

Hey guys,
Looks like I’ve missed quite the discussion here the past 2 days. Not too sure if I need to step into this one as I’m most likely the most right of center of anyone who blogs here. I describe myself as being a middle-aged, pro-life, conservative Christian member of the NRA. I have not voted for anyone from the Democrat party since I wasted my vote on Jimmy Carter when he first ran for Prez. His was such an absolutely disasterous presidency that I became rather hard-core right, but I don’t consider myself a Republican either. I probably agree with Hannity and Beck more often than not, but rarely watch their shows. I refuse to watch CNN or MSNBC as I find little of value on either network and little that I can trust. I am tremendously disappointed in our nation’s leadership…on every level. I worry about the futures of my children and grandchildren. They will bear the brunt of the insane policies that are being put into place by a Congress that passes legislation without ever having read it and a President with an agenda so liberal that I can almost feel socialism goose-stepping its way our nation. I pray for this nation every day.

I realize that many of you have a different mindset than mine. I have no problem with that as we’re each allowed our own opinions, and for the time being we’re still free to express those. So I’ll keep blogging, and hope that y’all do the same. With that, I’ll bid you all a “good night” and I’ll catch y’all later!
Gwen

Morning Gwen…

For me my posts werent about politics per se…more about the state of the news media…but its fair to say the lines between politics and the media have also blurred over the years…and that goes for both sides of the isle as no one has the corner market on that either….I find that as distressing as any issues out there sometimes….

Im just looking for facts, information and accuracy….the rest has little interest for me

The lines have been blurred in the media I find troublesome and detrimental from my very moderate and independent political status….(far to say Im one of those votes that politicians have to really fight for and convince me that they are the better choice then there opponent! HA! )

Enjoy your day…We have a nice one before the weather takes a turn for not the better….

Hi Dawn,
Pretty quiet here today, but glad to see that you’ve been in. I do agree with you that I’d like to have alot more actual reporting…serious coverage of the issues from all sides and much less rah rah. We’re being underserved by the media as it stands now.

Hello everyone!
Hope y’all are having a good day. We’ve had a gorgeous weekend w/cooler temps and much lower humidity. Very nice (and unusual) for July. I’ll take a mid 80s day over a 100 degree one any day of the week.

Hard to believe it’s been 40 years since the moon walk! I was just a young girl watching at home. I would have thought by now we’d be flying around like the Jetsons…just hasn’t happened yet.

Gotta go!
Gwen

Hey Everybody,

Cooler temps here too…Kinda Fall-like…high Saturday was only 70..and the nightime was…56..a record low. but it has warmed up some today..it’s 77..low humidity..feels great. No complaints. Loving it!!!

Just been hanging out in the Hood…doing my regular stuff. ( I am a boring blogger).

Janice, Sean, and Matt, hope you have enjoyed the Chicken Inferno!

Take care all, see ya later,
Deb

Humidity is going up…as are the temps and our crops need that…Unfortunately the forecast for tomorrow is significant rain with more unstable conditions thru the week…

We have had to destroy 1,000 tomato plants thus far at our farm…And we heard that another farmer on the other side of the river has had to destroy 15,000 of his thus far….

We are in a “wait and see” holding pattern as of right now…Plum tomatoes seem to be more resistant than the slicing salad varieties….

Im getting kind of skeptical of how much of our crop we will be able to salvage..Hopefully I am wrong….

So for now…Just gonna enjoy the SUN!

AFA 40years after Moon landing…I was alive but too young to remember it…But I do remember that sense of excitement in the air about something “special” happening…

Wenchie

That’s terrible. It’s been all over the news today. Apparently it’s the same as the potato virus hitting the tomatoes in many states.

Yes Don….

It is the same as what is hitting the potatoes…Its what caused the Potato Famine in Ireland back in the 1850’s that caused a big immigration of Irish immigrants to America…

Fortunately for it now being the 21st century people arent going to starve to death…

But it takes a toll on the soul of a farmer….and I dont mean strickly monetary either…Both my step-father and his partners are more bothered by the actual loss and disease of the plants (and their hard work) then they are of the loss of revenue in the bigger picture…

On July 20, 1969, my wife and I were living in an apartment near Belmont and Broadway in Chicago’s Midtown neighborhood, a block west of Sheridan Road and two blocks west of beautiful Belmont Harbor, where so many yachts were docked. We had been married the previous October.

My mother shared a flat with a woman she used to work with in Berwyn, the town where I was born and raised. Mom managed the Burny Brothers Bakery Store at the Oak Brook Shopping Mall. She drove in from Berwyn to watch the moon landing with us. When she arrived, she told us that traffic was unusually heavy for a Sunday, perhaps because many others also were visiting loved ones around the city that day.

I would turn 29 that September. I had been interested in outer space since I was a boy. My dad bought me an atlas that explained our solar system in great detail. In 1950, the year after my parents bought our first TV, I watched “Tom Corbett – Space Cadet” and “Captain Video” every afternoon. I loved the old Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers serials from the 1930’s shown on WGN-TV.

One movie came out in 1950 that I’ll never forget: “Destination Moon.” It was about man’s first trip to the moon. TCM showed it earlier today, along with other films about space travel. In 1950, I hoped but never dreamed man would walk on the moon in my lifetime. In 1961, our new President John Fitzgerald Kennedy promised us that man would indeed walk on the moon by the end of the decade.

And we did!

Hey Folks,

Gwen, I agree with you. I wouldn’t mind if Keith Oberman and Rachel Maddow were tossed into
the chicken. Their opinions are worth about that much. On the other hand, those chickens are
so cool that I don’t want to spoil them with such mindless opinion anchors.

Eat mor chicken! (Chick Fill-A cow)

Spending lots of time with the kids and wife outdoors taking walks in the cooler air and building
“bridges” made of large branches across streams. Lots of fun. We’re going to spend a little
time on the beach soon building sand castles, flying kites, etc.

I’ve got my publicist e-mailing every hour to set up a ton of radio interviews for the coming weeks.
First one is tomorrow in the morning for Salt Lake City. If anyone wants specific info, let me know.
I’ve got more in WV, St. Louis, New York, etc. Still no calls to appear on Fox & Friends, Beck, or
Hannity, but you never know. The book narrates America’s founding principles and “one nation
under God,” so they may be interested.

Got my edits back from my editor on the smallpox book so I need to start revising and finalizing
that book before it goes to press. Busy, busy, busy. Still working in new ideas as they come.
Should be very good and interesting.

Best,
Tony

By the way, I’m talking with a school in TX about coming down to do a lecture in Grapevine. I know at
least some of you gals are from the great Lone Star state. I have met many visitors to Colonial
Williamsburg from Texas and they are just plainly the nicest people I’ve ever met. Friendly and
gregarious is how I describe them with the fullest compliments.

Tony