Merry Christmas Eve

This photo and story is being passed around Facebook right now. I found it absolutely beautiful and impossible not to share this Christmas Eve.

Our 14-year-old dog Abbey died last month. The day after she passed away my 4-year-old daughter Meredith was crying and talking about how much she missed Abbey. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that when Abbey got to heaven, God would recognize her. I told her that I thought we could so, and she dictated these words:

Dear God,

Will you please take care of my dog? She died yesterday and is with you in heaven. I miss her very much. I am happy that you let me have her as my dog even though she got sick.

I hope you will play with her. She likes to swim and play with balls. I am sending a picture of her so when you see her you will know that she is my dog. I really miss her.

Love, Meredith

We put the letter in an envelope with a picture of Abbey and Meredith and addressed it to God/Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith pasted several stamps on the front of the envelope because she said it would take lots of stamps to get the letter all the way to heaven. That afternoon she dropped it into the letter box at the post office. A few days later, she asked if God had gotten the letter yet. I told her that I thought He had.

Yesterday, there was a package wrapped in gold paper on our front porch addressed, 'To Meredith' in an unfamiliar hand. Meredith opened it. Inside was a book by Mr. Rogers called, 'When a Pet Dies.' Taped to the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God in its opened envelope. On the opposite page was the picture of Abbey & Meredith and this note:

Dear Meredith,

Abbey arrived safely in heaven. Having the picture was a big help and I recognized her right away.

Abbey isn't sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me just like it stays in your heart. Abbey loved being your dog. Since we don't need our bodies in heaven, I don't have any pockets to keep your picture in so I am sending it back to you in this little book for you to keep and have something to remember Abbey by.

Thank you for the beautiful letter and thank your mother for helping you write it and sending it to me. What a wonderful mother you have. I picked her especially for you. I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much. By the way, I'm easy to find. I am wherever there is love.

Love, God

Merry Christmas everyone. Love,

The ones we lost in 2010

This post is particularly hard for me because...well, because. I've had it written for several weeks. I was working on it the night of December 17th and we had the following conversation:

Tim: Whatcha workin' on baby?

Me: My list of famous folks who died in 2010. You know I do that every year.

Tim: Am I on there?

Me: NO. Quit that.

Tim: Well, I'm just saying.

Me: Well, quit saying.

Tim: K, love, just for you.

The next morning he had a major heart attack. We went to the hospital.

This list did not cross my mind again until the 20th. That's when I made the last entry, Steve Landesberg. I had come home to shower and get some fresh clothes. I went back to the hospital and the list once again left my mind.

Then, after also suffering a stroke, and fighting so hard, two days after Christmas my Love passed away.

Last night, while looking through things on our computer, I saw the list. I said to myself, just forget it. But then I remembered the conversation Tim & I had had about it and I decided that not only should I post it but I should include him on it. He deserves that honor. He was more important to me than anybody in the world.

This years list is not as "clean" as previous lists. I haven't done much editing to it. I normally add photos but I just can't bring myself to do that. Except for my husband. He gets his photo here.


January

6th- George Leonard, 86, American writer, editor and educator, pioneer of the Human Potential Movement, after long illness.

12th- Brian Damage, 46, American punk and rock drummer (Misfits), complications of colorectal cancer.

13th- Teddy Pendergrass, 59, American soul singer, complications from colorectal cancer.

17th- Erich Segal, 72, American professor, author (Love Story), and screenwriter (Yellow Submarine), heart attack.

19th- Jennifer Lyon, 37, American reality TV personality (Survivor: Palau), breast cancer.

22nd- James Mitchell, 89, American actor (All My Children), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.


27th- Barry Blitzer, 80, American television writer (Get Smart, The Flintstones), complications from abdominal surgery.

J. D. Salinger, 91, American author (The Catcher in the Rye), natural causes.

Zelda Rubinstein, 76, American actress (Poltergeist, Picket Fences), natural causes.

30th- Aaron Ruben, 95, American television producer (Andy Griffith Show, Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C., Sanford and Son), pneumonia.

February

1st- Justin Mentell, 27, American actor (Boston Legal), car accident.

David Brown, 93, American film producer (Jaws), renal failure.

Jack Brisco, 68, American professional wrestler, complications from open heart surgery.

8th- David Froman, 71, American actor (The Edge of Night, Matlock), cancer.

Bill Utterback, 79, American illustrator and caricaturist.

19th- Lionel Jeffries, 83, British film actor, screenwriter and director.

25th- Andrew Koenig, 41, American actor (Growing Pains), suicide (body discovered on this date).

28th- Tom "T-Bone" Wolk, 58, American bass guitarist (Hall & Oates), heart attack.

March

4th- Nan Martin, 82, American actress (The Drew Carey Show), emphysema.

10th- Corey Haim, 38, Canadian actor (Lucas, The Lost Boys, License to Drive), pneumonia.

11th- Merlin Olsen, 69, American football player (L.A. Rams) and actor (Little House on the Prairie, Father Murphy), mesothelioma.

14th- Peter Graves, 83, American actor (Mission: Impossible, Airplane!), heart attack.

18th- Fess Parker, 85, American actor (Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone), natural causes.

24th- Robert Culp, 79, American actor (I Spy, The Greatest American Hero, Everybody Loves Raymond), heart attack.

April

1st- John Forsythe, 92, American actor (Bachelor Father, Charlie's Angels, Dynasty), complications from pneumonia.

6th- Wilma Mankiller, 64, American activist, first female Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation (1985–1995), pancreatic cancer.

10th- Dixie Carter, 70, American actress (Designing Women, Diff'rent Strokes), endometrial cancer.

14th- Mississippi Slim, 66, American blues singer, heart attack.

25th- Dorothy Provine, 75, American actress, (It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World), emphysema.

May

1st- Helen Wagner, 91, American actress (As the World Turns).

2nd- Lynn Redgrave, 67, English actress (Georgy Girl, Gods and Monsters), breast cancer.

9th- Lena Horne, 92, American singer and actress (Stormy Weather, The Wiz).

16th- Ronnie James Dio, 67, American heavy metal singer (Black Sabbath, Rainbow, Dio), stomach cancer.

20th- Robert L. McNeil, Jr., 94, American chemist and inventor, creator of Tylenol, heart failure.

26th- Art Linkletter, 97, Canadian-born American radio and television personality (House Party, People are Funny), natural causes.

28th- Gary Coleman, 42, American actor (Diff'rent Strokes), intracranial hemorrhage

29th- Dennis Hopper, 74, American actor and film director (Easy Rider), prostate cancer.

June

3rd- Rue McClanahan, 76, American actress (The Golden Girls, Maude), stroke.

6th- Marvin Isley, 56, American bassist (The Isley Brothers, Isley-Jasper-Isley), complications of diabetes.

13th- Jimmy Dean, 81, American country music singer (Big Bad John), actor and businessman (Jimmy Dean Foods), natural causes.

16th- Bill Dixon, 84, American jazz musician.

Ronald Neame, 99, British film director (The Poseidon Adventure) and screenwriter.

24th- JoJo Billingsley, 58, American back-up singer (Lynyrd Skynyrd), cancer.

25th- Richard B. Sellars, 94, American Chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson.

July

13th- George Steinbrenner, 80, American baseball team owner (New York Yankees), heart attack.



August

8th- Jack Parnell, 87, British musician and bandleader (The Muppet Show), cancer.

21st- Nancy Dolman, 58, Canadian actress (Soap), wife of Martin Short, natural causes.

23rd- George David Weiss, 89, American composer ("What a Wonderful World", "Can't Help Falling in Love", "The Lion Sleeps Tonight"), natural causes.

Bill Phillips, 74, American country music singer.

September

7th- Glenn Shadix, 58, American actor (Beetlejuice, The Nightmare Before Christmas), fall.

11th- King Coleman, 78, American rhythm and blues singer ("Do the Mashed Potatoes"), heart failure.

Harold Gould, 86, American actor (The Sting, Rhoda, The Golden Girls), prostate cancer.

Kevin McCarthy, 96, American actor (Invasion of the Body Snatchers), natural causes.

17th- Bill Littlejohn, 96, American animator (Tom and Jerry, Peanuts), natural causes.

21st- John Crawford, 90, American actor (The Poseidon Adventure, The Towering Inferno, The Waltons), stroke.

22nd- Eddie Fisher, 82, American singer and entertainer, complications from hip surgery.

26th- Gloria Stuart, 100, American film actress (The Invisible Man, Titanic), respiratory failure.

29th- Tony Curtis, 85, American actor (Some Like It Hot, Spartacus, The Defiant Ones), cardiac arrest.


October

10th- Solomon Burke, 70, American R&B singer-songwriter ("Everybody Needs Somebody to Love"), natural causes.

16th- Barbara Billingsley, 94, American actress (Leave It to Beaver, Airplane!).

19th- Tom Bosley, 83, American actor (Happy Days, Father Dowling Mysteries), heart failure.

26th- James Phelps, 78, American gospel and R&B singer, complications of diabetes.

27th- Denise Borino-Quinn, 46, American actress (The Sopranos), liver cancer.

28th- James MacArthur, 72, American actor (Hawaii Five-O, Swiss Family Robinson), natural causes.

November

1st- Charlie O'Donnell, 78, American announcer (Wheel of Fortune), heart failure.

4th- Michelle Nicastro, 50, American singer, actress (When Harry Met Sally...) and voice actress (The Swan Princess), lung cancer.

5th- Jill Clayburgh, 66, American actress (An Unmarried Woman, Ally McBeal, Dirty Sexy Money), chronic leukemia

15th- William Self, 89, American actor and television production manager (Batman, Lost in Space, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea), heart attack.

28th- Leslie Nielsen, 84, Canadian-born American actor (Airplane!, The Naked Gun), pneumonia.

December

7th- Elizabeth Edwards, 61, American author, lawyer and political activist, breast cancer.

9th- James Moody, 85, American jazz saxophonist and flautist, pancreatic cancer.

15th- Blake Edwards, 88, American film director, producer and screenwriter (The Pink Panther, Breakfast at Tiffany's), pneumonia.

20th- Steve Landesberg, actor (Barney Miller, The Golden Girls), 65, cancer

27th- Charles Timothy Brakhage Sr., husband, father, son, grandfather, brother, uncle, friend, 46. We will always love and miss you babyluv. 

Pass a shot

Don't people usually drink alcohol when they're depressed? I mean, do I have that wrong? I know that people drink to celebrate things so that means they drink when they're happy but really, I always associate heavy drinking with sadness. Maybe it's just me.

Apparently it's just me.

In Ireland --a place I associate with drinking alcohol-- the economy has gotten so bad and the unemployment rate so high that people have pretty much quit drinking alcohol. Ok, not everyone has quit drinking but alcohol consumption has dropped 21% since 2001.

Pubs are closing at an alarming rate of one every day and 15,000 people have lost their pub related jobs.  

"It was the worst year for our industry in living memory," Kieran Tobin, chairman of the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI), told a news conference in a central Dublin pub.

It's estimated that Ireland has lost $135.1 million dollars in revenue from the recent decline in alcohol sales. That's a lot of Irish Whiskey not being enjoyed.

My Angel & Patrick Swayze: Both gone way too soon

I lost my very special friend on the 9th. It's hurting my heart worse than I could have ever imagined. I can't even bear to rewrite what happened. She meant so much to me. If you'd like to read what I wrote, you can click here. I will love you forever my Cindie Angel. You are so missed ♥

Because of my personal loss I haven't really been online much. It's been a hard thing for me to deal with and I haven't even kept up with my news. I think that it's making me more depressed though. The lack of writing I mean. It's something that makes me very happy and in some ways, keeps me sane. So today I decided that I needed to get back "in my zone". I did read the news. That helped some.

I heard about Patrick Swayze passing away the day it happened but like I said, I wasn't really me...

It wasn't really shocking to me that he died. He'd been sick for awhile and the last time I saw him on TV he looked pretty bad. It's sad the way disease's wear away at you. It breaks my heart. He had pancreatic cancer. He died on the 14th. He was only 57.

One for the good guys

Isn’t it funny how things always happen in twos or threes? I just shared an email on Tuesday on my Happy At Home blog about the same subject that I read about in the news this morning. The subject: kindness, selflessness, the good guys.

The email (which you can read by clicking on the words Happy At Home above) was about a young man that was mentally and physically disabled. One day passing the baseball field he told his father he wanted to play. His father was afraid of how the other kids would treat his son but let him play anyway. He was rewarded for his trust when the children on both teams intentionally allowed him to make a home run when in reality what he hit was an easy out. The children put aside the goal of winning so that that boy could be a hero. I cried when I read it; it was that sweet.

The story I read this morning was about basketball instead of baseball but the same story played out.

The DeKalb Illinois High School basketball team rode two and a half hours to play in a non-conference game against a team in Milwaukee. It was to be the third time these two teams met up. The game started late. And it was close. But the Milwaukee team had other things on their minds.

A senior that played on the Milwaukee team was dealing with matters much more important than a basketball game. He was losing his mother. Johntel Franklin’s mother Carlitha had been fighting cervical cancer for five years but her fight was sadly over. She began hemorrhaging that morning and by the afternoon the decision was made to turn off the life-support system. She was only 39 when she died.

The teams coach was with Johntel at the hospital. He wanted to cancel the game but Johntel told him no. He wanted to play. Honoring the boy’s wishes, the coach took him to the game that was already in the second quarter. Because Johntel was not on the pre-game roster the other team would be given two free throws if he was allowed to play. He wanted to play.

What happened next was an incredible show of sportsmanship by the other team. They intentionally missed the free throws even though it could have given them an advantage. The boy that made the shots was quoted as saying “I did it for the guy who lost his mom. It was the right thing to do.”

It was the right thing to do and even though I don’t personally know the boys that played that night, I am extremely proud of them. They reminded me that good guys DO still exist and even during a tragedy something good can happen.

Andrew Wyeth

I don't know how I missed that Andrew Wyeth had died. I usually pay attention to that kind of stuff. I even have a feed on my home page for Dead or Alive? and in general at least glance at it every day. But I did miss it. I finally saw it last night on another blog. I've now added that feed to this page since it appears I'm here more than anywhere else.

Andrew Wyeth was an artist. Below are two of his paintings. The first, Christina's World, is probably his most famous. The second, Soaring, is my personal favorite. His favorite subjects were the land and people around him. He passed away on January 16 at the age of 91.

Christina's World

Soaring

To catch a thief... in aisle 3?

You just finished shopping at your local Walmart. Your items are on the conveyor belt heading toward the cashier. Seven pairs of jeans, four pair of slacks, a pair of scrubs, a bra, a sweat suit, a picture frame, laundry detergent, diapers, pizza, coffee, four 12-packs of drinks, canned vegies, air freshener, nachos, noodles, some frozen stuff, chips, ground beef, and a baby crib…total? $5.25. What?!

Yep. A 20 year old Natchez Mississippi Walmart employee was arrested for attempting to sell her friend $547.50 worth of merchandise for five bucks. The story in the Mississippi newspaper doesn’t say HOW they were busted for rolling back prices on their own, just that the 22 year old woman never left the store with the products.

What were they thinking? Oh wait, I know, they were thinking they could get away with it. I bet that kind of thing happens all the time but no one notices. With all the beeping going on from other registers around them I imagine it’d be easy to do. And unless you are involved in security for the store, you more than likely wouldn’t be watching the screen to see what was being rung up. Plus those people that stand at the exit doors and check peoples receipts only do that if something is out of a bag. That’d be easy to prevent too.

I’m not trying to encourage people to steal by explaining how easy it would be. I’m actually very disgusted by these people that think it’s ok to steal. They try to argue that it’s a big store (Walmart) so they can afford the loss but I believe even if they could afford the loss, we’re the ones that pay for it in increased prices so they didn‘t hurt that big store. They hurt me.

Everyone I know has worked hard their whole lives and paid for everything they own. I have no patience for people that won’t earn their own keep. And even less patience for those that want to take out of my pocket.

So needless to say, I’m happy these women were caught and arrested. I hope they at least get a hefty fine. And as far as the cashier goes, I hope it’s noted on her work record so that she doesn’t get the opportunity to raise prices in another store that I shop at.

What do you know about Joe?

Well, it’s inauguration day. I’m sure you know that, it’s all over the place. How could you miss it? And yes, history is being made as our nations first African American president is sworn in.

I believe people have done more research on our new president than they ever did on any president of the past. With the internet available 24/7, news channels devoted strictly to politics and the front page of every major newspaper covering every tiny detail, how could you not know who Barack Obama is?

I tend to believe that people are even aware of Obama’s family. If I said he has a wife named Michelle and two daughters, most people would nod their heads and say I was right. What I’m not sure of is if people know about our new VICE president.

Joe Biden has not received the same amount of publicity that Obama has, his life is not splattered all over the place. While he and his wife did appear on Oprah I was not aware of it until I saw a tiny little story way at the bottom of my news feed.

Biden is just a backup. He’s not the important one. He’s not the president. That’s the feeling I get when I see these very few and far between stories about our new vice president. People just don’t think he’s that important. I don’t agree with that line of thought. If something were to happen to Obama (you have to admit that’s completely possible. In this day and age people would not hesitate to do harm against our president), Biden will replace him.

So who is this man that will be running our country in the event of a tragedy? What do we know about him? Honestly, I knew very little about him. I decided some research was in order...

He was born November 20, 1942 in Scranton Pennsylvania. He comes from an Irish Catholic family and has two brothers and one sister.

He has a wife as I said. Her name is Jill. While I don’t believe physical appearance makes any difference in someone’s ability to be a contributing human being, I’ll tell you she’s beautiful. And it’s not just on the outside. She speaks from the heart and doesn’t hold back (as seen on the Oprah clip below). I feel like she would be incapable of hiding anything. They met in 1975 and they married in 1977. They have one daughter together. But Jill is his second wife.

His first wife’s name was Neilia. They met in 1964 and married in 1966. They had three children, two sons and a daughter. In 1972 she and his one year old daughter were killed when the station wagon they were traveling in was hit by a semi truck. His two sons were critically injured in the accident as well but thankfully recovered.

Biden began his career in the United States Senate at the minimum age to be eligible, 30. He has represented Delaware from that January 3, 1973 day until his resignation on January 15, 2009. He resigned only because of his being elected to the vice presidency.

He's the former chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. He opposed the Gulf War in 1991 and voted in favor of the Iraq War Resolution in 2002. He has also served as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. And he helped create the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act and the Violence Against Women Act. He unsuccessfully ran for president in 1988 and was originally running for president in this years election. He is the first Roman Catholic and the first Delawarean to be elected Vice President of the United States.

I have the faint feeling that I just struck gold. I’ve already expressed my support and approval of Obama. Now I have to say, I really like Joe Biden. I think he’s going to do our country good. I think the two of them together, Obama and Biden, may be able to make our country great again. I feel it. It’s on its way. I’m practically singing. Happy days are here again…

Joe & Jill Biden on the Oprah show

My dear guests! I am Mr. Roarke, your host. Welcome...

I saw tonight that we lost another of my childhood favorites. Ricardo Montalban was in my living room so many different times. What stands out most in my mind is Corinthian leather and the Chrysler Cordoba. And Star Trek (who could forget that chest?). And of course Fantasy Island. For awhile I believed he was Mr. Roarke and if I got to him he would make all my dreams come true.

He was born Ricardo Gonzalo Pedro Montalban Merino in Mexico City on November 25, 1920. He began acting in leading roles in 1949 (Border Incident) and continued through recent years eventually working from a wheelchair.

My personal favorite performances of his were:

Planet of the Apes (1968)
Fantasy Island (1978 - 1984)
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
The Naked Gun movies (1988 - 1994)

He married his wife in 1944 and remained married to her until her death 63 years later on November 13, 2007. He was of the Catholic faith and said that his religion was the "most important thing" in his life. He was 88. Rest in Peace Ricardo Montalban. You will be missed.


Fantasy Island TV Show Opening Theme Season One (1978)

Bad day on our highways

Everyday is a news day for me but today is a local news day. It seems like all the stories that caught my eye this morning were from in or around Houston. And most of them involved cars and speed.

A 22 year old man was reported to have been driving in excess of 100 mph when he crashed his Chevy Cobalt carrying himself and his 18 year old girlfriend into a van with five family members in it. All but the driver of the speeding Cobalt and a 59 year old female passenger in the van were killed in the accident. The driver that caused the accident is unaware that these deaths occurred yet. Killed in the accident were the 18 year old girlfriend, a 78 year old man who’s birthday is today, his brother and sister-in-law who were both 83 and his 60 year old nephew. The family members had traveled to celebrate the 78 year olds birthday.

In the second accident, a 17 year old stole a pickup truck and was spotted by police. He ran from the officers and subsequently crashed into a SUV in the intersection of South 79th and Elwood in Houston. The accident killed a 23 year old man that was driving the SUV. The 17 year old has no license and claimed to have ‘found’ the car.

A third accident occurred when a ladies vehicle was carjacked. Thankfully the carjacker allowed her to remove her children from the vehicle before he took off in it. The police chased him until he crashed into a gas meter. No one was hurt in this accident but a nearby restaurant had to be evacuated because of the leaking gas.

And finally, at a Low Rider car show one of the vehicles carrying a family involved in the celebration burst into flames. A three year old was in a car seat in the back of the car. The father managed to get his son out of the burning vehicle, but they both suffered burns and are being treated at the Medical Center.

I hate to drive. It’s a true story. I would rather be a passenger than a driver. Accidents like these make that feeling even stronger in me. Tim is an excellent driver and I would rather put my faith in him. Not that I’m a bad driver. I just get nervous and I know I shouldn’t be in control of a vehicle when I’m nervous.

I also know that accidents happen in a split second and sometimes even the most experienced and confident drivers are still involved in them. My heart goes out to the families of the victims in the accidents I’ve talked about this morning. I pray they find peace in whatever way they can. I know that’s easier said than done.

Singing together makes everything better

Most of the news I share with you is from somewhere far far away from me. A lot of times it’s from all the way across the world from me. But the story I’d like to tell you about today is from right around the corner from me. Houston.

We’re 52 miles west of Houston. We rarely go into the city though. It’s so big and so many people everywhere. And a few of the places are a little on the scary side if I’m to be completely honest.

When my oldest daughter was just an infant we had quite the medical scare. We ended up driving like maniacs in the middle of the night into Houston to Texas Children’s Hospital. Christina was three months old and very sick. I was 23 and very scared.

The doctors there were extremely nice. They did everything they could to make both of us comfortable. Christina ended up having to have a spinal tap. If you’ve never witnessed that, I can tell you it’s frightening. They use the biggest needle I’ve ever personally seen. They have to get it just right, exactly in between the disks in your spine to remove some of the fluid to test. They thought she had meningitis. Thankfully she didn’t but I’ll never forget how the doctors at Texas Children’s Hospital did everything they could to solve and fix her issues.

And I’ll never forget their kindness. Everyone associated with the hospital was so caring and so gentle. I appreciated that so much. Now the hospital is in the news for their caring, kind ways.

The story was specifically about the Cancer Center at the hospital. It’s the number one pediatric cancer center in Texas and number three in the entire country. That makes me proud.

Now, thanks to donations and Anita Kruse, the Cancer Center offers the chance for terminally ill children to forget about their illnesses for a little while. Anita started a recording studio in the hospital where she and other staff members and volunteers help the children to write and record songs about important things in their lives.

One young lady named Jalen Huckabay wrote about her dog Jasmine or Jaz for short. Shy and unsure of herself, she quickly gained confidence once she realized she was actually writing the song just by talking about her much loved pup.

Anita is a Houston resident who sings and writes music professionally. After speaking a few minutes with Jalen, she hears the song in the young girls loving words and writes it in her notebook as they talk.

Jalen smiles as the first verse is read back to her. “MYD is my yippin’ dog. Got her last Christmas on the 23rd. We call her Jaz. She’s the Yorkie we chose. We dress her up in Build-A-Bear clothes.”

The project is named Purple Songs Can Fly and relies heavily on donations. All donations are tax deductable. I have a feeling a lot of people would donate even if they weren’t tax deductable. I know I will. It’s definetly worth it.

Read more about Jalen Huckabay

Read more about Purple Songs Can Fly

Read more about Texas Children’s Hospital

Read more about Texas Children’s Cancer Center & Hematology Service

What is wrong with this world?

I wrote last night on the terrible tragedy John Travolta and his family are suffering through. I understand his pain as a mother who has lost a son. So I spent a lot of time last night reading stories and comments left on stories about it. It's the comments that have me upset.

I don't understand how people can take something as terrible as the death of a child and make it into a joke. I was appalled. The worst comments were on the E! Online story. E! is well known enough that I would think they'd show a little responsibility and remove the offensive comments on a story that should be about condolences.

People made jet ski jokes in reference to Jett's name. They made bathtub jokes. They made tacky Scientology jokes. They even suggested that this poor child would not go to Heaven because of his parents beliefs. Some fool even made the screen name L. Ron Hubbard to bash the Travolta's. How pathetic is what I say.

Just what exactly does Jett's parents religion have to do with any of it? It doesn't in my opinion. The only thing that should matter right now is that parents have lost their child. I know the day will come that those heartless people will be judged and I take comfort in that knowledge.

To the Travolta family, my heartfelt condolences. It's been 8 years since I lost my son and the pain is still there. I hope they find peace in whatever way they can.

To the attention seekers and people with unbelievably bad taste, I hope you never have to go through the pain of losing a child. But maybe if you did you would understand what a terrible thing you did making jokes about a child passing away. You should be ashamed of yourselves.

Breaking sad news..

As I was reading this evenings news stories online, I was sad to see that John Travolta's 16 year old son Jett died. Apparently he fell in the bathroom, hitting his head. He was found by caretaker and rushed to the hospital this afternoon where he was pronounced dead.

It's heartbreaking when any child dies. And John Travolta has been one of my favorite actors for a very long time. He's been in my life since I was a child myself. So I feel like I lost a member of my own family in a way. My thoughts and prayers are with their family tonight. God bless them.

Click here to read the story on Yahoo

Locked away all these years

In 1937 a British aristocrat named Earl Howe bought a car. He drove it for eight years then sold it. It changed hands several times before it ended up being purchased by Harold Carr in 1955. It was a Type 57S Atalante. If you don’t know this car I’m not too surprised. It’s very rare. There were only 17 of these cars made, EVER.

Recently Harold passed away. As his nephew went through the belongings left behind by his uncle, he found the gem locked up in the garage. It had been there untouched for 50 years.

The original and rare Bugatti was one of the first supercars ever built. It could reach an amazing 130 mph compared to other cars of it’s time that could only reach 50 mph.

Still containing all it’s original parts, auctioneers expect it to bring in a whopping 8.7 million dollars once it’s put on the block next month in Paris.

His nephew, who wishes to remain anonymous, was quoted in the London Evening Chronicle as saying “We just can’t believe it. Of course we’re delighted and we’re going to make sure the money is shared out among the family. It’s a wonderful thing to leave.”

I agree completely. I’m sorry for the families loss of course, but after the initial pain fades away I’m sure they’ll appreciate the great gift their uncle left them.

The songs will carry on

I wrote today about the comedians we lost in 2008 on my Happy At Home site. I said there were two things I could not live without and they were laughter and music.

Here I am honoring the musicians we lost in 2008. They will be missed.

January 20th - John Stewart
He was a member of the Kingston Trio and wrote many songs including the Monkees’ hit “Daydream Believer”. He was 68.

February 5th - Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
He wasn’t really a musician but he influenced the music scene intensely when he taught transcendentalist meditation to the Beatles. He was 96.

February 28th - Mike Smith
He was the lead vocalist for The Dave Clark Five. He was 64.

May 5th - Jerry Wallace
Country singer from the 50’s. He had a #1 hit in 1972 for “To Get To You”. He was 79.

May 8th - Eddy Arnold
Said to be the baritone voice that helped to create the Nashville sound. He was 89.

June 2nd - Bo Diddley
He was known as one of the founding fathers of rock and roll. And known for calling his guitar Lucille. He was 79.

August 10th - Isaac Hayes
Soul singer who was most famous for writing the theme song to Shaft. He was 65.

August 18th - Pervis Jackson
The bass voice for the Spinners. He was 70.

September 2nd - Jerry Reed
Country and western singer. Best known for his slapstick songs such as “She got the goldmine and I got the shaft”. He was 71.

September 15th - Richard Wright
Pianist with Pink Floyd. He wrote the song “Wish you were here”. He was 65.

October 17th - Levi Stubbs
Singing front man for the Four Tops. He was 72.

October 24th - Merl Saunders
Musician and keyboardist for The Grateful Dead. He was 74.

December 25th - Eartha Kitt
Singer who was best known for her song “Santa Baby”. She was also an actress, best known for portraying Catwoman in the Batman series.