Mr Parch came to visit.

I am so glad that I don't have an editor looking over my shoulder, yelling at me and saying: "YOU IDIOT, YOU CAN NOT DO THAT". I get to stop in the middle of a story, change directions and share with you some of the astounding things that have surfaced from the comment section and private emails.

First of all, I would like to say hi to Charlie. He's one of the pilots from the Blue Team that flew Hueys for the Cav when I was there. I would also like to welcome a Navy buddy of mine that I've known since the 60's. Welcome aboard John, glad you're here with Martha and Otto.

Now, as far as Mr. Parch is concerned, I would like to ask a question before I make the explanations about Parch.

1. Have you ever heard the statement: "We all have our demons, don't we!".

I would think that most of you have already heard that or, having read the question, you might agree that there is, among all of us, that little voice in our ear that comes from someplace inside of us. I gave mine a name and an address. He lives right on my right shoulder on Shoulder Demon Drive.

He jumps up at the craziest time and tells me what he wants said during any given conversation. Only problem with that has to do with the fact that he sometimes says the craziest thing. It ranges all over the place but as an example, how does "Kiss A Fat Baby's Ass" sound? If that's never aflicted you, how about: "Does your mother have any children that lived?"

As a joke, me and a friend of mine had a business card program on the computer and some card stock available for play. We put one together that said something like"

             Parch
666 Shoulder Demon Drive
        Hades, 71105

We never had to make any extras but had great fun with them before we tired of that game. Despite that, the crazy comments continue to this day and in reality, Parch is the one that made me come back over here and post this even though I posted a new one this morning.

You may also find it particularly strange that as I prepared the computer area (just like he told me to) and then walked over to the stove and took all the medications that I must take as a post surgery preventive med, Parch said:

"Don't take all that and THEN go get on the computer to make a post! You'll be stoned long before you finish it, you idiot".

I ignored that because I knew that as soon as I stopped, turned on the televison set and laid down on the couch, he would be messing with me saying something like: " I thought you were gonna make that post, tough guy".I would start feeling guilty about that time and I'd get up, do it and not go to sleep until 2 or 3 in the morning.

I have developed a pretty good relationship with Parch and sometimes even call him by name to help me with a phrase or any given problem I may be having. Earlier today, as I was thinking about a series of emails from a dear friend from high school, I concluded something relative to the foundation I keep referring to throughout this blog.

That email explained an involvement that his family had at Colossus that went back to the 1930's but ended in 1945.

As I thought about that and I considered the year that his family's involvement in the business began, I concluded that the "Foundation of people I'm referring to", really began 83 years ago on the "not blood related " side of the players found in this blog, and a bit more than that on the blood relative side. .

To briefly explain that, know that my Uncles were born prior to 1930 as they were old enough to join the Armed Forces in December 1941. My Daddy was born in 1906 but he was a Civilian Contractor at Camp Beauregard, Louisiana during the entire war and didn't make it overseas. FWIW, that places people on my family's side of the equation coming in 106  years ago and other players that weren't blood relatives, 83 years ago.

The moral of that story is this:

Related by blood or not, the players in this story come from that greatest generation of men and women that faced it all, fought it head on and came out as winners when they finished. That's an incredibly important aspect of credibility when a story must depend on the approval of so many.

When I say what I have to say further on, you will know that it is NOT coming from some half cocked dreamer who never fought a war, who never experienced that kind of uncertainty or endured that kind of sacrifice in the name of freedome.  

Parch is telling me that it's time to shut it down and I'm going to take his advice. Before I go, please think about these things by trying to see a bit down the road and understand that repeated patterns of successful conduct, decade after decade, generation after generation, is the kind of thing that creates the legacies of great American Patriots. Your comments are appreciated.




!