Farrah Fawcett R.I.P.

It's official — It sucks getting old. I was a wee lad of 14 the year they released this poster of Farrah Fawcett. Needless to say, I was one of the 12 million young men who owned a copy of the poster. It hung over my bed on the arched wall that also held that famous KISS ALIVE poster. I was far from oblivious to the opposite sex, but the Farrah poster spoke to me as, I'm sure, it did 12 million other purchasers. Today, Farrah died. She was 62 years old. But, this poster, now 33 years old, is how I will always remember Farrah Fawcett — young and beautiful and a 14-year-old's awakening to so many things.

Rest in Peace, Farrah....

Summer

Summer has finally arrived in southern Illinois. To prove it, I filled up the kiddie pool for the kids and they swam all afternoon. I barbequed dinner (burgers, brats and hotdogs along with baked taters and sweet corn). Darrien is on his second hamburger. The boy can eat more than most adults. Wish I had his metabolism.

Anyway, took the kids to the Shriner's circus last night. We got home at 10 p.m. and everyone was exhausted.

Watched STAR TREK (liked it but plenty of plot holes) and TERMINATOR: SALVATION (liked it but plot was predictable). I'd recommend both movies. Also, if you're in to low-brow horror, TRAILER PARK OF TERROR is a tasty morsel.

Hope everyone is well. More later. Now, back to your regularly scheduled program.

Memorial Day

Well, here it is. Memorial Day. The beginning of summer, they say. I took the kids to Herrinfest and bought them armbands so they could ride all the rides. We stayed for hours and everyone was exhausted. It was a good time and it made me feel good to see their happy little smiles. Sadly, I missed the live acts I wanted to see. Both Kansas and Collective Soul played this year. I really wanted to see Kansas but that just didn't work out. Oh well, maybe next year. One thing I've learned in life over the past three years is to expect the unexpected. Be open to new things, even if they rip your heart out. You only have control over you....and there are a lot of turdballs out there.

Anyway, sorry to get off on a negative tangent. I just posted chapter seventeen of DEVLIN'S DESCENT over at www.annihilationpress.com Go read it....and send me a buck or two. I need it.

Later
Roger

WALKING IN A HURRICANE

Southern Illinois was pummelled by an "inland hurricane" on Friday. 100 mile plus winds tore through the region. The devastation is amazing. I will post a few pix I took of the tree on my garage in the near future. My internet access is down and I'm at a Quizno's 20 miles from my house typing this. Power is predicted to be back on Thursday.

Lame Gator and Lick Creek General Store

Got a call from Nick Rion last night. He told me that his partner on the (Breaking Bread, 11 a.m. every Saturday on WGGH, AM1150) radio show, Tommy Tucker, is in the process of buying Lick Creek General Store. That's great news. Lick Creek had its heyday in the 90's. It was a lot of fun and I actually met my ex-wife there (but I won't hold that against them!). They served fine cajun and exotic foods and the place was always hopping with some sort of excitement. Sadly, things went south in the new millenia, but I can't think of a better person to buy the place and restore it to its old glory than Chef Tommy Tucker. Makes me have hope in the future.

Check out all the information on Lick Creek and other region events at their website, www.lamegatorfoodproductions.com

It's been a while

Well, where to begin? It's been almost a month since I last posted to this blog. In that time, several things have happened. I went back to being a printer. While I loved working with people in the SIU community as the Assistant Superintendent of Printing, there were aspects of my job that I simply couldn't tolerate any longer. Sometimes, you just have to say "enough already" and walk away. Or, as William S. Burroughs put it, "Don't humor the mentally ill...tell them firmly...I'm not here to listen to this drivel." I supposed that's what I've done....but it cost me financially. I've been back in the pressroom almost a week now and, trust me, gentle readers, it's the smartest thing I've done in three years. Part of me says it's BS that that I had to make that decision, but that's the way life goes. With luck, karma will prevail.

I've been writing an online novel for three months now. Go check out DEVLIN'S DESCENT over at www.annihilationpress.com. I'm very happy with the way the book is turning out. I wanted to experiment around a lot and this book gives me the opportunity to do so. With concepts like nano-sperm and aborted fetuses being brought back to life by the miracle of technology, it's an interesting tale. I just entered the realm of the novel, too, with approximately 43,000 words so far.

Still looking for the woman of my dreams (and not my screams). Time will take care of that, too, I hope.

My best to all of you. Roger

Darrien is 7 today

My son, Darrien, turns 7 today. It seems like yesterday I saw my favorite little man pop into the world. Now, I don't know how I lived without him. Sure, I wish he'd sleep in on the weekends, but there's something quite special about that cheerful disposition in the morning. So, if you see my wee man today, tell him "Happy Birthday...and that his Daddy loves him."