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What Are You Thankful For?


BLSamuel

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With Thanksgiving almost here, I thought I'd start a thread for people to post what they are thankful for. Let's try to be creative and see if we can avoid too many repeats. Bonus points for creativity...explanations optional

I'll go first.

That I was born into a family and country where cockroaches are not considered food.

(I could have just as easily been born into a third world country where cockroaches are considered food. We often take for granted just how good we have things)

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Getting thru 2009

Being prepared for 2010 and beyond

The many figner prints of those who have touched my life

The opportunity to continue to touch the lives of others

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I'm thankful for my health and still being able to pass a Commercial Flight Physical at 61.....!

Thankful that I survived four marriages....!

Thankful for the fact that I dspatched my Manic Depressive, Drug Depentent, B!tch from Hell, X Wife 22 years ago and never looked back....!

Thankful for my 5000 sq/ft shop/man cave........!

Thankful, that my dogs (Black Labs and a Golden Retriever) love KLIPSCH Speakers and don't mind giving up space for them.....!

Thankful to have retired twice and still be able to hold down a very good paying, full time job, in something I love doing... (Retirement was boring)....!

Thankful to have seen most of the world and visit places, most people dream of.....!

Thankful in knowing if I went tomorrow, there would be NO regrets....!

Life is great and "You 0nly Go Around ONCE?......!

P.S.: Thankful for some of the GREAT deals that I have found on Klipsch speakers......!

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I'm thankful that on September 23rd of this year my mom passed away with some dignity and without pain and that my family was there throughout the Hospice process of seeing her slip from this world to the next. And that we each got to say our "good-byes" in our own unique way through tears and laughter. It was powerful experience.

I'm thankful for the woman that God brought into my life that loves me for only who I am and nothing more and judges me not. Why I had to make the journey I did to finally find her is beyond me, but I'm grateful I did.

I'm thankful for the opportunity to have competed for and gotten my new job position and that I now have the chance to make a difference in the careers of folks in my group.

I'm thankful that my Dad has taken the time to write about his life like this little gem from his days as a 15 year old kid around 1938:

"On one of the Blacksburg trips I had a really great experience. At days end Bob Garst told Fred Haase to take me and the Standard and go home. Walking to the plane, Fred asked, “Whitey, can you fly this plane?” I had some dual time in it but, at that age, I could fly anything! So Fred said, “I’ll ride in the front seat and you fly.” And so we did. I did everything just like when Bob Garst was in front cockpit. After landing, Fred and I were pushing the Standard into the hanger and I remarked, “With a couple more like that I can solo it.” And Fred said, “Whitey, you just soloed.” He then went on to say that he had been so tired after a long day of instruction that he’d dropped off sound asleep as soon as he buckled his belt. And that he didn’t wake up until I was taxing onto the pavement and the tail skid made “all that noise”.

Tom

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WC - my Dad grew up in Roanoke, VA and started hanging out at Roanoke field when it first opened. And yes he's written more but not a book in that sense. He's kinda technologically challenged (LOL....) so I've been typing up his hand written (scribbled??) words. It's a fascinating way of reliving his life.

I haven't type it up yet, but another neat story was the time during WWII when his bomber crew (B-29) was sent back to the US along with I think 6 or 7 other planes for some special bombing training. For several days over a month each plane would taxi out to a bomb pit where a single big @ss bomb (Dad's words) would get loaded. Then they'd fly this crazy bomb run that was at a higher altitude than normal and after the bomb was away they went full WFO on the engines to do a max 180 degree climbing turn. Well, one day his crew was informed that they were headed back to the Phillipines and that only Col. Tibbets and his crew on the Enola Gay would be staying behind. Yep - he came that close. In retrospect, my Dad feels that dropping the "A" bomb was a mistake. His opinion was that the carpet incindiary (sp?) bombing and ensuing firestorms were breaking the Japanese will and that 3 or 4 more weeks of it would've brought things to a halt. And had we not dropped "the bomb" then the US could've kept our nuclear weapons program quiet for a few more years. Instead, it resulted in Russia racing to catch up and once that happened, the race was on. It's an interesting perspective.

Tom

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Well, one day his crew was informed that they were headed back to the Phillipines and that only Col. Tibbets and his crew on the Enola Gay would be staying behind. Yep - he came that close. In retrospect, my Dad feels that dropping the "A" bomb was a mistake. His opinion was that the carpet incindiary (sp?) bombing and ensuing firestorms were breaking the Japanese will and that 3 or 4 more weeks of it would've brought things to a halt. And had we not dropped "the bomb" then the US could've kept our nuclear weapons program quiet for a few more years. Instead, it resulted in Russia racing to catch up and once that happened, the race was on. It's an interesting perspective.

Very fascinating. You should write your Dad's memoirs some day. Sounds like it would be an interesting and fascinating read. I've often wondered if we really needed to use "the bomb" and more than once? I guess we'll never really know.

... for the brave men and women like Tom's dad who keep our country safe and allow us the freedeom we all take for granted.

... that the nazis or Japaneses didn't develop "the bomb" before we did.

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Thanks for the kind words - it brought a happy tear to my eyes. And yes - I've thought about compiling all this I'm typing up. His photos are equally fascinating. Oh - and I apologize for the hi-jack. It wasn't my intent.

BTW - there is a very cool book that is a super easy read called "Forgotten Heroes of World War II". It's the short stories of several guys who served in various branches of the military and in different theaters. One of the more captivating reads I've come across.

OK - let's get back to being thankful. [:)]

Tom

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Tom - seems right on track. You're thankful for your father? As we all should be. And your thankful for his notes. Fits the original let's be creative and try not to duplicate.

... Thankful that my daughter and fiancee arrived safely to her Nana's town for Thanksgiving a few minutes ago. Freezing rain when we arrived 4 or 5 hours ago but not (yet) cold enought to be an issue.

p.s. Also thankful that her chihuahua RIco didn't pee in the car but did pee for three minutes when they let him out to pee. Pretty good for a little yap yap rodent like dog.

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Ok.... so Tom doesn't feel like a hijacker, though I didn't think so...

I'm thankful Tom posted the info about his father as I found that very fascinating. A few minutes / seconds / a few hundred feet from making the history books but insteas is an unknown anonymous part of that history thay even Tom may not have known without his father's writings or recollections.

On the lighter side, again, thankful that Rico didn't come in and bite me. Haven't seen the little poopin' machine for a few weeks and kind of actually miss the little bug eyed poor excuse for a dog.

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