9/11 and Spider bites!

MamaDuck inspired me to post a little tidbit about 9/11 and what this day of rememberance means to me and what that day meant to me and my family!
I remember that morning my wife had the day off, and I was heading up to Camp Ripley because I had been activted for State active duty after the state workers strike! So we had just dropped the kids off at daycare, and went home to get ready, and we turn on the news, and there it was! I remember just being kind of afraid that there were gonna be so many more attacks that day, and that we should all be hunkering down, and I know that everyone had a bit of FEAR in them that day that this might somehow effect them! In a way, it for a little bit felt like the world was ending! Now I had to go up north so I went into the armory to get a vehicle and ride up with Curt! Well, WCCO radio had announced that ALL NG members were supposed to report to their respective units immediatly! So, when I arrived there, people were showing up because they said they heard it on the radio! Well, it was bogus, and it is NOT up to a radio station to call NG people up! This might give you an idea of how maybe the press might not be CORRECT in breaking news! So anyways, Curt and I go to Ripley for training not associated with the attacks, and THAT DAY I was one of most proud Americans, and proud to be a Soldier! While at home watching the news I felt fear, and turmoil, and when I got my uniform on I felt fearless, and calm! That is the life of a NG soldier, and the support of people on the trip up north was just inspiring to me! McDonalds drive thru for lunch was free, once we pulled up to the window that day the lady said "Thanks for all you do!" Well, it gives you hope, and YES an EGO boost, but to have COURAGE, you have to have EGO, and to be FEARLESS, or act like it, you need EGO! People see EGO as a bad thing, and that is if you use it improperly, like anything else in the world! So that day, my family was very scared as well, and the fact that I was leaving town for a few days, did not help, and it was hard to leave, because most wanted to be around home at that time! Their have been a lot of times I would have liked to have been home when they needed me, but that is the nature of the beast!
Our country, in my opinion, came together out of FEAR, and insecurity, knowing that this may somehow affect them, and if you go back in history you will see for a little while that PRIDE and HONOR, and COHESIVENESS our country had was GREAT, because the fear took away our security, and we were not bulletproof! We always compare things that happen in OUR lifetime to things in the past! Like Hurricane Katrina to Sept. 11 2001! WHAT?
One was a terrorist attack, and one was a widespread natural disaster!
We will NEVER be prepared for something the sneaks upon us like 9/11, and even prepared for something as widespread as the hurricane! You, know the press tries to take polls about that those days, and you are just never gonna be able to control mother nature, or even avoid terrorists unless you tighten the borders! I mean, once their in their free game!
So, I put the pictures up today of the kids and the good days of New Orleans! Missy and I don't mind taking the kids on ANY vacations because they get to see things that they wouldn't know otherwise! Case in point, Vice President Cheney was in N.O. when we were there, and the kids got to see the motorcade and wave to him! They also, are able to visualize this catastrophe, because they have seen other parts of the country!

Spider Bites!

-Why do basketball coaches in the NCAA and NBA wear suits for games?
I don't understand why that tradition started! Put on a sweat suit man, and relax!

-Gophers won yesterday! Ohio State, Michigan, and Iowa all lost in the Big Ten! COOL!

-Of course the Vikings play today, and are gonna "stick it" to the TB Bucs!

-Got the article in my local paper today from my wife, and it was good, and saw the pics he chose, I am happy with it! aside from the biggest picture on the front page that had a nice house on fire! Headline reads: FIRE DAMAGES HOME! KILLS DOG!
Sorry, but I am not a pet guy! God bless the dog though!

Would people rather go to Puerto Rico, Jamaica, or Mexico?

Thats all I got!
Later,
Erik