RECOVERING GRADY ADDICT

We checked around for a 9/11 memorial service to attend today, being that we are Paramedics by trade, American by birth, and might I add... HUMAN in SPIRIT by the grace of God. Most were either too far to drive, or started too early to beat rush hour. The AJC listed one in Marietta at the Cobb Civic Center at noon. My first mistake was assuming that it was organized by Cobb Co. leaders or Public Safety Officials. My second mistake was assuming that it would be a service to memorialize those who died on 9/11 - EMS, Police, and Fire... as well as civilian, and also as a tribute to our Military personnel who have served since then to "fight the war on terror" and those who served even before 9/11. Boy howdee, were we wrong. This disgusting service was organized by a right wing religious cooperative, formed from local church groups, who took this day of Honor and Remembrance and degraded it by NOT having a true memorial service, but rather sounding a call to action (in the name o...

My friend Stephanie sent this today in a bulletin. It's not the original video by the band, but maybe even more moving. As I watched the 9/11 footage infused with clips of our soldiers caught up in this goddam war... I WAS MOVED TO TEARS. Whatever your political affiliation or views, surely we all can appreciate the loss of life (world wide) this war has cost, and continues to cost every day, as well as the snow-balling political and economical fallout. The media box is posted here, but to really appreciate it you have to use the actual YOUTUBE link below, and view it FULL SCREEN. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwAGc4aM5q0

We awoke early, newlyweds, frantically packing our bags at the beach house. Just three days earlier Candice and I had shared our vows in our commitment ceremony in North Litchfield SC. The air was crisp, and the sun was up already. The tons of things to do was my motivation. We had planned on going home via detour to Savannah. I never bothered to turn on the TV, since there was no cable TV we never really bothered to watch much TV that week anyway. Our bags were packed, the car was loaded, and off we went. It didn't take too long of driving down the highway to notice things were strangely different. Cars were pulled off on the shoulder and drivers were staring blankly through their windshields. Large groups of people stood together talking in front of businesses along the way. I pulled into a CVS drugstore to buy a cheap road atlas so we could navigate scenic roads to Savannah. Candice and Mike stayed in the car chatting nonsensically like brothers and sisters do. Once inside I cou...