Deb and I were working in PA more than NJ towards the end of 2011. We'd come down to NJ once a week for a few days of meetings and then return to PA and maybe slip in an MD appointment. My boss was in California and I had colleagues in Europe as well. Deb had similar contacts. Business contacts, people you did work for and others that did work for you. A stranger reading my early use of contacts might think nefarious things about us.
At night Deb would search the internet for any pertinent Lyme or ALS information and armed herself to the teeth. An early posting from a few years ago mentions a book of a Lyme patient in Deb's condition being treated with stem cells in India. The after picture on the book jacket showed her riding a bike.
The first item on the list of things to do to get to India was to sell the house. To do that it had to be emptied, painted, blah, blah, blah. There are too many people to thank individually, but you all made it happen on schedule and under budget. I'll be forever grateful for the help. The last things to come from the basement were particle board walnut paper covered book cases from our pauper days. They were our pantry space. The only thing keeping them up, once emptied was the wall behind them. The particle board crumbled in the basement air.
We have a week to go to India. I was getting the place ready for an extended absence. I decided to burn the crumbly book cases. The wind was still, things were dry, I had a 30 foot circle of dirt and weeds on which to burn. Almost everybody had a burning spot.
Man oh man that wood burned fast and hot. I had to walk around and stamp out the weeds and low grass that was catching just from the heat radiating. I was loosing so I got my hose and tried to squirt it out. Before I knew it, I was standing in a circle of fire and my hose was burning.
I have a phone in the workshop (which never suffered any harm) and I wanted 911 to get my caller id. But...
Deb was on a conference call. The Dali Lama or someone talking positively about everything. I politely interrupted and asked if they could hang up. The voice kept coming like they were used to hecklers. After a few more polite tries, I resorted to "could you stop talking for a f---ing second????". Turns out Deb was listening on mute and it must mute the extensions too. Someone must have heard me screaming at them from the barn all the way into the house. Deb hung up, I called and in 3 minutes our neighbor came running over because he's a volunteer and got the call.
The Thompson Hose company said they were waiting for my call. They knew some dope was going to start a fire that day. When I tell you there was a lot of fire, there was a lot of fire. I have an old standing dead oak that was trying very hard to catch fire all the way to the top. They had quads with fire-putter-outer (foam or water, who knows) fluid and a pumper and a pickup and students with vests of foam walking in and simply went to work. Put it out and didn't stay long enough for a proper thank you - soda, beer or a snort*** (see clarification below). I tried. What did it cost? Nothing. I believe Deb gave every year, especially after I set the woods on fire.
These guys are all volunteer and depend on donations and grants and taxes and the like. A couple people have asked me, should they want to donate money, where should it go?
I have to tell you, of any of the ALS organizations she contacted, I don't ever remember walking out feeling we'd finally found an ally.
Now you get why I mentioned the fire department. Here's their site: http://www.thompsonhoseco.com/
It's sort of is a shameless plug for them, but given my job for last few years, I haven't had the ability to commit to any kind of volunteer work. Even if they did have use for a 60 year old desk jockey, I couldn't tell Deb I'd be doing this kind of work, it was a fight I couldn't win. So, I'm just thinking she would think that a nice gesture to help a community she grew to love.
*** Snort (verb) - to drink liquor from a shot glass, hip flask or pint bottle. Probably derived from the noise one makes the first time they are take one.
At night Deb would search the internet for any pertinent Lyme or ALS information and armed herself to the teeth. An early posting from a few years ago mentions a book of a Lyme patient in Deb's condition being treated with stem cells in India. The after picture on the book jacket showed her riding a bike.
The first item on the list of things to do to get to India was to sell the house. To do that it had to be emptied, painted, blah, blah, blah. There are too many people to thank individually, but you all made it happen on schedule and under budget. I'll be forever grateful for the help. The last things to come from the basement were particle board walnut paper covered book cases from our pauper days. They were our pantry space. The only thing keeping them up, once emptied was the wall behind them. The particle board crumbled in the basement air.
We have a week to go to India. I was getting the place ready for an extended absence. I decided to burn the crumbly book cases. The wind was still, things were dry, I had a 30 foot circle of dirt and weeds on which to burn. Almost everybody had a burning spot.
Man oh man that wood burned fast and hot. I had to walk around and stamp out the weeds and low grass that was catching just from the heat radiating. I was loosing so I got my hose and tried to squirt it out. Before I knew it, I was standing in a circle of fire and my hose was burning.
I have a phone in the workshop (which never suffered any harm) and I wanted 911 to get my caller id. But...
Deb was on a conference call. The Dali Lama or someone talking positively about everything. I politely interrupted and asked if they could hang up. The voice kept coming like they were used to hecklers. After a few more polite tries, I resorted to "could you stop talking for a f---ing second????". Turns out Deb was listening on mute and it must mute the extensions too. Someone must have heard me screaming at them from the barn all the way into the house. Deb hung up, I called and in 3 minutes our neighbor came running over because he's a volunteer and got the call.
The Thompson Hose company said they were waiting for my call. They knew some dope was going to start a fire that day. When I tell you there was a lot of fire, there was a lot of fire. I have an old standing dead oak that was trying very hard to catch fire all the way to the top. They had quads with fire-putter-outer (foam or water, who knows) fluid and a pumper and a pickup and students with vests of foam walking in and simply went to work. Put it out and didn't stay long enough for a proper thank you - soda, beer or a snort*** (see clarification below). I tried. What did it cost? Nothing. I believe Deb gave every year, especially after I set the woods on fire.
These guys are all volunteer and depend on donations and grants and taxes and the like. A couple people have asked me, should they want to donate money, where should it go?
I have to tell you, of any of the ALS organizations she contacted, I don't ever remember walking out feeling we'd finally found an ally.
Now you get why I mentioned the fire department. Here's their site: http://www.thompsonhoseco.com/
It's sort of is a shameless plug for them, but given my job for last few years, I haven't had the ability to commit to any kind of volunteer work. Even if they did have use for a 60 year old desk jockey, I couldn't tell Deb I'd be doing this kind of work, it was a fight I couldn't win. So, I'm just thinking she would think that a nice gesture to help a community she grew to love.
*** Snort (verb) - to drink liquor from a shot glass, hip flask or pint bottle. Probably derived from the noise one makes the first time they are take one.
I remember that day....
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