This picture was taken a couple years ago after I won the club championship with the Roseville Golf Club. Do I look like a stick???
Thursday, July 28, 2005
This is me
This picture was taken a couple years ago after I won the club championship with the Roseville Golf Club. Do I look like a stick???
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
I Will Not Give My Blessing
For the past three months I have been struggling with whether or not I should continue to give the Mormon church my support. With a son currently on a mission and another son getting ready to come of age, it is a problem that I need to come to grips with.
When Willie, Rarit, and Richard passed away, Jonathan did not leave his mission to come home to their funeral. His first response to me when I asked him if he was coming home, was that "they don't like us to leave our mission". Although I can certainly understand the need to stay focused on the task at hand, it would seem to me that under circumstances such as these, the church would not only "allow" a missionary to come home, but would encourage it. Or, indeed, should demand that they go home and be with their family. The deaths of three close family members is not an insignificant matter. The fact that the church would leave it to the individual missionary to decide, with an implicit (or perhaps explicit) message that he should not interrupt his mission, is simply beyond belief to me. The message that this sends is that one's family is less important than the business of proselytizing. If this is indeed the opinion of the Mormon church, then I shall have nothing to do with it anymore.
I am not going to hold it against Jonathan for not returning home for the funerals. I wish that he had made a different decision and I believe, in time, he will wish that he had chosen to attend the funerals, as well. However, as a young missionary who is fully enveloped in the spirit of his calling, he needs to rely on the sage advice of his church leaders. In this case, they failed him.
At the moment, I don't recall if I will be asked for my concurrence for Sean going on his mission. I simply don't remember if that was something that I was asked to agree to with Willie or Jonathan. I believe that I was asked for my concurrence, at least for Willie. However, I will not give them my blessing for Sean. I don't see how I can support an organization who would not insist on a child returning home to attend the funeral of his brother and his brother's family.
When Willie, Rarit, and Richard passed away, Jonathan did not leave his mission to come home to their funeral. His first response to me when I asked him if he was coming home, was that "they don't like us to leave our mission". Although I can certainly understand the need to stay focused on the task at hand, it would seem to me that under circumstances such as these, the church would not only "allow" a missionary to come home, but would encourage it. Or, indeed, should demand that they go home and be with their family. The deaths of three close family members is not an insignificant matter. The fact that the church would leave it to the individual missionary to decide, with an implicit (or perhaps explicit) message that he should not interrupt his mission, is simply beyond belief to me. The message that this sends is that one's family is less important than the business of proselytizing. If this is indeed the opinion of the Mormon church, then I shall have nothing to do with it anymore.
I am not going to hold it against Jonathan for not returning home for the funerals. I wish that he had made a different decision and I believe, in time, he will wish that he had chosen to attend the funerals, as well. However, as a young missionary who is fully enveloped in the spirit of his calling, he needs to rely on the sage advice of his church leaders. In this case, they failed him.
At the moment, I don't recall if I will be asked for my concurrence for Sean going on his mission. I simply don't remember if that was something that I was asked to agree to with Willie or Jonathan. I believe that I was asked for my concurrence, at least for Willie. However, I will not give them my blessing for Sean. I don't see how I can support an organization who would not insist on a child returning home to attend the funeral of his brother and his brother's family.
Monday, July 25, 2005
Dukes of Hazzard
Cooter may not think much of the Dukes of Hazzard movie, but this will certainly get some people to go see it.
Thursday, July 21, 2005
Settling Accounts
I paid three of Willie and Rarit's bills today. Two to USAA and one to Cox Cable. Fortunately, they didn't have many outstanding debts. However, the biggest one is with Chase Visa. I've called them three times and was told today that they have notes of my previous calls and that I should simply wait until I hear from their legal department. Willie's estate will not have enough money to fully pay this debt, so I'm sure that I will have to negotiate something with them.
Nicole continues to do well. She talks about her mom, dad, and brother on ocassion. It's obvious that she misses them and that she has very good, positive memories of them.
Nicole continues to do well. She talks about her mom, dad, and brother on ocassion. It's obvious that she misses them and that she has very good, positive memories of them.
Sunday, July 17, 2005
The Worst Day of My Life - April 18, 2005
I wrote these thoughts on Monday, April 18, 2005. Today is Monday July 18, 2005. These still represent my feelings.
We have just experienced the worst possible day in any parent's life. At 5:30 this morning we were informed that our son, Willie, his wife, Rarit, and their son, Richard had died in a car accident yesterday evening. Their daughter, Nicole was airlifted to Children's Hospital in Los Angeles and, although injured, appears to be doing okay. They were on vacation and were on their way to visit our daughter, Heather and her family. Heather and her husband, Gene, spent the day with Nicole at the hospital. And, after they go home to clean up and check on their kids, will be back to spend the night with her, as well. Of course, Nicole does not have any idea what has happened. That will have to come later.
I guess life has just been too good to us. We have a raised a beautiful family with wonderful, loving, caring, kids. They, in turn, have also had loving, caring, and sweet children. We have tried to shelter our children from many of the evils that exist in this world. They have also been sheltered from the grief and heartache of losing a close, loved-one. That is, up until now.
Three of our kids, including Willie, took two years out of their lives to serve their Lord on a church mission. In addition to that, Willie has dedicated his adult life to serving our country in the Marines. I can't believe that this is what He had in mind for payback. As you may know, I am not a particularly religious person. There will be those who will try to spin this tragedy into a positive light for the cause of religion. Not me. To me, this is further proof that such a being does not exist. Because, if such a loving and benevolent being existed, then He could not possibly take away the parents and brother of a sweet, innocent 5-year old child. Only a monster would do that. And, please, do not try to convince me otherwise. I simply will not believe it. Nor, do I choose to try to believe it. I am content with my discontent.
Willie and Heather were close in age and have children who are also close in age. Willie and Rarit had two children, Richard (7) and Nicole (5). Heather has three children, Rebecca (8), Rachel (5), and Micah (2). The live only a couple of hours apart and enjoyed visiting with each other. In fact, just three weeks ago Judy, Sean, Jessica, and I just spent a couple of days at Heather's and a couple of days at Willie's. We went to southern California to visit them during spring break, which was the end of March. And, the day after we left, Heather and her children drove down to Camp Pendleton to visit Willie, Rarit and the kids. They all loved to be with one another. The kids truly enjoyed playing together.
Willie and Rarit were going to leave the kids with Heather for a couple of days while they took a vacation to Catalina. That was their reason for the trip to Heather’s. Everyone was terribly excited, especially the kids. Richard and Nicole were always two of the happiest children I've ever seen. Richard seemed to sleep with a smile on his face but, you’d have to give Nicole a couple of hours to wake up before the sun shined brightly on her face. They were always particularly happy to see Grandma, Grandpa, and their aunts and uncles. They are adorable children who would bring a smile to anyone's face. I’ve never seen any children so happy, full of life, and full of energy…perhaps a bit too much energy for Grandma and Grandpa. Obviously, their mother and father gave them a lot of love and spent a lot of time with them.How can all of this being taken away in an instant? How can a family who has given so much of themselves to their church and country be taken away like they were? How can a little child who could not help but be happy and who always brought a smile to my face be taken away at such a young age? It isn’t fair. Of course it isn't fair. And, I will never get over it. Hopefully, I will be able to continue with my existence; go to work; provide for the rest of my family. It will be very, very difficult. But, hopefully I can do it. But how can I wake up each morning knowing that I will never again see the smile and hear the laughter of little Richard? How can I wake up each day knowing that I will never again hear my first son, Willie, say 'I love you, Dad'? And, how can I wake up knowing that I will never again see the pride and loving eyes of my daughter, Rarit, as she watches her children get excited about seeing Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Jennifer, Uncle Jonathan, Uncle Sean, and Aunt Jessica? Please help me, because I don’t know how I can wake up knowing that this has been taken from us.
We have just experienced the worst possible day in any parent's life. At 5:30 this morning we were informed that our son, Willie, his wife, Rarit, and their son, Richard had died in a car accident yesterday evening. Their daughter, Nicole was airlifted to Children's Hospital in Los Angeles and, although injured, appears to be doing okay. They were on vacation and were on their way to visit our daughter, Heather and her family. Heather and her husband, Gene, spent the day with Nicole at the hospital. And, after they go home to clean up and check on their kids, will be back to spend the night with her, as well. Of course, Nicole does not have any idea what has happened. That will have to come later.
I guess life has just been too good to us. We have a raised a beautiful family with wonderful, loving, caring, kids. They, in turn, have also had loving, caring, and sweet children. We have tried to shelter our children from many of the evils that exist in this world. They have also been sheltered from the grief and heartache of losing a close, loved-one. That is, up until now.
Three of our kids, including Willie, took two years out of their lives to serve their Lord on a church mission. In addition to that, Willie has dedicated his adult life to serving our country in the Marines. I can't believe that this is what He had in mind for payback. As you may know, I am not a particularly religious person. There will be those who will try to spin this tragedy into a positive light for the cause of religion. Not me. To me, this is further proof that such a being does not exist. Because, if such a loving and benevolent being existed, then He could not possibly take away the parents and brother of a sweet, innocent 5-year old child. Only a monster would do that. And, please, do not try to convince me otherwise. I simply will not believe it. Nor, do I choose to try to believe it. I am content with my discontent.
Willie and Heather were close in age and have children who are also close in age. Willie and Rarit had two children, Richard (7) and Nicole (5). Heather has three children, Rebecca (8), Rachel (5), and Micah (2). The live only a couple of hours apart and enjoyed visiting with each other. In fact, just three weeks ago Judy, Sean, Jessica, and I just spent a couple of days at Heather's and a couple of days at Willie's. We went to southern California to visit them during spring break, which was the end of March. And, the day after we left, Heather and her children drove down to Camp Pendleton to visit Willie, Rarit and the kids. They all loved to be with one another. The kids truly enjoyed playing together.
Willie and Rarit were going to leave the kids with Heather for a couple of days while they took a vacation to Catalina. That was their reason for the trip to Heather’s. Everyone was terribly excited, especially the kids. Richard and Nicole were always two of the happiest children I've ever seen. Richard seemed to sleep with a smile on his face but, you’d have to give Nicole a couple of hours to wake up before the sun shined brightly on her face. They were always particularly happy to see Grandma, Grandpa, and their aunts and uncles. They are adorable children who would bring a smile to anyone's face. I’ve never seen any children so happy, full of life, and full of energy…perhaps a bit too much energy for Grandma and Grandpa. Obviously, their mother and father gave them a lot of love and spent a lot of time with them.How can all of this being taken away in an instant? How can a family who has given so much of themselves to their church and country be taken away like they were? How can a little child who could not help but be happy and who always brought a smile to my face be taken away at such a young age? It isn’t fair. Of course it isn't fair. And, I will never get over it. Hopefully, I will be able to continue with my existence; go to work; provide for the rest of my family. It will be very, very difficult. But, hopefully I can do it. But how can I wake up each morning knowing that I will never again see the smile and hear the laughter of little Richard? How can I wake up each day knowing that I will never again hear my first son, Willie, say 'I love you, Dad'? And, how can I wake up knowing that I will never again see the pride and loving eyes of my daughter, Rarit, as she watches her children get excited about seeing Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Jennifer, Uncle Jonathan, Uncle Sean, and Aunt Jessica? Please help me, because I don’t know how I can wake up knowing that this has been taken from us.
Friday, July 15, 2005
Wearing Me Down
I may have reached the point where I can no longer continue to accept the vile and accusations that spew forth. I spend considerable time studying, researching, and analyzing matters to no avail. Because one does not take the time and effort to understand, they attribute intentions and attitudes that don't exist. And, I simply no longer have the patience to explain over and over again. Perhaps I should have the patience, but I'm afraid it has gone and I don't know where to find it. You cannot force comprehension. Yet I continue to fall into the trap of trying. I continue to believe that I can recapture days gone by when there was civility and understanding. They just don't exist any longer. There is no hope. I shall have to take my leave.
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
Iraq - Al Qaeda Connection
Don't, for one moment, believe that there was not a significant and active connection between Iraq and Al Qaeda. http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/cRosett/?id=110006953
The connection will become more apparent as time goes by. Of course, those who don't believe will simply ignore the evidence or dimiss it as right wing rhetoric.
The connection will become more apparent as time goes by. Of course, those who don't believe will simply ignore the evidence or dimiss it as right wing rhetoric.
July 13th
Today's going to be a hot, hot day in the Sacramento area. I've heard it could get as high as 107 today. That's hot.
It's been nearly 3 months since the car accident. Nicole seems to be adjusting to her new family quite nicely. She is such a sweet and lovely child, just like her brother was. It is not getting any easier. I still think about Willie, Rarit, and Richard a lot. It still does not seem real. We received a letter from one of Willie's friends last week. He was very torn up about the news and wrote a letter for us to give to Nicole. In the letter, he talks about what a great guy Willie was. We have received several very nice letters from friends of Willie and Rarit. It is very obvious that they made a terrific impression on a lot of people. I am so proud of both of them. I miss them so much.
It's been nearly 3 months since the car accident. Nicole seems to be adjusting to her new family quite nicely. She is such a sweet and lovely child, just like her brother was. It is not getting any easier. I still think about Willie, Rarit, and Richard a lot. It still does not seem real. We received a letter from one of Willie's friends last week. He was very torn up about the news and wrote a letter for us to give to Nicole. In the letter, he talks about what a great guy Willie was. We have received several very nice letters from friends of Willie and Rarit. It is very obvious that they made a terrific impression on a lot of people. I am so proud of both of them. I miss them so much.
Thursday, July 07, 2005
Our Prayers are with you
To all Londoners... our thoughts and prayers are with you. We must stop this evil and we must never forget that it is they who are responsible for this, not us.
Military Death Gratuity and SGLI
Recent changes to the Death Gratuity benefit and SGLI have increased the amounts given to the families of active duty servicemen killed in combat. These same increases do not apply to those killed in non-combat-related areas. I think this is unfortunate. It creates a "class" system that it not appropriate.
This article does a good job of putting this into perspective.
http://www.military.com/NewContent/0,13190,Philpott_070605,00.html
This article does a good job of putting this into perspective.
http://www.military.com/NewContent/0,13190,Philpott_070605,00.html
Wednesday, July 06, 2005
Posting Pictures
I guess I'm not smart enough to figure out how to post images on my blog. The instructions seem pretty simple and I believe I have followed them correctly. But, I'm not seeing a picture. However, I will continue to try.
Hello World
Well, hello out there. This is my first attempt at blogging. I'm not sure whether I'll want to keep up with it, but I thought I had to give it a shot. What the heck...it seems like everyone is doing it.
I have no idea whether I will have a theme to my blogs. I'm interesting in a few areas including politics, business, and sports. I guess we'll just have to wait and see where this leads. In the mean time, we'll just kick back and see what random thoughts occur.
Perhaps a little information about me might help point things in a certain way. I'm a husband, father of 6, a retired Marine Corps officer, vice president of an IT services company, and a weekend golfer. Actually, I play golf more than just on the weekends. I ocassionally will take a day off from work to play golf. Or is that the other way around. At any rate, I do both.
I have no idea whether I will have a theme to my blogs. I'm interesting in a few areas including politics, business, and sports. I guess we'll just have to wait and see where this leads. In the mean time, we'll just kick back and see what random thoughts occur.
Perhaps a little information about me might help point things in a certain way. I'm a husband, father of 6, a retired Marine Corps officer, vice president of an IT services company, and a weekend golfer. Actually, I play golf more than just on the weekends. I ocassionally will take a day off from work to play golf. Or is that the other way around. At any rate, I do both.
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