Kevin Trotter

Here we go again. It's not enough that we now spend every dime possible on winning an umwinnable war,I mean all the technology ,intelligence and experience in the world cannot stop a lone nut from killing himself and taking some people with him,now we have to have Canada in on the deal. Ever wonder why our elderly have to band together and ride to Canada to buy prescrition medication? Because apparently the Canadian government cares more about people than it does about defense contracts , lobbyist and opportunistic politicians. We are so worried about threats from beyond our borders we ignore the threats that exist in our own country. Did anyone ever stop to think that if our priorties were more reflective of the needs of the people and not large corporations getting fat of of government contracts we wouldn't be in this mess? Our financial interest in Saudi Arabia allow us to decry terrorism on one hand and prop up a regime that supports terrorist with the other. I won't even go into the long standing relationship between the Bush and Bin Laden families. The bottom line is as a member of NATO and as an ally in WWII Canada has always done thier share. Would we benefit from them taking a higher profile defense wise? probably yes. The better question is how would that benefit Canada? Is it in thier best interest to do so. Due to thier position in the world Canada isn't a target for this enemy we face. They don't seem to have a history of supporting the likes of Manuel Noriega, Saddam Hussien and the current thugs being ousted in Afghanastan and then having to defend themselves from weapons bought with thier tax payer's money. While it is paramount that we protect our borders it is OUR borders that need protecting. Maybe we should be as concerned that we don't continue to support policies that aid in producing homegrown filth like Jose Padilla. This isn't South Park so don't "Blame Canada"

My definition of Hell on earth , moving every month. That said , SC I can relate to the ouster by the women folk thing.When we bought our home we were DINK's (Double Income No Kids) and life was good. Three bedrooms a family room with a fireplace , space galore. One room was quickly converted to den.Complete with a mini fridge , tons of video games and consoles , three humidors crates of LP's and a big sign on the door that read "He-Man Woman Haters Club no broads allowed" A refuge for my poor friends who had children , displaced from thier own homes they came in droves to sit and stare in awe, slack jawed. Man it was great..... Until the birth of the evil one. My den is now pink covered with Barney wallpaper,smelling of a combination of A&D ointment , baby wipes and oon some occasions things worse than that. Gone are the Humidors now relagated to the basement. The Mini fridge now holds the beverages of the evil one.My computer , xbox PS1 ,LPs all sit in one small cornerof the basement where I now dwell pale from lack of sunlight and startled by loud noises , my wife asks me everytime I come upstairs "what do you want up here?" So as much as I hate moving I've taken up the gauntlet! I want to be a man again! I want to live above ground! Oh and by the by SC I would'nt presume to invade your privacy on our trip to Keys. I appreciate your graciousness but a man's home should be his castle, I was only yankin your chain. However , I'd be happy to buy you beverage should I run into you somewhere.

SC, Congrats on the move. Personally I'd never piss in your pool, but I am concerned the chlorine would play havoc with my colostomy bag. I'll be waiting for my invite as me and the brood are on our way to the Keys for a little R&R. By the way no longer in Sunrise? how bout updating your profilesig yer hypocrite!!!!!

Lothaar that was the best response to the those who wish to interpret a 250 y/o law that simply no longer applies. I must add in the original thread that started this discussion the author goes on and on about an America that was "not perfect" and well was he ever right. That same America he looks back so lovingly upon was not a great place to live if your skin was the wrong color or if you were a woman with aspirations beyond Ozzie and Harriet type suburban dreams. African American soldiers sent to die for thier country were treated worse in the deep south than German prisoners of war. Japanese Americans interred in Manzanar and the other camps probably don't look back too fondly on that time either. And therein lies the problem with some of the rhetoric espoused by some of these "patriots" in some cases it is very thinly veiled supremecist type thinking. Look at Europe where in several contries neo fascist movements are building in strength and numbers spouting the same codespeak like France for the French and national purity. It is a scary thing indeed. In no way am I lumping Jag in this group. I have read many of his posts and while I rarely agree with his political views , I interpret them as well thought out and genuine and open for debate. However I must say that a number of people who share some of his views appear to have a different agenda. I love my country and gave years of my life in service to it. As such I feel I have the right to criticize it and when things get too bad to do something about it, such as back the campaigns of like minded people who run for office. I have worked in over 15 such races in varying degrees of participation from licking envelopes to assisting with media relations and speachwriting. How many of you have done the same? It's one thing to b***h about the uncaring monolithic "Government" as if it is one entity with one goal and quite another to get off your ass and do something about it. Kudos for Lothaar on getting it right.

Greg you have obviously never played Halo. Yes the level of complexity of Pc games is unparalelled by any console. But console particularly Xbox has some advantages. Such as not having to buy and profile,install and tweak joysticks. I made the mistake of buying a Logitech Wingman 3D which I have had a hell of time using with my older games(Freespace 1&2, TOP Gun Hornets nest etc..) After hours of F**king around with that , it's nice to pick up a controller turn on the console and blow s**t up. Consoles don't crash and lose your game if you don't save and you never have to worry about whether you can meet the systems requirements or patches for games that arent really done yet. Don't get me wrong I boughta brand new system just to play BCM and I spend way more time getting smoked by Gammulan Stormcarriers than I do playing Halo , but I enjoy both. You live in Pgh , come on by the house and I'll show you Com. Race BannonIV GCV-Valiant Victorious

In '77 when the first SW came out there was no hype and it came out of nowhere to be a monster hit. The epitiome of cool this movie rocked. Well crafted clever and playing against type it was a work of genius. TESB had high expectations and was a brave effort that due to it's dark nature left some people dissatisfied but I always thought it was nearly the equal of the original. ROTJ showed the franchise was aging and that the hype machine had began to influence the creative forces at Skywalker ranch. What resulted was a very good movie marred by too pat resolution of some interesting story lines and a Walt Disney ending that i will foever loathe. Maudlin to the point of hilarity the site of Obiwan and Vader staring down from heaven was simply too much. Which brings us to that last effort. Once again a quality effort but a substandard movie that does nothing to advance the franchise. I caught myself looking at my watch so often (indiglo) a kid behind me thouht I had a lightsabre. PM lacked a cohesive story compelling character and the final battle scene looked like an excerpt from Antz. I know I will be flamed and go ahead Im a big boy and can take it, but when SW opened and I saw it with no advance warning and given the state of sci fi in movies back then , no expectations it was a pure magic moment. I didn't even know I had a watch on and when the movie ended for a second the theater was silent and then eruptions of applause like you folks under the age of 35 can only imagine. Half the audience stayed to see it again and had to be removed from the theater. The second week it was out there midnight showings on weekdays. The worst thing about PM is that afew old farts like me won't know how good the movie is cause we won't be seing it anytime soon. It was such a big dissappointment that my niece who I treated to the film, asked me what the "big deal" was. I think so mant folks wanted to like this movie they deluded themselves into ignoring it's obvious faults. Me, I going to sit in front of my 32 inch crank up the Home theater Dolby5.1 and watch SW again with a bucket of Orville Reddenbachers and reminence days gone by

OHMIGOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I left two books off the top of my list that are inexcuseable Stephen King's The Stand. Awesome book that gets better every time I read it which is frequently. I picked that book up off the floor of the Trailways bus station in Longview Tx and read it cover to cover all the way to Pgh Pa when I was 19 years old. I've bought and loaned it out over 10 times and left the first one on a bench in the Pgh Greyhound so some other fortunate soul could share my journey James Clavell's Shogun was the most facinating book I've ever read. I felt immersed in the Japanese culture in a way that no other reading experience has been able to duplicate. I totally withdrew from the world for 3 or 4 days and read it addictively with infrequent breaks to eat , toilet and hoist ice cold Carlsbergs from my dads secret stash in our wine cellar( what the hay I was 20 years old for cryin out loud!)

Of all time? sure I'll take a shot 1. A Fan's Notes Fredrick Exley 2. The Big Sleep Raymond Chandler 3. Invisible Man Ralph Ellison 4. A Prayer for Owen Meany John Irving 5. Under the Volcano Graham Greene 6. To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee 7. Frost and Fire Ray Bradbury 8. Dune/Dune Messiah Frank Herbert 9. The Last Kiss Goodbye 10. Cider House Rules John Irving 11. Burr Gore Vidal 12. Middle Passage Charles Johnson 13. Wild Seed Octavia Butler 14. The Mayor of Casterbridge Thomas Hardy 15. Babbit Sinclair Lewis Notes on my choices Although I love Sci -fi , I limit most of that reading to short stories. Indeed , Frost and Fire is actually a novella from a Bradbury short story collection. For the uninitiated Octavia Butler is a brilliant writer who combines science fiction with historical fiction and utopian allegories for a blend that is often astonishing. I've left off books I really love (The Lathes of Heaven Stranger in a Strange land just to keep the list manageable. I do love literary fiction and do harbor some aspirations of my own , so reading is a passion of mine. One book not on the list but highly recommended is Untouched by Human Hands by Robert Shockley. A great blend of science fiction and humor.

Happy Belated B-Day oh wise one just a little joke to pass the time for one we all care so much about and for Signs of impending old age 1. your arms are getting too short to read..no matter how far away you hold stuff you still can't read it. 2. Invisible to women 25 and under...or worse they call you sir. 3. You are informed during sex you have grey hair on your testicles (mood killer) 4. You have clothes older than some people you know. 6. You use the term "when I was your age.." 7. You can't stay awake past the 11:00 news 8. Any band you like is played on an oldie station 9. Your wife always tells you the tv's too loud (No Derek not the home theater , the one in the bedroom.) 10 You constantly accuse people of mumbling. 11 you own vinyl lps and you are not a dj 12 If you've been thinking of a bigger car beware yes to more than one of these could indicate the early signs of middle age crazy!! See the Bruce Dern movie of the same name for an explanation

I was just reading the review for BCO in the forum when my wife saw a pic of our imperious Supreme Commander. "Who's that mack daddy in the picture?" " That's Derek Smart" I said " he developed BCM and BC3000ad" " That space game you spend all your free time playing , he made that?" "Yes honey he developed and designed both games" " He's fine! is he married?" "Yes and he's got five kids and a very well concealed hump on his back, you just can't see it" "No not him" she said "I know a good looking man when I see one. I thought he'd be a classic geek , you know pocket protector horned rimmed glasses,tight pants.. you know." "That's a stereotype" I said too defensively "Whatever" she said So I am now currently reevaluating my opinion of Mr.Derek "Mack Daddy" Smart damn him!

Anyone who watches the Academy awards expecting to be anything but disappointed has way too much time on their hands. You will rarely see the best films nominated let alone win anthing because most of the voters don't even see the films they vote for to begin with. That explains why dreck like Moulon Rouge could even be considered to be nominated. That would explain how ABM and Titanic could win best picture. Could someone explain how Chocolat was nominated last year? Entertaining? yes cute and somewhat clever? maybe. Best Picture nominee? Get tha fu*k outta here! THe Oscars are mostly a popularity contest , a product of industry hype and an overabundance of cable outlets that analyze the event with a level of detail that has surpassed a news story on the war abroad or the middle east conflict. The acting awards rarely reflect the perfor- mance that was nominated ,and often are based on a body of work. Al Pacino for Scent of a Woman instead of Denzel Washington in Malcolm X ? GTFOH! That was a lifetime achivement award. Denzel's win this year is the equivalent of an NBA makeup call. He was great in Training Day , but I recently watched Malcolm X again and IMO no contest. Memento no best picture nomination..Moulon Rouge any nominations....an abomination. Did anyone see the Man Who wasn't There ? Ghost World? Come on! All sense of any connection to quality filmmaking and oscar parted ways a long time ago. You want to see filmmaking held in high esteem watch the Independent Spirit Awards. Me, I long for the day a film wins the Razzie and Best Picture the same week

Since I am struggling with my brand new computer being repaired(Our company IS guy uses the word "tweaked") I am once again bangin' ole betsey (533mhz 32mb ram Celeron processor) and require my mates help with a list of games I might like based on my love of the BC universe and of course your personal expertise. I recently discovered Freespace The Great war and the add on Freespace Silent Threat and have found them to be enjoyable for a linear mission based closed end game. Anyone who has sugesstions please feel free to jump in keeping in mind my pedestrian hardware. I love spaced based sims but may be willing to experiment with other genres PS Ten bars of gold pressed latinum to the best suggestion

cheesus H Baldheaded Keerist!!!!! My computer at work doesnt have speakers that picked it up and I was like what the F**k? Then yesterday I tried it on my new system (CA Speakers and Sub woofer) turned all the way up(big mistake) even worse my dauhgter was in the family room and the door was open. I can only hope that she isnt permanently scarred. I would have pissed my pants if my bladder hadn't shut down. Never again!

SC as certified addictions professional I offer my services gratis. Remember, one day at a time.

The SC's weekend jaunt reminded me of how much I love sci-fi and genre films. Here's a list of my faves which I consider the best. Science fiction top ten 1. Forbidden Planet The best pure sci fi movie ever.I know 2001 is routinely listed at the top of these lists butthe words preachy , long and boring always come to mind for me. FB has great special effects , a cerebral plot a hot babe and a cool robot. Even better it predates Star Trek could just as easily fit as an episode of the original series. 2. Blade Runner. Again not a popular choice, but to anyone who read and enjoyed Phillip K Dick knows what I'm talking about. The view of the near furure , corporate globalization , the sets the lighting and Hauer and Ford's performance make this one a classic. 3. The Thing from Another World No A list actors. No great special effects. How come its on the list? Great script , great direction from a great director. A story so good John Carpenter couldn't f*ck it up 20 years later. 4. Andromeda Strain Put the science in science fiction. the thought that a germ from outer space could kill people on earth kept me up for weeks. 5. Invasion of The Bodysnatcher Pick a version I liked the Donald Sutherland version the best but recently watched Abel Ferrera's Bodysnatcher alone in Dolby 5.1 surround and gave myself the shivers. 6. The Day the Earth Stood Still Okay it is kinda corny but nikto barada to those who disagree. 7. Them! The King of the giant bug movies I watch this one once a month. Formulaic but effective , check the scene at the beginning when they are putting the little girl who is unconcious in the ambulance. you hear the ants "call" and while the medic look away she rises like a zombie petrified and lays down before anyone notices it. That always gives me the creeps. 8.Earth vs The Flying Saucers This gem has some of the best special effects of any movie in this genre. this is a sci-fi classic in every sense of the word. Ray Harryhousen rarely did Sci-fi but nailed it with the ships , the protective suits and my favorite the destruction of operation skyhook 9. 2001: a space odessey Satified? 10. Dead Alive Okay this aint science fiction but if you like zombies , buckets of gore, sex, rat monkeys , lawn mowers, and kung fu. this movie is for you.

The frickin Smurfs!? the bain of my existence? the personification of Reagan era materialism. The first cartoon desined specfically to sell sh*t to the hapless parents of children hypnotized by the music and color schemes of the most inane and maniacally , insidious exercise in commerciallism ever? May thier creators burn in Hell. And Take Tinkywinky ,Po , Lala and the other tubbies with them too. I have implemented a moritorium on any childrens programs of that ilk. I tolerate Barney because I must. No Barney means Suzie cries. Suzie cries means Mommies mad. Mommy's mad means no nookie. Hence Daddy's mad and cries. One last note on Barney..I recently attended a conference on working with drug addicted sexual predators. I found out there that child molesters arrested at home typically have so many Barney tapes in thier possession they need a separate crew just to remove them. Now that is scarier that than picture of the dining room thing!

Sounds very interesting.I read a similar book (in scope at least) called the Star Kings by Edmond Hamilton. It was about this unattractive boring jabrony , who unbeknownst to him shares a psychic link with the heir to vast gallactic empire billions of miles away. When the young prince dies thier scientists are able to reanimate him establishing that link and transferring the schmucks conscienceness into the prince.He soon finds himself in the middle of political intrigue, military engagement and even ,yes , love. I read it when I was about 15 years old and have never met anyone else who read it or been able to find another copy . Anyone who can locate it would be getting a hell of a read.

Sc its moments like this I think we need a BC reunion weekend. So many people who think like me! My Subwoofer has remote presets and I have two settings HOME and AWAY. I actually have to schedule a personal day and sneak home after taking the wife to work and Susie to daycare , or my wife will schedule a "family" activity(Next week its Dragon Tales Live oh goodie) I recently had one of my personal days to rewatch Executive Decision on the HOME setting. My ears wereringing for two days. I topped it off with T2 Platinum series and Independence Day. I'm pretty sure I'm sterile now but what the hell. I just got Apocolypse Now Redux which is scheduled for Good Friday cause the wife has to work. Ps has anyone played Halo ina darkened rooms at full volume? Not better than sex , but damn close.

I ordered BC after playing the demo and so far have not been at all disappointed , well maybe i'd like to transport Saffi into a bulkhead on the Geki mining colony but thats just me. Tried to play mp and just didn't have the patience. If you take BC for what it is , a childhood fantasy romp for ST lovers it is very satisfactory. That's why I bristle when people make suggestions regarding how to make it better , by suggesting it be more like BCM. Look I occassionally like to play checkers with my nieces and checkers are cool, for awhile. When I want to be challenged and perhaps even frustrated by complex three dimensional stuff , I play chess. I liken BC to checkers and BCM to chess. I don't want to make checkers more like chess , checkers are fun in its simplicity and so is BC. Ship a multiplayer patch and leave it as it is. When I want a real challenge,I plan a campaign against Gammula and launch Bugnor after bugnor then limp back to Galcom with my crew dying of radiation poisoning. But like I said thats just me. " Worms gotta eat , same as the buzzards" the Outlaw Josey Wales response to a plea to bury two men he'd just shot dead

Master Hayes is a legitimate instructor in ninjitsu. He has done a lot of work with the Us military. The tradtion of not teaching gaijin or non Japanese is not as widely practiced as it used to be. Myself , i've trained in several northern sub styles of gung fu but my first and only love is pure WTA Tae Kwon Do. My instructor for six years was Billy Blanks (mr. Tae Bo) Billy promoted me to black belt and our Master Park Jon Sue of Toronto signed my promotion certificate. I love the complex kicking forms, spinning and jump kicks. It is an adequate self defense art , but really TKD is a sport.

I'll be sure to check out that Wakeman LP. I listened to a little Yes in my day during my Jeff Beck , King Crimson jazz rock period. Haven't delved to deeply in the new age stuff. I am crazy about the Soundtrack for the film "Bladerunner" by Vangellis. Some of the early Jean Luc Ponty stuff has definite new age overtones , but mostly for me that is unexplored territory. As I am an culturally deprived american I am ignorant of classical music. As far as composers go Duke Ellington , Cole Porter and that Gershwin guy are pretty good

After being unable to bear another minute of the Prefab uhh..Grammy awards I raced to my keyboard shrieking much to my wife's chagrin. I then began to think..Hm.. what kind of music does the SC listen to to relax? Nine Inch Nails? Gladys Knight Pat Metheney or maybee Burl Ives? Or what is Menchise or $ilk humm while blowing sh*t up? Linkin Park or MacArthur Park(Richard Harris circa 1970's) does Nova jam out to Outcast or U2? Antbody think Creed isn't a Stone Temple Pilot oops Soundgarden knock off or maybe their are really some strum and mumble fans who actually like Radiohead and Starsailor. My own personal preferences run from Jazz fusion (Return to Forever , Weather Report) to some of the cool brit neo soul bands (Brand New Heavies , Incognito) and I have recently wore the grooves out of a cd by a group called Zero 7 (Destiny) Darius Rucker of Blowfish infamy released a real solid solo effort that because it's well not Hootie did nothing but is worth a listen. Sadly as a black guy I'm not supoosed to like Rock but dammit I do! Particularly dinosour rock as my 31 y/o wife refers to it. Eagles , Jackson Brown , Steely Dan (no not that piece of excrement from last year) Fleetwood Mac but not after Rumours . I also LIKE Linkin Park but am confused how they are up for best new artist. Most rap sucks a** but Outcast , is doing some next level Sh*t and Nelly 's going to be around. Speaking of Nelly (Furtado) does anyone have a sweeter voice or sweeter a**? Please post your thoughts and what you listen to as long as it doesn't suck (like ..Dude the Backstreet Boys are awesome) Grayfox if you are out there assure me I'm not the only Dino Rocker.. Peace , love and Hair grease.. I'm out.

Stupid is as stupid does. Unable to wait for final delivery on my new hardware and unable to load BCM on old Betsy , I covertly smuggle my game to work and load it on my Compaq s710. Being a business PC there was apparently no way to connect a joystick so I made sure I was up to speed on keyboard commands. Finally I start my career as Ter/Mil Commander of GCV-Valiant Victorious. A shakedown cruise to Mars to begin a minor mining operation was first on tap. Checked Logistx and adjusted settings to the VV's standard settings. Hypered on over Mars when I recieved a " BC aquired" message. Checked Tacops and saw a Raven fighter and as it closed my PTA scorched it. As I launched my shuttle I got another alert , Nothing on Tacops and then Boom! even with shields set at 50% the three CLOAKED! Gammulan stormcarriers took out my primary systems with thier first salvo. No computers weapons or engines. Total gametime 9 minutes 17 seconds. Am now starting my next career as Commander Forrest Gump

Thanks for the reply Fox , I'm glad to know someone eles is out there. I must admit your "Waste mgt" story is more interesting than mine and Casino is one of my favorite flicks. I can also relate to the guarding aspect as well. I served in the USAF and was posted in Athens ,Greece for 18 mos (Overseas long tour ribbon) in the 7206 Security Police Sq. I have humped a few aircraft in my day, mostly Navy EP-3's , c-130's and a few C-5 Starlifters with an occasional F-14 when the big carriers were in up at Nea Makri. I had the good fortune to get a tour on the New Jersey on it's way to Lebennon in 81(maybe 82') and see fire control up close and personal. The only time I had to draw my weapon was when some numbnut slicksleeve put a round in an EP-3 on the Flightline in front of the Sac det. Seems he was bored and was playing quick draw and was to scared to come out after he shot that plane up. Didn't get to shoot him though. In an interesting aside , the KKE (the Greek Communist party ) once hosted a protest in front of our base and had about 20,000 people surrounding Helenikon for a couple days. We had to establish a perimeter about 10 yards from the hurricane fencing that circled the base, pretty standard stuff, except that the BC and the OIC of my unit decided they didn't want an international incident and as a result only senior NCO's and officers had live rounds. Here we were parading around with a bunch of greeks screaming "Amerkani exo vase!" (American's leave the base) with no live rounds pretty hairy huh? Good luck with the job till school starts I have a two year old and I don't know how you manage on your own. Stay strong bro and thanks for sharing. Anybody else?

As I am middle aged and decrepit so much of this Hi Tech stuff is new to me. When I was in high school we had one computer hooked up to 15 schools and if you didn't speak fortran or cobol you were out of luck. With the help of our insrtuctors we could do silly stuff like play chess or predict football scores but you needed to input data using punch cards and it took about three days if you didn't make a mistake. That is why I have become so enamored with the people in this community , you take for granted that the computers you know so well are more powerful than the ones that sent Apollo to the moon. But more than that the ability to trade opnions and ideas with people so far away , well , rocks. My job as a D/A therapist puts me in contact , (intimate contact) with 35 people per week who entrust me with thier deepest darkest secrets. After I get home the last thing I want is more human contact (wife and daughter excepted), and up until I started playing this wonderful game , I'd isolate banging away at Playstation or N64 for hours(pretty pathetic huh?) Since then I feel fortunate to be able to interact with some truly interesting and brilliant people thru BC3000. Thusly, I don't feel we've been properly introduced so I'm including a few interesting facts about moi and hope anyone bored enough will reciprocate. 1). I was once hit in the head with a hatchet. my best bud and I used to watch Daniel Boone on tv and each show would start with him throwing an axe thru a tree. My friend missed and I ended up with a boyscout hatchet 2inches above my left eye. 2) I am a second degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do. I used to compete in the northeast region of the US and once beat a member of the AAU karate team in a match when I was 17 y/o. Sadly I am now fat and havent seen my feet in five years. 3) I was a witness in a mob murder trial. Yes it is true a found a wallet of a bag man named A. Palermo who had been murdered in 1966. I was six years old and the actual trial didn't take place until 1977.I actually had a death threat while in grade school and all I remember was that I got out of school early and got ice cream from the Erie Police. I didn'y actually see anything ,I just found his wallet where they dumped his body (no I didn;t see his body) 4) I can eat fifty hardboiled eggs. Anyone who saw Cool Hand Luke can appreciate this momumental feat. However my roomate in college did not appreciate this heroic act as much as I did and I still owe him apologies. 5). One of my best friends is worth 200 million dollars. My mentor , friend and sensei, one Billy Blanks of Tae Bo fame is loaded. I knew him when he lived in a housing project on west 38th street in Erie Pa and worked part time as a janitor at the Booker T Washington center. I know his wife Gail his stepdaughter Shelly (who used to put cerel up my nose when I feel asleep on thier couch the night before tournaments) and his son Billy. I remember how we always knew he would be famous one day> I remeber how he used to do 1000 push ups and situps before bed every night. I remember how he once picked up a little boy whose finger had been cut off by accident and sprinted 20 blocks to get him to the hospital so his finger could be re attached and I mostly remember how brutal are practices were in his basement 3-4 hours no breaks. While I haven;'t talked to him in four years I wil always thank him for teaching me the importance of not quitting cause he never did. well that is allthe interesting stuff , I hope some of you will feel free to unburden yourselves and not think me too crazy