Rick’s Blog

Down With TV Screamers!!

I actually got up this morning, fixed coffee for myself and my wife then sat in my chair at the kitchen table. A normal part of this ritual is to turn on the TV and listen to the morning news, but I didn’t—not today, and maybe not tomorrow. No, I won’t humor you by saying “never again, but it was nice—nice to sit in blissful silence—no car salesmen screaming across their car lots about how “everything must go,” no politicians whining about how their right to screw the public is being infringed upon, no crime reports and body-counts from the big cities, no screaming idiots with British accents trying to sell me the latest oxy-gadget—just blissful silence.

I drank my coffee, and we talked about the cat in the window, the birds out on the feeder, the weather, anything we wanted, but there were no screamers and no “idiot box” interrupting our conversation. It was an almost euphoric experience. This morning I had conversations with my wife, God, the cat, the dog—hell, I even talked to myself some. The entire planet may come unhinged in the next few hours, but I won’t know it, because I’m going to meditate and rest my few remaining brain cells away from the cacophony of screamers. No doubt, ignorance is indeed true bliss—at least in the short run. And for the rest of the day I’m going to enjoy it. I’m going to blissfully relax, work on my latest novel, feed the pets, anything but think about the outside world.

As for this evening, well, I reckon ‘Maverick’ will re-engage. I’ll return to the fray. As a matter of fact, I’m going to start a list. I’m going to write down the company name, organization or cause that each and every screamer represents, and when it is time to buy, vote or whatever, I’m going to avoid them. They—their company, organization, whatever—will become my last choice, my last resort after I’ve visited all other possibilities. I believe we should start a movement, ban together and keep our lists without naming the offenders publicly, because that is the goal of their screaming campaigns—to draw our attention, no matter how caustic their method, so that their names become embedded in our minds. I say, “Let’s help them out.” Write down their names, and when you go to shop for a car or new furniture, or to vote or whatever, make a point of avoiding them. I’m giving my nod to the ones who respect my peace and quiet, speak softly and never ruin my morning coffee.

What do you think?

You may also enjoy: Boomerang and The Vietnam Experience, Domestic Life & More

There were some afternoon thunderstorms rumbling around today, and I went out on the front porch to enjoy the blustery winds and revel in the thunder. No, I didn’t get struck by lightening, but the sun was shining through the clouds when I saw this doe and her fawn cross the road. I grabbed my camera and ran (okay, at my age: I trundled) across the front yard. We aren’t exactly suburban, but we aren’t exactly rural either, so seeing the deer is not unusual but nice. Just the same, I wanted to get a photo of these local critters and share it with you. They paused in a little wooded hollow across the street and gave me this shot. I hope they stay around.

For those of you who may not yet know (I haven’t made an official announcement) the Kindle Edition of my novel, Melody Hill is available for the ridiculously low price for $0.99 Cents on Amazon. Sign up for my newsletter at www.rickdestefanis.com and you will receive the link to order the book. Why?  Because I want more people to read my books and hopefully build a base of readers who like my stuff. By the way, this is Book #1 of the two-part series The Gomorrah Principle. It has a little bit of everything including romance, mystery, espionage and historically accurate fiction about the war in Vietnam.

One of my dear friends sent me a note saying she had a tablet,  but didn’t have a Kindle. Not to worry. Did you know you can go to Amazon and download an app that will let you download and read Kindle books on tablets and other mobile devices? Yup. Sure ‘nough.

As always, if you read one of my books and like it, please post a review on Amazon. Tell people what you liked about it. Next week I will post an update (the first one) on my next novel.

Love, Rick D.

You may also enjoy: Valley of the Purple Hearts

 

You will NEVER hear a real SOG Soldier Talk

Here’s a real team of heroes–a Green Beret SOG-Special Operations Group

. They don’t blow their own horns. Unlike some branches of our military, you’ll not see bestseller stories of operations they’ve been on, because they understand and truly put the honor code of silence above their longings for personal recognition. They understand that exercises in self-aggrandizement may endanger their buddies or the next generations of special operations troops. They are Army Green Berets.

One of these men was my classmate at Bishop Byrne High School in Memphis, and we were in the Explorer Scouts together. He was one of the guiding models that led me to become a paratrooper. He would not want me to mention his name, therefore I won’t, but I will tell a very small part of his story.

He was a HALO trained and qualified Special Operations Group Green Beret, small arms specialist who made HALO insertions into Laos and Cambodia during the Vietnam War. What is HALO? Well, the acronym stands for High Altitude Low Opening. What that means is that these Army—not Marine, not SEAL—Army Special Forces, AKA Green Berets, jumped, usually from a C-130 aircraft at some ridiculously high altitude that required they use oxygen bottles till they got down (skydived) below twelve thousand feet. They followed a leader down through the sky. The leader had a small strobe light on the back of his helmet. And they pulled the ripcord on their chutes at some ridiculously low altitude, usually one where if the main chute failed, the reserve was useless.

Some of these teams left their aircraft back in the sixties to never be heard from again, their only memorial being a name on the black granite wall of the Vietnam Memorial. Think what you want about that particular war, but judge these men as the heroes they were. Facing overwhelming odds, they did what they could to stem the flow of communist soldiers coming down the Ho Chi Minh Trail, enemy troops with the sole mission of killing American soldiers in South Vietnam.

Later, my classmate went on combat deployments to Panama, Iraq, Afghanistan and some that can’t be mentioned, because they remain classified operations. No, this is not Veterans Day or Memorial Day. It’ just another day you draw a breath of the fresh air of freedom because men like these put their lives on the line for you. Enjoy it, but never forget what they did for you.

Thanks, Buddy.

You may also enjoy: Valley of the Purple Hearts and Rawlings: No Longer Young