Category: random

Arthur Miller divorced his first wife June 11th, 1956 after spending his six-week residency in Sutcliffe at the Pyramid Lake Guest Ranch. He married Marilyn Monroe about three weeks later.

While at the ranch he watched a group of cowboys round-up some wild horses. This inspired a short story in the October 1957 edition of Esquire magazine.

It later led to the screenplay that starred Marilyn Monroe, Clark Gable, Montgomery Clift, Eli Wallach, Thelma Ritter, and Kevin McCarthy, and directed by John Huston and produced by Frank Taylor. The “World Premiere” was held January 31st, 1961 at the Granada Theater in downtown Reno.

Many people believe the film, while a tragic subject, also lead to tragic endings for many in the cast. While it is true only 12 days after filming wrapped, Gable died, other cast members went on working for years afterwards.

Marilyn, eventually divorced Miller on January 20, 1961, and started filming “Something’s Got to Give,” in 1962. She died August 5th, 1962 as result of a suicide, albeit under mysterious circumstances and the scenes from the film were later used in the 1963 documentary, “Marilyn,” narrated by Rock Hudson.

Clift’s film career also did not end with “The Misfits.” Released in late 1961, “Judgment at Nuremberg,” was followed a year later by John Huston’s “Freud,” with Clift’s last film, a 1966 French production billed as the “The Defector.”

After some 20 years in the movie business, Thelma Ritter died February 5th, 1969, her last appearance being on “The Jerry Lewis Show,” January 23rd, 1968. Kevin McCarthy went on to starring in another 23 television and film productions before his death September 11th, 2010.

Oddly, McCarthy’s final appearance in, “The Ghastly Love of Johnny X,” was released nearly two-years after his death.

As for Eli Wallach, he continues to work.  In 2010, Wallach portrayed Julie Steinhardt , in  “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps,” directed by Oliver Stone, and starring Michael Douglas and Shia LeBeouf.

“Can’t never got anything done,” my late Grandpa used to say.

Those that you think of as being lucky, are generally those willing to try, who take chances, put themselves on the line. Often people talk themselves out of an opportunity, convinced there’s little possibility of success.

But worst of all are those of who truly believe was can’t do something, because with a “can’t” attitude, it’s a certain bet we won’t.

Jus’ try before you can’t.

Maybe I do have only the intelligence of a Neanderthal, after all I don’t understand the television show, “Sex in the City.” I sat with my wife and our house mate and watched two episodes and while they laughed and giggled, I missed it.

The show is purportedly about four independent women living in New York City. However for being so liberated, they’re all in search of a perfect relationship with a man.

I don’t get the dichotomy.

Afterwards, I sat an watched five half-hour episodes of the cartoon, “Avatar: The Last Airbender.” The series follows the adventures of a twelve-year-old boy and his friends, who must bring peace and unity to the world by ending the Fire Lord’s war against the other three nations.

Bending water, earth, fire and air in cartoon form, makes more sense to me than Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte’s realistic lives. Yeah, you can call me a Neanderthal.

Yes, I engaged the enemy in battle and killed him. And I was close to someone who was either killed or wounded.

This is not your fault.

Both fear and death surrounded me time and again. In fact the Pentagon has a plan in place in case I’m killed in action.

Anxiety, insomnia, and guilt are part of my existence.

When I returned home, you expected me to pick up my life where I left off. Well, so did I.

Adapt and over come.

Neither of us knew what the toll would be. How could we – as you were never in combat and I had never survived such stress before?

Too much alcohol, sex with any woman willing, and thoughts of suicide — all coping mechanisms.

No, this is not our fault and I’ve never considered blaming anyone, not even the military. It is simply the price paid for “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

Ask me now — I’d be willingly to do it all again.

One of my favorite military unit motto’s is, “These things we do, so others may live.” I like it because it’s not only simple and direct, but it says so much about the character of those service members who are the U.S. Air Force’s Pararescue.

Time and again I see it after a disaster: Us opening our hearts, our homes, and our wallets to help others – in most cases complete strangers. On a smaller scale – we help each other in times of need, even rising up to commit acts of heroism when the situation calls for it.

We all have it within us the ability and the want to help others. I find it sad to see that this is forgotten until disaster strikes.

We were heading east on Highway 70, somewhere between the small California settlement Chilcoot and Hallelujah Junction, enjoying the scenery, when I noticed the light blue wrecker, its yellow-orange light bar flashing above its cab. It was steadily gaining on us and I was preparing to slowdown and pull to the far right to let it pass.

Jus’ as I looked back from my rearview mirror to the road in front of me, fear washed over me as a four-wheel drive truck came rushing head long at us. The vehicle was passing a row of six cars as it bore down on us.

With little time to think, only to react, I dropped off to the right of the two-lane highway, giving the larger pick-up jus’ enough room to speed by. As soon as it passed us, I gently pulled back onto the asphalt, counting my blessing at having avoided what I felt was a certain fatal accident for us.

Then I looked in my rearview mirror to see if the four-wheel truck had completed passing the row of cars. While it had, it surprised me to see that the wrecker that had been there a minute ago, was no longer in sight.

“Did you see a turn-off anywhere back there?” I asked Kay.

“No,” she answered, “But then I wasn’t really paying attention to that.”

My curiosity piqued, I made a u-turn in the middle of the roadway and drove back beyond where we’d driven off the road. There were no turn-offs, side-roads or even pull-outs along the highway.

I still have no idea where the wrecker disappeared too, unless like Kay suggested, “It was never really there.”

There are three things important in life.
First is to be kind,
The second is to be kind,
And the third is to be kind.

My doctor has taken a pledge, “First do no harm,” but I can one-up the profession by taking this a step beyond: First, be kind. I’ve decided to come into every situation, stressful or not, looking for a way to be kind to the other person.

As I see it, even if my kindness isn’t returned, I’ll be setting an example for others. I think of it like this: Today, I’ll do at least one kind thing for someone else and expect nothing in return.

It’s a hard history to acknowledge, but my Grandpa and his son, my dad, did not talk or see each other for years.  Then suddenly, Grandpa died and it left a hole of grief in Dad’s heart afterwards.

A little over 15-years later, a nearly identical situation carried itself out as I learned my dad had passed away.  We had not seen each other in over 12-years, though I was able to reach him for a while at his job and I sent him letters and cards.

Now, I’m seeing my son gravitate away from me, as I did with my father.  It’s a family history I don’t want to see repeated and yet have no idea how to halt.

Throughout high school I was known for many things, some good, some bad, but mainly as ‘fast.’ That’s because since 7^th grade I was a race-winning sprinter, setting several records and even getting an invite to the 1976 Olympics track and field try-outs.

It could have all been very different though, but for one thing, a girl who could run faster than me moved from Klamath before she realized her talent. I’m talking about my friend, Brenda Crump.

At least three times she out raced me for one reason or another. Her stride was not only longer than mine; she had a naturally powerful start, something I had to work at time and again.

As a 12-year-old boy, I refused to acknowledge this. Simply put, I was afraid of being teased about being out run by a girl.

I bet she can still out run me, still.

While European expeditions along the Northcoast remained rare during the 1500s and 1600s, a number of their ships did pass by the coastline of Del Norte. Most notably among them were the Manila Galleons.

These ships formed a trade route that connected Acapulco and the Philippines and brought the riches of the Indies to Europe. In 1565, the Spanish discovered the Japanese Current that made their travels across the Pacific considerably easier. Sometimes as they turned south, they spotted the fog-laden Northcoast.

With English piracy in the Pacific on the rise, the Spanish decided to set up a harbor on the Northcoast that the Manila Galleons could use as a refuge. So sailing from Manila in 1595, Sebastían Rodríguez Cermenõ passed into and sailed about Trinidad Bay.

Afraid of rocks, however, he decided not to anchor and went south to Acapulco. Eight years later, Sebastian Vizcaíno led another Spanish expedition to explore the Northcoast.

Illness and poor weather prevented the expedition’s two ships from fully surveying the coast. Mapping of the northern coastline never was much of a priority for the Spanish.

Though claimed by Spain, this section of California was remote, and the Spanish found themselves preoccupied with conquering South America, maintaining their colonial holds in Mexico and fending off piracy across the Caribbean and Atlantic. The second Spanish expedition whose mission was to formally claim lands north of Alta California for that nation’s crown, brought Bruno de Heceta and Bodega y Quadra past the coast of what would later become Del Norte County.