Kurtis the Stock Boy

KURTIS THE STOCK BOY AND BRENDA THE CHECKOUT GIRL

In a supermarket, Kurtis the stock boy, was busily working when a new voice came over the loud speaker asking for a carry out at register 4. Kurtis was almost finished, and wanted to get some fresh air, and decided to answer the call. As he approached the check-out stand a distant smile caught his eye, the new check-out girl was beautiful. She was an older woman (maybe 26, and he was only 22) and he fell in love. Later that day, after his shift was over, he waited by the punch clock to find out her name. She came into the break room, smiled softly at him, took her card and punched out, then left. He looked at her card, BRENDA. He walked out only to see her start walking up the road. Next day, he waited outside as she left the supermarket, and offered her a ride home. He looked harmless enough, and she accepted. When he dropped her off, he asked if maybe he could see her again, outside of work. She simply said it wasn't possible.He pressed and she explained she had two children and she couldn't afford a baby-sitter, so he offered to pay for the baby-sitter. Reluctantly she accepted his offer for a date for the following Saturday.

That Saturday night he arrived at her door only to have her tell him that she was unable to go with him. The baby-sitter had called and canceled. To which Kurtis simply said, "Well, let's take the kids with us."She tried to explain that taking the children was not an option, but again not taking no for an answer, he pressed. Finally Brenda, brought him inside to meet her children. She had an older daughter who was just as cute as a bug, Kurtis thought, then Brenda brought out her son, in a wheelchair. He was born a paraplegic with Down Syndrome.Kurtis asked Brenda, "I still don't understand why the kids can't come with us?" Brenda was amazed. Most men would run away from a woman with two kids, especially if one had disabilities - just like her first husband and father of her children had done. Kurtis was not ordinary - - - he had a different mindset.

That evening Kurtis and Brenda loaded up the kids, went to dinner and the movies. When her son needed anything Kurtis would take care of him. When he needed to use the restroom, he picked him up out of his wheelchair, took him and brought him back. The kids loved Kurtis. At the end of the evening, Brenda knew this was the man she was going to marry and spend the rest of her life with. A year later, they were married and Kurtis adopted both of her children. Since then they have added two more kids.

So what happened to Kurtis the stock boy and Brenda the check-out girl? Well, Mr. & Mrs. Kurt Warner now live in Arizona. If you tune in on February 1, you can watch him quarterback the Arizona Cardinals in the Super Bowl against the Pittsburg Steelers! Is this a surprise ending or could you have guessed that he was not an ordinary person? Some athletes are also great people.It should be noted that he also quarterbacked the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI. He has also been the NLF's Most Valuable Player twice and the Super Bowl's MVP.

On Sunday, 1 Feb I'll be rooting for Kurt and the Cards.

Aiken County Public Schools

INAUGURATION IN PICTURES

Tommy Smith and John Carlos along with their wives hug each other. Both were the two 1968 Olympic medalists who stood on the medals podium, raising their fist in the air...donning a black glove...symbolizing Black power. They waited 40 years for vindication.

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/01/the_inauguration_of_president.html

Pres Barack Obama - Inauguration Address 2 of 2

Pres Barack Obama - Inauguration Address 1 of 2

INAUGURATION DAY

A big day for America. There is a tremendous exuberance in the air. High hopes along with high expectations has energized how we as Americans can forge a new and diverse America that is inclusive on all fronts of humanity.

Here's a link that says it all: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090120/ap_on_go_pr_wh/inauguration_scene

Snow storm warnings made us close the office. Julie came in to loan her TENS unit. Life is good. America is even better.

INAUGURATION VENUE

We could not recall the last time we were in DC. We were still contemplating going or not until 3PM Friday when we got confirmation for the room. Finally. I later found out the reason why it took so long to confirm was school was still closed until Tuesday. Therefore, no faculty was around to sign for the room. In any case we were going to go...

We left around 4:15PM Friday. Traffic was very heavy leaving the 757. We were crawling out until Lightfoot. We stopped at the Rest area since Edwina was getting sleepy. The first thing we noticed was how nice the facility presented....clean, spacious, well-lit. A tremendous improvement. I took over. The Ipod was hooked up at 87.7 FM. Traffic was somewhat light until we got on 95N. It was moderately heavy. I played it safe since there really wasn't any opening for a nice run.

As we neared DC, I could not help how much the roads improved. When I first came, there were only 6 lanes...3 and 3. Now...an easy 12 lanes. Traffic moved well. As I positioned myself to the left for the 395, I noticed the on-ramp changed. It is now on the right side. After all that construction, they finally fixed that dangerous 95N exit. With 395 on the right, it was a clear shot into the city.

The Crystal City Marriot has changed. For the better. We got in around 8PM. Checked into room 1436 and went to dinner. Immediately we noticed the hardwood floors and some really cool lights that served as a wall. These changes made things brighter....cleaner....instead of dark and distant when it was red carpeted. Even the room was nice. A huge work area to easily hook up computer. The 48 inch HD flat-screen TV was a very nice addition. All-in-all the remodeled freeway and hotel really demonstrated how things changed over 25 years. Fortunately, the change is for the good.

On Saturday, I woke up at the normal 5AM. I went to the workout room and was greeted to TV mounted treadmills....new freeweights and machines. The water cooler really brought class to the area.

Ray called earlier for a meeting at 1PM. I googled the GMU/Arlington campus and realized it was a short cab ride. We decided to hook up with Ferdie prior to the presentation.

Ferdie has a nice position at Washington Golf Center. The mega store was filled with all kinds of golf equipment. In addition, there were indoor driving cages and an area for club custom fitting. With all this new golf technology, any avid hack should be able to score pretty decent on long courses.

Ferdie looked great. I was planning on trading in my Calloway irons for the graphites but I was sporting a sore left trapezuis. We chatted and later agreed to have dinner after work.

We went back to the hotel to change. I rechecked to see if my pics were loaded in sequence. This was to be my first lecture going high tech. Naturally, I was a bit on edge.

The cab ride was short. We were dropped off two buildings away. During our walk, I began to realize just how cold it was. Later, I leaned it was in the single digits. Therefore, whoever showed up had to be pretty hard core.

Joe was the first one we saw emerging from room 226. I hoped he had the proper cords to hook my laptop to the LCD projector. He didn't. Ray was going around all nervous about the presentation. Nothing was really planned except for me to show pics of the ones that gave the opportunity for me to live the American dream

By the time I started, many of the attendees were past FACS students we worked with over the years....Wendell, Alex and Jay S were there....then, Jojo (who was really looking good) and her husband, Mikee with wife and Xavier...Wilma, Eleonor, Joan...even Tony Sarmiento...the labor union officer was there. The gathering was quite impressive given the dire circumstances. Charlene and Jian did a great job in hooking us up. Dexter, the chair for FFO, was also there along with Brad.

As I started the show, I decided to set it on automatic slide show....to let the pictures speak for themselves. Afterwards, we had a great discussion centering on sharing where each of us are on their personal journey of community activism. There was this one lady who kept talking. Ray eventually cut her off enabling all the scheduled speakers to speak.

It was an inspiring gathering of kindered spirits....relationships nurtured since the '90s when we were involved with FIND, FACS and students in general. Like the hotel and freeway being upgraded, all of us were given the succesfull professional makeover. We are not the same individuals but we still all have the passion to make a difference in our community.

Ferdie took us out to this Chinese restuarant that served past Presidents and celebrities. Peking Gourmet Inn off Leesburg Pike (King street exit of the 395) even donns a website....www.PekingGourmet.com.

After a 40minute wait, we drank red wine. This was the most crowded Chinese restaurant I ever went to. So many white people that the only Asians were us. Elisa, our waitress, greeted us with a warm smile. I made fun by asking her to join us. That remark validates just how toasted I was off the red wine. The table we had was perfect. It guarded a private room that was adjacent to the 2nd main room. The Peking duck was awesome. We had the best dude to carve up the duck. Elisa made my first serving that featured their home-grown garlic shoots. Later, she told me I sat in the same chair as Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. Wow!!!

This was a memorable weekend. We come full-circle at a much higher place of consciousness. Things change. Fortunately, change smiled on the hotel, freeway, friends and ourselves. Life is great!!!

WAIKIKI

On our last day, I still couldn't get a GPS signal to create a map image. However, I decided to record the walk from the Royal Hawaiian to the Manoa Surfrider right on the beach.

I also wanted to take a picture of the hotel from Kalukaua Street. The architecture is very classic. I took this in the morning before the people came out. During the day, this street is jammed with walkers, joggers, strollers and just about anykind of tourist invented.

I also wanted to capture that perfect Diamond head sunrise. I didn't see any colors but the sunrise is still very powerful.

I also wanted to put my feet into the famous Waikiki beach and water. It was quite cold at first. But, in time, it began to feel very comforting. My inner soul seemed to be renewed from the nourishing waves that gently crashed onto the shore.

I also wanted a picture of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel. The building is still undergoing restoration. The pink color is quite distinctive which makes this historic hotel unique. I thought this hotel was the first on Waikiki. The Manoa Surfrider was first...and is the best...until we experience the Royal Hawaiian.

MOANA SURFRIDER

We arrived around 130PM Saturday. The hotel is located in the heart of Waikiki. The famous Duke's Canoe House Restaurant and the Outrigger Hotel was next door. Next to that, the Royal Hawaiian Hotel. Went we first entered this historic hotel, I immediately noticed the rocking chairs that lined the entire front porch. Opposite, was a beautiful lanay that had an abundance of fully encased pillowed chairs with a tremendous view of an ancient banay tree. The staff was extremely courteous and accomdating. These opening nuiances seemed to encapsulate the aloha spirit...along with an extremely wealthy clientele, mostly from Japan and European countries outside of America

We were very fortunate to get Room 429. It was located on the highest floor that had a veranda overlooking the restuarant and lounge area. The presence of a huge lanay tree blocked the view of the beach but its shade provided relief for all the loungers downstairs sipping on exotic tropical drinks.

. As I walked out into the beach, I had to take some pictures. The entire sandy area was littered with tanning bodies in all shapes and sizes. The majestic Diamond Head spoke volumes as to where we were...and what to expect. These opening scenes remain firmly etched into my vacation soul as the peace, tranquility and the spirit of aloha were all constant reminders of what is important. We were there to celebrate family. We ended up celebrating life. In the spirit of family, life is celebrated. What an awesome experience.

http://www.moanasurfrider.com/?ES=Hawaii_SPG35HI_374

HELLO 2009

Sunrise. The dawn of 2009 began with a bang of fireworks in the opening hour. Throughout the evening, the sound of rain. Finally in the morning, silence dominated. The opening shot brings the undeniable reality of every new day starts with light. Hopefully, 2009 will shed the light of prosperity and health that seemed to disappear in 2008.

My main goal is to live each moment. Let it be positive, productive and prosperous.