BLUE MOON

BLUE MOON, a photo by Photojet84 on Flickr.

We have not traveled to the moon, but we know who has and honor his memory.

A hero laid to rest

WHEN? Thursday · August 27

WHERE? Olive Branch, Mississippi · find us on the map

Some unique experiences were part of a WWII veteran's funeral we recently attended. At the close of the service, our funeral procession traveled nearly 20 miles along a busy interstate to historic Elmwood Cemetery in Midtown Memphis. As each vehicle crossed the quaint stone bridge leading into the cemetery, the daredevil Memphis motorcycle officers who had escorted us stood at attention on either side and saluted until the last car had passed. Unexpected and touching.

I would have been very disappointed had not the video turned out as Taps was played at the cemetery. Since some of the deceased's large family were unable to attend, it was one of many photos and videos taken at Elmwood to share with them.

Day is done, Gone the sun,
From the lakes · From the hills · From the sky,
All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh

Fading light dims the sight,
And a star · Gems the sky · Gleaming bright,
From afar, drawing nigh, falls the night

Thanks and praise for our days,
Neath the sun · Neath the stars · Neath the sky,
As we go, this we know: God is nigh

Remembering our friend Al

WHEN? Saturday · August 8

WHERE? Kelseys in Foley, Alabama · find us on the map

It wasn't that long ago, on May 6th, that we celebrated Al's 80th birthday at Kelseys. An even larger crowd gathered on Saturday, August 8th, to remember our friend Al.

Finger foods were served, and the bar was packed with those who had known Al a long time, along with others who had known him for a short while (yours truly).

Wayne Fuller played the guitar and sang Marshall Tucker Band's Can’t You See. Someone at Kelseys was actually recording a video of Wayne's performance. Here’s an early 70’s live version of this classic:

Al's friend Bob Arness composed a poem for the occasion:

Here’s to our buddy, here’s to our pal
It’s hard to believe, but his name is Al
Some words of wisdom, advice to follow
It may not be easy, just learn to swallow.

Al could be hard to take, a pain in your side
Just shake it all off, take it in stride
He was one of a kind, a real piece of art
Most of the time just a grumpy old fart.

We’re all here, you may wonder why
We’re just here to say good-bye.

Al, you are missed.

Mr. Whipple

WHERE? A supermarket anywhere

Isn’t it mind-boggling how products have changed over the years? Wendell is our grocery shopper, and he has discovered that picking the right product from the grocer’s shelf is so much more complicated than it once was. It seems that everyone has realized New and Improved is a catchy little phrase that promotes sales.

Poor Mr. Whipple

by Wendell

Poor Mr. Whipple, he came along about 25 years too early. You aren’t old enough to remember him? He was the grocer in a television commercial that got caught in the bath tissue aisle squeezing a certain well known brand. It’s just that the tissue was so soft he could not keep his hands off it. Just had to cuddle and feel its softness.

When Mr. Whipple was around there was only one type of tissue, one size roll, and one size package. To say that has changed would be an understatement as big as the Sears Tower is tall. Today that same well-known brand sells what they call Basic, Ultra Soft and Ultra Strong.

If Basic was the product that caused Mr. Whipple to take a stroll down the bath tissue aisle several times a day, it would be nearly impossible to keep him out of there now that Ultra Soft has been introduced. That leads us to Ultra Strong. Just its name makes one ask, “Are Basic and Ultra Soft strong enough to do their job without tearing apart?” (Don't answer that.)

Not only do they have their 3 different products, they have different sized rolls. The Regular Roll, and the Big Roll that has twice as many sheets than the regular roll. Then there is the Giant Roll that has 2½ times as many sheets as the regular roll. As the TV pitch man Billy Mays would say, “But wait, there's more!" There’s the Mega Roll that has 4 times as many sheets as the regular roll. Not only that, but these 3 different products and their 4 different sized rolls are packaged in rolls of 4, 12, 24, and 36. You do the math, and I think you'll agree that poor Mr. Whipple would be a very busy man if he were with us today.

Oh I almost forgot! There's a variety with lotion added for those sensitive parts of our bodies.