Mark R. Hunter's Blog, page 13
May 31, 2023
Fish Fry To Support Albion Firefighters Coming Up
If you should be near Albion during the Chain O’ Lakes Festival, don’t forget to drop in on the fish and tenderloin fry at the fire station Wednesday, June 7th. This has been an annual tradition for many decades, with proceeds going to equipment and training for the Albion Fire Department. (Indiana, for those of you near other Albions.)
It’s from 4:30-7:00 p.m., with a price of $12 for adults and $8 for children under 12, and it’s darned good food for a good cause. I should know, having eaten it almost every year for ... a long time. The AFD is at 210 Fire Station Drive, on the east end of town. (It's traditional, when a town has a Fire Station Drive, to build the fire station there.)
While you're there ask someone for a copy of Smoky Days and Sleepless Nights, the Albion Fire Department's history book, which goes for just $9.95. Come on, you know you want to donate that extra nickle. It took me 25 years to write!
Okay, so I wasn't writing the entire 25 years.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
It’s from 4:30-7:00 p.m., with a price of $12 for adults and $8 for children under 12, and it’s darned good food for a good cause. I should know, having eaten it almost every year for ... a long time. The AFD is at 210 Fire Station Drive, on the east end of town. (It's traditional, when a town has a Fire Station Drive, to build the fire station there.)
While you're there ask someone for a copy of Smoky Days and Sleepless Nights, the Albion Fire Department's history book, which goes for just $9.95. Come on, you know you want to donate that extra nickle. It took me 25 years to write!
Okay, so I wasn't writing the entire 25 years.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
May 27, 2023
Looking For Local Ghost Stories
I've been contacted by the Acquisitions Editor for The History Press, which is a part of Arcadia Publishing. They do local and regional history books, and Emily and I wrote Images Of America: Albion and Noble County for them.
On an unrelated note, I noticed the Images Of America books are on sale over the holiday weekend:
https://www.arcadiapublishing.com/
Long story short, I'm starting work on a new book for them. The tentative title is A Haunted History of Noble County, Indiana.
All I need now is you.
Overall it would be the fifth Noble County related book through Arcadia Publishing, and my second. Just as I asked for old photos for our Images Of America book, I'm seeking help from locals, people who used to be locals, and general history and ghost buffs. I need stories: Tales you've heard about supernatural stuff in Noble County (Indiana!), strange things you've witnessed, rumors, general weird stuff, from homes, businesses, cemeteries, isolated roads ... and, of course, any photos of possibly haunted places, old or new.
I do like old photos, but this book will have fewer pictures and more stories than the last one.
This will be my fourth history book: I found copies of the other ones in the Noble County Public Library's history and genealogy room in Albion.
Of course, in the book I'll credit anyone who sends in anything--unless you don't want to be credited, in which case my lips are sealed. And if you have photos, Emily can scan them and get them back to you. We have scanned historical photos already, from the last project, but we don't have them all by a long shot.
I prefer to communicate through the wonders of the web, like e-mail and messaging, because I work nights and sleep when most people are up; but I can act like a regular person and talk by phone or in person. At least, I used to be able to. How hard could it be? We can be contacted at ozma914 at hotmail dot com, if you correct the at and dot and remove the spaces.
Sadly, this pushes my schedule back on our other book projects, including a second book about the Albion Fire Department, but I promise to get back on those just as quickly as possible. Help me out by sending me those stories! It's a spooky world, so freak me out.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
On an unrelated note, I noticed the Images Of America books are on sale over the holiday weekend:
https://www.arcadiapublishing.com/
Long story short, I'm starting work on a new book for them. The tentative title is A Haunted History of Noble County, Indiana.
All I need now is you.
Overall it would be the fifth Noble County related book through Arcadia Publishing, and my second. Just as I asked for old photos for our Images Of America book, I'm seeking help from locals, people who used to be locals, and general history and ghost buffs. I need stories: Tales you've heard about supernatural stuff in Noble County (Indiana!), strange things you've witnessed, rumors, general weird stuff, from homes, businesses, cemeteries, isolated roads ... and, of course, any photos of possibly haunted places, old or new.
I do like old photos, but this book will have fewer pictures and more stories than the last one.
This will be my fourth history book: I found copies of the other ones in the Noble County Public Library's history and genealogy room in Albion.
Of course, in the book I'll credit anyone who sends in anything--unless you don't want to be credited, in which case my lips are sealed. And if you have photos, Emily can scan them and get them back to you. We have scanned historical photos already, from the last project, but we don't have them all by a long shot.
I prefer to communicate through the wonders of the web, like e-mail and messaging, because I work nights and sleep when most people are up; but I can act like a regular person and talk by phone or in person. At least, I used to be able to. How hard could it be? We can be contacted at ozma914 at hotmail dot com, if you correct the at and dot and remove the spaces.
Sadly, this pushes my schedule back on our other book projects, including a second book about the Albion Fire Department, but I promise to get back on those just as quickly as possible. Help me out by sending me those stories! It's a spooky world, so freak me out.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
May 19, 2023
I'm the Real Weather Wizard
Seasonal changes can get confusing. Of course, every place in the world has the same expression: If you don't like the weather, wait five minutes: It'll change. (There are possible exceptions, such as, say, the middle of the Sahara.)
The reason it's a universal concept is because it's true. But I'll add something: I have the ability to effect the weather.
How do I do this? By not wanting to.
I've known for years that what we used to call Indian Summer would not arrive in Indiana until I've completely winterized the house. September, November--doesn't matter. Winterizing my house, which was built before anyone had ever heard of winterizing, is serious business. A square mile of clear plastic is involved. Six miles of various kinds of tape. I swaddle the air conditioner with a special cover designed just for it ... to which I add numerous yards of duct tape, after once finding the cover wrapped around the bank sign next door.
This must all be done before the last warm weather of summer arrives.
One year, as an experiment, I didn't prepare for winter at all. We had no autumn that time around: It went straight from summer into winter. Honestly, I don't think the frozen pipes and hypothermia were worth proving the point.
This spring I thought I had it beat (again). I watched the long range forecast very carefully, and instead of opening up the house for spring, I waited until I saw the inevitable spring snowstorm approach. It did, then the temperatures got into the 70s. That Friday I happily turned off the furnace and took down the storm windows.
That Saturday I brought out the space heaters and extra blankets. For meals that weekend we baked every bit of frozen food we had, and slept by the stove. We made the dog sleep with us, which annoyed him greatly--he already has a fur coat.
So there you have it: I can control the weather. Kneel before me.
Or at least, bring me some firewood.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
The reason it's a universal concept is because it's true. But I'll add something: I have the ability to effect the weather.
How do I do this? By not wanting to.
I've known for years that what we used to call Indian Summer would not arrive in Indiana until I've completely winterized the house. September, November--doesn't matter. Winterizing my house, which was built before anyone had ever heard of winterizing, is serious business. A square mile of clear plastic is involved. Six miles of various kinds of tape. I swaddle the air conditioner with a special cover designed just for it ... to which I add numerous yards of duct tape, after once finding the cover wrapped around the bank sign next door.
This must all be done before the last warm weather of summer arrives.
One year, as an experiment, I didn't prepare for winter at all. We had no autumn that time around: It went straight from summer into winter. Honestly, I don't think the frozen pipes and hypothermia were worth proving the point.
This spring I thought I had it beat (again). I watched the long range forecast very carefully, and instead of opening up the house for spring, I waited until I saw the inevitable spring snowstorm approach. It did, then the temperatures got into the 70s. That Friday I happily turned off the furnace and took down the storm windows.
That Saturday I brought out the space heaters and extra blankets. For meals that weekend we baked every bit of frozen food we had, and slept by the stove. We made the dog sleep with us, which annoyed him greatly--he already has a fur coat.
So there you have it: I can control the weather. Kneel before me.
Or at least, bring me some firewood.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
May 8, 2023
Getting Ambushed By the Anti-Credit Crisis
So, I got a letter from my credit card company, saying I was scheduled for an "account review". They wanted to let me know that, because the highest balance on my account has been significantly lower than my credit limit, my credit limit could be decreased.
Now, let's think about this for a minute.
I'm being punished for being fiscally responsible.
This annoys me.
It's no wonder nobody worries about the national debt. Apparently, if I continually spent more than I could afford and kept a credit card balance high enough for the company to rake in interest, I'd be rewarded with more spending power. It would be as if Congress members got voted back into office because of their skill in spending money the government doesn't have.
Oh.
Yeah, that pretty much explains it.
Of course, a credit card company is a business, and certainly they're in it for the bottom line. You can see why they'd want to give more credit to someone who spends a lot of money, because that person is also paying interest, which goes to: the credit card company. I get that. On the other hand, you have to wonder what harm I'd doing them by keeping my cards paid off. Everything else being equal, I'm costing them the same amount of money whether my credit limit is a hundred dollars or a million.
You'd think they'd keep my credit limit up, hoping something big happens like a pet dog needing surgery (as an example). When that happened to us, I did put it on the card. Of course, I also paid it off within two months, which probably annoyed them.
I don't really mind all that much. After all, I don't plan on running up the card, and if I suddenly needed a bunch of money I'd try for a lower interest source, such as almost anything that doesn't involve an enforcer named Guido.
But it's not the first time I was annoyed by, pardon the expression, the principle of the thing.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
Now, let's think about this for a minute.
I'm being punished for being fiscally responsible.
This annoys me.
It's no wonder nobody worries about the national debt. Apparently, if I continually spent more than I could afford and kept a credit card balance high enough for the company to rake in interest, I'd be rewarded with more spending power. It would be as if Congress members got voted back into office because of their skill in spending money the government doesn't have.
Oh.
Yeah, that pretty much explains it.
Of course, a credit card company is a business, and certainly they're in it for the bottom line. You can see why they'd want to give more credit to someone who spends a lot of money, because that person is also paying interest, which goes to: the credit card company. I get that. On the other hand, you have to wonder what harm I'd doing them by keeping my cards paid off. Everything else being equal, I'm costing them the same amount of money whether my credit limit is a hundred dollars or a million.
You'd think they'd keep my credit limit up, hoping something big happens like a pet dog needing surgery (as an example). When that happened to us, I did put it on the card. Of course, I also paid it off within two months, which probably annoyed them.
I don't really mind all that much. After all, I don't plan on running up the card, and if I suddenly needed a bunch of money I'd try for a lower interest source, such as almost anything that doesn't involve an enforcer named Guido.
But it's not the first time I was annoyed by, pardon the expression, the principle of the thing.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
May 3, 2023
Murphy's Law Is Very Clear
Author's note (me. I'm the author): I wrote this back in 2021, and apparently never posted it anywhere except on Humor Outcasts. Murphy's Laws probably cover that.
-----------------------------------------------
Murphy’s Law is very clear on certain points. Most of us are familiar with Murphy’s Law #1, which states that if anything can possibly go wrong, it will. There’s also Murphy’s Corollary #14, which says that if Mark Hunter attempts any manner of mechanically based activities, Murphy’s Law #1 is immediately in effect.
Then there’s Murphy’s Law #27, which was added to the list in 1923 by Murphy’s grandson, G.C. Murphy. I discovered Murphy’s Law #27 several years ago, when I paid off my car. It's the one that states, “Immediately after making the very last payment on something, it will break.”
I looked forward to paying off my car with mixed feelings. My car had been very good to me, and I didn’t want to see the poor thing fall apart just because I didn’t owe anything on it. Still, I figured as long as the cost of repairs didn’t exceed the payments, I’d break even.
Maybe “break” was a bad way to put it.
At the time I had a foreign car, a Nissan. Well, maybe foreign. Since many foreign cars are assembled in the U.S., and many American cars are assembled from parts made in other countries, the only way you can be sure of having an American vehicle these days is to build it yourself.
That I wasn’t prepared to do – see Murphy’s Corollary #14.
I’ve owned one other foreign car, but it was made in France. The French car started almost every single time I turned the key – but whether it would then go was a crapshoot. It was a safe car, because cars that won’t leave the driveway rarely get into accidents.
I’ve also owned Fords, Chevys, Pontiacs, and a funky looking white Dodge Omni that my ex-wife sacrificed to the gods of utility poles. I have only one real requirement: They should start when I turn the key, and go where I steer. That’s about it.
My Nissan did that. Then, two months before it would be paid off, I was surprised by a letter from my friendly bank, informing me my loan had matured, and they would like all the rest of their money. Now.
I had no idea loans matured. I thought they came out of the bank fully grown.
I sent the money, then the bank sent me another letter to inform me I overpaid, and here’s my refund. Wasn’t that nice of them, to spend $2.67 on paper, envelope and stamp so I could get my $1.43? They were probably imagining the look on my face when I opened the envelope.
Now, from the moment I sent in that last check I had the feeling a huge, steel toed shoe was hovering over my head, ready to drop. To my surprise, the doors didn’t fall off when I sent the check. The engine didn’t explode when I received the refund. By the time the title arrived, I was so nervous I scheduled an oil change, just so I could say I’d taken care of the routine maintenance and was in no way at fault for whatever was about to happen.
As I sat in the waiting room, contemplating the pluses and minuses of buying a moped, the maintenance guy popped his head in and said cheerfully, “Your car is done!”
My voice rose five octaves. “Oh my gosh! It’s done? Finished? Over? What happened? I need to be with it, to say goodbye–“
“No, no, you don’t understand – I mean, we’re done changing the oil.”
“Oh … thank goodness, I thought –“
“And you’re going to need new brakes soon.”
I refer you back to Murphy’s Law #27.
“How soon?” I asked. “A few months? A year or so?”
“Within two weeks, unless you live for thrills and close calls. You could buy an anchor, but depending on what it hooks onto, that could cause more harm than good.”
The new brakes – and I doubt I need to tell you this – cost the same as a car payment. But that’s hardly surprising:
Murphy’s Law is very clear.
(Postscript: My Nissan was later demolished by a hit and run driver. My next car was paid off, then totaled by a hit and stay driver. In my current vehicle, I twitch whenever I see any other cars come close. I’m sure that’s covered by another of Murphy’s Laws.)
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
-----------------------------------------------
Murphy’s Law is very clear on certain points. Most of us are familiar with Murphy’s Law #1, which states that if anything can possibly go wrong, it will. There’s also Murphy’s Corollary #14, which says that if Mark Hunter attempts any manner of mechanically based activities, Murphy’s Law #1 is immediately in effect.
Then there’s Murphy’s Law #27, which was added to the list in 1923 by Murphy’s grandson, G.C. Murphy. I discovered Murphy’s Law #27 several years ago, when I paid off my car. It's the one that states, “Immediately after making the very last payment on something, it will break.”
I looked forward to paying off my car with mixed feelings. My car had been very good to me, and I didn’t want to see the poor thing fall apart just because I didn’t owe anything on it. Still, I figured as long as the cost of repairs didn’t exceed the payments, I’d break even.
Maybe “break” was a bad way to put it.
At the time I had a foreign car, a Nissan. Well, maybe foreign. Since many foreign cars are assembled in the U.S., and many American cars are assembled from parts made in other countries, the only way you can be sure of having an American vehicle these days is to build it yourself.
That I wasn’t prepared to do – see Murphy’s Corollary #14.
I’ve owned one other foreign car, but it was made in France. The French car started almost every single time I turned the key – but whether it would then go was a crapshoot. It was a safe car, because cars that won’t leave the driveway rarely get into accidents.
I’ve also owned Fords, Chevys, Pontiacs, and a funky looking white Dodge Omni that my ex-wife sacrificed to the gods of utility poles. I have only one real requirement: They should start when I turn the key, and go where I steer. That’s about it.
My Nissan did that. Then, two months before it would be paid off, I was surprised by a letter from my friendly bank, informing me my loan had matured, and they would like all the rest of their money. Now.
I had no idea loans matured. I thought they came out of the bank fully grown.
I sent the money, then the bank sent me another letter to inform me I overpaid, and here’s my refund. Wasn’t that nice of them, to spend $2.67 on paper, envelope and stamp so I could get my $1.43? They were probably imagining the look on my face when I opened the envelope.
Now, from the moment I sent in that last check I had the feeling a huge, steel toed shoe was hovering over my head, ready to drop. To my surprise, the doors didn’t fall off when I sent the check. The engine didn’t explode when I received the refund. By the time the title arrived, I was so nervous I scheduled an oil change, just so I could say I’d taken care of the routine maintenance and was in no way at fault for whatever was about to happen.
As I sat in the waiting room, contemplating the pluses and minuses of buying a moped, the maintenance guy popped his head in and said cheerfully, “Your car is done!”
My voice rose five octaves. “Oh my gosh! It’s done? Finished? Over? What happened? I need to be with it, to say goodbye–“
“No, no, you don’t understand – I mean, we’re done changing the oil.”
“Oh … thank goodness, I thought –“
“And you’re going to need new brakes soon.”
I refer you back to Murphy’s Law #27.
“How soon?” I asked. “A few months? A year or so?”
“Within two weeks, unless you live for thrills and close calls. You could buy an anchor, but depending on what it hooks onto, that could cause more harm than good.”
The new brakes – and I doubt I need to tell you this – cost the same as a car payment. But that’s hardly surprising:
Murphy’s Law is very clear.
(Postscript: My Nissan was later demolished by a hit and run driver. My next car was paid off, then totaled by a hit and stay driver. In my current vehicle, I twitch whenever I see any other cars come close. I’m sure that’s covered by another of Murphy’s Laws.)
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
April 24, 2023
book review: Doohickey, by Pete Hautman
Ever have one of those days when everything seemed to be going your way? Nick Fashion has a beautiful fiancée, a thriving business, a fancy car ... if it had been me, I'd be terrified.
But in Doohickey, Nick stumbles unaware into Very Bad Day territory. His business burns down, his eccentric inventor grandfather dies under mysterious circumstances, and his potential father-in-law ends up being a suspicious ex-cop. In short order he's a broke, single, arson suspect with bullet holes in his car.
Pete Hautman really does, as the Bible might put it, a Job job on poor Nick. But Nick has a glimmer of hope: He inherits his grandfather's isolated desert compound, along with a brilliant invention: a kitchen doohickey that's bound to make him rich ... if he can figure out how to pay for the production, avoid being killed by an angry psycho, and not get arrested.
https://www.amazon.com/Doohickey-Nove...
Poor Nick: Every time something does go his way, it backfires. An offer of financial support from a beautiful cooking show host, for instance, angers two people Nick doesn't want to make mad: his fiancée and the aforementioned angry psycho, the host's ex-husband. It's exactly the kind of twisted complications and eccentric characters Hautman excels in. Doohickey is one of those novels in which you root for Nick to succeed, but can't help being entertained by his failures.
Sadly, it took me twelve years for me to find this book, but now that Pete Hautman is on my radar, you can be sure I'll track down some of his many other works. It's a fun read ... even if not so fun for the characters.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
But in Doohickey, Nick stumbles unaware into Very Bad Day territory. His business burns down, his eccentric inventor grandfather dies under mysterious circumstances, and his potential father-in-law ends up being a suspicious ex-cop. In short order he's a broke, single, arson suspect with bullet holes in his car.
Pete Hautman really does, as the Bible might put it, a Job job on poor Nick. But Nick has a glimmer of hope: He inherits his grandfather's isolated desert compound, along with a brilliant invention: a kitchen doohickey that's bound to make him rich ... if he can figure out how to pay for the production, avoid being killed by an angry psycho, and not get arrested.
https://www.amazon.com/Doohickey-Nove...
Poor Nick: Every time something does go his way, it backfires. An offer of financial support from a beautiful cooking show host, for instance, angers two people Nick doesn't want to make mad: his fiancée and the aforementioned angry psycho, the host's ex-husband. It's exactly the kind of twisted complications and eccentric characters Hautman excels in. Doohickey is one of those novels in which you root for Nick to succeed, but can't help being entertained by his failures.
Sadly, it took me twelve years for me to find this book, but now that Pete Hautman is on my radar, you can be sure I'll track down some of his many other works. It's a fun read ... even if not so fun for the characters.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
April 19, 2023
I'm Not Okay, and That's Okay
I'm not okay.
Sometimes we have to admit that to ourselves. Not to others, for attention or sympathy--but to yourself. Pretending you're okay is not okay. Being not okay is okay, which doesn't mean you should want to stay that way.
On April Fourth my teenage nephew killed himself. My post about it is here:
https://markrhunter.blogspot.com/2023...
There, now I don't have to go through writing that again. (Meanwhile, about a week later an apartment complex in a neighboring town was shot up by a man who used to be married to my ex-wife. I never particularly cared for him, but my daughters are good friends of his kids, and they're wonderful people. This helped no one's stress level.)
I didn't see Christian as often as I would have liked, which is no one's fault but my own. Still, it hit me just as hard as my brother's death two years ago. Has it been two years? I'm not okay over that, either.
The reason I'm writing this is because my next blog--unless something else happens--will likely be another humor attempt to cheer up everyone's lives a little, as I'm wont to do. Yes, I did use that word correctly, look it up. I do this because so many of us are going through difficult times, and so many of us could use the cheering up. Making people laugh, or at least smile, lightens my own day. Since I suffer from depression and anxiety myself, what helps others helps me.
But that doesn't mean I'm all right.
Remember Robin Williams? Funniest guy alive, everything to live for. Killed himself.
Please try to remember that even if someone seems fine--even if they insist they're fine--you don't know what's going on underneath. You don't know what the person next to you is going through. Maybe they don't know. My wife always figures out I'm having a bad day before I do.
So support mental health awareness, fight the stigma, and ... laugh a lot. Keep your spirits up. Get help if needed. The world may seem a hard and depressing place, but it does you no good to dwell on it. Worst case scenario, I'll be there to make you smile, or at least try to.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
Sometimes we have to admit that to ourselves. Not to others, for attention or sympathy--but to yourself. Pretending you're okay is not okay. Being not okay is okay, which doesn't mean you should want to stay that way.
On April Fourth my teenage nephew killed himself. My post about it is here:
https://markrhunter.blogspot.com/2023...
There, now I don't have to go through writing that again. (Meanwhile, about a week later an apartment complex in a neighboring town was shot up by a man who used to be married to my ex-wife. I never particularly cared for him, but my daughters are good friends of his kids, and they're wonderful people. This helped no one's stress level.)
I didn't see Christian as often as I would have liked, which is no one's fault but my own. Still, it hit me just as hard as my brother's death two years ago. Has it been two years? I'm not okay over that, either.
The reason I'm writing this is because my next blog--unless something else happens--will likely be another humor attempt to cheer up everyone's lives a little, as I'm wont to do. Yes, I did use that word correctly, look it up. I do this because so many of us are going through difficult times, and so many of us could use the cheering up. Making people laugh, or at least smile, lightens my own day. Since I suffer from depression and anxiety myself, what helps others helps me.
But that doesn't mean I'm all right.
Remember Robin Williams? Funniest guy alive, everything to live for. Killed himself.
Please try to remember that even if someone seems fine--even if they insist they're fine--you don't know what's going on underneath. You don't know what the person next to you is going through. Maybe they don't know. My wife always figures out I'm having a bad day before I do.
So support mental health awareness, fight the stigma, and ... laugh a lot. Keep your spirits up. Get help if needed. The world may seem a hard and depressing place, but it does you no good to dwell on it. Worst case scenario, I'll be there to make you smile, or at least try to.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
April 10, 2023
Say happy National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week three times fast
April has sucked royally thus far, and I haven't felt very funny (as opposed to not being funny and thinking I am). So I'm celebrating National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week the way they used to do summer television: With a re-run.)
I've been taking 911 calls for so long that they were originally 91 calls.
Well, it seems that way. It turns out National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week predates my full-time employment in the emergency services by ten years, and can we possibly shorten that name down a bit? By the time I finish saying the title, the week is over. I'm going to call it ... NPSTW. I know somebody who got their Bachelor Degree at NPSTW, although they've since married. Go Bulldogs!
Anyway, I started with the Noble County EMS as a seventeen year old trainee in late 1979, and joined our volunteer fire department on my birthday in 1980. But it wasn't until December, 1991, that I took an actual paying job in that area, as a jail officer with the Noble County Sheriff Department.
Within a few years I got tired of getting sick all the time. Seriously: Those inmates breathed so many germs on me, I thought I was in a sequel to The Andromeda Strain. So I went into dispatch, trading physical ailments for mental ones.
Unknown to me, way back in 1981 Patricia Anderson, of the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office in California, came up with this idea to give tribute to, um, NPST, or as I'm going to call them, dispatchers. Yes, I know "dispatchers" doesn't tell the whole story, but my typing fingers are tired.
I've been here--let me update--about 32 years, and dispatched for most of those. So long that when I started we had only one computer, to get information such as license plate and driver's license returns, using DOS.
Get your grandparents to explain DOS to you.
My wife points out that back then we received 911 calls by smoke signal, while carving notes onto stone tablets. I'm fairly sure she was kidding.
I've been here so long I could retire. Full retirement pay! Sadly, I haven't figured out how to make up for insurance and the difference in income, but I'm hoping my book sales will pick up. (Note: They have, but not enough.) Also, it would be tough learning to sleep through the night.
Things really were easier back then, when it comes to learning the job. Our computer systems do make it easier to help people these days, but astronauts don't train as much as our rookies do. Spaceship vehicle pursuits are faster, though. The truth is, I'm not sure I could make it through training, if I started today.
Instead of one small computer screen, I'm looking at seven flat screen monitors, not including the security and weather screens. Our report was written (in pen) on a piece of paper about half the size of a standard sheet. Today we have a Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD), radio screen, phone screen, mapping screen, recorder screen, 911 texting screen, and a screen to keep track of everyone's duty status. We also have a screen to keep track of screens. Those are just the ones we use regularly.
I'm pretty burned out at this point, and some of our calls can get rough. I have all the symptoms of PTSD; some of them include:
Experiencing a life-threatening event, like when the dispatch pop machine ran out of Mountain Dew;
Flashbacks and nightmares, such as reliving the night we ran out of Mountain Dew;
Avoidance, such as staying away from places that don't have ... well, you know.
Depression or irritability, which I just now realized might be related to consuming too much caffeine;
Chronic pain ... wow, that one hit me like a pulled back muscle.
I checked off each and every box: avoidance, numbing, flashbacks, being on edge, overeating ... HEY! Who the HECK took my meatball sub out of the break room fridge! I'm HUNGRY!
Where was I? Oh, yeah:
Why the heck am I still here?
Here's the thing. I've worked in retail; in factories; as a security guard and jail officer; as a radio DJ; I once made two bucks an hour growing worms for fishing lure. And for all the emotional turmoil, all the mental stress, all the physical ailments, all the days when I wanted to scream, and so desperately wanted to NOT go back into work the next shift ...
Dispatching is still the best full time job I've ever had.
Of course, I'm not a full time writer, yet. For that I'd only have to deal with one computer screen.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
I've been taking 911 calls for so long that they were originally 91 calls.
Well, it seems that way. It turns out National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week predates my full-time employment in the emergency services by ten years, and can we possibly shorten that name down a bit? By the time I finish saying the title, the week is over. I'm going to call it ... NPSTW. I know somebody who got their Bachelor Degree at NPSTW, although they've since married. Go Bulldogs!
Anyway, I started with the Noble County EMS as a seventeen year old trainee in late 1979, and joined our volunteer fire department on my birthday in 1980. But it wasn't until December, 1991, that I took an actual paying job in that area, as a jail officer with the Noble County Sheriff Department.
Within a few years I got tired of getting sick all the time. Seriously: Those inmates breathed so many germs on me, I thought I was in a sequel to The Andromeda Strain. So I went into dispatch, trading physical ailments for mental ones.
Unknown to me, way back in 1981 Patricia Anderson, of the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office in California, came up with this idea to give tribute to, um, NPST, or as I'm going to call them, dispatchers. Yes, I know "dispatchers" doesn't tell the whole story, but my typing fingers are tired.
I've been here--let me update--about 32 years, and dispatched for most of those. So long that when I started we had only one computer, to get information such as license plate and driver's license returns, using DOS.
Get your grandparents to explain DOS to you.
My wife points out that back then we received 911 calls by smoke signal, while carving notes onto stone tablets. I'm fairly sure she was kidding.
I've been here so long I could retire. Full retirement pay! Sadly, I haven't figured out how to make up for insurance and the difference in income, but I'm hoping my book sales will pick up. (Note: They have, but not enough.) Also, it would be tough learning to sleep through the night.
Things really were easier back then, when it comes to learning the job. Our computer systems do make it easier to help people these days, but astronauts don't train as much as our rookies do. Spaceship vehicle pursuits are faster, though. The truth is, I'm not sure I could make it through training, if I started today.
Instead of one small computer screen, I'm looking at seven flat screen monitors, not including the security and weather screens. Our report was written (in pen) on a piece of paper about half the size of a standard sheet. Today we have a Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD), radio screen, phone screen, mapping screen, recorder screen, 911 texting screen, and a screen to keep track of everyone's duty status. We also have a screen to keep track of screens. Those are just the ones we use regularly.
I'm pretty burned out at this point, and some of our calls can get rough. I have all the symptoms of PTSD; some of them include:
Experiencing a life-threatening event, like when the dispatch pop machine ran out of Mountain Dew;
Flashbacks and nightmares, such as reliving the night we ran out of Mountain Dew;
Avoidance, such as staying away from places that don't have ... well, you know.
Depression or irritability, which I just now realized might be related to consuming too much caffeine;
Chronic pain ... wow, that one hit me like a pulled back muscle.
I checked off each and every box: avoidance, numbing, flashbacks, being on edge, overeating ... HEY! Who the HECK took my meatball sub out of the break room fridge! I'm HUNGRY!
Where was I? Oh, yeah:
Why the heck am I still here?
Here's the thing. I've worked in retail; in factories; as a security guard and jail officer; as a radio DJ; I once made two bucks an hour growing worms for fishing lure. And for all the emotional turmoil, all the mental stress, all the physical ailments, all the days when I wanted to scream, and so desperately wanted to NOT go back into work the next shift ...
Dispatching is still the best full time job I've ever had.
Of course, I'm not a full time writer, yet. For that I'd only have to deal with one computer screen.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
April 5, 2023
Rest In Peace, Christian
This has been the hardest blog I've tried to write since my brother passed away two years ago. So I didn't write it. This is my sister's original post about my nephew's death:
It is with broken hearts that our family is announcing that early this morning we found our son and brother Christian had committed suicide last night/early this morning, by swallowing a massive amount of prescription pills. We had a call from one of his teachers at approximately 9am, who had been alerted by some of his classmates that he had left some posts on Instagram at around 4am. We went to check on him, and unfortunately he was already gone. The only good thing is we were told by the coroner he went peacefully in his sleep. We aren't saying suicide is the way. Just that he went peacefully. We love him with all our hearts and will always miss him. Please pray for him to be at peace in heaven with Christ. One of the last things he posted was that only Christ could save him now. You are with Christ now. Be at peace. We love you! Fly high Squirt!!!
https://scontent-ord5-2.xx.fbcdn.net/...
Here's the obituary:
https://memorials.fairhavenfortwayne....
I think I'm having more trouble dealing with this than I did with Jeff's passing because my brother had a six decade life, while Christian's life was just beginning. Also because I DO understand, to an extent: My teenage years were more horrible than not, for a variety of reasons. That time of our life is difficult for many of us. And that's why it's all the more important that we do our best to keep this tragedy from happening to others.
https://scontent-ord5-2.xx.fbcdn.net/...
There are many resources available for suicide prevention. Here are just a few of them:
www.in.gov/issp/
https://youth.gov/youth-topics/youth-...
https://www.healthychildren.org/Engli...
Rest in peace, Christian.
It is with broken hearts that our family is announcing that early this morning we found our son and brother Christian had committed suicide last night/early this morning, by swallowing a massive amount of prescription pills. We had a call from one of his teachers at approximately 9am, who had been alerted by some of his classmates that he had left some posts on Instagram at around 4am. We went to check on him, and unfortunately he was already gone. The only good thing is we were told by the coroner he went peacefully in his sleep. We aren't saying suicide is the way. Just that he went peacefully. We love him with all our hearts and will always miss him. Please pray for him to be at peace in heaven with Christ. One of the last things he posted was that only Christ could save him now. You are with Christ now. Be at peace. We love you! Fly high Squirt!!!
https://scontent-ord5-2.xx.fbcdn.net/...
Here's the obituary:
https://memorials.fairhavenfortwayne....
I think I'm having more trouble dealing with this than I did with Jeff's passing because my brother had a six decade life, while Christian's life was just beginning. Also because I DO understand, to an extent: My teenage years were more horrible than not, for a variety of reasons. That time of our life is difficult for many of us. And that's why it's all the more important that we do our best to keep this tragedy from happening to others.
https://scontent-ord5-2.xx.fbcdn.net/...
There are many resources available for suicide prevention. Here are just a few of them:
www.in.gov/issp/
https://youth.gov/youth-topics/youth-...
https://www.healthychildren.org/Engli...
Rest in peace, Christian.
April 1, 2023
It Was a Dark and Seriously Stormy Night
Ironically, I got busy with the weather and didn't get a new blog written--but this one's from nine years ago, and in internet terms it might as well be brand new.
I complain about winter weather a lot, so maybe it's time to complain about something else:
Spring weather.
Yes, spring arrived, kind of, like the proverbial lion. The last day of March brought us a tornado watch and thunderstorm warning. However, considering the blizzard warning in Minnesota and South Dakota--at the same time tornadoes raged through much of the nation--I won't complain.
Oh, who am I kidding?
In a Hoosier spring we can have a snowstorm one day, a flood the next, grass fires the day after that, and the traditional ice storm during basketball playoffs. It's actually possible to have an ice/fire tornado, if the conditions are right. I mean, wrong.
So it comes as no surprise that the Governor was delayed by snow drifts on his way to declare March 12 through 18 Severe Weather Preparedness Week. I’d have done it myself if security hadn’t kicked me out of his office.
I waited to put this out until after that week, so if something horrible happened it wouldn’t seem like I was going for ironic.
As part of the celebration … er … observation, the State of Indiana educates, conducts alert system tests, and otherwise tries to keep people from getting killed. Honestly, nothing brings down a wonderful spring day like death.
I thought I'd help out despite the Governor's restraining order, so let me explain what watch and warning levels and storm terms are:
A Watch means you should stay at your cookout, gaze at the blue sky and make fun of the weatherman right up until the first wind gust blows away your “kiss the cook” hat.
A Warning means that if you haven’t sought shelter, you will die.
A Funnel Cloud should not be mistaken for a funnel cake, which generally kills only one person at a time. Funnel clouds are just tornadoes that haven’t touched the ground; maybe they will, maybe they won’t. If you want to gamble, go to Vegas. Just to make it more fun, sometimes tornadoes reach the ground and start tearing things up even though the bottom part is still invisible. You could be looking at a “funnel cloud” right up until the moment your mobile home changes zip codes.
A Tornado is really, really bad.
Straight Line Winds can cause as much damage as tornadoes, but aren’t associated with rotation. You can often tell the damage path of these winds by finding people who are standing in the debris, insisting it was a tornado.
A Squall Line is what happens when I forget my wedding anniversary.
Thunderstorms are storms that produce thunder. See what I did, there?
Lighting kills more people than tornadoes, but of course tornadoes are more fun … um … attention grabbing. Tornadoes are like people who get drunk and try to jump motorcycles over sheds using homemade ramps: They’re senseless, spectacular, injury rates are high, and in the end nothing good comes from them except to remind people they’re bad.
Just the same, lightning is also no fun, and can strike miles away from where you think the storm is. Of people struck by lightning, 70% suffered serious long term effects, 10% are permanently killed, and 20% don’t admit being hurt, or didn’t hear the question.
The average forward speed of a tornado is 30 mph, but they can travel up to 70 mph … or remain motionless, which is really unfortunate if you happen to be under one at the time.
The average width of the funnel on the ground is about 100 yards. Think about that. And, like a flatulent Godzilla, that doesn’t include the wind damage around it. Some can get over a mile wide. (Tornadoes, I mean, not gassy Godzillas. Wow.) If you think about it, trying to outrun a 70 mph, mile wide tornado in a car is about as smart as trying to jump a shed from a homemade ramp after your tenth beer.
Tornadoes are most likely from April to June, which means pretty much nothing these days. The last time I took an airplane flight it was delayed by a tornado—in November.
So, when do you need to prepare for severe weather? Anytime. Remember, no matter what the season, it only takes a few beers to start building a ramp.
Remember, every time you buy a book, Godzilla rolls over and goes back to sleep. Save Tokyo.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
I complain about winter weather a lot, so maybe it's time to complain about something else:
Spring weather.
Yes, spring arrived, kind of, like the proverbial lion. The last day of March brought us a tornado watch and thunderstorm warning. However, considering the blizzard warning in Minnesota and South Dakota--at the same time tornadoes raged through much of the nation--I won't complain.
Oh, who am I kidding?
In a Hoosier spring we can have a snowstorm one day, a flood the next, grass fires the day after that, and the traditional ice storm during basketball playoffs. It's actually possible to have an ice/fire tornado, if the conditions are right. I mean, wrong.
So it comes as no surprise that the Governor was delayed by snow drifts on his way to declare March 12 through 18 Severe Weather Preparedness Week. I’d have done it myself if security hadn’t kicked me out of his office.
I waited to put this out until after that week, so if something horrible happened it wouldn’t seem like I was going for ironic.
As part of the celebration … er … observation, the State of Indiana educates, conducts alert system tests, and otherwise tries to keep people from getting killed. Honestly, nothing brings down a wonderful spring day like death.
I thought I'd help out despite the Governor's restraining order, so let me explain what watch and warning levels and storm terms are:
A Watch means you should stay at your cookout, gaze at the blue sky and make fun of the weatherman right up until the first wind gust blows away your “kiss the cook” hat.
A Warning means that if you haven’t sought shelter, you will die.
A Funnel Cloud should not be mistaken for a funnel cake, which generally kills only one person at a time. Funnel clouds are just tornadoes that haven’t touched the ground; maybe they will, maybe they won’t. If you want to gamble, go to Vegas. Just to make it more fun, sometimes tornadoes reach the ground and start tearing things up even though the bottom part is still invisible. You could be looking at a “funnel cloud” right up until the moment your mobile home changes zip codes.
A Tornado is really, really bad.
Straight Line Winds can cause as much damage as tornadoes, but aren’t associated with rotation. You can often tell the damage path of these winds by finding people who are standing in the debris, insisting it was a tornado.
A Squall Line is what happens when I forget my wedding anniversary.
Thunderstorms are storms that produce thunder. See what I did, there?
Lighting kills more people than tornadoes, but of course tornadoes are more fun … um … attention grabbing. Tornadoes are like people who get drunk and try to jump motorcycles over sheds using homemade ramps: They’re senseless, spectacular, injury rates are high, and in the end nothing good comes from them except to remind people they’re bad.
Just the same, lightning is also no fun, and can strike miles away from where you think the storm is. Of people struck by lightning, 70% suffered serious long term effects, 10% are permanently killed, and 20% don’t admit being hurt, or didn’t hear the question.
The average forward speed of a tornado is 30 mph, but they can travel up to 70 mph … or remain motionless, which is really unfortunate if you happen to be under one at the time.
The average width of the funnel on the ground is about 100 yards. Think about that. And, like a flatulent Godzilla, that doesn’t include the wind damage around it. Some can get over a mile wide. (Tornadoes, I mean, not gassy Godzillas. Wow.) If you think about it, trying to outrun a 70 mph, mile wide tornado in a car is about as smart as trying to jump a shed from a homemade ramp after your tenth beer.
Tornadoes are most likely from April to June, which means pretty much nothing these days. The last time I took an airplane flight it was delayed by a tornado—in November.
So, when do you need to prepare for severe weather? Anytime. Remember, no matter what the season, it only takes a few beers to start building a ramp.
Remember, every time you buy a book, Godzilla rolls over and goes back to sleep. Save Tokyo.
http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/&quo... R Hunter"
