Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Tragedies, Memories...

Today is the 39th anniversary of the assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy (Bobby). It always gets to me, every year -- and it always will. If you haven't seen the Emilio Estevez movie BOBBY, rent it this week. Reach back and touch a hero.

The following URL will take you to an article I wrote several months back after seeing the movie for the first time. It was published in my hometown newspaper and syndicated in a few others. Please read it before you continue with the rest of this blog entry...

http://dwb.thenewstribune.com/opinion/othervoices/story/6260249p-5463502c.html

Bobby was shot at close range with a handgun just a little after midnight on this date in 1968 and passed away at 1:44 a.m. on June 6, 1968. That was a sad, sad day for me. I read everything I could get my hands on about him -- good and bad, from friends and foes alike -- and came away with the opinion that this fellow had been an exemplary man. (His enemies helped bring me to that conclusion, too -- not just his friends. People who have no enemies generally leave pretty anemic legacies, with the obvious exception of DeForest Kelley
-- and you and me, of course! HA HA HA HA HA!)

You could disagree with RFK politically and I'd have no huge quibble with that. (He wasn't really a liberal, as liberals and those against liberals so often claim. He was a patrician, a man who felt led to shepherd, guide, bestow blessings.) But if you HATED him -- I believe there is an issue in your life that needs to be examined. The man, in my opinion, was exemplary -- even during those tense times when it was necessary for him to be a bulldog. His anger was righteous anger, not ego-based. He was out to change the world, "to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of the world." If he hadn't been among the movers and shakers during the Cuban Missile Crisis, that confrontation may well have started World War III with nuclear arsenals. No, Bobby was a peace-keeper... an ardent supporter of sanity in an insane world.

He will always be a hero of mine. Always. I miss him every day.

The eighth anniversary of De's passing is right around the corner, too -- June 11th. And my beloved Grandma B passed away on June 10th the year she died (1961). This is not a particularly great month for heroes of mine, is it? But my nephew Phil was born June 9, 1975 so I guess he's the one now charged with keeping the train going down the track where my personal heroes are concerned. He hasn't let me down, either!

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Alison Winter (Senorita Invierno) is a couple days into her pilgrimage walk. She got a slow start because the plane she was traveling in almost crashed and in the shuffle her luggage was lost for a day and a half or more. You really should be keeping up with her if you aren't. She has a terrific sense of humor (comedy of the absurd) and gets through things with a joke that would kill a water buffalo outright. Here is her blogspot: http://senoritainvierno.blogspot.com/ Check it out at least once a week. Today she emailed to encourage me (see the comment attached to yesterday's blog) and then appended: "My feet hurt." Now, that has to be the least surprising thing I can imagine her saying at this point in her journey! I had to laugh -- and no, I'm not sadistic. I imagine her feet will toughen up quickly and she will forget the sensation and get through the journey weighing less and feeling triumphant -- or I miss my guess entirely.

She has hooked up with some interesting fellow pilgrims already. I'm hooked on her journey. Hope you are, too. I may have to wash her mind out with soap when I see her in Vegas, though! When she envisions "getting even" in print, it makes me want to dial 9-1-1 and report a potential crime spree! But I know her well enough to know that her imaginings are all in good fun and a result of extreme frustration.

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I'm pretty sure I'll be appearing at TWO conventions this year. The first is already confirmed (Creation's STAR TREK Convention in Las Vegas in August) and I feel quite sure that the second one will be confirmed in the next few days or weeks. The potential convention is Mountain Con http://mountaincon.org/x/page/location.html in Salt Lake City, to be held September 21-23 this year. I have already asked for and received Friday September 21st off from work -- that's how close I am to feeling certain it will come to pass. Jani Fleet is making some inquiries and working to arrange what's needed to make it a done deal. So... let's go ahead and claim it and start talking it up among your friends in the Rocky Mountain states. If you don't want the nervous breakdown of the Vegas convention (where 12K-15K fans congregate), consider the much tamer Mountain Con, where everybody knows your name. (Okay, I borrowed that from CHEERS, but you get the idea.) This is a fan-run convention. They're usually a lot more laid-back, restful and personal than the mega-cons Creation is noted for... Pick your poison and attend one or the other. But again, GET YOUR BOOKS IN ADVANCE! If you want me to personalize a book to you, please DO NOT expect to find a lot of my books to buy at either convention. (Hey, they're heavy.... and I never can guess how many people will want them... and if I buy them to re-sell them I more or less just break even instead of realizing a little profit. So go to this website NOW http://www.authorhouse.com/BookStore/ItemDetail~bookid~7780.aspx

and order your copy. If you buy it here instead of at a convention, you can get the HARDBOUND edition for what the SOFTCOVER edition will cost you at the convention. How's that for a deal? And you will have time to READ it, and ask follow-up questions when we get together instead of being in the dark the whole time about my adventures in Kelleyland. So PLAN AHEAD to...

a.) avoid the rush and be at the front of the book-signing line because your copy will already be in-hand when the book-signing location and time is announced, and

b.) ensure you won't be disappointed when the few books Creation offers run out

I don't want anyone to be disappointed.

Softcover books take about 7-10 days to arrive after you order; hardcover editions take 10-14 days... so don't wait until the last minute to order. DO IT NOW, while the idea is fresh in your mind, okay?

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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Kristine,

It had passed me that it was the 39th Anniversary.

Some things are so tragic that it's hard to think about them.

I feel this way about JFK and RFK, now.

Alison said...

Yes, 'my feet hurt' was meant to make you laugh. A German doctor tried to make me laugh today by telling me my left foot may need to be amputated (my pinky toe has exploded). I'm in pain but having the time of my life. The only really annoying thing is that internet is one euro for 15 minutes here. I have to wait for a cheaper place to update my blog.

I have a dark sense of humour. Couldn't hurt a fly. However, all mosquitos deserve death. And wasps.

Bye for now.

*limps off*