Today I was honored to give the keynote speech at the Marysville, Ohio, Memorial Day program.  Hundreds of citizens braved 90 degree heat to honor our fallen.  This is what I said:

 

Thank you, General Decker. And thank you and the Memorial Day committee for inviting me to speak on this very important day.

I want to start out by saying to every single person who ever wore a military uniform, thank you for your service to our country.  Your sacrifice and hard work are…

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My apologies for not posting this sooner.  Things have been slightly busy (OK, I am lying.  It's been crazy!!)  This is a picture of me on Day Three of the Washington, D.C. trip.  A fellow chaperone told me to look like I was doing something important.  I am not sure if that's how it came out, but oh well.

On day…

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Another eventful day in the nation's capital.



We began our day at the United States Capitol building. The tour begins with an impressive video about the Legislative Branch. Then you don headphones to be able to hear your tour guide. My favorite part is the rotunda. It is huge, historic and beautiful. It's hard to imagine the likes of Reagan and Kennedy lying in state there.



After the Capitol, we toured the Bureau of Engraving and Printing where currency is printed. The… Continue

Read my post earlier today for the background information, but here is what I did today in DC:



We went to Arlington National Cemetery as the very first stop. While there we ran into an Honor Flight Group from Iowa. They were at The Changing of the Guards ceremony with us. Amazing stuff. The tombstones stand like soldiers, dress right dress in their final formation. The kids loved it.



Next it was the Iwo Jima Memorial. The story the tour guide reads about the six Marines… Continue

As I write this, I am on a motorcoach with thirty 8th grade girls on the way to our nation's capital. That may sound like torture, but to be the one who teaches them about D.C. in the classroom, then physically take them there is an honor and pleasure. I also have four other fine chaperones. The four days are like watching little children open presents on Christmas morning, and I never tire of it.



This is something like the 18th time I have been to D.C.. I am quite sure you would be… Continue

The Now Softer Sig Harder

                                                                      By Colonel Ronald L. Albers, USAF, retired

 

It was February 25, 1945, at a remote airfield in eastern Bavaria near the small village of Pocking.  Nazi warplanes were well hidden in areas cleared into the forest, then covered with netting and other camouflage. These were special aircraft at this particular airdrome that no other field possessed. The field also held some of…

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Today I entertained a group of Civil War re-enactors. They spent the day with my eighth graders and showed them the life of a Union soldier.



One station was Camp Life. Of course soldier's rations were a topic of conversation. Hard tack along with split peas, coffee beans, Navy beans, and rice showed the rudimentary and tough life these soldiers lived.



On a sort of dare, I was given a "new" piece of hard tack. And hard it was. I used my molars and still had to take a few… Continue

While snuggling with my three year old little girl this evening, I was watching Pawn Stars on the History Channel.  A person came into the shop with a "Short Snorter".  Don't worry if this term is foreign to you, I had no clue what it was.

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