Chicago Under the El

Train arrived in Chicago at 9:00 am. I found s Dunk’n Donuts under the El about two blocks east of the Willis Tower, which used to be the Sears Tower. Ruth and I went the top on our honey moon in 1987. The El is very loud when it goes by overhead. I’m sitting outside at a table next to two huge pumpkins on top of a couple bales. Many people stop by to admire them. One man said, “Nobody’s going to steal them things.”

“Nope,” I said, “not as long as I’m guarding them.”

“Is that why you’re sitting out here?” He asked.

I just smiled. I felt like saying, “Here’s your sign.” But since it was Chicago, the murder capital of America, I held my tongue.

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The Battle of New Orleans

The Battle of New Orleans was fought in late December, 1814 and early January, 1815, culminating in the final battle on January 8. The Americans, a ragtag bunch, made up of some regulars and some militia, plus volunteer free Blacks, Creoles, Natives, and s few French pirates We’re led byAndrew Jackson. The British had more soldiers and they were better armed and better trained. However when the final battle was over the British had suffered 2000 casualties and the Americans less than fifty. It was one of the most lopsided battles in the history of warfare. Ironically the battle was fought after the Treaty if Ghent had ended the War of 1812. The Americans victory ensured that the British would honor the terms. It also propelled Andrew Jackson into the awhite house. The pictures above were taken at the battlefield. A tell oblisk monument marks the center of the battlefield. The other picture is if the raised earthe n redoubt the Americans had thrown up, stretchin

My friend Wil Adams

Will Adams and I served together in Mortar Platoon, Charlie Company, 1/11th Infantry Battalion, 4th Infantry Division, Ft. Carson, Colorado, in 1975-1976. He was in charge of the Fire Direction Center and I commanded the squad of the number two gun. He and I climbed Mount Elbert, the highest mountain in Colorado. We also played on our platoons football team which was not only unbeaten in about eight games, but was in scored on. Wil was one of my closest friends. We shared a lot of good times. In this picture we are standing on the corner of Houston and Elm, directly below the window Oswald fired from. Will waited for Ruth and me to do the museum. Then we went out to Denny’s for lunch. It was great to see him again.

Dallas where JFK was assasinated

I am standing on the sidewalk reading the historical marker. Out in the street behind me is a white X painted where the Presidential limo was when Kennedy eat hit with the fatal head shot (the third shot). Farther up the street to my right an X marks the spot where the second shot hit him high on his back. This was the “magic bullet” that went through JFK’s back and then hit Connelly. That billet actually caused seven wounds. Beyond me is the Texas Book Drpository. Oswald shot from the far right window on the sixth floor. That window is behind the tree. Only the seventh floor can be seen from this angle. Ruth is standing next to the stone pedestal in which Zapruder stood and made his famous video of the assassination. Dealy Plaza is across the street behind her. This was taken up in the Sixth Floor Museum. This is the window Oswald shot three shots from. The boxes are arrranged just as they were on 11/22/63. This is the X on the street where the fatal shot hit JFK. Elm Street

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