Happy Father's Day

Remembering Those Who Gave All for Our Country

All gave some, some gave all.
Some stood through for the red, white, and blue
And some had to fall.
And if you ever think of me,
Think of all your liberties and recall,
Some gave all

 

         -- Billy Ray Cyrus

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Zombie Easter

 

From my short story "Cruise of the Living Dead":

     "Maybe this is not an infectious outbreak after all.” Reverend Stiles advanced toward the captain, summoning his courage. “Perhaps we’re witnessing some sort of miracle, a divine retribution to punish us for our sins.”

      “You can’t be serious?”

      “Doubt if you want,” Reverend Stiles responded accusatorily. “But if you’ve read the Bible, you’d realize resurrection is a common theme. Lazarus was brought back to life. And Jesus himself rose from the dead on the third day.”

      "I do read the Bible.  I just don’t recall Jesus rising from the dead and then eating his disciples.” 

Photos of Roswell

As promised, here are the photos from my day in Roswell, New Mexico. Half the city is an alien tourist trap (but still fun) and the other half are the historical sites related to the Roswell incident of July 1947. Before anyone asks, I don't know where the alien bodies are located (we lost control of them when extraterrestrial issues were transferred to the authority of the Department of Homeland Security in 2002).

The entrance to the former Roswell AFB, now the Roswell Air Center -- a commercial and residential area.

Hanger 18, where whatever was discovered at the Foster ranch was stored before being shipped to Wright-Patterson AFB.

The foundation of the base hospital where the alien corpses were brought for examination.

The former KGFL Radio Station which broadcast the official Army Air Force "crashed disk" release and made the incident famous.

The former Roswell AFB guest house where Mark Brazel, the Foster ranch worker who found and reported the crash of a UFO and the discovery of alien corpses, was held for five days before he agreed to recant his original story.

The UFO Museum in downtown Roswell is tacky but fun.

This representation of the alien autopsy looks so authentic.

Klatuu barata nicto.

Photos of Trinity Site

As promised, here are the photos I took last weekend during my trip to Trinity. For those unfamiliar with Trinity, it is the site of the first atomic bomb test on 16 July 1945 in the Jornada del Muerto desert thirty-five miles southeast of Socorro, New Mexico on what was then the USAAF Alamogordo Bombing and Gunnery Range, now the White Sands Missile Range. The site is only open two days a year.

The drive from Socorro to Trinity. The test site is at the base of the mountains directly ahead.

The entry gate.

The obelisk at ground zero. The perimeter fence in the background roughly delineates the crater created by the blast.

What the site looked like on 16 July 1945.

The remains of one of the tower mounts.

The obelisk at Ground Zero.

The McDonald ranch house where the core for plutonium Fat Man bomb was assembled prior to being transported to Trinity.

Three shots of the room where the core was assembled.

What the ranch and the surrounding buildings looked like in 1945.

What the site looks like today. Everything except the McDonald Ranch and the windmill was torn down shortly after the test.

On a lighter note, the Big G was there celebrating his birthday.

Join Me This Sunday at the Authors By the Sea Event

You just received your tax refund and don't know what to do with all that money? I have a solution. Buy books. And the best place to do so is at The Author's By the Sea event this Sunday, 14 April, from 2 to 6 PM at the Cisco Brewery, 35 Corporate Drive, Pease Tradeport, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Myself and dozens of other excellent writers will be there. Beer and books. Can you ask for anything more?