Icewind's Ramblings

A little different than Joni Mitchell’s but it what I’m in the mood for. I love the beat and need the uplift tonight after a week of losing another friend. Enjoy! Ice

Those words made famous by Rodney King, the man that was beaten by the LA police department in 1991 was found dead in his swimming pool in California. The police beating was captured on videotape by an onlooker and brought about showcasing the brutality and bad police tactics in LA.   When the trial ended with acquittals for three of the officers and the fourth ended in mistrial, the verdict caused one of the deadliest and costly race riots in the country’s history.   His words spoken on television at the height of the riots, “Can We All Get Along?” would later set the tone for the end of the siege on LA. Over they years since the incident King continued to have a troubled life in and out of jail for various charges and even tried a couple reality shows trying to kick his addictions.   Last year’s VH1 show Celebrity Rehab featured King as one of those trying to kick his alcoholism. There are probably two sides to this story but hopefully this troubled man finds peac...

It’s sad that another one of our musical star’s brightness dimmed and snuffed out.   Another God given talent wasted away by fame and fortune. We have seen it before . . . Whitney’s is another in a long list of stars who seemingly had it all and let it slip away, or in my mind p*ssed it away, such a waste. There will be many others touting her fame and saying it should not have happened but I guess with my age I am getting cynical in looking at those who wasted the talents given them. Some were superstars . . . Michael Jackson, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and who could forget my childhood favorite, Elvis. All great musicians in their own right but in the end . . . sadly druggies who could not function without something to destroy themselves taking away from my memory of most of the great music they made. Elvis had great music and it is hard for me to remember that but always it comes to mind that he died from a drug overdose, same thing for the others. Whitney Houston did ...

We all hear it . . . we see it in the changes as we walk through our daily routines.   Sometimes it subtle when it lasts for several weeks but here in Alaska things seem to be in a much faster progression and sometimes it just jumps out at you. I have been thinking a lot about change lately and what brings on those variances that make up our lives.   Do we bring it on ourselves or by chance did we allow it to just happen unaware that in an instant (or over a longer period) things changed. In my life music has always taken me to many places and in my ipod I have a collection of things that I constantly listen to during my travels or just in my car going between places.   I have certain music that I listen to every morning that hopefully sets the mood of my day and others that I pull up from times gone by that bring back certain memories or events in my life and the music that was associated with those times. Music is dear to us and we tend to hold onto it while techn...

The tragedy of 9 years old, Christina Taylor Green being killed in Arizona while she was learning about the freedoms in this country and was on her way to meet Rep. Gabrielle Giffords since she was just becoming interested in politics having been elected to student council. Christina was born on a day of overwhelming tragedy, 9/11/2001. She died on another. As a baby, Christina's photograph appeared in a book commemorating the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.   Faces of Hope: Babies Born on 9/11 was a project undertaken by a Pennsylvania mother who sought out children from each of the 50 U.S. states to be featured in the book. "A baby is God's opinion that the world should go on." - Carl Sandburg "I think it's something hopeful," Christine Naman, the book's author, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 2002.    "Maybe they were born to help us remember those who were lost, as well as to help us remember the things we should fight to hold...

This has been a rather long week with travel, the work grind of a busy summer schedule, and the loss of letting family go away in search of her destiny. I totally understand that need as I have gone through it myself but it does not make it any easier from a parent’s perspective in letting go to see the ‘spreading of the wings, flying away’ from home. It is an empty feeling house now and will take some time getting used to the lack of activity. This week also had the sad passing of two people I have admired for many years.   Tony Curtis died at the age of 85, a man who entertained us and showed us over coming ones own demons with an artistic flare can heal oneself in the long run.   We have missed your presence from the ‘silver screen’ and one of my favorites was the funny 1965 sleeper, “Boeing, Boeing.”   Jerry Lewis was also in the movie. One of my favorite writers, Stephen J. Cannell died today in California.   He entertained us in the 80’s with so many show...

Alaska and the nation lost a great fighter for the American way of life especially in “The Last Frontier” yesterday when a floatplane he was in crashed in the mountains of western Alaska near Dillingham.                                      (origin of photo unknown) Of the nine people on board the aircraft, four people survived the crash. “Uncle Ted” as most Alaskans called him fought hard to bring Alaska from a Territory to statehood.  His legacy will be the 49 th star on the American flag as well as his tireless work to bring a better way of life for rural Alaskans, mostly natives who continue the subsistence lifestyle of many generations. As word spread last night and into this morning of his being on the downed aircraft the wave of concern and remembrances flowed from all sections of the...

It is sad to see so many child stars fall by the wayside. Over the years tragedy or misfortune has struck many of our favorite television child actors.  Oddly often times many if not all cast members find themselves in trouble or have abuse issues whether it is with alcohol or drugs.  Dana Plato died in 1999 and Gary Coleman died last week.  Of the three children on that show Todd Bridges is still around having his own troubles with cocaine addiction and altercations with his former dealer and a tenant which lead to legal troubles. One Day at a Time, Family Affair, Eight is Enough, and Family Ties all had kids who either died before maturity or old age or ran afoul and spent time behind bars . . . sadly not what their bright futures seemed as we watched week after week on the boob tube. Then we have the pathetic case of Lindsey Lohan who in the re-make of The Parent Trap looked so promising as an actress with a star on the rise . . . only to sink into depths of who ...

I ended up going out of town last week and did not queue this one up to post while I was away so I wanted to get this one out now. My generation is slowly dying off. This has been another hard week to watch or read the news as almost everyday this past week someone from my generation has died.  This summer has seen many deaths from the ‘baby boomer’ generation. It may have come after a bout of cancer, a heart attack, or just a passing of those who brought music, laughter, or a great movie or television role.  It is a constant reminder that life is precious and to not miss out on living it while you can for you never know what changes may come in the future. To some old friends who brought much to this world, we will miss you and your ability to make us laugh, sing, or be absorbed in the drama on the screen before us. Patrick Swayze Henry Gibson Mary Travers This summer could come to be known as the summer when baby boomers began to turn to the obituary...

Trying to sit and write something tonight at this late hour I am checking the news and came across something that deserves mention. I first read the book “Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption” and at the time I was not a big fan of Steven King or his many novellas. There was something that captured my imagination and it had no car chases or when the movie came out several years later no special effects. The book had great writing, strong characters and themes for the every man in each of us to live our lives with Hope, Friendship, and an unsaid understanding that we can endure almost anything. I cannot say how many times I have watched the movie as it has drawn me to watch it over and over again sometimes completely or even while flicking through the channels and I spot it on TBS or some other station that continually replays it. I think it is one for all times and is always in my top five list of movies along with Lonesome Dove, Silverado, Last of the Dogma...

Bob May, who donned The Robot's suit in the hit 1960s television show "Lost in Space," has died. He was 69. His line to one of the children, "Danger, Will Robinson," became a national catch phrase. One of my favorite programs growing up and “The Robot” was always one of our fun Halloween costumes made out of cardboard boxes and other items found around our neighborhood. I guess this starts to date our lives as more of these actors are sick or have died these last couple of years. Those were simpler times . . . no ipod or xbox to occupy your time, just a stick and your imagination to fight off the bad guys and explore new worlds. Where did those times go as we advanced technology without holding on to the things that made us who we are? It was a stable day at the hospital with my daughter mostly sleeping as her medicine worked and we await more tests. She will see a gastroenterologist hopefully tomorrow for more exams to see ...

It has been another crazy week here in the Arctic northland. We have had several days of milder temperatures, falling gasoline prices (it finally dropped below $ 3.00 a gallon here in Anchorage ), and several days of off and on snow showers. I saw Aurora one night this week earlier in the evening than I normally see the lights. Work endeavors pulled in many directions all week keeping us busy trying to stay ahead of the game. We sent crews out in bush Alaska to start work on another health clinic and in an almost predictable time found several of our conex containers were missing some of our plumbing materials. We suspect that they may not have been loaded fully and made the several barges that carried our equipment and materials to the jobsite. We scurried around the last several days buying new materials and getting things air lifted out so the crew was not waiting around. Things turned costly quickly flying things out especially after sending things out on the...

Paul Newman died yesterday at 83, thanks for the work in so many great movies . . . The racing over the years . . . and the countless charity you have given to so many. You will be missed. "Sometimes nothing can be a pretty cool hand." RIP & God speed. Ice