Just Try Not To cry

This One...

...put tears in my eyes:

Wanna Make Me Bawl Like A Baby?

Play a video like this one:

And We Think Canada Post...

...is bad:

West Village woman receives war-time letter sent 70 years ago and is now trying to track down the lieutenant or his family

"A New York woman claiming to have received a mysterious letter sent to her apartment nearly 70-years ago by a lieutenant during World War II is seeking the public’s help to track down its author.

Writer and actor Abbi Jacobson says that in February she discovered the startling handwritten letter in the mail box of her West Village apartment with a time stamp dating it to 1944 from Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.

Lt. Joseph O. Matthews, a name Jacobson says she’s never heard, penned the letter to his wife, Mrs. Joseph O Matthews, that November."

Other than that, it's sort of a sweet story.

Stories That Make You Go...

...Aaaawwwwweeee:

Medals belonging to Sask. veteran returned to family

"A car crash killed John “Jack” Austin Gibbens in 1957, but his surviving relatives caught a glimpse of the Saskatchewan man for one afternoon when a box of his war medals were returned to the family.

The Canadian military medals and patches from the Second World War stored in an old chocolate box were lost several years ago and recently found by Saskatoon resident Thom Cholowski. The medals revealed much about the man’s military service, but only small clues about their owner.

After months of exhaustive detective work leading him to Gibbens, Cholowski, a conservation manager at the Western Development Museum, returned the medals to the veteran’s family."

[---]

"Seven of Jack’s relatives, together spanning three generations, met with Cholowski at the museum, where he detailed his research efforts and what he learned about Jack, his wife Hazel and daughter Dianna — both died with Jack in the car crash — before returning the medals."

[---]

"Jack’s medals — including one so well cared for that frequent polishing had erased much of its engraved image — were stolen from a farmhouse several years ago, according to the family.

Cholowski found the medals in a display case at a Saskatoon Value Village. The contents lacked anything identifying the owner."

RTWT

Aaaand...

49 abandoned California dogs take RV trip to new homes in Canada

"Forty-nine dogs of all sizes, ages and breeds, have moved countries to seek their first loving home ever. The dogs were in an overcrowded 'no-kill' shelter in Palm Springs, Calif. but following 8 days in an RV are now citizens of Halifax, Nova Scotia."

Who couldn't fall in love with a face like that?

Oh, Man...

...How could you not "just want to hug him". His story, if you believe it, which I do, is so inspiring, just like his voice:

You Know What I Find...

...sorta funny, in a pathetic way? Every day there continues to be headlines about global warming, and as often as not, those headlines conflict with one another:

Will U.S. role at climate talks change after storm?

Climate change evident across Europe, says report

UN says carbon cuts too slow to curb dangerous warming

‘Cooling World’ Is Hot Potato For UN Climate Summit

Global warming did not cause superstorm Sandy


A Problem Solving Approach to Global Warming

Leaders face riddle of lack of warming

Well, that's settled. On to the next controversy, then:

HO ho no! Santa shortage critical

Arrest for Saying Santa’s Not Real? Grinch Arrested

'awkey

So. It looks like we may not have any NHL hockey this winter.

WHO THE HELL CARES!!!

Those hockey players make waaaaay too much money anyway. If they invest it wisely, by the time they become washed-up old goats - say at 35 or something - they could be sitting pretty for the rest of their lives.

Seriously, I'd far rather watch a bunch of kids playing shinny in the streets.

Baby Beluga....

...has died. :-(

I wonder if my kids know?

Heavy, Heavy Sigh

"An Ottawa man hurled his two-year-old son from an Australian bridge this weekend before jumping to his own death, witnesses say."

[---]

""(Lees') kindness to students, his gentlemanly approach and enthusiasm for teaching were acknowledged by students, parents and staff alike," Hensman told the Courier-Mail".

Why? Oh why? Oh why? First of all, why are some people so inclined to presenting a totally false front? Secondly, if you were depressed and ready to commit suicide, why take your little boy with you?

The world just sucks. I'm not usually all negative and forlorn about the world, but this one, or, for that matter, any story that involves the senseless killing or abuse of little children is one that makes me very, very depressed. There has to have been help out there for this man. Sir, you could have sought help for your child's sake, at the very least.

Hey!!

Are you a depressive sort of person? Do you enjoy being depressed? Wanna spend three hours being really depressed. Just watch this three part TVO series (perhaps originally British) about a serial killer murdering young drug addicted prostitutes in Ipswich, England. If your not sniffing and wiping your eyes while you're watching this, there's something wrong with your heart.

Now, go hug your daughters.

Thank God!!

These stories don't usually end this way.

Amazing Story

Remains of First World War Alberta soldier finally identified

"The remains of a First World War soldier from Alberta who died in France nearly 94 years ago have finally been identified, the Department of National Defence announced Thursday.

The soldier was identified as Pte. Thomas Lawless, a member of the 49th Battalion."

[---]

"Lawless’s unidentified remains were found in October 2003 by construction workers in northern France, near Vimy Ridge, and were returned to Canada because of metal insignia identifying his battalion.

Lawless was born on April 11, 1889, in Ireland but moved to Calgary before he enlisted.

He died during a two-day battle near Avion, France, which was a well-rehearsed raid that intended to move enemy German lines, said Hans Brink, a volunteer with the museum. There were many casualties during the confusion of the night raid, he said.

“At the completion of the raid, 16 members were missing,” he said.

One of those missing soldiers was Lawless, a fact which helped doctors and scientists narrow down their search when they set out to identify the remains."

[---]

"Pte. Lawless’s remains will be buried at La Chaudière Military Cemetery in Vimy, France, on March 15, with members of his Irish family in attendance."

I don't think I'm being too much of a sop when I say stories like this bring tears to my eyes.

Well, This is a Good Way to End the Day

Appeal up in smoke, as court says pot’s no sacrament

"The Hamilton-based Church of the Universe – a group that uses marijuana as a religious sacrament — won’t be sparking up with the blessings of the court.

The Church, through its Toronto G13 mission, lost its bid Monday to be exempt from Canada’s pot laws.

It’s the latest defeat the church has had before the courts, including appeals to the Supreme Court of Canada on issues regarding its use of pot and other issues.

Last year, the federal court declined to hear appeals regarding the 2007 marijuana trafficking convictions against church founders Walter Tucker and Michael Baldasaro. In 1992, the Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal by Tucker and his wife, Joanne, of a 1989 provincial court ruling that committed them for trial on drug charges.

Baldasaro, who ran for Hamilton mayor last year, was dismayed by the latest ruling, but said it won’t change their views. The judge said she found church members sincere in their use of pot but she did not think it was possible to create a workable religious exemption."

Where are Cheech and Chong when ya need 'em?

Tell Me Something

Is there anyone in the world who is not crying along with that little boy and his father?



Live coverage from BBC.

TV audience estimated 1 billion.

From BBC: "The miners' story is reaching all corners of the world. Kelvin Kamang in Kalulushi, Zambia, writes: "I am a miner at a small copper mine called Chibuluma Mine. We felt so bad when we heard that our brothers where trapped in Chile. The good news about their likely escape has brought much joy and happiness to every miner here.""

From a rescued miner: "I have been with the devil, but I grabbed God's hand..."

Yer Sunday Morning Tearjerker

At Arlington, Each Soldier has a Special Lady

"The ladies insist they are not mourners. They come to honor, not to grieve. "An Arlington lady doesn't cry," is practically a mantra."

That would disqualify me right off the bat.