Category: Milestones

When the Berlin Wall came down, we went back to share in the happiness of the German people. We had been over the summer before while Hubby had a temporary assignment with Pan Am, flying charters. I grew to love West Berlin, and hoped that one day it would be reunited with the East.

When it was, we went back and I had Hubby help me so I could stand on top of the Wall at the Brandenburg Gate. (I’m in the black pants and tan jacket.)

Here I am, with the Brandenburg Gate in the background, 1989.

(I was standing on top of the Wall!)

Many years later I befriended Uschi. A Berlin resident. At this point, the Wall was gone, and the area was made into a pedestrian walking mall. So much life altering history, in such a short period of time!

God Bless the men and women of our country. They serve us well, and hold our freedom in their hands and their hearts.

Thank you!

Veteran’s Day from Dackel Princess Maribeth on Vimeo.

Pictures taken at The New Hampshire Veteran’s Cemetery.

I woke up on Sunday and my computer had died. I think it must have been sometime in the night. All I know is that when I got up and tried to turn her on…nothing happened. I called my computer guru and he came at the start of the week.and pronounced her really and truly gone. He did, however, download all my programs onto an external hard drive and on Wednesday, Hubby and I  went shopping for a new laptop.

I’d seen cheap prices at Best Buy, but I warn you, they are high pressure salesmen, and they do not really care what they are selling you.

At one point I was getting light headed from hunger so we left to have lunch and I read all the sheets about their computers. I was not happy, since most of them did not have a CD/DVD drive.

So, we drove over to Sam’s and I found two I liked. I called my Guru, who at this point is on speed dial, and he helped me decide what machine to buy. An adorable ASUS Sonic Master.

Taking it out of the box and plugging it in and then turning it on, well I could feel my hands shake! But when I got to the start page I realized I was about to step into another frontier! Windows 8!

It’s been a challenge, but today Brad came and installed framework that gives me back my XP type frame work. Now I love the machine and I am having a great time. Once again, computer working is fun!

So that is where I have been these last few days. Here, but computer-less. Now I am up and running and happy to be back!

A friend of mine died today. It wasn’t the usual girl friend, or contemporary friend. No, Frank was very special. He was like a Grandfather to me. He was 96. He was born of December 7th “Pearl Harbor Day” and died “September 11”. I wonder if he knew.

I first met Frank when we started to build our home 15 years ago. I learned quickly that Frank liked to watch everything going on, and he loved to listen. He was actually a man of few words.

Frank was part of the “Greatest Generation”. He fought in World War 2 and was in a German Prison for about a year. IT did not make him bitter. He was, who he was. A simple, proud man.

His much loved wife had passed long before we arrived here, so I never met her, but his eyes got all misty when he spoke of her.

I brought him cookies and cakes, and jellies and jams. Things I knew he didn’t have. He was always so happy and would shakily hug me.

He heard I was putting in a garden and he brought me seeds for purple beans. I have had them in my garden ever since. I always brought him some too, as he never seemed able to grow anything in his very shady yard.

The last time I saw him he was in a chair in his room at the nursing home. He had a blanket across his lap and his big screen TV next to him. It was on, while he slept.

I did wake him, just so he would know I was there, and then he drifted back off to sleep. It broke my heart.

I’m thankful for knowing this brave and unique man. God speed Frankie “Digger” Dunn. I will cherish your memory all the days of my life.

Frank B. “Digger” Dunn, 96, of Meredith, passed away at Forest View Manor in Meredith, NH on September 11, 2014.

Frank was born December 7, 1917 in Sanbomton, N.H. to Leon Dunn and Marie Maple Dunn. He has been a resident of Meredith since the age of 4.

Frank worked for Frank Prescott at Prescott Lumber for many years. After World War II, he had a small trucking company which hauled lumber for Diamond Match Company among others. He started the first backhoe business in Meredith in 1959. He did all the digging for the town at the time. He enjoyed his work and made many friends. Everyone knew “Digger”. He retired in the late 1980s.

Frank served in the Army in WWII From 1941-1945. He was a PFC in the 20th Combat Engineers and was in several invasions in the European theatre. He was captured by the Germans and was a Prisoner of War for about a year.

He married Patricia Pettengill on March 8, 1952 and she predeceased him on June 19, 1996. He was also predeceased by brothers Arthur and Lewis.

Frank is survived by his daughter, Patrice and her husband Harold; granddaughter, Jennifer and her husband, Matt, great granddaughter, Isabelle; great-grandson, Brayden, a niece and several nephews.

That Fateful Day
Milestones

I think we all can tell you where we were, and what we were doing on that fateful day, five years ago.

September 11, 2001

It was a beautiful day here in New Hampshire. Sunny, bright, clear with blue skies. I was taking a shower getting ready for a dental appointment, while Hubby was working on shingling the house. It was a day like any other here.
Hubby had the TV in our bedroom pointed out the window so he could listen to the morning news.

Suddenly, I felt a hand on my arm and Hubby told me I had to get out of the shower now, something was happening. I was a little dazed and confused. I shut the water in the shower off and grabbed my towel.

Hubby and I sat in our family room watching Fox News, ABC, and CNN. A plane had hit one of the Twin Towers at the World Trade Center in downtown New York City.

While we watched, suddenly another plane came in and hit the other Tower!
We were both in shock. We listened to reports. No one was saying terrorism, not at first. But both Hubby and I knew.

We watched the Tower’s come down one and then the other. We knew people had died. We just didn’t know how many.

At 12:30 I drove to my dental appointment. There was not another car on the road. Not one. I got to my dental appointment and found that I was the only patient that hadn’t cancelled that day.
When I got home we watched the TV all day. I called my family and my close friends. Just to hear their voices.

It doesn’t matter your political affiliations, or how you feel about the war.
What matters is on September 11, 2001 innocent people died in New York City, In Washington, DC and in Shanksville, PA.

People like you and like me. Just because they were Americans.
That was the day I learned that we are no longer safe here at home.

I also learned that when our country is attacked in such a manner, we pull together and unify.

God Bless all who lost their lives that day, and all who serve this country each and every day to protect and defend us.

September 11, 2001: Basic Facts

Chronology
8:46 AM Plane crashes into the north tower of the World Trade Center.
9:03 AM Plane crashes into the south tower of the World Trade Center.
9:17 AM The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) shuts down all New York City area airports.
9:21 AM The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) halts all flights at U.S. airports. It is the first
time in history that air traffic has been halted nationwide.
9:38 AM Plane crashes into the Pentagon. Evacuation begins immediately.
9:45 AM The White House evacuates.
10:05 AM The south tower of the World Trade Center collapses.
10:10 AM A portion of the Pentagon collapses.
10:10 AM Plane crashes in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.
10:22 AM The State and Justice Departments, as well as the World Bank are evacuated.
10:28 AM The World Trade Center’s north tower collapses.
10:45 AM All federal office buildings in Washington, D.C. are evacuated.
1:44 PM Five warships and two aircraft carriers are ordered to leave the U.S. Naval Station
in Norfolk, Virginia to protect the East Coast.
4:10 PM Building 7 of the World Trade Center collapses.

The Flights
American Airlines Flight 11
From: Boston, Massachusetts (Logan Airport)
To: Los Angeles, California
Lives: 92 people on board
Crashed into North Tower of World Trade Center at 8:46 AM

United Airlines Flight 175
From: Boston, Massachusetts (Logan Airport)
To: Los Angeles, California
Lives: 65 people on board
Crashed into South Tower of World Trade Center at 9:03 AM

American Airlines Flight 77
From: Washington, D.C. (Dulles Airport)
To: Los Angeles, CA
Lives: 64 people on board
Crashed into the Pentagon at 9:38 AM

United Airlines Flight 93
From: Newark, New Jersey
To: San Francisco, California
Lives: 44 people on board
Crashed into rural Pennsylvania (southeast of Pittsburgh)

Victims
Victims came from more than 90 countries around the world.
The following are the number of people who died at each site:

World Trade Center 2,823 (includes airline passengers)
Pentagon 125 (not including plane victims)
Flight 11 – 92 people on board
Flight 175 – 64 people on board
Flight 77 – 64 people on board
Flight 93 – 44 people on board

The initial numbers are indelible: 8:46 a.m. and 9:02 a.m. Time the burning towers stood: 56 minutes and 102 minutes. Time they took to fall: 12 seconds. From there, they ripple out.

Fact Sheet
U.S. Department of State
Washington, DC
August 15, 2002

On Wednesday Hubby and I drove about an hour from our home and looked at a car. We’ve been talking about getting another vehicle since our 20 year old Jeep has literally rusted away, and is headed to the Junk yard at the end of this month.

The Jeep was our only four wheel drive vehicle, so we decided to watch out for a newer four wheel drive vehicle.

Now many people dislike ads on Facebook, but I saw a Toyota ad and followed it. We had done a lot of research and decided to look for an older Toyota Highlander. However I found an ad for a 2012 Highlander, with just over 8000 miles on it!

Skeptically, we drove down and looked it over. It’s got to be one of the cleanest used cars I have ever seen! And the car itself offers us all that we need for winters in New Hampshire!

She’s a pretty car, and drives very well. Her engine is quiet and the seats are comfortable, both in the front and in the back.

We haggled the price and did get it down some, and we both feel good about that. So today, we pick up the check at our bank and go and pick up the car. Then I told Hubby we simply cannot eat for the rest of the year.