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I was logging into Audible this morning to download a book that someone recommended to me and discovered, in a note on the front page, that David Eddings had passed away on Tuesday.

I was introduced to Mr. Eddings almost 20 years ago by a member of the staff at Oxford Books here in Atlanta, who almost negligently pulled the first few books of the Belgariad off the shelf and handed them to my ex-wife. We devoured those books, and went on the read the Mallorean as well. Later on I read the Elenium and the Tamuli, as well as his standalone novels set in the world of the Belgariad.

His most popular writings always touched on the time-worn themes of a “man of destiny”, engaged in a quest, struggling against the forces of evil to determine the fate of the world. The theme may have been common, but his rich characters and his ability to convey humor, tragedy, triumph and detail brought the books to life for me. I frequently re-read the Garion books, as well as the Sparhawk adventures, and I always feel like I’m revisiting stories told around the fire with old friends, and I’m often surprised when I read a passage and discover something that I had missed before. The books were amazing, and I’ve always found them much more accessible than Tolkien and other “masters” of the genre.

Eddings, always self-effacing, is reputed to have said in an interview once a reader was no longer challenged by his writings, they were free to then move onto "somebody important like Homer or Milton." I think he underestimated himself. I may visit other worlds, but I always come back to that busy kitchen on Faldor’s farm in central Sendaria.

I’ve never talked to anyone who has read any of his stories that didn’t feel the same. Such is the power and legacy of Mr. Edding’s work.

I find it particularly poignant that the book I’ve been listening to this week is “Domes of Fire” (Book 1 of the Tamuli). I’ve been waiting for it to come to audio book, and I was almost giddy when I found it finally. I’ll finish the series for the hundredth or so time soon, only this time, it will be with a tear in my eye and a profound gratitude to the man who shared this wonderful world with me.

Rest in peace, sir. You will be missed, and we are richer by far for your wonderful works.

NEW YORK (AP) — James T. Newman, a Vietnam War helicopter pilot whose rescues of downed airmen earned him the Distinguished Service Cross and other honors, has died. He was 73.

Newman’s son, Jay, said he died Sunday at the University of North Carolina medical center in Chapel Hill of complications associated with lung cancer.

Newman was twice nominated for the Medal of Honor, the highest military award for valor. While he did not receive that medal, he did get a Distinguished Service Cross, the nation’s second-highest award for combat valor, the Silver Star, four Distinguished Flying Crosses, the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and 23 Air Medals, among others.

In an interview years later, the Georgia native said he could "get the shakes" in recalling such incidents although at the time he had felt "no fear."

He first served in Vietnam in 1966, suffering a leg wound that nearly led to an amputation. Regaining flight status, he returned in 1970 as commander of C Troop, 2/17 Air Cavalry, 101st Airborne Division.

His first nomination for the Medal of Honor came in February 1971, when he rescued four U.S. crewmen from a crashed medevac helicopter on a mountaintop base in Laos where South Vietnamese Rangers were under heavy attack by North Vietnamese troops.

The same week, he rescued two other downed pilots by chopping down small trees with his main rotor blade, an act that astonished helicopter experts but earned Newman a Silver Star.

Five months later, Newman rescued two more pilots injured in a crash near the Laotian border, spotting a flash from their signal mirror and extracting the men with seconds to spare.

Richard Frazee, another former C Troop member, called Newman "a man of immeasurable courage who made us all feel invincible."

In 2000, Newman was inducted into the 101st Airborne Division’s Hall of Fame at Fort Campbell, Ky.
Burial will be in Arlington National Cemetery, the family said.

…like the moon and the stars and the sun."

28 years ago today, John Lennon was killed. I was nine years old.

My father is a HUGE Beatles fan, and consequently, I was raised listening to them. I remember being devastated and confused when I heard it on the radio. I couldn’t understand why someone would want to kill someone else. I cried a lot the next day, and I remember my teacher asking me why I was crying and being somewhat stunned that a child of nine would be that upset over a musician being killed.

Take a moment and remember the man behind the music.

The tech community has been holding its breath for over a week now, praying for a man that most of us have never met. James Kim, his wife, and his three daughters disappeared without a trace after Thanksgiving while driving in a dangerous and remote part of Oregon. We allowed ourselves hope earlier this week when we found out that rescuers had located the car, and miraculously, the wife and children were alive and in reasonably good shape. Kati Kim kept her children alive against all hope through her bravery and ingenuity.

Today, we learned that James’ body had been found. He set out on foot on Saturday, nine days after becoming lost, to try and find help. It’s a hard blow to take, even though most of us couldn’t have picked James out of a line up. He was one of our own, and we were pulling for him.

The media (indeed, even the media in our own little world of technology) and those who think they know better will argue about the merits of going off into unknown conditions in the middle of winter in Oregon. Sure, on paper, it might look like a much better plan to hunker down and wait for the cavalry, but we’ll likely never know what drove James to leave the car and his family. After nine days, this man must have decided that the cavalry wasn’t coming, and he had to take matters into his own hands.

He must have known that it was a dicey proposition at best, and he still left the car to search for help. He staked his life against the chance of saving those he loved, and ultimately, he died while trying to save his wife and his daughters. His family meant more to him than his own safety.

James faced up to the ultimate measure of a man, and he was not found wanting. I only hope that if I am ever measured in this way, I will have the courage to say the same.

Rest in peace, James. We’re all proud of you.

*follow up thought – Someone pointed out to me today that the reason we all rallied around this story was its "closeness to home". Sure, we all hear about and sympathize with all the bad things happening in the world, but we can completely personalize the idea of making a wrong turn and getting lost.. I think that makes a lot of sense.

Cammy passed away today at around noon. We don’t know what caused it, but we assume that she had some kind of underlying condition. We were fighting the eating problem in hopes that that was the only condition, but apparently it wasn’t.

Cammy and I met in 1996, just after she was born. I was going through a divorce, and since I lost custody of both my cats, I decided to pick out another one. She was from a litter of cats that lived with a friend’s relative. I had my eye on a little calico, but when I put my hand in the cage to get her, this little black ball of fur woke up, looked at me, and meowed loudly.

I decided that I had been picked, so we went to pick out cat accessories.

She was a very opinionated lady. She would let you know when it was time to pet her, and she would DEFINATLY let you know when it was time to leave her alone. Her favorite trick was a downright freaky vertical leap with a back flip. I saw her jump at least three feet straight up one night.

Cammy was a wonderful cat, and a good friend.

We came a long way together, didn’t we Cammy? I miss you.

Some things don’t change. I still get sad when I read this – K

An American icon is gone.

"When the Lord calls me home, whenever that may be, I will leave with the greatest love for this country of ours and eternal optimism for its future," Reagan wrote in a final address to the nation, "I know that for America there will always be a bright dawn ahead."

My heartfelt condolences to the families of those lost in the destruction of the space shuttle this morning. Your loved ones were lost in the pursuit of something greater than all of us, and they will be missed, even by those who had never heard their names before, and their memories will be honored forever.

In Memorium:
Shuttle Commander Rick D. Husband
Pilot William C. McCool
Payload Commander Michael P. Anderson
Mission Specialists:
David M. Brown
Kalpana Chawla
Laurel Clark
Illan Ramon

“They Slipped the Surly Bonds of Earth to Touch the Face of God”