Ken Burns got me thinking about veterans, Veterans’ Day, and one veteran in particular.

When I talked to him about his series, The War, he told me he wanted to tell the story of World War II from “the bottom up”. There were millions of those stories about the War, but now, veterans of that war are dying at a rate of 1,000 per day.

My dad.

Like so many other veterans, my Dad (pictured left) didn’t talk about his experiences much. He was drafted at the age of 32, he served as a rifleman in northern France, Rhineland, Ardennes and Central Europe, he nearly got killed at least once, and he came back home. Perhaps he felt his story wasn’t unique because WWII touched everyone. If you weren’t fighting, you were home working in a defense plant, trying to figure out how to get to work on your rationed gasoline.

My Dad served in Europe with the 94th Division (you can see the insignia on his helmet). When I was little, I would ask him to tell me another story about “the war”. At the time, I really didn’t know what “the war” was, but I knew it was an important part of his life.

He told me about a friend of his, Paul Hart, who was shot to death by a Nazi sniper while next to my Dad.

I learned that my Dad earned his Purple Heart on the front lines when a bullet clipped off the bottom of his ear. Luckily, someone had asked him a question and he turned to head to reply. That question saved his life.

I heard about a friend of his from the French resistance, who managed to survive the war only to die in a motorcycle accident in Algeria.

He told me about the Russian soldiers for whom he served as a translator when they were liberated from Nazi POW camps. He feared that they were no better off returning to the Soviet Union to face an uncertain fate.

I heard stories about frostbite, marching until your boots rotted and fell apart.

But the best story involved being on a train with others who were injured. The Paymaster was walking through the cars, distributing pay envelopes, asking the names of the soldiers. “Grip”, my father said. “Get out of here”, said the Paymaster. “I just paid you in the other car”. My Dad replied with language he cleaned up for my young ears at the time and said, “No, I haven’t been in another car”. The Paymaster told him, “Well, I just paid a fellow named Grip in the other car.” At that point, my father whistled. In my family, we had a whistle that all of us recognized. I can’t describe it, but I remember the seven notes.

When my Dad heard the whistle returned, he hobbled to the next car to find one of his brothers, whom he hadn’t seen since they were both sent off to war. Neither knew the other one had been injured.

I’m glad my Dad shared those stories with me. “Taps” has sounded for him, and so many other veterans. As Ken Burns discovered, there are still some who remember those days of sacrifice. Learn their stories now, before “Taps” is played again.

My favorite status update so far on Twitter:

Tropical Storm Ida is entering the southern Gulf of Mexico. The center of  Ida is located at 26.6 North and 88.3 West. Winds have now decreased to 70 mph. The system is moving NNW at 17 mph and the central pressure is 996 mb.

 A surface high pressure center off the Carolina Coast will combine with Ida to produce strong pressure gradient force winds across our area, especially along the coast. A gale warning is in effect from Monday afternoon until late Tuesday.

Ida is being steered by a mid to upper level trough over the western Gulf and a mid to upper level ridge over the eastern Gulf and northern Caribbean. As it’s moving North the storm is falling apart and it’s pushing the main convection well ahead of the center of circuulation. That means the worst weather will be occuring today.

Across our area, we expect quite a bit of rain, especially on Monday afternoon. We will see tides above normal along the coast in the range of 4-6 ft., with winds to tropical storm force on Monday and Tuesday morning. Conditions will improve later Tuesday as Ida weakens further and tracks north and east of our area.

Tropical Depression Ida is currently moving off the Honduran Coast and back into the Caribbean Sea. This system will likely strengthen to Tropical Storm status and track into the southern Gulf of Mexico on Monday. Upper wind shear should keep Ida from becoming a hurricane. We expect Ida to become non tropical as it merges with a frontal zone on Tuesday, over the central Gulf. The system should head eastward towards Florida by Wednesday.

We don’t expect any major impacts here, other than a good bit of rain on Tuesday. Tides may also be 1-2 feet above normal on Monday and Tuesday mornings, affecting the Causeway, the West End of Dauphin Island, and other low coastal areas. It will also be rather breezy Mon-Wed as the pressure gradient tightens.

Alabama(2) vs. South Carolina(22)    6:45pm Tuscaloosa, AL

 Taking on the 22^nd team in the nation for homecoming? Well, you can’t call the Tide soft. Remember the first BCS poll will come out this Sunday. A good showing here and it’s possible that ‘Bama could leap over Florida regardless of how they fare against Arkansas. First though they have to take care of business against the Gamecocks. Are you going to this game? If you do, bring a jacket. This evening game will start with temps in the mid 50s that will drop into the 40s by the second half.

Auburn vs. Kentucky    6:30pm Auburn, Al

 The War Eagles had to go 5-0 to make it into the top 25, now they’ll have to beat the Wildcats handily to regain the respect of voters after losing to the Hogs last week. Like the ‘Bama game, this is an evening contest which will mean some cool temps. At the start of the game it will be in the low 50s and those temps will drop into the 40s during the second half.

 South Alabama vs. Louisburg, JC    4:00pm Mobile, AL

 South is 3-0 and dominating every team that comes down to the Port City. This week they take on the Hurricanes… Not those ‘Canes, the Louisburg Junior College Hurricanes. Should be another fun game and the weather is perfect for tailgating! There will be a light north breeze with temps at the start of the game in the mid 60s dropping into the mid 50s during the second half.

  Texas(3) vs. Oklahoma(20)    11:00am Dallas, TX

 Okay, this isn’t a local game… but c’mon this is the Red River Rivalry, McCoy vs. Bradford with a nation title on the line for the Longhorns. If you’re a fan of college football this is a game worth watching. At game time the temps will be in the upper 50s with partly cloudy skies.

I had the pleasure of hosting the Miss AWAG (Area Women’s Action Group) 2009 Beauty Pageant. The event was held at Faulkner State Community College on September 26th.

Congratulations to this year’s winner, Ms. Erin Patterson!

She’s a senior at Daphne High School, with an amazing voice.  Patterson says she plans to study Theatre Arts when she goes to college. 

This was my second year hosting the pageant.  It’s really neat event!  Not that I’m biased… BUT having competed in pageants before, I can’t stress the importance of pageantry enough.

The competitions help with self confidence, finding a platform to speak your mind and they also promote community service.

AWAG contestants were judged on talent and performing arts, evening wear and their knowledge of current events.  For example this year, the girls were asked to share their thoughts on the controversy that stemmed from President Obama’s decision to speak to students during school.

Despite dwindling financial support, pageant organizers of the pageant are able to provide winners a scholarship to Faulkner State, as well as cash prizes.

I have to give a personal thank you to Ethel Higgins for inviting me out.

I had the opportunity to visit the 3rd grade students at E.R. Dickson Elementary today. We talked getting into meteorology as a career, severe weather, and hurricanes. This was a great group and they had some interesting questions. They already know a lot about the weather.

I’d like to take a moment and thank everyone who participated in this year’s Gulf Coast Start! Heart Walk.

Hundreds of friends, familes and co-workers came together in Spanish Fort this weekend, to raise awareness and research dollars for the American Heart Association.

The weather was touch-and-go.  It rained for much of the morning.  But the sun came out just in time for the walk.

Fox10 News was a proud media sponsor.

I was honored to spearhead the event and several members from the Fox10 News family laced up their walking shoes for a great cause.

We had a fabulous turnout!

So far donations have totaled to just over $107,000.  However, the event goal is $370,000.  Yes, they are still taking donations if anyone is interested.

The American Heart Association is the largest voluntary health organization working to prevent, treat and defeat heart disease, stroke and other cardiovascular diseases.  These diseases are the Nation’s No.1 and No.3 killers, and claim more than 865,000 American lives a year!

The American Heart Association cannot achieve its mission without you.

So thanks again for your support.

Here’s to living a more heart healthy life

Last week, when I was in New York, I attended a taping for The Wendy Williams Show.

The syndicated talk show made its season debut on Fox10 in July, following a six week trial run last summer in New York, Los Angeles, Detroit, and Dallas.

Most people already know Wendy Williams, also known as the Queen of Media, from her days in radio.  She has what you might call an aggressive interviewing style.  Ok to be frank, she has no qualms with asking her guests tough and sometimes embarrassing questions…let’s just say…the juicer the better.

Wendy tapes live Monday through Thursday at 10:00 a.m and audience members are expected to arrive to the studio by 8:00 a.m.

There’s a check-in process.  You give your name to the person at the door, and walk through a security check point, before your escorted into a waiting room.  Certain VIP’s are taken into the “Purple Room.”  It’s a more intimate setting and puts you at the front of the line for entering the set.

I have to thank the producers of the show for giving me and my sister the VIP treatment

Kate Voegele performed her hit song”99 Times.”  Then actress Debbi Morgan, from “All My Children” stopped by.

But I was most impressed with Wendy.  She was such a gracious host.  It was something to see…staff members were fussing over her hair, wardrobe, and make-up in between commercial breaks as Wendy was trying to make her way through the audience to meet and greet.  I have been to other show tapings before and during the commercial breaks the talent sat in their chairs and had very little interaction with the audience members.

Overall, my short stint in NYC was a jammed packed with activities.

I was there for the start of fashion week, the memorial for 9/11, and the U.S Open tennis tournament.  It was both and exhilarating and exhausting.

Over the past few months, I’ve had the chance to give AT&T’s GPS service a test drive.  Navigator is a free download for the iPhone, but costs about $10 a month to use, added to your AT&T bill.

For my first test, I let Navigator pick the quickest route from Orange Beach to the Grand Hotel in Point Clear.  Given the iPhone’s short battery life and since the battery-draining “Location Services” must be activated for Navigator to find its way, I selected a relatively short route.

I typed in the street address for the Grand and off we drove. Navigator took me up Highway 59, then north on Highway 98, and west on Gayfer Street in Fairhope. According to Navigator, the Grand Hotel was located on Gayfer Street, east of North Section Street – not exactly the waterfront property folks have learned to love over the years.  Luckily, I knew where I was going.  When I did arrive at the Hotel, I found Navigator had placed me in the middle of the Lakewood Golf Club across the street.  Its accuracy left a little to be desired.

The next test pitted Navigator against the “NeverLost” GPS system, hardwired into the Hertz rental car I was driving from the Pittsburgh airport to southwestern Pennsylvania.  Like the first test, I was familiar with this route as well, but there was an en-route challenge to both GPS systems.  Part of the trip involved a toll road that was still under construction. Would they be able to cope?

Leaving the Pittsburgh airport was routine with both systems, though I appreciated the timely reminders from NeverLost about upcoming turns.  The two female voices used by NeverLost were crystal clear as opposed to the sometimes-muffled voice coming from Navigator through the mini-speakers on the iPhone.  When it came to the map display, there was no contest between the two.  NeverLost looked like PacMan versus Navigator’s 3D street imaging.

When I drove onto the toll road, Navigator pulled way ahead in the competition.  Because Navigator downloads maps as needed along the route, it recognized the new stretches of highway and the detours needed to guide me to them.  NeverLost turned into EverLost as it tried desperately to keep me from driving through cornfields, or so it thought.  It finally gave up and warned me to return to the paved road.  In this case, Navigator knew exactly where I was, and how to get where I was going. It also offered to check for traffic along the route.

To its credit, AT&T has come out with several refinements to Navigator in the past few months which are available free via the App Store application on the iPhone. Neverlost didn’t show evidence of that flexibility.

The next time I really need to find where I’m going, I’m bringing my iPhone, Navigator and, for a long trip, an extra battery. 

BTW, I stopped in an Apple Store on my way back to the airport to lust after check out the iPhone 3GS.  The “S” really does stand for speed.  It booted faster, wrote pages faster and shot some really great looking video.