Monday Musings...

Holy Heatwave, Batman!
Yeah, the last few days in the Heartland of America were anything BUT "inviting"...unless you were the Human Torch!
I know I was getting tired of seeing the thermometer at the 100 degree mark or higher...and staying there.

We ran our central A/C unit NON-STOP for close to 60 hours...that;'s gonna leave a mark on the electric bill next month!
And, if you think the A/C will cool down a house to near refrigeration temperatures...you don't know HVAC systems.
That doesn't mean you can't TRY to do it...the physics are against you, though.
The BEST you can hope to do is get the indoor temps down to around 70 degrees...with low humidity.
And believe me, at THAT setting, it will feel cool enough to wear long sleeves in the house...I know, because I DID.
The difference between being outside in 100 degrees and inside at 70 degrees is HUGE!!!
The next few days will see us getting some much-needed Canadian air ( thank you, eh?) and should keep us UNDER 90 degrees with lows in the 60s (won't have to run the A/C much in that, thank God).
In the meantime, let's see what else has been happening...
*** This story could ONLY happen in DETROIT..or anywhere else where people supplant partying for safety and common sense.
Here's the link with video:
http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/Off-duty-Detroit-police-officer-s-gun-goes-off-kills-woman/-/1719418/15442732/-/hav3lz/-/index.html

Now, I know for a fact that many of these family get-togethers will become loud, if not downright ROWDY, and if there is an off-duty officer present, at least no one SHOULD get shot, right? Not necessarily.
This party was an UPCOMING 25th birthday for the fatally shot 24 year old. (they do birthday parties BEFOREHAND?)
The woman, Adaisha Miller came up from behind and hugged the officer, whose service pistol went off, puncturing her lung and heart. She died at hospital. Yolanda McNair, the victim's mom said this should not have happened to her child.

I say the officer practiced some poor judgment when carrying a fully-loaded and cocked weapon at a party. There IS something called a SAFETY you can place on a weapon...or if it's a GLOCK, you can just carry without a round in the chamber, as a precaution and if you're not expecting something to occur out of the norm. Then you can rack the slide and chamber a round if the need arises.
And, if she hugged him from BEHIND, how did the weapon fire UP? Was the pistol in a shoulder holster carried muzzle up? (that would account for the bullet travel) Weapons do not simply "go off" when holstered...or they SHOULDN'T anyway...it's pretty damn odd.
Moving on...
*** Oscar-winning actor Ernest Borgnine passed away yesterday at Cedar-Sinai Hospital in L.A. at the age of 95 due to renal failure.

His wife and children were at his bedside.
One of the last vestiges of the classic Hollywood actors is now gone, and we should think on this, because such actors don't come around that often, and certainly don't remain with us that long.
As expected, here is the WIKI of Ernie, and it's a rather long one...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Borgnine
The beauty of such a wonderful and talented person is that you ALWAYS knew where you stood with Ernie. He "shot from the hip", told it like it is, and never backed away...and he was respected for that.

And I suppose he learned much from his four marriages (one to Ethyl Merman that lasted a whole SIX weeks "Biggest mistake I made in my lie. I thought I was marrying Rosemary Clooney" ...).
Hell, I just liked the characters he portrayed...such a wide range of people he brought into our lives.
Whether it as the sadistic Sgt. Judson from FROM HERE TO ETERNITY, or Det. Mike Rogo from THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE, or even the affable Lt. Cmdr. Quintin McHale in the series McHALE'S NAVY or Dominic Santini in AIRWOLF, he never made it boring or lackluster.
His Academy Award for MARTY says as much..next time it comes on, give it a watch, and see it there's not a part of your life contained in that film somewhere.
I think it speaks much to a person when they can basically start from square one and..."within ten years, have Grace Kelly handing you an Oscar".

I know there was not a week that went by in our house that McHale's Navy wasn't a STAPLE of TV viewing...and it was a good laugh for those 30 minutes.
My Dad used to remark that he saw his share of screw-ups in the military, but NEVER a bunch like that.
I can honestly add that Dad was right...lol.
But Mr. Borgnine was more than the sum of his acting career...he was actively involved in other endeavors like being part of his wife Tovah's line of cosmetics (he looked damn good for being 95).
He was the kind of guy that was always working in some manner...it could be a guest spot or a voice-over...didn't matter.

The "fun" was in the work...the challenge...the acceptance, and the rewards.
I've always had a spot in my heart for such people, and that's why it hurts to loose them.
But I will say that Heaven's got itself a real winner now.
And his legacy for us is both his accomplishments on the large and small screen, as well as his persona.

May we be able to say we were a tenth as fortunate as he was in life.

Perhaps it has something to do with not sitting still...not giving up or giving in...and perhaps a dogged pursuit to be a better person today than we were yesterday.
I think Ernie might agree with that.

Godspeed, sir...you will be missed the many souls who loved you and your work.

Have yourselves a great week, and enjoy the "cool-down".

Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay safe out there, America.