This morning at 10am was Hayes’ funeral, and it truly was all about Hayes. This celebration of life was unlike any I have ever attended. Upon entering the funeral home, where you would normally hear some quite perhaps spiritual music, the first song I remember hearing was Dio’s Holy Diver, and it made me laugh. Hayes was a big fan of heavy metal and heavy rock music and hearing this song immediately reminded me of my friend. The service itself purposely started about 10 minutes late to honor his tradition of always arriving to work about 10 minutes late. The people whom spoke about Hayes all spoke about a man who loved his family and friends and of his love for music. Hayes was an accomplished self taught drum and guitar player, and is in fact the reason that I purchased a guitar a number of years ago, I wish I had the chance to learn to play and jam with him. There were two songs that people specially selected to be played in honor of Hayes, one of them was A Tout Le Monde by Megadeath and was one of his favorite songs from years passed:

Don’t remember where I was
I realized life was a game
The more seriously I took things
The harder the rules became
I had no idea what it’d cost
My life passed before my eyes
I found out how little I accomplished
All my plans denied

So as you read this know my friends
I’d love to stay with you all
please smile when you think of me
My body’s gone that’s all

A tout le monde (To everybody)
A tout mes amis (To all my friends)
Je vous aime (I love you)
Je dois partir (I must leave)
These are the last words
I’ll ever speak
And they’ll set me free

If my heart was still alive
I know it would surely break
And my memories left with you
There’s nothing more to say

Moving on is a simple thing
What it leaves behind is hard
You know the sleeping feel no more pain
And the living all are scarred

A tout le monde (To everybody)
A tout mes amis (To all my friends)
Je vous aime (I love you)
Je dois partir (I must leave)
These are the last words
I’ll ever speak
And they’ll set me free

So as you read this know my friends
I’d love to stay with you all
Please smile, smile when you think about me
My body’s gone that’s all

A tout le monde (To everybody)
A tout mes amis (To all my friends)
Je vous aime (I love you)
Je dois partir (I must leave)
These are the last words
I’ll ever speak
And they’ll set me free

A tout le monde (To everybody)
A tout mes amis (To all my friends)
Je vous aime (I love you)
Je dois partir (I must leave)
These are the last words
I’ll ever speak
And they’ll set me free

Goodbye Hayes, I hope you are free now my friend.

At Hayes’ viewing tonight I found out a little more information, in all honesty probably all the information i will ever get, about my friends early passing. It turns out that for the past few weeks Hayes had been complaining about sporadic numbness in his arms and legs, and had been scheduled to go see a specialist in a few weeks to have a complete checkup performed. He obviously never made it, and I wonder if he had would things have been different? Hayes’ autopsy revealed that he had an enlarged heart, and that it is most likely that he did suffer a heart attack while at home. Those of us who knew him always knew that Hayes had a large heart, for he was one of the most kindest and gentlest people I have ever known. He was always there for his friends, whom he regarded as family and felt were very important to life. When he found out that two of his friends, or one of his friends and their friend were arguing, Hayes’ advice was often something along the lines of “What ever the problem is, just fix, that’s your friend your arguing with.” Hayes was a great friend, indeed a great man, and he will be missed. Until we meet again my friend…

I had some very sad news relayed to me earlier this morning, at around 11am. It turns out that an old friend of mine, in deed one of the first friends I made when I moved to Michigan, Hayes Wright, passed away on August 25 2007. At this time it is suspected that he had a heart attack while at home, where he was found by co-workers. Hayes had worked for Pizza Hut ever since before I have known him and he was loved by all who worked there. Hayes, you will be missed by all who knew you. Rest in peace my friend.

EDIT: Below image taken on 08/29/2007 after Hayes’ wake.

I have had my TiVo now for a little over a month, and I have to say I am really happy with it. I have not delved into some of the more advanced features or even used the online scheduling, but using the basic DVR features has been worth it. I have been able to see a number of shows that I otherwise would not have been able to watch due to the time the come on or me just simply forgetting about them. In addition it has found at least one new show that I now record on a season pass. Plus being able to fast forward through commercials is a blessing in itself because it cuts a thirty minute show in almost half. While I am not ready to make the claim that my TiVo “gets me” it certainly has made watching TV more interesting and worth while. I am happy that I picked it up, and I will be even happier when the rebates come in and I get my money back!

Or at least I hope it will. Tonight I finally joined the DVR realm and purchased my first Tivo, an 80hr series 2 model that does a whole lot more than just record TV. Some things it can do are:

1. Online scheduling
2. Transfer shows to my laptop and iPod
3. Access my digital music and digital photos off my laptop.
4. Even download new movies to my TV.

I finally decided to get a Tivo because Radio Shack had a sale going on where the DVR itself would be free after rebates. I did pay for 1 year of service, which cost me roughly $180, which is cheaper than the unit by itself, and I have 30 days to decide if I want to keep it or not.

Today I made my way to Bethlehem Cemetery, which I found over on Jackson Road in Ann Arbor last week because I had to pass it to get to the hotel where my family was staying. I only managed to make it maybe a quarter of the way through this cemetery, not because it is very large, although it is a good size, but because of what I found there. I was in the middle of taking a picture when I heard a car coming down the aisle I was on, knowing I was going to have to move my truck I turned and started to head towards it, when I caught a glimpse of the vehicle; it was a hearse. My first thought was “Oh no, there is a funeral procession and here I am taking pictures,” but then I caught a better glimpse out of the corner of my eye and had to stop and look. That is when I saw Possessed, a 1985 Chevy Hearse that had been custom painted with some of the most detailed demons and spirits that I have ever seen. With the permission of the owner, a very nice woman named Melissa, I took probably 45 pictures of her car with the cemetery for a backdrop. I tried to get as much details into the pictures as possible, which is the reason I have so many. It was probably my most unusual find in a cemetery to date, and in addition to the images of the car Melissa was able to tell me about some other cemeteries in the area, hopefully I will be able to get to some of those this summer as well. As soon as I get them ready I will add all the pictures from this cemetery to the gallery.

I would like to wish a Happy New Year to everyone.

I hope that 2007 will be filled with more joy than 2006 and less hard times for everyone.

I would like to wish everyone near and far a very Merry Christmas! I hope everyone has a good day and gets all the goodies they hoped for.

This poem was sent to me in an email, it is credited to:

LCDR Jeff Giles, SC, USN
30th Naval Construction Regiment
OIC, Logistics Cell One
Al Taqqadum, Iraq.

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.
Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.

The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.
My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

The sound wasn’t loud, and it wasn’t too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.
Perhaps just a cough, I didn’t quite know,
Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.
My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.

Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.
A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.

“What are you doing?” I asked without fear,
“Come in this moment, it’s freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!”
For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts.

To the window that danced with a warm fire’s light
Then he sighed and he said “Its really all right,
I’m out here by choice. I’m here every night.”
“It’s my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times.

No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I’m proud to stand here like my fathers before me.
My Gramps died at ‘Pearl on a day in December,”
Then he sighed, “That’s a Christmas ‘Gram always remembers.”

My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ‘Nam’,
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.
I’ve not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he’s sure got her smile.
Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white, and blue… an American flag.

“I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.
I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life with my sister and brother.
Who stand at the front against any and all,
To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall.”

“So go back inside,” he said, “harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I’ll be all right.”
“But isn’t there something I can do, at the least,
“Give you money,” I asked, “or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you’ve done,
For being away from your wife and your son.”

Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
“Just tell us you love us, and never forget.
To fight for our rights back at home while we’re gone,
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.
For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us.”