Tommie Hu$tle: Back in the saddle: 4/24/05

This is Tommie - Why Tommie doesn't fucks with cold weather

Well Jason was in school, this is out of school. We lived in an apartment complex named Popular Pointe that was walking distance from the school there was this girl that lived in my apartment complex and she was in the 9th grade, she was 14 or 15 or something like that. I didn't like her or anything we were just the only two in my neighborhood who were in high school. We would walk from school and pick up my brother who was on the way home and the three of us would walk home. Well she had a boyfriend who was 19 or 20 or something like that and I guess he didn't like us walking together.

One day we were walking home from school and it was cold, I mean it was bitter cold outside. It was good and winter and I had just happened to notice that I could see my house from the trail. You couldn't see it during the summertime becasue of all the summer growth, I just happened to notice it that particular day. Well we were walking home and this guy was standing in the middle of the path between the back of the middle school (where my brother went) and the apartments. He said let me talk to you for a bit, I'm like ok and then he pulls out a gun. I'll never forget it, it was a chrome revolver with a black handle. He said to me, "If I ever see you around my girl again I'll motherfucking kill you."

Time froze I had a true out of body experience. When you think you are going to die all of your senses go into overdrive. I could feel every molecule in the air I realized how dry it was and how cold, it was so fucking cold outside.I saw my brother, I saw the girl (shame I was going to die because of her and I have no clue what her name was), I saw myself and I saw him. I felt my spine go out and my legs went weak. I wanted to throw up. I remember thinking tell him please don't kill me, promise that you'll never be around her again just please don't shoot me. I was about to mouth to beg, to plead for my life at that exact moment I felt the barrel of the gun touch my temple and I heard a click from him pulling back the hammer. He started poking at my head with the gun. and said "Do you understand me nigga? I said I will motherfucking kill you if I see the two of you together again."

I'm thinking to myself, yes I heard you the first time poking me in the head isn't really necessary. The gun was freezing cold it was like he stored it in an ice box.

At that very moment my brother bolted and I thought to myself he is going to kill you if you don't run. It's amazing the clarity you have when you know you only have one chance to live. I thought to myself you need to run but, don't go the same way your brother did he might miss you and hit your brother or if he kills you, he'll kill your brother he won't want any witnesses.

I have no idea to this day why I thought that or where it came from I'd never been in a situation like that before. I told myself go through the woods you can see the house from there plus he'll have to choose a target. Either you or your brother and he is going to go for you make him pick. He can't target you in the woods. Break for the woods. You can out run his bullets (I have no clue why I thought that or if it was even me thinking). So I bolt into the woods I know this sounds like a long time but the whole thing went down in about 20 to 30 seconds. Time had just slowed down for me. With my brother breaking it stunned him I think and he took the gun away from my head for a split second and with that I break for the woods. I felt like the bionic man or something. I feel ever strand of my muscles flexing and releasing I run. I feel the cold air burning in my lungs, I see every tree, every root, every branch. I feel ever twig as they flick against my ear. It was funny because I was taking this zig zag path by every larger tree so he would have to aim carefully. I see everything clearly, I've only been that aware once in my life. I've never felt the feeling of clarity and awareness again. At the end of the woods where it becomes a field between the apartment complex not big maybe 10 meters or so between the boundary of the woods and the corner of the apartment complex. I see my brother out of the corner of my eye starting the scramble up the stairs to the door and I breathe as sigh I know he has made it but, I also know once I break from the woods that guy has a clear shot at me again. I hear it again (you can out run his bullets) so I break left and get another burst of speed. I think I teleported because next thing I know I'm right on top of my brother he is opening the door with his keys. We spill over each other as we get into the house. He grabs his keys, we close the door, I lock it, and then we break from the door just in case he is chasing us and wants to shoot down the door.

My brother says, "We have to tell Mom and Dad."

I said "Don't tell them, I didn't want to get in trouble I was just satisfied with getting to the house alive (I realize now that I was in shock)."

He said, "Fuck that Tommie I'm am calling Mom."

So my Mom and Dad get home and he tells and them my parents start yelling at me, I felt so low. I realize now that they were terrified. My Dad asked me where she lived and we went over there I don't know why we did the fool had a gun and besides that I don't know what my Dad would have done if he had gotten a hold to the guy. She told my Dad she didn't know where he was (he probably was in her house). My parents called the police I think and then I was instructed never to be around her again (hell they didn't have to tell me that).

To this day I don't like cold weather and would never move to a cold weather city. I don't even like to think about cold. And any time I run I think about this guy trying to put two in my skull when that is your motivation you tend to push yourself harder. I don't think about that situation but being out in this Iraqi cold has made me think about it often.

I often wonder what happened to that guy. I like to think that he went to Mexico for some big coke deal and it went bad and now he is in a Mexican prison trying on sundresses for his cellmate known only as el Babuino.

One can only hope.

Here is a pic of the Sandstorm I was in.

- This post is AA approved.

Ken's Vacation

Ken when on vacation to Europe for two weeks and the day he left the country went to shit. I had two weeks of pure hell. It was so bad that I seriously thought about quitting. I was here with no support on the ground, I was running easily 20 hours a day. One day I was up for 37 hours straight working a problem and then got 3 hours of sleep before I was dragged out of bed to fix another emergency that had me up for 12 hours. On top of that I had to move from one city to another which meant a shitload of travel. It was an awful, awful, experience. I couldn't wait for Ken to get back so I could just breathe again.

While he was out here he missed his 25th anniversery with his wife. To make it up to her they went to Europe on a two week gypsy tour of sorts. They bought some train passes and just traveled the countryside of Europe. No plans, no reservations, no anything. They just went where ever the wind carried them and laid their heads when they got there.

To me that was one of the most romantic things I could think of. Just going with no plan, no schedule, just feeling it out and running by the seat of your pants. You can do that and it is all when you are with the one you love. When you have love like that you don't have to worry, I think. To me that is real power that kind of love is what this life thing is about. I mean being with that one person that motivates you to make yourself better. That person you get out of bed for and that person you can't wait to go to bed with. I wish that we would spend more time lauding people like the Obis of this world. These are people that believe in the sacrifice to make it work better for everyone around them. Not everyday was easy but everyday they found a way to keep going, good, bad, and ugly. People like them make you stand up and say that's what I want for me. But, to want that you have to realize it's earned and not given.

At anyrate, I'm feeling pretty damn low by the time he gets back. I'm burned out, I'm sick, I'm tired, I'm sick of being tired, I'm tired of being sick. I'm very angry at this point and I just needed to slow down and catch my breath. When he comes in this guy just lights up the room. You can tell he is refreshed and rejuvinated. He had this positive energy that was infectious. Well after I ranted for a bit about the state of affairs, he asked if I wanted to see some pictures from his European tour. I was like sure, I needed to relax a bit. Well he and his wife take thousands of picuters he goes through them and with each picutre there was a story. I mean as he was describing the pictures I felt as if I was there. His trip made me more relaxed. Because of his trip I know that I can make it out of this hellhole, if you would have asked me a week and a half ago, I wasn't so sure.

The one thing I realized about the pictures was the color! My God in the real world everything is so bright and colorful. I had not realized how dullened my senses had become being out here for so long. Everything looked so vibrant and alive. As he took me through these picuters I got to realize how large the world is and how little I had seen of it. I decided right then and there I'm going to spend the rest of my life traveling the world. There is so much to see, and do and learn, and once I've seen all that I can see. I'm going to settle down in a villa in Marseilles on the coast of the Mediterranean. I remember when I first got here Toker had a screen saver or a picture of forrest. I mean it was nothing special and he said to me one day you are going to long for that forrest. I was like probably not, I'm from Phoenix and Iraq looks just like it. Six months later I now know exactly what he was talking about.

Ken has allowed me to host a few of his pictures from his trip on the site for which I am very greatful. I want you all to get just a sample of what I had an opportunity to see.

- Thanks alot Ken!

Idar-Oberstein: Cityscape

This particular photo is one of my favorites. It has so much color and variety, everything here looks so alive.

Idar-Oberstein: Tavern

Graffiti of Europe

Ken had a slew of graffiti pictures but, I just picked out two that really struck me. This one I really liked the color in it.

On this one I thought the lone flower was an excellent contrast to the concrete jungle

Haarlam - The Bikers of Haarlam

It seems in some parts of Europe everyone bikes.

Here is a bike lot. Amazing, people actually ride their bikes to get on the train to go to work.

In the states two adults on a bike is a surefire sign of two losers. Here in Haarlam it is commonplace to see two adults riding on a bike. As a matter of fact they design the bikes there with passengers in mind.

Here is a bike for a small family of three. I'm sure the breadwinner is out on the

Delivery Bike. Making stops all across Haarlam.

When I saw this old lady on the bike I thought how cute. But then I thought this lady has to be in her 70s and here she is scooting across town on a bike. As an American you can only hope that you will be as spry as this lady when you get to 70.

Haarlam - The Doors of Haarlam

Provence: Man and woman walking

There was something sweet about this picture that caught my eye.

Churches of Europe

I like this group of photos beacause you can tell how churches evolved in different areas of Europe.

This is a church that is in Amsterdam.

This is a church in Marseilles.

This is a chruch in Koln it was so massive it took two shots to sort of get it.

Here is a church in Murich.

Look at the craftsmamship in the front window.

Here is a church in Kaiserslautern. It reminds me of the Church in Amsterdam but, it has different adornments.

This is a church in Idar-Oberstein.

This church has a real history behind it. If you look at the top of the mountian you will see a castle. Well two brothers lived in that castle and were fighting over a woman. One of the brothers thru the other of the top of the cliff and killed him. Years later he started having terrible nightmares about his brother. So he went to the local priest and asked him what could he do to get rid of the terrible dreams. The priest told him that he much build a chruch on the very spot his brother died. So the King built that church where his brother died.

Here is the mural dedicated to the slain brother.

Amsterdam - The Bellvue Hotel

I love the minimalist nature of this room!

Amsterdam - A river runs throught it.

Amsterdam - The mall: Inside

Amsterdam - The mall: Outside

Brussels - The Alleyway

Brussels - The Keyboard

Ken said he had a hard time emailing home. Can anyone tell the class why?

Brussels - The Bistros

Ken said that these were neat little resturants. As you walked by the waiters would tell you what they had on the menu and coax you to have a seat at their resturant. Ken said there were a few that he wanted to stop at but, he an Mrs. Obi never made it back.