Black Dagger jumper makes uncle proud

STUART --- The tears were running down my face.

The 2010 Stuart Air Show's opening ceremony Sunday was under way.

High above, two jumpers from the Black Daggers, the U.S. Army's Special Operations
Command Parachute Demonstration Team, were slowly spiraling toward the ground from 5,000 feet as a young woman sang our national anthem.

One of the jumpers held the American flag, streaming in the wind as they descended.

It was my nephew, Kevin Haddon.

What a moment.

As the air show narrator announced his name, people around us clapped politely.

Not us.

Me, my wife Sherri and our niece Lauren Pierce cheered like crazy.

Then I ran around telling everyone within earshot, "THAT'S MY NEPHEW! THAT'S MY NEPHEW!"

I was one proud uncle.

I remembered the first time I'd flown out to Oregon in the mid-1980s to see my sister, Maureen, and her husband, Rob. When I got off the plane, there was Kevin, a shy little boy hiding behind my sister, clinging to her leg.

There he was Sunday, a 28-year-old member of  the elite Black Daggers.

He's been with Army Special Forces for about seven years and made more than 1,500 jumps.

Sunday's were the first I'd seen.

Kevin had called us Saturday by surprise, saying he had VIP tickets for us if we could make it.

We practically flew Sunday morning, getting to Stuart in plenty of time.

The air show itself was a blast, what with military jet fighters roaring overhead, stunt planes doing aerobatics flying around, and cool exhibits on the ground. They not only had one vintage World War II B-25 Mitchell bomber, but two of them!

Still, Kevin and his comrades were the No. 1 attraction for us.

Later on, they jumped from 8,000 feet, free-falling for most of it before popping their chutes.

I asked Kevin what going 100 mph straight down felt like?

"Windy," he said.

Spoken like a Mannix.

Pain Truth about prescription drug abuse

The Pain Truth.

Would people rather hear it from Dr. Lora Brown?

Or from Dr. Russell Vega?

When the topic is prescription drug abuse, it’s something for Lakewood Ranch High School students to consider seriously.

Other county high school and middle school students, too.

All of us, actually.

Brown is an intervention pain management specialist locally and on the governor’s task force on prescription drug abuse. She addressed LRHS students last Tuesday about the dilemma as part of a state and national education campaign.

It is a huge problem, she told them.

A huge problem in Bradenton.

A huge problem in Manatee County.

A huge problem in their school — and other schools.

It is an epidemic, Brown said.


Read more in Sunday's Mannix About Manatee.

Christmas gift cards? Now we're talking!

Another sign the holidays are nigh?

An overabundance of e-mails about bargains.

Like the one I received Wednesday about gift cards.

The National Retail Federation says they're the most popular present and the average person purchases 3.6 gift cards during the holidays.

That got my attention.

You will never guess the five most popular gift cards in Florida, either, according to Cardpool.com.

Victoria's Secret? Not even in the top three.

Disney World? That's behind Victoria's Secret.

They are:

1) Lowe's

2) Walmart

3) Home Depot

4) Victoria' Secret

5) Disney

Since we shop quite a bit at Nos. 1-2-3 anyway, something tells me we'll be scoring some gift cards at each of those stores early and beat the Christmas rush.
































Cardpool's top 5 gift cards in Florida are:





















1) Lowe's









2) Walmart









3) Home Depot









4) Victoria' Secret









5) Disney

High school reunions not for everybody

My wife's Bayshore High School alumni reunion is Dec. 4.

It's fun listening to her and her sister, Chris, another Bayshore alum, go down the on-line list of RSVPs to see how many people they know.

With the classes of 1976 through 1983 included, that's a lot of people.

Sherri hasn't decided whether to go.

Ditto for her sister.

Me? I've never been to any of my reunions at DePaul H.S. in Wayne, N.J., from where I graduated in 1967.

I hadn't intended for it to be that way.

It's just that so many friends of mine over the years had gone to their reunions and found them to be depressing.

That helped change my mind.

I decided I wanted to remember my friends and classmates from back then just as we were.

Forever young.

A reminder 'Greatest Generation' leaving us

He was there by himself usually on Saturday or Sunday mornings, driving his handicap scooter along the aisles at the Publix where we shop.

I don’t know his name, but he always wears a Navy blue ballcap with “World War II Veteran” stitched across the crown in gold letters above the silhouette and name of the warship he served on long ago.

I’d make eye contact, greet him with a smile and give him the right of way in the aisle.

But I haven’t seen him lately.

With Veterans Day Thursday, I’m hoping I see him again. Soon.

If it’s not already too late.

The “Greatest Generation” is leaving us.


Read more in Sunday's Mannix About Manatee.

Florida-Georgia? World Series? Fight night!

We've all seen movies where the poker game gets busted up because one player accuses another of cheating, they pull guns and blaze away.

How about over a college football game?

Not the gunfire, understand, but the same macho stand down.

It happened last Saturday evening in Brighton.

Sherri, her parents and I had made our monthly trek to the Seminole Casino.

After losing my personal limit ($20), I wasn't feeling the mojo and went to the bar to watch college football.

About the time Florida-Georgia kicked off, I had company and we went through all the emotional ups and downs, hooting and hollering watching that wild game.

Then as the overtime got under way, it happened.

One of the casino staffer's took the remote --- and turned on the World Series game!

Several of us reacted as you might imagine: WHAAAAAAAAAAT!!!

Two poker players at the table behind us took it beyond that.

Almost, that is.

One of them wanted to keep the Florida-Georgia game on TV.

The other guy wanted the World Series game.

They sat at opposite ends of the poker table.

One jumped up, then the second, loudly challenging each other to "C'MON OVER HERE AND DO SOMETHIN' 'BOUT IT!"

It was going to be Duke City and I had a ringside seat.

But casino staff quickly intervened, telling the antagonists to calm down and reassuring everyone they'd turn the Florida-Georgia game back on.

Which they did.

Good move.

It's one thing to take our money.

When you take our football game, too?

Them's fightin' words.

Or something like that.


 

A little "Trick or Treat" courtesy goes long way

Trick or treating by neighbhorhood kids has always been a fun time.

I like to see what ghosts and goblins show up at the door on Halloween.

But it didn't start right Sunday night.

Sherri had prepared a bowl of candy and stationed it handily by the door.

When the door bell rang, signaling the arrival of the first trick-or-treaters, I took it.

There were four or five little girls, none in costume.

No "Trick or Treat," either.

They just stuck their bags out.

Still, I dropped a candy into each bag.

Didn't get as much as a "Thank you."

They turned to walk away, their mothers watching wordlessly from the sidewalk.

I wasn't about to let this slide.

"YOU'RE WELCOME!" I called out.

That got their attention.

"Thaaank youuu," they responded finally.

That went for their mothers, too.

I was steamed.

A little courtesy always goes a long way with me.

The  next trick or treater found out.

It was a boy in an Ironman costume, mask, suit, the whole whole nine.

I dropped a couple of candies into his bag.

"Thank you," he said and turned to leave.

"C'mon back, pal," I called after him.

I dropped a few more candies into his bag, thanked him, and bade him good night.

Every trick or treater after that was equally courteous to the last one.

Halloween ended up much better than it began.







Every child who came to our door afterward was different, thankfully.

Each said "Thank you."