If you ever happen to find yourself traveling through Schuylkill county, Pennsylvania, you'll know you're there when you see mountains of coal lining all of the roads, make sure to look up some of the natives' favorite treats. A few of these treats you will have heard of; Mrs. T's Pierogies and Yuengling fine brewed beer. Other favorites will sound extremely strange, for example Guers Iced Tea. However, if you walk up to one of the many residents, most of which are extremely friendly and happy to talk to any stranger, they will tell you that in order to experience what its like to be a true coal cracker you need to try all of these products.

I'm sure you have all heard of the polish treat the pierogie, but have you ever heard of the best pierogie? As a life long resident of Mahanoy City, a little coal town in Schuylkill County, its hard to eat any pierogie that isn't a Mrs. T's pierogie. Whether you get them deep fried at a summer bazaar, or you make them at home with butter and onions, they are hands down the best tasting pierogies around. All of the following information about Mrs T's can be found on the Mrs. T's website. Mrs. T's became a favorite in 1952 when Mrs. T, short for Mrs. Twardzik, herself started making the pierogies in large batches for church functions. Later, her son Ted (yes another T name) realized just how popular these little potato filled delights were becoming. The first Mrs. T's factory he opened is still located in Ted's hometown of Shenandoah. Don't worry if you don't think you'll be in Pennsylvania anytime soon, Mrs. T's will be more than happy to ship some pierogies to you ASAP.

The next treasure that can be found in Pennsylvania, the Yuengling brewery, is located in Pottsville which is the center of Schuylkill county. As can be seen on Yuenglings website, Yuengling is acknowledged as the oldest brewery in America. Established in 1829, Yuengling managed to survive threw the prohibition of the 1920's-1930's. They brewery takes pride in its commitment to heritage and tradition, even listing it as one of their company's core values. Maybe this is the reason it remains one of the all time favorite beers in Schuylkill County.

I saved the best Schuylkill County treat for last. Guers iced tea. Sure there are many competitor iced tea brands out their, but if you're a true coal cracker, the only iced tea you will drink comes straight from Pottsville, Pa. If your in our county, please don't go into the gas station and buy a gallon of Turkey Hill Iced Tea, get the original Guers Iced Tea. It has the perfect blend of lemon and tea flavors. Personal experience leads me to tell you that it tastes best coming straight out of a cardboard cartoon, that's when you get the best Guers flavor. As seen in Leslie Richardson's article Guers Earns National Honor, Guers began in 1930 and is still going strong with just 45 full time employees. Now that's a true local business.

So if you ever find yourself driving along that road lined with coal hills and empty Guers containers, don't be surprised if there's a little yellow VW bug plastered with the Mrs. T logo in front of you, and the good ol' fashion Yuengling truck behind you. If you get the urge to try one or all of these Schuylkill County treasures, don't hesitate. Drive to the closest Bazaar and get yourself some. I'm confident you'll fall in love with it all.

Sources:
Mrs T's Pierogies
Mrs. T's Pierogies-Owned and Operated by Ateeco Inc. Shenandoah, Pa USA
Mrs. T's Pierogies

Yuengling
Official Yuengling Website: America's Oldest Brewery
Yuengling

Leslie Richardson
Guers Earns National Honor /repblicanherald.com/ The Republican Herald
RepublicanHerald.com

What a Week it Was… (12-14 Edition)

By Troy Sympson

In this weekly column, I recap some of the events of the week that I found to be interesting, humorous and/or disgusting. Please note that I do this with several hints of humor, satire and farce, so please don't take any of my comments too seriously. Most, if not all, of these stories were reported by the Associated Press (www.ap.org) or Reuters (www.reuters.com).

If you like what you see, pass it along to your friends, families and co-workers and spread the love. If you don't like what you see, pass it along to your friends, families and co-workers and take turns pointing out how lame I am.

…

Michael Vick sentenced to 23 months in prison

Disgusting disgrace Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months in prison for his role in a dogfighting ring. The suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback, who turned himself in Nov. 19 to begin serving his sentence, wore a black-and-white striped prison suit as he stood before U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson. Hudson rebuffed the defense team's appeals for leniency, determining Vick had lied about his involvement in the killing of dogs, and about his drug use. Vick tested positive for marijuana Sept. 13 after claiming to have avoided illicit drugs. The sentence means Vick will be in prison until at least mid-July 2009, even if he meets the federal standard of 54 days' reduction per year for good behavior. Vick, whose $130 million contract was once the richest in NFL history, was suspended without pay by the NFL and lost all his lucrative endorsement deals. Hudson also ordered Vick to three years of supervised probation upon his release, enrollment in a substance abuse program if his parole officer deems it necessary, reminded him that felons can't own guns and said he can never again own a dog. “He doesn't want anyone to feel sorry for him,” attorney Lawrence Woodward said. “He just wants a chance to prove himself when all this is over.”

F. that! No one is feeling sorry for him, and no NFL team will want to deal with the PR nightmare that would come with signing him. Not to mention that he'll have been out of the league for three years by the time he'll be able to attempt a comeback. He's done and I say good riddance. Hopefully he'll get regularly attacked by prison guard dogs…

…

In other Vick news…

Falcons Owner Arthur Blank has said that his team is pretty much done with Vick. “I would never use the word 'never,'” said Blank. “I would say there's always a chance. But, quite candidly, we as an organization, as a football team, we have to look forward. We have to go forward assuming Michael will not be back.” Adding fuel to the fire, Blank added: “If Michael makes a mistake and eats fried chicken and French fries in prison every day and comes out at 250 pounds, he's not going to be able to play football.”

Racist? Perhaps. But, since Blank is a Southern man, I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt. I think fried chicken is more of a Southern dish, not a black dish. Still, his choice of words is questionable. But, I guess it's good he didn't say watermelon, kool aid, collard greens or malt liquor…

…

In other Falcons news…

Falcons coach Bobby Petrino, in a move that was said to have blindsided team officials, resigned to take the head-coaching job at the University of Arkansas, the team confirmed. Blank and the Falcons brass were caught off guard, and they're scrambling to figure out who will coach the 3-10 team over the final three games. Offensive coordinator Hue Jackson and defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer are likely candidates to coach the Falcons on an interim basis. Each could be under consideration for the permanent job. Before the Falcons' 34-14 loss to New Orleans Monday, Blank said that he had heard rumors that Arkansas had targeted Petrino to replace Houston Nutt as head coach. So, he asked Petrino if he was considering that job. Petrino, who was signed from the University of Louisville to a five-year, $24.5 million contract Jan. 8, told him Monday afternoon that he definitely would be back to coach the Falcons in 2008. It was the second time Blank had asked Petrino about his commitment to the team and the second time Petrino told him he would be back next season.

What a sell-out jerk. Way to abandon ship, Capitan. Obviously I hate Vick for what he did, but it sucks the way he left his teammates hanging. Now their coach leaves them high and dry. I feel for you Falcons fans. Hang in there, better days are ahead…

…

You've got to call a spade a spade

ESPN hockey analyst Barry Melrose is under fire for comments he made about the NHL's New Jersey Devils' new arena in Newark. Melrose said that the area around the arena is “awful,” and that “the inside and the outside where it's built is pretty humorous.” He also warned those who visit the arena to not “go outside if you have a wallet or anything else.”

Sorry, the arena is in a bad neighborhood. What more can you say? I'm sure the building of the arena in that area is meant to spur economic growth and development, and once that happens, we'll talk. In the meantime, the neighborhood sucks. But what really sucks is that no one is allowed to be honest anymore. Everybody's too PC and sensitive. Get over it…

…

Rave reviews for Led Zeppelin concert

On the morning after Led Zeppelin's long-awaited reunion concert, the music reviewers were already calling for more. Playing a full set for the first time in nearly three decades, Zep rocked the O2 Arena for more than two hours, leaving fans from around the world gasping in delight. The late John Bonham's son, Jason, played drums, joining the band's three surviving members, singer Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page and bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones. Although a full tour remains a mystery – Plant is reportedly due to tour with bluegrass star Alison Krauss – the band proved it still has what it takes to keep an audience interested.

Please bring on a full reunion tour. Besides giving me a chance to see the greatest band ever, it will give all you young punks out there a chance to see what music really is. Forget your Fall Out Boys, Hinders, Fergies and Daughtrys. It's time you kids learned what's what…

…

Also at the Zep concert…

Sir Paul McCartney was caught smoking a joint at the concert, the British media is reporting. McCartney got away with it, too, with a concert-worker reportedly saying: “Don't worry, you're a legend.”

I agree. He is a legend. And, he (and everyone else for that matter) should be able to smoke marijuana. It's safer and less destructive than alcohol. Toke away, my friends…

…

Quiet Riot singer died of overdose

The death last month of Kevin Dubrow, lead singer for the 1980s heavy metal band Quiet Riot, has been ruled an accidental cocaine overdose. Clark County coroner spokeswoman Samantha Charles confirmed the cause Monday after toxicology results were received. Dubrow was found dead Nov. 25 at his Las Vegas home. He was 52.

I'm not really sure how you “accidentally” OD, but rest in peace nonetheless. We'll always be available to cum on and feel the noise…

…

Knievel remembered at funeral in Montana

Mourners remembered daredevil Evel Knievel as a red, white and blue American icon who made a spiritual leap of faith long after his death-defying motorcycle jumps. The Rev. Robert H. Schuller of California's Crystal Cathedral officiated at the service, held in the daredevil's hometown of Butte, Mont. Before the service, hundreds of mourners filed past the open casket to pay their respects to Knievel, clad in a white leather jacket with red and blue trim. Photos rested on easels as images of Knievel on his motorcycle appeared on a large screen above. A mix of country music and Frank Sinatra's “My Way” played in the background. After the service, a hearse carried Knievel's body along Evel Knievel Loop, a six-mile route through town. A handful of people braved the cold and light snow to wave goodbye. Later, a mix of people in leather biker jackets and ski parkas gathered at the gravesite. Some placed flowers on Knievel's coffin. Knievel died Nov. 30 in Clearwater, Fla., after years of failing health. He was 69. He had returned often to Butte, an industrial city of 35,000 that holds an annual Evel Knievel Days festival. Fireworks illuminated the night sky with bursts of red, white and blue when a hearse carrying Knievel's body arrived at the Butte Civic Center, the town's largest indoor venue.

Rest in peace, as well, Evel. I hope you're jumping over the clouds in heaven…

…

What a spineless worm

NBA commissioner David Stern won't punish Isiah Thomas or Madison Square Garden for their role in a sexual harassment trial that embarrassed the Knicks and the league. “Instead, we are going to continue to focus our attention on a league-wide program ensuring that all teams have appropriate policies, clearly communicated to their employees, focusing on respect in the workplace including the prohibition of sexual harassment,” Stern said in a statement.

Just further proof that Stern is the worst commissioner in all of sports. He's a weak-willed, smarmy little jerk, who caters to the big market teams and openly roots for them. It's time for you to go, Stern. The NBA is a joke, and you're a big reason why…

…

Please end this writers' strike!

Two worthless people who are famous for having sex, Pamela Anderson and Rick Salomon, are developing a reality series for the E! network. Sources say the show is slated to debut in 2008.

Puke. That's all I really have to say…

…

Ike Turner passes away

Rock 'n' roll pioneer, and owner of one of the strongest pimp hands in music history, Ike Turner, whose achievements as one of the founding fathers of the genre were overshadowed by ex-wife Tina Turner's claims that he regularly beat her for almost two decades, died at his home near San Diego. He was 76. His cause of death was not immediately known, said his manager, Scott Hanover. The one-time disc jockey arguably invented rock 'n' roll with his 1951 song “Rocket 88,” and he enjoyed huge fame in the 1960s and 1970s as the Svengali behind Ike and Tina Turner, a R&B revue that dazzled audiences with high-energy performances of such tunes as “Proud Mary” and “River Deep Mountain High.” But Ike Turner was also a violent man, according to his ex-wife and others including Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards, who said he saw him pistol-whip a fellow musician. “Ike acted like a goddamned pimp,” Richards told Vanity Fair in 1993. Tina Turner's memoir, “I, Tina,” and a 1993 biopic “What's Love Got to Do With It” turned Ike Turner into one of the most notorious villains in the music industry. The singer said her ex-husband regularly abused and humiliated her for 16 years, and drove her to attempt suicide in 1968. He cracked her ribs, threw hot coffee in her face, burnt her with a cigarette and punched her in the nose so often she had to have surgery, she said. Ike told a New York news conference in 1993, “I only punched her with my fist once. I have slapped her, and the times where I slapped her were when she was looking sad.” A spokeswoman for Tina Turner, who lives in semi-retirement in Europe, said, “Tina is aware that Ike passed away earlier today. She has not had any contact with him in over 30 years.”

Evil bastard or influential pioneer? Maybe a little of both. In any rate, hearing Ike and Tina do “Proud Mary” and “River Deep Mountain High” is a wonderful music experience. Like Michael Jackson, no matter what you think about Ike, you can't deny his musical talents. Rest in peace…

…

Mitchell Report tarnishes baseball

The biggest scandal in baseball since the 1919 Black Sox has rocked the sports world. Former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell released his much-anticipated report on performance-enhancing drugs, and baseball may never be the same because of it. The 409-page report identified 85 names to differing degrees, including seven MVPs, two Cy Young Award winners and 31 All-Stars – one for every position. Some of the biggest names included Roger Clemens, Jose Canseco, Andy Pettitte, Eric Gagne, Miguel Tejada, Gary Sheffield, Jason Giambi, Troy Glaus, Gary Matthews Jr., Paul Byrd, Jose Guillen, Brian Roberts, Paul Lo Duca, Rick Ankiel, Rafael Palmeiro, Kevin Brown, Benito Santiago, Lenny Dykstra, Chuck Knoblauch, David Justice, Mo Vaughn, Wally Joyner, Todd Hundley, Mike Stanton, Scott Schoeneweis, Ron Villone and Jerry Hairston Jr.

Just another black eye on baseball's marred face. I guess Bonds' home run record won't be the only thing questioned in baseball. Seemingly the past 20 years will need to be marked with asterisks. Sad…

…

All-nighters may not improve grades

A new survey says those who never study all night have slightly higher GPAs than those who do. A survey of 120 students at St. Lawrence University, a small liberal arts college in northern New York, found that students who have never pulled an all-nighter have average GPAs of 3.1, compared to 2.9 for those who have. The study, by assistant professor of psychology Pamela Thacher, is to be included in the January issue of Behavioral Sleep Medicine.

In other news, eating poorly may not help you lose weight, and drinking alcohol may not make you a better driver…

…

Finally, in “Who gives a shit?” news…

• Solange Knowles is recording a second album

• Jessica Alba is pregnant

• Oprah Winfrey doesn't regret opening school

• Brittney Spears may be pregnant again

• Kiefer Sutherland deluged with fan mail in jail

• Paris Hilton brings holiday cheer to Berlin

• Eva Longoria and Tony Parker deny rumors of affair

• Katie Holmes says marriage to Tom Cruise 'Made my life'

…

Until next week…

TS

Is November 14th your birthday? Was someone special to you born on November 14th? With whom will you choose to celebrate this excellent occasion?

If today is your birthday, then you are in excellent company.

(If someone you love is celebrating another year today, why not forward this list to the birthday boy or girl? Click SHARE at the bottom of this page to email the entire article with your “Happy Birthday” message.)

November 14th was the birth date of several notable individuals. Here they are:

November 14th Birthdays: Famous Artists

Wendy (Walter) Carlos, American composer (A Clockwork Orange,The Shining and Switched-On Bach), was born on November 14, 1939.

Aaron Copeland, American composer (12 Poems of Emily Dickinson, Appalachian Spring, Billy the Kid, Canticle of Freedom, El Salon Mexico, The Heiress, John Henry, Of Mice and Men, Our Town, The Red Pony and Rodeo), Pulitzer Prize winner (1945) and author (Copland on Music, The New Music and What to Listen for in Music), was born on November 14, 1900.

John Steuart Curry, American painter (Baptism in Kansas, Tornado Over Kansas and Tragic Prelude), was born on November 14, 1897.

Clara Fasano, Italian wood and terra cotta sculptress, was born on November 14, 1900.

French Impressionist painter Claude Oscar Monet (Bridge Over a Pond of Water Lilies, Camille Monet at Work, Effect of Fog, Gladioli, Grainstack, The Green Wave, Haystacks, Ice Floes, The Japanese Bridge, Jean Monet on His Hobby Horse, Nympheas, Palazzo Ducale, Path Through the Irises, The Seine at Giverny, The Stormy Sea, Water Lilies, The Waterloo Bridge, Woman with a Parasol and Women in the Garden),was born on November 14, 1840. Ctrl-click here to view several samples of Claude Monet's artwork online.

Sherwood Charles Schwartz, American television writer and producer (The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, The Alan Young Show, The Bob Hope Show, The Brady Bunch, Dusty's Trail, Gilligan's Island, Harper Valley PTA, I Married Joan, It's About Time, My Favorite Martian, The Red Skelton Show and Together We Stand), was born on November 14, 1916.

Austrian architect (Vienna's Palais Schwarzenberg, Peterskirche and Piaristenkirche) Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt was born on November 14, 1668.

November 14th Birthdays: Famous Athletes

Mark Henderson, American swimmer and Olympic gold medalist (1996), was born on November 14, 1969.

James Edwin (Ted) Meredith, American runner and Olympic gold medalist (1912), was born on November 14, 1892.

Pieter Daniel (Piet) Moeskops, Dutch world champion cyclist, was born on November 14, 1893.

November 14th Birthdays: Famous Authors and Journalists

Swedish children's author Astrid Lindgren (Pippi Longstocking) was born on November 14, 1907.

American satirist, journalist (The American Spectator, The Atlantic Monthly and The Weekly Standard) and author (On The Wealth of Nations) Patrick Jake O'Rourke was born on November 14, 1947.

Harrison Salisbury, American newspaper correspondent (The New York Times) and Pulitzer Prize winner (1955) Harrison Salisbury was born on November 14, 1908.

November 14th Birthdays: Famous Business Leaders

American engineer, gunsmith, inventor and steamboat pioneer (The Clermont) Robert Fulton, was born on November 14, 1765.

Barbara Woolworth Hutton, American socialite, philanthropist and retailing heiress (F.W. Woolworth), was born on November 14, 1912.

November 14th Birthdays: Famous Performers

Phyllis Avery, American actress (The George Gobel Show and Mr. Novak), was born on November 14, 1924.

American heavy metal rock drummer Frankie Banali (Blackthorne, Faster Pussycat, Heavy Bones, Hughes/Thrall, Quiet Riot, Steppenwolf and W.A.S.P.) was born on November 14, 1951.

British R&B and pop singer John Andrew Banfield (The Pasadenas) was born on November 14, 1964.

Travis Barker, American alternative, hip hop and punk rock drummer (+44, The Aquabats, Blink-182, Box Car Racer, Expensive Taste and Transplants) and fashion merchandiser (Famous Stars and Straps), was born on November 14, 1975.

Sandahl Bergman, American dancer, stuntwoman and actress (Airplane II: The Sequel, All That Jazz, Conan the Barbarian, Hell Comes to Frogtown, How to Pick Up Girls, Red Sonja, The Singing Detective and Xanadu), was born on November 14, 1951.

Stephen Bishop, American rock guitarist, singer and songwriter (”Animal House,” “China Syndrome: Somewhere In Between,” “Don't You Worry,” “Dream Girl,” “Everybody Needs Love,” “It Might Be You,” “Living in the Land of Abe Lincoln,” “On and On,” “Save It for a Rainy Day” and “This is the Night”), was born on November 14, 1951.

American rock drummer Barry Brandt (Angel) was born on November 14, 1951.

Mary Louise Brooks, American silent film actress (American Venus, Diary of a Lost Girl and Pandora's Box) and author (Lulu in Hollywood), was born on November 14, 1906.

Ken Carson, American country singer (Sons of the Pioneers) and television personality (The Garry Moore Show), was born on November 14, 1914. He was not related to the best-selling Mattel plastic fashion doll, Ken Carson.

Greek New Age pianist and singer Giannis (Yanni) Chrysomallis was born on November 14, 1954. Yanni's music has been chosen for the Olympic Games, the Tour de France, the World Series and other major events.

Margaret Courtenay, Welsh actress (Duet for One, Get Charlie Tulley, Hot Millions, The House of Windsor, The Incredible Sarah, Isadora, The Mirror Crack'd, Royal Flash, The Two Mrs. Grenvilles, Under Milkwood and The Very Merry Widow), was born on November 14, 1923.

Australian rock singer and songwriter Nic Dalton (Captain Denim, Godstar, Hippy Dribble, The Hummingbirds, The Lemonheads, Love Positions, The Plunderers and Sneeze) was born on November 14, 1964.

Letitia Dean, British actress (EastEnders) and television personality (Strictly Come Dancing), was born on November 14, 1967.

American actress Rosemary DeCamp (The Bob Cummings Show, The Life of Riley, On Moonlight Bay, Rhapsody in Blue and That Girl) was born on November 14, 1910.

Christopher Peter (Chris) Demetral, American actor (The Adventures of McGee and Me, Batman Beyond, Beverly Hill, 90210, Blank Check, Bloodlines: Murder in the Family, Blossom, Chicken Soup for the Soul, Dawson's Creek, Dolly Dearest, Dream On, Empty Nest, Jonathan: The Boy Nobody Wanted, Journey of the Heart, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, The Magic Boy's Easter, Major Dad, Mr. Belvedere, The New Lassie, Parker Lewis Can't Lose, The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Step by Step, Triumph Over Disaster: The Hurricane Andrew Story, The Wild Thornberrys, The Wonder Years and The Zeta Project), was born on November 14, 1976.

Giovanni Alfredo (Johnny Desmond) de Simone, American singer (The Bob-o-Links and The Glenn Miller AAF Band), was born on November 14, 1920.

Morton Downey, American jazz pianist and singer, was born on November 14, 1901. Also known as Morton James, he was popularly called “The Irish Nightingale.”

American actor Howard Green Duff (The Adventures of Sam Spade, All My Sons, Brute Force, Dallas, Dante, Felony Squad, Flamingo Road, In Search of America, Knots Landing, Kramer vs. Kramer, Mr. Adams and Eve, The Naked City, No Way Out, Panic in the City and A Wedding) was born on November 14, 1917.

Joshua David (Josh) Duhamel, American model and actor (All My Children, Las Vegas, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Transformers, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Turistas, When in Rome and Win a Date with Tad Hamilton), was born on November 14, 1972.

Stanley (Buckwheat Zydeco) Dural, Jr., American accordionist and zydeco musician (Buckwheat & the Hitchhikers and The Ils Sont Partis Band), was born on November 14, 1947.

American alternative metal rock bassist, pianist and singer Tobin Esperance (Papa Roach) was born on November 14, 1979.

American rap artist and actor (In Too Deep, Original Gangstas, The Parent 'Hood and The Preacher's Wife) Shyheim Dionel Franklin was born on November 14, 1977. Shyheim is also known as Golden Hands, Manchild, The Rugged Child and Shy.

Anson Funderburgh, American blues guitarist and bandleader (Anson Funderburgh and the Rockets), was born on November 14, 1954.

Blues musician 54

Freddie Garrity, British rocker, (Freddie and the Dreamers) was born on November 14, 1940.

Russian prima ballerina Yekaterina Geltzer was born on November 14, 1876.

Robert Ginty, American actor (Baa Baa Black Sheep, Coming Home , Exterminator, Falcon Crest, Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man, Hawaiian Heat, Lady Dragon, Madhouse, The Paper Chase, Programmed to Kill and White Fire), was born on November 14, 1948.

American R&B singer Cornelius E. Gunter (The Coasters) was born on November 14, 1936.

Kathleen Hughes, American actress (77 Sunset Strip, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Bachelor Father, The Bob Cummings Show, For Men Only, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, The Glass Web, Gomer Pyle USMC, Hotel de Paree, I Dream of Jeannie, It Came from Outer Space, Perry Mason, The Tall Lie, Telephone Time and Tightrope), was born on November 14, 1928.

Mexican-American singer Jeannette Livier Jurado (Expose) was born on November 14, 1965.

Ukranian actress Olga Kostyantynivna Kurylenko (Hitman, Max Payne, Quantum of Solace, The Serpent and Tyranny) was born on November 14, 1979.

Ellis Marsalis, Jr., American jazz pianist, was born on November 14, 1934. His brothers are jazz musicians Branford Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, Delfeayo Marsalis and Jason Marsalis.

American actor David Raphael Moscow (Big, David and Layla, Dead Air, Honey, Hurricane Streets, Just Married, Loving Jezebel, Newsies, Restaurant, Riding in Cars with Boys, River Red, Side Streets and The Wizard of Loneliness) was born on November 14, 1974.

Eugene O'Brien, American actor (Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm), was born on November 14, 1880.

Constance Frances Marie (Veronica Lake) Ockelman, American model and actress (All Women Have Secrets, The Blue Dahlia, Dancing Co-Ed, Footsteps in the Snow, Forty Little Mothers, The Glass Key, Hold Back the Dawn, The Hour Before the Dawn, I Married a Witch, I Wanted Wings, So Proudly We Hail, Sorority House, Star Spangled Rhythm, Stronghold, Sullivan's Travels and This Gun for Hire), was born on November 14, 1919.

Seena Owen, American silent film actress (Intolerance, Queen Kelly and A Yankee From the West) and screenwriter (Aloma of the Seven Seas and Rainbow Island), was born on November 14, 1894.

Scherrie Payne, American R&B and soul singer (The Supremes), was born on November 14, 1944.

American actor (Cry Danger, Footlight Parade, Four Star Playhouse, Gold Diggers of 1933, Gold Diggers of 1935, Gold Diggers of 1937, Hollywood Hotel, Murder My Sweet, Susan Slept Here and Too Busy to Work) and television personality (The Best in Mystery, The Dick Powell Show, Dick Powell Theaterand Zane Grey Theater) Richard E. (Dick) Powell was born on November 14, 1904.

Robert Keith (Brian Keith) Richey, Jr., American actor (The Brian Keith Show, Centennial, Crusader, Family Affair, Hardcastle & McCormick, Heartland, The Loneliest Runner, Nevada Smith, The Parent Trap, Walter and Emily, The Westerner, Young Guns and The Young Philadelphians), was born on November 14, 1921.

American actress Laura San Giacomo (Just Shoot Me, Miles from Home, Pretty Woman, The Right to Remain Silent, sex lies and videotape, Stephen King's The Stand, Under Suspicion and Vital Signs) was born on November 14, 1962.

Annie Schilder, Dutch pop-rock singer (BZN – Band Zonder Naam, or Band Without a Name), was born on November 14, 1959.

Ray Sharkey, American actor (Act of Piracy, Behind Enemy Lines, Body Rock, Caged Fear, Chrome Soldiers, Cop and a Half, Good Cops – Bad Cops, The Idolmaker, The Lords of Flatbush, Love and Money, No Mercy, The Ordeal of Bill Carney, The Revenge of Al Capone, Riders in the Sky, Round Trip to Heaven, Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills, Some Kind of Hero, Who'll Stop the Rain, Wired, Wiseguy and Zebrahead), was born on November 14, 1952.

Joseph (Reverend Run) Simmons, American rapper (Run-D.M.C.), was born on November 14, 1964.

American actor McLean Stevenson (Condo, The Doris Day Show, Hello Larry, M*A*S*H, The McLean Stevenson Show and The Tim Conway Comedy Hour) was born on November 14, 1929

Donald Bruce (Don) Stewart, American actor (The Doomsday Flight, Guiding Light, Highway to Heaven, Knots Landing, L.A. Law and Rover Dangerfield), was born on November 14, 1935.

Alec John Such, American pop-rock bassist (Bon Jovi), was born on November 14, 1956.

American actor Daniel Bernard (D. B.) Sweeney (Beyond the Glory, Blue Desert, Crash, The Cutting Edge, The Edge of Night, Eight Men Out, Entry Level, Fire in the Sky, Fire with Fire, Gardens of Stone, Hardball, Harsh Realm, Heatstroke, Introducing Dorothy Dandridge, Jericho, Leather Jackets, Lonesome Dove, Memphis Belle, Spawn, Spenser: For Hire, Strange Luck and Two Tickets to Paradise) was born on November 14, 1961.

Martha (The Liltin' Miss Tilton) Tilton, American pop singer (Three Hits and a Miss) and radio personality (Camel Caravan), was born on November 14, 1915.

Bradley Glenn (Butch) Walker, III, American heavy metal guitarist (Bad Boyz, Byte the Bullet, The Floyds, Floyds Funk Revival, Marvelous 3 and SouthGang), was born on November 14, 1969.

American actor (Dave's World, Men in Black 2, NewsRadio, Rules of Engagement, Scream 3, Seinfeld and The Tick) and voice-over artist (Bee Movie, The Emperor's New Groove, Family Guy and Kim Possible) Patrick John Warburton was born on November 14, 1964.

Joy Elizabeth Williams, American contemporary Christian singer (”Everyday Hero,” “Every Moment,” “Hide,” “I Believe in You,” “I'm Gonna Break Your Heart,” “I'm in Love with You,” “Oh My Lord,” “One of Those Days,” “Say Goodbye,” “Surrender,” “Touch of Faith” and “We Shine”), was born on November 14, 1982.

American rock bassist Brian Yale (Matchbox Twenty and Tabitha's Secret)as born on November 14, 1968.

James Young, American rock guitarist (Styx), was born on November 14, 1948.

November 14th Birthdays: Famous Scientists

Leo Hendrik A. Baekeland, Belgian-Americanchemist, was born on November 14, 1863. Leo Baekeland invented Bakelite plastic and Velox photographic paper.

French botanist, physiologist and physician René Joachim Henri Dutrochet was born on November 14, 1776. A cellular biology pioneer, Henri Dutrochet has been credited with discovering the process of osmosis.

Charles Lyell, Scottish lawyer and geologist (Principles of Geology), was born on November 14, 1797.

November 14th Birthdays: Famous World (and Other) Leaders

Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Egyptian statesman, Secretary-General of the United Nations and author (Unvanquished: A U.S.-UN Saga), was born on November 14, 1922.

Mamie Geneva Doud Eisenhower, American First Lady (to 34th U.S. President Dwight David Eisenhower) was born on November 14, 1896.

Hussein I, King of Jordan, was born on November 14, 1935.

Joseph Raymond (Joe) McCarthy, American Senator (R-WI), was born on November 14, 1909. Joe McCarthy is remembered most for fostering Cold War suspicions, known as McCarthyism, which resulted in blacklisting of many artists and others as potential Communists in the 1950s.

Charles Philip Arthur George Windsor (Prince Charles of Wales) Mountbatten, British royal, heir to the British throne and author (A Vision of Britain), was born on November 14, 1948.

Jawaharlal Nehru, first Prime Minister of India, was born on November 14, 1889.

Nikolaos Plastiras, Greek Premier, was born on November 14, 1883.

Condoleezza (Condi) Rice, American public servant, 66th U.S. Secretary of State (under 43rd U.S. President George W. Bush) and author (Germany Unified and Europe Transformed and The Gorbachev Era), was born on November 14, 1954.

Do you know any others who are celebrating birthdays on November 14th?

If you know additional notable people (including yourself) who may be celebrating a birthday on November 14th, please indicate so in a comment below. Thank you!

Happy Birthday, November 14th.

Other Notable Birthdates:

Click here to check other calendar dates for notable birthdates.

Sources:

http://440.com/twtd/today.html

http://christianmusic.about.com/library/bl_bdjul.htm

http://halife.com/daily/trivia

http://halife.com/religion

http://thinkexist.com/birthday

http://www.arts.ufl.edu/ART/rt_room/artist_birthdays/july.html

http://www.born-today.com/bt.htm

http://www.brainyhistory.com/daysbirth

http://www.celebrity-link.com

http://www.famousbirthdays.net

http://www.historyorb.com/today/tomorrowsbirthdays.php

http://www.holidayinsights.com/bday

http://www.infoplease.com/birthday

http://www.judiciary.state.nj.us/kids/artists.htm

http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday

http://www.thelizlibrary.org/collections/woa/woa.html

http://www.toonopedia.com/today.htm

http://www.wilsonsalmanac.com/book

http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Day_files/Now.html

The six-time Pro Bowler, now 31, appeared to be in better shape after being limited by a bad back and neck the past two years, and he was off to a good start on Sunday.

He looked like his old self midway through the first quarter when he flattened Rodgers just as the quarterback released a pass downfield that a leaping Donald Driver juggled and dropped. Later, Urlacher rolled over Grant while making one of his three tackles and briefly shook his wrist before walking away with what looked like nothing more than a minor injury.

Now the Bears are without the longtime face of the franchise and a stalwart defendder in a division with top-tier running backs in Grant and Vikings star Adrian Peterson along with elite quarterbacks such as Rodgers and Minnesota's Brett Favre.

With Urlacher out, Hillenmeyer could see more time after replacing him on Sunday.

If the Bears look for outside help, one option might be former NFL Defensive Player of the Year Derrick Brooks. The 36-year-old Brooks, who was cut by Tampa Bay in February, has a good relationship with Bears coach Lovie Smith dating to his days on the Buccaneers' staff.

Zach Thomas, who was cut by Kansas City earlier this month, might also be a possibility.

Chicago could also be short-handed in other areas, too.

Tight end Desmond Clark took a hard hit after making a catch in the third quarter and left the game with a back injury. Left guard Frank Omiyale also went down for several minutes moments later after spraining his ankle and limping off the field.

Linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa also left in the first half with a knee injury, but Urlacher's injury creates a big hole on a defense that was trying to regain its dominant form after two mediocre seasons.

My job is the only source of income I have for now. Since I need to attack my debt, I will definitely need to raise my income somehow. Maybe ask for a raise? Not a good idea, with the economy still in the dumps, I don’t think my employer will be very generous this year.

Maybe sell some stuff. I’m thinking old sporting equipment. Like my hockey goalie equipment, golf clubs and roller blades. I do have a potential buyer for my hockey equipment. But i have to admit, this one hurts. I used to play hockey 2-3 times a week. What will I do this winter? But the heck with it. My debts are my number one priority. And that means making sacrifices. So bye bye hockey. I will let u know if the buyer comes through.

As for the golf clubs? Who cares! I have been playing for little over 9 years and I still can’t break 100. I suck! So bye bye clubs. Enough with the frustrations! And, golf is a pretty darn expensive sport. Clubs, balls, gloves, shoes, green fees, charts etc etc… It adds up! No more golf.

Roller blades? No biggie here. I’ll be lucky to get 20$ for these.

And last but not least. My car. Yup, I have been thinking of selling my car. But I’ll save that for another post.

What about you? Have you ever sold anything to pay off debt? Like what? Was it emotionally hard to part with it?

–>
Welcome to The Back Report. Our purpose is to provide relevant information and resources to anyone interested in learning more about lower back pain and spinal conditions.

Knee injuries are the most common sports injury seen in Britain today.
In running alone, 60% of all runners are injured in an average year and about one third of these sports injuries affect the knee.
Knee injuries are also the most common sports injuries sustained by school children, as they often occur during football, hockey and rugby.
Yet far too little is known by the general public about the advantages of knee support or the other simple steps that can be taken to help knee injury prevention.
The knee is the largest joint in the body, made up of bones, cartilage, muscles, tendons and ligaments. A knee sports injury can involve any of these.
It can be hard to understand knee injuries and some of the complicated terms used do not make this any easier for the layperson.
You may have heard of knee ‘overuse’ for example. Well, although it is sometimes called an ‘overuse’ injury, the real name of the condition is iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS). This is one of the most common knee injuries. It is actually caused by a lack of strength and flexibility rather than anything than can accurately be described as overuse. In fact, it can be brought on in runners even if they are only running around 5 miles, which can hardly be seen as overuse.
There are a number of other common knee injuries. First, there is a knee sprain which means you have stretched or torn a ligament. Then there are strains, which mean you have torn a muscle or tendon.
Tendinitis happens when a tendon gets inflamed. Damage to the menisci is a really common sports injury, especially in activities where a side to side movement or a sudden change in speed can cause them to tear.
And, of course, sometimes there can be cartilage injuries, where a small piece of bone or cartilage breaks off, causing long term knee pain.
Osgood Schlatter Disease is particularly common in teenagers aged between 10-15, especially if they are having a growth spurt. A typical symptom is pain just below the front of the kneecap on the tibia, which gets worse with activity. There is sometimes a bump below the knee joint that is painful to touch. Osgood Schlatter Disease is especially common in boys who play sports involving running, kicking, or jumping, all of which put strain on the quadriceps muscles.
The arterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is the most common knee ligament to be damaged in a sports injury, usually by a sudden twist or landing badly after a jump. Interestingly, women athletes are eight times more likely to suffer from damage to the arterior cruciate ligament than men.
Nobody is immune from knee injuries, with many professional footballers like Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Paul Gascoigne being well known for their knee injuries.
For many knee injuries, it is advised to rest the knee and apply compression. In these cases, a knee brace can help. In the very worst cases, surgery may be necessary.
As knee injuries are so painful and so common, prevention is always better than cure. When playing sport, it is a good idea to wear protective equipment, such as kneepads and shin guards. Knee support including knee straps and knee braces can also help prevent injury and protect your knee if you have injured it previously.
It is also vital to make sure you always warm up and cool down and that your training programme is increased gradually, so that you do not put your knee under undue strain.
It is well worth trying weightlifting to strengthen your muscles and yoga or stretching to improve flexibility, as this will cut down the risk of sports injury. And, of course, if your sport involves jumping, do make sure you bend your knees when you land.
Increasing awareness about knee injuries, knee support and sports first aid can help you stay fit, so is a vital ingredient to becoming a successful athlete.

Special Thanks to
“Anon”
with www.whokilledtheresa.blogspot.com
for transcribing this episode!

Aired: April 17, 2007

(Introduction to show begins)

TODD: My name is Todd Matthews. Welcome to Missing Pieces. Tonight we have Sharon Murch. She is the mother of kidnapped Michaela Garecht. Welcome Sharon.

SHARON: Thank you.

TODD: How are you doing?

SHARON: I’m doing okay. How about you?

TODD: I’m doing really well; as well as can be expected with the subject matter we have to work on here at Missing Pieces. And you daughter has been…she was kidnapped and she’s actually been gone since 1988.

SHARON: Yes, 18 ½ years.

TODD: Wow. We’re coming…it’s getting close to the 20-year mark.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: So I see recently, you know, I found a little bit of information about your daughter’s case online at various places, I know you work with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, I see her echoed on a lot of websites, a lot of agencies that try to work with the National Center to try to get information out on these cases. And I see recently, and this is where you caught my eye, MySpace.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: And I like seeing MySpace used for something like this rather than for some of the things that it inadvertently gets used for.

SHARON: Yeah, I actually don’t know why it took me so long to think of it. I’ve been on MySpace for a long time and one day I thought, “Why don’t I have one of these for Michaela?” so I set it up.

TODD: Was there another case that you saw that made you think, “I want to do that” or did it just pop into your mind?

SHARON: You can search for people on MySpace.

TODD: uh huh

SHARON: So I searched for her. I thought maybe she was out there somewhere. Maybe she had a MySpace. It’s kind of far-fetched but…

TODD: Hey.

SHARON: But I did find a MySpace for her but it wasn’t her, it was…

TODD: I did see that. I saw that there was another.

SHARON: It went up for her and for a number of other missing children and I decided I wanted to do my own in the event that Michaela might still be out there, might still be alive, it would be something that she could see to know that we are still looking for her and we still love her just as much as ever.

TODD: Well now you said you saw another MySpace account with her name on it; did that surprise you?

SHARON: Um…no…not really. I mean, I could see immediately that it was one of her old pictures so I figured it was somebody who had set it up because she’s a missing child so I didn’t think “Oh gosh, there she is!”

TODD: Oh good. It’s good because I would hate for you to see that and a lot of these people that do these, they’re well intended; they’re really trying to do something that’s going to bring attention to the cases that they’re trying to step up. I really want to talk to you, being the next of kin to her, you specifically, it’s very important, you know that you were, and that’s why we chatted a little online, we’ve never spoken in person before tonight but we did chat online quite often. What did you expect to find now? Did you expect to hear from people that were, possibly, crazy people?

SHARON: Um…

TODD: It goes with the territory, I’m afraid. (Laughter)

SHARON: Of course, I’ve heard from a lot of crazy people over the years. I didn’t really set it up with any expectations of who I would hear from. Initially I set it up and I just sent out invitations to all the people that I knew and it was just something that I wanted to have in place so that everybody would remember Michaela. Gradually…every time I go onto MySpace now, there’s at least one new friend request and most of them are people who want to help missing children or who have missing family members themselves or family members who have been crime victims. I’ve met a lot of people that I have something in common with and it’s actually been very therapeutic for me, if nothing else.

TODD: It’s good to hear because using MySpace for this type of purpose, whether or not you’re getting direct help from people, I think you’re helping to form relationships with people that have the same problems that you have, you know, the bigger the crowd, the more attention that we’re going to get on this type of thing.

SHARON: I found out that there are a lot of people who deal with grief in their life and if I’m able to reach out to any of those people, you know, I’ve been doing this for 18 years, and perhaps I’ve come through some places that I can help somebody else through so, you know, that’s another reason why I set it up.

TODD: Possibly give somebody a shortcut because it’s not an easy journey, I’m sure. All of your, all the links that pertain to this case will be on your archive page and I know you’ve seen it already and we’ll leave that there permanently and it will be transcribed and we’ll have text available so everything that we want to include here will actually be on this page so all of our listeners out there now can actually click in and see progress. We’re hoping that you’ll keep us updated with things so that we can actually add that information, get it out in a newsletter and just try to keep her in the public eye, which is what you’re trying to do.

SHARON: I hope that there is something to update to it.

TODD: Well, we’ll check back in, obviously we want to check back in with you. Now, this case is unusual because, a lot of times there seems to be some difficulty in getting some initial effort from law enforcement, but you did. Now, since it was an abduction, there was almost immediate law enforcement action, correct?

SHARON: Yes. It was a witnessed stranger abduction.

TODD: uh huh

SHARON: She was at the neighborhood market with her best friend on a Saturday morning. Her friend saw it happen and ran into the market immediately to get help. The police were there almost immediately. There’s no way that I would have believed that this would have gone unsolved the way it has but, unfortunately, there were a few things that were in the favor of the kidnapper. The place where she was kidnapped was a half block from a change in jurisdictions and he immediately headed out of the jurisdiction of our police department, so that might have slowed things down a little bit. The police, when they took the description of the kidnapper, instead of talking to my daughter’s friend who actually witnessed it, talked to a checker in a store who claimed she had seen him drive by earlier.

TODD: Ohhh

SHARON: She actually gave a description of the car as being a butterscotch color and when the police got my daughter’s friend calmed down, much later that day, and actually talked to her, it actually turned out to be more of a burgundy color. So in those crucial few minutes, they were looking for the wrong car, they were looking for a man with a moustache, and my daughter’s friend later said “no, he didn’t have a moustache” so…

TODD: So, that explains a little bit the differences.

SHARON: It was a crime that…it was impossible to get away with it and those few things actually made it possible.

TODD: Wow. And she was 9 years old.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: And her friend, how old was she? The same age?

SHARON: Yeah, she was 9.

TODD: So, you know, 9 years old, of course, she was upset at the time, you know they can give a very credible description at 9 years old.

SHARON: Yes. She was a very bright little girl and she would have had no problem giving a description if somebody had taken the time to talk to her, instead of just saying “oh well, I’ll get it from this person”.

TODD: So they automatically gravitated to an adult, possibly.

SHARON: mm hmm

TODD: And she was probably really, really upset too. It was probably difficult to get the data from her at that point in time until she did calm down but, like you said, those crucial few moments were missed.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: And, you know, that’s what you always hear is take advantage of those first hours and moments are very, very critical. Do you think…you talked about that he possibly jumped jurisdictions, you were at the edge and he was moving out of a city limit?

SHARON: Right.

TODD: Okay.

SHARON: He could have easily moved in and out of 3 or 4 different jurisdictions within just a few miles.

TODD: Wow. And that requires communication with other law enforcement agencies passing on information.

SHARON: And they did do that, you know, they did invoke ’snare’, is what they call it. I’ve listened to all the police tapes from that day and that is the net that they set up to try to catch criminals on the go. They did do that.

TODD: And it’s effective but it does take time.

SHARON: It does take time. Yeah, but they do have to have the correct description. That helps also.

TODD: And that changed.

SHARON: There were other people who saw what happened though. He drove down Mission Boulevard (in Hayward, California), which is a busy highway; it goes all the way from Oakland, California to San Jose. And I know of at least one woman who was pulling out of the cemetery across the street, and she pulled onto Mission Boulevard and she took note of the car because he was driving erratically and she was afraid that he was going to cause a car accident and she even made an effort to memorize the license plate so that she’d have that in case he caused a car accident. And later on, she watched the news and realized what she had witnessed and never came forward. It was 3 months later that she was in the grocery story and she ran into somebody who looked like the kidnapper and was afraid that he had recognized her and was afraid that she might be in danger and at that time she came forward. But she was pretty determined not to remember anything. The police did hypnotize her to try to get the license plate number but she had told me the day before that she wasn’t going to remember anything. And that’s where it was left. But he was apparently weaving in and out of traffic so all of those cars he was weaving in and out of must have seen him. With all of the coverage that it got on the news afterwards, they must have realized what they had seen and yet we still have almost nothing to go on. If we just knew where he turned off Mission Boulevard…

TODD: mm hum

SHARON: …you know that would be such a great piece of information.

TODD: But now, if you could get somebody from the past and sit and talk with them, you know, you are 18 years now, you know, you’re going to be 19 years this November.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: So, the description of the car now doesn’t help, unless you can…

SHARON: No. They would have then.

TODD: Yeah. They can’t now but they would then. So, I’m thinking, what can we do now? What can we do now, as far as getting information out and, hopefully, anybody that might have seen it, there could still be somebody alive out there that could have seen this. They could come forward still today and I hope anybody that’s listening tonight, I urge you to come forward with this case and any case, no matter how irrelevant the piece of data that you think you have, no matter how hard, how difficult it is to actually get law enforcement to listen to you because they’re going to be busy…you really have to push that, you really have to get data to law enforcement, accurate data, as quickly as possible.

SHARON: The law enforcement, they’re still working the case. They’re still actively working on the case. They had some big lead last year that they were following up that they thought was really hopeful. My understanding is that they really need something concrete in order to be able to pin it on somebody.

TODD: That’s not easy to get sometimes. (Laughter) That’s the needle in the haystack, right?

SHARON: Well, I don’t know. I think of it more along the lines of those people who aid and abet kidnappers.

TODD: uh huh

SHARON: I mean, you know, there are cases of people who live in the same home with the kidnapper and the kidnapped child for days and don’t come forward and say anything. I don’t know how people can live with that kind of thing of their conscience.

TODD: They’re just as guilty.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: Every bit as guilty. And you know that probably somebody knows whether they directly had a hand in this.

SHARON: You know, really and truly, as guilty as they may be themselves for having this information and having sat on it, if they could just turn it over anonymously, you know, just something to allow us to solve the case.

TODD: Well, we’re going to allow another mechanism of doing just that if somebody does have something, something that has been bearing on their heart and they want to try to reveal it, we will find a way to help submit information anonymously if that’s what it takes to actually get information on this case and other cases. It’s very important, because a lot of people suffer for a great many years just not knowing.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: So how many children do you have?

SHARON: In addition to Michaela, I have 4 other children and one stepdaughter.

TODD: And I’ve spoken to other people before, when they have missing children, they have to also focus on their children that are still there.

SHARON: My children that are still here are the things that saved my life.

TODD: Absolutely.

SHARON: When Michaela was kidnapped, I had an 8-year old, a 3-year old and a 7- month old and they were very much in need of me and that is what kept me going.

TODD: Well you had to strive to help try to make their lives as normal as possible in the meantime.

SHARON: And, you know, they never…in spite of everything that was going on around them and in spite of their own sorrow, they were children and they never lost their joy in things in life and when Christmas came around after Michaela was kidnapped, the other children, they still had all of the joy of the season and that is what helped me get through it…I’m sorry.

TODD: That’s okay. It’s understandable, very much so.

SHARON: I have my youngest daughter, she was actually born…uh, she’s 13 now and she was actually born the day of the memorial for Polly Klaas who was kidnapped and murdered not far from where we live and we had the memorial on in the labor and delivery room and the station we were watching, just as the memorial was ending, they broadcast photos of other children from the Bay Area who were still missing and just as my youngest daughter was actually coming into this world, I looked up in the corner of the room and there was Michaela smiling down at me.

TODD: Wow.

SHARON: And it was kind of like she was telling me, you know, “Go on.”

TODD: Well you have to. You have to continue to live and your other children have to live and have a life as well. I don’t think she would ever want you to stop living.

SHARON: No, and I know that whatever she went through, because I had told her, you know, we had talked about child safety…we’d had a number of child kidnappings in the Bay area in the months before she was kidnapped and I had told her, “take care of yourself because if anything ever happened to you it would break my heart” and I know that whatever she went through, whatever terror, whatever sorrow she went through, I know that she thought of me and I know that she was concerned about me also.

TODD: So, and I did see that there had been some other cases in the along the same time period in that area. I know the thought has probably crossed your mind and I’m sure law enforcement, do they think that some of these are possibly connected?

SHARON: There are some law enforcement agencies that are pretty convinced that they are and other law enforcement agencies that aren’t so convinced, so…

TODD: So at least they are looking at it in 2 different ways?

SHARON: Right. I’m not sure that our law enforcement agency is necessarily convinced that they are related. There was a well-known suspect a few years ago; he’s been in books and on TV, who was considered to be a prime suspect in some of the other cases but he was never really seriously investigated by our police department because we had an eyewitness and he really didn’t match the description of our kidnapper. So, he’s been involved with this case and he’s said some pretty creepy things along the way. I think he likes to be considered a suspect; I’m not sure if he’s actually guilty of anything but…

TODD: There’s all kinds. There’s all kinds out there.

SHARON: These cases are all unsolved so as long as they’re all unsolved, I guess anything is possible.

TODD: I’ve seen just about everything in some of these cases too. It seems like the most unsuspected plot is what usually plays out in how things end up. It’s just so hard to think these things out and figure it out.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: It’s just a crazy mess. Did you know that there are over 100,000 missing persons listed with the FBI NCIC?

SHARON: I’m not surprised.

TODD: That is an incredible number.

SHARON: They don’t seem to find them very often.

TODD: Well, a lot of them are recovered within the first few days, possibly weeks, but then there are these lingering cases because a lot of them are, you know, runaways, abducted by family members, you know, there are a lot of things that bring them into that classification as missing but then in a case like yours, it was a different story. And then there are more cases that we know that are not listed with the FBI NCIC and I do see that your case is listed with the FBI NCIC. Did you have any difficulty doing that or was that sort of an automatic process?

SHARON: No. No there was no difficulty at all. I believe it would have happened anyhow, but I had the assistance of some really excellent missing children’s organizations in the Bay Area at the time that she was kidnapped and what I didn’t know, what the police department didn’t know, they were right on it.

TODD: They knew what needed to be done then.

SHARON: Right. And the investigators we had on it from the police department from the beginning and from the FBI, they were great people, they were very open, they talked about the case with us. Even though they are still investigating it, the police department now, is pretty close-mouthed about what they do so I don’t really know what’s going on but… In the first year after Michaela was kidnapped, they accumulated 5 file cabinets full of leads and what really touched me was that they didn’t have a case number on the file cabinet, they didn’t even have a name on the file cabinet, on each of the file cabinets, they had Michaela’s photograph, so, they never forgot that they were looking for her, a child, and not just trying to solve a case.

TODD: Well, that’s important too. I know that had to be so special to you.

SHARON: It was.

TODD: Now when did the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children become involved? At what point did that happen?

SHARON: Well, like I said, we had, it was an organization that was around at that time called Missing Children’s Project, it’s no longer around because the woman who ran it has passed away but she came to our house and actually set up a search center at my dining room table, organized everything and we ran it right from the home and she was in touch with the National Center on a regular basis. I’m pretty sure that she is the one who got that rolling.

TODD: Now, the Internet, its changed things. We talked your MySpace page but now the communications…1988…

SHARON: No we didn’t have anything.

TODD: Wow. It was pale in comparison to now. I don’t know how we got anything done in those time periods. Really, everything had to be telephone, fax, it was just so much more difficult to communicate and now, you know, we can have a picture of somebody that goes missing here, I’m in Livingston, Tennessee and we can have a photograph of that person in Australia within minutes, literally, you know, that can be transmitted across the globe.

SHARON: Right. And it can be very broadly transmitted very quickly.

TODD: And a lot of people are listening now. You know, at one time in my life I didn’t know there was anybody else, you know, the people that care about this type of thing, they seemed like they were so scattered and you might not have known somebody had a missing family member unless you fell into that category yourself, like you did.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: Did you have any idea that this had happened? Of course you said that there were some cases that went on in the area at the time?

SHARON: Well, it still surprises me some of the cases from the Bay Area that have not received the amount of publicity that the others have. You know, I still find out about kids who are missing here and I don’t know why they have not been publicized.

TODD: Have you been in communication with any of the family members?

SHARON: No. I haven’t actually. Most of the people that I have communicated with have actually been people who run the websites.

TODD: Organizational types.

SHARON: Organizational or just a personal interest. Very few of them are actually associated with the families and I find that most of them are run by people who just want to help, and that they find the time and the energy to do this, I think it is a wonderful thing. The woman who had the website for Michaela after we set up our website, we contacted her, she was concerned we might be unhappy with what she had been doing or that we might want her to take her website down because we had our own and I’m grateful for all the help I can get.

TODD: So how did that feel seeing that somebody else went to all this trouble just for Michaela?

SHARON: I very deeply appreciate it, especially after all of these years, you know, even today at church, a woman said to me, “you know you look familiar, do I know you from somewhere?” and I tried saying, “well, from here?” and she said, “no, it’s something else”. And I said, “Do you know who Michaela Garecht is?” and she said,”Oh, yes!” So often people, there’s some familiarity there but after all these years, unless you prompt them, they don’t really remember what it is.

TODD: It’s like the information is…it’s out there but it’s scattered.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: It’s scattered out. And I think a lot of the younger people…I’m 36 and I’m seeing a lot of…a big interest in this type of thing by people that are younger than me that are actually logging on and I’m glad, I’m really glad. A lot of times I’ll talk to high schools and even grade school groups and they’re looking at CSI-type shows and I show them the difference between reality and fiction and it’s just a little bit different, you know, you’re not going to solve every case, it’s not all going to be wrapped up in an hour, it’s not like that, this is fiction.

SHARON: Well on the Internet, I have talked to 15-year olds who have said they wanted to grow up and be detectives and solve these missing kids’ cases or these unsolved murder cases.

TODD: I wish them the best for that. I hope the do…I hope they do that. It’s just amazing now the technology, the changes over the past decade have been astronomical. I don’t think I would have heard about your daughter’s case without the Internet.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: There’s just no way that people can communicate like that at that point in time, it’s just unreal.

SHARON: The changes in public policy also, I mean you know, if we had had Amber Alert when Michaela was kidnapped…

TODD: Yes.

SHARON: The story might have ended differently.

TODD: Yes, it could have been very different. Now I speak with the California Department of Justice, you know, and I speak with them on occasion, and in fact, they actually called me a couple weeks ago regarding a case, and California is really good as far as getting information to the right places. I don’t know how it was as opposed to 1988, but it seems like they are retroactively trying to get everything in place and have all their information listed and it makes it seem like California has a great many more missing persons or a great many more unidentified persons in relation to the rest of the country but, in fact, a lot of it is due to population and for the need to include all this information. They’re really a lot better than some cases, some other states actually. Now there’s a…

SHARON: I mean, except for taking the information from the wrong person, I mean I really can’t complain about the response from our local police department, the FBI, the State of California, the Missing Children’s Organization. It was overwhelming really and I know it was a long time before I left home when Michaela was kidnapped because I kept expecting her to come home or call on the phone. We didn’t have cell phones then so I had to be there by our home phone and I’d look down the street and I’d expect her to be walking home because whenever we went on TV, we’d ask the kidnapper to just drop her off so she could get home. Every time a police car pulled up in front of our house, which was quite often for some reason, I’d look in the back seat to see if she was in the back seat, so it was about 4 weeks or so after her kidnapping before I actually left the house and that was to go to the police department and I remember driving down the street and every telephone pole was covered with missing flyers and I remember thinking how much good that would do to Michaela and I thought about her being driven home down those streets and seeing the love of the community poured out to her and, well, that never happened. I just hope that wherever she was that she did manage to see that and that she knew that she had not been abandoned, that the whole world was trying to help find her.

TODD: And that’s true. That’s very true. Now, the missing…I’ve said this before on a lot of different shows that I’ve done…I can’t think of anything worse that could happened to me, to not know where my children were. We’ve talked about that moment when you lose your child at a grocery store, that jump of your heart…so then somebody like you has to deal with this forever.

SHARON: You know, the funny thing is that before Michaela was kidnapped, during the summer, Amber Swartz was kidnapped in Pinole and Tammy Talarico was kidnapped in Sacramento. Tammy’s case actually ended happily, she was found safe and brought home and Michaela and I watched the news together, we just sat glued to the TV watching the news hoping for some good news about these girls and we actually discussed that. We actually talked about how that must be the worst thing that could ever happen to you and then, it happened to us.

TODD: Well I’m amazed at how people like you actually went on. Like you said, your children actually saved your life; your remaining children got you through this.

SHARON: In the earliest days when it’s hardest, you have so much hope.

TODD: uh huh

SHARON: I mean…

TODD: That keeps you going.

SHARON: Every time somebody comes through the door, you expect that your child is coming home. Every time the phone rings, you expect that it’s your child and you have that hope, you know. Well, it may be one of the worst things that can happen to you, so many of these other people whose children are murdered, of whose children are killed in car accidents or die of illness, they are just hit with the grief and they have no hope to keep them up during those hard times so I have to hand it to those people to be able to get through it.

TODD: Well, you see it from both angles and not a lot of people do, so it’s really good to hear you say that. You’re seeing all sides. You’ve had a lot of time to reflect on a lot of this I’m sure.

SHARON: That’s an understatement.

TODD: Well it seems like you’ve come to terms with it. Now, your children, they’re grown now? Some of them are at least grown.

SHARON: Yes. As a matter of fact, I just had my second granddaughter was born on April 1st, so they range in age now from 13 to 26 years old and so they’re getting older but, you know…

TODD: How have they dealt with this? Even though you’ve maintained very well for them and you said that things went on as normally as possible, they had happy holidays, you know, but when they got to be adults and had their own children, it had to strike them a little bit.

SHARON: They probably had a lot less freedom than they would have had. Before Michaela was kidnapped, I was a real worrier, but you know on the other hand I remembered my childhood and, you know, the freedom that I was allowed and I thought that somehow I had to get over my own fears to allow my children that freedom and after Michaela was kidnapped, I decided I didn’t.

TODD: I can imagine. I had a brother and sister pass away and we got away with nothing. I mean nothing. The night before I got married at 18 years old, I had to be home at 9 o’clock because my Daddy said so. It was just losing these 2 siblings to death of natural causes and not to something unusual, there’s still a terror.

SHARON: A dread.

TODD: I remember nights that my Momma told my Dad to come and check if I was still breathing, everything. It was just terror and I would have to lay there and play like I was asleep because how do you react to that? What do you say you know “I’m okay.” You know, because I had had open-heart surgery and was ill for a great period of my life and I think they were just so afraid that something was going to happen to me that it just preoccupied my Mother and my Dad. My Mom showed it more than my Dad did, you know, he had to be strong and make sure everybody was okay and make sure everything was alright with everybody and go to work and make sure everybody was fed, clothed and my Mom, she would spend her days worrying about me and my living brother. That was it; we were her whole world. It was how she could make our lives good, you know, but I mean, she did keep a good tight control on us but I think it did us some good.

SHARON: Somebody said that when you have children it’s like allowing a piece of your heart to walk around outside your body.

TODD: Well, I am beginning to know that because I have a 15-year old son and I have a 5-year old son and my 15-year old is liking to go and do things and I’m just, you know, I get this thought when he’s gone, he goes to this local teen center and, of course, we drop him off and pick him up but no matter what I’ve told him and he’s got a cell phone strapped to him and everything, but I have to think “what if?” and it scares me you know. I think about you and other people and it just makes your heart jump and I call him.

SHARON: Oh yeah. I don’t know how I’d get by without cell phones.

TODD: I don’t know how any of us ever did. I don’t know if he would be going anywhere, I don’t think. I think he would have as strict a lifestyle as I did growing up if I didn’t have a way to contact him and you know if I don’t reach him on his cell phone; I tell him it’s very important that you answer this if I call you. It’s really important. It doesn’t mean that it is an emergency; it means that Dad needs to know where you are at. You know you just have this worry and you just need this little comfort to know that they are okay.

SHARON: And if they don’t answer, then you start panicking.

TODD: Yeah, and you call back or you drive by the teen center and hope they don’t see you and think that you are just completely out of your mind. I think my son, he’s grown up with me working in this type of thing and I think he expects to see Daddy in different places, unusual places, at the school possibly doing a lecture, that type of thing so that gives him a little relief from it. I don’t think he is as embarrassed by it as other children might be.

SHARON: I actually work at the high school.

TODD: Wow. So, you keep an eye on everybody. Well, how is it there? How is it working at the high school?

SHARON: It’s been good. Well, I mean, I love kids; I love teenagers so…

TODD: mm huh

SHARON: I enjoy working with them. I’ve had 2 kids graduated from there now and they’re moving on. It’s a little harder to keep track of them at this point.

TODD: Well seeing them at the high school, the kids nowadays, how do you feel about the security of people, at that school or any school? Do you feel like our children are relatively safe?

SHARON: At the school where I work, I do feel that they are relatively safe. Not totally safe, you know, they never can be. I just finished reading ‘Nineteen Minutes’ by Jodi Picoult about a school shooting.

TODD: mm huh

SHARON: And it’s very frightening but, you know, in that book, what kept drawing me back again and again was not the victim, but the boy who did the shooting and the experience that he had had in his life of being bullied and being treated harshly from kindergarten on without anybody to help him. You know, when Michaela was kidnapped we had an eyewitness so we actually had a composite drawing of the kidnapper.

TODD: I’ve seen that.

SHARON: And, you know, when I first looked at it, well maybe a couple of days after I first looked at it, you know one of the things that really struck me was that this man had once been a little boy and if that little boy had received the love and the nurturing that he needed at that time, then he would not have grown up to be somebody who would kidnap my daughter.

TODD: uh huh

SHARON: And I think that this is…if we want to protect our children, if we want to keep our children safe, this is where we need to start. You know, we need to start with the children.

TODD: We’ve got to do the best we can, I think we all have to do the best we can and sometimes that’s not even enough. You know I’ve seen…my wife has a large family, there’s 16 siblings and we have one of everything. Actually, literally, in that family and they’ve all had the same upbringing but sometimes it’s…uh…

SHARON: Well that is true.

TODD: One does get away.

SHARON: I have 5 kids and they’re all as different from one another as they could be.

TODD: Well, you know, there’s no…you just can’t explain it if you don’t try to do the best you can and as much experience I’ve had in this business and everything that I went through, I even make my son transcribe some of these shows just so he’ll hear it in the way that I heard it and he don’t like doing that, but I make him do it from time to time. You need to really understand it. I don’t want you to just listen to it; I want you to understand it. I want you to listen to this person and see what kind of pain and remember when you try to be evasive at some point in time, which I know he’s going to get more evasive. I know it. I know he’s going to try; he’s going to try to break away, it’s natural. It’s a natural process; he’s going to try but I want him to see how hard and how much it does hurt. It’s not easy.

SHARON: Maybe he will, maybe he won’t.

TODD: (sighs)

SHARON: My kids are all different but you know, my older son, he was 7 when Michaela was kidnapped and he went through some very hard times and put me through some very hard times. He’s a man now; he’s grown up and he’s a wonderful person and a responsible father but he put me through the wringer when he was a teenager, believe me.

TODD: Well, everybody goes through that rebellious stage. I know it was killing them because I wanted to get married.

SHARON: That’s right.

TODD: And they didn’t think it would work out but I’ve been married almost 20 years now. It’s getting there you know; in 2008 it will be 20 years so it’s been fairly successful.

SHARON: Well that’s good.

TODD: We didn’t go very far; we live next door.

SHARON: That’s good too.

TODD: So they can still keep and eye on me. I don’t know what my Momma would have done if we’d left and moved too far away. I just don’t know. I don’t know how she would have reacted to it.

SHARON: Yeah, my oldest son lives about 3 hours away but the rest of them all still live at home.

TODD: So do they still…do you have any plans? There are lots of things that go on for missing cases, candlelight vigils; there are different shows that people can actually have the case brought up. It just seems like you’ve been re-energized when you did this MySpace page, it just seems like you are reaching out in a new direction.

SHARON: I don’t have anything really planned at the moment.

TODD: mm huh

SHARON: The one thing is that I have written a book about it and…

TODD: hmm okay

SHARON: I would like to try to get that out there. I’m not really sure how to go about doing it.

TODD: Well I might be able to help you with that actually so we’ll talk about that more offline.

SHARON: Okay.

TODD: I think I possibly can help you with that. That’s…its good. Now how hard was it to do that? And how many years did it take you to do it?

SHARON: Well, I wrote a first draft many years ago.

TODD: uh huh

SHARON: And it was something that needed to be rewritten for a number of reasons and it was very hard to get around to doing that, and then last year I broke my ankle and I was kind of a prisoner in my house for 10 weeks and I did it all during that time. It actually took about 2 weeks to do the rewrite.

TODD: Wow.

SHARON: It just flowed out.

TODD: It was therapeutic then?

SHARON: Yes. I always planned on growing up to be a writer so I’m a writer by nature. I’ve always kept journals and writing to people on MySpace and that’s my therapy, it’s better than any psychiatrist. And I’ve tried those too.

TODD: But, you know, and I’m the same way; I’ve always wanted to do something like it but I didn’t have…just going out and looking for things to do didn’t it but then I found out, this is it. This is what I need to write about, this is what I want to broadcast about. This is it. You have to have something that you are really compassionate about or you are really close to. So, how many pages is your book?

SHARON: About 200 pages.

TODD: Wow. That’s a lot. Now how do you envision this book, with photographs…a lot of photographs?

SHARON: Oh yeah. Yeah.

TODD: Have you had any unusual experiences over the years? Now you said that you have heard from unusual people at times; that goes with the territory obviously.

SHARON: I have had so many unusual experiences over the years. Gosh, I wouldn’t even know where to begin.

TODD: There’re just that many, huh?

SHARON: Yes, and I’ve had a lot of people who have, back before the Internet, a lot of people who actually came physically into my life and people who were amateur investigators and who helped me investigate many leads. You know there are like groupies out there?

TODD: Yeah.

SHARON: People who would actually call and say, “I can’t believe I’m talking to the mother of a missing child.” And other people like the suspect I mentioned earlier, most people in the Bay Area would probably know his name right away but I’m not going to mention it because he did sue one police department.

TODD: mm huh

SHARON: But, you know, he was very fond of talking about the missing girls and one newspaper reporter asked, “Well if you were going to kidnap these girls, how would you control them?” And he said. “Well with Amber (Swartz) and Nikki (Amanda ‘Nikki’ Campbell) it was easy, you just told them what to do and they’d do it. Michaela was harder; she was a fighter.” And even though I had never considered him to be a suspect in Michaela’s case, I thought “how would he know that about my daughter?” because that’s something I guarantee was true.

TODD: Do you think he could have got it by being observant with the news?

SHARON: It’s possible.

TODD: Because you can get a lot.

SHARON: On American…one of my friends called and said, “Did you watch America’s Most Wanted? The composite of Michaela’s kidnapper was on there.” Somebody from the Johnny Gosch case was on there and used our composite to identify the person that was the getaway driver in the Johnny Gosch case.

TODD: So you were on America’s Most Wanted but you weren’t physically involved in the process?

SHARON: No. No, actually Michaela was the first missing child ever featured on America’s Most Wanted.

TODD: Really. That’s an interesting note.

SHARON: Before, when America’s Most Wanted first started, they only featured cases that had arrest warrants issued, which you don’t have in the case of a missing child and actually Michaela along with Amber Swartz from Pinole, and Ilene Misheloff from Dublin, those 3 girls were the first ones, in one show they featured all the girls because they had all gone missing in this area within a matter of a few months and that was the first time that they had ever had missing children on America’s Most Wanted. She’s been on Unsolved Mysteries twice…

TODD: mm huh

SHARON: …and numerous other TV shows locally, nationally and lots of pieces in print.

TODD: Yeah, I found quite a bit, I found quite a bit about her. Now the Internet allows you to reach out and do some of the things on your own, like I investigated part of this just finding these links so that I can actually communicate with you about it but, as far as physically, what do you do in a case like this? You know, you didn’t leave the house for a month but when you did, did you ever go out and just look? Did you look for that car?

SHARON: I did, and I knew that when they…when Michaela was kidnapped, she and her best friend had ridden scooters up to our neighborhood market and they had bought a bag of candy and sodas and when Michaela was…the way Michaela was kidnapped is that when they came out of the store, one of the scooters had been moved and Michaela spotted it out in the parking lot and when she went to get it a man jumped out of the car next to it, grabbed her from behind and threw her in the car and she had the bags of candy and sodas and I knew that there was a can of Mountain Dew in there; so in all of my looking through the Canyon areas, there’s so much wilderness area near our home, I’d go out, walk along the creek beds and I’d always look for that can of Mountain Dew soda. For some reason, in the last couple of days, in fact I was reading a website and it was describing some of Michaela’s clothing and I was thinking about her shoes, and she was wearing black shoes, but they were black Mary Jane shoes, canvas ones, and for some reason I just got a flash of a picture of black Mary Jane shoes out in a creek bed or a wilderness area and…I have looked. I have looked in places just because they were there. I have looked in places because people have said things that make them suspicious places. I have pestered the police and the FBI. I’ve gotten them to bring cadaver dogs out to locations. I mean, I have had so many leads that I have known about and have worked on myself and still don’t feel satisfied that they have been followed down to as far as they should be.

TODD: As far as you would follow them?

SHARON: Right. If I had the resources that law enforcement have. I don’t necessarily think that things have been done in the order that they should have. I mean, one area they called somebody in for questioning before searching the area. I think that’s backwards.

TODD: Yeah. Really. You’ve definitely…now this is different now, this is not like America’s Most Wanted or Unsolved Mysteries, when you actually interviewed for this particular show, this is the beginning, not the end of it. You are actually becoming part of a different family. You are going to be thought of, and looked at, constantly with this case. We’re not going to ever forget you with this. We’re hopefully going to stay in contact with you for as long as it takes.

SHARON: Thank you.

TODD: That’s definite. We definitely want to be in touch with you very, very often and we want to hear how things are going. We want to update websites and just anything that you decide you want to add or change, you know, I want to encourage you to do that book. People might criticize you for a book; you’ll get praise and criticism for doing books like that. People see things in every different way. Don’t let it stop you. You know it needs to be done.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: If we can get that book out there, it needs to be done. However you have to do it, you know, things like this need to be known, because people need to understand it. Well, we’ve got a couple of difficult questions that I’ve got for you…it’s the harder ones…do you think that there’s any possibility that Michaela’s alive?

SHARON: For a long time, I didn’t because of the fact that we had discussed child safety issues extensively…

TODD: mm huh

SHARON: …she had been told, “don’t believe anything the kidnapper says to you; we will always love you; we will always be looking for you; never give you away; nobody ever has permission to take you and don’t believe any of this and always, always try to contact somebody” and so because of that I thought, as the years went by, if she was still alive she would have found some way to contact someone. And then, for some reason, just in the last couple of years, I started thinking about the possibility of her being overseas.

TODD: mm huh

SHARON: If she had been taken overseas…I have an aunt in England and when I go to call her I have to figure out every time how to master this international dialing and if she was in another country, particularly a country where she didn’t speak the language, she probably wouldn’t be able to figure how to do that.

TODD: It would be almost impossible.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: You know, to try to do that especially if you were limited in how someone was trying to educate you to do so.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: It could be difficult and I understand that exactly.

SHARON: uh huh…and then, through the MySpace, through the Internet, I’ve spoken to people who have suggested that, you know, that these kids can be kidnapped and as part of being kidnapped, they can be drugged, they can get strung out on drugs, prostitution, things that alter their minds so that they wouldn’t have the capacity to know the truth.

TODD: Well, different types of brainwashing.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: They could have been told anything. You know that.

SHARON: I read ‘Perfect Victim’ (by Christine McGuire and Carla Norton) some years ago about the adult woman who was kidnapped and kept in a coffin-sized box under her kidnapper’s bed over the years and yet was allowed out during the day to baby-sit his children and never tried to get away or get help.

TODD: You know they call it ‘Stockholm Syndrome’.

SHARON: Right.

TODD: I know that you’ve heard of that.

SHARON: Yes.

TODD: We’ve talked about that before. We have another guest that I am going to introduce you to.

SHARON: Okay.

TODD: Glendene Grant (Episode 22). Her daughter Jessica has been missing from the Las Vegas area and she’s actually going to be on the Montel Show next week, so that way you can watch that. You’ll be able to see her on the show Thursday, there’s a lot of snow in New York right now and it’s delayed a lot of flights so I hope that doesn’t interfere with the taping. It’s Tuesday for the taping and hopefully you can watch that; she’s in our archives. I definitely want you to talk to her because she’s…you’re saying some of the same things I’ve heard her say, so you’ve got a lot to relate to and hopefully you can help each other. You need to hear from more people that have stepped forward and this lady has went above and beyond. I don’t know how she’s managed to get as much attention as she’s got, but she definitely has done it. She’s Episode 22, Glendene Grant, mother of Jessica Foster. I definitely want you to talk to her.

SHARON: Alright.

TODD: Well, I’ve got one more hard question and then we’ll try to focus on something more positive. If you think she’s alive, and we have people listening to this show in Korea, you know, I can see it logging in from different parts of the world, it can be heard through the Internet…what would you say to her if you could say something to her? What would you want to say?

SHARON: I would tell her that I love her. That it doesn’t make any difference what she might have been through. It doesn’t make any difference who she thinks she might have become. That doesn’t change my love for her at all and I just want her to come home where she can be safe and she where can be happy. And I would tell her that I’m living at Nana’s house and I have Nana’s phone number, she may remember that. Please call me. Go on the Internet and look up your name, Michaela Joy Garecht, and you’ll find me on MySpace and get in touch with me so we can help you come home and I love you.

TODD: I hope it helps. I do. I wish you the best with this and I hope we can do something and if she sees it, hears it through this service at all, if she’ll get in contact, I know exactly how to put her in direct contact with you and that will happen as soon as we hear a thing, you’ll be the first call.

SHARON: Thank you.

TODD: You’ll be the first call. Now, we’ll try to focus on something more positive. I know you feel like there’s a possibility she’s alive and if you want to work with other people to try to help ease their pain and their search and there’s a lot of people out there and I think you’ve got a lot to share and I really, really hope that you’ll work on that book.

SHARON: It’s finished.

TODD: Completely. Your first draft…in fact, it’s a manuscript now at this point in time; it’s a manuscript.

SHARON: Yes.

TODD: It’s done. You’re completely satisfied with it?

SHARON: Yeah.

TODD: Well I think there’s lots of ways to publish something that and there’s a couple of people I want to try to get in touch with regarding that. Like I said, I’ll talk to you offline about that but I think it’s something that needs to be done. I think a lot of people could really benefit from it.

SHARON: I think so too and one thing that I have found to be a common denominator among families of missing children is you don’t want what happened to your child to be for nothing.

TODD: Yeah.

SHARON: You want it to…you want their lives to count for something positive in the world and this is my way of doing that.

TODD: Nothing should happen in vain. Everything should have a reaction and hopefully this is what you’ve done with the creation of this book. You’re sharing a lot of pain and a lot of joy in that book I’m sure. And I’m very anxious to read it.

SHARON: You know, I actually, with as many kids as I have now it may be hard to believe, but I had to take fertility pills to get pregnant with Michaela. It took me 5 years and a prescription for fertility pills and sometimes I think that God was asking me, “Are you sure you really want to go through this because as much joy as it can bring you, it’s going to bring you a sorrow that you can never imagine.”

TODD: Wow. I’m seeing that she wrote a poem at one point in time.

SHARON: She did. She wrote a poem shortly before she was kidnapped. I don’t have it in front of me right now.

TODD: Well, we can include it in the transcription. That can be inserted in there. You’re going to include that in the book.

SHARON: I do have it on my MySpace under and my blog ‘Where’s Michaela now?’
http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=150703333&blogID=222628663

TODD: I’ve read it and I hope you’ve included it in the book.

SHARON: Oh, it is for sure.

TODD: Definitely. So you have a little of her in there no matter what. As long as those words are out there, you know, she’s always with you, no matter what, you know. She’s always with you. Well, we’re going to say goodnight to the guests tonight and we’re going to keep you on the line.

SHARON: Okay.

TODD: So goodnight everybody. We’re going to hopefully have our guest back tonight with an update. We’re definitely going to have her page transcribed and do our best to see if we can find something, so we’re going to sign off for tonight. God bless.

SHARON: Thank you.

Nine year old Michaela was kidnapped when she and a friend went three blocks to their
neighborhood market (Rainbow Market on Mission Boulevard in Hayward, California).

They had ridden scooters to the market. When they came out of the store, one of the scooters was missing. Michaela spotted it in the parking lot and went to get it.
When she bent over to pick it up, a man jumped out of the car next to it, grabbed her from behind, threw her in his car, and took off with her.
Michaela’s friend witnessed the kidnapping and went immediately for help.

In spite of an immediate police response, Michaela has never been found
and neither has her kidnapper.

When Michaela was kidnapped, she was wearing three-inch-long pearl or white-colored earrings that resembled feathers, a white t-shirt with Metro printed on the front and images of people imprinted on its midsection, denim pants rolled above her knees, flesh-colored nylon stockings, white anklet socks with black shoes.

Her abductor was described as a white male with a pockmarked or pimpled face. He wore a white t-shirt and had long dirty blonde hair and a slender build. He was driving large older model American-made sedan. It was possibly a four-door vehicle. Cream, gold or tan in color. The lights set into the rear bumper. The front bumper was battered.

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Dancing with the Stars New Cast – Season 9

mya cosmos review, by demir_man

Thomas BDay 4

Sandra Rose – Mya, Macy Gray Join Dancing With The Stars
Joining the cast this season are singers Mya, Macy Gray, Donny Osmond, Kelly Osbourne and Aaron Carter, among others. The 16 contestants is the show’s largest to date. I think I’ll watch the show for the first time this season just to …

STRAIGHT OUTTA NYC- All The Juice in HollyHood! » Blog Archive …
Cue up ya DVR’s and Tivo’s, Mya & Macy Gray are joining the new cast of “Dancing With The Stars”. Isn’t Mya a trained dancer? Then again this could be the ticket to revive her career? …

Tabloid Prodigy » Blog Archive » Mya shouldn't be on 'Dancing With …
I’m really shocked about Mya joining the cast, seeing as how she is a trained dancer-sort of. And she’s actually quite good at dancing. Remember Chicago? She was a Cell Block Tango dancer. Unfair much? Here’s a bio from her Wikipedia …

Mya, Osmond, Osbourne, Mazar, Carter and More Set for “Dancing …
Sixteen celebrities will compete during the new season of the ABC hit Dancing with the Stars. The new season will kick off Sept. 21 at 8 PM on ABC.

Mya and Macy Gray will Dance With the Stars | Chicago Fabulous Blog
Mya and Macy Gray will be on the upcoming season of “Dancing With The Stars” Former Republican Majority Leader Tom DeLay will join 15 celebrities.

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PGA Championship TV schedule begins with vast coverage. The PGA Championship 2009 TV schedule will stretch from August 13th to August 16th, with nearly every hole broadcast live during the 2009 PGA Championship TV schedule. Fans of the PGA Tour are definitely going to have some full days of golf in front of them as the 2009 PGA Championship unfolds, and there won’t be a shortage of TV coverage in regards to this tournament. Everyone has their own 2009 PGA Championship predictions, and that has led to a rush on PGA Championship odds, but nobody knows exactly who will win this tournament, creating a demand for a lot of 2009 PGA Championship TV coverage.

The 2009 PGA Championship TV schedule begins on Thursday, August 13th at the Hazeltine National Gold Club in Chaska, Alaska, with pre-tournament coverage already taking place on the Golf Channel as well as ESPN. The opening day PGA Championship TV schedule will start at 11:00 A.M. PST (2:00 P.M. EST) and will have the first round shown on TNT. The second round will mirror the first day of coverage, again extending from 11 A.M. to 7 P.M. PST on TNT. When Saturday’s third round of the PGA Championship TV schedule comes around, the time will get a little earlier, with the round scheduled to open at 8:00 A.M. PST and work through until 11:00 A.M. PST on TNT.

The third round coverage of the PGA Championship TV schedule isn’t just limited to TNT, as the second part of the day will work its way over to CBS for some primetime weekend network coverage. The CBS segment of the PGA Championship TV schedule will begin at 11:00 A.M. PST and continue covering third round play until 4:00 P.M. PST. The final round of the PGA Championship TV schedule will mirror Saturday’s coverage, with TNT covering from 8:00 A.M. to 11:00 A.M. PST and CBS again taking over from 11:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. PST. Pending no extra rounds needed to finish off the 2009 PGA Championship TV schedule, the winner should already be decided when CBS approaches the end of their Sunday coverage.

Tiger Woods looks to be the favorite to take home the trophy at the 2009 PGA Championship, but he has many others who could also have strong weekends. Those challengers include Steve Stricker who sits at #2 in scoring average and FedEx Cup Points, Stewart Clink who looks to build off of his British Open title, and Lucas Glover who has been putting up some very strong play recently. It’s anyone’s tournament to win, and the main story will be the pursuit by Tiger Woods to finally win a major in 2009, and the rest of the field trying to stop him at the 2009 PGA Championship.

Sources:

PGA Tour Championship Page

PGA Tour Championship Schedule

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