Letter to the editor/thanks

“The local paper did a follow-up story on the fire and my recovery. Today they published my letter to the editor which mentions thebackpacker.com.

Here it is:

Thursday, January 13, 2005

I want to thank you for the kind article about me which appeared in the Dec. 30 Chronicle. The interview and the article gave me a chance to reflect on my experience of the last year.

Despite the burns, the smoke inhalation and the months spent in hospital and rehabilitation, I feel both lucky and grateful. I continue to be overwhelmed by the kindness and support I have received. My heroes have been extraordinary and plentiful. While my wife, Ellen, and my entire family have been absolutely wonderful, I am also indebted to many friends and neighbors, to the leadership and congregation of the Hope Fellowship Church, to the Cambridge Rindge and Latin School community and to circles of fellow backpackers and hikers (including members of online communities such as thebackpacker.com, viewsfromthetop.com, alpinezone.com and the AMC Web site, who visited me in the hospital and sent many cards and letters).

From the firefighters and EMTs, to the staff of the burn unit at Massachusetts General Hospital and the people at Spaulding Hospital and Mount Auburn Hospital, to my insurance adjustor and the people working to restore my home, I have been the lucky recipient of great care and professionalism. I have also been moved by the warmth and support of Burn Survivor support networks, especially the Phoenix Society and George Pessotti's survivor support groups.

Even while waiting for my home to be rebuilt, I am feeling as deeply at home in Cambridge as I have at any time since I first arrived as a newborn at Shaler Lane, around the corner from where I am now staying. From a statement of support and concern by the City Council, to a joint hospital visit from the principal of CRLS and my son (who is a student there), to repeatedly finding that my neighbors, the Walshes, had kindly put away the trash and recycling containers we set out as we tried to sort through and dispose of things at the damaged house, there have been constant reminders that I am securely embedded in a caring and supportive community. Many are those who have watched over all of us during the most difficult times.

On another note, I have learned the importance of having a clear household contingency plan for fires and similar events, and have become acutely aware of the risks related to candles. I have recently learned that candle-related fires have doubled in 15 years. I urge everyone reading this to take a few moments to think about both of these things.

DAVID VOGEL

Lowell Street

Follow up article: http://www.townonline.com/cambridge/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=154541

My letter: http://www.townonline.com/cambridge/opinion/view.bg?articleid=163187
last edited: 1/13/05 9:22:35 AM”

“Nice, David! Real nice.”

“Kewl Beans, pedx.”

“I mentioned other sites, but they are New England/New York sites, not national ones and tbp came first.

Anyhow, my apologies to anyone who is sick of hearing about this - but I do like keep on line friends updated, and y'all played an important role in my getting through this and thats why I listed tbp as mentioned my "heroes."
last edited: 1/13/05 9:26:49 AM”

“whatever, Pedxing...we know you're cheating on us with those other sites! don't try to make excuses.
;-)

that was cool to read, thanks for posting it!”

“Well Lyra, sometimes I feel the need to post somewhere where I can talk about backpacking and mountains and gear and trails.
last edited: 1/13/05 9:33:58 AM”

“ZING! :-D”

“Pedxing wears a bathrobe? Who wears a bathrobe?

Nice letter Ped.”

“Nice letter Ped. You were in a lot of hearts, minds, and prayers back then (and continue to be). That you're back with us and posting again is heart warming. For all the BS, trolling, name-calling, and other crap that goes on, we truly do care.”

“Nigal --

it wasn't a bathrobe per se . .. .



it was a smoking jacket . . .”

“Pedxing ---


I had to. I just had to. I had to.


Its a compulsive thing.

You know I didn't mean anything evil.

Bad pun bad pun.”

“Was there a dicky involved?”

“Anyhoo . .

Thanks for sharing the articles Ped. the story is an amazing one . . .and perhaps most importantly (for the rest of us) it is a huge educational one.

Your burns, recovery and progress have been an important part of TT for the last year.

Thanks for sharing.”

“Oh shlt, I just got it. Ya know there is an edit feature. tisk tisk tisk!”

“Lee - I've long believed if your sense of humor disappears when you confront the really tough stuff, then its not letting you down.

At a burn support meeting someone asked me if the grafts on my hands came from my thighs - I said no, they came from my back, because my thighs were pretty well cooked. I got some weird looks, and then I said - if "If I can't joke about this, then my sense of humor isn't doing me much good."”

“Sick of hearing about it? No way, Jose.

I thank you for sharing your experience with us and with the media. Your TV segment finally made an impression on my wife and oldest daughter about how dangerous candles are. I’ve been battling with them for some time on the issue. Perhaps your openness will save others from a similar (or worse) fate.

Best of luck with your continued recovery.”

“BTW: A lot of people with kids wear bathrobes - or anyone who doesnt wear PJ's but has reasons to want to be able to throw on something before heading out of their bedroom in the middle of the night.”

“I guess I'm so used to being childless and walking around the house with morning wood.

Seriousely though, that's great you have a group you can talk with. It's nice to have people who you can relate to.”

“Ped, I have a good friend who lost a leg in Nam, and if it weren't for his sense of humor, he would have been shoveled under long ago. Keep the sense of humor. It's an essential in this world. Besides, if you can joke about things, it puts peoples' minds at ease.”

“Of course, Lee's joke wasn't all that good - and I figure his "apology" was a way of making sure that people got it. But no offense taken.

That follow up article was pretty good, although the title was kind of embarassing (but then there are much worse things to be called).”

“Geo - that's one place where I feel really lucky (they quote me as saying that in the article), I didn't lose any body parts (or any people). Good for your friend for being able to laugh about it, I hope I would be able to as well.

When you come to after the heavy meds, you can't form new memories for a while. I know of one guy who kept freaking out over losing a leg. Every time his mind cleared, he didn't remember that he'd lsot a leg - so he found out over and over again for almost a week. What a thing to go through for him and those who were caring for him.

I kept coming to - to good news. Cards came, no one else hurt, people happy to see me doing better - the world had a pretty rosy glow with all that good will, support and joy around me (the morphine and the other drugs probably helped too, although the withdrawal symptoms later were lousy).”

“BTW: The article was better than the headline, IMHO.”

“Well he didn't laugh about losing his leg, and he'd damn sure like to have it and the rest of his life back. But he does laugh at his situation in life and situations that arise out of it.

Once he lost his car keys, and the family looked all over for them and could not find them. As he was walking around he heard something jingling inside his prosthetic leg. His car keys had gone through a hole in his pocket and somehow ended up inside the leg.

Going to the Army-Navy game one year, despite having a handicapped placard for his vehicle, he had to get out of his car and roll up his pant leg to let the parking attendant see that he needed to park in the handicapped zone. We still joke about that one.

He and I went to the ordnance museum at Aberdeen Proving Ground one day, and I saw a display on Viet Cong booby traps and mines. I was concerned that he might react badly, so when he came up to the case I stepped back and kept an eye on him. But he was mostly interested in seeing what it was that got him and did not seem to get emotional.

It's the balance that helps you realize that what you've gone through may alter your life in some ways, but you are still alive, and you still have meaning in life. In Rick's case, it puts people at ease and lets him live a normal life. Otherwise, people would tread lightly around him and he would be reminded every day.”

“That's what I meant, laughing about the situation. It sounds like he has not only marshalled his humor, but his intellect and curiosity (with the interest in the booby traps), to work for him. Hat's off. Many thanks and much respect are due him.”

“I'm in the room . . ..you can't just talk about me.


Of course, Lee's joke wasn't all that good - and I figure his "apology" was a way of making sure that people got it.


I can't believe that you are impugning the sincerity or the motives behind of my apology !!!(he said indignantly) What er you . . .some kind of psychologist or something?








[having said that . . . with slow people like Nigal on the board sometimes it helps to use a 2 x 4, or some of this stuff would slip by unnoticed]
last edited: 1/13/05 1:36:20 PM”

“Hey nice article and letter. Kewl mentioning the short bus crowd! Glad you are doing so well. Thanks for the update.

lee--don't quit your day job and stick to watching TV at night. No comedy clubs for you! j/k (not really)”

“Actually, I didn't notice the "joke" '
'til Lee apologized either (try not to talk directly to him, it will only encourage him).

BTW: I did meet a burn survivor with the last name "Cook" (I think his first initial is D) - his vanity plate reads "COOK'D"). This was reassuring to me, because they had a Pig Pickin' at this conference with whole pigs - roasting right outside the conference - and it seemed like no one got that this was way weird and way funny, OK enuff with the half-baked humor.”

“And thanks for the stopping in here, Tango.”

“Ped, maybe you can help BowlderSon through his burn situation - you know, you were both burned in sensitive areas! LOL!”

“As my weekend present . . .I'm gonna let that one pass right by.”

“Hmmmm... I don't even know the BowlderSon story, but I assume its al;ong the lines of the "why does it hurt" thread.”

“Oh... I guessed wrong.”

“As one of my "few" quirks, I avoid personal tragedy threads with a passion. The reasons are complicated(?) and seemingly contradictory.

I tried to stay away from your horror show for as long as it's been going on. I could resist no longer and read the follow up article.

Now I have to focus on fighting some emotions.

And All I can say is: holy sheeit.

Back to Necropsy.”

“Bear - I don't know if you'll check back with the thread, but I should tell you that for me this isn't a tragedy. I'm getting stronger, I can still hike. I was out in crampons doing the Franconia Ridge Loop earlier this month. No one died. My house was insured with a full replacement value clause and is being rebuilt. People were there for me in a wonderful way and that knowledge will stay with me.

I have a wife who loves me and who I adore. And we both know that the other will be there when the chips are down.

There was a scary time - no income, lots of expenses, still not able to work, but that has passed and things are good. A few parts of me are a little uglier than before, but the woman I love doesn't mind and there are plenty of people in their late fourties with more scars and worse health issues. I've got all my fingers and toes, my ears, my nose (well there are tiny divots in my ears, but they are hard to see) - my facial features are all no uglier than before. I freaked for a while in December over some vision problems, but they've mostly healed already.

So anyways, please don't feel bad for me. For me, this might be a near-tragedy thread - but life is good. My worst worries today (like my two teenage sons) have very little to do with the fire.

I hope Joy is among the other emotions you are wrestling with.

Thanks for some real honesty.
last edited: 1/14/05 7:47:18 PM”

“Maybe I should have used the word "painful" instead of "tragedy"? Anyway, I understand and what an amazing outlook on life you have. I hope to never go through such a painful near-tragedy as you have.

Your reply did put a smile on my face. Thanks.

Enjoy your weekend.

I'm outta here.”

“Keep healing and keep us informed.

Best

Mark”

“my facial features are all no uglier than before


sooooooo, in other words - your just as ugly as ever? :)

lol, j/k ped, i just couldn't help it.”

“Hey Roam - I was poking fun at myself there, no offense if you join in.”

“I just saw this...nice letter pedxing!”