Another Interesting Obituary

They call me "First" for short.............

And a really beautiful lady!

BONZIE MORRIS OBITUARY

First Lady Bonzie Anderson Morris

April 8, 1944 - December 23, 2022

Charlotte, North Carolina - First Lady Bonzie Anderson Morris, North Carolina, 78, of Charlotte passed away peacefully on Friday, December 23,2022. Celebration of life will be on Saturday, December 31,2022 at Pleasant Hill Baptist Church 517 Baldwin Ave Charlotte, NC 28204. Visitation will begin at 12:30p.m. Service will follow at 1:00 p.m.

Published by The Herald Sun on Dec. 30, 2022.

Verrrrrrrrry Interesting.........

Yes, you have to be of a certain age to remember that line. I saw this online last week, someone has a sense of humor:

Robert Matheny

BORN

1946

DIED

2022

ABOUT

Wake Forest University

FUNERAL HOME

Massey Funeral Home

913 N. Arendell Ave.

Zebulon, NC

ROBERT MATHENY OBITUARY

Robert Matheny

August 13, 1946 - December 3, 2022

Zebulon, North Carolina - Robert Samuel "Bob" Matheny, the former longtime mayor of Zebulon, died Saturday, Dec. 3, 2022, surrounded by loved ones.

Bob died at his home on the morning of his town's annual Christmas parade. His children, who inherited his sense of humor, resisted the temptation to announce Bob's death by sneaking the hearse into the parade's route. Bob rode in enough parades as mayor of Zebulon for 28 years.

Bob lived a great life. He said so himself. He was a true leader and role model who loved his family and community. He possessed a rare combination of humor, humility, ingenuity, and leadership with a keen gauge of fairness.

Bob's quick wit constantly entertained his wife, children, and grandsons. His tireless work ethic provided all of them opportunities and resources to prosper in whatever they pursued. He nourished his family with delicious meals as a remarkable cook. He could feed large crowds at parties and neighborhood pig pickins. He was a master beekeeper who enjoyed giving people the honey he harvested.

Bob was born in Nashville, Tennessee, to parents, Sam and Estie Matheny. The family moved to Charlotte, N.C., where Bob excelled at academics and athletics at South Mecklenburg High School. His strength and speed as a sprinter and running back earned him a football scholarship at Wake Forest University.

At WFU, Bob met classmate Ann Davis of Zebulon. They wed in 1966 and were happily married 51 years until her death in 2017.

When Bob's college athletic career was cut short by injury, he took a semester off and worked as a counselor at the N.C. Advancement School in Winston-Salem. That's when he was promptly drafted into military service during the Vietnam War. He enlisted with the U.S. Navy and served four years on active duty, including deployment on the USS Forrestal.

After his honorable discharge, Bob made his home with Ann in Zebulon where they raised their three children; Michelle, Sam, and Jim Matheny.

In Zebulon, Bob's commitment to volunteerism and public service spanned more than half a century. He served on the fire department and helped found the Zebulon Rescue Squad. He served on the town's planning board and was president of Jaycees.

In pursuit of a more open local government, he ran for town commissioner and was elected in 1973. He was elected Zebulon's mayor in 1993 and led the town for 28 years until his final term ended December 2021. He prioritized transparency and open-mindedness. He took pride in listening to others and caring about their opinions, even when he disagreed. Civil discourse was important. His leadership helped expand the town, bring minor league baseball to Zebulon, revitalize downtown, and attract industry. He and Ann were proud of their work to preserve the historic Wakelon School by transforming it into the town hall and police headquarters.

Bob's devotion to helping local governments extended beyond Zebulon. He served as president of the North Carolina League of Municipalities and president of the Wake County Mayors Association. He was devoted to empowering citizens while providing open and effective government practices to people throughout North Carolina.

In 2019, Bob received The Order of the Long Leaf Pine award, the highest honor from North Carolina's governor, for his significant contributions to the state and his community.

Bob's prodigious public service was done in his free time alongside a variety of full-time professions. He sold insurance, owned a Sears franchise, and retired after many years as general manager of Whitley Furniture Galleries - sort of. He then obtained his license as a general contractor, home inspector, and was an all-around talented handyman.

Bob relished nature and the great outdoors from land, water, and air. He was an aviator with certification as a private and commercial pilot. He loved to fish, boat, hunt, hike, and camp. He emphasized conservation and preservation. One of his most cherished refuges was the log cabin he built with his family in the mountains of Virginia.

Bob is survived by children; Michelle Matheny, Sam Matheny and Jim Matheny (Ellen); as well as grandsons; Ty Matheny and Liam Matheny. He was also blessed with a treasured extended family of nephews, nieces, cousins, and in-laws. Bob was preceded in death by his wife, Dr. Ann D. Matheny, who he cared for with incredible devotion during her final years of terminal illness. In addition to his parents, Bob was also preceded in death by his beloved sister, Shirley Matheny Gantt.

The cause of Bob's death was pancreatic cancer. His family would like to gratefully acknowledge the support of many friends and loved ones.

A Memorial Service will be held at 11:00 a.m., Friday, December 9, 2022, at Zebulon Baptist Church. Family will receive friends at the church immediately following the service. A private burial will follow.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Zebulon Baptist Church Missions Fund, 400 N. Arendell Ave., PO Box 366, Zebulon, NC 27597.

Arrangements by Massey Funeral Home, Zebulon www.masseyfuneralhome.com

Published by The Herald Sun on Dec. 8, 2022.

Back At Work

So away we go, odd name:

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/newsobserver/name/greta-mcmillan-obituary?id=38278454

Thank you, good night everybody!

Dark Enough For You?

November 14, 2022

I guess I forgot to tell you that I am working again; I put in three days a week as a sales associate with Edmunds and Associates. I am covering eastern North Carolina, so far so good.

        http://www.edmundsandassoc.com/

One of these days I hope to make it to the website.

Last month we went on a Mediterranean cruise through the Greek Isles, Malta, Sicily and Italy. In following with the theme of this blog I give you the Pompeii girl:

Originally thought to be in her early 20's, archeologists now think she was in her mid-teens.

That is as morbid as I can get right now, I'll try to step it up for the next edition of.........Tales of the Macaaaaaaaaaaaaaaabre

Wait What?

Yes, on July 29, 2022 for the very first time I was terminated. Yes, I know what you are thinking, and you are not the only one to say "you should have been fired several times" and you are correct, just not original at this point in time. BVC took good care of me so there are no complaints, and I will continue to work in the industry, more on that later.

So what am I to do? Our Czech Republic/Austria trip was cancelled thanks to the evil collusion on American Airlines and British Airways. We lost some cash on the deal, and have a sour taste in our mouths for going to Europe right now unless we can fly directly.

Since I suddenly had time on my hands we went to the NC mountains. We started at Pigeon Forge, went to Cherokee, Boone, and then into VA. We were able to drive for a bit on the Skyline Drive, but the rain and fog forced us to lower elevations and then to home. 

But I have been fishing more! I bought a fishing kayak with a trailer, it peddles like a bicycle and is pretty stable. Hopefully I can use that in some skinny water. Bill Weinhold showed me the Spanish mackerel secret and we have been pretty good.

What is next? Beats me, stay tuned.

July 1, 2022

Then Came Who?

Betty fell and broke her wrist and is now in a rehab that she does not care for..................

Maybe that should be then came whom? I don't know, we will have to see, but this opening of a tv show I enjoyed as a teenager came to mind. Never really got to do much of this on my motorcycles but it was always a dream. Looks like that will all it will ever be, a dream.

Live your dreams, don't wait. 

Interesting that the driver of the car looked like he could be a relative of Bill Clinton. Think so?

INDIANAPOLIS     

...........is in 15 days, and I was there last week so we stray away from the macabre to discuss scenes from Indiana. But first, I promised you some dirt on Ol Davy Crockett. When I was in San Antonio I read about him and his last days at the Alamo. I knew he did not die standing at the top of the wall swinging his musket, here is what I found.............Sorry, it appears as though he surrendered and then was executed. Santa Ana was disgusted with all of the defenders who did surrender and had them quickly killed, as he had promised: "no prisoners."

Now on to pictures:here are some GOAT candidates. Lewis is in the top 5 as is Mike, not sure about the kickball player, Brady: I think so. But it is all opinion.

 

Welcome to the Indianapolis airport, an old car of Mario's awaits.

That saying has a nice ring to it

As does the wall of the downtown JW Marriott

It always amazed me how narrow this circuit is, in the photograph you can see the inside stands and the outside ones, there is a pit road and a racetrack between them.

Georgetown Road is now blocked off, and there is a traffic circle south of there, but no northbound access to this road any longer.

I think this might be a sign

Indiana Military Museum, this is a Sherman tank from WW2, we were told not to touch.

Interesting message of love for this coming Sunday

Vincennes is the home of this funny man, there are lots of shrines around town for him.

Before I left town I had an early dinner, St. Elmo's is hard to beat. 

Again, catchy phrase

New race car in the airport

As noted on the car's halo: and yes it is, 2 weekends til green flag.

Before we sign off, ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Jim Nabors for his final performance of that song that is stuck in my brain, from 2014 (and we were there), and don't forget to sing along:

From a faithful and now contributing reader, the grave site of the greatest horse of all time:

And since we are getting close and this after all this is a macabre blog, next week I will add some gory pics from the bad things that happened at the track. You arrrrrrrrrrrre welcome. 

 

39 Days and Counting

But after all, who is counting? Oh yes, I am and so is this guy; Butch Welsch from St. Louis.

Mr. Welsch is a successful HVAC/R dealer who was a good friend of Trion and Everett Lytle. 

He has attended a few Indianapolis 500s in the past, listen to how many. 

Man That Is Living, The Sandra West Story

While leaving San Antonio this week I just had to go pay my respects to the lady with the most expensive vault since Cleopatra's. (editor's note: we never know when this is truth and when it is bull shit)

A simple headstone laid in the San Antonio Alamo Masonic cemetery, an old graveyard that is not kept up very well. No famous San Antonians are interred there. However, under this plain marker there is an interesting vault placed in 1977:

Inside the box, and then covered with concrete is this lovely lady:

After death, she was placed in one of her Ferraris wearing her favorite lacy nightgown and with the seat "slanted comfortably" all at the direct instructions from her last will and testament. 

The funeral director said the car in this photograph was not the burial Ferrari, she had three. Some say she was in a 64 American, some say it was her Dino. Regardless I guess one has these choices when one marries an oil tycoon who precedes you into the great unknown (No judgement here, just an observation. Besides, who am I to judge? I married a wealthy school teacher!)

There are conflicting reports on how she passed away, there were some reports that she overdosed on prescription drugs, another report said she died from complications after an auto crash. However her Beverly Hills physician described her as "a psychotic with a tendency toward paranoia and hallucination." Welllll, potay-to, potah-to, she seemed like a pretty fascinating young lady. 

In closing you might ask why investigate the final resting spot of Sandra West and not Davy Crockett? Thank you, that is a good question and I am glad you asked it. Hold on to your coonskin cap, you might not like the answer, next time on Tales of the Macabre!

Guts and Gore

I have a target rich environment of the macabre this week but I will pull it back a little and instead, talk about oddities of famous persons' deaths.

Isadora Duncan

Isadora Duncan, a famous dancer in the 1920’s wore a long scarf. She jumped in a sports car with no roof and the scarf got caught in the spokes of one of the wheels, and she was strangled.

Lou Gehrig

Lou Gehrig. ALS causes loss of muscle control but many people diagnosed know what's in store for them. They know they will be losing the ability to walk, talk and even breathe.

It is even weirder that he died from a disease that had the same name. I mean, what are the odds?

And finally, what a great way to be remembered:

David Carradine: Bondage Gone Too Far

Carradine was a successful martial artist and actor who appeared in the hit series Kung Fu. Carradine actually learned a lot of his martial arts techniques through his immersive experiences and training while filming kung fu films. While filming in Bangkok, police found Carradine unclothed and hanging from a rope in the closet of his hotel room. At first, most assumed that Carradine's passing would be labeled as a suicide. However, autopsy reports ruled that his demise was caused by autoerotic asphyxiation.

Details about Carradine's interests in bondage and experimental sex provided further evidence that his suffocation was likely accidental, and not intentional.

It is so good to know that it was accidental!

Deviation From The Norm

In a special edition of this blog today I ask that you donate to help the Downeast families who lost a whole lot two weeks ago.I thought about ways that I could personally help immediately. Then I saw where one of ou area churches had figured out a way to do what I was thinking. Pay for the funerals!

Here is the website:https://fumcmhc.org/

Please give generously. Thank you. 

I Did Not Know That

In our house we have a drinking game that is started when someone says those very words. Today on the anniversary of the 1936 death of King George V, I find myself saying those very same words. Did you know this?

By 20 January, he was close to death. His physicians, led by Lord Dawson of Penn, issued a bulletin with the words "The King's life is moving peacefully towards its close."^[118][119] Dawson's private diary, unearthed after his death and made public in 1986, reveals that the King's last words, a mumbled "God damn you!",^[120] were addressed to his nurse, Catherine Black, when she gave him a sedative that night. Dawson, who supported the "gentle growth of euthanasia",^[121] admitted in the diary that he hastened the King's death by injecting him, after 11:00 p.m., with two consecutive lethal injections: 3/4 of a grain of morphine followed shortly afterwards by a grain of cocaine.^[120][122] Dawson wrote that he acted to preserve the King's dignity, to prevent further strain on the family, and so that the King's death at 11:55 p.m. could be announced in the morning edition of The Times newspaper rather than "less appropriate ... evening journals".^[120][122] Neither Queen Mary, who was intensely religious and might not have sanctioned euthanasia, nor the Prince of Wales was consulted. The royal family did not want the King to endure pain and suffering and did not want his life prolonged artificially but neither did they approve Dawson's actions.^[123] British Pathé announced the King's death the following day, in which he was described as "for each one of us, more than a King, a father of a great family".^[124]

Interesting.Euthanasia of the king. 

Take Me Home Tonight

Ronnie Spector died today, she was 78. Lots of notable deaths recently, but I really liked Ronnie. Sure you have to watch old gooogley-eyed Eddie sing for the first half of this, but then you get to watch Ronnie shake that tail, and she was 43 at the time.