4 Years

Paul A. Burdette, 95, of Elkview was born July 26, 1912 as son of Braden B. Burdette and Grace Young Burdette and went home to be with the Lord on March 20, 2008 at home after a long illness. He has joined the Lord, his wife, Mary Bell and his son, David in his eternal home.


He was the former owner and manager of Ashmore Optical which closed in April 2007. He worked as an optician in the Charleston area for over 75 years. He started his optician apprenticeship with American Optical, and later worked for Mr. Cotton at Cotton Optical. He started at Ashmore Optical after WWII with O.L. Ashmore who promoted him to the position of dispensing optician. In 1957, he purchased Ashmore Optical Co. and retained the name of the company. He was a long term member of the Guild of Opticians and took great pride in his work. He enjoyed many of his customers over the years and always looked forward to solving their optical needs with the help of his beloved employees, who had all worked with him for the last 30 years.

During the summers, he looked forward to his weekends waterskiing and boating on the Kanawha River with family and friends. His leisure time was otherwise spent mowing his lawn astride his Power King mower and working outside. He was also an avid reader when weather would not permit him the luxury of being outside.

He served in the Navy as Chief Petty Officer on a destroyer during WWII and crossed the Atlantic 42 times during his term of duty. He was a member of Charleston Baptist Temple where he enjoyed many a church weekend retreat and the special Sunday School classes.

Fight For Air: American Lung Association of New England Boston Walk

For the past 3 years I have been participating in the Asthma Walk over in Boston and doing it once again in a few weeks (although this year may be more of a hobble with my back issue) still I am looking forward to it. I have been a part of the Almar Building & Remodeling team which is owned and operated by my best friend and his wife who herself has Asthma


If you are able to please consider donating any amount you can it would be greatly appreciated.

In the past I have posed with SpongeBob, the Cat in the Hat, and had my face painted like Spiderman and then used said pictures on Facebook because I reached my fund raising goal...

Now what crazy thing will I do this year? Donate and if I reach my goal...you can help decide... so please donate ..its a good cause...

The NetFlix Files 2009

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2009 In Review/ 2010 Resolutions

2oo9 Resolutions

-Spend even more time at the gym
FAIL ...stupid back problems

-Start training to win Gold medal in 2012 Winter Olympics Curling event (really going to do it this year)
Turns out 2012 will be Summer Olympics so another big FAIL

-Buy a new copy of the Zombie Survival Guide and make sure that the plan I have in place will ensure my survival should the need arise
FAIL again

-Crush my enemies, see them driven before me, and hear the lamentation of their women (or men...whichever).
In Progress

-Eat more brains... er… bran.
Yummy

-Really start ragging on the crappy movies that are made, watch more documentaries through Netflix and actually write about them here on the blog
Half FAIL...was doing that before I connected NETFLIX to my FACEBOOK and started doing it that way

-Buy Curtains...maybe
Yes I did...all windows except a few have curtains

-Drink 5...no 7 glasses of Strawberry milk a day
Need to work on this one

-Find a Nemesis
See Below

-Write Manifesto about the evilness of the holidays which are tied to the economy
I got a first draft

-Sell out
Interviewing several offers

-Continue to alienate females by using words like "Babe", "Chic","toots", "chumpette" and 'tomato".
Big time FAIL here ....or maybe it is what made her like me...developing...

-Devote time to answer important questions such as:
"How do they cram all that gram?"
"How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?"
Some questions will never be answered I am afraid

-4 words: Courtesy flush no more
You bet

-Get a handle on OCD tendencies such as making lists and what not
See Below

2010 RESOLUTIONS
-Work on "THE GOSPEL OF CHAD"
-Find way to permanently attach Blackberry to hand
-Chronicle ever single mundane part of my life on social networks such as Twitter and Facebook
-Create new political party & then take my World Domination Plan and put into action
-Get "Hooked on Phonics" and learn how to Read
-Read more books, comics, and
-Resolve issue with my back
-Get in shape and try to avoid more health problems
-Blog more
-Construct Moat around house and other preemptive zombie attack methods
-Start going through NEMESIS applications and interview potential candidates
-Clean House
-Brew more Home Brew then allowed by Federal Law (200 Gal./yr)
- Continue to crush enemies, see them driven before me, and hear the lamentation of their women (or men...whichever).
-Buy a Llama
-Give into OCD tendencies and make lists out of everything

In Loving Memory

"The Greatest Generation" was united in duty, honor and personal responsibility"
-former NBC anchor Tom Brokaw

This Tuesday my grandfather (Pawpaw) Billy Joe Rose passed away at the age of 84 after a long illness. My Pawpaw was a very special person and will be missed not only by his family but by many friends.

As a member of the "Greatest Generation" he served his country in WWII as a member of the Marine Corps. He served in both the European and Pacific Theaters. He began serving 3 weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbor, and his service included Normandy, South France, Iwo Jima and Okinawa.
As a fan of History, I am well aware of how lucky we were that he survived being in 4 major battles on each theater of the war when so many lost their lives. He even received a medal from the President of France for helping liberate France. It was not until recently that he would talk about his experiences during the war and I doubt that I was around to hear them all, but those I heard made me appreciate and realize the sacrifice that was made.

My grandfather was not one to really sit still. In the evening he would be inside laying on the couch watching tv but most of the time he was outside tending to his garden, camping, exploring Falling Rock (an area close to where he lived), or simply sitting outside on the porch in the swing with my grandmother...to say the very least he was always on the go. I can remember when I would be in from school, if nothing else, just for a quick visit I would usually have to walk out to his barn or the workshed to find him. I can remember times when he would take me and my brothers fishing, hunting, swimming, or with him when he went to look for ginseng and yellow root.

Unlike me he had a "green thumb" and would always have a garden, although as he got older and it became harder for him to move they became smaller and easier to manage. Perhaps the funniest story was when he found a bag of seeds on one of his excursions into the back roads of Falling Rock and decided to plant them...and when they turned out to be marijuana, which he promptly cut down and tossed over into the creek. I can still remember that he was very proud when he had green beans or other vegetables to fix when we came up for lunch on Sunday afternoon. Speaking of food he had a very big sweet tooth. He would usually put small servings of food on his plate because was saving room for desert.

While he was never rich in a monetary sense, he was very giving of his time and the things he did have. When I was in college and graduate school and would stop and visit before I would leave to go back to school he would offer me a drink to take on the road and sometimes hand me $10, say here this will help you with gas on the way back to school and would not take "NO THANKS THAT IS NOT NECESSARY" as answer. He would also say that if there was anything he could do to help then to just let him know.

I also remember that when I was growing up he would drink and smoke (though not around us kids). When I was young I remember once telling him that drinking and smoking were not good for his health and believe that a few years later when he did quit both how happy I was that he had stopped.

Since moving to Albany I didn't get to see him as much as I would have liked too but made it a point to always make time to see him when I was in visiting.
I last saw Pawpaw when I was home in June a week before my back surgery. I stopped and visited with him for a good half hour which will stay with me forever. As always he was more interested in how I was doing and what I was up to then dwelling on the state of his health. I remember the amount of effort it took for him to get himself off the couch so that he could give me a hug...and as normal his last words to me besides "I love you and take care of yourself" were "be sure to grab a drink out of the fridge so that you have something to drink on the road" like he always would. I somehow knew as I was leaving the his house that it would be the last time I would get to see and talk to him and how I wished I didn't have such a long drive back to NY ahead of me so I could spend more time with him.

Unfortunately I will be unable to make the services for him due to the fact that I am not up to traveling due to back surgery almost 2 1/2 weeks ago. It breaks my heart that I will not be able to be there to honor his life, but I believe that given the circumstances he would understand, because that was the type of person he was.

I know I could share many more memories of the times I spent with my grandfather. I will miss you Pawpaw but know that I will see you again someday and that you are up there looking down on us and knowing that we love and will greatly miss you.

You will be missed but not forgotten...

-c

Fight For Air: American Lung Association of New England Boston Walk

For the past two years I have been participating in the Asthma Walk over in Boston and doing it once again in a few weeks (although this year may be more of a hobble with my back issue) still I am looking forward to it. I have been a part of the Almar Building & Remodeling team which is owned and operated by my best friend and his wife who herself has Asthma


If you are able to please consider donating any amount you can it would be greatly appriciated
My Page

I can't wait to see who is there this year...

Week in Tweets: Feb 16th to Feb. 22nd

Monday Feb. 16th

· Can't sleep for some reason...frustrating. Should fall right to sleep after not sleeping well last night12:45 AM

· Absolutely no one @ gym today…don't feel bad for being a bit late. Found if I only get 4hrs of sleep I don't wake & still feel the same 6:25 AM

· Running some errands before catching "Slumdog Millionaire" 10:35 AM

Tuesday Feb.17th

· Is back to the world of twittering & status updates after a day off...SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE was an awesome flick 7:57 AM
· Working on Corp. Compliance ... Should probably work on time sheets since I don't think I have submitted in a while 9:09 AM
· Is at the gym...going to swim some laps until the back starts really hurting...good thing appt is tomorrow 5:08 PM Feb 17th

· :Taking it easy in the Lazy Boy watching season 1 of WEEDS 8:10 PM

· Tomorrow is going to be so hectic ... Not looking forward to it for the most part...except my appt for my back maybe I will get some sleep 10:37 PM

Wednesday Feb. 18th

· And so what is most likely going to be a crazy day has begun...just got into work from the gym 7:29 AM

· Off to pick up friend who is going in for knee replacement surgery this morning then headed back to work 8:35 AM

· Back @ office. Trying to get work done while listening to Denise Leary...so funny 10:16 AM

· Denis Leary's NO CURE FOR CANCER never gets old...they edited a lot out for the cd...watching LOCK N' LOAD now...visual comedy works on DVD 12:03 PM

· Finished watching LOCK N LOAD...going to pop in The Wall before leaving @ 2:45 for the dr. appt. Was just looking @ my 2002 MRI..kinda neat. 1:42 PM

· Leaving work for Dr's appt. Snowing out and I left my coat in the car on the far end of the backlot 2:41 PM

· I hate filling out paper work before seeing the doctor...pain in the 3:21 PM

· Guess who is getting another MRI 4:13 PM

· Is visiting his friend who just had partial knee replacement today 7:16 PM

· Heading home from the hospital...what a long day 8:53 PM
· Roads getting bad...had to stop for gas...where are the damn road crews? Snow tires don't fail me now 9:17 PM
· made it home okay...knuckles permanently white/ Saw one car in the ditch(SVU) only thing worse then driving in snow is doing it @ night 10:03 PM
· Should really be in bed trying to sleep but is loading his Ipod with stuff and watching The EWOKS adventure cartoon 10:54 PM
· Heading to bed, maybe tomorrow won't be as hectic as being an operator for a lemming suicide hotline 11:20 PM

Thursday Feb. 19th
· Getting ready to follow in the footsteps of A-Rod and take steroids ...although I doubt these are performance drugs but 4 inflammation 8:13 AM
· The phrase "simple research project" should never be used by government workers... This simple project is now going into week 5 10:57 AM
· Headed over to the hospital during lunch to visit friend abd let him borrow my Ipod 11:58 AM

· Leaving hospital. They painted the walls in the hallway getting high waiting for elevator...need Star bucks Hot Choc b4 return to work 12:47 PM

· How come I get all the crappy side effects from my medications...hate being in that 3% 2:39 PM
· At the gym for training session even though back not feeling that great...going to take a soak in the hot tub first though 3:55 PM
· Back at the hospital visiting my friend 6:52 PM
· Running over to Starbucks to grab a Hot Chocolate ... Sometimes I think I am keeping the place in business 7:26 PM
· Is being escorted off the floor...help I'm being repressed...see the violence inherent in the system! 9:01 PM
· :headed upstairs to cry himself to sleep because he is suffering from"Ipod Separation Anxiety"since his friend in hospital is borrowing it 10:43 PM

Friday Feb. 20th

· Finally made it into work...so glad it is Friday finally this week has been a killer 9:35 AM

· It has finally happened...my insurance hates me. My MRI is pending at this point waiting further info from the Dr. 10:36 AM
· En Route to hospital during lunch hour 11:54 AM
· Taking a walk while the nurse changes bandages...just ate lunch and don't need to puke it back up 12:24 PM
· Back at the office and waiting for the call to pick up my friend from hospital and take him home 1:36 PM
· Just got my friend from the hospital back home...Probably going to spend the night just in case he needs help until his gf gets back frm FL 5:21 PM

· Headed to bed...this time next week I will be in WV 10:23 PM

Saturday Feb 21st

· I hate Walmart but damn their low low prices 10:26 AM
· why did Verizon and Yellow Pages both send me freakin huge phone books...I will replace the textbooks holding the couch level with them 12:20 PM
· chopping onions makes me weepy 1:34 PM
· successfully chopped all veggies and still has 10 fingers...ahead of schedule so i might go take a quick nap before heading to the gym 2:12 PM
· finishing up making pizzas 5:43 PM
· is swearing off twitter and facebook for the evening 7:47 PM

Sunday Feb 22nd
· is going to try and get his act in gear before cleaning up the mess or going into town/gym 12:20 PM
· At the gym ... Going to see if I can get some laps in before back hurts to much 4:13 PM
· tired...so very tired 8:25PM
· Sleep time 9:42PM