Vietnam POW/MIA Finally Comes Home

I experienced a couple of very touching moments recently. Back in the 60s, I was given a POW/MIA bracelet. I wore it for many years. Decades later, it took up a prominent place in my jewelry box.

Over recent years, I've tried posting notices about Lt. Ralph Bisz's bracelet in the hopes of possibly returning it to someone who knew him and/or maybe learning what ever happened to this man whose name was close to my heart for about 40 years.

Recently, I received a few more POW/MIA bracelets from my sister in California, who had been the west coast leader of that war's bracelet campaign. She asked me to see if I could check the Internet to find more information about these men. Feeling sentimental on 9/11, I spent time searching the web for more bracelet exchange sites where I could post notices with the names from all the bracelets I now had.

Amazingly, a couple weeks later I got an email from Scott Wilkins who served with Lt. Bisz. Here's his initial email:

I saw your 11 Sep posting on Ralph Bisz's POW / MIA bracelet.  I served with Ralph on the USS Oriskany in 1967. He was an A-4 pilot in Attack Squadron 163.  Ralph's remains were recovered in 1988 but not identified until this summer when new DNA testing methods became available.

There will be a memorial service and internment in Arlington National Cemetery on 6 October 2008. Twelve of us from the squadron will attend the ceremony along with Ralph's cousin who is next of kin as both his parents are deceased. We are meeting with Ralph's cousin and some of her friends on Sunday 5 October. If you would like the squadron members to present the bracelet on your behalf to his cousin, I would be honored to arrange it. 

Please let me know and we can make the necessary arrangements. 

Scott Wilkins

I was thrilled that someone finally found a posting for the bracelet I'd carried for so many years. I immediately replied and requested an address so I could rush Lt. Bisz's bracelet to his squadron so they would have it in time for his funeral...which would finally be taking place the following week.

I also, finally, got to see a picture of Lt. Bisz, as well as learn about his ordeal.

MIAMI HERALD

Lt. Ralph J. Bisz Jr. was a war prisoner in Vietnam.

On Aug. 4, 1967, U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Ralph "Skip" Bisz Jr., a Miami Shores 25-year-old, roared off the deck of the USS Oriskany in his A-4E Skyhawk toward the North Vietnamese city of Haiphong.

He was headed for an ammo dump, but somewhere near the town of Hai Duong a surface-to-air missile blew his single-seat bomber out of the sky. Three other pilots saw the crash but never saw a parachute or heard an emergency-chute beeper.

On Oct. 6, the remains of Skip Bisz -- one-time Edison High School tuba player and University of Florida student -- finally will be laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery, with full military honors.

The remains were repatriated to the United States in 1988, in a shipment of 17 boxes. But they weren't positively identified until 2007 -- 30 years after the Navy declared Skip Bisz dead.

The findings came way too late for Ralph and Catherine Campion Bisz, who went to their graves uncertain of their only child's fate. That left Diane Smith of West Palm Beach and her brothers as their maternal cousin's next-of-kin. Their mothers were sisters.

One morning about two months ago, the phone rang at Smith's home. It was Alejandro Villalva, with the Navy Casualty Office. He had the astonishing news. "He said they had confirmed [Bisz's identity] through mitochondrial DNA evidence, and they would like to present it to me and the family," said Smith, a retired 8th-grade science teacher. In the early 1990s, both Smith and her mother, who has since died, gave blood for the military's DNA database. It finally paid off.

On June 6, "five experts came to my home," Smith said, with reams of historical data and crash-site evidence, including interviews with some of the villagers who buried Skip's body. "They were there for three hours," she said. "I just can't believe after 40 years, they're still working on the missing." The Department of Defense classifies 1,759 U.S. service personnel from Vietnam unaccounted for but presumed dead.

EARLY LIFE
Skip Bisz was born on March 28, 1942, and grew up at 213 NE 107 St. He and his dad, an Eastern Airlines accountant, once built a color television from a kit, Diane Smith recalls. Skip built model airplanes, loved waterskiing, boating and Ping-Pong.

Robert Craig "Chick" Smith of Atlanta -- Skip's best friend, no relation to Diane Smith -- said his ''tall, skinny'' friend was so popular at Edison that classmates elected him the marching band's drum major. "We played sandlot baseball and touch football, and we were both interested in flying," said Smith, a retired Delta Airlines pilot. As teens, they would drive to Miami International Airport, "sit out on the south side road and listen to the tower on a little radio. We did a lot of sitting out there, dreaming."

He said that "Skip went to UF 'to placate his parents. He was a better partyer than student in college but was mature enough to realize he didn't want to waste his parents' money, so he joined a naval air cadet program and left after his sophomore year."

Skip Bisz was shot down during his second tour of duty, and was initially classified as presumed captured. Chick Smith was training at an Oklahoma air force base when word reached him. "It was a shock, but I knew how dangerous these missions were. He was shot down over one of the most heavily defended targets in the history of warfare."

The family clung to the hope that Skip had survived, a hope nurtured by the report of an early-release POW that a pilot named Biss was at the "Hanoi Hilton," the notorious prison. The spelling was close enough. As it turned out, there was a Biss -- an Air Force captain -- who survived and returned home.

In 1970, The Miami Herald interviewed Catherine Bisz about a grainy Christmas film of American POWs that the North Vietnamese released. "The second time I saw it, I said right away, 'That's him. Don't you think so?'" she said. Diane Smith said that her aunt "wanted to believe so badly that we all agreed it could be him. I knew it wasn't." Catherine Bisz died the following year, of cancer, although Chick Smith thinks "she died of a broken heart."

Ralph Sr. later remarried and moved to Plantation, where he died in 1991. He left a scrapbook of news clippings and memorabilia to give Skip on his return, catching him up on everything he had missed.

"I am overwhelmed at the time they took" to identify her cousin, Diane Smith said. "The services should be commended for everything they've done. . . . I never dreamed it would happen."

I was sad to read about his loss...particularly that his parents never learned the truth. But I was very happy that I could finally contribute a little to his family's memory of him.

I'm a member of the Patriot Guard Riders, Soldier Angels on Steel Wings, Military Mascots and Soldiers' Angels. I participate on the Soldiers' Angels sewing team by sewing patriotic quilts for active military members and crocheting patriotic blankets for wounded soldiers in VA Hospitals. So I quickly whipped off a mini flag that could be presented to the family with the bracelet.

As a last thought...I felt the need to add a personal note to Lt. Bisz, so I popped open Microsoft Word, tossed on a quick heart autoshape, formatted in it red and added the following text:

Dear Lt. Bisz...

You've been in my thoughts and my heart for MANY years.

Thank you for your service to our country! You can rest easy now...you're home!

Love, Dian Chapman

I attached both to the mini flag and rushed the package off, over night, to make sure that Scott would have it in time for Ralph's...long time coming...funeral. It was pretty amazing that after more than 40 years, all this came down to a sudden rush of a couple days between Scott seeing my post about the bracelet to getting it shipped just in time for Ralph's funeral. Scott was leaving for Florida in two days. But it arrived in time for him to take with him.

The other day, I got another email that put a lump in my throat...it was from George, Ralph's good buddy and room mate on USS Oriskany. He sent me a photo taken during the funeral showing the presentation of my little flag with Lt. Bisz's bracelet as they gave it to his cousin, Diane Smith.

Dian:

Enclosed is a photo of Scott presenting your bracelet to Diane Smith, Ralph's cousin and next of kin.

Thank you for your kind contribution to this event; it was an important part of bringing our shipmate home to be buried with family and friends.

All the best,
George Lundy

I'm thrilled to have been a tiny part of helping Lt. Bisz come home. And with his bracelet being returned to his family through this wonderful presentation by his own squadron...I feel that Ralph's mission and journey is finally completed. It's so sad to have these bracelets in my possession. But I'm so happy that one of them was finally returned. With any luck, some day I'll tell stories of other brave soldiers who have been found and bracelets returned.

Ralph's buddy, George "Moose" Lundy recounts details from Ralph's funeral.

After weeks of contacting the 25 fellow Saints officers that were present in VA-163 during the months our shipmate Ralph Bisz was with us in 1966 and 1967 concerning the return of his remains, I arrived in Washington DC on Saturday 4 October 2008 for the funeral service that was to be held in Arlington National Cemetery on Monday 6 October at 1300 in the Fort Meyer Old Post Chapel.

I had spoken to almost all and in many of these conversations learned of their lives since our last contact. 

I am sad to report that after 40+ years many of our shipmates are getting older and suffering the ills of such passing of time.  Somehow, I don't feel like these other old folks.  I am still, in my mind, that same skinny LTJG that you may remember in Oriskany in 1965. 

Diane Smith was provided by the Navy a copy of the video, Hugging the Deck. This introduced the family to the Saints, which heretofore was only a squadron name and not the people we are.

Members of Ralph's "Saint" Squadron...left to right - John Shore, George Lundy, Louie Nordbye, Pete Munro, John Miles, Scott Wilkins, Ken Adams, Dale Landroth, Scott Mitchell, Frank Hughes, and Bob Hofford.

On Sunday night, upon the request of Ralph's family, the Saints met with them to give them some insight into the life and times of Ralph in the Navy. There were about 25 family members/friends that made the trip to Arlington including his cousin Diane and her younger brothers and their families.

In this meeting at the Hyatt Hotel, we spent about an hour getting acquainted then sat down to tell a few sea stories, childhood stories, and answer direct questions.  It was good to remember Ralph and those days but at points, very emotional as the tragedy of the loss of this fine young officer to our group and their family rose to our conversation.

Particularly interesting was a discussion by Ralph's case officer from the SEA/Vietnam Conflict Case Program in the USN POW/MIA Casualty Branch. Alejandro Villalva related the chain of events from the recovery of Ralph's remains until the final confirmation by a new technology in DNA that finally allowed us learn that these remains were in fact Ralph.

He also answered questions about other missing Vietnam War military persons.  This included our squadron mates Jim Dooley and Jeff Krommenhoek.  He was pleased to announce that funding has been obtained to deploy a subsurface vehicle to search the waters off Vietnam in areas where Jim Dooley was reported to have gone down. 

In the other case, the recovery effort remains in work.  Talking with Alex gave me the assurance that our missing comrades have not been forgotten, and the effort to put all the cases to rest is continuing in earnest. 

The dedication and personal interest of those involved in this huge effort was clearly demonstrated by the attendance at the funeral of those five extremely professional DNA technicians who actually made the identification. I was proud to shake their hands and thank them for their work.

In addition to the conversation, we saw the painting of a VA-163 Skyhawk with Ralph's name on the canopy rail and Oriskany in the background that was painted by Paul Wentzel and given to the family. 

A POW bracelet with Ralph's name that had been worn for many years by Dian Chapman was presented on her behalf by Scott Wilkins.  Ken Adams also gave his bracelet to the family.  The following day at the grave site, another bracelet was given by a Navy commander.  Though two of these persons never knew Ralph, each had a very special relationship for many years through this small piece of metal and rejoiced with us at his return.

Also, sadly there was a scrapbook prepared by Ralph's Dad with family photos and a letter addressing his return should that be after the death of both parents. The Chaplin read parts of the letter in the funeral service.  Fortunately, it was only a part, or the emotion and thoughts of this father longing for the return of his only child would have been almost too much at that moment.

On Monday, we met at the Fort Meyer Old Post Chapel for that service, traditional Navy funeral service, conducted by a Navy Chaplin. 

The casket was taken from the chapel and in reverent silence, placed on a horse drawn caisson to be escorted by a Navy band and Honor Guard of sailors to the grave site about one mile away down through Arlington National Cemetery. 

Though the day had started out cloudy, the sun was now shining through the magnificent old trees of Arlington, and light reflecting off the all too numerous white headstones in the yet green grass made for a peaceful, reverent, and beautiful procession.

Many walked in escort behind the caisson in this solemn procession down the tree lined way through the resting places of our country's best in this sacred and most hollowed national military burial ground.

Shortly after arrival at the grave site, Ralph was saluted by today's Naval Aviators with a missing man flyby of F-18 Hornets from NAS Oceana. 

The full military honors included the gun salute, music by the band, the bugler playing taps, and the folding and presentation of the flag to Ms. Smith. 

The Navy provided its best in honors for this hero who served his country as a naval aviator in war then an additional 41 years waiting to be returned home to America to be laid to rest with friends and family.

Welcome home Lt. Ralph Bisz!

Thank you for your sacrifice to our country.

REST IN PEACE!

 

Help Give Our Soldiers a Better Holiday

When peri-menopause moved into it's final stages last November and I started going nuts...unable to concentrate, experiencing major writer's block, sleeplessness and was losing interest in life, which was causing bouts of depression, my wise 20-something daughter told me "Ma...you NEED a hobby to keep you sane." Computers had been my life and I hadn't had much time for a hobby. But now I was feeling really stupid and was lucky that I was even able to operate my email software! She was right, I needed something less brain-draining to occupy my time so I felt more useful than sitting there staring at the idiot box.

I broke out crochet needles and finally taught myself to crochet. It was something I'd always wanted to learn to do, but never had the time. Now this type of automatic work was just what I needed. Understand, I'm not saying crocheting is brainless, because some people have incredible skills to concentrate and create amazing items. Not me...but I could whip out a scarf or afghan, so everyone was sure to be warm and cozy for the winter as I worked away on one after another. But soon this started to get boring and anything more intricate was beyond my current change of life brain power. It was time to move to the sewing machine.

I taught myself to make quilts. Greg got one with planes on it, the kids got some, even my brother's dog got one and then I moved on to quilted tote bags, which Stacy received to carry her dance costumes.

But my crowning achievement to date was a quilt I made for mom, which I call Legacy. I used Microsoft Word and my color laserjet, along with freezer paper to assemble photos on fabric of all mom's children, grand children and great grand children and sewed them onto a beautiful quilt that mom just loves. It also helps her remember the names of each person because she talks to everyone shown on the quilt each morning when she makes her bed. Since her stroke, she has memory loss (aphasia) and often forgets people. This helps her remember who everyone is in her family and how they are all related to each other.

Note! If you'd like to learn more about using your computer to help you apply photos to your sewing projects, see this article I wrote for Computor Companion: Add Photos to Sewing Projects with Microsoft Word

Quilts for the family were fun and helped me feel productive while my brain was on vacation. But then I learned about Soldiers' Angels sewing team and their venture to give a blanket to all US service members who are deployed for the holidays this year. Greg and I are members of the Patriot Guard Riders...bikers who honor soldiers at their funerals, deployment ceremonies and welcome home events. Through the Patriot Guard, I joined Soldier Angels on Steel Wings and eventually discovered the sewing team for Soldiers' Angels.

Soldiers' Angels are hoping to give all deployed soldiers a holiday basket from home, which will include a home-made Blanket of Belief, letting all our service men and woman know that we support them. They estimate that they will need about 180,000 blankets! So we sure can use your help!

To date, I've managed to make eight blankets and shipped them off to the holding location. I'm hoping to create at least 25 by the deadline of November 1, 2008. Yes...I have my work cut out for me. But, thankfully, I've come up with a pretty and simple process to create nice looking blankets that I can make fast. And with practice, I can now whip one out in about 2 to 2.5 hours. Great for those sleepless nights! Rather than tossing in bed fighting hot flashes and sweats and trying to get some sleep, I can crank out a blanket for the soldiers.

There are lots of ways you can help and you actually don't need to know how to sew to add to the pile of blankets being collected to send to our soldiers this holiday. You can purchase a kit that allows you to draw and create a blanket...great for kids to do! There's also a crocheting team if you are good at crocheting blankets. I have one of those in red, white and blue going, but I'm much faster at sewing.

To see all my Soldier Angel blankets and get more details about this project, you can check out my pictures here: http://www.mousetrax.com/dian/angels.html

Or just head over to the Soldiers' Angels web site where you can get all the details. You'll find it here: http://www.soldiersangels.org

Go right to the Blankets of Belief project page, here: http://soldiersangels.org/index.php?page=blankets-of-belief

We need a lot more blankets! Please help! Sew a blanket, crochet a blanket, purchase a blanket kit to design with your kids, or make a donation to help with the ultimate shipping charges to get all these blankets to those who will be away from home during the holidays!

I remember reading what someone wrote about one wounded soldier who received a Soldiers' Angel blanket. She said when he returned home the first thing he did was show his family his purple heart...the next thing he did was show them his Soldiers' Angel blanket! And if that isn't enough inspiration...check out this BEAUTIFUL cartoon from LawnDartComics.com dedicated to Soldiers' Angels and their blanket campaign!

"A Soldiers' Angel, keeping him warm."

 

Throw Dian from a Plane

Yes, TechTrax has been out of commission for several months now. True, it may appear that the last issue was published in June, 2007. Yes, that is the last issue date, but that one was actually published in December. Learning to be mom's primary caretaker after her stroke and heart attack was taking a toll on my time...and on me! I was lacking the ability to keep up with TechTrax as much as I should have been doing.

But by December, I thought I was finally getting things under control regarding mom, as well as dealing with my feelings about my brother...who is battling for his life from multiple cancers and a blood disease. But just as I was feeling ready to return to the world...menopause slapped me upside the head! JOY! Now we joke about this stuff all the time, right. But let me tell you...I quickly discovered that it can be no laughing matter for some women. And it appeared that I was one of those lucky ones who are blown away by this nonsense. Crazed hormones can really be frightening! And talk about your mood swings. I felt like I was manic/depressive from all the insane days I was having, not to mention the fun hot flashes and night sweats that wouldn't give me an ounce of sleep most nights.

Caretakers know, and I'd recently been learning, that you seriously have to take care of yourself if you want to have the physical and mental strength to care for someone else who is experiencing major health problems and needs your continuous attention. But it was one thing learning to handle it when I was myself, it was a whole different story when psycho hormones were taking over my body on a regular basis. If your body is so fatigued that you can hardly get out of bed...how can you deal with life's demands?

I've always been a strong person, so the realization that I was being beaten down and had little control over my abilities...thanks to Mother Nature's attempt at humor...left me even more depressed. It was one thing to have annoying hot flashes, another thing when the ability to concentrate or even think straight is a struggle.

I tried everything I could get my hands on from soy to yoga, exercise to menopause pills. Some made me feel better...some made me feel like a useless zombie. Slowly, recently, I was starting to feel a bit more alive. But I knew, for the most part, I was still just going through the motions and my motivation hadn't returned. I'd lost my passion for life. I was just doing the few things that needed to be done and didn't care about much else since I felt so useless...unable to concentrate, write, think or care. Egads...I even hardly cared about computers anymore!

It was time for drastic measures! I needed something powerful that would kick-start me back into who I was.

So I jumped out of a plane!

Don't believe me? I have pictures to prove it: http://www.mousetrax.com/dian/dive.html

I'd never done anything so exhilarating...or crazy! When I got my butt off the ground after sliding into a landing...I felt so alive again! Talk about motivation. And for the first time in months, I was not only smiling...I was giggling my butt off!

Granted, I still have my moments and wish I was able to go skydive again whenever I was feeling a bit low. But I do have a video and lots of great memories for now...reminding me that I CAN do anything I put my mind to!

I'm currently working on an issue of TechTrax that should be ready in a few days. It may not be one of my most impressive issues, but I have to start somewhere. Then I'll immediately work on another one so I can catch up with lost issues.

And yes, Greg had great fun telling his boss that he needed the day off so he could throw me from a plane!

 

Gotcha Last!

My brother is only 58, but he's very sick battling a blood disease (hemocromitosis), as well as cancers that have been hitting him due to internal organ deterioration from the blood disease that is killing him (and did kill my dad at 57). But one of the things my family does is try to laugh in the face of hard times. So whenever we get together, we try to look at the funny things we've endured versus focusing on the tough fights ahead.

At a recent family gathering, we reminisced about a funny event. And although I was the goat in this story, it's just too funny not to share.

My brother is several years older than me. As long as I can remember, we have had a game of tag. We call it Gotcha Last. The premise is simple...tag the other person, scream gotcha last and run for the hills before the other person can tag you back. Then hide out until they go away and try to be the one who got the other one last for as long as possible. Silly...but fun. And it's lead to some funny, dangerous and silly situations over the many years where my brother and I have nearly torn up the house in attempts to be the gotter versus the gottee.

And yes, even far into adulthood, this silly game has followed us. You'd think that as adults we'd be over it. But, although we appear to be grown up, when it's time for one of us to leave a family event...someone is going to touch the other one...possibly an innocent pat on the back after a hug goodbye...and then scream GOTCHA LAST and run like hell!

Several years ago, we had a block party in mom's neighborhood. Lots of friends and family members gathered at mom's to enjoy the day's festivities. As the day got later, it was time for those who lived further away to start thinking about getting home. My brother, his wife and young kids were packing up to go. There we were, all acting like respectable adults...hugging goodbye, thanking everyone for attending the party, appreciation shown for goodies they brought to the picnic table and wishes that we'll all see each other again soon.

But I just couldn't leave it at that. So as I was leaning in my brother's car...wishing everyone a fond and final farewell...I tapped him on the shoulder, screamed GOTCHA LAST and ran like crazy into mom's house, into the bathroom, locked the door and hid out there for at least 20 mins. I had to be sure that he had given up the chase and was well on his way home.

I finally, slowly opened the door...fully expecting to have him standing there to smash open the door, tag me and run. But no...after all, he was a respectable adult now, with a family and he had to get his kids home. I was the one acting like a child, right?

I slowly walked out to the front porch...carefully checking behind me, as well as listening ahead of me for his voice. But all appeared safe.

HA! I'd won this round! The victor! I moved out onto the porch, where mom was shaking her head and laughing that we still play this silly game. I sat down on the stairs and began to enjoy my victory. Along with some friends who had witnessed the melee, we all sat there laughing and giggling as I explained the life-long obsession to be the gotter to those who didn't know what the heck had just happened.

There I was...in all my victorious glory...sitting on the stairs, yucking it up and proudly reviewing my strategy that allowed me to get him while he was strapped into his car, knowing he'd never be able to get out and catch me before I was able to get myself locked into the bathroom.

Suddenly...a large hand reached over my head, grabbed my entire face...thereby locking me against the railing of the steps and I heard it...my brother yelling GOTCHA LAST!

I DIDN'T BELIEVE IT!

But it was true...he got me!

I quickly spun around the railing as mom yelled out her usual warning for this game....be careful and don't break anything!

My brother was racing down the gangway between the houses toward the back fence. HA! Right behind him, I was sure I could catch up to him as he fiddled with the gate to get it open. But my brother had been a high school track and field star, as well as champion wrestler. One of his best events had been the hurdles. Okay, so that was about 40 years ago for him. But that sucker still had some game because he grabbed hold of the metal fence, flung both legs over the 4 foot fence and was in the yard ready to clear the back gate to head for the alley, where he, obviously, had put his getaway car.

So it was me who stood there fiddling with the gate to open it. I did and tried to catch up with him through the yard, but he was already over the back fence and into the alley.

I emerged into the alley just in time to see him stop his car...kids snoozing inside, wife frustrated with these antics...about 10 feet down the alley. At which time he punctuated his masterful plan by giving me a one (middle) fingered salute as he screamed GOTCHA LAST and laughed his fool head off as he drove away!

I returned to the front porch, defeated, humiliated for being nailed whilst I'd been bragging of my victory...and was greeted by everyone laughing their fool heads off. I sat on the porch and joined their laughter. I had to admit...that one was pretty darn good!

Later he called to enjoy his triumph a bit more. And over the years, this story has been retold at family gatherings...as we all laugh about it over and over. It was a pretty good stunt. Particularly, since he 'fessed up that...as he was sneaking up the gangway, knowing what he was about to do, he could hear me laughing at him for getting him last and bragging about how slick I had been. He said it was all he could do to cover his mouth and try not to let out any sounds of his giggling as he came up behind me. And although he had every intention of attempting that hurdle, he said he even surprised himself that he did, indeed, manage to pull it off after all these years without killing himself!

Yeah, it's a silly, childish game that has caused a lot of havoc over the years, but it's also caused a lot of laughter.

And not to be morbid, but more recently he told me "And don't even dare try to get me last at my funeral, because I will get you back!"

You know what...I think I believe him. I don't know if I dare even attempt it!

Office 2003, Service Pack 3 is Now Available

If you're running Office 2003, you can now download and install the latest service pack for Office 2003, which contains various fixes and greater security for your system.

At some point, your version of Office 2003 may let you know about this update and ask you if you want to install it. However, if you don't want to wait until your turn rolls around, you can go to the Microsoft Office Update page to see what Service Releases you should have on your system.

Go to this link: http://www.update.microsoft.com/microsoftupdate/v6/default.aspx?ln=en-us and your system will be checked. You will then see what updates are missing from your computer and have the choice of what you want installed.

If you prefer to download the file and update it manually, you can get it here: Office 2003 SP3

To learn more about using/installing this update, see this KB (Knowledgebase article):
Description of Office 2003 Service Pack 3

To see more details about what has been fixed/updated in this release, see this KB:
Issues that are fixed in Office 2003 by Office 2003 Service Pack 3

One important issue to be aware of is that this release will add tighter security and that may mean that you will get an error if you attempt to open older, legacy documents from previous versions of Office, which may not have access to this increased anti-hacker security. If this is a concern or you get an error trying to open docs after installing SP3, see these two KB articles (or read all these articles first, so you know what to expect):

You receive an error message when you try to open a file or to save a file after you install Office 2003 Service Pack 3

Information about certain file formats that are blocked after you install Office 2003 Service Pack 3

Why should you care about having the latest updates? Mainly for security reasons. In this age of identity theft, you want to make sure that your computer is well protected. As thieves come up with new ways to break into your computer, with a virus or spyware that can access your personal information, software companies come up with new barricades to stop those newfangled attacks. But if you're running an outdated system, you won't be protected from the latest round of attacks. This is true with email, too. You want your antivirus and spyware software to always be updated and to regularly check your system.

If you don't understand these processes, go to the TechTrax Archives and search for those terms. Run a search for SPYWARE and one for ANTIVIRUS. That'll give you articles that will explain why it is so important to keep things updated.

If you don't want to take the time to run the search and/or you don't think updates are important, at least read this article:
As the Worm Turns...Your Computer into a Zombie

Oh, and if you think you're safe on a Mac or Unix box, read the above article, too...because you may not be as safe as you think you are!

Stop Painful Leg Cramps, Instantly

Have you ever experienced a leg cramp? EeeeeOwwww! Nasty, eh?

I remember when I was a teen. I'd be sleeping away, peacefully. Suddenly I'd be jolted awake as searing pain grabbed my calf, squeezing the muscle and causing incredible pain. I thought it was the worse pain in the world. Of course, that's before I had the pleasure of experiencing the labor of child birth! Whoa baby...that one wins!

Back to leg cramps. You can't do anything about it, right? You're forced to freeze there and just bear it until it finally subsides. Just deal with it, right? Suck it up and endure the pain until the muscle relaxes and releases you from the agony, right?

WRONG!

Child birth may have been nasty business, but during those birthing classes, many years ago, our instructor knew that pregnant women are prone to leg cramps. She was a nurse and told our class one of the best secrets that medical professionals obviously know about, but had never told me before...or since for that matter.

What's worse is that my poor dad used to suffer from severe leg cramps. I wish I would have known this simple secret before he died so I could have helped him stop the pain. But maybe this article will help someone else out there.

This post idea came to me this morning, as I was stretching before I attempted to crawl out of bed. Suddenly, I felt a leg cramp starting. But before it could get its nasty claws into my muscle, I stopped it in its tracks.

How? Simple...toes to the nose!

A leg cramp causes the muscle to scrunch up. If you point your toes away from you, you give the muscle on the back of your leg even more slack, which allows it to squeeze up even tighter, thus causing you even more pain, as well as most likely letting the pain go on longer. What you need to do is stretch out the muscle so the cramp is stopped. To stretch out the muscle in your calf, you need to point your toes up toward your nose. This causes the muscle in the back of your leg to be pulled tight, thereby stopping the ability for the cramp to squeeze the muscle...which immediately stops the cramp! You need to point your toes to your nose quickly and tightly and hold it until you're sure the cramp is gone. If you relax your leg and start feeling the pain, pull those toes to your nose again.

Now understand, I'm not talking about actually touching your toes to your nose. That would look silly! The next time you get a leg cramp in the back muscle...your calf...quickly straighten your leg and point your toes up as tightly as you can and hold it. The term toes to your nose is just a simple rhyme to help you remember which direction to point. Even if you're awakened and the cramp is going full steam and you're afraid to move for fear of more pain...don't be afraid. Just pull those toes up so that you stretch out that back muscle and you'll instantly start to feel relief. In seconds, the cramp will be entirely gone.

I hope this helps someone out there stop the pain. I know it has for me. Since I learned this secret, I have never had a cramp last for more than a second or two before I've quickly stretched it out to stop it.

Glory Hallelujah!

Create Your Own Computer Fireworks

Okay, so I'm a day late with this one. I was busy watching live fireworks yesterday, but you can always save this for next year. Although, it's addicting enough to play with anytime!

Go to this web site: http://www.wtv-zone.com/cal731/FEA/LL/LL.html

There you can click anywhere, as often as you like, to have fireworks light up the New York sky (virtually, of course).

Lady Liberty stands proud as you click and send up all the fireworks your little heart desires.