On January 4, 2008 I found the obituary for Tedd Blevins in the Bristol Herald Courier. I thought Tedd to be an amazing person, and a wonderful artist. The obituary was ideal.

This morning I noticed the reprint of the obit was edited, so I check the Courier's website and found it was edited there as well. Tedd deserves an unedited obituary. Here is the original version:

Bristol, Tenn. - Tedd Blevins of Bristol Tennessee joined Rembrandt in the sky on Jan. 4, 2008.
He was wearing a green shirt. Rumors have it that Van Gogh and Vermeer have asked Tedd to join them at the Bar of the Pearly Gates for a smoke and a Bud, but the multitude of slightly clad and underage angels are appparently quite distracting. The bright orange and lavender bubbles are not helping, either.
Tedd is survived by his wife, Carole Blevins; sister, Christeene (Cricket) Sheets; daughters, Adrian Blevins and Shelly Blevins-Stanley; sons-in-law, Nate Rudy and Andy Stanley; and five audacious grandchildren, Weston and Benjamin Church, Madison and Cameron Stanley, and August Rudy.
A celebration in honor of his wit, joie de vive and infamous lifeforce will be held at the Main St. Chapel of Farris Funeral Service in Abingdon, Va., on Tuesday, Jan. 8, at 11 a.m. A more festive celebration of his life will be held this summer.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his name to Virginia Intermont College, 1013 Moore Street, Bristol, VA 24201, where he tried to be a bad influence on generations of young artists for 42 years. VI is not responsible for this obituary. Instead, it has been funded by the campaign to promote Tedd. Those wishing to send memories or messages of sympathy onlline may do so by visiting http://farrisfuneralservice.com.
Farris Funeral Service, Main Street Chapel, 427 E. Main St., Abingdon, VA., is serving Tedd's family.

My prayers are with the people of Minnesota this morning - those who lost loved ones, those who were injured, and all the local people who must be traumatized by this tragedy.

This morning the Washington Post reported that President Bush promised to rebuild the bridge, but wouldn't set a timetable. I think the bridge promise comes right after the New Orleans rebuilding promise in his pecking order....

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Originally uploaded by Carl J.

We were in Blacksburg on May 19-20 to visit John and Sarah. Their apartment complex borders the farm, and there are wonderful hiking/bicycle trails all around the area. We went for an evening walk and took a few pictures. The lighting wasn't very good, but if I want a photo, I snap it. This is my favorite from the trip.

"Today, we're fighting a new war to defend our liberty and our people and our way of life. And as we work to advance the cause of freedom around the world, we remember that the father of our country believed that the freedoms we secured in our revolution were not meant for Americans alone."

This quote comes from Dubya's speech at Mount Vernon on Monday. Now I'm sure that he intends it to justify his incursion into Iraq, but I can see in it the evidence that the rights afforded to American citizens for fair and just treatment should be afforded to our captives at Guantanamo Bay as well.

Freedom is not defined solely by the right to buy Chevron gas and Slurpees, but also the right to an attorney, the right to a fair hearing and speedy trial, and the right to contact family members.

Dubya just speaks the words and works to make them sound friendly and down-home. I don't believe he's either friendly or down-home. He's more interested in the corporate welfare than the welfare of the needy, and..I believe he just doesn't care about you and me!