21 years ago this date, after drinking with my brother til 3:00am, we had decided not to use the "Blue Zone" passes we had acquired from the State of Washington to visit the steaming Mt.St.Helens to capture some photos of her beautiful steam plumes of activity. As the alarm clock went off at 4:00am to signal our rising and departure to be there around sunrise, I quickly hit the alarm off due to only 1 hour of sleep, and a slight hangover. As I finally woke up around 9 am that Sunday morning, I turned on the TV, watched as they reported that the Blue Zone area around Mt.St.Helens was devastated, I sat in awe and wonder while my brother came out and sat on the couch with me. We didn't say a word to each other for about an hour as we gaped at the diaster unfolding in view of our eyes on television, happening only 2 hours away from our house. We could see the awesome cloud, with all its fury, traveling eastward, from the deck of our home.
The only time that drinking may have saved my life.
Sorry for the hi-jack, but I was sticking to the May 18th date!
