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Welcome Fu's. Thank you so much for stopping by. My name is Howard & I am a native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania & have been here my whole life. Phila seems like the perfect city for me. It is not as big as New York, yet it still has much to offer when it comes to nightlife & places to see. I need excitement & activity in my life but also appreciate those quiet times where I can get away from it all. I was adopted at birth & my parents taught me early not to be embarassed or ashamed about it. I was Special, I was Chosen. I was wanted & not every child can say that these days. A product of the Public School system I was bullied & picked on just like everyone else. Since there were no computers back then my father thought it would be a good idea to get an Encyclopedia Britannica for help with my homework. He didn't have the extra money for it but a newspaper column called Ask Andy was giving them away for questions she could answer & publish in the Philadelphia Inquirer here. My question, "How Is Swiss Cheese Made & How Does It Get It's Holes" was chosen & my encyclopedias were delivered shortly thereafter. That was the 1st time I was published & it felt so good. I survived High School & got a job working the desk at a local apartment building for Seniors on the weekend. In 1981 Katherine Hepburn came to town in a play called West Side Waltz. Tickets were to expensive for me to by so I called the local papers offering to write a review in exchange for admission. I've always been a big fan. The Northeast times took me up on my offer. I got backstage for a brief interview. Defenetely, 1 of the highlights of my life. My love for writing continued & I submitted a story to OMNI Magazine. They initially rejected my submission but after changes it was published. I was also published in Philadelphia Magazine, National Geographic & Playboy. I married Sherri, my wife of 17 years in 1994. We got married on the beach at Cowpet Bay in St. Thomas U.S.V.I. It was a beautiful ceremony which we had videotaped & sent copies to all the family & friends. The following year my youngest daughter Halle was born. Sherri had 2 kids from a previous marriage. We led a quiet, happy life & traveled the world together. Mexico, Bahamas, St. Martien, Canada, Disney World, London, Paris etc. We bought property wherever we went, it seemed. On Martin Luther King Day 2009 Sherri came home from work around 7 AM. I heard a loud noise & woke up in a fright. I found her laying face down on the floor near her side of the bed. I called 911 & she was taken to the hospital where she was diagnosed as having a massive stroke. 3 months in the hospital, 3 months in rehab & 4 MILLION DOLLARS later she came home. Brain damaged, paralyzed & unable to speak, she lasted 3 YEARS. Sherri was many things & 1 thing for sure, she LOVED to shop. As the bills started comming in I counted $38,000 in credit card debt. I sent letters to everyone about her passing & all they wanted was the money. I hired 2 different Law Firms to handle tha bankrupcy. When you declare bankrupcy on over 4 MILLION DOLLARS people get pissed!!! 1 by 1 I lost my vacation homes & 2 cars eventually loosing the family home. I moved into a beautiful old house with brass sconces & gold laced mirrors in 2013. After 41 years in the Apt building, I lost my job when a new Management Company took over. Apparently I made way to much money in their opinion. After a brief period of unemployment, I started working for the local papers here. I started doing filler, editorials & weekend stuff only making the News team when I came accross a crime scene in West Philadelphia in 2014. On May 12, 2015 I was driving to work when AMTRAK # 188 derailed near Frankford Junction. The time was about 9:20 PM & I called for a Photographer heading straight for the scene. Fire was burning in the distance. The smell of death was everywhere. Screams echoed in the night. Survivors walking like zombies walked to the Police & Medical station. Many needed assistance, some even unaware that they had pieces of the train lodged inside them. I quickly started helping & didn't leave until aboput 3:30 AM. I stopped by a local Diner for some food & never got out of the car. Suddenly, all the stress & anxiety overwhelmed me. I just sat there & cried all night. Probably the single worst night of my life. I couldn't sleep for MONTHS after that night. Time passed, I got my own office & when COVID hit the office closed & I've been working from home with my team weekday nights from 6PM - 2 AM. By the way, I originally joined this site about 10 years ago. I was Mystery Writer & played Mafia. I got tired waking up to dead soldiers so I decided to leave. Guess Covid & all this time at home brought me back again. Well, that's my story. Thanks so much for stopping by. I love new friends. I'm learning this site slowly. I'm glad to help when I can. My inbox is always open. Feel free to inbox if you choose. Have a good day.
