the cost of fame
January 09, 2008

This week, My nephew made the news in the following outlets: The Chicago Tribune, CBS 2 Chicago, WISN in Milwaukee (TV), WTMJ in Milwaukee (TV), WTMJ in Milwaukee (Radio), NBC Nightly News, and The Kenosha News. Probably more, actually, but I lost track.

My niece made the front page of USA Today.

Why all the sudden fame?

Here's why.

Everything is gone. Down to the floorboards. A 3-bedroom ranch with attached garage, a second, freestanding garage, a 27-foot pool with a sundeck. All their clothes, furniture, computers, appliances, books, TVs, toys, games, photos...everything.

But all of that is just stuff. The important thing is that everyone is alive, safe and unharmed. Niece and Nephew, their mom & stepdad, their step-sister and her little boy, Tink the yellow lab, and Terry the turtle all lived in that house, and everyone of them is okay. Artie the cat is missing, and the fish were lost, but that's it.

16-year-old Nephew is not thrilled about all the media attention. But he is being called a hero, since their house was one of the few that was completely destroyed, and for herding his nephew/foster brother and a neighbor boy, along with Tink and Terry, into the basement as the sirens sounded. Together, they rode the storm out in the safest part of the basement. In the dark, he located a toy light saber and ripped the end off to fashion a makeshift flashlight so they could make their way out. Then he got on his cell phone and called 911 to let them know what had happened, and request assistance, as they were trapped down there by debris. Can you tell he's an excellent Boy Scout? I'm so proud of him.

14-year-old Niece is just pissed because a national newsaper got her age wrong. They said she was only 13.

We took Nephew home with us and bought him a few clothes and a new jacket, fed him well, let him take hot showers and sleep in a bed, and got him rested a bit. He was exhausted. We would have taken Niece as well, but tough little nut that she is, she insisted on playing in her basketball game on Tuesday. She didn't do too well, but you can't tell a 14-year-old that she's probably too worn out and emotionally drained to play. Well, you can't tell that 14-year-old, anyway.