Saturday, April 19
At a loss...
Last week my family and I went on a great vacation, had an incredible time, and I came back refreshed and ready for work again.
Went to work on Monday and Tuesday, had great days, worked 10 hours each day, got a ton of stuff done.
Then Tuesday night, while looking for something on the net, I ran across something that completely deflated me. A good friend of mine, Bill Burton, had taken his own life last May. The news in and of itself shouldn't have been such a shock, Bill had been diagnosed Bi-polar and had severe depression. On May 29th last year it got to him and he ended it all.
It really upset me, and I had to do a lot of digging to find out any more detail than that he was dead. It was also jarring to find out so late, and have no way to express condolences to his family directly. We had been e-mailing, and in fact I had sent him a message around noon on the day he died, I don't know if he ever got the message. When I got no reply I just figured he had been getting things together and didn't have time to reply, messages on his blog showed some signs of progress:
Bill' Blog
Here is his Obituary, published in the Austin American Statesman - it will go offline there soon, and was hard to find as they block Google and other services from indexing their obituaries:
William "Bill" Burton Feb. 18, 1956 - May 29, 2007 William "Bill" Burton died Tuesday May 29, 2007. He moved from Riverside, CA, to Austin in 2005. He was a kind, intelligent and artistic man. He had been an editor in mobile electronics and a writer in New York, California, and for awhile in Austin. He loved animals, philosophy, Formula 1 car racing, music, painting, and writing poetry. He was preceded in death by his father Howard, his mother Charlotte, his sister Joy and several beloved dogs. He leaves behind his girlfriend, Christina; her son, Sean; his precious dogs, Clyde and Luna; his brother, Bruce; his uncle, Emory; his aunt, Dorothy; his cousin, Mike; his best friends, David and Tom; his friends, Christopher, Rich, Shane, Deborah, Mark and Linda; as well as many other friends and relatives who loved him. Life was a struggle for Bill in the last few years. We hope he has finally found peace. We will miss him. For memorial arrangements see www.me-mag.com Donations can be made in Bill's name to Austin Aussie Rescue, Town Lake Animal Center; or Depression and Bi-Polar Support Alliance.
Published in the Austin American-Statesman on 6/10/2007.
I also found some nice stuff on his life at Mobile Electronics Magazine and Car Audio & Electronics Magazine websites:
Bill Burton Memoriam
Bill Burton Tribute
So, here is what I remember about Bill Burton. I got deeply involved in Car Audio in about 1988, but 1990 I had the goal of winning the International Autosound Sound Challenge Association's (IASCA) World Finals. It took me till 1996 to achieve that goal
In 1997 I took the year off from competition to judge shows. That year in Perry, Georgia I judged the big show run by Terry Miller and Audio Sports. Terry set me up with a great bunk mate, Bill Burton. I had been reading Bill's columns for years, and was at first a bit intimidated at meeting someone so influential in the industry. However, I was quickly put at ease, Bill was a great person to hang out with, had a rental car and knew some great places to eat in Perry. It turned out to be a great weekend, Bill was great to hang out with outside the show, and I learned a bunch.
Bill was a hippy. He rode a recumbent bike, voted democratic, loved dogs and pretty much seemed to believe they should have the same rights as people. He was diabetic. Most of all he loved audio, and especially mobile audio.
After the weekend in Perry we stayed in touch via e-mails, and would bump into each other at shows and always have great conversations.
In 1999 I dropped out of car audio to focus on other aspects of life, but stayed in touch with Bill via e-mail from that point forward. He offered me great help in 2003 when I became diabetic.
I knew via his e-mails that he was struggling with numerous problems, but like I said, I thought things were starting to look up for him. I wish I could have done more for my friend.
Bill, wherever you are, I hope you found the peace you sought. I was really looking forward to meeting up with you in Austin next time I made it out that way, I'll drink a beer in your honor next time I'm out that way.
I hope that if your family or other friends that find this will know what a wonderful friend and person you were to me over the years, you will be missed.
Went to work on Monday and Tuesday, had great days, worked 10 hours each day, got a ton of stuff done.
Then Tuesday night, while looking for something on the net, I ran across something that completely deflated me. A good friend of mine, Bill Burton, had taken his own life last May. The news in and of itself shouldn't have been such a shock, Bill had been diagnosed Bi-polar and had severe depression. On May 29th last year it got to him and he ended it all.
It really upset me, and I had to do a lot of digging to find out any more detail than that he was dead. It was also jarring to find out so late, and have no way to express condolences to his family directly. We had been e-mailing, and in fact I had sent him a message around noon on the day he died, I don't know if he ever got the message. When I got no reply I just figured he had been getting things together and didn't have time to reply, messages on his blog showed some signs of progress:
Bill' Blog
Here is his Obituary, published in the Austin American Statesman - it will go offline there soon, and was hard to find as they block Google and other services from indexing their obituaries:
William "Bill" Burton Feb. 18, 1956 - May 29, 2007 William "Bill" Burton died Tuesday May 29, 2007. He moved from Riverside, CA, to Austin in 2005. He was a kind, intelligent and artistic man. He had been an editor in mobile electronics and a writer in New York, California, and for awhile in Austin. He loved animals, philosophy, Formula 1 car racing, music, painting, and writing poetry. He was preceded in death by his father Howard, his mother Charlotte, his sister Joy and several beloved dogs. He leaves behind his girlfriend, Christina; her son, Sean; his precious dogs, Clyde and Luna; his brother, Bruce; his uncle, Emory; his aunt, Dorothy; his cousin, Mike; his best friends, David and Tom; his friends, Christopher, Rich, Shane, Deborah, Mark and Linda; as well as many other friends and relatives who loved him. Life was a struggle for Bill in the last few years. We hope he has finally found peace. We will miss him. For memorial arrangements see www.me-mag.com Donations can be made in Bill's name to Austin Aussie Rescue, Town Lake Animal Center; or Depression and Bi-Polar Support Alliance.
Published in the Austin American-Statesman on 6/10/2007.
I also found some nice stuff on his life at Mobile Electronics Magazine and Car Audio & Electronics Magazine websites:
Bill Burton Memoriam
Bill Burton Tribute
So, here is what I remember about Bill Burton. I got deeply involved in Car Audio in about 1988, but 1990 I had the goal of winning the International Autosound Sound Challenge Association's (IASCA) World Finals. It took me till 1996 to achieve that goal
In 1997 I took the year off from competition to judge shows. That year in Perry, Georgia I judged the big show run by Terry Miller and Audio Sports. Terry set me up with a great bunk mate, Bill Burton. I had been reading Bill's columns for years, and was at first a bit intimidated at meeting someone so influential in the industry. However, I was quickly put at ease, Bill was a great person to hang out with, had a rental car and knew some great places to eat in Perry. It turned out to be a great weekend, Bill was great to hang out with outside the show, and I learned a bunch.
Bill was a hippy. He rode a recumbent bike, voted democratic, loved dogs and pretty much seemed to believe they should have the same rights as people. He was diabetic. Most of all he loved audio, and especially mobile audio.
After the weekend in Perry we stayed in touch via e-mails, and would bump into each other at shows and always have great conversations.
In 1999 I dropped out of car audio to focus on other aspects of life, but stayed in touch with Bill via e-mail from that point forward. He offered me great help in 2003 when I became diabetic.
I knew via his e-mails that he was struggling with numerous problems, but like I said, I thought things were starting to look up for him. I wish I could have done more for my friend.
Bill, wherever you are, I hope you found the peace you sought. I was really looking forward to meeting up with you in Austin next time I made it out that way, I'll drink a beer in your honor next time I'm out that way.
I hope that if your family or other friends that find this will know what a wonderful friend and person you were to me over the years, you will be missed.
Labels: auto sound, friends, funeral, suicide
Sunday, October 28
What I've Been Up To....
It's been a while since I posted. I've had a lot of things going on at home and work. At work, I got un-promoted. Mind you, not demoted, but un-promoted. Called into the office and told that my promotion never happened, that it was an administrative error. No, really, that is what happened to me about 3 weeks ago. So, I've been pretty demotivated at work. I don't trust my employer any longer, and I'm not happy there. Don't know what will happen, but I'm exploring many options for this situation.
In early October we took a trip to New York City with my parents and my oldest kiddo. We had a great time. We went to the Empire State Building, Ripley's Believe It Or Not, the 21 Club, took a River Cruise, and more stuff than I can remember. Everyone had a great time.
While in New York, we drove down to New Jersey and meet up with a bunch of the gang from Clan Easy Frag at Six Flags Great America. While there I rode the world's tallest, fastest roller coaster, Kinda Ka. Four times. I also rode their new El Toro coaster a couple of times. If you hit a Six Flags on vacation any time soon, the "Flash Pass" is absolutely worth the money.
In late October I got suspended from XBOX Live! for a day, due to my online motto of "My Rectom Hertz". No kidding, it had been that for over 18 months. More horrible Microsoft Customer Service. No way to appeal, no warning that I had crossed a boundry 18 months earlier.
Two weeks ago tomorrow I had to put my odest dog down. It was really sad. She was nearly 14 years old and her health started deteoriating very rapidly one weekend. I took her to the vet one last time, she had a kidney infection, a bacterial infection and horrible arthritas. While it was the right thing to do, putting her down was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I held her head as she passed, I wouldn't dream of letting her go through that alone, or with strangers only. They made a paw print at the vet, and I had her creamated. Got her ashes about three days later. I'm going to spread them under one of the tress in the yard in the spring. She was the first pet I picked out as an adult, and I'll miss her, but she is not suffering any longer.
So, that's the quick version of what I've been up to for the past two months, or at least the hilights. Here come the holidays, can't wait to see what pandemonium they bring to my world.
In early October we took a trip to New York City with my parents and my oldest kiddo. We had a great time. We went to the Empire State Building, Ripley's Believe It Or Not, the 21 Club, took a River Cruise, and more stuff than I can remember. Everyone had a great time.
While in New York, we drove down to New Jersey and meet up with a bunch of the gang from Clan Easy Frag at Six Flags Great America. While there I rode the world's tallest, fastest roller coaster, Kinda Ka. Four times. I also rode their new El Toro coaster a couple of times. If you hit a Six Flags on vacation any time soon, the "Flash Pass" is absolutely worth the money.
In late October I got suspended from XBOX Live! for a day, due to my online motto of "My Rectom Hertz". No kidding, it had been that for over 18 months. More horrible Microsoft Customer Service. No way to appeal, no warning that I had crossed a boundry 18 months earlier.
Two weeks ago tomorrow I had to put my odest dog down. It was really sad. She was nearly 14 years old and her health started deteoriating very rapidly one weekend. I took her to the vet one last time, she had a kidney infection, a bacterial infection and horrible arthritas. While it was the right thing to do, putting her down was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I held her head as she passed, I wouldn't dream of letting her go through that alone, or with strangers only. They made a paw print at the vet, and I had her creamated. Got her ashes about three days later. I'm going to spread them under one of the tress in the yard in the spring. She was the first pet I picked out as an adult, and I'll miss her, but she is not suffering any longer.
So, that's the quick version of what I've been up to for the past two months, or at least the hilights. Here come the holidays, can't wait to see what pandemonium they bring to my world.
Labels: bad support, boss, family, funeral, kids, NYC, roller coaster, travel, vacation, wife
Sunday, May 13
Hectic Month
I haven't been posting much here, not for the lack of things to post about, but just from being so busy I'm never sure if I am coming or going most of the time.
Kids are doing great, twins are over 10 months old and close to walking, and saying dada, mama, baba, ball, very simple stuff. I recently took my three year old to his first Astros baseball game. We had to sit in the cheap seats, but he had a great time. His favorite part of the game was the train that runs along the top of the outfiled fence when the 'stros hit a homer. Only problem is he really wanted to ride the train. My father in law went along on that day, and we all had a good time.
Meanwhile my lovely wife was spending the weekend in New York City with her sister and mom. Her sister lives there now and really seems to be doing well, so we're all very happy for her.
At work things are going well, I got a raise, then a couple of weeks later was promoted to Information Security Officer. Now I'm a bank officer, I got stock options, and lots more responsibility. Yeah! I'm still doing my old Network Analyst job till we find a replacement, I need someone like Jake for this job, but we aren't finding anyone right now. I hope we find someone soon, I'm gettting worn way out doing two jobs.
I went to a funeral for a friend's 21 year old son that was killed in a horrible car accident. Between the time I was 16 and 22, I had 8 friends die, and went to lots of funerals, so while this experience wasn't so new, it was the first time since I've been a parent. I'm also 39 now, and the sense of just what this young person had missed out on is very different from when it was my friends I was burying. All in all a very sad week.
I'm finally retiring the laptop I've had for almost 6 years. It was great when I purchased it, but it is starting to show it's age. I'm getting an Alienware Area 51 m5550 with an upgraded processor and DVD burner. I'm really psyched, it will be nice to have a modern, fast computer. It also comes with Vista, which I will try out, but expect to replace with XP Pro pretty quickly. Maybe for fun I will also load Office 2007. Never know.
Going to hit the road and go to Vegas next weekend. I need a vacation, can't wait to loose some hard earned cash in a slot machine. We also have tickets for They Might Be Giants at the Hard Rock Hotel and Spamalot at the Wynn hotel. Should be a great weekend.
Kids are doing great, twins are over 10 months old and close to walking, and saying dada, mama, baba, ball, very simple stuff. I recently took my three year old to his first Astros baseball game. We had to sit in the cheap seats, but he had a great time. His favorite part of the game was the train that runs along the top of the outfiled fence when the 'stros hit a homer. Only problem is he really wanted to ride the train. My father in law went along on that day, and we all had a good time.
Meanwhile my lovely wife was spending the weekend in New York City with her sister and mom. Her sister lives there now and really seems to be doing well, so we're all very happy for her.
At work things are going well, I got a raise, then a couple of weeks later was promoted to Information Security Officer. Now I'm a bank officer, I got stock options, and lots more responsibility. Yeah! I'm still doing my old Network Analyst job till we find a replacement, I need someone like Jake for this job, but we aren't finding anyone right now. I hope we find someone soon, I'm gettting worn way out doing two jobs.
I went to a funeral for a friend's 21 year old son that was killed in a horrible car accident. Between the time I was 16 and 22, I had 8 friends die, and went to lots of funerals, so while this experience wasn't so new, it was the first time since I've been a parent. I'm also 39 now, and the sense of just what this young person had missed out on is very different from when it was my friends I was burying. All in all a very sad week.
I'm finally retiring the laptop I've had for almost 6 years. It was great when I purchased it, but it is starting to show it's age. I'm getting an Alienware Area 51 m5550 with an upgraded processor and DVD burner. I'm really psyched, it will be nice to have a modern, fast computer. It also comes with Vista, which I will try out, but expect to replace with XP Pro pretty quickly. Maybe for fun I will also load Office 2007. Never know.
Going to hit the road and go to Vegas next weekend. I need a vacation, can't wait to loose some hard earned cash in a slot machine. We also have tickets for They Might Be Giants at the Hard Rock Hotel and Spamalot at the Wynn hotel. Should be a great weekend.
Labels: entertainment, funeral, in-laws, laptop, review, travel, vacation, work
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