Ridiculously Happy Flower

When this blog started approximately a year ago I decided that I would not limit myself to just words. -- My first blog post was just words.

I was off too a good start.

Soon to follow was a monsoon of drawings, pictures, writings, and eventually videos. Unfortunately, many of the recent blog posts are just limited to writings(with little picture aid) and videos.

I kind of miss the drawings, and I hope you have similar feelings.


That flower is so much happier than any living thing should be. Ever.

--John D.

Larry King

Today I met Larry King.

Oh but not "that" Larry King. I'm certain that I like this Larry King a whole lot more.

Larry King is a simple man with a kind face and very white hair. He is 53 years old and wears really big glasses. In 1993 his mother died and he got in a car accident which severely damaged his leg. (The death of his mother and the car accident were two unrelated events) There are now two bars around his calf and this causes bad blood circulation to his left foot. For the last five years Larry has been battling skin cancer. He cannot hear out of his left ear because he had reconstructive plastic surgery on it. In my honest opinion, his ear looks really good, although Mr. King is afraid to shave around that side of his face.

"I let it grow out for an extra day or so, because I'm afraid I'll get a cut it will get infected. Sometimes my friends say things like, 'Larry, you are looking pretty rough.' Then I just tell them, 'I'm just letting it grow out for another day or two.'" Because he is deaf in one ear, he "projects" his voice more than most people. On Larry's right arm, there is a dime sized sore. It was a gaping wound about a year ago that, "was about the size of the bottom of this here Pepsi bottle," he would say as he moved his hand around the base of the Pepsi bottle in a clockwise motion.

Larry is unemployed but does odd jobs when he can. All his life he has mowed lawns and has done yard work. Right now he lives in a homeless shelter in Lima, OH -- I believe he said it was the Lima Rescue Mission, but I'm not completely certain on that-- and has been there for a year, maybe two years total. Larry compared the size of his room to a jail cell. --I have no idea if he has ever been in jail-- Each month costs under $200 to live there, and he missed this past month's payment. This was the first month where Larry King was unable to pay, but he is getting a check soon from his friend that he works for in Bowling Green.

His friend is a retired lawyer that lives right on the lake and by a small airport. Larry works for him and does yard work, on his six acre yard, when he can. Larry's 72 year-old friend is wealthy and has his own small private airplane. --This is why Mr. Retired Lawyer lives by the airport-- Years ago Larry took a ride with his friend on his airplane.

"When you are riding in a small airplane, you are right behind the windshield. You can look out the window and see the ground. It's terrifying, and I'm afraid of heights. We would take off, and I would hang on for dear life." Larry continued to explain to me how the airplane would land on the small airport, and then literally park in the back yard of his friend's house.

Larry's daughter has just went through a divorce, and he does as much as he can to help his daughter financially. She has three children, so that makes Larry a grandfather. The youngest is about three, the oldest eight, and the last grandchild is five. I listened as Larry told me the ages of his three grandchildren several times. He wasn't completely certain on their ages, but he knew he was really close.

Larry also helps his daughter with yard work, why just today he mowed her lawn. Larry told me about the little push lawn mower he used. It was really good on gas. He also told me about how he mowed the lawn. Larry was pressed for time today, so he wasn't able to mow the lawn diagonally to make it look really nice.

Larry talked a lot about his past. He also talked about his plans for the future. On September 5th he has a court hearing he has been waiting on for five years. If everything goes well, he will be able to get Social Security money and provide and have, in his words, "a normal life." I really hope things work out for Larry in September.

Larry has been through a lot, a lot more than I have. Despite everything, he has a very positive outlook on life. I thought I was an optimistic person, but I learned a lot today from Larry.
Right now I'm going to steal some words from a friend of mine, but I think it's okay because she stole them from her dad.

"...some people have lives that are really hard and they have a good attitude and they look at the good things and their lives aren’t so bad."

Larry is definitely this kind of person. He would constantly say how blessed he was with what he had. We talked about taking what life throws at you, then we also talked about God. He wants his daughter and his girlfriend to go to church. Larry also talked about how his faith in God was really strong even though he has been through a lot.

I met Larry King today. I gave him a ride which lasted no more than 45 minutes.


I almost didn't give him a ride. I almost didn't have a strangely wonderful conversation with a stranger in my car. I almost didn't pick up Larry King the hitchhiker. I drove past him once, but turned around at the next exit. I have no idea why I turned around, but I'm really glad that I did.

--John D.