i pulled my harpoon outta

  of my dirty red bandana

I was blowin' sad while Bobby sang the blues (Kris Kristofferson)

i had to search this blog to see what i have already said about the man in the red bandanna.....and either the search feature is not working properly or by some horrible omission i have yet to share his story. Maybe it is because September is the month where i think the most.....but write and produce the least......truth is it is a month of painful memories and every year i try to fill the calendar with events to keep myself distracted and usually wake up depressed and cancel my plans.....I suppose the fact that i am aware/concious  of my mood swings is a good thing......anyway , let me tell you one of a zillion of the critically important stories from the disgusting aftermath of September the 11th 2001.

Welles Remy Crowther was born in Nyack NY in May 1977....as a young boy he used to watch his Dad getting ready for church by wrapping a comb in a red bandanna and placing it inside his pocket. When he was 6 his Dad gave him his first banadanna.....and it became his trademark. he would wear one under his sports uniforms and carried one with him to school every day. At 16 he joined his father as a volunteer Firefighter. He attended Boston College where he played Lacrosse and graduated with honors in 1999. He took a Job as an equities trader for Sandler O'Neill on the 104th floor of the South Tower.

When a plane hit the north tower, Welles called his mother and left her a message stating he was okay and would be evacuating, that was the last time they heard from him. Survivors told the story of a young man in the South Tower that was carrying victims down the stairs to the 78th floor lobby. He took control before the FDNY arrived , administering first aid and extinguishing small fires.....He Instructed all of the injured ."If you can stand up, do so now and assist those that are not standing" (Instant triage and a brilliant way to identify the seriously injured from the shocked and and marginally injured) and the young man went back up the stairs to retrieve more of the injured. After the second plane hit he was spotted carrying another injured victim down the stairs below and through and below the impact zone......and then back up he went.......nobody knew his name , but a few months later the NY Times printed and interview with several survivors from the South Tower and all they all talked about the "Man in the Red Bandanna" , they were praying he somehow survived.......when Welles mother read the article, she knew who it was.

In March of 2002 Welles body was found along with several firefighters in a command room of the south tower rubble, his body was found in tact, no signs of burns or other injuries...the NYC medical examiner concluded he was assisting the wounded as civilian usher as the building collapsed. In his apartment his parents and sisters found his nearly completed application to join the FDNY.......in 2006 Fire Commissioner Scopetta acknowledged Welles as an Honorary Firefighter. One of his signature Red Bandannas is on display at the 9/11  Musuem. Boston College keeps his memory alive with an annual Red Bandanna 5K, the football team dedicates one home game each year and wears red bandanna inspired uniforms with FOR WELLES in place of their names on the back of the jersey. i am sorry it took me so long to share this story, hopefully anyone that reads this already knows of his Heroics.

As i look around at the shithole NYC and this country have become, i can't help but think about the truly wonderful, Heroic, Funny, Brave, Upstanding members of our society we lost that day.....with a subtraction of so much greatness it's no wonder they left behind a black hole.

Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose

Nothin' ain't worth nothin' but it's free
Feelin' good was easy, Lord, when Bobby sang the blues
Buddy, that was good enough for me
Good enough for me and Bobby McGee