The Last Flight Out - Try to Survive to Your Destination!

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Taking a flight on an airplane can
be an uncomfortable journey as you're squeezed in

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00:00:06.519 --> 00:00:10.679
like sardines and coach just to save
a few bucks. Who knows who you

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might sit next to. Usually they're
obnoxious or asleep. But what if you

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met someone that brought changes into your
life? You may have never imagined?

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What's that? You want to be
scared to? Come with me. You

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will experience tales over opera, who, ghosts and death. It is not

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00:00:42.960 --> 00:00:50.759
recommended at the foot of week at
heart heart listen as in the dark it's

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more fun at that way way.
This is Weekly Squeaking. Hello, my

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00:01:03.359 --> 00:01:08.680
spooky is It's Wednesday, and you
know what that means. It's time for

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a little spooky in your weekly.
I'm your host and narrator, Enrique Kuto,

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and we have quite the chilling tale
of flying in the Sky. We'll

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be getting to that in just a
little bit, but first I want to

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say a sincere, very sincere thank
you to everyone who's been listening and writing

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in last week. I told you
all about losing my dog, Henwolf,

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and it's been really hard. She
used to lay right next to my feet

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every single time I recorded the show
and I do mean every single time,

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and it's a hard adjustment without her, But I am happy and thankful to

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be here to entertain all of you, and I am so grateful for all

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the well wishes and kindness you guys
have showed. So thank you from the

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bottom of my heart. And if
you love what we're doing here and you

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want to show some support to Weekly
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is to go to your favorite podcasting
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really wherever you get your podcasts.
It does help a lot, And if

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you want to support the show very
very directly, please consider heading to Weeklyspooky

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dot com and clicking on Patreon.
For as little as one dollar a month,

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you get two bonus shows every single
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Strickfield universe. They're the long game. They are novel length stories, so

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you definitely get a big bang for
your buck. But now, my friends,

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we better hurry. We have a
flight and time is of the essence,

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so get into the terminal. Funny
name by the way, calling it

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a terminal, isn't it Well,
make sure you get to your gate because

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you do not want to be left
behind on this flight. We'll get to

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that after these quick words from our
sponsors. The last flight out by Charles

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Campbell. Zone one is boarding.
Everyone with a boarding pass and Zone one

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are cleared to board flight seven point
fifty two from Hartsfield Jackson International to Seattle.

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Please present your boarding pass and be
prepared to have carrions checked if they

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will not fit in the overhead compartment
or under your seat. The pretty petite

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blonde wearing the Delta name tag smiled
as passengers lined up to board the two

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hundred and eighty four passenger ready bowing
seven fifty seven three hundred. Sheila popped

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out her earbuds the sounds of Maria
Maria by Santana emitted from the tiny dangling

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speakers, and took another glance at
her boarding pass, hoping it would magically

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change zones from four to one.
She had two carry ons, and if

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her luck was per usual, she
would end up checking the overhead bag because

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a few inconsiderate passengers would overstuff their
allotments, leaving most of zones three and

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four in the baggage lurch. The
airport was crowded with your typical mix of

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people, business types with iPads and
laptops in hand, stressed out parents herding

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up their children, and more than
a couple of people that Sheila prayed would

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not be seated beside her because they
would overlap over a quarter of the way

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into her Economy class seat. Another
ten minutes passed before Sheila heard the sweet

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sound of now boarding zone four.
Sheila made her way past the smiling blonde

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that scanned her boarding pass and was
pleasantly surprised that she wasn't asked to check

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her carryons as she cleared the entrance
ramp and stepped into the jetliner. Okay

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twenty two Sea, Sheila mumbled as
she held her laptop bag out in front

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of her, with the Duffel bag
dangling behind as she navigated down the middle

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aisle finding her window seat. This
really is my lucky day, Shila thought

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to herself, as she was one
of the last passengers to board. In

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the compartment right above her seat,
there was a hole just big enough to

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stuff her Duffel bag, leaving her
laptop to be shoved under the seat in

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front of her. Sheila took her
seat, strapped her belt, and was

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asleep before the flight attendant gave instructions
on emergency exits and safety belts. This

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is the captain speaking. We have
now achieved an altitude of ten thousand feet.

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You may now use approved electronic devices. Please keep your seat belts fastened.

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Thank you for flying Delta flight seven
fifty two to Seattle. Hi,

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dear, I hope I didn't wake
you. A spindly old man reached across

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the middle seat and gently tapped on
Sheila's arm. She turned to look upon

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the smiling elderly man, whose hand
was still gently placed on her shoulder.

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His were the hands of a man
who'd seen their share of hard labor,

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the hands of a man that had
been on top of many a roof on

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many a hot summer's day. No, sir, you didn't wake me.

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My name's Sheila Baker, she said, as she patted the man's fingers on

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her right shoulder with her left hand. I'm otis Thornton. The skinny seventy

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somethingter smiled at Sheila with teeth that, to her surprise, appeared to be

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all his one hundred percent and not
a spot of yellow on them. Pleased

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to meet you, mister Otis,
interrupted, No, mister just Otis,

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Sheila smiled and said Okay, Otis, looks like we have a little breathing

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room. Huh. Sheila patted the
empty seat that separated them, not that

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it would have made that much of
a difference if he was sitting in the

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seat right next to her. Otis
was a little over five six and couldn't

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have been any more than one hundred
and twenty five pounds. Soaking wet,

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he was immediately engaging with light green
eyes that shouted kindness. Sheila had to

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stop herself from reaching out and touching
the full head of neatly combed snow white

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hair. Oh, the pleasure is
all mine, Otis started. I don't

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get to sit beside beautiful women that
much anymore, well, not since I

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lost my dearest Ella. The kind
eyes told a story that Sheila desperately wanted

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to hear. Otis. I must
say that I am pleased that you will

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be my company on this flight.
Sheila shuffled in her seat so she was

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facing Otis directly and pushed a strand
of her hanging brown hair back behind her

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left ear. Well, thank you, Sheila, I'm an old man that

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likes to talk. Just let me
know if I start to talk your ears

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off and I'll be quiet well,
thank you, Otis. I am a

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thirty two year old woman that likes
to listen, so talk all you want.

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You might regret that invitation. Sheila. Otis's eyes lit up with the

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prospect of sharing his story with her. Try me, okay, here it

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goes, and Otis began. It
was the summer of nineteen fifty eight when

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I first laid eyes on Ella Stanton. She was working at the snow Cap

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as a roller waitress, and she
was very good at it. I remember

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hearing the wheels of the skates whisked
by on the asphalt as she left behind

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a sweet trail of lightly applied perfume
while she rolled to and fro and back

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and forth. Her auburn hair was
like a campfire at sunset, and her

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skin was fair and as soft as
a butterfly's kiss, at least as soft

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as how I like to imagine a
butterfly's kiss. I was a young man

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of three when she first smiled and
batted her brown eyes at me. You

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see, I helped my father back
in those days. He was a self

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made, hard working man. Otis
Thornton Sor moved to Augusta, Georgia,

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with my mother Genie, when I
was a toddler way back in the early

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forties. I take after my father
in the way that I'm built, spindley

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and all, but I have my
mother's face and my hair used to be

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sandy blonde in another lifetime. Anyway, back to my angel, I remember

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my hands ached like the dickens from
laying shingles. On that hot July day

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when Ella rolled into my life.
I remember that I ordered a double cheeseburger

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all the way and a coke float. When Ella said, you sure are

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skinny? You think you can handle
the double? Did I mention my father

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was there with me? Well he
was, and he answered for me because

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my mouth couldn't speak the words outside
of the order that I had just blurted

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out. Yeah, I've seen him
eat four thick pork chops with just as

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many mashed taters at home and still
be hungry, young lady. My father

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gave her an Eastwood squint with a
turned up grin and continued, I'll have

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the same thing, but I'll take
the coke without the float. From that

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day on, I visited Ella at
least three times a week, mostly without

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my father, although he would still
come along once in a while when he

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got the craving for the goodness of
that double burger. This went along for

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about two or three months before I
got up the courage to court Ella.

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My father told mother about Ella about
two weeks into me, missing too many

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home cooked meals. Then they were
both on to me. My mother wanted

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grandchildren as I was an only child. There was something about her lady parts

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that didn't quite work right after I
was born. I remember that she doted

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over me enough for four children,
so much as a boy, all the

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way up to and through manhood.
Ella's mother, Lucille, is where she

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got that auburn hair and fair skin. Her father, Thomas Stanton, worked

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at the True Value hardware store,
selling hammers, wrenches, nails and what

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not. All Ella got from him
was the brown eyes. I remember them

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staring through me the first time I
came calling on his youngest daughter. Ella

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had two older sisters that at the
time were already married off, Genie to

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some business man named Earle, and
if I recall correctly, Francine, who

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married a butcher named Steve or Sam
something that started with an S. Anyway,

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Ella was the last chickadee left and
Daddy Hawk certainly favored her over the

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two that had flown the coop.
Lucille took to me right away, but

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Thomas Stanton took a lot of coaxing. He had to meet my father to

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gauge my stock in upbringing. I
could tell from our first handshake that he

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favored the callous that had developed on
my hand. He knew from that first

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shake that I didn't have the hands
of a paper pusher or God forbid,

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an insurance salesman. Mister Stanton knew
I came by an honest wage from the

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sweat of my brow. That was
a wind for me right up front.

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Even with that, it still took
coaxing. Sheila, I hope I'm not

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boring you so far. Otis not
at all. It's the opposite. I

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don't want you to stop until you
tell me everything. It's a long flight,

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and your story has me hooked.
Sheila could feel the stress of her

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life melting away as she listened to
the tail of Otis and Ella Okay,

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then and Otis continued. So Ella
and I married almost a year after I

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met her father for the first time. About a year after that, we

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welcomed our baby girl, Marilyn into
the world. Marilyn turned out to be

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a pediatrician. All of my work
on all those roofs with my father did

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that. That's something I'm very proud
of. Ella's father never saw our second

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child, Otis. He died of
a heart attack in his backyard weeding when

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Ella was pregnant with little Otis.
We went back and forth on the name

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for a bit, but my father
wanted to keep the Otis name going.

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And the truth of it was,
Thomas Stanton wasn't around to object, and

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my lovely mother in law, Lucille, well, she just fell to pieces

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and her baby girl, My wife, my sweet Ella, wasn't far behind

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on the falling to piece's train.
On top of it, she was pregnant

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with little Otis, with a toddler
at her feet, and the stress of

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it all was almost more than she
could bear. To tell the truth,

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looking back on it now, it
was, and I know this may sound

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selfish, almost more than I should
have been able to bear. But my

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father raised a pillar of strength.
And that's not just me boasting my dear

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I truly was like a block of
granite in those days. Thomas's funeral roll

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was on September twenty second in nineteen
sixty two, and little Otis was born

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just two days later, on the
twenty fourth. In those days, folks

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hadn't heard of anything like postpartum depression. We just called it the baby blues,

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and Ella's father passing combined with it
didn't give little Otis much of a

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chance. I just didn't know it
back then. Ella's sisters came down for

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the funeral, but they sure didn't
hang around to comfort Lucille, let alone

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the birth of their new nephew.
I guess they were grieving in their own

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way, but they sure as hell
got out of Dodge before the soil in

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their father's grave had even settled.
I think the guy whose first name began

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with an S was behind Francine's early
departure. I just don't think Genie was

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strong enough to hang around a minute
longer than she felt was required. It

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was a few months after little Otis
was born that Lucille started to come out

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of it, and it was all
due to little Otis. The baby blues

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and grief still had its lock on
my darling Ella. I had to keep

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food on the table, so I
stayed on rooftops with my father. My

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mother kept little Otis about a quarter
of the time, and Lucille kept him

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the rest of the time. My
mother could see that Lucille needed that baby

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more than she did, and although
I could see it hurt her to give

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up her time with little Otis,
she knew if Lucille couldn't hang on to

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that baby, then she wouldn't be
far behind mister Stanton taking up residence in

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Bellevue Memorial Gardens. A big thing
that helped was mother did spend a lot

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of time with sweet Maryland. Sheila. Next is the hard part. You

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still want to listen Otis. I
don't know what to say. Sheila was

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transfixed on the old man with the
green eyes and calloused hands. Just then,

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flight Attendant susy Q from who knows
where interrupted them. Peanuts are cookies?

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Excuse me, Sheila asked, because
absolutely nothing, Flight Attendant susie Q

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said registered in her brain. Otis
smiled with all his real teeth on display

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and said, I like the salty
peanuts please, and a coke if you've

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got one in that cart. I
do, replied susie Q. Miss anything

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for you, Sheila answered, salty
peanuts and a coke. Otis tipped the

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red and white can in Sheila's direction
as susie Q rattled by, and he

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00:16:30.240 --> 00:16:37.039
asked, shall I continue? Yes, Sheila was too far in now she

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had to hear the rest of it, and Otis continued. Little Otis had

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the colic pretty bad, and I
was up many a night tending to him.

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00:16:47.519 --> 00:16:52.440
Because of Ella's delicate state. My
days with Father always started early and

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with Little Otis. If I could
get four straight hours of good sleep on

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any given night, that was a
blessing. Most nights it was closer to

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three hours, and sometimes two.
It was November eighteenth, and it started

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with a cold rain. Ella was
clearing up the supper dishes, Marilyn was

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playing with her dolls on the living
room floor, and Little Otis was fast

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asleep on my belly as I watched
Cronkite fill us in on the state of

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00:17:18.599 --> 00:17:23.319
the World. I can still recall
the smell of a fresh rain cropping up,

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00:17:23.799 --> 00:17:27.960
and then the steady pelting on the
roof. Before Cronkite signed off,

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00:17:29.000 --> 00:17:33.759
I was in the firm grip of
the sandman. When I awoke. Little

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00:17:33.799 --> 00:17:37.559
Otis was no longer taking breaths on
my chest. At first I thought nothing

212
00:17:37.599 --> 00:17:41.759
of it. Ella had taken him
to his crib and put him down for

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the night. A fresh faced carson
was in the middle of cracking a joke

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00:17:45.039 --> 00:17:49.079
when I turned the knob on the
old Zenith. I walked up the stairs

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00:17:49.079 --> 00:17:53.000
to our bedroom, and I was
just as careful and quiet as I could

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00:17:53.000 --> 00:17:57.400
be with every step. I had
just gotten a gift in the few hours

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00:17:57.400 --> 00:18:00.640
of sleep I had received in front
of them television, and if I was

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00:18:00.720 --> 00:18:04.839
quiet, that night was going to
be a six or seven hour snoozethon for

219
00:18:04.960 --> 00:18:10.880
me. I stopped just outside of
Little Otis's door and pushed it open,

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00:18:11.519 --> 00:18:15.960
when a very real and sudden sense
of dread filled my body. Sheila,

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00:18:18.640 --> 00:18:22.960
this is where I could have made
a difference if I had only known.

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Ella was sitting in the rocker facing
the window in the far corner of Little

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00:18:27.119 --> 00:18:33.920
Otis's room. The fire truck red
painted walls made it very dark at night.

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00:18:34.119 --> 00:18:38.720
I remember the sound of the rocker
as it moved front and back while

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Ella gently rocked little Otis. The
window was cracked just a hair and a

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00:18:45.559 --> 00:18:49.319
little chill filled the room, but
Ella just kept rocking with Little Otis in

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her arms. I thought maybe she
had finally gotten over the baby blues.

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I remember that I smiled, relieved
that my sense of dread was a false

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00:19:02.559 --> 00:19:07.759
alarm, and closed the door as
quietly as I had opened it, and

230
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did a bed check on Marilyn.
She was curled up with her raggedy andl

231
00:19:12.240 --> 00:19:19.519
thumb firmly placed in her mouth.
So I went to bed. Don't go

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away, weekly spooky. We'll be
right back. Ladies and gentlemen, this

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00:19:29.400 --> 00:19:34.039
is your captain speaking. We are
about to experience some severe turbulence. Please

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00:19:34.079 --> 00:19:38.920
remain seated with your belts fastened until
further notice. It's going to get pretty

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00:19:38.960 --> 00:19:44.759
choppy, so make sure your belongings
are secured. Thank you for flying Delta

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00:19:44.799 --> 00:19:49.240
flight seven fifty two to Seattle.
The flight attendants made a quick walk down

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00:19:49.279 --> 00:19:55.119
the aisles, tugging on seat belts, flipping up tray tables, and checking

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00:19:55.119 --> 00:19:57.759
in with the folks seated at the
emergency exits to make sure that they were

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00:19:57.799 --> 00:20:06.319
still willing and to perform their assigned
duties if needed. All of a sudden,

240
00:20:06.440 --> 00:20:11.759
as if on cue, the seven
fifty seven shuddered violently. It sounded

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00:20:11.799 --> 00:20:15.960
like it was getting nailed with a
million paintballs and took a sudden drop in

242
00:20:15.039 --> 00:20:22.640
elevation. Flight Attendant susie Q shrieked
as she momentarily left her feet, and

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00:20:22.279 --> 00:20:26.720
if the drop had been just a
couple more feet, her head would have

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00:20:26.759 --> 00:20:30.519
been carved in by the plains ceiling. Another stroke of luck for susie Q

245
00:20:30.839 --> 00:20:36.880
was that she brushed up against the
aisle seat that sure Handed Otis occupied as

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00:20:36.920 --> 00:20:40.440
wade and momentum took her up.
Otis grabbed her by the waistband in her

247
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skirt with his steel grip and pulled
her back down. Susie Q fell hard

248
00:20:45.880 --> 00:20:49.920
on both knees from the sudden descent, but it was preferable to smashing her

249
00:20:49.960 --> 00:20:55.480
skull. She crawled on hands and
knees until she got to her seat.

250
00:20:55.960 --> 00:21:00.039
Her knees were all skinned up and
blood was oozing from the stocking, but

251
00:21:00.279 --> 00:21:04.440
she made it to her seat and
secured her safety belt. The creaking and

252
00:21:04.519 --> 00:21:11.200
cracking noises inside the flying capsule started
to subside as the turbulence began to settle.

253
00:21:14.319 --> 00:21:17.240
This is the captain speaking. We
aren't out of the woods yet.

254
00:21:17.400 --> 00:21:21.920
I anticipate we'll hit more chop before
we settle back in remain seated with your

255
00:21:21.920 --> 00:21:26.599
seat belts fastened. Please, Otis, Are you okay? What you did

256
00:21:26.640 --> 00:21:30.640
there? Catching that girl? That
was amazing? Shila was falling in love

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00:21:30.720 --> 00:21:37.039
with her elderly companion. I'm fine, dear. I've been on many of

258
00:21:37.079 --> 00:21:41.559
these flights in my lifetime, and
I've seen worse. We'll be fine.

259
00:21:41.119 --> 00:21:45.960
I was on a plane that almost
crashed once. But that's another story.

260
00:21:47.720 --> 00:21:52.319
You want me to keep going.
There's more to tell about me and Ella.

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00:21:52.880 --> 00:21:56.240
Otis gazed at Shila with you have
to let me finish the story eyes.

262
00:21:59.000 --> 00:22:03.759
I would like to hear the rest. What happened to baby Otis?

263
00:22:04.400 --> 00:22:08.359
I rolled out of bed and remembered
it felt like I stepped on a thousand

264
00:22:08.400 --> 00:22:14.920
sewing needles standing at attention on the
hardwood floor. My hands might have seventy

265
00:22:14.960 --> 00:22:18.799
plus years of callous, but my
feet are still tender to this day.

266
00:22:18.440 --> 00:22:22.359
Ella was lying there, still lost
in her dreams, as I shuffled across

267
00:22:22.359 --> 00:22:27.519
the floor to grab my bathrobe.
I generally slept in my undershorts and nothing

268
00:22:27.519 --> 00:22:33.519
else. It was colder than usual
that morning, and the reason was apparent

269
00:22:33.559 --> 00:22:37.759
when I pulled the robe over my
shoulders. The window on the left side

270
00:22:37.799 --> 00:22:41.880
of our bedroom was fully opened,
and there was a little puddle on the

271
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floor directly underneath. So I closed
the source of the morning's frosty rise and

272
00:22:47.880 --> 00:22:52.240
turned back to find a towel.
I remember moving into the hallway looking just

273
00:22:52.319 --> 00:22:56.480
a moment to check in on Marylyn, and she was still nestled under her

274
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blankets, so I continued down the
hallway toward the towel closet. Just before

275
00:23:03.400 --> 00:23:07.759
I got there, I noticed that
the door to Little Otis's room was completely

276
00:23:07.839 --> 00:23:11.279
closed. We never left the door
to his room completely closed, so this

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00:23:11.400 --> 00:23:17.200
got my attention right quick. My
breath got shorter the closer that I moved

278
00:23:17.200 --> 00:23:22.960
to Little Otis's door. The white
knob seemed to look at me, daring

279
00:23:22.039 --> 00:23:26.880
me to turn it, but almost
warning me not to. I hesitated,

280
00:23:27.079 --> 00:23:30.880
as I expected it to grow a
mouth and say, Otis, I wouldn't

281
00:23:30.920 --> 00:23:36.799
turn me if I were you.
But I did turn it, and then

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00:23:36.839 --> 00:23:41.720
I stepped in. Every window in
the room was wide open, all four

283
00:23:41.759 --> 00:23:47.839
of them. The room was a
literal ice box. Water was everywhere,

284
00:23:48.480 --> 00:23:52.440
much more than any single towel could
pick up. Water splashed under my feet

285
00:23:52.440 --> 00:23:56.559
as I sprinted toward Little Otis's crib. I slipped in the water when I

286
00:23:56.640 --> 00:24:00.200
made a stubborn stop, and both
my feet flung out from underneath me.

287
00:24:00.839 --> 00:24:04.240
I landed with my ass on the
floor and my feet sticking out from under

288
00:24:04.240 --> 00:24:08.240
the crib. I grabbed the bottom
of the crib rail and pulled myself up,

289
00:24:08.680 --> 00:24:15.559
shedding the soaked bathrobe as I did. His little green eyes were staring

290
00:24:15.640 --> 00:24:19.640
up at me, and his mouth
was slightly open, as if he were

291
00:24:19.720 --> 00:24:26.519
still trying to suckle. I reached
down to grab my son, and his

292
00:24:26.680 --> 00:24:33.880
blue body was cold and stiff.
I'll never forget the sound it made when

293
00:24:33.880 --> 00:24:37.880
I pulled my blanket wrapped baby from
the crib mattress. It was almost like

294
00:24:37.920 --> 00:24:44.599
the sound of pulling apart velcrow.
I was looking into Little Otis's hungry eyes

295
00:24:44.640 --> 00:24:52.920
when I heard Ella mumble I'm sorry
in the doorway. Sheila, this was

296
00:24:52.960 --> 00:25:00.160
all my fault, it really was. I knew better than to lee leave

297
00:25:00.200 --> 00:25:04.119
her alone with Little Otis the night
before, lack of sleep overruled rational thinking.

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00:25:04.799 --> 00:25:08.119
Not that I'm using that as an
excuse, because I'd gotten a good

299
00:25:08.240 --> 00:25:14.160
chunk of sleep for me that night
before I went to bed. I never

300
00:25:14.240 --> 00:25:17.799
turned to look at her. I
recall saying that I would take care of

301
00:25:17.839 --> 00:25:22.559
it, and she needed to leave
the room while she still could. She

302
00:25:22.759 --> 00:25:27.440
was wailing as she walked back down
the hallway. Little Marilyn was still snuggled

303
00:25:27.440 --> 00:25:32.680
in her blankets. Oh my god, Otis, what did you do?

304
00:25:33.720 --> 00:25:37.359
Sheila's hands were trembling at this point, but she didn't notice. Otis had

305
00:25:37.400 --> 00:25:44.599
her all the way in. Well, Sheila, I loved my Ella more

306
00:25:44.640 --> 00:25:48.359
than anything. And this is awful
to say out loud, but I loved

307
00:25:48.359 --> 00:25:53.720
Ella even more than little Otis or
Marilyn, and I would give my life

308
00:25:53.720 --> 00:26:00.519
without question for any of them.
The plane suddenly drops and the lights in

309
00:26:00.559 --> 00:26:06.880
the flying pill box flickered. The
sounds of nervous passengers rose, and there

310
00:26:06.920 --> 00:26:11.759
was the cry of a baby somewhere
about ten rows up. The plane rattled

311
00:26:11.799 --> 00:26:15.559
like chattering teeth. The flight attendants
were breezing through the aisles, holding the

312
00:26:15.599 --> 00:26:19.200
sides of the seats as they moved
through, trying to make sure that all

313
00:26:19.240 --> 00:26:26.319
the passengers were secured. This is
the captain speaking. The chop we're experiencing

314
00:26:26.440 --> 00:26:32.559
is severe. Everyone remain seated.
Flight attendants included everyone in your seat and

315
00:26:32.640 --> 00:26:36.000
stay there if you have to use
the restroom. I would suggest you hold

316
00:26:36.000 --> 00:26:40.440
it if at all possible. This
turbulence is unpredictable and we are not out

317
00:26:40.480 --> 00:26:44.799
of it yet. No, thank
you for flying with Delta flight seven fifty

318
00:26:44.799 --> 00:26:48.920
two after this update. This update
was to keep your ass in your seat

319
00:26:49.000 --> 00:26:56.519
and don't move, so says El
Capitan Otis. Sheila reached out and grabbed

320
00:26:56.599 --> 00:27:02.640
him by the tips of his fingers
with both of her hands. Please finish

321
00:27:02.759 --> 00:27:07.720
the story, are you sure,
dear? I hear some fear in the

322
00:27:07.759 --> 00:27:12.240
captain's voice now, so he has
my attention. ODIs pulled both of her

323
00:27:12.279 --> 00:27:18.400
hands into his, and Sheila nodded
her head yes, and ODIs continued.

324
00:27:21.720 --> 00:27:25.920
Lucille was at the funeral, and
she said maybe two words to me.

325
00:27:26.039 --> 00:27:30.920
The entire time she was there.
There was definitely blame in her eyes,

326
00:27:30.559 --> 00:27:37.000
and it was always directed at me. I suspect that she went to her

327
00:27:37.000 --> 00:27:42.039
grave thinking I killed that baby,
and in a way she was kind of

328
00:27:42.119 --> 00:27:48.160
right. My father and mother were
there. My father never left my side

329
00:27:48.200 --> 00:27:52.680
for a second. My mother was
all over the place. She was babbling

330
00:27:52.720 --> 00:27:56.000
incoherently for most of the service,
and clung to my father's shoulders like a

331
00:27:56.079 --> 00:28:03.960
frightened kitten. My father stayed stoic
and strong for me to show me how

332
00:28:03.000 --> 00:28:08.000
to be a man. I appreciated
that more than he ever knew. Neither

333
00:28:08.039 --> 00:28:12.680
one of Ella's sisters showed up.
I'm sure mister s had something to do

334
00:28:12.759 --> 00:28:18.680
with Francine's no show. Genie.
I never knew why she didn't make it.

335
00:28:18.480 --> 00:28:22.759
Marilyn was still a toddler and she
noticed her baby brother was gone,

336
00:28:22.799 --> 00:28:29.880
but she was still young enough to
forget. There was a brief investigation,

337
00:28:30.119 --> 00:28:34.400
but the baby's death was determined to
be accidental, bordering on negligence, and

338
00:28:34.720 --> 00:28:40.920
charges were within an eyelash of being
filed. There were questions on why the

339
00:28:40.960 --> 00:28:45.759
windows were cracked. They were all
just cracked when the investigator showed up,

340
00:28:45.160 --> 00:28:49.160
and there wasn't a drop of water
on the floor. The windows, even

341
00:28:49.240 --> 00:28:53.039
being cracked just a little in an
enclosed space with no heat, was enough

342
00:28:53.039 --> 00:28:57.720
to kill an infant when temperatures dropped
the way they had. The reason given

343
00:28:57.759 --> 00:29:03.000
for the cracked windows was the strong
scent of pine, a scent that I

344
00:29:03.119 --> 00:29:07.920
made sure was there when they showed
up. Remember, I loved Ella more

345
00:29:07.960 --> 00:29:12.440
than anything, and I was going
to protect her at all costs, even

346
00:29:12.480 --> 00:29:18.160
if that meant going to prison.
After the funeral, Lucille showed up on

347
00:29:18.240 --> 00:29:23.319
Christmas, Thanksgiving and a couple of
Maryland's birthdays, but every time she laid

348
00:29:23.319 --> 00:29:29.759
her eyes on me, I could
feel the flames of her hate. Then

349
00:29:30.839 --> 00:29:36.160
all at once we lost contact with
her. She moved away in the night

350
00:29:36.240 --> 00:29:40.680
one day and we never heard from
her again. To this day, I

351
00:29:40.759 --> 00:29:45.960
don't know where she ended up or
where she's buried. I suppose in this

352
00:29:45.119 --> 00:29:51.640
day and age, I could find
out, but why raise old ghosts.

353
00:29:52.279 --> 00:29:56.480
I had a long talk with Ella, and after that we only spoke about

354
00:29:56.519 --> 00:30:03.440
little Otis. Every September twenty fourth, we'd get a cake, candles and

355
00:30:03.599 --> 00:30:07.680
say a prayer for our lost child. We shared the celebration with Marilyn every

356
00:30:07.759 --> 00:30:11.839
year, but as far as she
was concerned, her brother's death was a

357
00:30:11.880 --> 00:30:18.720
tragic accident. I saw Genese and
Francine a couple more times before I lost

358
00:30:18.720 --> 00:30:23.720
Ella, and both times weren't planned. Genie was passing through Augusta with her

359
00:30:23.759 --> 00:30:30.519
business man husband and popped in both
times. Francine came to get away from

360
00:30:30.559 --> 00:30:34.119
mister s the butcher once, and
she came looking to borrow money one other

361
00:30:34.200 --> 00:30:47.319
time. Then about this time last
year, I lost ella. Oxygen masks

362
00:30:47.400 --> 00:30:51.920
dropped and people were screaming and crying
on the seven fifty seven. The plane

363
00:30:51.960 --> 00:30:56.079
was in a sharp descent, and
for Otis and Sheila, everything seemed to

364
00:30:56.119 --> 00:31:02.440
be moving in slow motion. Sheila, do you hear the baby, ODIs

365
00:31:02.440 --> 00:31:06.920
screamed over the commotion. The oxygen
masks were floating in front of his face.

366
00:31:07.759 --> 00:31:11.279
Otis, put on your mask,
Sheila screamed, leaning over, discarding

367
00:31:11.319 --> 00:31:15.640
the rule to put your own mask
on before helping others. ODIs swatted her

368
00:31:15.640 --> 00:31:21.920
hands away. Sheila, I have
to get the baby, ODIs screamed as

369
00:31:21.920 --> 00:31:26.920
he unbuckled his safety belt. It
sounded like a freight train was barreling down

370
00:31:26.920 --> 00:31:30.359
the track position to take them out. Heads were tucked between knees. Flight

371
00:31:30.400 --> 00:31:34.480
attendants were screaming at people to remain
seated. The plane was almost in a

372
00:31:34.519 --> 00:31:40.680
full dive. ODIs pulled himself from
the floor with his strong hands and moved

373
00:31:40.720 --> 00:31:45.279
from seat to seat. The sounds
of babies cries got closer with each seat

374
00:31:45.319 --> 00:31:49.880
he passed. Most people were praying, some had their phones out, texting

375
00:31:49.960 --> 00:31:55.319
or trying to call their loved ones. He could hear Sheila screaming behind him,

376
00:31:55.559 --> 00:32:00.559
begging him to come back, but
ODIs pressed on. He was there.

377
00:32:00.920 --> 00:32:05.359
ODIs gripped the side of seat A
and looked into the green eyes staring

378
00:32:05.440 --> 00:32:10.799
back at him. Little ODIs smiled
at his father, and his father smiled

379
00:32:10.839 --> 00:32:15.559
back. Otis kept his grip on
the front of the seat with his right

380
00:32:15.559 --> 00:32:20.319
hand and unbuckled the child with his
left. He lifted his son close to

381
00:32:20.400 --> 00:32:27.240
him. All of the screams went
away. He could only hear Sheila.

382
00:32:27.920 --> 00:32:32.200
Otis turned and, holding his son
in one hand, made his way back

383
00:32:32.640 --> 00:32:38.720
to seat twenty two A. The
pilots were both unconscious. The cabin pressure

384
00:32:38.759 --> 00:32:44.119
alarm went unnoticed as they tried to
get the plane back on course, and

385
00:32:44.200 --> 00:32:51.000
it was too late when they fell
into La La land. Sheila, meet

386
00:32:51.079 --> 00:33:00.480
my son, little Otis. What
how Sheila started? There was a bright

387
00:33:00.559 --> 00:33:05.720
flash of light and all of the
shadows burned away into the white. The

388
00:33:05.759 --> 00:33:14.440
plane exploded into the side of the
Cascade Mountains just outside of Seattle. Then

389
00:33:14.599 --> 00:33:21.240
Sheila awoke and it began again.
Hi, dear, I hope I didn't

390
00:33:21.279 --> 00:33:27.079
wake you. A spindly old hand
reached across the middle seat and gently tapped

391
00:33:27.119 --> 00:33:31.319
on Sheila's arm as she turned to
look upon the smiling, elderly man still

392
00:33:31.319 --> 00:33:36.920
touching her. His hands were the
hands of a man who had seen their

393
00:33:36.960 --> 00:33:40.359
fair share of hard labor, the
hands of a man that had been on

394
00:33:40.480 --> 00:33:51.480
top of many a roof on many
a hot summer's day. Bellevue Memorial Gardens,

395
00:33:52.160 --> 00:33:58.960
Augusta, Georgia. Ella and Maryland
were at Otis and Little Otis's graveside.

396
00:34:00.000 --> 00:34:04.519
Marilyn was standing behind her mother's wheelchair
with a hand on her frail mother's

397
00:34:04.519 --> 00:34:08.639
shoulder. It had been a little
over a year since they lost Otis in

398
00:34:08.679 --> 00:34:15.239
that horrible plane crash, and Otis
had lost Ella and Marilyn. Marilyn,

399
00:34:16.400 --> 00:34:22.079
I have something to tell you,
Ella started, What is it? Mother

400
00:34:22.079 --> 00:34:28.960
asked Marilyn. Let's go to the
snow cap and I'll share it all.

401
00:34:30.119 --> 00:34:37.079
Ella wiped a tear from her eye. Okay, Mother, goodbye, Daddy

402
00:34:37.079 --> 00:34:44.199
and baby brother. I love you. Marilyn pushed the wheelchair up the incline

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as they passed. A middle aged
couple smiled as they walked by, holding

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00:34:49.719 --> 00:34:54.400
hands. The tall man and his
wife stopped two plots away from Otis and

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00:34:54.480 --> 00:35:04.239
Little Otis. The marker read Sheila
al Baker A bright light that will never

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00:35:04.320 --> 00:35:12.639
burn out February twenty eighth, nineteen
eighty to November eighteenth, twenty twelve.

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00:35:17.280 --> 00:35:22.159
Well, my friends, it turns
out that flight was going somewhere none of

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us could have truly imagined. Big
thank you to our good buddy Charles Campbell

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00:35:25.760 --> 00:35:31.039
for the truly chilling story we had
tonight, and I'll be thinking about it

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00:35:31.159 --> 00:35:35.960
quite a bit the next time I
buy a plane ticket to go somewhere and

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00:35:36.119 --> 00:35:42.159
explore the world. Well, my
spookies, I really appreciate all of you

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00:35:42.360 --> 00:35:45.360
for standing by me while I've had
a very hard start of the year.

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00:35:45.440 --> 00:35:49.000
In the last two and a half
months, I lost both of my dogs.

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00:35:49.800 --> 00:35:53.599
They were both seniors, and they
were well taken care of, very

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00:35:53.639 --> 00:35:57.039
well taken care of. They were
my pride and joy and I love them

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00:35:57.039 --> 00:36:00.760
so much. So it's hard,
but I do enjoy bringing you this show.

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00:36:00.800 --> 00:36:06.000
It brings me a lot of joy. So don't work. You're spooky

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00:36:06.599 --> 00:36:09.360
will not stop. And a reminder
if you want to support us, head

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00:36:09.400 --> 00:36:13.760
over to Weeklyspooky dot com and click
on Patreon. For as little as one

420
00:36:13.800 --> 00:36:15.920
dollar a month, you make a
big difference on the show, you'll join

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00:36:15.960 --> 00:36:22.719
one hundred and two other spookys and
get two episodes every single month to enjoy.

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00:36:22.239 --> 00:36:24.280
And if you want to be a
bit more of a high roller,

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00:36:24.360 --> 00:36:29.559
you can join the Patreon podcast boosters. Those are folks who pay just a

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00:36:29.599 --> 00:36:32.079
little bit more to hear their names
at the end of the show, and

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00:36:32.119 --> 00:36:37.599
they are Johnny Nicks, John callenbobotopia
dot Com, Jenny Green, Brent McCullough,

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00:36:37.719 --> 00:36:40.840
Karen We met, Jack Kerr,
and Craig Coen. Hey. Craig.

427
00:36:42.239 --> 00:36:46.159
Craig came and visited us during the
eclipse on Monday, had a lot

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00:36:46.199 --> 00:36:49.519
of fun. It was cool to
finally meet you in person. Craig.

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00:36:49.719 --> 00:36:53.000
You're welcome back to Dayton any time
you want. If you want to join

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00:36:53.039 --> 00:36:57.440
them, just go to Weeklyspooky dot
com, click on Patreon and select any

431
00:36:57.639 --> 00:37:00.559
tier at fifteen dollars or high.
You'll hear your name at the end of

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00:37:00.599 --> 00:37:05.840
our show and you'll get that undying
gratitude. And if you want to hang

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00:37:05.840 --> 00:37:09.280
out with us on Facebook, just
type in Weekly Spookies Tomb of Terror on

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00:37:09.360 --> 00:37:14.599
your Facebook search bar. Hang out
with all the spookies and share your favorite

435
00:37:14.639 --> 00:37:17.599
memes, scares, jokes, whatever
you have, but now I gotta get

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00:37:17.599 --> 00:37:21.760
out of here. So until next
time, for myself, for my producer

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00:37:21.840 --> 00:37:24.400
Dan Wilder, my executive producers Rob
Fields and Mark Shields, and my composer

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00:37:24.480 --> 00:37:30.199
Ray Mattis, talk at you late, Thank you for listening. Make sure

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00:37:30.320 --> 00:37:36.639
to find your way back next week, but for now you are safe,

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00:37:37.519 --> 00:37:37.159
trust me,