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MEMORIAL DAY WITH THE BOYS AT 19

May 25, 2026 by David Gillaspie Leave a Comment

Memorial Day is good time to remember what it is and who it’s for. From Google AI: The average age of war dead in World War I was approximately 26 to 27 years old, depending on the nation and the stage of the conflict. While the average age hovered in the mid-to-late twenties, more […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: Baby Boomer blogger, Belgian, belgium, boomer blogger, boomerpdx, Flanders field, follow orders, historical, history, history channel, Korea, memorial day, PORTLAND BABY BOOMERS, Stella, stella Artois, story, talking orders, travel, Vietnam, wife, writer, writers, writing, wwi, WWII

DIFFERENT SOLDIERS? HOW DIFFERENT

May 2, 2026 by David Gillaspie

The men in uniform during WWII were different soldiers, different kind of people. The Axis powers carried an extreme devotion to duty, an extreme devotion to their emperor, and an extreme devotion to cruelty over helpless victims. By the way, this isn’t new, not breaking news, but a reminder for short-memoried morons who ought to […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: America, Baby Boomer blogger, boomer blogger, boomerpdx, different soldiers, education, extreme devotion, germany, historical, history, holocaust, illegal orders, japan, kadena air base, learning, men in uniform, moral clarity, moral superiority, ramstein air base, soldiers, surrender, travel, writer, writers, writing, WWII

CALDWELL COUNTY BBQ? HOLY COW

April 3, 2026 by David Gillaspie

This is Jimmy in the Caldwell County BBQ pit in Gilbert, Arizona. I was waiting for the occupied Men’s Room when we struck up a chat that was more historical than most history classes. He’s been running the show for a few years with the huge smokers, about five of them going full blast. On […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: Arizona, bbq, bbq pit, boomer blogger, boomerpdx, burned bean, caldwell county, caldwell county bbq, food, gilbert arizona, historical, history, history class, learning, Love, Texas, wife

OLD WORDS FIND NEW MEANING

March 6, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Old words and images find new meaning in our quick paced modern world, but a naked kid stomping the head of his vanquished foe Goliath always carries the same message: Go, David, Go. He’s the unlikely underdog facing insurmountable odds and coming through. (You can do it.) Did young Dave need to kick the ball […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: concentration camp, Cromwell, cromwellian, cruel, cruelty, death camp, decency, due process, greek myths, historical, history, holocaust, imprison, law and order, mass detention, Meaning, mythology, prison, prisoners

WHEN FRIENDS MATTER MORE

January 24, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Do friends matter more the older you get? It depends on who you ask. If someone has lots of friends, they say yes. What about those with few friends? They say yes, too. But . . .

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: America, baby boomer, Baby Boomer blogger, blogger, boomer blogger, boomerpdx, conversation, destruction, education, elections, ethnic cleansing, friends, friends matter, friends of friends, friendship, helpful, historical, history, indiscriminate destruction, inhumane treatment, learning, mass population, read, read history, study history, subjects, true friends, tune out, work friends, writer, writers, writing, yalta

UNDEREDUCATED, OVEREDUCATED, OR JUST RIGHT

January 9, 2026 by David Gillaspie

Growing up, everyone is undereducated. From five, to fifteen, to twenty-five, the learning curve is steep. After high school, you’re done? Noooo. After a bachelor’s degree, your done? Nooooo After a professional degree, or graduate degree, you’re done? After all the learning, no matter how far you get, or how long it takes, we come […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: Baby Boomer blogger, blogging superstar, boomer blogger, boomers, bot traffic, common standards, Death, dignity, education, facebook, google, google AI, historical, history, just right, learning, mistrust, Oregon, overeducated, PORTLAND BABY BOOMERS, Portland Oregon, portland shooting, standards, story, twitter, undereducated, wife, writer, writers, writing

HISTORY MAJORS DECLINING? SO WHAT

September 15, 2025 by David Gillaspie

History majors in decline is the story. ‘So what,’ is the response. Is there a historical reason for this? There’s always a historical reason for everything. Here’s the ‘so what’ part for you:

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: anger, baby boomer, blame, boomer brain, college, cultural, dropout, education, emotional response, extra money, family, family event, fools, fun, help, higher education, historical, history, history major, history majors, learning, male emotion, school, shared conclusion, strike out, time, touchstone . cultural touchstone

GROWN MEN GROW UP, EVENTUALLY

August 4, 2025 by David Gillaspie

Eventually, grown men grow up and get with the program. They try to resist, but as we’ve learned, resistance is futile. So turn your hat around, stop the online sports betting, and make someone proud. Put on your big boy pants one leg at a time and stand for something. But what? Let’s take a […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: adult male, ambitious, ambitious woman, bachelor pad, better example, better life, BOOMER, Coos Bay, grow, grow up, grown men, hippie, historical, long haul, message, new york, older adult, Oregonian, Portland, portland pad, pushed, short haul, sports betting, stoned, stoned hippie, test of time

LOOKING BACK TO SEE IF YOU WERE LOOKING

July 16, 2025 by David Gillaspie

I was looking back recently after hearing how great things used to be. Baby boomers had it so easy you could buy a house and two cars and a boat and send three kids to college on a part-time paper route for a weekly publication. As a result the entire generation grew lazy and complacent:

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: camel cigarettes, draft lottery, historical, historical references, hood to coast, looking back, looking back to see, marathon, Oregon, Portland, Portland Oregon, run away, running, Salems, smoke, smokers, sports, stepping out, stepping up, story, summer of love, tobacco, vietnam war draft

HISTORICAL REFLECTIONS FROM WWII

July 11, 2025 by David Gillaspie

I’m full of historical reflections because I read sources from history, also called history books. Those were the main readings for graduating with a history degree. It also helps to have spent two decades in historical agency work. The lasting lesson for me was seeing both sides of a story and how close things came […]

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: D-Day, Dunkirk, facing history, following orders, hiroshima, historical, historical accuracy, historical documentaries, history stuff, loyalty, Pearl Harbor, peer pressure, teamwork, Tokyo bay, war crimes, WWII