I salute our veterans on D-Day, June 6th

After visiting Normandy in June of 1994, I gained a complete appreciation for what our soldiers went through to secure the freedom of Europe and save the world. Yes, I was actually in Normandy for the 50th anniversary of D-Day. But no, they wouldn't let us anywhere near the beaches - there were obviously thousands of veterans over there, President Clinton was there.... no access to the fabled sites for anyone that wasn't a veteran or the President. So we sat in a bar in Caen and had a few beers and played pool. Then we backpacked around Europe for 6 weeks and returned to Normandy once the hoopla had died down. If you've ever seen Saving Private Ryan, where the old man is crying over Tom Hanks' grave, I've been there. It's an impeccably kept somber cemetary, overlooking Omaha Beach. It knocked me on my ass.

An old man across the street from me, who had recently been constantly taking spills around his house, just moved into a managed care facility. He served in WWII and was part of D-Day. He is incredibly feeble, and will be gone soon. It's just sad.

So today is the 63rd anniversary of D-Day -- 63 is not one of the bigger anniversary numbers, but for some reason, this day is special to me.

Here's a little reading for today - remember their sacrifice.