80* READER BEWARE! This one is morbid

Decapitated army man

 

 So a few weeks ago I found this headless, footless with one arm missing army man in the backyard amongst the dead grass blades. Instantly it made me think of the condition of Kenny's body at the tracks because of the similarities in missing body parts. As I mentioned before, I did not receive any of Kenny's effects after he died. In most situations the coroner will save clothes, shoes and other personal effects to give to the family. I know Kenny had a dollar in his pocket he had taken from my wallet just before he left. It was the last thing I ever gave him. I kept thinking maybe there was also a note in his pocket that was meant for me, but nothing was recovered. Kenny's clothes and shoes were incinerated because they were covered in blood and body fluids, and were considered too contaminated to be saved. I still wonder to this day what happened to the hat he was wearing. I think it was reported that Kenny flew 48 feet from the impact of the train hitting his standing body. I am still shocked that he kept walking until the second of impact. He was decapitated and his feet were dismembered from his legs. He stayed in the morgue for four days before being released to the funeral chapel.

The track that Kenny walked

On the day of his service, I was given a few minutes alone with him. It was the first time I had seen him since he left the house on the fateful day of November 29th. I went up close to him, I laid my head on his chest and cried. It didn't feel real, it was made of plastic> like the dummies we use for CPR classes. I went to hold his hand and realized it was made of rubber. Then as I started talking to him, I took a closer look. I was playing with his hair and trying to yank out a curl, but was not able to-- I saw the stitches on his neck where his head had been sewn back on. It was really difficult seeing that part of his neck, even worse than seeing his mangled eyes that were glued shut and his flattened nose. Kenny was a gruesome sight, and that was after he was put back together. I imagine it was much worse at the crash site. Blood and guts everywhere I'm sure!

Orange paint marks the spot

 I guess it's lucky that the area was secured off as a crime scene by the time Vincent got to the tracks. I was told there was a large crowd of people because of the commotion of the whistle blowing. I can't believe I didn't hear it on that day--I practically never miss hearing it since then. To this day, I do not know if there were any eye witnesses other than the train conductor. I suppose its not information I need to know, but on a day like today I ponder on it deeply. 


Until tomorrow... 





Element of the day (day 80)
#70) Yb- Ytterbium-]metal  
Discovered in 1878 by Jean Galissard de Marignac, Switzerland.
Used in alloys with stainless steel, in stress gauges and lasers. Like thulium, irradiated ytterbium can provide X-rays in portable X-ray machines.

Chiefly obtained from the minerals euxenite and xenotime, mined in the USA, China, Russia, Australia, and India.