John Gunter

Thoughts on Life and Living

Rabies shots for all!. . . (video included)

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John Gunter at his rabies shots
Me in front of the clinic where people go for rabies shots and all kinds of other like stuff.

If you have not read my previous post, “Lego Land and flying Bat Battles”, then please click here. This post picks up where that one left off. . .

Battle worn from two seemingly successful skirmishes with our uninvited guests, the disgusting little bat(s), I retreated to my room and Rankin slept in theirs. Morgen, meanwhile, surfed the internet for exposure to bats. She found out the following:

  • If infants are in the same room with a bat, you have to assume rabies
  • If a sleeping (or drunk) adult is in the same room with a bat, you have to assume rabies
  • Rabies is 100% lethal if not dealt with within the first 10 days of the virus infecting humans

My good friend who works at the CDC, Dr. Eric Tai, confirmed what Morgen had read, as well as their Los Angeles based pediatrician. Suffice it to say, we were in the emergency room getting the children inoculated the next day. I was going to do the same since I had been sleeping in an enclosed bat ridden room at my parents in Atlanta two short weeks earlier. However, the Michigan doctor told me that since I was past the 10 day window from initial exposure in Atlanta, it was too late for me. If I had contracted it, I was a goner. Not what you want to hear [Read more…]

Lego Land and flying Bat Battles

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Stephen & John Robert Bracher and Nathan Chapman
Three of my nephews (Nathan, John Robert, and Stephen) at Lego Land during “Camp Meme and Pops”. . . just before the bats came back for round 2!

A few interesting facts I acquired this summer that I did not expect to learn:

  • Bats are disgusting little creatures
  • Bats are everywhere, especially in Georgia and Michigan
  • Even a little exposure to bats means you might have rabies
  • Rabies, once symptoms are onset, is 100% lethal in humans

You ask, why do you know this, John??? Allow me to explain.

One of my first nights back in Atlanta, I was staying at my parent’s house. My friend and colleague, Travis Todd, was also there, as we were in the midst of a week of meetings. Around 3am, I was awoken by the sound of a bird trying to get into the window. . . or so I thought. This seemed strange, but I tried to blow it off and get back to sleep. Instantly, I heard the sound of violent wings frantically fluttering above my bed. [Read more…]

10 tips for surviving LONG flights. . . YOUR input desired!

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As I stated in my last post, I have spent a significant part of my life on LONG, international flights (please CLICK HERE if you have not read it. . . definitely read the comments by Scott Stephenson and Tim Waddell at the end).  These flights tend to be physically demanding and life shortening, but at least we have them as opposed to boats as they had in the old days.

Flight to Asia in 1999
This was taken by a friend on one of my first flights to Asia. . . I’m busy at work.

Additionally, many of my friends will be traveling from America to Asia in the coming weeks, so I hope this will be helpful.

I’m sure one day we will find an alternative means of long-distance travel, but for now we are stuck with massive, over-crowed planes.  Until an alternative to plane travel is created. . .

Here are 10 of my suggestions for surviving LONG, international flights.  I’ll start off with a tip based on the end of my previous post.

  1. Wear shoes that can easily slip on and off – See my previous post for the reason why.  This is essential.  On a related note, ALWAYS WEAR SHOES TO THE BATHROOM!  If you have not, you really need to read this post. . . 
  2. Drink water often – I try to get up and ask the flight attendants for water every 1-2 hours.  You get massively dehydrated on flights of 8+ hours, even when you don’t realize it.  This will lead to [Read more…]

The 5 types of people you see on LONG airplane flights

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As I type this, I am on yet another LONG flight.  This one is trans-Pacific.  By my count (you do things like count flights when bored on a LONG flight), this flight will be the 55th time I have flown over the Pacific Ocean.  Add to this the 20 times I have flown over the Atlantic Ocean (not to mention flight from Asia to Europe), and long flights are one of the few things I can truly say I know well.

In honor of my vagabond lifestyle that I have lived for much of my adult life, I am going to do a LONG flight blog or two.  This first one will be on the characters that I often see on these flights.

Here are some classic “I can’t stay awake” guys on my flight.
You see, there really are a few characteristics and/or characters that you seem to always fly with on these flights.  Let’s take a look at a few of them.

  1. The “I can’t stay awake” guy – This guy gets on board, settles his bags, fastens his seat belt, and IMMEDIATELY starts the involuntary forward head bob.  He can’t wait until the flight gets up in the air in order to push his seat back, so he risks serious back injury by simply leaning forward the entire time.  The seatbelt keeps him still, yet is also the reason way he won’t be able to walk when we stands up for the first time in a few hours.  I envy these guys, I really do.  I have trouble sleeping in sterile, comfortable settings, yet [Read more…]

9 things I have learned from Mom & Dad’s 50 years of marriage

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(This post is from my series, “My thoughts on weddings. . . (a series)“.  If you would like to read more of the articles, please CLICK HERE.

Mom Dad Wedding edited
June 24, 1962. . . Mom and Dad

July was the month of celebrating 50 years of marriage for my parents (click here to read about their wedding).  I was thrilled to be able to be in America to celebrate with them.  This anniversary was one of my primary motivations in doing this series on weddings.

In this post, I will simply write about a few things I have learned through observation from my parents’ marriage of 50 years. There are way more than nine things I have learned from watching my parent’s marriage over the years.  However, as I sit down to write about it, here are the first nine which come to mind. . .

9 things I have learned from watching my parent’s 50 year marriage:

  • Laughter is important – If you have never been around my parents together, that really is too bad.  They are fun.  They laugh.  Especially Mom.  She laughs often, freely, and with great volume (CLICK HERE to learn more about Mom and her laugh).  Mom genuinely thinks Dad is the funniest man in the world.  Seriously.  He is really funny.  Other people also laugh at my Dad’s humor, but nothing approaching the level or decibel of my Mom.  With them, I have seen laughter as vital.  Life can be hard.  Laughter is important, if not necessary.  If I ever meet a woman who thinks I am half as funny as Mom thinks Dad is, I will marry her then and there.  Well, maybe not that dramatically, but you get my point.
  • Children are a privilege and stewardship – Mom and Dad prioritized their kids above all things.  Mom quit work and poured her energy into us.  Dad halted all personal hobbies and activities while we were still in their home.  Once I went to college, the [Read more…]

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