tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-424806567607863227.post431282921710654578..comments2023-08-13T05:28:04.298-07:00Comments on The Nine Pound Hammer: SAVE IT FOR LATERBob Rinihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01278266675935580730noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-424806567607863227.post-5574726992283271542009-09-30T22:48:58.224-07:002009-09-30T22:48:58.224-07:00Tom,
I just came across your note on my blog post...Tom,<br /><br />I just came across your note on my blog post about Steve Krekel and I'm so sorry to hear that he passed away. Forgive me for taking so long to respond, but I just discovered your note five minutes ago. <br /><br /> As I said, I met Steve in Nicaragua in 1985. I was in Latin America--mostly Mexico--for six months on that trip, and in Nicaragua for a month. Steve was an unforgettable character. We stayed in the same tin-roofed ramshackle place in Managua for a while, a spot that looked like it was about to fall over any moment. Many "internationals" from all over the world stayed their, solidarity workers who came to pitch in on various work projects. It was an exciting time, as you must know having visited him there. They'd kicked out a dictator--and now were fighting the US-funded "contras,"and yet the whole country was extremely poor. Ronald Reagan and Ollie North were convinced the commies had run their revolution, but that was bullshit. Steve was making a film, I believe, about the revolution, and some kind of book. <br /><br /> Returning to the states was culture shock times a thousand, and I sent a letter to Steve and he published it in a little paper he worked on. I think it was called "Local Anesthesia." The shock of the two countries barely could co-exist in my mind, and I became a community organizer focused on Central America when I returned. Many of us would be forever changed by the experience, and I was no exception. <br /><br /> Sadly, Steve and I lost touch, but I'll never forget some of his antics and humor. In spite of a revolution--I remember one night after the fireworks of a local celebration died down we heard anti-aircraft cannons firing at planes--boom boom boom--a sense of humor came in handy, and Steve could sure tell a good story.Bob Rinihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01278266675935580730noreply@blogger.com