I can't believe it's been 10 years already .... (Thump post warning)

I was cleaning out some old files this morning and ran across a hand-written card with obit enclosed, dated Oct. 05, 2009. It reads as follows:

Jim,

I'm just writing to let you know Bill passed away Friday morning, Oct. 2 of congestive heart failure. It came on very quickly and he was gone in 6 hrs. It was a shock after the good reports from the cancer doctor, but a blessing he didn't suffer for months as the cancer ate away at him. He valued your friendship, always looked forward to your phone calls and considered you a dear friend. I tried to call and email you, but nothing would go through for some reason. Please let his internet friends know.

Darlene

Of course, "Bill" is Bill "Mauserman" Rummel and we had grown extremely close after he was diagnosed with cancer. I was on the road at the time and I made sure he knew he could call me ANY time of day ... 3:00 pm or 3:00 am, it made no difference to me ... AND he took me up on that promise regularly. We had many 1-2 hour chats, usually late at night. Toward the end, we talked probably 5-6 nights out of the week (as well as many daytime calls). He knew he was dying and did everything he could to prepare. He sold off a HUGE collection of guns. In fact, he actually had SHIPPING CONTAINERS full of guns and gun parts, some which he had purchased and never even opened. By shipping container, I mean like you'd see on a cargo ship for example. He wanted Darlene to be set financially and didn't want her to have to deal with it. He bought her a new Cadillac and all the bills and mortgage was paid, etc. What I thought was really cool, is he had wanted a new truck for quite some time and told me he was going to splurge ... on HIMSELF! He actually went out and bought a fully loaded, brand new Ford pick-up! He'd tell me every night what he was going to do to it and at one point, I told him he sounds like a Tijuana cowboy with all the accessories he was tacking onto that thing. Visor, running boards, wheels, cargo cover, clearance lights, etc, etc. What made it even cooler was, the whole time he was doing this, he was in such bad shape, he couldn't even drive! Darlene would have to drive him to his appointments etc, but at least he got to RIDE in his new truck. The funny thing is, Darlene loved it as much as he did and he said she'd usually leave the Cadillac at the house and use his truck to run errands, etc! I could "feel" the smile on his face every time he'd talk about that truck. It was a parting gift to himself and it made his final weeks a happier time for him.

During one of our nightly phone conversations, he once thanked me for being there for him. We talked about 'Nam. He opened up and talked about things he'd never talked about with anyone before. I think it provided a lot of healing he'd needed for a long time. He told me he was comfortable talking about those things with me, but had never felt comfortable discussing it with anyone else since leaving 'Nam. In some ways, I knew more about him than his closest family did. In fact, it reached a point where he informed me he'd quit talking to his family altogether, including his own brother whom he was evidently pretty close to. When I asked why, he said he was sick and tired of everyone telling him he was going to get better. That the meds and treatments were going to get him back in shape and all was going to be fine. He said he was tired of the bullshit as his cancer was incurable and that I never sugar coated things. We talked about him preparing for death. Things he wanted to accomplish while he could still get around. He told me nobody else would face reality and actually TALK to him about what was inevitable. He knew he was going to die and grew tired of people tip-toeing around the topic and pretending that all was well, while I shot straight with him and accepted he was on the way out. We talked about his passing like some would talk about an upcoming business trip.

I could go on and on, but I've said enough. I miss that old fart. The odd thing is, a month after he passed is when I entered the hospital and was pretty danged close to joining ol' Mauserman myself ... wherever it is he ended up.


Attachment 10957

I never got to know MM very well based on when I joined the site. But, it sounds like he was a helluva a guy.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Wow, 10 years, I remember back when he had his own web site, and was big buddies with ?? ( could not spell kat ) and Gabby his wife who ran off with Remchester.
Oh, the good old days.

Jeff & Gabby.

Eric Remington, a dentist from Nebraska. He dumped his wife, Gabby dumped Jeff, Eric bought a Harley (mid-life crisis) then he and Gabby rode off into the sunset together.

When All Outdoors ousted us, Mauserman and Jim (forgot his last name) built an alternate site. Orion built this one while Bucky financed it with his credit card. We were then divided, so we hung out here during the day and Mauserman’s site at night. Jim sold their site for a bazillion bucks and GoodHunting is what was left.

I miss old Mauser too" remember The Great Mouse Hunt? It oughta be in the thread hall of fame.

I think Jim was his son in law wasn’t he. I think they started an ISP. Birddog used to post over there a lot. I did occasionaly but not often.
BKB

Wasn’t it Matt Miller (Cliff Claven) who wrote about the mouse hunt?

The way I understood it, Jim was someone Bill took under his wing. I really don’t remember the details, but I think Bill referred to him as his “adopted” (not legally) son. I may be wrong, but that’s the way I remember it.

Ol’ TW and I spent a LOT of late nights b/s’ing on Mauserman's site (as we called it). In fact, we were shooting the shit when Sunshine dropped in for the first time late one night. We gave her hell and she stuck around. ;)

Why don't some of you OP's paraphrase the great mouse hunt and some of the quotes as best you can remember. We might need a modern day remake

Cliffie wrote the thread about having to dispose of a deceased chipmunk and all of the reactions from academia to it. It was pretty funny.

The great mouse hunt arose from a misunderstanding someone had regarding Mauserman’s handle.

BKB

Yessir, somehow Mauserman morphed into Mouser Man. ;)

As for the stories, going by bits and pieces of memories would not do it justice. I think it's one of those things like trying to duplicate Woodstock. Some things are best left alone. Then again, that's JMHO ... and doesn't speak for all here.

And I’m still here. I miss him too!