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On March 25, 1962, shortly after American astronaut John Glenn
returned from orbiting the
earth, I entered it. I was born that day in Niles, Michigan, USA, to Sam and Mary
Lou Hughes, with an irregular heartbeat.
I was named Glenn (as opposed to John), with the middle name of Cash (after James Cash Penney, my family has a history with the J.C. Penney Co.). The heart problem was corrected by open chest surgery. My mom likes to tell the story how, as the doctor wheeled me away, I looked back and quietly, calmly repeated "ouch, mommy, ouch". |
| My voice faded down the long hospital corridor, as my parents wondered if
they would see me alive again. The only impact of this event is that the 50+ stitches around my chest have allowed me to convince a few gullible people that I survived a shark attack. The miracles of modern medicine! The name, however, is still a problem (it's two N's damn it!). When I was two years old, we left Michigan and moved to Watertown, New York, where I did most of my alleged 'growing up'. |
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