7/21/2013
If you have bought and read the book about my investigation in to the 1966 murder of Charles G. Covington (Charley’s): THE THIN GRAY LINE by T.A. Powell, or even if you have read someone’s copy of the book and wish to comment on the book…
Please post your REVIEW and/or COMMENT on the AMAZON.COM site beside the book purchase info.
Help me , help you Valdosta.
(THE THIN GRAY LINE , Now available in digital and paperback through Amazon.com)
7/20/2013
Yesterday I talked about deadlines…
Two years into this investigation we were shown the date of 7/21 as a day on a calendar circled, with the word ARREST in red, raised and scrolling atop the calendar page three times. Each year I have worked and waited with anxious patience (I know that is a paradox…) to hear something from Valdosta about an arrest…a confession…a plea bargain… an anything!
Today I spent the day doing everything and anything to keep my mind off the fact that it was 24 hours before my faith wold either be validated or I would be a fool for another year. Curious enough, a film I wanted to watch did not record the first time at 8:00PM- but lucky for me it came on again at 9:45PM. Tired as I was, I decided to stay up and watch to till the end and now I know why…
One of the last lines in this film was in response to someone who at the last minute, turned down the job of a lifetime…a job that would have brought them both fame and money and the dream they had been chasing their entire adult life. When asked why- the character said, I suddenly realized it didn’t seem that important anymore. The other character smiled, as he was in love with her and did not want her to leave… but I digress. His response to her was this:
“There are more tears shed by prayers that have been answered, than by those that have not.”
The woman looked him in the eye, smiled and said, “Quoting Saint Theresa?”
Saint Theresa is the patron saint of all writers. Saint Theresa is my patron saint.
Is it possible that I was meant to spend an entire evening watching this show, just to hear the last 20 words of the story? The message was obviously meant for me. So, Friday my radio spells out the word FAITH. Tonight the universe tells me that perhaps the unanswered prayer is better than answered and I am almost too tired to care anymore. So here at 11:55 PM, on July 2oth… just 5 minutes from my long awaited miracle…maybe it’s not important anymore if somebody gets arrested for killing Charley. Maybe in the end, this book wasn’t supposed to be about that. Maybe the message of divine forgiveness and contact with those we love who are no longer corporeal is the bigger message and that was all this journey was supposed to be about. Now just 3 minutes before July 21, 2013 I must learn again that I have no control over what happens with this story.
I have written the book- given all the evidence that can be gotten without further assistance from the law and can literally do no more than what I have already done. In the end I have kept every promise made. I promised Charley I would help solve his murder and I have. Can I prove it? READ THE BOOK! I promised myself I would write his story and I have. Everything I promised I would do, I have done and I should be proud of the dedication and the tremendous work and the purity that went into it.
It is now midnight…July 21st and while I am almost too tired for faith, I must believe that all this was for something.
Good night…
7/18/2013
Today I was reminded of something… a reason why this all began so long ago.
Earlier today I realized what date it was and how close it is to the date July 21st. Now, it is not important if you do not remember why that date is so important- just yet, for I will remind you later. Or, you can read the book and figure it out for yourself.
Nonetheless, in my infantile reasoning of the timing of events, I felt that I would come up short again this year on a specific and greatly anticipated deadline. Well, not me exactly– but somebody else who would miss this important deadline coming up. So, as I often do when I get to the end of my rope–I began to doubt and in my doubt, began to forget that all things are possible with enough faith.
I will not lie to you…this has been a very long and difficult journey.
So, as I sat at a red light in my car and looked at the clock to see the time, I thought I heard a familiar riff in my angel song and went to turn the volume on my radio up. Still concentrating on my doubt and preemptive disappointment and the approaching date, I turned the dial only to find that in fact it was not my angle song, but the song, “Catch My Breath” by Kelly Clarkson. Now why is this important? It is important because although the song had no real meaning, other than I thought it would make a good background piece somewhere in the movie I know this book can eventually become…it was important because my focus remained on the tuner read out display panel just long enough to see something unusual.
Now, my car is pretty nice- but it does not tell you the name of the song that is playing- it just gives you the radio station and the time. So I am accustomed to seeing only the call letters of the stations I frequent, such as 102.1, B98.5 or WSB FM and/or WSB AM Talk Radio.
The time was 4:11PM.
The letters that appeared were not of any radio station I know. They were as follows:
F
A
I
T
H
I sat at that red light and could not believe what was before me. I adjusted the volume; same song, same station, but no matter…the display panels till read FAITH. The light changed, the car in front of me moved and I was forced to look away. When I looked back, Kelly Clarkson was still singing- but the word was gone and in its place was: B98.5.
Life is full of small miracles we tend to try and explain away- but I won’t. Perhaps God does have every intention of helping a deadline to be kept and it is only my lack of faith that has clouded my acceptance.
In my excitement, I called R to tell her what had happened. The same deadline had been rolling around in her head lately as well. So with faith… I will try to stay less in my doubts and more in my acceptance and get out of God’s way!
As for the deadline?
“We shall see…we shall see.”
7/17/2013
Patience…patience they whisper.
The storm is building.
If you crane your neck, you can almost hear it approaching the horizon.
Have faith they say…all will not have been in vein. Each book now has another reader…each reader another clue…each clue another answer.
Justice is coming…justice is coming!
7/13/2013
The word is getting out Grim.
The book is here.
The book is available.
The book tells them all about it.
They read…they remember…and now they are talking too! All of them…the butcher, the baker- the candle stick maker. Did I say the butcher? Hmmmm… there’s that association with the diamonds again. Gosh I love a good rhyme!
What’s that you say? A newspaper article? Why, that just might be the very thing to help this story reach the rest of Valdosta, Einstein!
What a brilliant idea! Grim would like that too- it will be the best way for him to stay in the spotlight and we all know how much he loves that old spotlight!
So, Valdosta…who wants to write the article for this story? Or maybe just a Rant or Rave?
THE THIN GRAY LINE: True Crime Memoir, by T.A. Powell. (Available on Amazon.com in digital and paperback. Please review the book when through.)
Let’s tell how Charley’s murder really went down back in 1966, Grim. Let’s tell the folks about how you got your scar, ripped your hat and why the bloody shovel and the compass are still associated with you after all these years. Or how about the swirling lights at the lake where a pretty young blonde lay twisted and bruised in the waters below.
Valdosta- don’t you want to know what happened to your young girls back in 1966?
It’s such a good book Grim, you really should read it. Maybe I should just send you a copy. Would you like that? Well, keep an eye on your mail box old man. A gift may be arriving any day! Don’t know how you will be able to explain this one away to your wife- but you’ll think of something. You always do.
7/11/2013
It is 7:11 PM on 7/11 and there is something very telling about that. The cosmos has been anxious of late, trying to relay information. As stated the other day, the veil continues to thin and the spirits are restless.
I am currently listening to the music which will be the background for the book trailer currently being produced for this book. It will be out on You Tube within 10 days and that should get the sales of this book popping even more. t is important that those over 50 in Valdosta buy and read this book , as they are the ones most likely to remember either their parents or grandparents talking about this case. It was 47 years ago that Charley was murdered, but I guarantee that those who live din Valdosta at the time heard all about it. What they didn’t hear about were the three others that were murdered along with him to protect the guilty.
Urge everyone to read the book and give any info they might have to the appropriate authorities.
Remember…there is no statute of limitations for murder in the state of Georgia. Those that committed the crimes can still be prosecuted for their part in this and the other murders committed to hide why they needed to take Charley out of the picture. There are other victims; victims whose families never knew where they went or what happened to them. The papers never reported them missing because the law never told them they were gone.
Think Valdosta… if you had lost a daughter 47 years ago, wouldn’t you want to know what happened to her and where she is so you can bring her home and finally lay her to rest? Do you really want these men to have lived their lives in false glory and reward… to literally have gotten away with murder?
Read the book, THE THIN GRAY LINE: A True Crime Investigation Memoir by T.A. Powell…recognize the players from 1966 and bring them to justice. You may contact authorities or use the contact on this web site, but remember these few men left are still alive. They live in your community where your children go to school, your wives buy their groceries and your husbands go to church. Choose carefully who you wish to walk among, sleep beside and live next door to Valdosta. You still have a chance to help put these men behind bars.
Help me, help others bring these people to justice!
THE THIN GRAY LINE by T.A. Powell
Now available through Amazon.com in both digital and paperback. Please feel free to review the book when done.
7/8/ 2013
The veil continues to thin. Last night another message came through, though a bit fuzzy at first. It all statred when my husband and I were watching TV. Sunday nights are afavorite for us as we watch, The Long Island Medium. Ten minutes intoithe show, our little white dog (the Westie that sees dead people) began to respond to something or more likely , someone in the air above us. This went on for some twenty minutes before she calmly came to lie down at my side. We finished the show and then went off to bed. Not knowing who it was, I said a small prayer for calrity.
Then just before dawn, the message came through with something about, “Pay attention to the letter J in a box,” or “the letter J on a box.” I sent the whole morning confused as to what it might have meant.
Then I got an email.
It wasn’t until this afternoon that I understood what it meant.
Charley has been very busy of late. You too Valdosta!
Thanks!
7/7/2013
Note the double 7’s in the date today. All 7’s are always a welcomed sight for me and today bearing two of them, the potency and joy is doubled.
Last night I received another message. Now the reason why I like to write them here first is because it gives me a chance to post and ponder them before something happens; as there can be skeptics to this sort of thing who like to call, ‘ hindsight is 20-20’ if you don’t. OK, so just before dawn I asked for guidance in this case, as well as life in general and they gave me a message in numbers:
“The 9th C or the 9th in C, will be the first of 3 reveals of the 7.”
Now the 7 could stand for many things. There was a number 7 involved with Jessica’s death; the number 7 and a shovel. Remember the clue, ‘ the 7 of Spades?’ Of course- the shovel was a metaphor for a spade. Maybe Jessica is about to reveal something- or somebody will remember she went missing! Or the number 7 could stand for something else. For those of you who do Doreen Virtue’s, Angel Numbers 101, you will understand that the number 7 means basically, that “…you are on the right path and that the outcome will exceed your wildest expectations…” Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m up for a bit of good news after the recent disappointments and let downs of June! And since my wildest expectations in this case are pretty wild- this ought to be absolutely outrageous! Add that to another previous locution written about within the book: “Suspicion, Conviction, Salvation” and I am all ears!
That being said, and with today being the 7th of the 7th month of the year and the eve of the New Moon in Cancer on the 8th- I expect that something significant with this case may soon come through. It could be that the 9 in C could be relating to the New Moon in Cancer; that would be Tuesday, as in the 9th in C. Or, it could be related to something else I have yet to divine. Just the same, I am intrigued by the segue given– “…the first of 3 reveals of the 7.”
Regardless, this should be quite exciting and I am anxious to see what the universe has in store for this case.
Numerology and astrology suggest that with the New Moon in Cancer, things will be both ending and beginning over the next few days. Things like; some may just wake-up tomorrow and decide to quit their job to take another more exciting or more challenging job, if they are unhappy or unfulfilled where they are currently at…or some may decide to get divorced or move forward with a new relationship. This month of July after the New Moon is all about change and relocation of energies; even moving short or long distance is on the table for discussion.
Maybe even you, Grim.
We must learn to live in the moment, while still keeping ourselves prepared for the future. I look forward to my future with great curiosity and hope that the four years+ of work on this case does not go either unappreciated or its information disconnected. There is so much information in the book for you my dear readers; most of it veiled a bit, so take your time in reading and absorbing it and then get back to me about what you know- or about what I might have gotten wrong. I do not mind being corrected for truth’s sake- but not for ego’s sake.
A prominent citizen of your town once told me to, “Back off this thing and quit digging! Innocent people will be hurt.”
He was right. Innocent people were hurt. Charley, his wife and his children.
A man died.
Then two girls and another man.
Enough is enough…isn’t it?
How many needed to be removed to keep your precious money gain in tact?
Innocents were hurt…are being hurt and they deserve to know who by.
Your hour has come Grim. Tell the truth before all of Valdosta has read the book and you have nowhere else to hide- or no one else to listen to your side of the story. I have asked you for the truth for over four years now. You could have delivered it to me at any time, but you chose to do otherwise and gave me the old bait and switch. Folks in 1966 may have bought in to that shiny badge nonsense, but not now. It’s a shame really…but a trust was broken.
Perhaps the first reveal has something to do with you, Grim? Maybe somebody else in the four in flannel has heard about the book- maybe they have even read it and figured out who you are. What to do now? People will know about you…about what you have done…about the other victims…what was done to them…where their bodies were buried or hidden.People are not stupid, Grim. They will figure it all out and those who are old enough to remember things, will finally put it all together and second guess everything else you have ever done in your life.
The murder was just the beginning.
The conspiracy was meant to cover it up- bury it for good– but you know the dead.
The book speaks for those who can no longer speak.
It begins to unravel now.
Each day another few books fly off the shelves. Each day another reader who reads it to the end will tell another person and so on, and so on…
You have one last chance to set the record straight. Call the authorities soon, before someone else makes that call. There are at least three of you left who know the truth who are still alive. Which one of them will go first hoping for immunity? Who can you trust now?
“It is about fraternal protection” you scream inside your head…”Fraternal protection, dammit! Nobody will rat me out-nobody!”
But who will be the first to break the code? You? Mr. Muddy Boots? The Farmer in the Dell? Who will finally want to make their confession and meet their Maker with a cleaner slate?
Think Grim-think!
The hours go by so slowly these days. Who is reading the book now? Your neighbors? Your friends? The people in the grocery store- the church-the gas stations? A reporter here or there who wants to scramble to be the first to break the local story?
Why do they look at you so differently?
Too much information is out there now for folks to stop talking.
Charley wants the world to know he would not have abandoned his children.
Roxanne wants you to explain your scar to the citizens of Valdosta, Grim.
Jessica wants to know why it was so necessary to take her out?
The MOT wants others to know he never hurt them- he was just forced to watch.
The attorney hid the truth and wanted to protect the remaining innocent… he just forgot the first set of innocents in this case were Charley’s kids… not his or yours, or all the others. He too, should have told the truth back then and brought it all to trial.
What will you tell them now, that they do not already know or suspect is a lie?
“The 9th in C will be the first of 3 reveals of the 7!”
7/6/2013
Lesson for the day? Learn to release…learn to let go.
The time has come for us all to accept gracefully what we cannot control and divine a plan for what we can. The more we continue to evolve, the more we become sensitive to everything about us-including one another. Be kind, be patient and do not fear the changes that will take place once you begin to let go of old beliefs or relationships that no longer serve. This is your month to reclaim your internal compass and power.
Do the emotional homework. Everyone learns at a different speed and so you must adapt to their timelines or leave them to their own learning. You cannot force understanding or acceptance. Learn to forgive and let go, so that you can move on to follow your dreams. My dream is to continue to help move this case forward and to share what I have learned about both life and death through this journey.
Support the information that comes to you and do the right thing with the information you receive. This is a time of healing. If you have information that can help move Charley’s case forward- contact the correct authorities or reach out to me and I will get your information to those who can be trusted to do the right thing. It is time to speak your truth, tell what you know- but do not imagine things that did not happen. Attest to only that, that you would publish in a public format- to that which is true.
Trust that all this has happened to bring spotlight to victims and a chance for those who are guilty to correct their errors. Give them the chance to rewrite their own endings.
The Thin Gray Line by T.A. Powell
Available on Amazon.com
7/4/2013
Happy 4th! Yesterday was what you might call a red letter day… a diamond day or more precise… a three feather day. Yes- three feathers- right there on the beach before me. Why? Well, the cosmos had a lot to say apparently. Not to mention some people who had lots of information to share, which bids me look closer at several folk who were allowed to stay out of the spotlight for a variety of reasons I am not willing to post here. This information not only helps move this case forward, but also helps me move forward too. I am grateful Valdosta. Thank you.
You see other information came in yesterday too which now explains certain situations and behaviors of late. While disappointing on one level- it frees on another and allows me to walk away from certain situations without the tether of misguided emotional obligation. That being said, I will be able to walk forward into the next adventure with greater ease- even while I am still in the process of solving this one.
Still solving this one you say? Yes…well, perhaps not solving- but clarifying.
Though the book is written and many of the clues are contained within it- not all of them are. You see my dear readers, there were over 200 more pages to this book before they were edited out. Those pages had many more clues and impressions- more information about certain people, places and their importance/significance or involvement in this case. But at 490 pages…the book and suppositions could not go on forever. At least not in the same way the investigation can! What the book has done is greased the joints of frozen jaws, long held clenched by fear. People who knew something was not right about Charley;s death, but could not put their finger on it. People who saw or heard things that made no sense back then, but with the book now realize what they saw. They can now help tell the story about who was there that night and how others might have been involved.
For instance… let’s look at the MOT. This man was beaten to death, or at least to the point where he suffered a heart attack from his beating. After all, he was 61 years old and could only stand so much abuse. Now- who went missing a 61 year old man? He must have belonged to somebody? They said in Augusta- but i could never find anybody who knew this guy. So somebody else must have gone missing a 61 year old man. Nobody? Ok, so who worked in the Daniel Ashley Hotel back then? Who was a maid, or a patron? Who saw the bruised body of a man removed from one of the rooms taken by gurney to a local morgue? This was on October 15, 1966. Who worked the hotel then? Who worked at the morgue then? Who did the transport? Who did the transfers? Who sent this man to Augusta and then who attended his memorial? His death is a matter of public record- yet nobody seems to know this guy. Well, except for Grim and Boots and the Farmer in the dell. They knew who he was.
Ok, so how about Charley the night of October 9, 1966? He was transported to a morgue and then to a different funeral home? Who worked there then? Who did hair and make-up for the funeral homes in 1966? Who pasted make-up all over the lacerations on Charley’s arms, before they slipped them inside his shirt and burial suit? You know who you are…what you saw. If you can recall… step forward now. What did you see?
Yes, yesterday was a three feather day… a grand trine…a diamond day, if you will. And you know what they say? Diamonds are a girl’s best friend and yesterday they were mine!
A year ago that kind of stuff drove me insane. Clues about random loose diamonds and one ruby! Who thinks of these things? How did R come up with that out of the blue? And then- somewhere else out of the blue, R came up with something about a pineapple upside down cake? (BTW’s, that’s my favorite cake, Rox. Used to beg to get it for my birthday cake each year.) Those silly dead people just like to show her all kinds of things. So what do you get when you mix them together, besides a kick ass cake with a delicious pay off? Hmmm…
It all gets so confusing, but that’s not all they show her. There was something about freezers and butcher block paper. Who puts butcher block paper together with cake and loose diamonds? Let’s see. Cake is cake, but diamonds are currency. Add currency to butcher paper and you have frozen money-frozen assets! Yes sirree…that’s the old fashion way to hide the illegal gains! Wrap it in butcher paper, call it something else and then stuff it in a freezer so nobody will know! Eventually if you have enough, you’ll have to turn it into something else to hide it. Something smaller- easier to hide. Maybe even those loose diamonds.
Why? You can’t trace them, silly! It’s so, so…how shall I put this? So 1960’s, you know! Wrapping money and putting it in your freezer like pork chops. Or rolling it and stuffing it inside a frozen orange juice can. Gotta love the nostalgia, but at some point you’re freezer’s gonna run out of room!! What’s a criminal to do? Where do you find a large enough freezer for frozen meat and a slice or two of pineapple upside down cake all at the same time? C’ mon Valdosta… think! Where can you satisfy you more carnivorous needs while treating your sweet tooth… or buying toothpaste… or tuna… or lettuce?
Why a good ole grocery store, that’s where Valdosta. A good ole grocery store that had a bakery for Roxanne’s pineapple upside down cake and a meat department for…oh what was his name, Grim? You remember. He was a good friend of yours, just like the other man who had a big freezer. He was a friend of yours too, wasn’t he? That’s what you told me, but I don’t think he thought so after his…you know… his accident. Good ole, what’s his name. He never saw it coming. Or did he, Grim?
So where can you find the answers to all these questions? If you can’t remember, there’s a book out that might help you. It should have been called; Grim’s Fairytales , but it just didn’t look right on the cover so I went with:
THE THIN GRAY LINE by T.A. Powell
Available now at Amazon.com in both digital and paperback format.
I told you yesterday was a three feather, diamond day!
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