My 100-year-old father always told me to look for the light in the darkness — that the key to living long is to laugh often.

Did you know there is a fire engine at the bottom of the English Channel?

It was day-three of Operation Overlord as they approached Omaha Beach in Normandy. The landing craft was being loaded. As the fire engine was being lifted from the ship onto the waiting landing craft, the crane suddenly BENT, dropping the fire engine into the English Channel.

It seems the Army lieutenant supplied unhelpful info. They provided the weight of the fire engine with empty fuel and water tanks, not with the tanks loaded. The crane could not handle that much weight and bent too much to support the fire engine. It was never seen again. It is still M.I.A.

It’s been eighty years, and Dad still chuckles about it.

The thoughts, opinions and emotions on this page are solely those of Jim Flinchum and his 100-year-old father. It does not reflect the thoughts, opinions and emotions of Bay Capital Advisors, its partners, officers, or employees.