kansasmarine (anonymous) says...

I posted this on another thread as well. You are missed BB.

I have met BB and he was the most wonderful character! We walked his dogs totally around the park that day. He made me feel so welcomed. He forgave me for breeching the etiquette of not approaching someone whom you had figured out their online identity. This was well over a year ago. I do not live in Emporia, but I come there almost every weekend. I have followed these boards for almost two years. I feel I know a lot of you from your posts. My heart is very saddened at this news. BB always said hello the few times I did post. I will miss his humor and wisdom. God Bless BB. God bless all you who have the privilege of knowing him. My teary eyes join yours.....

Pamela

January 5, 2011 at 10:28 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

create (anonymous) says...

BB will be sorely missed for his quick wit and intelligently written opinions. I always knew that I had to be a quick thinker myself if I was going to spar with him. This is very sad news, and again I am in tears.

We forum folks are like family even though we rarely meet. I shall miss seeing that bright yellow avatar of his. It's flash matched his wit.

January 5, 2011 at 10:43 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

methusla (anonymous) says...

To all of bb (Preston,Pres's ) family, I am sorry for your loss ! I knew bb( Pres ) and have known Donald ( Don, Donnie ), bbs' brother, for some time, in fact I attended school with both !
My heart is heavy and eyes are tearful at the loss of bb ( Preston, Pres) as he and I had many meaningful, insightful and at times some rather heated exchanges on the Gazette forums ! However, I truely feel that we never lost our respect for one another and our individal opinions !

I will truly miss the bantering, discussions and yes at times the somewhat heated arguements that I had with with bb on these forums. God Bless you bb and you will be sorely missed !

BB, the world is a little less bright with your passing !

Richard

January 5, 2011 at 10:47 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

ToxicPink (anonymous) says...

We'll all miss him, even if we never got the chance to met him in person.

I'm sorry the loss that his family is suffering and I'll miss talking with him on here.

January 5, 2011 at 10:57 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

REWBA (anonymous) says...

Farewell my kindred spirit, this news sure brings me pain.
I will miss your wit and wisdom, but kindred spirits we remain.
Many times we have discussed the news and mostly we've agreed.
I'm so lucky to have met you friend, a kindred spirit you are indeed.

January 5, 2011 at 12:01 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

doubt_it (anonymous) says...

I never had the privlege to meet BB in person, but I always enjoyed reading his comments on the Gazette blogs. His humor and widsom will be missed. I sympathize with BB's family & friends. I also have tears. May BB rest in peace. Linda

January 5, 2011 at 12:10 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

open_eyes (anonymous) says...

I never had the honor of meeting biscuitboy in person, but feel as if I came to know him as a friend during our many discussions and sparring matches on these boards. He is someone who although I often disagreed with had much respect for his opinion, and how he presented it, and I have learned much from him. As we both found after bantering back and forth, often we were much closer on issues than we originally presumed. I am very saddened to learn of his passing and I will miss his comments on these boards. :(

My sincerest condolences to his family & friends - we have lost someone who presented himself here with insight, wisdom, and class - may he rest in peace.

January 5, 2011 at 1:01 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

yev_kassem (anonymous) says...

RIP. Best wishes go out to his family.

January 5, 2011 at 1:01 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

scarlett01_98 (anonymous) says...

today is a sad sad day. my eyes started watering as soon as i logged on. i didn't get to meet bb, but he was a great guy. i did look forward to his wit everyday. my condolences to his family. i miss him already.

January 5, 2011 at 1:13 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Captain_Cheddar (anonymous) says...

BB was one of the best, kept the newspaper on it's toes and never ran away from a skirmish. He will be greatly missed by the message board community, but he would have wanted us to continue to question and keep the press on it's toes. So for BB, we'll still do that.

January 5, 2011 at 1:46 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

REWBA (anonymous) says...

open_eyes, Out of all the anonymous posters on these strings, biscuitboy enjoyed you the most. He told me so. Back when you quit posting for a while, bb was a bit depressed. He worried that you would never start posting again. He told me that he had met oh4theluvof and seriouslyfolks and was sad that they had quit posting. He spoke of create with admiration and respect. Steve_Corbin was his good friend and bb wanted him to run for elected office. He would chuckle at the mention of `enry and compared him with cracknsack saying that both were a bit nuts but likable just the same. He loved his online friends at the Gazette second only to his two little dogs. We are all a little richer for knowing this wise sage and these strings will be missing something wonderful with the loss of our anonymous friend.

I hope the Gazette updates this thread with information about services for our dear friend.

"You should always go to other people's funerals; otherwise, they won't come to yours."~~Yogi Berra

January 5, 2011 at 1:55 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

sandman (anonymous) says...

I am so very sad to read concerning Biscuit. How I enjoyed reading his post and even tho I did not know him in person, respected him for his thoughts and concerns. Yes, the tears are there....my thoughts and prayers go out to his family in this time of sadness, may he rest in peace. He will be so very missed and a friend we have all lost.

January 5, 2011 at 2:44 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

jasper007 (anonymous) says...

RIP, "biscuit boy".

January 5, 2011 at 2:46 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

jmac (anonymous) says...

RIP Biscuit Boy your blogs will be missed!

January 5, 2011 at 2:50 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

sportsmama (anonymous) says...

Preston was one of my favorite people.. I worked with him a lot and everytime he would walk in the room he made me smile. He will be greatly missed. Like I told him many times a man by the name of "PRESTON MONROE" should be in lights.. he often told me about his acting days and to me that is a true actors name.. God Bless You Preston for making me smile.. I will miss you so much!

January 5, 2011 at 2:51 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Buffalo_Breath (anonymous) says...

So long, biscuit'.

I think BB would agree that this is kind of a new phenomenon ... mourning the loss of someone you have "cussed and discussed" with so many times that you feel you know them well, but in most cases you really don't even know who they are. The loss and sadness are real, though the relationship is somewhat virtual.

Biscuitboy, whoever he was, made my days brighter and I will miss him.

January 5, 2011 at 2:51 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

cwalker (anonymous) says...

Preston had posted more than 5,600 comments. Bobbi Mlynar is writing a story for tomorrow. If you had some favorite comments from him post them below.

January 5, 2011 at 3:05 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

sandman (anonymous) says...

Chris, so very glad that the Gazette is doing this and that Bobbi is writing, for she will do a wonderful job in the memory of a man that so many of us repected. A tribute to a man that truly loved his community and its people.

January 5, 2011 at 3:21 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

neighbor (anonymous) says...

My heartfelt condolences to BB's family. We didn't always agree on alot of subjects, but I always enjoyed his company here. RIP BB!

January 5, 2011 at 3:32 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

booker5m (anonymous) says...

He was fun to read!

January 5, 2011 at 3:37 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

create (anonymous) says...

Yes, Chris, thanks for honoring biscuit with a story. The fact that so many on the forum who never knew him personally have come together to mourn his passing is somewhat of a sociological peculiarity.

Last fall, when biscuit missed seeing my daily posts, he opened a thread on the News Forum called "Where's Create" Since then, it has become a catch all for many commentaries between biscuit, REWBA, and me. Anyone else was welcome to join in too. One of my favorite comments he made on that thread dealt with VA Benefits. It revealed his honesty.

On November 18, he said, " My rationale on the VA benefits is they should be reserved for warriors. Warriors fight wars......I was not a warrior.....I played war games. Never fired a shot in anger and the only time I ever got shot at in the military was when a small craft I was assigned to got caught in the cross fire between a police boat and some heroin smugglers in the Harbor off Naples, Italy. We ducked and got the hell out of there....That hardly makes me a hero."

January 5, 2011 at 3:46 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

sail (anonymous) says...

Wish we could have got together over a drink,never got a chance to meet him.

January 5, 2011 at 3:51 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

d23_66801 (anonymous) says...

preston you will be so missed glad i had a chance to work with you!

January 5, 2011 at 4 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

mds (anonymous) says...

im sorry about biscutboy
how old was he
rest in peace biscutboy munroe
died jan 3 2011

January 5, 2011 at 4:04 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

tbluma (anonymous) says...

Never met him in person myself, but I wish I would have.
RIP Bisquit.

January 5, 2011 at 4:05 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

sportsmama (anonymous) says...

I knew the man called Preston.. I read the comments from Biscuit Boy and never put the two together and he never devulged at any time that the two were the same person. We often talked about the blogs posted and he would make comments to me about what Biscuit Boy had said.. I just chuckled and said well to me it sounds like this BB is a very wise man but I don't always agree with him. He would just smile.. I just wish he would have told me, "Hey thats ME.. BB.." but he didn't. I am just glad I had the privilage to meet such a great guy and if he thought all these nice things were being written about him he would be so upset because he was just a modest man. I got the chance to meet his brother today and he too is a very great man with a heart like Prestons. Don I am so sorry for your loss.. He wasn't one that liked alot of attention. But I am glad the Gazette is honoring his memory. To me he deserves it..

January 5, 2011 at 4:33 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

b3bill (anonymous) says...

This is very sad news. I never got the opportunity to meet Biscuit Boy in person.

His posts will be sorely missed. I'm glad the Gazette is doing a special article in his honor.

My prayers and sympathy for all his friends and family.

R.I.P Biscuit Boy.

January 5, 2011 at 5:33 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

barefooting (anonymous) says...

I miss reading his posts and seeing him walk his dogs. We visited once in the park, he was a kind person who spoke just like he wrote. Hope there was no suffering in the end, good bye BB.

January 5, 2011 at 6:04 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

chiefsfan (anonymous) says...

What a shame. Like many, I enjoyed his comments on here. I never post much, a tad bit intimidated by all the knowledge that is shared on these blogs. RIP, Biscuit....another angel looking down on us. For Biscuit's family, my sincere condolences.

January 5, 2011 at 7:02 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Local_Hispanic (Vic Rodriguez) says...

I would also like to send my sincerest condolences to his family & friends - we lost someone who presented himself here with insight, wisdom, class and humor. He always enjoyed conversing on various blogs. BB will surely be missed - may he rest in peace.

January 5, 2011 at 7:48 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

reddog (K. B. Thomas Jr.) says...

Life is the number of years on this earth but, a good name is forever. Biscuit was a very good golfer and now that I know who he is, I understand where he was coming from and everytime I put jelly on my biscuit, I will think of Preston. He was a nice and caring individual and everyone was his friend.His words were as beautiful as a bunch of wild horses and for conservative people like myself, very hard to corral.He was a connoisseur of the humanity of his fellow human man and in so doing he paid himself the highest tribute.

January 5, 2011 at 9:29 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

reddog (K. B. Thomas Jr.) says...

If anybody gets a cold, contact your doctor and order a Z Pack.

January 5, 2011 at 9:41 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

abd (anonymous) says...

As a long time reader of these forums, I'll miss reading his opinions. He spoke sincerely and thoughtfully on all subjects. My condolences to his family friends.

January 5, 2011 at 10:08 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

oh4theluvof (anonymous) says...

I am saddened beyond words. I had the privilege of visiting at great length with Mr. Monroe in the park, in the grocery store and in his home. I had extended a Christmas dinner invitation to him should his brother have out-of-town plans again and he tentatively accepted, but his Christmas was in Topeka in the hospital instead. That was disappointing as I was hoping to spend more time with him. I was hoping for a recovery, but couldn't expect one.
Emporia has lost a very dear man. So have I. My condolences to his families....biological and forum.

January 6, 2011 at 12:50 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Steve_Corbin (anonymous) says...

I became biscuitboy aware during the great smoking ban debate on these very forums and took a shinning to him immediately, probably because we agreed on that issue.

Had the pleasure of meeting him personally and over the last year or so exchanged much in the way of opinions and thoughts. And we often disagreed with each other, I'm sure he read several posts by me and just sat there shaking his head.

You meet very few people these days who, (like sportsmama said), would make you smile when he walked into the room. I always smiled when I saw him.

i will miss Preston and my wife and I offer our condolences to his family.

Rest in Peace.

Steve Corbin

January 6, 2011 at 8:14 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

MrCmonkeeDo (anonymous) says...

Nobody told MrC there'd be days like these.

There are probably darned few of US who would not say we started contributing to this forum because of some issue with which we strongly disagreed. In truth though, in the beginning it is probably our desire to find like minded folks that compel us to write our thoughts out like this more than anything else.

Most of US probably thought we'd make our anonymous statement and be done with it. As it turns out, it doesn't really work that way; because anonymous or not this forum quickly adopts it's contributors to the familial. For it is not the real names that is important here, only real thoughts.

The loss of biscuitboy's thoughts have already been sorely felt here. The realization that there will be no more is hard to fathom.

It was supposed to be anonymous. MrCmonkeeDo wasn't supposed to care about any of you folks. How come it feels like this.

Strange days indeed.
strange days indeed.

January 6, 2011 at 11:16 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

mslater (Matt Slater) says...

What terrible news! I met BB on occasion, as Steve did, during the smoking ban debate. What a great intelligent guy! His thoughtful opinions will be sorely missed, and my thoughts and condolences go out to the family, here and "in real life."

What a true loss not only to us on here, but the community in general.

Matt

Not such a great day in Emporia...

January 6, 2011 at 11:36 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

GreatDayInEmporia (anonymous) says...

Bye Biscuitboy. I never met you, but have been teary at my desk all morning! You made a lasting impression in the lives of many. I hope there are forums in the afterlife, because you sure know how to keep them lively! Thank you for sharing your passion and insight.

January 6, 2011 at 11:37 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

open_eyes (anonymous) says...

REWBA, thanks for the info. I, too, always looked forward to what biscuitboy had to say in reply to any number of things I posted here because, not just for arguments sake, but he seem to put thought and reason into his replies - which isn't always the case on here.

Even those of us who claim to be more middle-of-the-road are often truly partisan at heart - its just that on any particular subject our partisanship may be on either side of the aisle. One thing I honestly appreciated about biscuitboy was his ability at times to look at the other side's arguments and seriously consider other points of view, instead of just dismissing opposition outright. I can honestly say his approach in that manner has made me in return more open and receptive to seriously considreing opposition points of view when presented with some class & thoughfulness- trying to walk that mile in another's shoes. That kind of attitude is often in short supply on these forums (me as guilty as anyone) - and will be sorely missed.

Something tells me he carried himself with the same kind of class and consideration out in the real world, too, where it is also in woefully short supply, and will be missed there even more. I am so terribly sad to hear of his passing, he will be missed.

January 6, 2011 at 12:20 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

REWBA (anonymous) says...

open_eyes, I've always enjoyed the debates you two had. They got really spirited at times but were always civil. It's no fun arguing with someone that agrees :-)

January 6, 2011 at 6:11 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

open_eyes (anonymous) says...

Well, you go a bit too far to say that I was ALWAYS civil.... lol ;-) .....

But sad times like this remind me of what is really important. I find myself thinking back on certain blogs I've written and thinking to myself - maybe I could have said this or that in a nicer way & gotten my point across. Like biscuitboy often did.

But I think it's more satisfying, in the end, to arrive at some kind of consensus, find some common ground, or say at the very least you can understand why and where another point of view is coming from and respect it. As we often did.... sometimes gladly.... sometimes grudgingly :-)

It already feels emptier on here :(

January 6, 2011 at 6:47 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

chiefsfan (anonymous) says...

I agree, open_eyes, seems really strange to not see a comment by the moniker, BiscuitBoy. The circle of life sometimes is disheartening.

January 6, 2011 at 7:25 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

goodoleboy (anonymous) says...

Biscuit and I often traveled the path on our beliefs. The guy was a little more liberal; than I but I always want that extra mile to try and justify our stances. RIP bud, you will be missed.

January 7, 2011 at 12:42 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

create (anonymous) says...

I agree, open_eyes, it does indeed already feel emptier on here. No more that yellow avatar of his flashing througout the forum. Here I am tearing up again. Dang.

I keep thiinking about what MrCMonkeeDo said: "It was supposed to be anonymous. MrCmonkeeDo wasn't supposed to care about any of you folks. How come it feels like this."

I'm glad to see that post by the Buck Fund, and that his dogs will be well cared for. My first donation to charity in the new year goes to them in honor of biscuit.

Steve, how about a Town Crier send-off for biscuit?

January 7, 2011 at 7:42 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

ToxicPink (anonymous) says...

Create, I've been in enough online communities for enough years to know that you can get so attached to people you've never met and it seems so weird, but at the same time...it feels like purer friendships can form because you really do cut through all the BS and get to know that person honestly.

I was apart of a website for 10+ years (Yes since I was like 13) and I met a girl in a forum setting, whose mother wanted to met me (through instant messaging) so she knew who her daughter was talking to. Since at this point I was in my late teens, the mother and I became friends talking on a regular basis and a couple years ago she suffered a severe asthma attack and passed away. Even though I literally hadn't talked to her in probably 4 years, the news from her daughter still cause a ripple of pain because of the memories I had and the fact that I had started again talking to some of her girls, oddly enough on a different forum website.

I had another friend from the same website attempt to take her own life and was up into early hours of the morning getting updates from her real life friends on her wellbeing and the status of her condition. She survived, but the experience again sent home how close you can get to someone through the internet.

And though its probably not a story I'll tell our kids...I met my boyfriend in an online game. He lived in Emporia, but we had separate circles of friends and had never really met before. We, funny enough, knew who each other were from the game but never really talked a lot until one day in the game I said I had to go to work and he came to see me while I was working at a store in the mall because he had to go there for some reason that day and the rest is history.

Despite all the evils it can carry, and the fact that you might not really ever know 100% whose on the other side of the screen...the relationships you can form are real and people should never take them for granted the same way you wouldn't take a friendship with someone you can have coffee with for granted.

And even if someone of you don't agree with me, think about how you feel and the heartache we experienced. It was real, and I know it surprised some of you. Someone, some of us never met, left a lasting impression on our hearts.

January 7, 2011 at 9:06 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )