The Joys of Moving...

I'm not sure how many times I've actually moved from place to place over the past 22 years. I actually used to keep count, but somewhere over the course of time, I sort of lost count. I'm sure I could...or at least I think I could...sit down and count them all up again, but when I actually start thinking about it, then I'm not so sure I want to know for sure.

All I know is that I've moved once again... This weekend... To a large apartment on the second (top) level of the building... (I hate hearing anyone walking above me.) That means up and down the stairs... 26' U-Haul truck... Packing, unpacking... Pain in my back, shoulders, arms, knuckles, hips, knees, ankles...even my toes. I think about the only thing not hurting on my body at present is my hair.

I ended up taking the day off of work (well, mostly as I’ve been doing remote work) trying to recover from the weekend. Recover at least physically. There is still a lot of stuff to finish putting away, or getting rid of, until we’ll really have our home situated the way we like it.

I’m tired of moving… I see one more in the future, maybe a couple of years (or less) from now, but I’m already going to start putting money away because the next time I’m going hire movers and let them suffer the ill effects of all the heavy lifting and the stairs. I’ve had it… There are still a couple of friends I’ll help move, but for myself… No more… Been there, done that, have the walker to prove it!!

But for now… I and Mormon Girl can start to rest knowing that the move is over, we’re here, and we don’t have to worry about it for awhile. And, if it hadn’t been for the help of O.Y.G., we never would have made it through the weekend.

So… If you will excuse me, I will say so long for now as I have a date with a bottle of Tylenol.

Business Trips…And Memories

I’m currently sitting in a hotel room in Henderson, Kentucky. It’s just a quick, overnight business trip. Nothing exciting, nothing special, just a night sleeping by myself, which I’m not accustom to doing since getting re-married. At least I have a king sized bed with four…count them, FOUR…pillows to sleep with, so all is not lost.

The last time I spent the night in Henderson was back in early 2001. A good friend of mine from Colorado was down here on a business trip of her own and I came down to spend some time with her. After I got here and we had dinner, she was telling me of all the problems that she was having with her husband (also a good friend of mine). We ended up sleeping that night in her room as she didn’t feel like being alone… It was all totally platonic… I wouldn’t have had it any other way, and I don’t think she would have either. Sadly to say, it wasn’t but a couple of weeks after she returned to Colorado that I got the call they had separated and filed for divorce.

It’s funny what you start thinking about when you’re on the road all by yourself. I can’t help but wonder what a friend of mine from St. Louis was thinking when he was on a business trip one time and decided to commit suicide in his hotel room. I can’t help but wonder how some of the people I’ve known in the past, thanks to business trips, are doing right now. I can’t help but think about some of the fun I’ve had taking business trips, along with some of the not so good times that have happened while on these trips.

I do know this… I am very glad that I haven’t had to spend my life, my career, living out of hotel rooms. I don’t care how fancy of a hotel you are staying in, or how good their dining room might be, or how comfortable the bed… In the end you are stuck in small little room… And it gets really old, really quick… I found that out one time when I was on a month long business trip in Massachusetts. But that is several other stories…

Just Say NO…to Talking Jesus Dolls

I need to stop reading or hearing the news. Anymore, most of it just depresses me. Here’s a good one out of Los Angeles…

The Marine “Toys For Tots” program has rejected the donation of 4,000 talking Jesus dolls by a company that specializes in Biblical figures. The rational was that they “…can’t take a chance on sending a talking Jesus doll to a Jewish family or a Muslim family…”

Ok… Let’s see if we have this straight… According to the Marines Toys For Tots Foundation web page, the Foundation “…provides Marines the opportunity to bring the joy of Christmas to needy children and accomplish passive mentoring by serving as positive role models.”

Maybe I don’t understand the definition of Christmas… Let me look it up… Hang on… Entering in the Meriam-Webster URL… Referencing Christmas… OH… It’s a noun… OK… Here it is…

The definition: “A Christian feast on December 25 or among some Eastern Orthodox Christians on January 7 that commemorates the birth of Christ and is usually observed as a legal holiday.”

So… If I understand the philosophy here… The Toys For Tots program is saying that it is inappropriate to hand out a toy doll made up as Jesus during a holiday season (Christmas) that commemorates His (Jesus) birth because it might be inappropriate, even though their program is designed to “…bring the joy of Christmas to needy children…” but somehow by sending out a Jesus doll during the commemoration period for Him (Christmas) it would be wrong…

Ok, boys and girls, I’m about to have a WTF moment here… Guess it’s time to stop thinking about the absurdity of this particular mind set before I stroke out.

I guess before I go, I need to ask: When in the bloody hell did this country, founded upon Christian principles, make such a wrong turn into ludicrousness?

What A Touching Story…NOT!

I was at the hospital this last weekend and I caught a glimpse of a news story on the Fox network. I wasn’t happy with the little bit I gleaned while trying to follow a conversation and choke down some dry turkey.

Now today…I see the story on the Internet news. It’s titled, “Boy, 7, asks Mexico to help stop mom’s deportation.”

I’m sure you can guess the story… A woman who came to the United States from Mexico ILLEGALLY gave birth to a son on American soil which automatically made him a citizen and now this tiny, four foot nothing American child is pleading with the media and pleading with the authorities and pleading with the Mexican government to help his poor mom to continue to stay in the United States…a country in which she has violated our laws, ignored our sovereignty, and is thumbing her nose at our Republic!!!

The picture was taken to evoke sympathy… The story, about this little AMERICAN boy, was written to evoke compassion… And should somehow the United States screw up at this point and not kick his mothers sorry ass out of the country, another THREE MILLION children just like little Saul with THREE MILLION to possibly SIX MILLION law breaking parents might end up permitted to continue to reside in our country too; where we’re paying for their medical care, paying for their schooling, and paying for their food, shelter, and clothing in a lot of cases.

And what are the parents doing for this country, besides draining our tax dollars? Why, they are working illegally, taking money out of our economy, and funneling it back down to Mexico to help the rest of their family while at the same time refusing to blend into our society, or adopt the benefits accorded to all LEGAL residents of the United States and trying to contribute to the greater good.

Sorry, Saul… There is a little flaw in our Constitution that has been perverted into allowing you the status of being an American citizen. (I personally think it needs be amended to NOT allow that status to a child born to someone in the country illegally.) However, there is no question about the status of your mother. She goes!

My children, legal citizens of the United States, born to parents who were legal citizens, born to parents who were legal citizens, and so forth back to the middle 1700’s need to be the primary concern of our Government with regards to health, education, and employment. If your mother wants to leave, apply for citizenship, and pay her dues…then come to this country to adopt our values, our culture, our LANGUAGE…GREAT! Welcome home! If not… ¡Hasta luego!

It’s nothing personal… I like Mexico… I like Her people… I wish you well… But my family and the family of every freaking legal citizen in this country come before your mother. Why? Because this is OUR country… It is OUR home… And by damn, WE THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES, come first. End of story…

President Rudy Giuliani

I just noticed that the former mayor of New York has taken the first steps in making a bid for the 2008 Presidential Election.

I hope he is successful. Not only is Rudy Giuliani a well known figure through out the world, he is also a moderate Republican and should be able to reach out to a wide array of American voters. Where I personally as a conservative centrist do not agree with all of his positions, I none the less would be willing to trust the man to lead the greatest country in the world as I think that over all, his policies would be sound.

So... Good luck Mr. Future President of the United States of America!!!

Assimilation Complete

Well, I finally pulled the trigger and converted to the “new and improved” Blogger Beta. Not sure what I think so far since I haven’t really had the time to look around. Maybe I’ll do that tomorrow night while I’m sitting in a hotel room down in Kentucky.

But… For what it isn’t worth… Here’s my first Improved Post! Woo Hoo!

Here’s To Bionics

My Step-father went into surgery early this morning to receive a couple of implants; A defibrillator and pacemaker. He has had heart problems for awhile (underwent emergency open heart surgery about two years ago) and the condition has finally gotten to a point where in order to have an improved quality of life, it was determined the assistance of technology was required.

My Mother called a little while ago and said that everything went very well, aside from taking a little longer than was expected to complete the surgery. He is now recovering, is expected to be in the hospital over night, and then will be sent home to rest and take it easy for the next six weeks while the implants take hold.

This isn’t exactly the stuff that made The Six Million Dollar Man a legend, but it is still a prime example of how today’s usage of technology is so vital and important to our health and well being.

Where he may not be leaping sixty feet into the air, or running along at 60 miles and hour, or fighting Big Foot, he is expected to end up with more mobility and energy.

At least… That’s what we are hoping for…

The Joy of Little Ones...

It’s fun having a small child. Having the opportunity to view all of the wonders of the world through their eyes sometimes reminds us of what we have lost by transitioning into adulthood.

Last night was a good example of such a time… My son, who will turn four late in December, went out to “Trick or Treat” last night. When I arrived at his house, he was already dressed up as a black cat complete with a chain leash wrapped around him. (He was supposed to be the familiar to his older sisters Witch.)

He exhibited all of the exuberance of youth in his quest to collect more candy in a couple of hours than the country of Switzerland produces in a year. The excitement of his costume, of Halloween, of seeing all the decorations and other children dressed up was very apparent in all of his actions.

Setting out for the evening, he ran, he jumped, and he knocked on doors yelling “Trick or Treat”, collected his candy, said his thank you, and ran to catch up with the older children, already on their way to the next house.

But as the evening wore on, his steps slowed, his enthusiasm waned, and the bucket on his arm (already carrying an impressing haul) started to dangle. Soon, he was begging to be carried and passing his bucket off to anyone who would assume the burden. And eventually, instead of showing exhilaration at the prospect of receiving free treats, he started to feel apathy at having to visit yet another house, and eventually, dread. But once the evening was over, and he was back home looking through all of the different candies he had collected, his excitement about the evening returned and he appeared to be content with his efforts and their desired results. The anxiety was lost in a moment as he realized his journey complete.

Later in the evening, after I had returned to my apartment, I was standing outside in the chill night air smoking a cigarette while observing Orion rise above the horizon. I started to reflect upon the evening and I found myself impressed at how my son had shown me a full cycle of a life experience in less than a couple of hours. I saw how a lot of our adult life is spent, sometime in weeks, sometime in months, sometime in years, starting a journey, being excited about the prospect, sometimes feeling overwhelmed as we go along, and most of the times feeling relieved once it is over.

Yet, we can then look back with a certain amount of satisfaction on what has been, knowing that the trip was worthwhile, and wondering when the next journey will begin.