Reading List Catch-Up

Since I haven't posted anything in awhile, I haven't taken the chance to comment on the books I've read. That's too bad, really. I had some interesting thoughts at several points along the way and thought, "I should write that down and think about it some more." Blah...it's one of the curses of modern living. I'm too easily distracted by too many other mind-numbing things that I don't take enough time just to sit and think anymore.

So here is what I've read since Sleepy Hollow:

Uncle Tom's Cabin (very cool book...I have boatloads I could talk about...but probably won't)
A Farewell to Arms (on my list of books never to read again)
The Wee Free Men (not a classic, but it was a fun little "fairy tale" book)

Right now, I'm reading Of Mice and Men by one of my favorite authors, John Steinbeck.

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I wrote this while I was at work. I just had an incredibly irritating conversation with someone here about a work-related issue and now I'm too mad to continue writing...

Arm-Waving Freakoutery

One of my official jobs is now to wave my arms about like a spaz in front of a bunch of people. Yes, that's right, I've been called to be the choir director at church. We perform in church once a month...and today was my first "performance".

It was actually a lot of fun - I really, really like music and I have very distinct memories of "conducting" the music to an old Hooked on Classics tape as a young kid. I remember thinking it would be neat to conduct a full orchestra, but let's face it, I have never been that interested in putting in the effort to be a professional musician.

In any case, our choir is small and widely varies in the number of members depending on the day, the weather, the song, etc... I don't expect any miracles anyway. This ain't the movie Sister Act and I certainly ain't Whoopie Goldberg (although I'm sure I'd make a terrible nun too).

Here's my philosophy when it comes to the church choir: When something wonderful happened in the heavens, the multitudes there either shouted for joy or sang. Now I don't really care if us mortals are more shouters or singers, but I figure if there is room enough in heaven for both, there certainly is room enough for both in the choir.

For today, we started our song acapella (no piano): Listen, Listen and then went right in to Search, Ponder, and Pray, both of which are songs written for little kids. Still, it was fun and they sounded great. I think next month we'll do Now Thank We All Our God since it is the Thanksgiving season.

Post Birthday Week

Last week was a very bad week for me. There were a lot of reasons for it - none of them worth squat in the grand scheme of things though. I was overly irritable and I generally blew up at the kids for the littlest things. Luckily, my family still loves me and I'm slowly getting over it (the feeling is still there to a degree, but I'm working harder at keeping it in check). I don't want to go into details of my funk because it would be at all helpful and there are just some things that aren't flattering to myself or others. It could be described as one of those dark corners of mortality that, unfortunately, spilled out into the rest of life.

I find it odd that our own perception of who we are is, at times, greatly different from how others perceive us. Iwas talking to Mary about this the other day. We can sit in church and look at a family and think they have it all worked out - nearly perfect in some cases. Then we feel inadequate, imperfect, perhaps even hypocritical at times. That is especially true when we hear from others how "perfect" our own family is. To paraphrase Bugs Bunny: "They don't know us to well, do they?" But it goes the other way too. We can't see what goes on in the homes of others, or in their heads. No one is perfect. No family is perfect. We only see a family on their best behavior for a few hours a week. We only see the outward appearance of a straight A student, or a good singer, or a good dancer (or sometimes all three togehte). It can be disheartening for children and adults.

But something occurred to me today in regards to my children: They may not be the best at anything visible (athletics, singing, grades, etc.) but they are still very young. Before, I would think, "They just need to find something they really enjoy doing." However, in thinking of the response I would most likely get to "What do you enjoy?" I can easily imagine them saying, "Having fun!" And there it is. They don't need to have a hobby or an exlusive interest at this point in their lives, do they? They are still young kids. They need to have fun. And they do. There is still plenty of time for them to figure out what they want to do in life (hopefully they'll figure it out sooner rather than later like me - not that I have figured it out yet mind you).

I guess I worry they are going to be lifetime slackers like me. But, then again, that gets back to my earlier point: They way I see myself isn't the way others see me. Success in life might be more based on the latter rather than the former, so maybe I worry needlessly.

Flowchart Humor

I find humor in some weird places at times. Case in point: Flowchart humor. Anytime someone puts in the effort to make a flowchart that is funny, I appreciate it. I like flowcharts in general anyway. I'm just strange that way I guess.

In any case, last year sometime I made a flowchart outlining my job. Yes, I did share it with my boss...and somehow I managed to get promoted anyway. Go figure.

You'll need to click on it to be able to read it. Warning: You may not think this is funny unless you have had my job, but trust me - it's really is funny. A little too close to the truth at times, but funny nonetheless.

Just in Time for Halloween

The Leadership Challenge is a great book. I forgot how much I enjoy reading it and figuring out ways to make myself better. But now it's time to move on to the next book: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Tales by Washington Irving. I've read Rip Van Winkle several times before, but not Sleepy Hollow (I've seen the cartoon though...). Nor have I read, or even heard of, any of the other stories in the book.

So far, I'm loving the way he describes things. Lots of imagery. Good use of the English language and all that.

On a side note, I had my second Account Rep meeting today and I'm proud to announce that no one said they felt "puked on." Hey, it's an improvement.

Did You See Which Way My Team Went? I'm Their Leader

I finished The Three Musketeers yesterday. Very, very different from what I thought it was going to be like. Still, an interesting read...even if I REALLY don't understand French culture during that time period.

Next up, a non-fiction book: The Leadership Challenge. This is one that I read back when I was an assistant manager at Hastings. I enjoyed it enough to keep the book around and decided that now that I am in a leadership position again, I should read through it again. As a general rule, I dislike management how-to books. I find them trite and somewhat insulting as a reader and as an employee. This one, however, has a number of redeeming qualities and ranks up there with Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.

Speaking of leadership, I ran my first Account Representative meeting today at work. We actually haven't had one for nearly half a year, so there was a lot of information to cover. Now for a bit of background: In the past, those meetings have generally been nothing more than complaint fests. They were long, drawn-out, irritating, and generally pointless. Today, however, I had 20 things that needed to be covered and only 60 minutes to do it in. That averages to about 3 minutes per topic. I started the meeting exactly on time - before everyone showed up (including my co-lead).

That made some people angry.

I told everyone that we wouldn't be discussing "what if" scenarios and if they had something they wanted to say, they need to get to the point quickly without any long stories.

That made some people angry.

The first question asked started with "But what if..." They didn't get any further because I interrupted them and repeated that we didn't have the time to go over every possible "what if".

That made one person really angry.

I apologized in advance for the fact that a lot of the information in the meeting was only going to be going one way (me to them), but that future meetings would be much more of a two-way dialogue.

The first part made some people angry.

I proceeded to work through the topics. After each one, I paused and asked for any comments. When the comments threatened to drag on forever or when people started re-hashing points that have already been made, I stopped the discussion, asked them to email me any remaining questions and I would answer them then, and moved on to the next topic.

That made some people angry.

While going over some topics, I noticed several people furiously scribbling notes about the changes and/or things that I asked them to be aware of.

That made me happy.

I conveyed all the information that I needed to with five minutes to spare. I thanked everyone for their patience and reiterated that future meetings (scheduled every two weeks) would have more give and take and they would have more opportunity to voice their opinions. I then adjourned the meeting.

That made several people give me sour faces and one to proclaim: "I felt like I've been puked on for the past hour."

After everyone left, my co-lead and I sat in the room in silence for a few minutes. He then turned to me and said, "Welcome to my world."

Shape Up, Eh?

Today was the first day in a new exercise program I've started. It's called "5BX" meaning Five Basic Exercises. I came across it recently, but it is an old program that was used by the Royal Canadian Airforce. I honestly didn't even know the Canadians HAD an airforce. I guess I am just another ignorant American.

In any case, I won't go into all the details; you can click on the link above to read more about it if you're that interested. It was an easy start, so we'll see how it goes. More to come...

9

This last weekend, Leslie and I went to watch "9" - which is an animated film, but definately not for kids. This movie is intense...and I'm in love with it. Rag dolls and a psycho machine in a post-apocalyptic world. There are no gross-out jokes, low-brow humor here, animal friends, or yet another musical number.

Just plot.

And what an awesome plot it is. Not only that, but it was executed beautifully. I really can't find any flaw or even a "gee, if they did it this way..." moment. Most movies nowadays are mindless entertainment - which isn't always bad. But this one...this one makes up for all the drivel I've seen over the past 10 years or so. I find my mind is constantly wandering back to it to pick apart all the neat things that didn't occur to me while watching.

All For One, and One For the Road

Treasure Island went really fast. Of course, I say that after reading War and Peace just before it. I guess anything would seem short after that. In any case, on to the next one: The Three Musketeers.

This is another one that I haven't read before. I know parts of the story, but I'm looking forward to actually reading it. The edition I have was, at first sight, a little intimidating as well. Each page has two columns of text that make it look incredibly long - but it hasn't been too bad yet. Like War and Peace, I'm enjoying this one - but it takes a little more concentration...the writing style is very different.

I was going to go into an explination of why I'm reading all these books at this time, but I have a really bad headache tonight and don't feel like looking at the computer screen at the moment.

It Ain't No Kumbaya, But It'll Have To Do

I went and bought a guitar last weekend. I now know a whopping three chords (A, D, & E). I can't get my fingers to move quickly between them yet, but there it is. Speaking of fingers, mine hurt; I don't have any callouses built up on my fingertips yet. If I go really, really slow, I can get through the "Lego House" song (listen to Al Simmons sing it here). Impressive, no?

Long Time, No Sea

Sometime I surprise even myself. I finished War and Peace yesterday. It took me a little over a month of reading on the bus to and from work to get through it. I really, really enjoyed that book! I would actually leave home about 10 minutes earlier so I could read while waiting for the bus. It is definately on my re-read list.

But now, on to the next book: Treasure Island. It's kinda strange; I can tell you everything about the story, I've watched several movies about it (or based on it), I've played games about it, but I don't ever remember reading through the whole book. The first few chapters were familiar enough, but I can't remember ever getting about halfway through it. In any case, it's time to correct that issue. Besides, it has been awhile since I've read a good sea faring novel. So I'm off to the Admiral Benbow Inn - Later Mateys! Arrrr!

You Know What They Say About Assuming...

Assume - Makes an !@# out of U and ME

I certainly have done (and continue to do) my share of assuming about a wide range of topics. But I am continually amazed at what people assume about me from the one simple fact that I was in the military.

I have my service ribbons (along with a few metal pins - my sergeant stripes among others) hanging on my cubicle wall. It's a conversation piece more than anything else; that, and I'm dang proud to have served - albiet in a fairly limited way. However, when I'm not being portrayed as a right-wing extremist clinging to the edge of sanity along with my Bible and guns, I find that some people have a somewhat odd impression of me. Of course, I never claimed to be "normal."

When someone finds out that I was in the military, there are two main reactions. First, from others that served, the reaction is along the lines of "Hey, you're my best friend ever! Let's talk guns!" (Sorry buddy...I was in Air Force communications, not the infantry; I don't even currently own a gun...although that will change soon). The other main reaction is from those that never served in the military: "Wow...that must be why your desk is so clean. You must be really organized." (I don't really have a response to this other than blinking a few times.)

In all honesty, my time in the military didn't have as much of an impact on who I am as, say, joining the Church, or getting married and having kids (I won't go into the assumptions that happen when people finally realize I'm the father of the five kids whose pictures hang on my cubicle wall...).

When you combine my new position at work with my military past, my religion, my family composition, and the fact that I often wear a tie - you can just imagine what people around here think of me. It certainly isn't the same way that the people I eat lunch with think of me, that is for sure. (...and that is a whole other story for another time)

Pictures to the Family Vacation...

...are over here at the very pink blog.

Cub Scout Day Camp

Our boys got picked to do the flag ceremony. Yup, that's my boy facing the other direction!

Waiting for a turn at the pellet guns...

Ready...aim...

Fire!

Next up: Practicing basketball skills

...and a half-court game

"Bottle Rockets!" Huzzah!

T-minus 10, 9...

After lunch we go to nutrition and camp cooking

"Look Pa! Stick bread!"

Yum!

Although they titled this station "Catapults" it was more of an atlatl class...

Leatherworking...or more appropriately: "Smack-a-piece-of-wet-leather-with-a-big-mallet-and-then-stitch-it-to-another-piece"

Tah-dah!

I didn't want to get close enough for a picture while he was wielding a pocket knife, but here he is sanding his wooden whistle.

"Tweeeeeet!" Yet another inanimate object banned from being used in the house (it was a looong ride home...)

Overall, we had a lot of fun. I a day off from work so even if it had been the worst experience ever, I would have still enjoyed myself. It was nice to be able to just hang out with my son for a day.

Poverty Line, I Bid Thee Adeiu!

Although I haven't mentioned it much (or at all, really), this past month I have been wandering my way through an interview process for a promotion here at work. It finally came down from on high yesterday that the Powers That Be have lost all common sense and have given me the position!

There are a bunch of changes on the horizon, but let me just share a few numbers:

Previous - 30,160
"The Line" - 33,270
Current - 37,440

I'm not going to give too much commentary on the above numbers. Yeah, the bottom one might still seem a bit low to some people, but I have no complaints. I am now able to take care of my family without government assistance. And that is a big thing for me.

In other news, I have a bunch of pictures from Cub Scout Day Camp and our vacation to the Zoo and Aquarium that I keep intending to post. Hopefully soon...

War and Peace

I finished Huckleberry Finn last week. It had been about two decades since I last read it, so it was nice to read it again. I've also come to the conclusion that I would rather hang out with Huck Finn that I would Tom Sawyer; not because Huck is more of a wild-child, pretty much the opposite. Although Huck is fairly ignorant about a lot of things, he has his head screwed on better than Tom. Tom, being raised "proper" and all, goes out of his way to cause problems for other people. During the last few chapters, I just wanted to reach through and smack Tom upside the head.

Anyway, now that I finished, I've decided to tackle a book that I haven't read yet and that has intimidated me for a long time: War and Peace.

I've generally heard this book described as a story about people with incomprehensible names, going to places with incomprehensible names, doing incomprehensible things. That and the fact that it is a REALLY long book kept me away from it for a long time. But I got started on it this week. You know what? I'm really enjoying it!

Yes, there are a lot of people with Russian names and titles to keep track of (and they seem to be all related somehow and all their stories intertwine), and there are a whole pile of sub-plots (actually, you might say that it is nothing but sub-plots and therefore everything is a main plot...go figure). But I've been surprised at how much I've liked it so far. It doesn't hurt either that it takes place during the Napoleonic Wars, which is one of my favorite periods of history to read about (Go Hornblower!). The writing style (or at least this particular translation) is easy to read. Had I known all of this before, I would have read it a long time ago.

However, I imagine it is going to take me a very long time to get through this as I normally only take time to read while I'm waiting for the bus or I am on the bus going to work.

A Sizzle, Fizzle, Fourth

It was hot. There was a pool. There was a grill. There was an extremely dense chocolate cake. There were some less than impressive fireworks.

So no rabble-rousing for me this time around. We were invited (at 10:00 PM the night before, I might add) over to another family's house for the Fourth of July. At the end of the day, we were all pretty wiped out. It was alright for what it was, but it just seemed like any other weekend. I didn't get all crazy-patriotic (a little, but nothing "extremist" inducing). And then, today, I went back to work. ::shrug::

We actually have a lot going on this month. This Wednesday, is Cub Scout day camp (I got the day off work so I get to go). Mid-month, we're headed out on a family vacation to the zoo and aquarium across the state. At the end of the month is a local gaming convention that might be mildly amusing. We'll see.

The basement in the house has been almost finished for quite some time now. Leslie's been doing a lot more work on it than I have; that's because I'm a slacker - I've accepted this about myself. We just have a small bit of mudding and taping to finish up, then it's on to texturing and painting. After that, we can spend a fortune to carpet everything. The downstairs bathroom won't be finished yet, but the toilet flushes and that is good enough for me.

Does This Mean I'm Only a 1/3 of a Man?

Of the 30 Days to a Better Man project, I made it (kinda-sorta) 10 days. I just have too many other thing to distract me to stay focused on one thing for too long. I'm like a magpie: "Ooo! Shiny!" and off I go in a different direction. It can be a little agravating at times, but there it is.

I suppose I could go back and make more catch-up posts, but that doesn't really interest me at the moment. I read through the tasks for the other days, and while there were some good ones, I'm ready to move on with life.

"So," I can hear you saying, "what, exactly, has been monopolizing your attention this past month?" Several things:

• A board game called BattleTech - giant fighting robots, huzzah!
• Trying to brainstorm ways to get in better shape without actually having to do anything (I'll let you know if I come up with any good ideas)
• A scattering of religious topics - mostly revolving on things I should and need to improve upon in my life
• I finished reading Robinson Crusoe and gearing up for Huckleberry Finn
• The Fourth of July is coming up and I'm planning on, yet again, being a right-wing extremist rabblerouser

I'm sure there were others, but either they didn't catch my attention long enough for me to remember a week or so later. Go figure.

Day 10: Memorize "If"

I've never been real good with memorization (tolerable, but not what I would call "good") and this particular poem, while very manly, is somewhat long. Guess I'm going to have to "man up" and start with the memorization. This will certainly take me longer than one day...

“If”
By: Rudyard Kipling

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream–and not make dreams your master,
If you can think–and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build ‘em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: “Hold on!”

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings–nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And–which is more–you’ll be a Man, my son!

Day 9: Take a Woman on a Date

(I haven't been in the writing mood lately...hence the short, and late, posts)

Leslie and I already had a date of sorts scheduled for this Saturday, but I asked her for a date anyway. We're planning on going out this Thursday as well. It'll be nice for her to get away from the kids (one cranky two-year old in particular) for a bit.

Day 8: Start a Journal

Ta da! How convenient that I just recently blogged about something very similar. I'm marking this one done!

Day 7: Reconnect With an Old Friend

(another backdated post...)

This one didn't happen either. I spent the day reading and teaching my son how to play the BattleTech board game. Giant Fighting Robots! Woohoo! I'd much rather connect with my son than reconnect with an old friend. Besides, finding some of those people has proven downright difficult over the years.

Day 6: Update Your Resume

(Catching up from the weekend - yeah, I'm backdating these...)

I know my resume needs some spiffing up. But I just didn't have/take the time to work on it this weekend. It's a project for another day. In the meantime, here is my pseudo-resume on linkedin.com: http://www.linkedin.com/in/sbwilson

Day 5: Cultivate Your Gratitude

This is a two part process. First make a list of the ten things you're grateful for and then give three thank yous to three different people.

I am thankful for:

1. My children being well-behaved in public.
2. My job - as much as I complain about it, I don't have to bring it home with me, I get to go home at 3PM, I have a pretty decent amount of autonomy, and it means I don't have to be out job hunting.
3. My wife who is also my best friend.
4. My religious beliefs that keep me striving to be a better man.
5. My grandparents who left me a substantial inheritance.
6. A house that is nearly paid for (see #5).
7. My health...it could be much, much worse.
8. Being a man. Seriously. I'm glad I'm a guy.
9. My love of music and the ability to occasionally express it.
10. My love of games of all kinds. Even if I often lose.

Day 4: Increase Your Testosterone

First off, there was a list of things to do that would naturally increase your testosterone and we were to pick three and do them today. I'm not going to bother listing what I actually did, but the whole idea intrigued me.

Why would I want to increase my testosterone? It makes sense (but not something I ever thought about before) that it naturally decreases as a man ages. I was curious about it and went out on the web looking for stuff on testosterone levels. Holy smokes. You'd think that this was some kind of apocalypse for some guys. I mean, come on....MANopause? Give me a break.

On the other hand, a low level of testosterone might explain some things in life (lack of drive/passion over any one subject, putting on weight around the middle, loss of muscle tone, etc.), but I don't really want to know what my "T" level is. If it's too low, does that make me less of a man? I spent too much of my high school years being called gay; I don't think my ego could take the scientific equivilent. And I certainly wouldn't go in for any kind of hormone treatment. To me, that just seems to be messing with things that shouldn't be messed with. I've heard horror stories about women on hormone treatment. No thanks. I'll pass.

I'll just stick with the natural methods of raising my T-levels. Seems healthier by far.

Day 3: Find a Mentor

...and I thought shining my shoes was something I didn't enjoy.

Here's the thing: I don't make friends easily. And when I do, they are usually women. There just aren't many guys that I enjoy being around. I'm not a rabid sports fan. I don't drink, cuss, or smoke. I'm married with 5 kids. I don't enjoy talking about cars, or construction projects, or other "manly" type activites. The things I do enjoy (games, dressing well, religion, self-depreciating humor, making snarky comments about life in general, etc.) has, in the past, found me interacting with someone who is too focused on that one thing - usually to the detriment of actually being a person anyone would want to be around.

Being as I don't really care about my job to find a mentor there (I'm actually a part of my company's official "Mentoring Program" where I am the actual mentor...nothing like forced mentoring...ugg) and I'm not in school anymore for an academic mentor (something I probably should have sought out back in the day), I guess this really falls into the realm of finding a guy with whom I can consciously develop a friendship.

The best place for me to start looking for that is at church. My perception, perhaps mistakenly, is that everyone else is much busier than I am. For example, we have a lot of medical professionals/students at my church. In fact, one of the guys that first jumped to mind is doing his residency at one of the busiest hospitals here in town. He's a great guy, has a young family (2 kids I believe), spiritually minded, enjoys playing games when he has the time (based on an earlier conversation we had), and is likely insanely busy.

So, what am I to do? Well, just a few minutes ago, I shot Jason (the fellow in question) an email asking if he has the time to get together for lunch every once in awhile (we work within a fairly close distance to each other). I have no idea if he will be able to do this (and I know my finances for eating out is quite limited), but at least it is a step in the right direction.

Day 2: Shine Your Shoes

Ugg. I don't really hate shining shoes, but it certainly isn't one of my more favorite activities. I was in the military, but I got some of the other guys to shine my boots for me. In exchange, I folded their t-shirts. Nowadays, I shine my Sunday shoes somewhere around 2-4 times a year. Yes, a year. Looks like that time has approached again.

This is what I started with:

The black ones are actually my Basic Military Training issue shoes from well over 15 years ago. The brown ones are my daily go-to-work shoes that I've had for about a year and never polished them. Obviously. Here is the progress I made on them:








They turned out a little darker that I expected, but overall I'm fairly pleased with the results. Now for my black "Sunday shoes" (which have been severely abused over the past few years - I never stripped the old polish off...what you see is 15+ years of accumulated build-up).





Can you guess which one I did first?





Now, compare the completed set with the first picture:







All this was done in about an hour and a half (I wasn't really paying attention to the time as I was sitting on the back porch watching my kids play in the yard). And I used only the following items that came in a kit I bought from Walmart.

30 Days to a Better Man: Day 1

One of my favorite sites online is called The Art of Manliness. During the month of June, they are doing a series of posts called 30 Days to a Better Man, which gives a task each day of the month to improve yourself as a man. Day 1 consists of Defining Your Core Values.

I ended up taking several lists that I had always had floating around in the back of my head (from books, Boy Scouts, military, etc.) and combined them, whittled them down, and prioritized the top five to get my Core Values. While I was doing this, part of the exercise was to do it with an eye of what is important to you as a Man. Overall, I'm happy with the list; each one could be broken out into several separate ones, but I think the essesence of the ideas are there.

I have to admit, this was not overly easy for me. I'm probably more shiftless than I care to admit...but that is what this is suppose to help me overcome, right? Many of the values on my initial list were not exactly values that I have, but rather values I though I should have.

Core Values That are Important to Me as a Man

1. Show my faith by my actions - a Man can talk about what he believes in all he wants, but unless his actions back it up, it doesn't mean squat.
2. Honesty - A liar just isn't a Man. Period.
3. Loyalty to my family and friends - Should a Man ever be ashamed of his family or friends? Not if he wants to have either for very long.
4. Thrifty - Having the self-control to be able to ask and answer truthful, "I want it, but can I afford it?" and "I can afford it, but do I need it?"
5. Forward-looking - You don't drive a car by constantly looking in the rearview mirror; a Man doesn't live his life by dwelling on past successes or failures.

So there they are. Here's to developing/stregthening these values in myself!

Why Do I Blog?

I made my first online blog post nearly 5 years ago (7/7/04). At the time, my posts were completely game related (not surprising as it was on boardgamegeek.com). About a year later (6/5/05) I started up this particular blog, mostly as a way to write out some thoughts. I kept it fairly private. It was my own personal sandbox. Two months later (8/12/05) I told my family about it and while topics have generally ranged all over the place, my blogging has morphed into more of a "family update" sort of thing (meaning: telling my extended family about me and my thoughts instead of about "The Family").

So here I am on my 210th entry and the question looms large (well, maybe not that large, to be honest): Why do I blog?

1. I enjoy writing on occasion.
2. It feels good to be able to put down in a semi-permanent form some of my beliefs.
3. It lets my wife know what's going on inside my head...sometimes.
4. "Keep a journal or portions, as you go along in life, a record that can be woven into a Book of Remembrance, telling of difficulties you have been able to overcome, challenges met. Express your inward feelings and thankfulness. These are part of your Book of Remembrance passed on to your children and decendants..." (although I'm not entirely sure I can "pass on" a blog to my decendants)
5. It helps in mitigating any "reconstructive memory" to which I might be susceptible.
6. There is always the possibility that something I write might affect (hopefully in a good way) some random person who came here by accident.
7. It humors me to think that I might actually be funny every once in awhile.
8. I've found I'm much more comfortable with writing that I am with speaking.
9. It's entirely possible that I might post goals and then feel somewhat compelled to stick to them and give an accounting of my progress...but don't hold your breath...
10. I can give myself a pep-talk in a way that doesn't make it feel like someone is talking down to me (prideful little bugger, ain't I?).
11. I can go off on a rant with the possibility of getting a modicum of sympathy.
12. It allows me to use words like "modicum" and other words I don't normally use in speaking.

I could probably come up with more. There are tons of topics I could write about that come along in life, but I can guarantee that very few people would be interested in reading about them (generally game related or about my passion of the moment which changes far too frequently - but I guess that hasn't really stopped me in the past. But believe me when I say it could me MUCH worse).

Sprinkle, Sprinkle, Little...umm...Sprinkler

It was warm enough yesterday for the whole family to run through the sprinkler in our backyard. Yay for being a kid again!

Thoughts on Warfare (LONG)

With all the news in the USA about interrogations lately, I thought I would write out an in-depth statement and reasoning of my views. Personally, I don’t care who knew what, or when. Those are nothing but political attacks and the proverbial pot calling the kettle black. So let’s start with some definite laws that I was taught during Military Basic Training and that we as Americans should unquestionably uphold: The Geneva Conventions.

Interrogation

Prisoners of war are only obligated to provide names, ranks, date of birth, army, personal or serial identification numbers or equivalent information. (Convention III, Art. 17)

No physical or mental torture, nor any other form of coercion may be inflicted. Prisoners who refuse to answer questions may not be threatened, insulted or exposed to unpleasant or disadvantageous treatment of any kind. (Convention III, Art. 17)

So there it is, plain as day. However, the legal rub is that in order to qualify as a “prisoner of war” an individual must first be classified as a combatant.

Combatant Status

Convention I defines combatants as members of the armed forces of a party to an international conflict, members of militias or volunteer corps including members of organized resistance movements as long as they have a well-defined chain of command, are clearly distinguishable from the civilian population, carry their arms openly, and obey the laws of war. (Convention I, Art. 13, Sec. 1 and Sec. 2)

However, other individuals, including civilians, who commit hostile acts and are captured do not have these protections. For example, civilians in an occupied territory are subject to the existing penal laws. (Convention IV, Art. 64)

The 1977 Protocols extend the definition of combatant to include any fighters who carry arms openly during preparation for an attack and during the attack itself, (Protocol I, Art. 44, Sec. 3).

A mercenary does not have the right to be a combatant or a prisoner of war. (Protocol I, Art. 37)

Are the people we commonly call terrorists considered combatants or mercenaries? Further definition of “mercenary” is needed.

Mercenaries

A mercenary is any person who is specially recruited in order to fight in an armed conflict, who takes a direct part in the hostilities, who is motivated by money and is promised substantially higher pay than that paid to other combatants of similar rank, who is not a national of one of the countries involved in the conflict nor a resident of a territory controlled by any of the parties, is not a member of the armed forces of any of the parties, and who has not been sent by another country on official duty as a member of its armed forces. (Protocol I, Art. 47)

I imagine that those who make the decisions in the military define terrorists as mercenaries and thus afforded no protections under the Geneva Conventions. The more you look into the wording of certain parts of the Geneva Conventions, the more of a gray area it seems; a case could be made for either stance. I’ve only provided examples of one side here.

However, because of the nature of the War on Terrorism, my view (with the understanding that I have no knowledge of the nature of the prisoners’ capture) tends to lean towards them being closer to mercenaries. With that being said, do I agree that torture is okay, depending on the situation? Absolutely not. Do I think “waterboarding” is torture? Yes, I do. (I have lots of reason to think so, but I won't go into them at the moment.) Even if an individual may not legally fall under the protections of the Geneva Conventions, I truly believe all captured “terrorists” should be treated as prisoners of war, and thus protected as combatants. The ends do not (and have never) justified the means.

There must be an understanding that there are higher laws than man’s. Just because something is legal doesn’t make it ethical. We are all children of God (the good and the evil among us) and should be treated as such. Just because an enemy doesn’t extend to our soldiers the same respect doesn’t make it okay for us. We need to set the example and follow the moral laws we claim to hold so dear. To do otherwise makes us seem like immature kids who whine about having to keep their rooms clean because Billy’s mom doesn’t make him clean his room.

So what is this higher, moral law? Quite simply, it is summed up thus: Do unto others as you would have done unto you. The Golden Rule. Many religions around the world have a similar phraseology:

• Judaism – “What is hateful to you, do not to your fellowmen. That is the entire Law; all the rest is commentary” (Talmud, Shabbat, 31a)
  
• Buddhism – “Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful” (Udana-Varga, 5, 18)
  
• Confucianism – “Surely it is the maxim of living-kindness: Do not unto others that you would not have them do unto you” (Analects, 15, 23)
  
• Islam – “No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself” (Sunnah)
  

Am I preaching complete pacifism? Not really. As a youth and young man, I had no problem with the thought of taking another person’s life to defend my life or that of a member of my family. I felt I had every right to proclaim a person’s life forfeit in such a situation. As a man rapidly approaching middle age, my views have altered somewhat. I have a greater understanding and appreciation of what I’ve heard called “an Eternal Perspective.”

A few years ago, I sat down with my scriptures to see if I could reason out my views of self-defense and general warfare and to find what scriptural support there was for such actions. Although I didn’t write it down at the time, I remember the general starting points and, with help from the footnotes in my scriptures, I can fairly accurately retrace my steps.

The first person I looked to was a hero of mine from the Book of Mormon: Captain Moroni, described thus:

And Moroni was a strong and a mighty man; he was a man of a perfect understanding; yea, a man that did not delight in bloodshed; a man whose soul did joy in the liberty and the freedom of his country, and his bretheren from bondage and slavery;

Yea, and he was a man who was firm in the faith of Christ, and he had sworn with an oath to defend his people, his rights, and his country, and his religion, even to the loss of his blood. (Alma 48:11, 13)

Immediately following that is this:

Now the Nephites were taught to defend themselves against their enemies, even to the shedding of blood if it were necessary; yea, and they were also taught never to give an offense, yea, and never to raise the sword except it were against an enemy, except it were to preserve their lives. (Alma 48:14)

It would be a very simple thing to stop there and think my question answered. It is even backed up by a footnote by the phrase “never to give offense” with several scripture references, the first of which leads to:

And again, the Lord has said that: Ye shall defend your families even unto bloodshed. Therefore for this cause were the Nephites contending with the Lamanites, to defend themselves, and their families, and their lands, their country, and their rights, and their religion. (Alma 43:47)

Again, more support for self-defense. The second scripture reference is 3 Nephi 3:20-21, which (perhaps having some modern application) talks about a chief captain wanting to go after a large band of robbers in the wilderness but was counseled to prepare defenses instead and wait for the enemy to come to them. From that, there are several footnotes that lead to a very apparent principle that warfare should be fairly defensive. There are plenty of examples of the “good guys” pressing an attack, but those were individual battle and not the war as a whole. A pre-emptive strike just because the “bad guys” are out there and might hurt you “someday” just isn’t supported.

Fair enough. I can accept that. However, something in the back of my head seemed to tell me that something was missing. I went back to Alma 43:47 and read the preceding verse, specifically the last part:

Inasmuch as ye are not guilty of the first offense, neither the second, ye shall not suffer yourselves to be slain by the hands of your enemies. (Alma 43:46)

First offense? Second offense? Seemed to support the “defensive warfare” model that was developing in my mind. One of the footnotes in that second leads to something Jesus taught:

And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other; and him that taketh away thy cloke forbid him not to take thy coat also. (Luke 6:29)

Wait…what? We seemed to have switched gears because Christ is giving a pretty strong teaching of pacifism here. On reflection, though, it makes sense. Be “not guilty of the first offense, neither the second.” Further enlightenment comes from yet another footnote reference:

Now, I speak unto you concerning your families – if men will smite you, or your families, once, and ye bear it patiently and revile not against them, neither seek revenge, ye shall be rewarded; But if ye bear it not patiently, it shall be accounted unto you as being meted out as a just measure unto you.

And again, if your enemy shall smite you the second time, and you revile not against your enemy, and bear it patiently, your reward shall be an hundredfold.

(skip ahead a few verses)

And then if thou wilt spare him, thou shalt be rewarded for they righteousness; and also they children and thy children’s children unto the third and fourth generation. Nevertheless, thine enemy is in thine hands; and if thou rewardest him according to his works thou art justified; if he has sought they life, and they life is endangered by him, thine enemy is in thine hands and thou are justified. (D&C 98:23-25, 31)

It goes on with some very interesting verses on how the Lord fights His peoples’ battles. However, in light of this discussion, I come away with the following:

1. We are justified in defending our families and our liberties unto the shedding of blood
   
2. The higher way Jesus would have us take is to patiently bear the afflictions given by our enemies
   
3. If we continue to “turn the other cheek,” we will be greatly blessed
   

What would I do if my family were under attack? Honestly, I don’t know. To paraphrase an old saying, I may not start a fight, but I am justified in ending it. I've told my wife often enough that I hope no one ever hurts her or one of our kids, because I'd hate to go to jail for killing someone. A lot of times, I think I meant it - but I don't truthfully know how I would react.

From what I’ve read, it seems this same principle applies to nations as well as individuals. When it comes to war, Carl von Clausewitz calls war the “continuation of political intercourse, carried on with other means” (On War, pg 87). I’m not entirely sure I agree with that. Should warfare be started just because someone doesn’t do what you want? If that nation attacked first, then by all means we are justified in doing everything in our power to protect ourselves. But there is a distinct line there – protecting our freedom versus removing the threat of attack. Again, pre-emptive strikes are just not in the program.

Many today claim war is nothing but an economic vehicle for enriching one group of people over another, or that the strong have a right to whatever the weak cannot hold. Of course I reject that completely; but what if an enemy takes control of some economic base (a commodity or property) that we as a nation feel is “ours” even if it doesn’t affect our life or liberty? Do we fight to get it back? The current war on terror seems to be a too much of a war of retaliation. Someone has done us wrong and we are going to make them pay. We are going to hunt down every threat to our people and eliminate it before they can hurt us again. It seems to fall too far outside of the bounds of a “defensive war” for my comfort. I feel we would be better served by following the council found in 3 Nephi 3:20-21 as mentioned above.

(Quick tangent: Speaking of economics and war, I’ve heard it said that war is good for the economy – after all, it got America out of the Great Depression, didn’t it? Well, one of my favorite authors, Frederic Bastiat, wrote an essay in 1850 called That Which is Seen and That Which is Unseen, which, in addition to his book The Law, should be required reading for anyone in politics. Bastiat’s essay deals with the hidden costs associated with the destruction of the property of others. Read up on the Parable of the Broken Window; it’s good stuff.)

I think a lot of warfare has to do with Pride (with a capital “P”). Too many people (of all political persuasions) have become incapable of turning the other cheek out of pride or fear of looking weak. Humility and meekness are seen as faults and not virtues as they one were. The consequences of pride in the scriptures are clear: “Pride goeth before destruction” (Proverbs 16:18). It destroyed the Nephite nation and the city of Sodom. Saul became an enemy to David because of pride. It was because of pride that Jesus was crucified. It is because of pride that too many of our men and women have already lost their lives (and I'm not talking about just those in the military). And it is because of pride that I am now watching the leaders of my country slowly (or quickly as the case may be) tear at the very foundation of our society.

Well, this has gone on much longer than I expected. Still, I'm glad I finally took the time to write all this out. I think if more of our politicians would sit down and write out what they believed (if anything) and why they believed it (other than to get votes), we might be in a better position than we are now.

There is an old Chinese saying: "Unless we change our direction we're headed, we'll end up where we're going." Amen, brother. Amen.

The Funnest Thing I've Seen In A LONG Time

#2 Pencils

Something came up the other day that has given me something to think about. Since long before I was born, it seems that every school supply list includes #2 pencils. That was the only kind of pencil I remember while I was in school and my kids use the same kind. Sure, they may look different (colors and pictures on the outside instead of the odd yellow color - a color I only ever see on #2 pencils by the way), but they are still #2 pencils.

Why? What is it about #2 pencils? Why do schools all across this country request/require #2 pencils? Because they have proven to be the best. They have stood the test of time. They are recognized as the standard.

"So what?" you may be asking yourself. Well, in this mortal life, there are certain moral values that have also stood the test of time. Some people really do believe that religion is "the opiate of the masses" and is nothing more than delusional fantasies or wishful thinking (or at the worst, hate-mongering). However, I don't "cling" to old ideas just because they are old (there are plenty of old, bad ideas), but because over the years, centuries, and millenia they have proven themselves to be the best way to happiness; that is what I want, to be happy and to have my family be happy. Sure, there are sacrifices to be made, but isn't it worth it?

As odd as it sounds, I am comparing my religious values to a #2 pencil. Dependable. Proven. Standard. And it comes with an eraser when you make mistakes...

Mellow May

I'm currently sitting at my computer listening to a James Taylor CD and feeling pretty mellow about life in general at the moment. After that, I'll probably put on my B.B. King/Eric Clapton CD...that's just the kind of mood I'm in.

I've purposely not writen anything in the past few days - irritation with current events have been running high. But right now, I'm trying to forget all that and just "chill". 

In other news, it's supposed to rain most of this week. Fine by me. I rather enjoy the rain. Besides it helps our newly planted vegetation. Speaking of which, our carrots, beans, and zuchinni have sprouted. The onions, lettuce, and strawberries seem to be doing fine as well. The tomatoes are still dead, however; gotta get those replaced.

The Modern Procrustean Bed

One rather obscure Greek legend deals with Theseus (ya know, the guy who used a ball of string to find his way out of the labyrinth after killing the minotaur who lived in it) and a bandit by the name of Procrustes. Procrustes had a bed that fit him perfectly - and he thought everyone should be just as perfect. So whenever anyone would come by, he would capture them and tie them to his bed. If that person was too short, Procrustes would stretch them until they fit; if the "guest" was too long, Procrustes would cut off an appropriate amount from the legs. Thus, "perfection" (i.e. conformity) was achieved...well, until Theseus came along and killed him, that is.

It seems in our world today, there are far too many who would take up the mantle of Procrustes and attempt to make everyone the same. It doesn't seem to matter if the process is painful, tortuous, or downright barbaric, as long as everyone fits the same standards. Fortunately, these Procrustean wannabes don't normally resort to physical mutilation. That would be too blantant and the people would rebel immediately. Unfortunately, we have to deal with the more subtle aspects of the Bed of Procrustes: Multiculturalism, political correctness, moral relativism, etc.

Too many people (and I'm not just talking about politicians here - although they can be among the most visible proponents of this way of thinking) apply their pre-conceived notions about how I should act and think, because that is the way they act and think. They do this through the redefining of words and concepts (such as "family", "modesty", "conservative", to name a few), revising history (the demonizing of the American founding fathers for example), denying the existence of evil, believing faith and reason are mutually exclusive, ignoring some laws while enforcing those that are currently popular, and (and this may seem odd coming from a self-defined champion of individuality) praising extreme individualism over duty to others and commitment to a set of values.

If you don't fit these ideas, you obviously must be blind, stupid, ignorant, out of touch, oppressive, repressive, regressive, unacceptable, unsociable, unhappy, a misogynist, and a kicker of small puppies. 

Yes, the spirit of Procrustes is alive and well.

But I refuse to just make this post about pointless complaining. I refuse to bow before the pressures of modern culture. I refuse to deny what I believe is right and true and good. I refuse to stand on the corner and point the finger of shame on those that don't believe as I do. I refuse to fall into hypocritical self-righteousness.

I will do everything in my power to be an example of what a Man is for my daughters and sons. I will teach my kids my religious and moral values, so they know where I stand (and why) when it come time for them to make their own choices. I will continue to enjoy who I am, where I live, and why I live the way I do. I will understand that everyone is different. I will believe everyone is a child of God. And by so doing, I will trust that one day the Bed of Procrustes will no longer be used as a means for achieving unity.

City Boy, Rural Dreams

I was dreaming about farms this evening. That is something I haven't done in quite awhile. Not only has owning my first house taken the wind out of my sails a bit, but seeing how nearly incompetent I am when it came to remodling the basement and general house repair almost killed the dream completely.

Not tonight, however.

I told Leslie that I wanted to get some chickens. After she recovered from the panicked, deer-in-the-headlights look, she made a sound that was vaguely reminescent of the tone people use when a stranger starts talking to you and you don't want to talk to a stranger but don't want to seem rude. I'm pretty sure she thought she had married an idiot. Actually, I figure if she is only just figuring that out after 12 years, then I can't be held responsible.

There is actually a city ordinance that regulates (but doesn't forbid) chickens to be raised within the city limits. They also allow bee hives. I want chickens (I'd prefer ducks, but that's a story for another time). I want bees. I want a greenhouse filled with veggies. Actually I want a few acres of some kind of grain. My dad had some of this. Chickens, a cow, sheep, rabbits, a garden, an old beat-up truck.

I have a cat and a minivan. 

And some dead tomato plants.

Unfortunately for me, my dad is a better man than I am. He may not think so, but life has a funny way of making someone not realize they are more important than they think. As I sit in my house (basement still not finished) with my wife and five kids, I look back in complete awe at what my father was able to accomplish. But I'm getting off topic...

Whether or not any of my animal husbandry/agricultural dreams ever come true, it was nice to be able to dream and plot and scheme like that again.

At Home In School, In School At Home

Well, we finally made it official: Mary is going to be homeschooled next year. The others will continue to go to public school, but this really is the best thing for Mary at this point. Why? Well, Mary is 11 and going into 6th grade. She takes after me, academically speaking, than she does Leslie (Mrs. Summa Cum Laude from WSU) - which isn't to say she is struggling as much as I did in school. Still, you add that to the horror of what passes for pre-teen culture in this country these days... I wouldn't mind if all my kids decided to homeschool.

We are using the K12 program and working closely with our school district. Leslie is looking forward to it, Mary is beside herself with excitement, and I wish I could stay home as well to be more involved. This is something that I have always wanted to do with my kids. Something about it just appeals to me.

It is a new experience for us all and I think it will go well (with some expected rough spots at times). And here's a big, fat, "Phhhhbt!" to my kids' current teachers.

The Cone of Shame

I like cats.

Last Thanksgiving we got a cat. It was at a reasonable price too...free. In my opinion, that is the only acceptable price for a cat. I've had a cat before, but it was a completely new experience for the rest of the family.

She was a little female calico kitten (only a couple of months old) who we decided we would name Cali. I generally call it "Dumb Cat" while my wife leans towards "Crazy Cat". I actually do like cats, but I feel its important to try to keep them in their place. We all know they have evil schemes and continuously plot World Domination. I suspect I'm fairly high on the hit list when the goons come around. Actually, I'd fairly confident some of the kids aren't to far behind me, what with the way they maul her sometimes when they come home from school. 

At any rate, we decided to have her fixed last week. Why it is called being "fixed" I'll never know. The vet really isn't "fixing" anything. As a matter of fact, I'm pretty sure he's doing the exact opposite; our cat is most decidedly "broken." Well, this ball of fuzz came home with a shaved belly and a rather unpleasant expression on her face. When she regained her walking ability, she immediately went under Isaiah's bed to sulk. 

Unfortunately, she started licking the incision site. While that didn't cause any problem with the stiches, it irritated the skin all around and she had to be taken back in today to make sure there was nothing wrong. The vet checked her out, pronounced her clean, and proceeded to outfit her with the Cone of Shame (yes, the capital letters are necessary). 

For those unfamiliar with the Cone of Shame, imagine your pet being turned into a lamp with an inverted lampshade over its head. Actually, Cali looks less like a lamp and more like a tiny, mobile radar system. Watching her walk is rather amusing too. Any chance she can, she rubs along a surface in an attempt to scrape the silly thing off. This was after several failed attempts at sitting upright on her haunches and using both front paws to try to push it up and off.

Even if it didn't serve the purpose of keeping her from licking her wounds, it would still be highly amusing. I am not, however (wink, wink), suggesting that one be put on any animal for the sheer fun of it (wink, wink). That would be Wrong.

I like cats.

Writer's Envy (and my 200th post)

I'm feeling a bit envious today. I don't particularly find my job intellectually stimulating on good days (it pays the bills, barely, and I have quite a bit of freedom, but still...), but I was scanning through a blog written by someone whose writing I really enjoy. She's had articles, stories, plays, a book, etc. published and works for a company that puts a lot of emphasis on creative writing (even if I'm not entirely sure what exactly she does during the day).

I'm not saying I am not appreciative of what I have or want to give up/change my life, but I do have an annoying feeling of envy. One of the reasons I started blogging way back when (200 posts ago!) is because I wanted to be able to have a place to get thoughts from my head into a written form (and I'm a much faster typing than I am with my penmanship).

Ursula K. LeGuin (a favorite author from my childhood) gave two responses to people who asked her how to become a writer. First, learn to type. Second, start writing. By that, she meant just start putting something, anything, down on paper (or on-screen nowadays). A lot of it is going to be terrible, but if you don't start somewhere, you'll never get better and you'll never develop those seeds that are planted deep in your brain.

I spent a good portion of my teenage years writing all kinds of stuff, alone or with my friends. I started slacking off after my first year in college (1992-93) and only in the past few years have I even attempted to start back up. It's not easy. Especially now that I'm older and have a lot more garbage running around upstairs. Not only that, but there is the time issue as well. There are so many things in life that I want/should be doing that it is difficult (impossible) to find time for everything. How much time should I spend on frivolous pursuits that I enjoy when I should be making sure my family is comfortable and my duties are done?

What do I want to be when I grow up? I guess that is the crux of the issue. Too schizophrentic in my pursuits with not enough passion in any one to keep it up for any length of time. To steal/paraphrase a quote from a movie: "It's my lot in life. It's not a lot, but it's my life."

I Really Need More Exercise

...Anyhoo...back on an even keel now...

Middle age is starting to catch up with my middle. It's not bad, mind you, but it certainly isn't great. I've lost a lot of my "tone" over the past decade, even if I haven't put on much weight. There are a couple of new pools being built around town; that might help provide some motivation.

I'm not a complete potato, however. I do take the stairs (up to the 5th floor) every day I go to work. But I really could do more. Blah, blah, blah... I'm a great procrastinator and it's probably going to kill me in another 50 years or so.

...and here's a picture from last summer...enjoy!

Xenophobia in America

Well, besides me potentially (or even highly likely) to be categorized by some in our country as a "right-wing extremist", I do have some issues with some of my fellow conservatives.

Last week, I attended one of those local tax day tea parties (we had a couple thousand show up...not a bad turnout). Overall it was enjoyable. We had some good speakers and a lot of it revolved around constitutional basics. Good stuff. Unfortunately, the whole experience was ruined (for me anyway) by one of the last speakers. I don't know who this woman was or where she came from, but she was so full of hatred and self-righteousness that was truly appalling. She took a rally that had been (up to that point) fairly neutral as far as political parties went and started bashing specific people in the Democratic party and liberals in general.

The low point in the whole deal was when she started going off the handle about President Obama's comment about the USA not being a Christian nation. Now, I'm about as Christian a guy as you'll find (and no fan of Obama), but she was spouting such intolerant crap (generally towards Muslims) that I was embarrassed to even be there. I feel I have a pretty good understanding of was Obama meant (even if he said it in a completely dreadful way) and I understand the reaction to that statement. But come on... If what this lady was saying and what the masses were cheering on went to it's logical conclusion, they would want all Muslims, Jews, Hindi, etc. kicked out of the country (and I KNOW there are a lot of people who don't think my religion is Christian).

Amendment One of the United States Constitution states: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..." Stick that in your intolerant pipe and smoke it.

And not only that (now that I have my bile up), conservatives (of which I consider myself a strong part of) need to stop turning the illegal immigration issue into such a racist quagmire. Yes, illegal immigration is an problem and should be dealt with (change the current immigration policy we have in this country and enforce the immigration laws with strictness - including slapping those businesses that hire illegals), but I am getting so SICK of people looking down on someone because English isn't their first language.

And that's another thing: English isn't the official language of this country, nor should it be! So what if you have to "Press 1 for English" on your flipping phone whenever you call some big company! I do it every single day at my job. It's not a big deal. Whatever happened to the great promise of this country as summed up by the Statue of Liberty inscription:

"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me.
I lift my lamp beside the golden door."

The Native Americans didn't like the Western Europeans when they came over; the Western Europeans didn't like the Eastern Europeans; the Eastern Europeans didn't like the Asians. What a bunch of intolerant crap. Ever hear of the Melting Pot (or perhaps we're more like a Mixed Salad)? If you truly believe we are all children of God, then act like it!

(***big breath***)

...nope, not ready yet...

(***another big breath***)

Government based on the Constitution - now and forever. Leave your personal bigotry in your head. I don't want to hear it.

Woo Hoo! Spring is Back!

(I'm going to ignore the fact that I haven't posted anything in almost a year. Just roll with it...)

So with the warming of the weather (*cough*snowed last week*cough*), I'm getting out and doing some outside work on the house. We have three big outside projects going on right now:

1. Trimming back the foliage that is threatening to topple over and/or grow INTO our house.
   
2. Planting and sprucing up our front flower beds.
   
3. Getting our vegetable garden started (we're doing container gardening where everything is in buckets/pots)

I'll take these one at a time. First off, I can officially say I have pruned the hedges (any "Three Amigos" fans out there?) I bought a pair of huge shears and went to town on the shubbery separating our house from the next-door neighbors. They've been neglected for years, but a little straightening up has done wonders for them.

Also, there is a errant tree planted right in front of our house. I don't particularly like that type of tree, but it does provide a ton of shade to the front window in the summer. Unfortunately, one of the large branches was starting to grow dangerously close to the roof. So, being the manly-man that I am (*cough*), I grab my handsaw (didn't want to buy a chainsaw for just one limb) and proceeded to hack that bad boy off. Once my arm recovered and I regained consciousness from being whacked on the head by a mysterious falling branch, it occurred to me that perhaps I should cut back on the manly pursuits for awhile.

Front yard flower beds:

'Nuff said.

Vegetable gardening is something new to us...kind of. We had a bunch of pots sitting around so we decided to see if we could grow some veggies. We had tomato plants last year, but they were given to us. This year we have tomatoes, leaf lettuce, carrots, zuchinni, bush beans, onions (walla-walla sweets), and strawberries. We'll see what happens...