I didn't think about it until I read someone's blog about the death of her mother and sister. My mom died 5 yrs. ago next month. I didn't realize how fast the time had gone by. Like it was just yesterday. I had been to her gravesite several times but perhaps not enough.
In my mind I play back the events of our lives as if it was a recorded movie. More often I remember the stupid arguments we had, two headstrong people of German heritage who could not compromise; who always thought their way was the best. Her favorite expression was "learn from the mistakes of others." I couldn't see it. Her mistakes were not going to be my mistakes. We were in different times, different places, and different sexes. We were so different, and yet so much the same. I see my mother in myself. We have the same drive and determination, the same ambition (or lack of it).
Mom, I wish we could have had decent conversations, like two sensible people. There are questions that I think of now that I wish I had asked. But then I thought you would always be there; and now you're not.
Thank you Suzette for jogging my mind.
K.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Baby It's Cold Outsise
It’s cold outside; and the temperature will continue to drop well below freezing. The oil in the car’s crankcase is the thickness of molasses. It will take several minutes of running before it will warm up to anything resembling a free flowing liquid. Material goods such as wooden picnic tables or fences, protective plastic covers and metal steering components on cars become brittle and take on new physical properties completely different than their milder weather counterparts. Simply put, they break under strain that normally would never affect them. Car windows, doors and locks are prone to freezing. Car batteries become 50% as efficient during deep cold cycles. Cursing in frustration becomes a new occupation.
Going outside becomes difficult as exposed flesh of the face, ears, hands give up their precious heat to the brutally cold temperature. Walking the dog becomes a chore for both animal and human; the only difference between the two is that the animal knows when it’s time to seek shelter. The human will try to extend his endurance to the cold out of ignorance, pride or pleasure, sometimes a combination of all three. The sensation of pain during the thawing frostbite is a great reminder of our stupidity.
Our only consolation to these extremes is out memory of the pleasant spring weather that is just around the corner. These include our thoughts of the early flowers, the tree buds and grass shoots that begin to carpet our lawns and parks. Also coming to mind are the visions of road repair crews as they rid the street of the cavernous chuckholes that pox the surfaces. So cheer up, spring is just a robin’s chirp away.
K.
Going outside becomes difficult as exposed flesh of the face, ears, hands give up their precious heat to the brutally cold temperature. Walking the dog becomes a chore for both animal and human; the only difference between the two is that the animal knows when it’s time to seek shelter. The human will try to extend his endurance to the cold out of ignorance, pride or pleasure, sometimes a combination of all three. The sensation of pain during the thawing frostbite is a great reminder of our stupidity.
Our only consolation to these extremes is out memory of the pleasant spring weather that is just around the corner. These include our thoughts of the early flowers, the tree buds and grass shoots that begin to carpet our lawns and parks. Also coming to mind are the visions of road repair crews as they rid the street of the cavernous chuckholes that pox the surfaces. So cheer up, spring is just a robin’s chirp away.
K.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Global Warming and You
I was asked once what I thought about global warming; I'm afraid the answer I gave at that time really didn't have a lot of thought put into it. So here goes. Yes global warming is happening, it can be serious, but we must stop paying lip service and start doing something about it. Why must we always assume that industry has the greater responsibility when we as individuals have equally as important stake in this venture?
The motoring public has got to stop driving at 65 to 70 mph in order to get somewhere. Traveling at a lesser speed of 55 mph will only take a few minutes longer to get to our destination but will save gasoline, tire and mechanical wear on your car. Don't forget to check tire pressures to help increase gas mileage. Put them slightly higher (two pounds) than the number recommended on the sticker in the driver's doorjamb. If given a choice, consider using taller, narrower tires when replacement time comes; always replace tires in pairs, one on each side of the car.
Car-pool or share a ride if you can. Try to minimize the number of times you start and stop your car by combining your chores. Park your car at the mall so you can walk from one shopping destination to another.
Use slightly thinner oil in the winter, for example 10W30 instead of 10W40 or 5W30 instead of 10W30; oil tends to get very thick when cold.
Clean out your car so that you don't drag an unnecessary amount of weight from place to place (I'm the most guilty of this one.) Wax or polish your car often; a smooth surfaced paint job will help reduce drag. Remove radio antenna adornments and old bumper stickers for the same reason.
Try to keep room temperatures at 68 F. during the winter and 78 F. during the summer. If you're cold, put on a sweater but don't turn up the temperature in the whole house just because you are a little cool.
Insulate your home to keep out drafts and save on heating costs. Think about having a smaller, electric hot water tank installed closer to where you need the hot water like in the kitchen or bathroom. Turn off lights in a room you're not using. Close doors to rooms that are seldom used to avoid heating or cooling them to the same temperature as the rest of the building.
Lines dry some of your clothes, and then after they're dry, tumble them in a cold drier to soften them up.
Dry cell batteries that are too weak to be used in radios, Ipods, etc. can still be used in clocks because of their extremely low electrical draw.
An extreme measure to reduce fuel costs would be to reduce work travel time by moving closer to your job or to get a job closer to your home. This is easier said than done.
These are just a few ideas to save energy. The goal is to look around you to see what you can do to save a nonrenewable source of energy and not to demand that industry is the only means to accomplish this objective.
K.
The motoring public has got to stop driving at 65 to 70 mph in order to get somewhere. Traveling at a lesser speed of 55 mph will only take a few minutes longer to get to our destination but will save gasoline, tire and mechanical wear on your car. Don't forget to check tire pressures to help increase gas mileage. Put them slightly higher (two pounds) than the number recommended on the sticker in the driver's doorjamb. If given a choice, consider using taller, narrower tires when replacement time comes; always replace tires in pairs, one on each side of the car.
Car-pool or share a ride if you can. Try to minimize the number of times you start and stop your car by combining your chores. Park your car at the mall so you can walk from one shopping destination to another.
Use slightly thinner oil in the winter, for example 10W30 instead of 10W40 or 5W30 instead of 10W30; oil tends to get very thick when cold.
Clean out your car so that you don't drag an unnecessary amount of weight from place to place (I'm the most guilty of this one.) Wax or polish your car often; a smooth surfaced paint job will help reduce drag. Remove radio antenna adornments and old bumper stickers for the same reason.
Try to keep room temperatures at 68 F. during the winter and 78 F. during the summer. If you're cold, put on a sweater but don't turn up the temperature in the whole house just because you are a little cool.
Insulate your home to keep out drafts and save on heating costs. Think about having a smaller, electric hot water tank installed closer to where you need the hot water like in the kitchen or bathroom. Turn off lights in a room you're not using. Close doors to rooms that are seldom used to avoid heating or cooling them to the same temperature as the rest of the building.
Lines dry some of your clothes, and then after they're dry, tumble them in a cold drier to soften them up.
Dry cell batteries that are too weak to be used in radios, Ipods, etc. can still be used in clocks because of their extremely low electrical draw.
An extreme measure to reduce fuel costs would be to reduce work travel time by moving closer to your job or to get a job closer to your home. This is easier said than done.
These are just a few ideas to save energy. The goal is to look around you to see what you can do to save a nonrenewable source of energy and not to demand that industry is the only means to accomplish this objective.
K.
Partnership in the Family Training
Teaching kids to become good parents in not something that you learn in school (although it should be), it’s assumed that this is taught in the home. If the home life is flawed, so is the teaching. Having had some formal teacher training (but never went into the field) I think I can speak with a little experience. We expect our children to learn everything necessary in life thought our educational process. Parents literally take a backseat in the educational process; they except their children will learn it all at school. Since there are only so many hours in a day, something has to give and one of them is the rules of the family.
1. You don’t discipline a child when you have had a rough day at the job or when you’re pissed off.
2. You don’t take your frustrations out on your spouse.
3. Your attitude (or lack of it) will get you into more trouble than you can imagine. Don’t force it on others; you may be the ultimate looser.
4. Drinking or drugs are not way to solve your problems. They can only lead to more problems. You life is not just your life; it is involved with the whole family. They depend upon you.
5. Go home after work; don’t think that going out with the work gang is the solution to your problems. They may actual be the problem. Tell your spouse that you are happy to see them and they are the bright spot of your day (and actually mean it).
6. Truly love your children and tell them so. Tell them how happy you are when they came into your life, that you love them and they mean the whole world to you. Watch how they react to this and you will be amazed. Love is contagious.
7. Help your spouse out around the house; assist them any why you can. No one likes to do it all alone.
8. Don’t nag you spouse thinking you will get them to do something. You don’t like it when someone does this to you, what makes you think that your spouse will like it any better?
9. Everyone makes mistakes. Comfort your spouse or child when you see they realize they screwed up.
10. You’re not invincible, you’re not the end-all to all problems or solutions, and you’re not the only one with an opinion. Loosen up!
K.
1. You don’t discipline a child when you have had a rough day at the job or when you’re pissed off.
2. You don’t take your frustrations out on your spouse.
3. Your attitude (or lack of it) will get you into more trouble than you can imagine. Don’t force it on others; you may be the ultimate looser.
4. Drinking or drugs are not way to solve your problems. They can only lead to more problems. You life is not just your life; it is involved with the whole family. They depend upon you.
5. Go home after work; don’t think that going out with the work gang is the solution to your problems. They may actual be the problem. Tell your spouse that you are happy to see them and they are the bright spot of your day (and actually mean it).
6. Truly love your children and tell them so. Tell them how happy you are when they came into your life, that you love them and they mean the whole world to you. Watch how they react to this and you will be amazed. Love is contagious.
7. Help your spouse out around the house; assist them any why you can. No one likes to do it all alone.
8. Don’t nag you spouse thinking you will get them to do something. You don’t like it when someone does this to you, what makes you think that your spouse will like it any better?
9. Everyone makes mistakes. Comfort your spouse or child when you see they realize they screwed up.
10. You’re not invincible, you’re not the end-all to all problems or solutions, and you’re not the only one with an opinion. Loosen up!
K.
Monday, January 21, 2008
The goal of the goalie is to keep the scoring ball away
What is the meaning of life, the purposed of life? You really don't have to go to the Oracle of Delphi to find out. Having been off a number of days during the Christmas and New Year's holiday, and now being back at work, I've learned a few things—about life. It's nothing as lofty as you might think. It's very simple. Life needs a purpose, a goal in order to work effectively. Without a goal, or purpose, life is much more aimless; there is no direction. We wander, we are listless, and we wallow in self-pity. We become uncomfortable in our situation.
So where do we start? When we're in school, out goal is to finish, to graduate. We have a goal and purpose. After graduation there is another goal, to get a job and become successful, so we seek that out. It is necessary to always have purpose in order to have direction. We must always have another one at hand as we finish up our first. It fact it is possible to have several working out at one time.
That is why people seem to waste away when they're out of work for a while, either retired or downsized. They are crushed with self pity or remorse. There is no goal or purpose to guide them, period.
K.
So where do we start? When we're in school, out goal is to finish, to graduate. We have a goal and purpose. After graduation there is another goal, to get a job and become successful, so we seek that out. It is necessary to always have purpose in order to have direction. We must always have another one at hand as we finish up our first. It fact it is possible to have several working out at one time.
That is why people seem to waste away when they're out of work for a while, either retired or downsized. They are crushed with self pity or remorse. There is no goal or purpose to guide them, period.
K.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
And just when you thought you had seen it all....
While the Screen Writers Guild strike is still on and you’re sick of looking at reruns and syndicated reruns, you must log on to YouTube.com if not for the fun of it at least for the education. There you will find an eleven year old girl field stripping her father’s semi automatic AR15. In today’s day and age it may not be her father’s civilian version of a military rifle but her very own. She was damn good at it too; she took it apart and put it back together in time that would make a Marine recruit blush. Imagine a drill instructor saying, “Its’ so easy an eleven year old girl can do it.” I also saw an anorexic, ninety-pound bikini clad girl shoot her boyfriends Desert Eagle. The recoil was so violent (or she was so under nourished) the barrel of the gun flew back and hit her in the nose.
Another young women discussed the nuances of the 1911 model semi automatic pistol. I didn’t know that several manufacturers made the same gun to government specifications or that it came in single or double action versions; it also it available with single or double stack magazines in various calibers. And still a forth young woman (possibly the older sister of our eleven year old field stripper) pointed out the features of daddy’s AR15 and shot off a few rounds for emphasis.
The most dramatic scene however, was when “dad” showed off his home modified, totally automatic AR15. He proceeded to demonstrate its ability to fire off 300 rounds in less than a minute, which included 3 magazine changes. Now that’s “protection.” If you’re a hunter you could feed the whole city with the rapid way you could knock down a gaggle of geese. You would need a kennel of dogs to fetch the carcasses to bring them home. I really wouldn’t call that type of hunting a “sport.” But hey this is America and he does have the right to bear arms. What is even more interesting is that he transported all this equipment to the gun range in his car with his family. Restrictions, what restrictions? This is America and he can do whatever he damn well pleases. Wouldn’t you feel safer living in the house next to his? “Look Dad, more geese.”
K.
Another young women discussed the nuances of the 1911 model semi automatic pistol. I didn’t know that several manufacturers made the same gun to government specifications or that it came in single or double action versions; it also it available with single or double stack magazines in various calibers. And still a forth young woman (possibly the older sister of our eleven year old field stripper) pointed out the features of daddy’s AR15 and shot off a few rounds for emphasis.
The most dramatic scene however, was when “dad” showed off his home modified, totally automatic AR15. He proceeded to demonstrate its ability to fire off 300 rounds in less than a minute, which included 3 magazine changes. Now that’s “protection.” If you’re a hunter you could feed the whole city with the rapid way you could knock down a gaggle of geese. You would need a kennel of dogs to fetch the carcasses to bring them home. I really wouldn’t call that type of hunting a “sport.” But hey this is America and he does have the right to bear arms. What is even more interesting is that he transported all this equipment to the gun range in his car with his family. Restrictions, what restrictions? This is America and he can do whatever he damn well pleases. Wouldn’t you feel safer living in the house next to his? “Look Dad, more geese.”
K.
The NRA and Your Rights -the Right to a Safe Work Place
I must admire the tenacity of the National Rifle Association. They have a very specific agenda, protecting the Second Amendment rights of Americans— namely the right to bear arms when ever, and wherever they choose to do so. Case in point twelve workers at a Weyerhaeuser Company plant in Oklahoma were fired in the fall of 2002 because they violated a company policy of bring guns onto the plant property. The guns were kept in their cars or trucks in the company parking lot. Two thirds of the fired employees challenged their firing, saying it violated their right to bear arms. The court and the appeals court ruled in favor of Weyerhaeuser. For the life of me, I can’t figure out why twelve guys would want to bring guns to work even if they didn’t bring them into the plant. Was getting the jump on hunting season that important or were they planning on attending a gun show or gun meet right after work?
“Should people who lawfully possess firearms be able to leave them locked in their motor vehicles, on business property? Common sense would say, ‘yes.’ All 50 states allow the transportation of firearms in motor vehicles for all lawful purposes and 48 states allow the carrying of firearms in vehicles for personal protection, in some manner. More than one of every four of America’s 65-80 million gun owners carries a firearm in his or her vehicle for protection.” Copyright 2008, National Rifle Association of America, Institute for Legislative Action.
I like the part in the paragraph above saying “common sense would say, ‘yes.’” If they’re not company security they should leave their toys at home and not bring them to work to show off to their friends or worse, take out the boss or co-workers when they get pissed off. If you’re in a plant and you need “protection” are you going to run out to your car, load your gun (hopefully you had enough sense to leave it unloaded when you hit road bumps) and run back into the plant to protect someone or something? “Hey man, I saw how you looked at my girl.” I also like the part of 25% of the gun owners carrying guns in their cars. It gives a new meaning to road rage.
On January 16th the Georgia legislature will consider parking lot stored guns on company property. I hope they choose wisely. If I had my way the only gun(s) an individual could own would be the kind that the Founding Fathers of the Constitution were familiar with. These would be the smooth bore, flintlock, single shot, black powder muskets and pistols of 1776. Nothing more would due. Keep it up NRA, I’m “gunning” for you.
K
“Should people who lawfully possess firearms be able to leave them locked in their motor vehicles, on business property? Common sense would say, ‘yes.’ All 50 states allow the transportation of firearms in motor vehicles for all lawful purposes and 48 states allow the carrying of firearms in vehicles for personal protection, in some manner. More than one of every four of America’s 65-80 million gun owners carries a firearm in his or her vehicle for protection.” Copyright 2008, National Rifle Association of America, Institute for Legislative Action.
I like the part in the paragraph above saying “common sense would say, ‘yes.’” If they’re not company security they should leave their toys at home and not bring them to work to show off to their friends or worse, take out the boss or co-workers when they get pissed off. If you’re in a plant and you need “protection” are you going to run out to your car, load your gun (hopefully you had enough sense to leave it unloaded when you hit road bumps) and run back into the plant to protect someone or something? “Hey man, I saw how you looked at my girl.” I also like the part of 25% of the gun owners carrying guns in their cars. It gives a new meaning to road rage.
On January 16th the Georgia legislature will consider parking lot stored guns on company property. I hope they choose wisely. If I had my way the only gun(s) an individual could own would be the kind that the Founding Fathers of the Constitution were familiar with. These would be the smooth bore, flintlock, single shot, black powder muskets and pistols of 1776. Nothing more would due. Keep it up NRA, I’m “gunning” for you.
K
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