I'm on a social website called Facebook to keep a bit more in touch with my family, plus it's fun. However, today I learned how mindless it can get. There are whole lists of things, places, products and people that you can become a"fan" of. Unfortunately, you can spend 20 minutes running down pages of lists and clicking things you are fans of, without wondering whether you want to be a fan of something that sounds cool, or whether you really know anything about what you're becoming a fan of. Is there any purpose to it? I'm certainly not sure. Still, I just became a fan of dozens of places, organisations, and foods. Did I accomplish anything but to fill up 20 minutes of time I could have used elsewhere? I guess I can put it down to playing.
We've really run the gamut in weather this past week. We got one of our usual temperature inversions, with the resulting polution being pretty severe for over a week. The polution became fog for a couple of days. In fact, my drive home last Thursday night was pretty rough. Then we got rain for a couple of days, which turned into snow yesterday. That led to shoveling and other fun things. It's still January, so I'm sure we'll have more snow. If I was the boss of winter, I'd mostly keep the snow in the mountains, and the rain in the valley. Nobody seems to be assigning me the job, so I guess I'll have to deal with what is.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
A New Day
Yesterday, America made history. We elected the first African-American as President. It was noteworthy that his inauguration was one day after we celebrate Martin Luther King's birthday. It's like his dream finally came true.
As wonderful as that is, the really exciting thing is the calber of man that we have elected. That he is African-American, is just icing on the cake.
My impression of Barrack Obama, is of a man who is comfortable in his own skin, someone who has confidence in his vision of how things should be, but not afraid to ask for help. He seems to be open to opposing views and other ideas. He certainly seems to be someone open to the modern world, it's technologies and new ideas. He still wants us to remember all the values that America was built on. He's asking us to help build a new vision of our world, incorporating all those values. It's so refreshing to be asked to do something other than to "go shopping"! He recognises that "We the people" are ultimately responsible for the direction our country goes. He can lead, but we need to follow. We can't ignore things that are wrong in our country, niether can we wring our hands and cry that we can't do anything.
The problems facing our nation are so vast that we're going to have to be patient. We need to give things time, and we can't expect miracles. President Obama is a man, a good and intelligent man, but he'll probably make mistakes. We need to keep supporting him anyway. Who among us hasn't made mistakes
As wonderful as that is, the really exciting thing is the calber of man that we have elected. That he is African-American, is just icing on the cake.
My impression of Barrack Obama, is of a man who is comfortable in his own skin, someone who has confidence in his vision of how things should be, but not afraid to ask for help. He seems to be open to opposing views and other ideas. He certainly seems to be someone open to the modern world, it's technologies and new ideas. He still wants us to remember all the values that America was built on. He's asking us to help build a new vision of our world, incorporating all those values. It's so refreshing to be asked to do something other than to "go shopping"! He recognises that "We the people" are ultimately responsible for the direction our country goes. He can lead, but we need to follow. We can't ignore things that are wrong in our country, niether can we wring our hands and cry that we can't do anything.
The problems facing our nation are so vast that we're going to have to be patient. We need to give things time, and we can't expect miracles. President Obama is a man, a good and intelligent man, but he'll probably make mistakes. We need to keep supporting him anyway. Who among us hasn't made mistakes
Sunday, January 18, 2009
The Blows of Life
Sometimes it seems that life can really hit you hard. It just hauls off and gives you a big kick!
In our local newspaper, I read a story recently that made me sad and glad. This woman, is 61 years old and had been diagnosed a year ago with MS. Her husband of 40 years, found an older mobile home in an established mobile home park and moved her into it. Then he sold their home and disappeared. She's not heard from him since, and has no idea were he is. Maybe he didn't want to take care of her, or maybe he just didn't want to watch her deteriorate. I guess"in sickness or health" was part of the marriage vows he forgot.
Unfortunately, the furnace didn't work and the water heater was shot. She had no hot water and no heat. She did, however, have electricity and a roof over her head. She also had caring nieghbors who found out about her plight. They got her an electric blanket to help her keep warm at nights, and on the colder nights had her sleep in their mobile home and offered her their shower. This lady can only walk with a walker. She can't work, but has disabilty payments of which, her lot rent takes up half. She goes to the local food pantry to supplement her food.
A really great thing happened. Her situation became known to a contractor and a plumber in town. She now has a new furnace and a new water heater with new pipes. All of this was donated and completed by her birthday. She figures that a warm home and hot water for a bath, is about the best birthday gift she's ever received.
It just goes to show, life can bash you around, but it can also lead you to good people and better days.
In our local newspaper, I read a story recently that made me sad and glad. This woman, is 61 years old and had been diagnosed a year ago with MS. Her husband of 40 years, found an older mobile home in an established mobile home park and moved her into it. Then he sold their home and disappeared. She's not heard from him since, and has no idea were he is. Maybe he didn't want to take care of her, or maybe he just didn't want to watch her deteriorate. I guess"in sickness or health" was part of the marriage vows he forgot.
Unfortunately, the furnace didn't work and the water heater was shot. She had no hot water and no heat. She did, however, have electricity and a roof over her head. She also had caring nieghbors who found out about her plight. They got her an electric blanket to help her keep warm at nights, and on the colder nights had her sleep in their mobile home and offered her their shower. This lady can only walk with a walker. She can't work, but has disabilty payments of which, her lot rent takes up half. She goes to the local food pantry to supplement her food.
A really great thing happened. Her situation became known to a contractor and a plumber in town. She now has a new furnace and a new water heater with new pipes. All of this was donated and completed by her birthday. She figures that a warm home and hot water for a bath, is about the best birthday gift she's ever received.
It just goes to show, life can bash you around, but it can also lead you to good people and better days.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Reading
I've been a bit lax in my posting. Maybe it's cause I spend too much time reading and not writing. I just finished "Thud" by Terry Pratchett. I have so many of my books put away, due to my moving. I'd forgotten how much I enjoy Pratchett's Disc World series. These books can make you laugh out loud. They are also a comment on human nature.
In this book, we meet Sam Vines again, chief of police in Ankmorpok. He's now a Duke, thanks to marrying Sylvia. His one absolute in life, other than being a "copper", is being home at 6pm to read "Where's My Cow?" to Sam junior. It's a picture book, suitible for a small toddler. Inspector Vimes even manages to yell it from memory from hundreds of feet under ground, and Sam Jr. hears it. Of course, the disc world has it's magic.
The main idea of the book is to discover the secret of Koom Valley, and to stop the fighting between Dwarf and Troll, before they reinact the Battle of Koom Valley.There are some great side stories about different kinds of people learning to get along, like werewolves and vampires, who normally don't get along. (Imagine that)
I enjoyed the book so much, I'm thinking of re-reading some of the first ones, especially the ones about witches. Unfortunately, I don't think I still have them. Time to get a library card.
In this book, we meet Sam Vines again, chief of police in Ankmorpok. He's now a Duke, thanks to marrying Sylvia. His one absolute in life, other than being a "copper", is being home at 6pm to read "Where's My Cow?" to Sam junior. It's a picture book, suitible for a small toddler. Inspector Vimes even manages to yell it from memory from hundreds of feet under ground, and Sam Jr. hears it. Of course, the disc world has it's magic.
The main idea of the book is to discover the secret of Koom Valley, and to stop the fighting between Dwarf and Troll, before they reinact the Battle of Koom Valley.There are some great side stories about different kinds of people learning to get along, like werewolves and vampires, who normally don't get along. (Imagine that)
I enjoyed the book so much, I'm thinking of re-reading some of the first ones, especially the ones about witches. Unfortunately, I don't think I still have them. Time to get a library card.
Monday, January 05, 2009
The New Year, So Far
One of the first changes for the new year is that my work hours have been cut. During the holidays I usually work 4 days per week. I was trying to prepare myself for the decrease in income when I usually go back to 3 days per week. Suddenly, I have to re-do my budget again. I'll only be working 2 days per week, at least in January. It could be worse, some are cut to one day some weeks. Even the fulltime people have to give up one day a week. We are just not getting the orders for demos as much. Hopefully, as time goes on, things will pick up. There is one advantage, one less day a week to deal with driving in a snow storm.
Speaking of snowstorms, we had a fun one last Friday. I'd been hoping it would hold off until I got home, but it didn't. It started raining around 6 pm. By the time I got off at 7 pm, it was beginning to snow. When I got to I- 80, the snow flakes were getting big and visability was getting worse every moment. When I first got onto the freeway, there were 4 lanes with totally invisable lines. You headed where you thought you should be, then prayed. Eventually, as I got farther west, the freeway is down to 2 lanes each way, so I just hugged the outside lane, listening for the bump, bump, bump sound that would tell me I was too far to the right. People were being pretty careful, only going around 30 mph. The roads were so slushy, that when anyone passed, they gave you a slush bath. Luckily, I had put new windshield whipers on a couple of weeks ago. Needless to say, I finally arrived home safely.
The next day, it took me 10 or 15 minutes to get my car door unfrozen and opened. The road crews had done thier jobs during the night and the roads were in pretty good shape. It was a fast moving storm, sort of hit and run. Lots better than those storms that hang around for days. I must admit that everything was pretty the next morning when we went out to clear the driveway. The sun was shining and the trees were covered in thick snow. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture. Maybe next storm, it's only January, after all.
Speaking of snowstorms, we had a fun one last Friday. I'd been hoping it would hold off until I got home, but it didn't. It started raining around 6 pm. By the time I got off at 7 pm, it was beginning to snow. When I got to I- 80, the snow flakes were getting big and visability was getting worse every moment. When I first got onto the freeway, there were 4 lanes with totally invisable lines. You headed where you thought you should be, then prayed. Eventually, as I got farther west, the freeway is down to 2 lanes each way, so I just hugged the outside lane, listening for the bump, bump, bump sound that would tell me I was too far to the right. People were being pretty careful, only going around 30 mph. The roads were so slushy, that when anyone passed, they gave you a slush bath. Luckily, I had put new windshield whipers on a couple of weeks ago. Needless to say, I finally arrived home safely.
The next day, it took me 10 or 15 minutes to get my car door unfrozen and opened. The road crews had done thier jobs during the night and the roads were in pretty good shape. It was a fast moving storm, sort of hit and run. Lots better than those storms that hang around for days. I must admit that everything was pretty the next morning when we went out to clear the driveway. The sun was shining and the trees were covered in thick snow. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture. Maybe next storm, it's only January, after all.
Thursday, January 01, 2009
Happy New Year
Here's hoping for 2009 being a "good" new year, whatever your idea of good is. Hopefully, we will all reach, at least the most important of our goals and aspirations. Notice I didn't use the term, "resolutions". I've gotten away from making resolutions. I think that we get too hung upon forever breaking those resolutions, then feeling like a failure. With goals and/or aspirations, we can always revise or refine, or even just chuck them if they don't serve our good.
I've looked at my New Years goals and it seems that I make the same ones every year. Obviously, those goals are not working. I've tried to revise and reword.....still no go. Maybe, just maybe, these goals aren't met because they're the wrong goals. So many years, too many to count, I wanted to lose wieght. It didn't work so much or at least not for long. I revised the goal to being fit and healthy. Seems like a good goal, but hard to measure unless you set up parameters to meet. Wow! That sounds like fun. I also made goals about money. Well, wasn't that a great success?
This year I've decided to be easy on myself, at least I hope it will be easy. Maybe, the feeling that I need this goal, is a sign that it won't be that easy. You see, I think I need to enjoy life more, have some fun. My goal is to bring more fun and enjoyment to my life. Of course, everyone has a different idea of what is fun, and that idea can change from one day to the next. I just want to live my life, not just fill it up with "have tos" and "should dos", and add more of the"want tos". As the past has shown me, life can and will, throw you unexpected curves, at least I want to be able to say I've done, at least, some of what I've wanted to do. Sometimes, all the power we have is our choice in how we will react to what life throws at us.
One nice thing about a new year. It can be like a blank slate, anything can happen. I'm going to try and focus on the positive. It can be a very good year.
I've looked at my New Years goals and it seems that I make the same ones every year. Obviously, those goals are not working. I've tried to revise and reword.....still no go. Maybe, just maybe, these goals aren't met because they're the wrong goals. So many years, too many to count, I wanted to lose wieght. It didn't work so much or at least not for long. I revised the goal to being fit and healthy. Seems like a good goal, but hard to measure unless you set up parameters to meet. Wow! That sounds like fun. I also made goals about money. Well, wasn't that a great success?
This year I've decided to be easy on myself, at least I hope it will be easy. Maybe, the feeling that I need this goal, is a sign that it won't be that easy. You see, I think I need to enjoy life more, have some fun. My goal is to bring more fun and enjoyment to my life. Of course, everyone has a different idea of what is fun, and that idea can change from one day to the next. I just want to live my life, not just fill it up with "have tos" and "should dos", and add more of the"want tos". As the past has shown me, life can and will, throw you unexpected curves, at least I want to be able to say I've done, at least, some of what I've wanted to do. Sometimes, all the power we have is our choice in how we will react to what life throws at us.
One nice thing about a new year. It can be like a blank slate, anything can happen. I'm going to try and focus on the positive. It can be a very good year.
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