Well….I had to talk a little about this…I’m sure you’ve heard about the riots that happened in Vancouver after the Canucks lost game 7 of the Stanley Cup, and it is something I never thought I’d see…Canadians? rioting? Those are just two things I never thought I’d see in the same sentence….here in the US, yes, because we are passionate people that can be wild at times and go overboard in both joy and sorrow. But the Canadians always seemed to be on Prozac….not too high, not too low, but moderation in everything, eh? When we lost the cup in 7 to Pittsburgh a couple of years ago, everyone just went home and said we’ll get them next year….are the Canadians becoming us? Hope not…the world needs more Canadians in it, not more Americans….that didn’t sound right…this is still the best country in the world but I love the way we can look to the north when we go overboard and see the calmer, gentler example that the Canadians normally set.
Wandering around again…
Well…I’ve been in too good a mood today to get outraged about anything so I thought I’d just talk about a few things and see where it goes…I did see a red-tailed hawk right next to the trail this morning that had a cloud of sparrows around it that were attacking and trying to drive it away. I could have reached out and touched it…almost drove off the trail watching…have to pay more attention, I guess. I did read an interesting article about the rioting that is taking place in Europe in response to the austerity measures that are going on there where the people are being asked to pay the bills for the financial malfeasence of business and the rich by having the social contract there shredded like it is here. The question that was asked was “can that happen here?” and the only answer I have is that I’m surprised it hasn’t happened yet. With the bills that have been paid by the middle class to subsidize the rich getting richer, what can be the outcome if the politicians that are supposed to protect the little guy abdicate that responsibility to fill their pockets? There is no longer any way for the poor and middle class to get their grievances redressed since they don’t have the money it takes to be heard in this money driven political system.
Hmmm.do I have an answer? No, unfortunately I don’t….and that is the problem…no one has the answer, or an answer that can be implemented in today’s political climate. Maybe mass demonstrations and riots are the only answer that is left for us….
June 18th
Well…I know I promised to get a couple more out yesterday but I had a pleasant surprise the took me off track…I had a phone interview that I think I went well and the job looks like it would be one that I would be really good at and pays quite well…and it is here in GR so I wouldn’t have to commute…so I celebrated last night and I’m going to continue doing that today and tomorrow…going to even spend some money today on a steak since I haven’t had any red meat in a long time..gonna grill today…yay….I know, I don’t have the job yet but I have hope that finally some good things are going to happen…..not much to do today….still haven’t met up with K in a couple of weeks so that might happen today but, if not, I am going to get 40 miles in on the bike and clean some things around here…and even though I’m excited about the job, I’ll get a couple out later today…
I wonder if I’ll have to rename this thing? I did shave the beard off a few minutes ago to look younger and get the grey hair off the face..looks pretty weird…I just noticed I don’t have any lips…or any wrinkles which is pretty good for an old guy…
June 17th
Well…getting started early today and feel pretty good so I will be going out for coffee and papers today..yay….had a good day yesterday but didn’t do much but the normal workout stuff…there are brand new aches and pains to deal with…I was wondering where the chronic pain was going to be this summer…last year it was my right elbow that hurt all summer and this year it looks like my right wrist is going to be the place…more tendonitis but the grinding and popping is kind of funny when I can hear it….yep, little things make me laugh…not much to do today…might have a couple with K later and I know I need to start finding other things to do to relieve the boredom some…but that’s my problem…I will have at least two more for later today since I’m behind in the count for the month…
Some good news….
Well…have gone through all of the online papers and nothing really came up that grabbed me so this one is going to be just the wanderings of what I call my mind…I know, some of you might think that I don’t have one if you’ve read many of these but at least I try….most days anyway. So, the good new in the title is a new poll that came out in the last couple of days that is starting to show that the people are having a galloping case of buyer’s remorse with the freshmen repubs in the house, and the repubs in general once they started to reveal the true nature of their agenda. I can’t be happier about that since I have been trying to call attention to this stealth campaign to give the entire country away to the rich and connected since I started this thing over a year ago…people are starting to realize that the government is necessary for their protection from unbridled capitalism and the huge money that bought the House for the repubs. Now all we need to do is turn out for the next election and send these radicals back to the backwaters where they came from and get the adults back in charge…adults that don’t think that compromise is treason…adults that understand that they need to govern for all of the people, not just the ones that voted for them….as you can tell…I still have hope that we can be better as people and as a nation…and that maybe someone will realize that people like me still have value in the labor market and can contribute…okay, went off topic there at the end…but I did get another one out…bet you didn’t think that would happen….
June 16th
Well….out with G last night and then I was not good when I got home so I’m running late today….and I don’t have too much to say right now so I’m not going to say it…have to let the brain fire up for a while so I’m heading back to the couch for a glass of ice water and some veggin…going to skip coffee today since I just can’t warm up to Biggby…well…I’ll think about it for the next half hour or so and then decide….more later..
Okay, I’m back after getting the exercise I needed to clear out the fog and I feel quite a bit better….the bike ride was fun but the sunglasses fogged up when I got going…it rained a bit, too, and it was not bad even though it was only about 60…I am going to try to get another one out but skipping the coffee and newspapers takes away most of my topical information for the day…so I’m going to get to the online news and see if there is something there…
Obesity here in the US…
Well…watched an interesting documentary yesterday about the obesity epidemic here in the US and, while I’m sympathetic with those of us who daily struggle with our weight, I think I fall on the side of the personal responsibility folks who counter attack when the blame is placed on the fast food industry. I was thinking about this the other day when I realized that I have not had fast food in over a year and it is a conscious decision to not eat that kind of stuff….I do understand the people who say that they don’t have time to cook healthy, and I had that same problem when I was working long hours. Then there is the cost….when you can get fast food for a few dollars for a meal, some people just can’t afford to eat healthy foods. I can admit that I have battled my weight my entire life and there was a time a few years ago that I weighed 210 pounds on this 5 foot 10 inch frame….but, through hard work and the weird ability to keep track of all the calories I consume every day, I’ve hit around 170 now and I’m shooting for 160 as my final weight. I guess I’m lucky that I can resist the urge to eat when I need to and I have the time to get in a couple of hours to exercise every day. One of the funny things about this is that I have three sons that have gone through exactly the same thing over the last couple of years, each of them going from over 250 lbs to about 160….and they did it the way that many obese people say just doesn’t work….eating better and less along with ramping up their activity….
So, what’s the answer…I don’t know but I do know what worked for me and my family…less than 2,000 cals a day and lots of exercise….okay, this one was supposed to have a point but I wandered around for a while and it never came…so you can consider this one a throwaway…and I do owe you one that makes a point later…but I’m not sure what that will be yet…
June 15th
Well…it was an okay day yesterday and I got a lot done plus laid out in the sun and got some color…I discovered that “the Song Remains the Same” is on Netflix and I may have annoyed my neighbors some with playing it through the stereo…I didn’t have it up that loud, though, so I hope I don’t get a complaint letter from the management. I had a bunch of ideas for posts last night but I don’t remember them..I should have done a placeholder I guess. I hope I’ll remember them later today…not much to do today…need to cook some of the 10 pounds of chicken I got yesterday for lunch and then just the normal stuff…out with G later, too I think, but that’s about it….more later…
Bear with me a while…
Well…just wanted to say a few things before I go off and make lunch…first, I haven’t really had time to read up on the repub debate last night so I won’t be able to comment for a while since I do want to have something pertinent to say that is not as banal as I can be, as you know….I do have an injury that is hampering my writing somewhat…the carpal tunnel has come back and I can barely use my right wrist…but that’s not an excuse…the last I checked, my wrist is not used for thinking….okay, I need to make lunch…I will be back later with more..so, come on back after you get back from lunch and get some work done….
I have a question about the whole Anthony Weiner thing…how can the repubs say a word when they still have David Vitter in the senate who actually broke the law by paying prostitutes over the course of many years? I do not agree at all with what Weiner did but none of it was illegal….just narcissistic and stupid. One other thing that made me smile a little was a new Pew poll that came out today on the Obama/Israel flap that went on a couple of weeks ago…it basically shows that the people are not buying the lies that the righties are putting out about it…even from the repubs themselves. So, maybe people are tiring of the lies from the right and finally want America to get back to the business of taking care of it’s people; not just scoring political points for the small right-wing base…we can only hope…
June 14th
Well…I was extremely good last night and I woke up today full of vim and vigor…getting through the night was kind of a chore, though, but I did get a lot of stuff done…got the bike maintained, did the dishes, and cleaned some more…boring, huh? Oh, well…even Netflix is starting to be boring so I think I need to start figuring out new things to do…I was so desperate last night that I re-read the Sunday paper and was looking through every corner trying to find a book I haven’t read in a while…I thing I may need to talk to T to get another bag o books to get my brain working on every level again…I think it did that once but it’s been a while….not much to do today…I do need to clean up the car since the pollen and dust on it is about an eighth of an inch thick and the old thing just looks better clean…that’s about it, though and fighting the boredom is going to take some creativity that I just may be able to muster…more later…