Why are we such chickens these days?

Well…had this thought while I was reading some of the online papers this morning and I will be adding to it as the day goes on…I think I’ll need the bike ride to solidify it but I’ll start with this….when did we, as a people, become so scared of everything? When did our courage start to melt with just the building of the Park 51 project in New York? Or any building for that matter…why are we so scared of immigrants and a bunch of cave dwellers in Afghanistan? There was a time that we believed we could handle anything; any challenge that faced us and our leaders were of the same thoughts..now it seems that our leaders (mostly on the right) think that we should fear threats that our previous generation, and my generation would laugh at…after all, we made it through the cold war looking at a USSR that had 20 thousand nuclear weapons pointed at us and the largest army in the world sitting on the border with Western Europe. Do you think the threat from Islamic (or any other type of ) terrorists is of the same scope? We have gone from leaders who believed that the US would prevail in any conflict to the Newts and Palins who believe that building an Islamic center in Manhattan threatens our way of life. They should be ashamed that they don’t believe in this country…..geez….

August 24th

Well..out with G last night and did a pretty good job but no booze when I got home and I didn’t die from boredom…didn’t sleep for crap but didn’t die so that is a plus…going to try it again tonight without sleeping pills, too, so I may be crabby as heck tomorrow. I do need to clean this place up today (where have you heard that before) and pickle some of the veggies I got from C before they spoil…and look for work as always with a goal of at least 5 resumes going out. But who knows, still not a lot of things out there I want to do and I think I have enough cash to get through Sept….I do have to get supplies today since I blew that off yesterday and I need to get the crop timing down better…

I did finish “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” a couple of days ago and it was okay but not that special…I think Jonathan Kellerman does a better job in creating suspense…and the Robin Cook book “Chromosome Six” was more of a page turner…just finished that yesterday and going to start another today from the big bag o books that T gave me…more later…

Let’s at least try to be nice…

Well…this idea popped into my head this morning and I thought I’d share it…I remember growing up that most of the people you met and interacted with on any given day were pretty nice and courteous and the act of being nice never set you apart. But these days, with the coarsening of our society, everyone is so on edge, so ready to assert their ‘rights” that people doing simple acts of niceness are held up as being somehow different or naive. But I don’t think that is the case, at least I don’t want to believe it. Why can’t we smile when the person in front of us in the checkout lane takes their time unloading their shopping cart and then a minute to talk to the cashier? Why does everyone’s behavior have to fit what we want it to be?

I admit, I have been one of those people that angered easily when people don’t drive fast enough or can’t make up their mind at the coffee shop….but I am proposing that we start to think of what type of person we want to be and what impact our behavior has on others. I no longer want to be a part of what people see as the inevitable lowering of acceptable standards of behavior….I’m going to promise to try to do better….and I hope some of you will join me…

August 23rd

Well…that was a long weekend and I need to give my liver a rest today…so no booze, only water today so I’ll start to feel better…I think I’ll go back to the normal routine today, too, but I do need to get some resumes out and probably should do that after the ride….no beach today since I do need to go get supplies for the next crop…I think I’m going to go slow today, make a good dinner, and try to get the pain out of my shoulders…it has been bad lately and the ibuprofen doesn’t really work anymore so I’ll have to try something new…I know, this one is not that interesting but I will have some topics later that might be…but, who knows…more later…

August 22nd

Well…this weird thought popped into my head when I was out on the bike this morning…actually, it popped into my head on the way to GH Friday but I forgot about it until this morning. I was driving and listening to “4 Way Street” by CSNY and realized that I was doing the exact same thing 40 years ago but then I was in my 65 Galaxy…now is that consistency or just the biggest rut you’ve ever heard of? I still enjoy doing that stuff so I guess I’ll keep it up for another 40 or so….

Not a lot going on today…I really should feel like crap today but I think the bike ride helped bleed out all of the toxins from yesterday…well, not all of them but a goodly amount and with nothing planned except for a short Sunday Funday today should be okay…been eating way too much salty foods, though, and I just feel puffy today but I hope a lot of ice water will help with that. I did say yesterday that the writers block was going away…but I was wrong..this one took forever and it’s not one of the best….more later…

August 21st

Well…maybe the writers block is starting go away…still not as lucid as I expect from myself but I think it has been getting better over the last few days…at least I hope so since it is one of the most frustrating things a writer can go through and I don’t need another failure like the job search. Still raining here but I hope it stops soon so K’s party will still go on this aft..if not, I’m going to have a huge batch of bean dip to eat by myself…well…that’s not too bad since I love the stuff and I’m due for some snack food binges…I’ve been so good eating veggies over the past few weeks that I won’t feel guilty when I have pizza rolls dipped in ranch dressing. K gave me a hint when we were having drinks yesterday to add some Frank’s hot sauce to the ranch and that is so good that it just feels wrong to eat it, but doing the wrong thing is what I do best and most often…

Not much else to do for the weekend…today is going to take everything out of me to where I’ll need a rest day Sunday…with starting around 1ish today and then having the night Bristol race tonight…it’s going to be a marathon and I just have to accept I’ll feel like crap tomorrow..so it’s just a warning that the posts Sunday may just be the word ow….repeated over and over…

More hypocrisy from the red states…

Well…didn’t go out to the coffee shop this morning but have been reading the news online and a few things fell into place that have been marinating in my head for a while. I know you’ve heard over the past few months how the repubs have been holding up any spending bills to help the unemployed and states that are in financial peril since they have an impact on the federal deficit. But what they aren’t telling you and I is that red states (those that are controlled by and vote for these same repubs) are the ones that most egregiously feed at the federal trough; taking back well more in federal taxes than they send to Washington. One of the worst of these states is the one who gave us the small government idiot Sarah Palin and gets $1.84 for every dollar in taxes they send but on top of that, Alaska got almost 3 times more in stimulus money than the average state; almost $3,200 for each and every resident. Now, I have a great idea for the repubs, make a pledge that, to help eliminate the deficit in the next year, your state will not take more in federal funding than you put in and I challenge the tea partiers to do the same..oh, but I get it, it’s okay to take from the feds when it benefits you but not if it benefits the country as a whole. More hypocrisy to pile on the heaps they have already shoveled…geez…

back again…

Well.. I did go out to the beach today and got a little color but I am a little disappointed with myself since my patience ran out in the car and I was a little agressive with the idiots that don’t understand that the left lane belongs to me…or to anyone who wants to pass..not someone that wants to go 62 and become a rolling roadblock so there is s a line of cars a mile long following them. Those are the people who should get a ticket…don’t make me pass you on the right because you are trying to make everyone adhere to your weird sense of speed…90 will not kill you..try it some time it is quite fun, really. Oh, out at the beach, why the heck is it that people that weigh 350 pounds think we want to see the fat rolls in all their glory? I know, I’m not the best looking guy and I’ve had a weight problem my whole life but damn, a tiny little bikini on a 350 pound woman is just not right….

Geez….that’s quite a bit if bitching and it’s not really appropriate since my day has really been a good one…just got back from drinks with K and I’m in a pretty good mood…but I do feel that I have a responsibility to those of you that spend their time reading this stuff…and thank you for that…I will try to give you some real topics tomorrow if I don’t feel like crap….which is a real possibility since I started drinking at 3 and don’t feel like stopping…but I will because I do need to make some food…a sandwich is just not enough.. for a whole day…even though I didn’t work out or ride today…more later….

August 20th

Well…a kind of boring night but I feel okay…well,,,kinda…did have a couple of mans last night so I so have that sluggish feeling that comes with it…have to do some grocery shopping again this morning to get beer and food to take over to K’s tomorrow…might go out to the beach again today since it’s going to be 87 degrees and I don’t know how many more of these days we have left this summer. Other than that, not a lot to do… I think the night races at Bristol are tonight and tomorrow so that will give me something to look forward to….more later…