Saturday mornings are nice.  They are nicer when I am not on call for work, ergo I don’t have to wake up before I otherwise might, but even if I am on duty; Saturdays are half days and that affords a certain leisure quality that I am fond of.  Being a salaried guy whose weekday schedule is always too busy to compensate for going into the office on Saturday I opted for a VPN connection from home.  The VPN connection allows me to provide technical support from my laptop in my boxers while pouring coffee down my gullet.  This would be a good time to make a confession about smoking.  I made it two and a half days smoke free when I returned from the West Coast Tour.  Eventually I was in jeopardy of going postal at work so at noon one day I ran out and bought a pack.  That was dumb. http://redhogdiary.com/2006.07.30_arch.html#1154310274039

          I’m thinking I had picked a really bad time, is there ever a good time, to drop the nasty habit.  I was fresh back from vacation with the piled up inbox needing to be sifted through and it was month-end which, being the IT guy, meant a heavy workload of processing and reporting and my bike was in the shop which had me just a little panicked.  So I fell from grace and am now smoking like I always did. I’m happier now, however, as I sit at my laptop in my boxers pouring coffee down my gullet and smoking cigarettes while giving the employees of the credit union the comfort of knowing I am only a phone call away.

          This coming week will be a short workweek because, on Thursday, I am heading to DC to pick up the kids to bring them back for school.  Being Iowa kids I wonder if they miss the rolling fields of corn that cover the Iowa countryside like a big green blanket.  I wonder if their experience with city life has made them fond of a faster pace of life.  It’s funny because I am so anxious for them to come home and for the last couple of weeks it has been the event on the horizon that has kept me moving from day to day.  Yet yesterday, as I prepared to leave work, it occurred to me that this weekend would be the last of my responsibility free weekends.  In the time I was gifted the taste of a bachelors life there were no wild parties, no orgies, no rendezvous’ with mysterious women.  There were no late nights in the bars, no trips with the guys to the strip clubs and there was certainly no running with scissors!  Instead there was laundry, dishes, lawn mowing, some frozen pizza’s and Bac-O sandwiches.  I tried, last night, to go to the neighborhood watering hole and experience what it would be like to schmooze with the regulars until closing time.  I was home by 10:30.  I’m such a rebel.       I received a phone call from an unmarried friend, in the middle of writing this post, and I told her about my topic for today’s read.  When I shared that my life, in its temporary “bachelor-like” status was relegated to laundry, dishes, lawn mowing and frozen pizza’s she laughed and said, “That’s what single life is.”  Her situation is that she has a period of time every summer where the kids are off with their father and she is never quite complete until their return.  While my experience is a one time deal, unless “She Who Must Be Obeyed” has not told me something, I know the feeling.  So, after all is said and done, I have actually adapted rather well to a more reality based “bachelor-like” lifestyle than I had imagined.  I guess I may be more of a rebel than I thought. 

          This afternoon I plan to ride the Harley in any direction the bike wants to go and not return home until my wanderlust is sated.  I love taking rides where I just amble along until a turn looks inviting.  Traversing county roads and visiting little out of the way burgs is a refreshing way to spend a lazy summer afternoon.  On Sunday some buddies and I are going to take a ride to the upper Iowa Mississippi River Valley which offers splendid scenic views and plenty of hills and twisty roadways.  Along the way we are hooking up with some old high school buddies of mine from Cedar Falls.  It will be a great connection because in past visits to the homeland I would bump into those guys and we have said for years that we should get together and ride sometime.  Combining our current passion for the wind in our hair with ample recounting the memories of our youth will make for a fantastic day. So, I got that going for me.  Have a great weekend!

         

You know, sometimes you just come across something that speaks to you, something that is real, something that is a summation of what you need to speak but have lacked the voice.  That was my first impression when I read Angry Black Bitch’s post August 9th.  http://angryblackbitch.blogspot.com  Shark Fu, I think she lives in St. Louis, posts a very insightful and always entertaining blog that I recommend as a daily must read.  I contacted her and asked for her permission to repost her blog.  I asked her because, well it’s her intellectual property and I didn’t want to get sued, and because I wanted her to know that what she posted; she posted with a clarity that I have been looking for since I started this blog in February.  So… I didn’t say it but this is what I think.  Thanks for the words Shark Fu.

 

Defeatism, my black ass...

The primary elections are over...we've toasted the victories and mourned the defeats.

Now, let's get down to bitness.

A bitch would like to explore the lack of confidence some of my fellow Americans have in America.

Yeah, we're going there.

Let's explore how, in this election year, some would have the masses believe that the status quo is as good as it gets...that this is the best we can do...and that anyone who doubts that and questions the decisions of those in power is defeatist.

The RNC is preparing to call liberals out...again...as un-American. And, although I am tempted to yawn at this tired ass presentation of stale Rovian leftovers, I can't.

Why?

Because too many of my fellow Americans are conditioned to dig into those stale bland and potentially rancid leftovers and glut themselves on that shit!

Think Soylent Green.

Anyhoo...

This bitch looks upon the RNC and the sad version of conservatism it has embraced as the living definition of true defeatism...of a complete lack of confidence in real American values...of an unbelievable disregard for the lives of the masses...and of a delusional vision of a 'this'll do' country populated by 'that's good enough' citizens.

Sound appetizing? Of course not!

But after 6 years of eating that dish the mind begins to play tricks on you, doesn't it? Fuck, some of you ordered that shit...wanted it...and signed the rest of us up for it because you're so motherfucking clever. Not.

Mercy.

But the key ingredient tells the story of a dish doomed to bland nastification...and that ingredient, under examination, is revealed to be pure undiluted defeatism.

Defeatism is Jim Talent and Matt Blunt telling Missourians that we can't provide healthcare to the working poor and their children...that a living wage is a fantasy...that medical research is a tool of Satan...and that we need to abandon our communities to educate our children.

Defeatism is scoffing at the American dream...acting powerless in the face of the exporting of high wage jobs while pandering to rich donors instead of truly addressing wage issues that have been neglected for too long.

Defeatism is whoring our federal budget to special interests...selling out American projects to no bid contracts...passing off bald faced lies as the truth and doing it, Lawd have mercy, with one hand on the Bible and the other one shamelessly dipping again into that same emaciated federal budget.

Stop eating that nasty ass conservative hash and open your eyes!

When they talk of an ownership society free of federal intrusion and then attempt to seize our bodies through anti-choice laws...that's bullshit. When you let them get away with it because you like their wives...that's insane.

When they talk of their Big Tent party on Monday and high voltage fences to keep 'those people' where they belong on Tuesday...that's also bullshit.  Finding solace in the fact that they said that shit in Spanish? That's crazy as hell!

And when they speak of values while not even trying to cover the stench of corruption that follows them everywhere...that's bullshit too. Voting for them...again...in the face of all that has happened...that's unacceptable.

I know defeatism. I see it in every television commercial that tells me to embrace what is and abandon any expectation of what should be and all dreams of what could be.

So, bring it on.

Let's do this!

Or are you better of now than you were four years ago?

          Did you ever wonder why some days are longer than others?  Did you ever wonder why, when ducks fly in formation, that one side of the V is always longer than the other?  Well I can’t begin to imagine why some days are longer than others but I know that in the case of duck formations it is because there are more ducks on the longer side.  Yeah, sorry, that’s an old stinker.  Today was one of those particularly long days but it was a good day nonetheless.  I was busy at work but not frazzled which if you worked with me might you might wonder how that would be discernable.  The day just seemed long for some reason.  I guess at my advanced age I should be grateful for that.  I wish I knew what had made the day pass slowly because I would like to start doing what ever it was on weekends.

          My evening was cool.  A guy that works in my building is a fairly new Harley rider.  We were talking over a cigarette the other day and he mentioned that he had picked up a nail in his back tire.  He has a Harley and I have a Harley so that makes us brothers and a brother who has a trailer is bound by universal law to help a brother who doesn’t own a trailer and has a nail in his back tire.  I have a trailer.  I went to his house tonight to pick up the bike and we spent some time admiring his bike and talking about riding.  What made it all so special was that there is such a gleam in his eye when he talks about the rides he has made and his plan for building up experience in the hopes of making some substantial trips in the future.  Guys get Harleys for all kinds of reasons, some are seeking to recapture youth, others for various varieties of vanity, a few aspire to capture a bit of the legend, while others only want to belong to something bigger than themselves.  Some choose Harley’s out of pride and patriotism while others really relish the rumble.  What ever reason a person would have for buying a Harley it would be unlikely that after some time those reasons would remain the main thing he enjoys about riding.

          Like anything, the Harley experience can end up being more or less than what you imagined it would be.  I have friends who have the entire “biker” wardrobe and can really “look” like a biker but the odometer on their ride says a lot more about their soul than the leather on their backs.  I have friends who like an occasional ride and do it well but they have balance in their lives and pursue other interests which relegate their motorcycling to one of many things they like to do.  Then there are the guys who just get their greatest joy out of spending time in the saddle.  They would ride all day everyday if they could just figure out how.  It’s hard to tell which of the latter two options this new rider friend will be.  It would seem that as he gets some miles under his belt he will be seen less and less behind a steering wheel.    

          What I really enjoyed about our conversation was the enthusiasm he has for his bike and the experience.  His whole face lit up as he described riding it home from the dealership and the trips around the area that he has made.  He was even excited about using his bike to go pick up Chinese for himself and his wife one evening.  I could relate to that.  I think he has the bug and if it ends up that he ever figures out a way to ride all day everyday I hope he shares that secret with me.

 

          There are a couple of bills before the Senate that you should pay attention to.  Please contact your Senator and tell them you oppose S. 2453 and S. 2455.  S. 2453 is a bill before the Senate which would give the president exclusive power to wiretap Americans at will without any individual, independent check.  It would also empower the government to capture and read any emails you send, as long as the government does not know whether all the recipients are physically located in the U.S.

S. 2455 was introduced by VP Cheney and Sen. Specter and would make judicial review of each individual wiretap optional, destroying our fundamental Fourth Amendment rights.  

Supporters claim this bill is “surveillance we can live with,” but the fact is Cheney-Specter vastly expands the government's power to spy on Americans without any individualized warrant and allows a secret court to rubberstamp surveillance without even knowing the names of Americans to be spied on or whether they’ve done anything wrong. The law also has provision for an information blackout by the Executive Branch against the Congress and courts when it comes to the names and number of Americans monitored by the spying program.  Warrant less spying is illegal under current law and a violation of our constitutional rights.  JESUS!  I couldn’t make this stuff up if I were having a nightmare!  It has gotten to the point that supporting this administration is about the most unpatriotic and un-American thing that I can imagine.  http://www.aclu.org

          Clayton’s comedy club debut video was quite a hit yesterday.  Thanks to all of you who sent comments.  If you haven’t seen the video yet; look right above this post and click on the link. Let me know what you think!  I forwarded all of the comments I received today to Clayton for his encouragement.  His next performance is this coming Sunday.  If you have kids you can imagine what a kick it was for me to be able to put his Comedy Club debut out on my web page for you to see.  I have known all his life that the kid is funny and I kind of take it for granted that he makes me laugh everyday that I spend time with him.  To see him lay it out on the line and hear an audience laugh was very cool for me.  With no stage experience it took a lot of courage for him to step up and reach for a dream.  Clayton’s passion is wrestling and it takes a special kind of man to endure that sport all the way through school in a state with a wrestling heritage as strong as Iowa’s.  I’m proud of you Clayton, not only on the mat and in the classroom but now on the stage.  It was also great for me to hear his little brothers laugh in the background. That is a sound that the walls of this home are really missing lately.  

          Carter, my six year old, called me tonight.  He just wanted to know when he was coming home.  At six years old that whole time-space thing is a bit ambiguous but I think he understands that it is about time to begin getting ready for the move home.  I told him about my mother, his aunt and nieces's hard work over the weekend that ensured his bedroom was ready for his arrival next Friday.  He liked that idea.  I had to go to the local elementary school last Wednesday to register him for school.  I hated that because it was me and about 400 mothers making our way through the lines of registration points.  As a 46 year old father of a first grader I was suddenly very conscious of my age and the gray in my beard.  One thing struck me as odd about parents today; I don’t remember my mother ever making a visit to the school in hip hugger jeans or extremely tight spaghetti strapped shirts and I am certain my mother has never shown her navel in public.  Damn!  Times change.

          The last time I saw my wife was the fourth of July and before that it was Memorial Day.  Both of those were less than three day visits and that just isn’t enough time to spend together.  Today is She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed’s birthday.  For the next six months we will be the same age and she won’t be able to lord it over me that she is younger than I.  Oops, did I mention how old I am in the proceeding paragraph?  My wife’s favorite holiday is her birthday.  We generally make a big deal about it with a nice dinner and an evening on the town.  We won’t get to do that this year but I will be thinking of her.  Happy birthday Honey!  I hope you have a fantastic day.

         

          How does BP get by with not noticing that the delivery system that not only provides them (BP) billions of dollars of income but is also closely tied to our national security get by with going, “Oops, our pipes are corroded and we will need to shut down eight percent of the nation’s oil for a month or two.”  Another good question I have is, “How does it work that they (BP) screwed up, they didn’t maintain their assets and now because of their mistake you and I will have to keep their profits in line by paying out the ass at the pump until full production and distribution are back online?  It is a good thing our foreign policy has not had any negative impact on the Middle East for the last 40 months.  So it goes.

          Hey, I don’t care how you vote this November but I do care that you vote.  I will vote, guaranteed, because if I didn’t vote I wouldn’t be able to complain about things here on my website.  Call me silly but I figure if I don’t vote I have no right to bitch about anything that is affected by our government.  Just as it is important that you vote it is important that you remain as informed as possible to make an intelligent decision in the voting booth.  Don’t listen to anybody else, just vote for whomever you believe is most in line with what you really think is important.

         

          I did not say all Conservatives are stupid.  When I see emails like the one I got today I begin to wonder though.  I received "one of those" forwarded emails, actually I received a lot of them today, there must have been something in the water or the moon was in a funky phase or something like that.  Anyway, one of them was one of those bullshit “liberals hate America” and  “all liberals are soft on defense” kind of emails.  Normally I just delete them and don’t read them but this one was outrageously stupid that I had to share it.  I have shared, in blue text, what my very first reaction was to each point of the email.  I would suppose that I could have taken the time to do a tiny bit of research and blow each of these misstatements out of the water but I had to pick up some stuff for the office in my truck after work, deliver another load of old clothes to Good Will and then mow the lawn.  I hadn’t mowed in three weeks.  The lawn was a touch shaggy but it is one of the few lawns in the neighborhood that is still green.  I set the mower deck to four inches and just kind of topped it off.  It looks pretty good if you don’t mind my saying.

 

Here is the email with my comments added.

 

There were 39 combat related killings in Iraq in January.  In the fair city of Detroit there were 35 murders in the month of January. That’s just one American city, bout as deadly as the entire war-torn country of Iraq.

So if Bush can’t even keep us safe in our own cities what are we doing fighting over seas?

When some claim that President Bush shouldn't have started this war, consider the following:

          a. FDR led us into World War II.

This is a new one!  Now Republicans think we should have not entered WWII?

b. Germany never attacked us; Japan did.
From 1941-1945, 450,000 lives were lost...an average of 112,500 per year.

We were defending our friends knowing that global domination was the agenda of the Germans.  We would have been next.  Regarding Iraq; Do they really think six guys on a camel had the intention of global domination?

c. Truman finished that war and started one in Korea.  North Korea never attacked us.
From 1950-1953, 55,000 lives were lost ...an average of 18,334 per year.

And the result of that intervention was that South Korea is now an ally in an important region.  If Bush hadn’t ignored North Korea for the last 7 years we might not be playing this game of brinksmanship with them now.

d. John F. Kennedy started the Vietnam "conflict" in 1962.
Vietnam never attacked us.  

Sigh…

e.  Johnson turned Vietnam into a quagmire.  From 1965-1975, 58,000 lives were lost...an average of 5,800 per year.
Is all of this going somewhere?

f. Clinton went to war in Bosnia without UN or French consent.  Bosnia never attacked us.

And Republicans all say he was weak and soft yet it sounds like he started a precedent that Bush latched onto.  And notice they are now admitting that Iraq was not behind 9/11.

He was offered Osama bin Laden's head on a platter three times by Sudan and did nothing. Osama has attacked us on multiple occasions.

Yes but he hadn’t attacked us here prior to that.  Are you saying we should just go kill everybody we suspect of someday causing us a problem?  And what the Hell did Bush do about it the first 9 months he was in office.  HE WAS TOLD BY CLINTON OFFICIALS THAT BIN LADEN WAS A PROBLEM TO BE WATCHED AND HE DID NOTHING!

g. In the years since terrorists attacked us, President Bush has liberated two countries, crushed the Taliban, crippled al-Qaida, put nuclear inspectors in Libya, Iran, and North Korea without firing a shot, and captured a terrorist who slaughtered 300,000 of his own people. 

Bush didn’t do any of that; our brave soldiers did all of that.  George was AWOL when it was his turn to serve.

The Democrats are complaining about how long the war is taking. But it took less time to take Iraq than it took Janet Reno to take the Branch Davidian compound. That was a 51-day operation. 

Okay, make up your mind.  Half the time conservatives complain that Janet Reno overstepped her bounds when she was at Waco now she didn’t end it fast enough.  Conservatives…flip flop flip flop.

We've been looking for evidence for chemical weapons in Iraq for less time than it took Hillary Clinton to find the Rose Law Firm billing records. 

And just like the weapons of mass destruction there is NO EVIDENCE that anything was wrong!  LMAO that was a dumb analogy!

It took less time for the 3rd Infantry Division and the Marines to destroy the Medina Republican Guard than it took Ted Kennedy to call the police after his Oldsmobile sank at Chappaquiddick. 

I think he was about the same age then that George was when he was snorting coke at Yale.  Who voted for these guys anyway?

It took less time to take Iraq than it took to count the votes in Florida!!!! 

We didn’t get that right; hopefully we will be more successful in Iraq.

Our Commander-In-Chief is doing a GREAT JOB!  The Military morale is high!  Okay, I am physically ill now.  I am puking. 

The biased media hopes we are too ignorant to realize the facts. 

If you think the media is liberal the only person that is ignorant is YOU!

 

If you can read this, thank a teacher.
If you are reading it in English thank a Veteran.

It might not be a bad idea to keep this circulating.  
Well, yes it would because if you forwarded it as if you believed it your friends would know a lot more about you than you might want them to know.
In God we Trust

All others pay cash!

          I’m a family man, that’s what I am.  The last nine and a half months I have had an odd part to play in that role.  “She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed” took a job in Washington DC and took two of the three chilluns with her and then on July 4^th the remaining offspring went out to join them.  Most parents, when I tell them about my family situation, kind of time out for a second. Their eyes roll back in their head and they slouch a bit as if to imagine a blissful existence free from the demands of partner and parenthood.  I always am quick to tell them it isn’t what they would expect and although the idea sounds wonderful I am finding that in practice it leaves much to be desired.  They pshaw and guffaw as if they had a secret that if I could only experience their brand of family hell I would not make such ludicrous statements. 

          I believe my experience has been extremely beneficial and eye-opening with regards to who I am, who I thought I was and who I would like to be.  The first unsettling considerations I had revolved around my relationship with my spouse of twenty-two years.  Had we begun to take each other for granted?  Was the spark that brought us together still alive?  Had parenting and home management replaced passion and amusement?  There is really nothing like a thousand mile separation to get you to examine every aspect of what your relationship means to you.  I am grateful for that opportunity but I think I learned all I needed to learn with regard to expectations, complacency and the importance of living in the moment about six months ago.  I am leaving August 17^th to pick up all three kids and bring them home for the upcoming school year and then sometime in early November my wife will return and we will all be reunited under one roof.

          I wonder how all that will go?  We will all have obviously changed in various segments of a year that we have been apart.  We will all have established new routines and priorities.  We will be seeing our worlds in eyes forever changed by what our eyes saw while we were apart.  Will I be able to get them all off to bed by 10 p.m. so I can continue my blogging in the little cocoon like environment I have grown fond of?  Wish me luck with that.  I’m anxious to get the whole family back together, to hug them and laugh with them and see what they think of my new cooking talents.  I make a mean Bac-o sandwich that they will just have to love won’t they?  I have also got pretty proficient at toast.  So they have that to look forward to.   

          Yesterday I had a lot of fun reminiscing about my days of childhood and running errands on Saturday mornings with my Mother and Sister.  I grew up in the days before superstores and mega-malls where you would go from store to store as you made your way down the street and around the block to find what you needed.  Most stores were locally owned and most of the time the guy who owned the store, the guy whose very livelihood depended on your satisfaction was the guy who waited on you.  Shopping was different back then.  The merchants knew your name and remembered your size, remembered if your last purchase was for a specific occasion or event.  The merchant would want to know details about your life and he would inquire if his products did and could continue to help you live your life. 

Sunday my Mom, Sister and niece Carmen came down to visit and help me tidy up the old homestead in anticipation of the return of my kids.  Man, those Mexican ladies can clean!  They wore my ass out and this evening I am kind of feeling lost in my own home.  If it weren’t for my sense of exhaustion I would think that a cleaning fairy had come through and swept away all kinds of clutter, dust bunnies and general chaos.  I’m not saying I was due for a deep clean or anything but I took twelve large sized garbage bags of clothes to Good Will and still have a couple of piles of clothes that I couldn’t quite make a decision on.  I will do my best to do that tomorrow with a fresh body and a fresh perspective.  When we finished up we all sat down for a few minutes and revisited those memories of the old specialty shops and department stores.  I loved that.

          Just as my families impending return has me pondering how things will have changed over our separation I was reflecting on how things had changed since I was a kid.  I would do well to keep a perspective that while I was waxing nostalgic for a vibrant downtown retail experience with those I love the superstores and mega-malls of today are the halls of what will become my kids memories tomorrow.  It isn’t so much about simpler times or preferred locales but rather it is about being present in the moment.  I’m going to scoop up those kids and enjoy every minute that they will tolerate their obnoxious old Dad being at their side. 

There is no place like home.  Last Wednesday I delivered my Harley to my local dealership, Metro Harley Davidson, for the various repairs that were required from riding it like I stole it for 6,000 miles on the west coast tour.  http://www.metroharley-davidson.com  Bucky, the service manager explained, it being Sturgis week and all, that they would not be able to get my bike on the rack until Monday at the earliest.  I have been a customer there for 12 years and knew that if Bucky said Monday was the earliest he could get to me then Monday is when it would receive the attention it needed.  I did stop in Thursday on my lunch hour to enquire about a demo bike for the weekend and suggested to the service department that the notion of not having my trusty ride for the weekend was going to be painful. 

On Friday I meant to call the dealership all day and make a final plea for expedited service but the work load at the office sucked and I was never able to find time to make the call.  Saturday morning I found a moment and inquired if it would be possible for them to sneak me in before they closed and they told me no.  They told me no because it was done, washed and ready for pickup!  God I love those guys!  As good as the dealerships were on my East Coast Tour and the West Coast Tour there is no place like home.  It was wonderful to get a little wind in the hair and have my baby home for the weekend.

Weekends are a wonderful thing.  Here in the Midwest we finally have seen a break in the heat and the temperatures are refreshing as was evidenced by the number of people milling about town.  Farmer's markets are a big thing in many cities across the land and my town of Cedar Rapids is no exception.  This summer they decided to, on the first Saturday of each month, move the markets from the usual remote locations to the downtown area.  I have to tell you it is refreshing to see the downtown bustling with couples and families on a Saturday morning.  On those Saturdays that the markets are held in their usual locations downtown Cedar Rapids is like a ghost town. 

The scene Saturday was reminiscent of a time when I was a mere tyke who clung to my mother’s purse strap as we made our way about the downtown merchants in my hometown.  This was in the days before shopping and strip malls when retail dominated the heart of all cities.  I fondly recall the multi-storied department stores where each floor held tempting merchandise for nearly any taste.  Of course I had two favorite floors in the main department store of our hometown; the bakery on the mezzanine floor and the sixth floor which was home to toys and sporting goods.  My mother was shrewd and only allowed our exit from the elevator on those favorite floors of mine after she had done all the shopping she needed to do in house wares, domestics and what ever clothing department that met the needs of the most wardrobe challenged family member of the family. 

There other types of stores that I am missing as I amble down memory lane and those would be the downtown hardware and dime stores.  Both types of stores had their own unique aura.  The hardware stores usually had creaky floors and the smell of paints and oils always reminded me of my Grandfather's garage.  Those old hardware stores had anything and everything you ever needed to repair any broken fixture or appliance and they didn't need six acres of glittering show room like the super-store home centers of today.  The dime store in my hometown was always a favorite because the basement held a huge selection of affordable toys. If I had behaved reasonably well during the morning errands I could usually count on receiving my fifty cent allowance and the freedom to blow it anyway I wanted on the treasures I could find there.  My God, those were wonderful days and I was reminded of them as I crossed the skywalk to my office this morning and witnessed a little tyke making hurried steps to keep up with his mother as he clung to her purse strap.

 

          I get emails from time to time about things I post here.  I got this one about my Saturday post: “Just a lovely, lovely blog this morning....made me want to stop believing in the Bible.”  I responded, “Hey about that bible thing... Does the Bible rank sins?  I'm wondering if Jesus died on the cross so straight people could divorce and remarry or steal office supplies from work or hedge on their taxes or drink too much once in a while or maybe ignore people they see who are poor or hungry.  Does it say in the Bible somewhere that Salvation is excluded for someone who is Gay?  I think once we are perfect we can then damn the gays to hell, until then why do they threaten you so much?  I'm just curious.”  Comments like the one in that email are why I am so fond of the sticker on my truck and the back of my motorcycle helmet that says, “You don’t speak for God”  I still have some of those stickers left.  You can have one, they are free while supplies last.  If you want one, email me.