Buying a car the easy way

Business is not my thing at all, and I usually feel hustled whenever I go to a car dealer showroom, no matter how prepared I am. Yesterday, I got a new car, practically for free. A year and a half ago, after two hours of wrangling, threatening to walk out, pleading for mercy, I did buy the car I just traded for a price that was okay, not what they promised, but I got what I asked for my old one.

So, Tuesday of this week, the salesman from the dealership called me up. "Do you still have that 2011 Accord?" "Yes," I replied, thinking they wanted me to get it in for the pending recall before it went up in flames. " We will take your car, pay off the principal, and give you a 2012 on a payment schedule less than you are paying now." "Right!" I replied, and he must have anticipated a click. So he said, "Really...we are looking for pre-owned cars. Would you like a red one as you have now, or some other color." "Blue, would be nice!" and that was tantamount to saying yes to his offer in his mind. "I think we have one blue one out there, I'll go check and get back to you." Right! You do that."

He did get back to me. He had a blue Accord, and he could lower my payments by $20 per month. I, still skeptical, said, "What about mud guards, can you throw those in?" (I remembered the negotiation a year and a half ago when mud guards came up after almost everything was finalized, except the payments. "They are $100 extra, and your car will look like a piece of crap with out them. You don't want to leave here without them.") This time, after the guy talked to the boss (they do this all the time... go to the back room to see what the boss thinks just to throw you off your game), the answer was "Sure, "We can do that." And the deal was sealed, or was it. "You have to bring in your car today to finalize everything-bring your license, registration, title, insurance card... this is a today only deal."
I gave it  some thought after we had hung up. A today only deal. I have things to do today, and sitting around signing a bunch of papers after driving 35 miles was not on the list. I called back, left a message that I would not be coming in. It was too complicated for me to do it today.

Shortly thereafter, the boss called me. In his Italian way, he said "I thought we had a deal. I gave you everything you asked for!" "I can't get there until Thursday at 3 p.m.; will the deal hold until then?" "Sure, we want your car." "Why?" I questioned, "Is it valuable?" He explained that he could sell my car for $2 to $3000 more than my payoff, and he already had a buyer. The car I would be getting would be the dealer cost or thereabouts, which was considerably less than the suggested retail price of the car. We set up the Thursday exchange.
I woke up on Wednesday, and called the boss. I wanted to be sure about the terms of the deal, the trim of the car "It  had to have the moon roof!" "How about the 17 inch wheels?" (I have come a long way from looking for the basics- wheels, motor, seats, steering wheel and stick shift.)

And so, Thursday, I had my new blue car, with 7 miles on it. I never knew I needed one. It was just too simple, and I made a lot of people happy, the boss, the salesman, the buyer (who probably overpaid) and of course me. Happy Birthday!

Justice John Roberts, a voice of reason

Justice John Roberts split the hairs and made a decision that confounded all the experts as he found reason to decree with four other judges that the Affordable Care Act was constitutional. Whether or not you agree with the result of the supreme court decision, somehow this man set aside partisan politics and ruled in favor of the "liberal" agenda. But wait, he sided with the conservatives in declaring that the ACA's mandate for people to secure health insurance did not meet the constitution's commerce requirements. It did fit in under the broad powers of the federal government to tax. He tried not to say anything about the merits or wisdom of the law. Such a fine line, such an aberration from the conservative cause.

Justice Roberts is a breath of fresh air, a voice of reason above the din in a political climate that has been putrefied by serious animosity between parties and among extremists. He did his job as a judge, not encumbered by partisanship, to find a way to declare the law constitutional, after the lawmakers had spent years and months of toil on a rather prodigious piece of legislation. He did not cave to pressure on one side or the other. He worked it out.

Isn't this what governing is about... working it out...what congressional representatives ought to be doing...what the American people want to happen? It's the opposite of what has been happening for the last 20 or so years in congress and in the country. It takes us by surprise, when a person actually looks objectively at things, and gives an honest answer instead of the party line. Hip, hip, hooray for Justice John Roberts, who making an analogy to a baseball umpire, said during his confirmation hearing: "[I]t's my job to call balls and strikes, and not to pitch or bat."^[18]  John Roberts had the courage to do his job as a judge rather than a partisan, and he deserves high praise, not second guessing for his action.

Pirates, Ahoy- A business model for...

"Pirates fall from first place!" This was the caption on my Toshiba Sport news about two weeks ago, and I was dumbfounded. "They were in first place?" This lowly excuse for a major league team was actually doing something this year, making a run for a pennant at this stage of the season. Usually by now, this team, nurtured in one of the best minor league systems in baseball, a team that probably is the lowest paid in the majors was actually doing something to make their fans smile and cheer.The Pirates have had 18 losing seasons in a row, and Pirate fans with long memories know this team could be bound for greatness.


I go back to the late fifties, when the Giants (my team) and the Dodgers were moving West. I followed the statistics closely on the loser Pirates and decided that they would be my team. They had accumulated some good hitters. The team with Dick Groat, Bill Virdon, Roberto Clemente, and Bill Mazeroski were beginning to come together. The team started to lead the league in hitting. The pitching staff was starting to jell also, especially when Harvey Haddix was added to Vernon Law, Bob Friend and Elroy Face. (Haddix pitched a perfect game for 12 innings in 1959, only to lose,1- 0 in the 13th...read about it...it's a great story http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1155946/1/index.htm) At any rate, the perennial cellar dweller Pirates eventually made it to the World Series against the Yankees and became world champions again in 1960, and more "recently" in 1971 and 1979. Then they faded.


You would think that the tale as this franchise would be very sad with a few glimmers of success. But, the Pittsburgh Pirates are actually one of the most successful franchises in baseball. The business makes money, like their net worth is $300,000,000. They do this by grooming good players in their farm, giving them some battle testing in the "bigs", and then trading or selling them before they have to pay big bucks for star quality athletes. Jose Bautisa, a former Pirate plays for the Toronto team, and has led the league in homers. There are others like him. http://blog.pennlive.com/patriotnewssports/2010/08/pittsburgh_pirates_thriftiness.html

The team could have been winning long ago if that was the aim of the owners. They chose rather to run a successful business, cutting costs, lowering overhead, taking money from the revenue sharing fund that supposedly helps teams in small markets compete with the teams in the larger markets like NY and LA. http://www.slate.com/articles/sports/sports_nut/2010/08/the_pittsburgh_paradox.html


So this is a successful business. It has nothing to do with winning, or fans, just making money. Now when did you last hear a Pirate fan yelling "We got a a great business, yea team!" I don't think you will ever hear that. The fans want a winner.

So what has this all got to do with anything. Slip into politics for a minute. Should government be run as a business? If so, what model should be used? What would be the criterion for success? Make/save money and screw the fans. Hmmm!

Celebrating Elizabeth II

60 years is a long time. I remember when Elizabeth II ascended the throne in 1952. I was in 6th grade, and we watched the ceremony on a 12 inch black and white TV in my grandmothers house downstairs from us. It was an impressive ceremony, awesome in contemporary parlance. It was interesting to see such a beautiful young woman being crowned head of state. Now they celebrate for four days in a British way.

There were no big speeches, no grand moments. Just ordinary stuff, put together, made up as it were to celebrate. Millions of Brits lined the boat  and parade routes. Does anybody work in Britain? Thousands of boats floated along the Thames on Sunday, powered by human energy or even coal. The royal philharmonic played through a rain storm and when they played a hokey tune that I remember from “Pirates of Penzance”  people including the Queen, Prince Philip , and other members of the royal family, and some of the crowd, “danced.” Now this was difficult to see. It wasn’t a jitterbug or rumba or waltz, just people bobbing up and down for several seconds. Discreetly restrained.

And for me, that’s the way the celebration continued. Very orderly. They played “My country tis of thee”…oops! “God save the Queen’” dozens of time.  They cheered the Queen,  “Hip, hip, hooray! Hip, hip, hooray! Hip, hip, hooray!” twice that I noticed. One cheer was led by Prince Charles, the man who has lived in his mother’s shadow for 60 years, waiting patiently for his turn at the throne. And then there is the wave of the royal family, all schooled in the etiquette of waving, hands always within the shoulders, and not higher than the head. It was so, so restrained.

About the only thing that wasn’t perfect was the horse dung. They had hundreds of horses in the parades, and  I guess  horses rule parades. No one swept up the dung like they do in the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade or the Rose parade. No! The drum major led the bands right through the mess. Now that’s discipline!

All in all, it was a great tribute to the Queen, who in a way has been the only Queen I have ever known to exist. I know she does a lot of things, and continues to do her job as a public servant. She is kind and gentle. Accepts all the adulation with a smile. Probably is very humble. She seems to like her job…why not? I did feel sorry for her today as she had to face these celebrations without her life partner, Philip, by her side. He has always been there, and “Hip, hip, hooray!” for him.

Why I Hate the NBA

I just looked up and saw Manu Ginobili being introduced in game 5 of the NBA Western Conference playoffs. I know somebody, if not everybody out there is saying "I hate the NBA!", and rightly so. It is boring and usually predictable. The rules favor the scorers they say. One case in point is the rule on "travelling" or "steps" or "walking". That rule has actually been changed in the NBA to allow a player to take two steps before take off for a shot. I think they probably take more than two steps most of the time, but the refs let it go, and the rule will change to allow it. How else can a person travel from the 3-point arc to the basket? Two steps! Really?

Ginoboli has a distinctive charge when he is driving for the hoop. It looks like rugby. He puts the ball under his left arm, takes his two steps with his right arm brushing away the defenders, and then moves the ball to shooting position in his left hand while in the air to complete the play. It is astounding to watch this weird combination of sports in what used to be a non-contact sport (as opposed to contact sports such as rugby, football and boxing). I just don't want to be in Ginobili's way, ever.

Metta World Peace provides a real reason why people should hate the NBA (and maybe the NHL). His name change did not change him. Why would that break the habit of a lifetime, to crunch his opponents and those who jeer him? His pugilistic style of play, and reactions to the crowd, if tolerated in the NBA, as is Ginobili's, will eventually create an NBA that is indistinguishable from the NHL.

Now I have to see a little more of the Thunder whipping the Spurs, before they finally throw the game to the Spurs in the final seconds. It is predictable.

Down size Soda size

How large should a drink of soda be? NYC wants to limit the size of sodas sold in some establishments.

I remember when I was younger, we would go to the corner store, or the one in the middle of the block, and buy a soda in the bottle. They were usually 12 oz. bottles, although some drinks like Tru-Ade and 7up came in 6 or 8oz. bottles. We drank what made us happy on any particular day before or after delivering our newspapers. Size didn’t usually matter; the taste of the moment did. All of the beverages contained a hefty amount of sugar; this was before saccharine and Splenda. We didn’t die, nor did we gain weight. We were active, and in reasonable shape. We did share, even the smaller bottles. "Can I have a sip?" worked until Eddie H. begged for a sip, and downed  a whole bottle in a single gulp. Eddie did put on weight. Pepsi and Coca-Cola both came out with 16 oz. containers for individual consumption. We never bought that unless we were taking it home to share.

Uncle Bud had a soda fountain in the 50s. You could order 2 sizes of sodas, small or large. A small coke (soda) was 6 oz. and cost 5 cents. Large (12 oz.) was 10 cents. The neat thing about the fountain sodas was that they were mixed on the spot, with a dash of coke syrup or other flavoring added to carbonated water. For a few cents extra, another flavor like cherry could be added, and voila- the cherry coke. These things were done way before the canned product came out. The drinks were drunk at the counter or table, not take out. Two straws was a common and romantic way to share.  It was simple, and not that bad on your health. However, the containers did remain the same size, and price went up a penny every so often until they doubled, and then the soda fountain closed.

Over the years is size of a soft drink has managed to increase the size of the containers. They became portable. And so it seems soft drinks are the only things that  increase the size of the container and the price simultaneously.

Check out what used to be a pound of coffee in the supermarket. The same nice looking aluminum package went from one pound to 14 oz, to 12, to 11.5, and the price went up.

How about ice cream in the frozen food section. What looks like the old half gallon container is now a quart and a half, at a price similar to the half gallon price.

Snickers will discontinue the jumbo sized bar that sold for about $2, which probably was about the size of a regular snickers a decade or so ago. And so it offers a downsized version of snickers for about a buck. This Snickers thing is interesting.  Actually they plan to package two bars together which will amount to slightly fewer calories in both bars than in the jumbo one, and they are trying to encourage us to share the second bar. Right! I don’t think that will happen, nor will the second bar be saved for later. There is nothing like a fresh Snickers.
Tropicana Orange Juice went from 64 oz. to 59 oz. supposedly because of the orange shortage last year. The container is the same size as the old one, just less juice, and the same price as the old volume. You can bet that you will never see 64 oz. of juice in that container again.
But back to the soft drinks, and the controversy in NYC to limit the size of the drinks. Why shouldn’t folks be able to buy any size soft drink they want. Why can’t the consumer determine his or her needs on this?  A 32 oz. soda is a lot of sugar. It is a lot of lots of things which are not banned substances. People like to waste money, and it is their prerogative.
On a personal level, I would encourage fast food chains to do a couple of things to reduce the national waist. Maybe they should only include smaller sized drinks in advertising and as part of the meal deals they offer. Perhaps,  too, they could take a page from the Mars Company that makes Snickers and offer two or three cups and straws with enormous drinks.

Making of a President

One of the latest idiotic things that Mitt Romney is proposing is a requirement for all candidates for president to have at least 3 years of business experience so the people of the USA know they are getting an experienced business man at the helm to steer through the muddy waters of the business of this country. Probably, he is one of the few ex-CEOs that has ever run for president. Somehow, I think he has got this wrong. The business of the president involves business, yes, but so much more.
One business man who was president in my lifetime was Harry Truman. This haberdasher from Missouri  has several enormous accomplishments which certainly did not derive from his experience as a businessman. His business went bankrupt after a few years. Nice looking store though. The photo is from his museum in Independence, Mo.
The Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe after WW2 certainly was beyond the ken of his original business plan. It was a remarkable success. He also integrated the armed forces by executive order, a bold move in those times. And he approved the dropping of  two nuclear bombs on Japan when the war was about over? (What a business sense!)
Another business man was Jimmy Carter. He was a farmer from Georgia. He also did a lot of good things, most notably was getting some kind of peace agreement between Israel and Egypt, again a great bold accomplishment for those times, and one which has not been equaled in negotiations since by other presidents. Was this his business acumen at work in these negotiations? I wonder. He was also famous for wearing a sweater in the White House, and turning down the heat to save energy, and of course it was his fault for having the US embassy captured by Iranian radicals.
Two other businessman made it to the presidency, both named Bush. They were into oil, and that didn’t seem to help, other than to get us into two wars to preserve our oil interests in Iraq or Kuwait. I have difficulty understanding how a businessman, W., who ran a baseball team (Texas Rangers), who traded away Sammy Sosa to the Cubs after only a few games with the Rangers (averaged 42 homeruns per season through out 18 years in the majors and was MVP 9 times) , how does running this business qualify him to be president?
So that covers the businessmen who have been president since I was a kid. (For the record, Warren Harding and Herbert Hoover were very successful businessmen before they entered office, but they were before my time.) Of the others, 5 were (are) lawyers; there was a general, an actor, and a teacher.
FDR was probably the greatest and most influential. He brought the country out of depression and through WW2. He inspired people with his rhetoric and gave American and the world a hopeful message. Being a business man probably would have curtailed his vision and hampered his instincts to lead rather than follow the old paths.
Dwight Eisenhower was a general. He presided over 8 years of peace. He warned us about business- the military-industrial complex.
John Kennedy inspired everyone at that time with his rhetoric “What can you do for your country?”  and his plan to put a man on the moon. No businessman  would have thought of that.
Lyndon Johnson, the teacher, who eventually entangled us in the Vietnam War, did some good things with medicare and civil rights reform.
Even that “crook” (I am not a crook) Richard Nixon, an attorney, opened the doors to trade with China. I think he sent a ping-pong team over there to soften them up. (Or did he exchange pandas.) No businessman would have thought of these things.
And of course there was the actor Ronald Reagan who somehow managed to cut and raise taxes at the same time, and is a saint in some circles for the way he managed the government, and solved international problems (Tear down this wall).
And more recently, our two attorneys, Clinton and Obama, both getting in trouble- Clinton with personal issues and being impeached, and Obama with all sorts of lawsuits over the constitutionality of his  the ACA. But both of these men inspire Americans in some way by laying out a vision that is fair and just for all.
So, back to the proposal by Romney to require presidents to have 3 years of business experience. It’s a non starter. Give me inspiration, creative genius, compassion, complex reasoning, lifelong learners, and that will be my choice for president.

The Affordable Care Act

Try this link http://www.healthcare.gov/law/full/ to read the full health Affordable Care Act. I haven't read the whole thing. I have skimmed portions of it, and the reconciliation portion. I like the titles of the sections and the subsections. Generally they seem okay, positive, going in the right direction. I think in a law this big, there has got to be hundreds of objections to any part of it. It is an easy law to rag on, no matter what your political persuasion. For instance- there is a section in the reconciliation part (that's where the house version and the senate versions are reconciled into one act that both houses agree on) that deals with wellness to prevent health problems. It speaks of programs to diminish smoking, addictions, obesity, etc., and then out of nowhere:

‘‘(c) PROTECTION OF SECOND AMENDMENT GUN RIGHTS.—øAs
added by section 10101(e)(2)¿
‘‘(1) WELLNESS AND PREVENTION PROGRAMS.—A wellness
and health promotion activity implemented under subsection
(a)(1)(D) may not require the disclosure or collection of any information relating to—
‘‘(A) the presence or storage of a lawfully-possessed
firearm or ammunition in the residence or on the property
of an individual; or
‘‘(B) the lawful use, possession, or storage of a firearm
or ammunition by an individual. 

And there are several more sections about this. I said "What the...?" The second amendment is all over the place. I wonder what it really costs in health care. Probably not that much in the scheme of things. I would imagine, most of the activity in hospitals relating to that amendment is in the ER, and after that in the morgues. So that probably is small compared to the effects of smoking, drugs, and obesity. But why, of all the wonderful provisions in our Constitution that safeguard us, is it necessary to put a special protection in this law for gun owners. You can bet that if there was a violation of that right, the Supreme Court would definitely overturn the ACA. So if that right is safeguarded in the health care act, it should sail through the Court with the backing of all the judges. Our lawmakers really had it right this time.

A Billion, From Concept to Reality

The Avengers took in $1B; JPMorgan/Chase lost $2B; Mark Zuckerberg is about to raise $100B in an IPO; President Obama has set his sights on raising $1B for his re-election campaign; the Los Angeles Dodgers coming out of bankruptcy, sold for $2B. Billion is a real number, attainable in days by some. But I went to ask.com to see how long it would take to count to a billion. The answer from one point of view:

It would depend on how fast you counted.
Let's suppose, for the sake of the argument, that you could count one number every second on average. (Since most numbers in that range are something like "five hundred million, seventeen thousand, two hundred and fifty," this is being very optimistic.) In that case, it would take you a billion seconds.
Dividing that by 60 (and leaving the remainder in second form), we find that it would take 16,666,666 minutes and 40 seconds. Dividing the minutes by 60, we find it would take 277,777 hours, 46 minutes, and 40 seconds. Dividing the hours by 24, we get a new total of 11,574 days, 1 hour, 46 minutes, and 40 seconds. Finally, dividing by 365.25 (the extra quarter-day is for leap years), we end up with an approximate total of 31 years, 251 days, 7 hours, 46 minutes, and 40 seconds.
In short, if you want to count to a billion, you'd better start now.
—The Editors"Counting to a Billion — Infoplease.com." Ask the Editors. Infoplease. © 2000–2007 Pearson Education, publishing as Infoplease.15 May. 2012 .    

There was a time when a million was a lot. Millionaires dominated the 20th century. Most of us thought $20 was a lot of money, Now it is pocket change that goes into that big jug at the top of the stairs, getting dusty with all those useless coins. A billion was a concept that was difficult to get to; a million of anything was plenty.

Hedge fund operators make a couple billion or so a year, and they think they are underpaid
Check out other billion dollar ideas at http://www.sustainabilityinstitute.org/dhm_archive/index.php?display_article=vn167billioned

So I wonder, who will be or is the first athlete to sign a contract for that magic number? I know many make a billion in their lifetimes, but when will the first contract be signed for the pitcher or home run king; the best triple double WNBA star; the highest ranked quarterback; etc. And when that happens, what will the minimum wage be for the people of New York State...$8.50. (I wonder how many ball games those workers will get to see in person.) And all this will probably happen before I get past 1000 as I steadily count to a billion. Of course if I do make it to a billion by counting, I will be close to my aim of reaching 105 years of age. I will just count a little slower.

A Formative Experience

I was about 8 or 9 years old when probably one of the most formative experiences of my life occurred. It happened when my brother, sister and I had our tonsils out, and I am sure they are saying, "Not that story again!"  (If you want that story, go to http://philpalladino.com/Health%20Care%201940s.html . It is a good one.) But the formative effect of the story is really important.

A night nurse or aide, exasperated by repeated requests for water from my brother who occupied the bed on the other side of a wall in the ward (she fulfilled all those requests), refused to make one more trip to get water for me who was dying of thirst, barely able to utter the word "Water!" The words, "He'll just have to wait until morning!" hurt so deeply, but also helped me be the kind of person I am today, and in retrospect, I am thankful for the negative learning.

I got over the thirst the next morning. Lots of ice cream and ginger ale soothed the hurt in my throat, and my voice came back. I didn't die, although that night, I thought it was over.The physical part was easy to heal. I was able to joke about the experience forever, and get good laughs as I perfected the story.

Now in my advanced middle age, I think back and realize the full effect of that experience. I find that I can never refuse a request for assistance from someone in need. I can not say "You have to wait." I may say, just a minute. I might ask for forbearance for  a short time. But I do not refuse to render a service to someone in need.

As I care for those I love, I think of that terrible response from that unknown caregiver, when my heart sunk into despair facing hours of thirst. And somewhere along the line, I decided that is not the way to treat people, and I resolved that I could and would do better. And maybe I do.

Too Much Information

No one will believe me if I said that my motto (one of them) is “The less said the better”, especially after reading my musings on anything under the sun in my blog posts. I believe in the right of a free press, and every other article of our constitution. I believe also that we as citizens have a right to be informed. But there is always a delicate balance between freedom and servitude, between information and dangerous detail, between intelligence and stupidity.

For years, it has been said that a foreign country does not need covert operation to spy on America, but only needs to read TIME magazine, or watch TV, or just Google something to be informed about what America has up its sleeve.

I think a case in point is the recent exposure of the Al Qaeda plot to destroy an American passenger plane. I was stunned to hear on Hardball tonight details of the CIA intelligence that caused the plot to unravel . I may have missed some of it, but it seemed that one of the guests was saying too much about the operation, the Saudi operative who volunteered to carry out the bomb, the infiltration of Al Qaeda, the type of bomb, the precautions being worked on to assure that such a bomb will be detected in the future, and so on. I then wanted to refresh my memory of what I had heard, so I pressed the Google news button on this blog (over there on the right under links), and there it was again.

We can be certain that Al Qaeda heard or read the same thing on Al Jazeera. I would bet that there is some kind of purge going on right now to destroy other operatives of the CIA. I would also bet, that they would look at any one who is too interested in carrying out a suicide bombing, and figure out that they may be TOO interested and look for a known quantity to deliver the goods. The odds are also that the Al Qaeda brain trust is looking at ways to improve the bomb that was intercepted in order to avoid detection on the next attempt.

I don’t want to belabor my point here, lest I too give out too much information. I know it takes years to build up a network that is trusted to safeguard truth and freedom in the American way. While information gathering, and speaking about it is an important freedom, I think it is important for those who have intelligence to speak less about it, rather than offer a conduit to those who would undo our way of life in a most violent manner.

Influence is Confluence

With access to almost any printed news on the web, it is easy to overlook the traditional papers and magazines to which I subscribe. TIME magazine comes weekly, but it took me a couple of weeks to pick up that ultra-large issue which portrays the top 100 most influential people in the world. I thought I was pretty knowledgeable about almost a lot of things and I recognized 9 of the 15 listed on the cover. Some of the little pictures I also recognized: Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Andrew Cuomo and a few others.

I think the list of real influentials could have been narrowed down a lot to maybe 10. Leave off most of the movie stars, singers, sports phenoms. Leave in one or two world leaders who actually run a country or effect policy, and definitely leave in Steven Colbert (he is influential- ask him.)

But then examine the issue further, and notice the real influential “persons” that dominate the pages of magazines, TV, and the world wide web. Use the Supreme Court to get your definition of a person, and then notice the influences. Louis Vuitton, Korean Air, Citi, Hilton,IBM, Progressive (Flo), GlaxoSmithKline, BOSE( I like this product), Fidelity, Geico, Dow (“Solutionism is the new optimism”- say what?), Verizon, and so on. I did notice that Delta has a page, but it is Delta faucets, not the airline.

There is a connection between the actual list of 100 influential people and the influential persons that dominate the in-between pages, and that is billions of dollars. And you have to wonder what would happen if these people and persons really used those billions to be influential in a positive way. I know this is painting with a broad brush, and many of these people and persons do a lot of good.  I know if I took time to read all the encomium heaped upon them by their peers (who authored the short pieces about each of them)  their influence would truly shine forth. It would be great to muster it all together, confluence… what a brilliant light it would be! (Oh! That’s what TIME was trying to do!)

As I continue to look over the list, I see more to it. Confluence is more appropriate. It represents a hagiography of people across cultural lines. They are people to whom we should open up our hearts and minds. If we view the list as the movers and shakers from around the world, those who can do the most good in their respective countries, who can help change the dynamic of living for millions of people, maybe lift up a few of us along the way, then we have read it correctly. The top 100 people of confluence!

Another Attack on Women

Some day, some one will have to show me where the words "in vitro ferilization" are in the Bible, or any book that is held sacred by people down through the ages. Forbidding this kind of benefit, and then persecuting people (usually women, again) for using methods such as this to increase and multiply is an arrogant assumption of truth that is common in the inquisitional type church that is controlling people today.

Some "uninformed", non-catholic teacher in Fort Wayne, Indiana is the latest victim to fall at the hands of the Church. She is accused of the " immoral act" of IVF, and was fired from her job for not following the teachings of the church that employs her as a teacher.

(When I first heard this story, I thought that perhaps it was a biology teacher experimenting in a lab, demonstrating the process to her or his students. Now that could be problematic.)

I wonder how many others will be fired for this type behavior. Let's see- no one was hurt by IVF; the population is increased; motherhood and fatherhood, both are fulfilled. Openness to life is preserved. All these are good moral objectives. The Church's problem is with excess embryos that may be destroyed or frozen; and the embryo is a person even if difficult to discern, according to the Church. It is the problem of personhood, when is it achieved. No one knows the real answer to this so the Church comes down on the side of the earliest stage of new life. This may be laudable or not. Given the lack of clarity on the subject, why not err on the side of the living who are trying their best to thoughtfully live lives of peace and love.

I think of the parable of the sower. When he sowed the seed, only some of the seed came to fruition, although much of it sprouted but did not thrive.

If people leave the Church to pursue their own god or gods, they are well within their rights. The contemporary Church is out of touch with the times, with history, and borders on the irrelevant.This is so apparent when its leaders resort to the debunked tactics of the reprehensible medieval inquisition.

Let the Women Be!

I was just finishing a book, “God’s Jury”, about the Inquisition when I saw on the morning news that the Vatican had decided to crackdown on the Leadership Conference of Women Religious because they were advocating things that were not strictly according to Catholic doctrine. The gist of the document is that these religious have been under scrutiny by Rome for several years, and because they advocate things such as birth control, woman’s ordination, gay rights, therefore they need direction from the Pope’s delegate to guide them in the right path, change their tune, and come back to the correct teachings.
These are not little children here. They are a group of grown women who have studied, prayed, come to conclusions, and who are trying to effect positive change in the world and church to which they belong. The Church doesn’t like this, so they crackdown on them. The Women (witches?) have been tried, now must be reformed, and short of that burned at the stake as in days of old.
Actually, I don’t think anyone would do that today (burning at the stake) but the rest of it, the demonization of these women religious is a terrible thing to happen in the 21st century. The Inquisition lives. It stamped out heresy in the past, waged war on all kinds of positive thinkers such as Galileo, started the Index of Forbidden books, demanded that publications be approved by Bishops, kicked out great theologians from universities, and  hundreds of other things to coerce people to orthodox beliefs. And apparently all of this is still happening. Why?
(It is odd -maybe normal- that the sights are aimed at women religious while the pedophilia issue rages. A deliberate redirect to avoid the real big problems.)
Probably because we let it happen by supporting the creeps who do this to faithful people. Truth is not monolithic as some would have us believe. There is no one place or book to go to get it. Revelations happen every day often contradicting what was true yesterday or years ago.It’s time we recognize that, and give it a place in our daily lives. We will all be better for it. Let the women be; let all of us be who we choose to be.

Holy Saturday, revisited

Holy Saturday is always an odd day in the calendar. Sort of like, everything happened that could happen last week, and now we wait. Of course in this scenario, we know the happy ending of resurrection. Life is similar to Holy Saturday. We live it to the hilt, everything happens,good and bad, and fortunately, there is resurrection in the form of relief, new challenges, and new life.


An  example of this is  the transition that takes place after the loss of a loved one. This is not easy. Suddenly, a world of love is turned upside down. The person you counted on, trusted, your partner is no longer present in the flesh, and the time is pretty sad. Most people come through this. 


What happens in between! It is waiting for the resurection, not physical, but in spirit. The time comes when strength returns, often the strength coming from the person who  has died, especially if the love that was shared was deep and involved. We  miss the close physical  contact and immediate support, but the spirit lives in us.


Resurrection takes the same grit and attitude that worked in maintaining ourselves in our love. It is not easy. There are boulders to be moved to escape the comfort of the tomb and get on with the readjustment  necessary to stand up and accomplish  great things. It gets done by doing.


Death to life. Attitude, respite, reset make life liveable. 


So, the Holy Saturday phase of life becomes the time of mental adjustment, a brief period to move on from the old ways, take care of ourselves, and get ready for the resurrected life of tomorrow.

Holy Thursday- Where are the Women

This painting (as I viewed it in St. Patrick's Church during throughout my life) by DaVinci is probably the most famous of all the representations of the Last Supper. Because it has been replicated in practically every Catholic Church in the world, it has come to define the priesthood in the minds of most believers. Probably the names of each of the characters is located somewhere, but who really knows who sat where, and why. 

We do notice that there are no women. So what happened! It was a man's world then. Men's night out was established as the tradition early. No women allowed was accepted, sort of like the golf club in Augusta, Georgia. There was no movement afoot to establish women on par with men. It took centuries for that to happen. Hopefully, it will not take centuries more.

The teachings of the church (and even of the Bible) fell victim to the customs of the times. Women were eliminated from any position of importance other than motherhood. Occasionally, one would pop up as a leader. There have been rumors of women priests in the old days, and evangelists. But they were never allowed to bubble up to the top, except in rumors or possibly as people of influence as was Constantine's mother.

If Jesus were here today, wandering around the land, my guess is that there would be women in the troupe. They would have a huge say in what happened. That is the custom of today. And maybe even Jesus would be a woman, and not a man.

So, it's time for believers to sort out what is really important to believe, and what are mere customs. Update to the customs of the day, and keep the essentials that make a difference in the way we conduct ourselves. Start with ordaining women priests and bishops. Appoint them Cardinals and archbishops, and let them run for pope. What a shake up this would be, and it would be one that would promote a new resurrection of which the old Jesus would be proud.

This is quite a challenge.

The Berkshire Carousel

www.berkshirecarousel.com
I have been thinking lately that I don’t get out much these days, and today was an experience that brought that home to me. Since I was a child, I always liked the carousel at the fairs and carnivals. I was afraid of the horses… they were a little too high, so I often rode in one of the chariots…very safe. I remember always being anxious about getting off in the right place so I wouldn’t get lost. I remember waving to my mother and father as I made the circle. they were always so encouraging, even in this little event. It was sort of like leaving home for 3-5 minutes and coming home again. the world was smaller than I thought, and safer, and the supportive people were always there, not far away.
Several years ago, I visited the old carousel at Caroga Lake. It was closed, but I could peer inside, and even walk into it a bit. It seemed sad to see such an important part of life on the verge of extinction. And a year or so after that, I visited the Sandwich heritage museum, where a working carousel allowed me to step back in time, ride the circle of life on a “pony”, wave to my wife as she patiently and supportively admired her knight, bravely going off into the world and safely returning.

This photo is from the Sandwich Heritage Museum. 

But today, I was out and about. We visited the Berkshire Mall in Lanesboro, MA., and there was a real workshop called the Berkshire Carousel. I thought they might be selling the “ponies”, but on more careful observation, they were building them, actually carving them from chunks of basswood. A team of volunteers led by two master carvers were putting together, carving, sanding, finishing, and painting these beautiful, glossy horses for a carousel which is to be built in the city of Pittsfield. There will be chariots for the smaller people, the handicapped, and the timid. They will teach you how to carve. There is an effort underway to design the carousel with artwork from the Berkshires.


The above photo is a carved and assembled “pony” ready to be primed at the Berkshire Carousel workshop at the mall. The photo is from the  Berkshire Carousel website.

And as I read the brochure, I realized how little I have been out lately. The project has been going on for about five years, and is scheduled to be completed in 2012. It would have been fun to be involved in this project, but I look forward to the ride when it is completed, another trip around the world, and safely home. I love it.

Stand your ground?

With great trepidation, I wander into this sad case, fearing most of all to stir the pot which needs no more stirring. I have been following the case of Trayvon Martin and his death at the hands of George Zimmerman. I looked up the Florida Law which has become known as the stand your ground law. It deals with the justifiable use of force.

911 tapes clearly indicate that Zimmerman was told not to pursue Trayvon, He did anyway. Trayvon was shot, and the police made the decision to allow Zimmerman to walk based on the law as they saw the situation.

Zimmerman apparently had a scuffle with the young man Trayvon.

I think a case could be made that Trayvon was standing his ground, and was shot doing so. He was walking through the neighborhood, talking on a cell phone to his girlfriend. It was  decided by Zimmerman that he was suspicious, didn’t fit into the neighborhood. Trayvon was pursued. He realized that someone was coming after him. He could have run, but instead turned to question the person who was after him, and a scuffle ensued. He died, standing his ground, armed with a box of skittles and a phone.

Zimmerman, the man with the gun, the man in pursuit, the man who was told to back off, was the aggressor in this case. I believe the investigation will show this, and justice will be done.

The stand your ground law is redundant. The right to self defense has been upheld by the supreme court on numerous occasions. The wrinkle in the state law allows the police to adjudicate the case immediately, as if the slaying of a person is a traffic ticket. Killers walk free under this law with no trial by jury. The trial is a protection for the victim and the accused. There is nothing like a jury of peers declaring you innocent, if you really are, and thus allowing you to live with your self the rest of your life. Casey Anthony for instance!

Here is the Florida law as given in Wikipedia. I think the only person in the Trayvon Martin case who acted legally under this law is Trayvon Martin.

2011 Florida Statutes CHAPTER 776 JUSTIFIABLE USE OF FORCE^[18]

776.012 Use of force in defense of person.—A person is justified in using force, except deadly force, against another when and to the extent that the person reasonably believes that such conduct is necessary to defend himself or herself or another against the other’s imminent use of unlawful force. However, a person is justified in the use of deadly force and does not have a duty to retreat if:

(1) He or she reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the imminent commission of a forcible felony; or

(2) Under those circumstances permitted pursuant to s. 776.013.

776.013 Home protection; use of deadly force; presumption of fear of death or great bodily harm.—

(1) A person is presumed to have held a reasonable fear of imminent peril of death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another when using defensive force that is intended or likely to cause death or great bodily harm to another if:

(a) The person against whom the defensive force was used was in the process of unlawfully and forcefully entering, or had unlawfully and forcibly entered, a dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle, or if that person had removed or was attempting to remove another against that person’s will from the dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle; and

(b) The person who uses defensive force knew or had reason to believe that an unlawful and forcible entry or unlawful and forcible act was occurring or had occurred.

(2) The presumption set forth in subsection (1) does not apply if:

(a) The person against whom the defensive force is used has the right to be in or is a lawful resident of the dwelling, residence, or vehicle, such as an owner, lessee, or titleholder, and there is not an injunction for protection from domestic violence or a written pretrial supervision order of no contact against that person; or

(b) The person or persons sought to be removed is a child or grandchild, or is otherwise in the lawful custody or under the lawful guardianship of, the person against whom the defensive force is used; or

(c) The person who uses defensive force is engaged in an unlawful activity or is using the dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle to further an unlawful activity; or

(d) The person against whom the defensive force is used is a law enforcement officer, as defined in s. 943.10(14), who enters or attempts to enter a dwelling, residence, or vehicle in the performance of his or her official duties and the officer identified himself or herself in accordance with any applicable law or the person using force knew or reasonably should have known that the person entering or attempting to enter was a law enforcement officer.

(3) A person who is not engaged in an unlawful activity and who is attacked in any other place where he or she has a right to be has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand his or her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony.

(4) A person who unlawfully and by force enters or attempts to enter a person’s dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle is presumed to be doing so with the intent to commit an unlawful act involving force or violence.

(5) As used in this section, the term:

(a) “Dwelling” means a building or conveyance of any kind, including any attached porch, whether the building or conveyance is temporary or permanent, mobile or immobile, which has a roof over it, including a tent, and is designed to be occupied by people lodging therein at night.

(b) “Residence” means a dwelling in which a person resides either temporarily or permanently or is visiting as an invited guest.

(c) “Vehicle” means a conveyance of any kind, whether or not motorized, which is designed to transport people or property.

776.032 Immunity from criminal prosecution and civil action for justifiable use of force.—

(1) A person who uses force as permitted in s. 776.012, s. 776.013, or s. 776.031 is justified in using such force and is immune from criminal prosecution and civil action for the use of such force, unless the person against whom force was used is a law enforcement officer, as defined in s. 943.10(14), who was acting in the performance of his or her official duties and the officer identified himself or herself in accordance with any applicable law or the person using force knew or reasonably should have known that the person was a law enforcement officer. As used in this subsection, the term “criminal prosecution” includes arresting, detaining in custody, and charging or prosecuting the defendant.

(2) A law enforcement agency may use standard procedures for investigating the use of force as described in subsection (1), but the agency may not arrest the person for using force unless it determines that there is probable cause that the force that was used was unlawful.

(3) The court shall award reasonable attorney’s fees, court costs, compensation for loss of income, and all expenses incurred by the defendant in defense of any civil action brought by a plaintiff if the court finds that the defendant is immune from prosecution as provided in subsection (1).

776.041 Use of force by aggressor. —The justification described in the preceding sections of this chapter is not available to a person who:

(1) Is attempting to commit, committing, or escaping after the commission of, a forcible felony; or

(2) Initially provokes the use of force against himself or herself, unless:

(a) Such force is so great that the person reasonably believes that he or she is in imminent danger of death or great bodily harm and that he or she has exhausted every reasonable means to escape such danger other than the use of force which is likely to cause death or great bodily harm to the assailant; or

(b) In good faith, the person withdraws from physical contact with the assailant and indicates clearly to the assailant that he or she desires to withdraw and terminate the use of force, but the assailant continues or resumes the use of force.

Encounter with Millay

What a beautiful day it was today! At about 1:00 I was free for a while. I chose to walk the back road instead of route 22. Walk means to climb 400 feet up a two mile stretch. It gets your heart beating, but when you arrive at the Millay estate and colony, you see more hills behind you where you have trekked than before you. Yes, it’s pretty high up. Only Harvey Mountain is above.
On the estate, there was a man on a 24 foot ladder pruning spruce trees with a chain saw, dressed in a bright red shirt and overalls, making loud noise with that saw, but not really disturbing the peace. On another tree, closer to the dirt road where I was walking, a woodpecker, dressed almost the same, drummed on a tall cherry tree, doing his pruning. Robins rustled through the wood along the side of the road. For me, it was perfect. I see why Edna St. Vincent Millay loved her home at Steepletop, and why she was inspired to create such beautiful poetry.
A little past the estate, there was a trail called the “Poetry Trail.” I had passed this on my first five mile journey a couple of weeks ago, but did not take the time to travel it. Today was different, a little warmer, great sun, and time. I headed in. The four feet wide path was a carpet of moss for about three quarters of a mile, soft underfoot, framed with fallen leaves. The canopy above was barren branches of huge deciduous trees (maple, oak, cherry). I would imagine that in the summer, there is little sunlight along this trail, and it would be cool and inviting. I liked the sunlight of the second day of spring, the lack of bugs, the crisp breeze.
There were about 10-12 markers on the trail that had snippets of Millay’s poetry, and that is impressive. There were quotes from her early works. But one struck me- “Elegy before Death” which I present here:
There will be rose and rhododendron
  When you are dead and under ground;
Still will be heard from white syringas
  Heavy with bees, a sunny sound.
Still will the tamaracks be raining
  After the rain has ceased, and still
Will there be robins in the stubble,
  Brown sheep upon the warm green hill.
Spring will not fail nor autumn falter;
  Nothing will know that you are gone,
Saving alone some sullen plough-land
  None but yourself set foot upon;
Saving the may-weed and the pig-weed
  Nothing will know that you are dead, ---
These, and perhaps a useless wagon
  Standing beside some tumbled shed.
Oh, there will pass with your great passing
  Little of beauty not your own, ---
Only the light from common water,
  Only the grace from simple stone!
I like this poem. I never paid much attention to it before. Maybe I am getting old. But it is so true. Life goes on; beauty continues; the seasons change; and people continue to enjoy all of it, except for my beauty. Whoa!
It was a great walk. Perhaps the most intriguing part of it was the walk through the woods back to route 22. My friend Bob told me it was a short distance from the end of the trail to the highway. It was an uphill climb to go back, so I launched into the forest with Millay’s poetry on my mind. There was no trail, just woods. After about 30 steps, I realized that I could wander for a long time, and really be lost. I looked around. The poetry trail was no where in sight. I studied the landscape and saw a yellow stripe off in the near distance, and headed towards it. And a truck thundered past, and I knew I was near civilization, and about 2 miles from my house, a great beautiful, relaxing, inspiring 5 mile loop.

Towers, Telegraph and AT&T

I guess I don’t get out much. The late winter landscape is especially naked this year due to lack of snow. You can see through the forests, normally covered with green or snow, huge towers placed by various wireless providers. Not that many really, since there is no wireless phone connections where I live. I think I live in the 2% area not covered by AT&T or Verizon. There is a tall tower on the mountain top behind our house that is for emergency communications. It is 300 feet high with flashing lights to warn aircraft. It is in my sight, but no phone for me, but great emergency response.

What about these towers? Why don’t people want them in their back yard or nearby mountain, although everyone seems to want the service? I think I know the answer. AT&T, a venerable old corporation in America, was originally formed from American Telegraph and Bell Telephone, and became American Telegraph and Telephone.

Telegraph is old style communication. It used the Morse code as its alphabet to signal across America, originally from hill top to hill top with flags to designate each letter or a single word. Sight distance was important, just as it is today in modern wireless communication. Then, an improvement came about which allowed communication over wires using a series of dots and dashes. The first communication in this way was in the 1840s, announcing the nomination of Henry Clay as the presidential candidate for the Whig party. This went from near Baltimore to Washington, D.C. Soon, there were telegraph lines all over the place, strung like spaghetti along railroad tracks and highways, with thousands of poles supporting the wires. The telegraph gave way quickly to the telephone. The legacy of the telegraph industry, AT&T, can be seen along the tracks in many American cities. Those thousands of poles still stand in utter disrepair as a testimony to this by gone age. Not a pretty sight; actually pretty ugly.

So what will be AT&T’s legacy in our wireless age? The towers that there are not enough of to do the job will probably multiply across the mountain tops and hills until we get beyond 100% coverage, soon to give way to a new technology not requiring towers. And how many will we continue to see in the bleak winter landscape?

(I pick on AT&T here because they actually have Telegraph as part of their name, but Verizon, Motorola, and others present the same problem, and no one will want to provide service in my area after this.)

St. Patrick, revisited

(This is a revision of a post from a few years ago.)


"Hibernia's champion saint all hail, this day your, glory sounds;
The offspring of your ardent zeal, this day your praise shall sound.
Great and glorious St. Patrick, pray for thy dear country.
Great and glorious St. Patrick, hearken to the prayers of your children."

We sang this with such gusto as we celebrated his day as children at St. Patrick's School in Troy. The Saint's likeness was and still is portrayed in stained glass above the altar of the church, and a larger than life sized statue graced the hall way at the entrance to the school auditorium.

Why did we really celebrate? St. Patrick was a hero for the many children of Ireland, and the millions who had come to America. We held him in high esteem as the greatest person ever from our heritage, a personal symbol of power, faith, and resurrection for a poor and down- trodden people.

Proudly, we embraced him and we celebrated his legendary accomplishments, and hoped for continued miracles in our day. I don't think we have been disappointed, but he (we) still has a lot of work to do.

And this is the first year that the songs will not be sung in St. Patrick's. The church was closed last June. It still was the place of worship for many, old and young. But the needs of the large suburban areas overcame the exigencies of the Catholic Church's presence in the inner city, and the parish was closed along with the others in the city. We are left with memories, a heritage, and the songs will be sung in places far and wide because of the universal presence of our favorite St. Patrick. 

Score one for the little guy!

How do you get one sheet of plywood to your home without your trusty van or pick-up? Who do you call to get it there in a timely fashion? What if there is no one available to make a run for you to get it? Suppose you don’t want to rent a truck from Home Depot or Lowes.
Several years ago, we opened an account at one of the local lumber yards. We were putting on a new porch and we were able  to get a discount and delivery on the $4000.00  or so worth of supplies. Not only that, but we didn’t even have to go to the place for any thing. It was all done by phone with knowledgeable associates who estimated our needs and arranged delivery for everything, from rafters to sheetrock, nails and screws to sliding glass doors. It all came when we wanted it. If there were leftovers, they were picked up, and credit was received. Over the years, this arrangement has been quite handy; forty bags of cement, huge metal roofing pieces; gallons of white shellac, and more.
Occasionally over the years, I would venture into Home Depot, but it is such a hassle. The stores are too big. Probably these stores are easily a couple of city blocks with long aisles and rows.You have to do all the loading, carting, paying by yourself, and then get it home. And if you order too much, you either store it or return it on your own time. Usually, that is a 60 mile round trip.
At the local store, you don't have to walk through blocks of merchandise. You don't even see the lumber unless you want to. Some of it stored in sheds around the premises or in warehouses nearby. All you do is walk up to the counter, tell the clerk what you are doing, and "Voila!" you are on your way to a completed project. If it is a small item in the store like a shower drain, the clerk will get it for you, and bring it to the counter. If you think it is not quite right, then  she will usher you to the rack where similar items are located, and you can choose what you want (usually the same thing brought to the counter originally.)
The other day, I needed a paper towel holder. There are two hardware stores in town, neither very busy. I immediately spy a clerk whom I have known for years. “What can I do for you?” “I need a paper towel rack.” “The end of aisle 18 on the right.” “Thank you!” Aisle 18 is 10 feet long; I am about 20 feet into the store. The paper towel rack is there; I pick one out, pay cash to the same clerk, and I go to my car which is less  than 10 feet from the front door. All done in less than 3 minutes! These little hardware stores are so easy, and the prices are not that different from the big box stores.
Now, as for that single sheet of plywood;I called my lumber yard at 3:30 p.m. and placed my order for a single sheet of sanded, half inch plywood. I knew full well that it would not come until the next day. Probably it would be dropped off by a huge truck making a  sizeable delivery somewhere else, and I would get to my project later in the day. No! that’s not what happened. Rather, at 7:30 a.m, a little flatbed truck with a single sheet of plywood backed into my driveway, and I was awake to greet the driver, who in turn put the plywood where I wanted it. I and all day to get to the project. So score one for the little guy who takes care of people. Score one for the little guy who has a manageable store. Score one for the guys who answer the phones and help you out. And score one for us who have been spared the hassle of going to the big stores, wasting time and energy, thinking we are saving something in that drudgerous process.

Winners all

Western Kentucky has made it to the big dance of the NCAA tournament this year with a record of 15 wins and 18 losses. I would venture to say that they have the worst record in the tournament, and will be one of the first teams to go home. They will have been a winner, regardless of the outcome, after all, since they made it that far with such a lousy record. It capped off a pretty dismal season, yet the memory of playing in the tournament will be so memorable… they won.

Winning can be defined in many ways. We like to define our own wins, whether they be on a field, gym, or other arena. I am thinking here of politics. Tuesday was “super” Tuesday for the republican candidates. All four of them declared victory: Newt, because he won his home state of Georgia; Mitt, because he swept New England, and almost lost, but didn’t, Ohio; Rick, because he almost had more votes in Ohio than Romney, and therefore he won there and in a few other states; and Ron Paul, that champion of democracy declared victory for his principles and democracy. All winners; all in it for the long haul. It is so good to be able to define your win, no matter what else happens.

One contestant was kicked off American Idol tonight. Did he lose? No! He was in the top 13 and survived until  tonight. He won, disappointed that it ended now, but someday the world will hear his recorded voice again and he will make a lot of money; a big winner.

And the rest of us, winners all. The victory today for me: a long walk along the highway, and I am still alive despite a hundred 18 wheelers that tried to knock me off. I am a winner.

So it helps to define what winning is in your own eyes, adjust to it; enjoy the ride or walk, and be a winner.

My mother and father were not snobs

My mother and father were not snobs.
Mom did not graduate from eighth grade. She began working as soon as she could to help support her family, attended part-time school, became the first woman merchandiser at Monkey Wards in the area, raised five kids, and aspired that all of them should enter college, and maybe achieve a degree. She was proud of all that we did, whether we were carpenters, teachers, nurses or college professors. I think she was happy to tell people about all of it though. But snobbery was not my mother. Proud, yes; snob, no.

And Dad, he graduated from high school, often joked that he had taken four years of Latin (Latin 1 for two years, and Latin 2 for two years…highly irregular!). He was determined that all of us should go on to some education beyond high school, and also aspired to have  all of us graduate from college. He was pleased when some of us did it in the short time of 4 years after high school.  He was far from snobbery.

Mom and dad were excited when one of us completed a one or two year certificate program. And they were so proud when some of us completed degrees later in life. Completion of college was welcomed and celebrated at any time.
Education was extremely important to my parents. They were a son and daughter of immigrant stock. Higher education was elusive to most of their generation. Secondary education was difficult enough, even elementary school.

They managed to assure that the proper home environment was available so that we could study. They engaged themselves in the process of schooling by sitting with us while we did homework. They made sure that we had library cards so we could continue reading  throughout the year. And they were present at school meetings and teacher conferences when they were held.

I was fortunate to have benefited from their aspirations. As a guidance counselor for over 25 years, I talked of college education to thousands of students, hoping to engage them in similar goals. The district where I worked had a mix of students ranging from those who wanted college to a group who never dreamed of darkening the doors of a college campus. As the years went on, the college going rate at the school rose from about 50% to over 80%. This was partially caused by the rise of community colleges, federal and state incentives (Pell grant, TAP, GSL, etc.), and a real change in the attitudes of the parents and students themselves. Some parents even entered community college the same year as their son or daughter. Aspirations became realities. And these hard working people were not snobs.

And now comes that sorry man, that candidate for the presidency, who calls our current president a snob because he wants people to go to college. He assails the aspiring parents of  college bound young people as being snobs. I wonder if his parents would be considered snobs because he was encouraged to pursue college. Give us all a break.

Encourage us to better ourselves instead of deprecating the ideals and efforts that have made this country great and have improved the lot of so many Americans.  Encourage us to embrace steps that will increase our earning power and make the significant contributions to our society we so desperately need.

I actually know an Oscar nominee!!

As the red carpet filled with motion picture personalities dressed so awesomely beautiful revealing shapely bodies and gleaming teeth, one stood out dressed in penguiny black and white (gleaming teeth, yes), and that was Mother Dolores Hart from the Benedictine monastery in Bethlehem, CT. She left a promising career in Hollywood to join the monastery.

That’s not very far from here, and I had the good fortune of meeting Mother Dolores in the late 1960s at the monastery. A friend and I would make an annual retreat to the abbey, participate in the Latin office, have simple meals in the guest house, and have a spiritual conference with Sister Dolores Hart. She was on one side of the grille, and we were on the other. I think we were allowed to shake hands. I can’t remember what our conversations were about. One may have touched on marriage. I ignored that tidbit and got married within a year or two after that encounter.

Mother Dolores had a singleness of purpose, with her vision solely on her Maker. Nothing was to deter her from that, not even her former fiance who remained her friend and visited her often at the monastery. (That had to be awkward.) The short documentary, “God is Greater than Elvis”, about daily life in the monastery was nominated for an Oscar.

I am glad I met her, happy that she has emerged on the red carpet (she is the only person whom I can say I know who did that) and happy that she is happy doing what she does. In the end, that’s what life is about. And most of  all, I am happy because at the time I met her, I was a man of singleness of purpose, deeply in love with the woman I was soon to marry, heedless of advice, and spend forty, still counting, or so blissful years.

Someday, I will return to Bethlehem, pray in Latin, shake hands, and be thankful for the red carpet of  life, that allows us all to stand tall and smile every day.

Reflection on WH

Nobody said “ Satan did it!” and the general understanding of all who were present or who witnessed the “going home”  of Whitney Houston on Saturday seemed to be that she was continuing her wonderful concerts before the Lord Almighty forever. I believe that Whitney went home, and not to a bad place. I don’t know what goes on there, and nobody does. Home could be rejoicing, or silence; it could mean hanging out with all your friends and relatives in some joyous medium, or the reverential silence of heads bowed in perpetual prayer, or just a cozy box where you become part of the universe along with all those you love who have gone before you and are yet to come.
The important thing is that WH was going home. No judgment, except that she had a great ride here while she lived, and the ride was too short, and stopped too suddenly. She was home.
The emphasis on the good part of her life from childhood to stardom, and influence and no memorable mention of how she transitioned to home shows a tremendous change in the theology of life and death. Probably, a change for the better. There is no fire and brimstone, no fiery pit or everlasting torment for those who escape this world with a sorry death. Rather, a warm welcome by the Father in the home because WH was so good for most of her life.
I hope that applies to all people. I hope we can realize that the Father is more merciful and understanding than any human could ever imagine. I hope we can understand that sin does not make us bad (I know this is a little fuzzy here), although there are things that would not be classified as sin that do. We can recover if people let us and lead us to recovery, and if we don’t, in the end we would probably have done what we could with the opportunities that have been presented to us, and we go home.

Changelessness

Since it was a warm but blustery day, I shortened my walk and dropped in on my neighbor and friend Bob to chat, talk about old things and of course people. He had lunch at Stewart’s today and ran into someone who recognized him, but whom Bob did not recognize until after the initial acknowledgement. About 30 years separate the two men in age.

I commented to Bob that I have the same difficulty recognizing people who were students of mine over the years. They have changed more than I have with beards, weight, and so on. All have matured, some more beautiful than others.

I realized in the course of conversation with Bob that one trite turn of phrase that we often use is “You haven’t changed a bit since ….”  I sometimes think that that is an exaggeration or a lie whenever it is spoken, and I must admit that I have used it in the past.

I remember visiting my aunt Fran several or more years ago and I said that to her. She called me on it: “What are you, blind?” She knew that she was different, had put on some weight, and had a difficult life including health issues.I think I was referring more to her movement which appeared as I remembered it, her joie de vivre, her casual, concerned, and light-hearted manner, despite all that she had endured in life. After a bout with cancer, suffering pain that could only be controlled with large doses of Advil, she continued to work in a classy department store, had a great outlook on life, ironed the t-shirts and shorts for her son in law, had a different wardrobe for summer, winter, spring or fall, despite the unending summer of southern California.

So there were a lot of reasons for me to say, “You haven’t changed.”

And then I said to Bob whom I have known for almost 40 years “If I say to you you haven’t changed, you would probably look at me and knowing what you looked like then, retort, “you mean I looked this bad 40 years ago? I’ve been like this for that long! Shoot me!’ “ We had a good laugh about that.

The qualities that are changeless in an individual are difficult to describe. I have noticed that beauty is more than appearances. To know and appreciate a person requires that you go deep to find the true changelessness.

My Picture

That's me with the pirate uniform on, at age two in the backyard of our house in Troy. Really cute. Some aspects of personality never change. My older brother is in the background. My younger sister is probably in the house, or nearby, because my mother is wielding the camera. The picture was taken with a fold out camera from the 1930s that accompanied my mother wherever she and we went in our early years together. It used 620 film, 8 photos to a rolls. It was dropped off at a local drug store and returned a week or so later, developed with negatives impossible to decipher.

The brick facade of our house was always in need of repair. Dad often pointed it up using his limited masonry skills, but I realize this wasn't his work. We still lived on the first floor, and rented from someone who probably did the patch job.

A Real Valentine or the Grinch who stole Valentines Day

A real valentine brings people together, especially lovers, on a level, honest playing field.

That being said, there has been a  bombardment of ads and features on TV, stores, newspapers, and the www, all purporting to know the perfect gift for your loved one, and they just happen to have it available. One perfect gift featured on a local program was a diamond studded bracelet for only $1000.  If you don’t give this to your loved one (usually a woman- wife, fiancee, girlfriend or lover), poof! goes the love. If she isn’t worth that much, then there is this beautiful watch with interchangeable bands for only $500; and if that is still to pricey for the one you love, get a Pandora bracelet for about $30, and the charms begin at $25 each. Of course if you do this, then you have an inexpensive gift available for next year provided you have the same lover next year. Of course the jewelry people tell you that nobody likes flowers anymore, and the florists have the perfect bouquet for about fifty bucks (forty if you go to the firehouse in Guilderland.)

At any rate, it appears to me that most of the ads pitch things that the man gives his woman so she will continue to love him, as if love can be bought. If it is so, and all this buying is necessary to maintain love, then Valentines day is not for lovers, but an opportunity to buy superficial affection, as if any woman would be fooled by such nonsense. Valentines day could be very, very divisive if the right gift is not given at the right price. Did I just hear the flapping of the cupid’s wings go out the door? That darn Grinch.

Personally, I am a firm believer in courtly love which has high expectations of lovers, especially in the areas of fidelity, longevity, for better or worse, etc. For me and my love, every day of our married life is Valentines day. Fortunately, we agreed on that early in our marriage. So where is the romance? Where is the love? If the world is really celebrating love on Valentines day, we will celebrate, and we do. We do not have outlandish expectations like we may have at Christmas. Rather, we have dinner together, something special in house, light some candles, music and enjoy the love we have. Some times, we will go out to dinner. We have a drink to our love, have a nice entrée, and a decadent dessert.  We are both happy, satisfied and have been deeply in love for over 40years. No avarice, no guessing, no stress. Viva l’amore.

CNN, You Tube and Crazy People

Saturday morning CNN seems like an effort on that network’s part to fill time with stories that are slightly above, no, similar to cartoons… except the cartoons were usually funny. Today we were treated to a sight downloaded from You Tube, ( a really reliable source for everything nutty going on in the lives of people who are trying to create a life for themselves), the sight of a young man firing a revolver at a laptop, not once but seven or so times. He did this despicable deed to teach his daughter a lesson, “She should not disrespect her mother on Facebook.” It shows the man sitting cooly in a chair, then the laptop on the ground, and then the steel revolver. He fires once, into the heart of the laptop, and another, and another, then one for the mother who was disrespected, and then a few more just to show that he emptied his clip on that worthless, evil, disrespectful machine. And the daughter was to pay for a new laptop, and the bullets. All this to teach her a lesson about respect.

I think one lesson she learned was that her father was crazy, and in so far as the mother thought what the father was doing was okay, probably the mother was crazy too. I think the world who saw this spectacle thought the same. And I wonder about CNN (and they are not alone) who brings this stuff to the foreground, and they say it went viral. Does it go viral before CNN and the other cable news stations put it out, or after it has been played dozens of times on the networks? They do this with political stories: Romney not caring about the poor, the $10,000 bet. There was a hate crime attack on the young man in Atlanta, and there is concern that such crime may be emulated by a series of one-up-manship type episodes from gangs around the country (world) all for You Tube and the cable news.

The commentary on this type of video is always done with a wink, like this is strange, but so what. It takes all types. If they are determined to bring these “cartoons” to the screen, into living rooms and breakfast nooks across the world, why not make a legitimate point about the idiot who is firing the gun -like- “Whatever happened to reasonable conversation among family members?” or “Talk to your kids.”  or even “Seek counseling before you go off the deep end.”

Most of all, don’t put a link to it on your website. People do not need that kind of encouragement.

Unknown- St. Blaise, who?

3 February

In the middle of all the hubbub of the holidays, Christmas, New Years, MLK, Groundhog Day, we have forgotten to pause for one of the great saints, a bishop who is venerated as St. Blaise. Perhaps that should be spelled Blaze, because the practice of throat blessings with crossed candles originated with him, sort of. Supposedly, he saved a boy, who was choking on a fishbone, probably with an old fashioned Heimlich maneuver. I don’t think crossed candles would have been effective. At any rate, this cave dwelling bishop from Armenia had been arrested for being a Christian, would not recant, and embarked on a career of healing and praying in prison. The persecutors tried to drown him, but they drowned instead, and finally he was done in by being beaten and torn with wool combs. I am not making this up… someone else did a long time ago. He has a long list of patronages: against coughs, goiter, whooping cough, and any other diseases of the throat. He also is the patron saint of wool combers and weavers… go figure. Just for perspective, he died about the same time as St. Patrick was born in the early 300s.

So the celebration of the feast of St. Blaise (or Blaze as I would imagine it spelled correctly) was important in our upbringing. On February 3rd, we paraded to church ready for a miracle or protection. Our sore throat was about to be cured, or we had health care from sore throats for another year. The priest came by each person who was kneeling at the altar rail, and said something in the universal tongue of Latin as he held the crossed candles at our throats. There was immediate relief, sort of like a tickle, and we would actually feel better after the ceremony.(If that didn’t work, we would be able to have a do over with a glass of Easter water in the spring.) With all that we swallowed, I guess we were pretty well protected.  Thank Blaise for that!

I wonder how come there are no hymns to Blaise like there are to Patrick. His throat idea seems far more reasonable than the lucky shamrock of Patrick. Probably because he lived, thrived and died in Armenia instead of Ireland, and despite his great work, dedication to prayer and steadfastness of faith, he remains virtually unknown. So let’s give a shout out to St. Blaise, and all the other unknowns who today live quiet, dedicated, and thoughtful lives. Some of them are true miracle workers.

Ordinary man- Joe Estabrook, Bishop

Joe Estabrook and I had worked together at St. Vincent's in Albany for a few years. On rare occasions, our vacation times overlapped in the summer. One year, we decided a camping trip to Canada would be good, so with borrowed tents and sleeping bags, we set out for the North. We arrived somewhere north of Montreal, near nowhere in particular. Joe thought a good way to see the country was to go horseback riding, Until then, my experience with horses was on TV and merry-go-rounds, but Joe insisted...give it a try.  The horse managers assured me that my horse was not too spirited, and it was safe, and the horse was not spirited at all. The horse brought up the rear of the party of four and had to be coaxed and kicked the whole way. He was actually more reluctant on the journey than I was. Joe got a spirited horse, and he handled the beast well, until something stung the horse in the back area. The horse laid down in the middle of the trail to scratch its back, send Joe scurrying off, nimbly to safety. After the horse was becalmed, Joe mounted his steed and the journey continued. The horseman showed us a good place to camp in the back country. After the ride, we returned there, set up camp and decided to have a party with the horseman. We bought steaks, potatoes, corn, dessert, and beer. It went well, lots of stories, well into the night. The next morning we broke camp, but had  a bag full of garbage to dispose of. Amazingly, we drove about 20 miles, and could not find a refuse container anywhere, not even at a gas station. we picked up some kids who were hitchhiking, and who spoke only French. Where can we put the garbage I asked. They looked at us, dumb. I used all my French ability. I shouted "Gar-bage'!" and Joe was laughing, barely able to keep the car on the road. I then used the word "refuse" and Joe reached back and opened the bag to show them the trash. The boys had us drive a little further, drop them off, and pointed to a place down the road where we could dispose of our precious cargo. It worked. All in all, it was a good vacation. Adventurous, and fun, thanks to Joe's common man attitude and sense of adventure.
I have known a number of bishops in my life, each of whom had his own particular style. Probably all of them came into their bishopric because they were in the right place at the right time, having played some kind of game to get where they got. It was for the most part an old boys' network, extending as far as the Vatican, and with reaches into the various seminaries the future bishops attended. Special attention was paid to those men ordained from North American College in Rome or Catholic University of America. There were exceptional men who had attended Mt. St. Mary’s in Emmitsburg, Md. or St. Bonaventure's in Olean, NY. 
Bishop Joseph Estabrook was one person who became a bishop who  was a good friend of mine. He was a little younger, and died a few days ago after a bout with pancreatic cancer. He was a bishop in the US Navy, having served as a chaplain in that branch for almost 40 years, and as a bishop for maybe the last 6 or 7 years of that service.
I never met anyone whom he ministered to, nor have I met any of the chaplains who have served under him while he was bishop. Actually, I only spoke with him a few times during the past year, all since he was afflicted with cancer. He was very optimistic about his chance of surviving for a long while. He said he had the rare form of pancreatic cancer that plagued Steve Jobs, and the chances of living longer were better with that. He went through some rounds of chemo, always with hope, to live another day in service to God and country. He was stunned by the cost of chemotherapy. “How can anybody afford it?” He  did okay under the circumstances, but succumbed to the cancer, probably as he would say, according to God’s plan.
The great thing about Joe: he was ordinary. He went to St. Bonaventure’s in the seminary. He worked with me at St. Vincent’s in Albany where he loved the people, and made an impression on the young people there. He also did pre-Cana work, and fostered the program in the Albany area so that married couples, not just celibate priests, actually assisted in the preparation of young couples for the married life. And many of the couples who participated in the program became his friends. I have heard that he used this same effective humble style as he supported the spiritual needs of military men, women and families in his service. For this work, he was made a Bishop, probably breaking the circle of the old boys' network.
I know he enjoyed smoking a pipe, driving a camaro, and nice clothes. He enjoyed talking with people, and always looked for a different angle in situations. “I wonder!” “What if…”
An ordinary man, exceptional in his ordinariness, and he didn’t need a title, but he became a Bishop. Wow!

Winter wonder… I Wonder!

In October of 2011, AccuWeather predicted a snowy period here in the Northeast beginning in December and lasting through January. Say what! Probably that is the prediction every year, and we get what we get. AccuWeather was probably correct for the winter of 2010-11. I wonder how they can go so wrong as it seems to be this year. Nevertheless, I will forgive AccuWeather. There are so many time that they have been right on, especially in the short term forecast.
There have been other mild winters that stick in my memory. 1979-80 was mild, I think. I remember it because I had back surgery in December of ‘79. There was a little snow before Christmas. Phyllis, Dan and Meg went out to cut the Christmas tree while I lay on my back recuperating. It was a great tree, and Dan showed his stuff at age 6 as he severed the tree just above the ground with a little pruning saw. And after Christmas, winter seemed to stop. My therapy for the back surgery began with walks along the roads. The first walk was about a half mile, which exhausted me. I collapsed on a neighbors sofa, and summoned Phyllis to drive me back. Eventually, I worked my way up to 3 miles a day- the therapeutic target, and kept that up until April. No snow. Great walking. Lost 20 pounds. Recovered.
Another mild winter, or possibly just snow free was the winter of 1987-88. We had 22 inches of snow on October4. School was closed for a week because of downed power lines in many areas of the district. Dan had a beat up snowmobile then. He took a lot of pride in it, but it needed lots of work. He tinkered with it the first day off, got it running. It was fun as he raced south through the fields and trees, and past the school house and church, and somewhere down there, it coughed, sputtered and died. We brought it home in our station wagon. Dan enjoyed fixing that the rest of the week; took it for a few spins around. And that was it for meaningful, measurable snow that winter.

There were several more winters without the snow, and when I questioned the value of snowmobiles before a dealer one day, he said “You have to go to Old Forge; there’s plenty of snow there, and trails.” We didn’t go to Old Forge. Dan waited, and tinkered with that snowmobile almost forever. He also invented an ice-cycle during those years with ice skates instead of a front wheel and a studded tire on the rear. Talk about winter wonder! He continues to spark wonder in me as he appeared last winter with his snow varmint, a power driven machine with a chain driven studded drum in the rear. He likes doing things like that.

The sophisticated Snow Varmint

I also remember a relatively snow free, mild winter in 2001-02. There was about 2 feet of snow on Christmas day, and maybe another storm in January, but it was relatively mild. That year Phyllis and I made many trips to Albany to deal with health issues. I parked the car in the driveway and rarely had to clean it off. I wore a light Old Navy jacket most of the time, rarely resorting to my standard winter coat. It was a good winter, and we resolved  a lot of the health issues for several years without the stress of dangerous winter driving.
I love winter. It is a wonderland here with or without snow. And it helps my spirit when it is not too cold.