Kramers in the House

It always seemed sad to me that our family was so small. As people got older and passed away, I deeply missed them and I was destressed by the feeling that our little clan shrinking away. That is until last week.

I met some blood relatives I didn't know I had. What wonderful people they are too. I am so very grateful to now know you. I hope this is the beginning of a life time of being family.

A poem about the joy of being with your family… (modified, from the Internet)

We come together, young and old, traveling distance just to be... surrounded by your own people. Cousins, uncles, aunts and grandparents, all in perfect harmony.

There’s power in these gathering, love renews and flows right through.... through the smiles, hugs and memories of how we used to be... through the surprise and glee, when we get to see.
The family we never knew.

Good food, real laughter.... our bonds become so strong. We know that we belong with each embrace, with cheek kissed, with each sang song,... we see what we have missed. And we tell ourselves we've been apart too long

We hold each others hands and pray, thanking Jesus for his grace.
Asking God to guide us safely home, until we meet again. In another time, in another place.

The Total of A Person's Life

I went to an estate auction today - my daughter was asked to take pictures.

Estate sales I've been to before, but this was my first auction. As I meandered my way through the physical property remains of the deceased, it looked just like the things we had to dis guard when my father passed away. Fortunately, this ensured I wasn't tempted by much of what I saw there. But it does make you think about all the junk we amass during our lifetimes.

I really don't want to besmirch the deceased, but how much junk do you really need? There was so much of it -- and people were buying it. All I can say is I'm motivated to clean out my house and get back to basics. After all, when will I really need that thing-a-ma-jig again? (Although by some unwritten rule of the universe, it does seem that when you throw something away you do need it right away... )

Another thing that occurred to me while I spent my day at this auction was how complicated we make our lives. This person has 3 boats, 4 cars, 3 tractors, an RV and an airplane. Can one person really use that much transportation?

The property totaled 90+ acres - most of it farmland that was not being used. So, there was plenty of space to keep all this stuff. That's another unwritten law of the universe - the more space you have the more junk you will get to fill that space.

I hope the family got a good amount of revenue from today's proceedings. I left before it was over and there was still a lot of junk to get rid of... but people were still there buying it up so their personal space wouldn't go empty. After all, the universe wouldn't be happy if we let our space be clutter free.

(I think I'll go clean the basement. Maybe I should have an auction...)

Please Vote

A lot of people are revved up by this election, but will they actually vote?

It is our civic duty to vote. It is our American birth right to vote. It is our personal obligation to vote - if you truly believe that America is the best country on planet Earth. Voting is what makes our democratic system unique and it is the core of our ability as American citizens to have a voice in where our elected officials and leaders take this country... and us along with it.

It's a beautiful and simple, simple thing.

So, get off your duff and VOTE on election day. Make this the year that you personally get involved and make a difference.

It matters not which idealogy you subscribe to following or which personality you like more. Unless you make your one vote count!

Don't Lose Hope

There's a lot of bad news these days. In fact, it's down right depressing... unless you keep perspective.

What we are experiencing is an adjustment. Nobody is actually calling this an economic adjustment, but that is what this is. We have ridden out an overinflated market that for the past decade has caused housing prices, salaries, and the stock market to soar. But, none of this was real. It was all on paper. And, it was not a good thing.

Perspective is something that gets better with age. Being over the 50 mark, my perspective is that the overinflated, bloated, fat economy couldn't last. Young people were having a heck of a time getting started because they were unable to catch-up with the inflated prices of homes, cars, and lifestyles. That's what caused them to over expend their credit cards and get mortgages they really couldn't afford. Now they are paying the price.

When I started out, you could actually live on a starting salary, and you could save a few dollars here and there for the down payment on your first house. My first place - a one bedroom condo - cost me $14,300 in 1978. I sold it seven years later for a $10,000 profit and put that against our down payment for our first single family home. It wasn't easy, but I made it a priority to save. SAVE - that word seems to have disappeared from our national vocabulary. And, here we are today, in debt to the Chinese.

But, don't lose hope. There is a way out of this situation. It's that four letter word SAVE. Stop eating out, stop buying stuff you don't really need, and start putting away a couple hundred dollars each month. If everyone in America did this, we'd reclaim our ability to make economically sound decisions. When you spend your real dollars (ones you can touch and see in your bank account), you are much more careful about the financial decisions you make.

Our government should take a lesson in fiscal responsibility too. It's really Simple, Simple.

VOTE - A Four Letter Word?

This has been quite an election season. Long, but not boring. And, there's been a lot of publicity about how historic this election will be given either an African American will become President or a woman will become Vice President.

So what!

I don't see what race or gender has to do with being qualified to lead this country through it's current economic and ethical crisis. Both of these problems are of historical proportion. What we need now is a President who is smart and fearless. Someone who will do what needs to be done regardless of the pressures from the greedy power mongers who run Washington DC.

The real question is whether or not Obama or McCain are that person.

I dare not speculate... only time will tell.

Choose wisely and make sure you VOTE on election day. Else, you do not have the right to complain. It's that Simple, Simple.

We Must Learn from History...

Quote

"The liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of private power to the point where it becomes stronger than the democratic state itself. That in its essence is fascism - ownership of government by an individual, by a group or any controlling private power."
~Franklin D. Roosevelt

Welcome the Poor House!

I'm living in Bizarro World and I don't like it!

Since when do hard-working, fiscally responsible people get f'd over by their leaders by having to foot the bill for out-of-control corporate greed that bankrupts the country, and to pay down the messes of delusional ignoramuses who thought they could afford a McMansion on a minimum wage salary? Since now!

If you live in America and you work hard and live within your means, then you are f'd! There is absolutely no incentive to do the right thing. I'm one of the poor bastards who scrimped and saved - instead of going out to dinner or taking elaborate vacations - who must now take care of the people who did not save their pennies, but lived beyond their income brackets. To me this is just plain un-American.

We weren't born rich. We made personal sacrifices to send our children to safe, parochial schools and now on top of paying full price for college (because our savings are too substantial to qualify for financial aid), we also now must bail out corporate bandits who robbed their investors blind. Unbelievable!

Hum - that doesn't sound like democracy. It sounds like Communism or socialism or communitarian (which by-the-way didn't survive). America, a country, once proud and strong, now weak and spoiled. I am really pissed off about this. I feel like my entire adult life has been flushed down the toilet and that everything I worked hard to achieve is being taken away, outside my control.

I wish there was a Simple, Simple solution to this major, major situation. I wish I could remain positive while Rome burns around us. I wish I knew how to make lemonade out of these lemons. I don't. I know, this is a major whine. So, please pass the cheese... thanks.