I was born on a dirt road

 I was born on a dirt road in a house my father built in small town America. Well actually I was ‘born’ in Englewood Hospital but my earliest memory was walking to the big rock at the edge of our property, under the apple tree and out into the dirt road where I met my first friends Brucy Randolph and Arty Lloyd. I memorized my address; 38 Glenwood Avenue, Demarest, NJ. Which I knew by heart. We all grew up watching 3 channels on a black and white TV that ended every night playing the National Anthem. We all watched and compared notes on our favorite Saturday morning shows like Roy Roger’s, Lassie, Black Beauty and My Friend Flicka. The News came on every night at 6 O’clock. Each channel had their own; Walter Cronkite on CBS, Huntley Brinkley on NBC, ABC had somebody but it really didn’t matter it was just ‘the news’ for a half an hour until the good shows came came back on. Winky Dink and You, the Mickey Mouse Club, Bonanza. Don’t quote me on the times, these are just a few ‘shows’ I remember and yes, Howdy Doodee with Buffalo Bob, Chief Thunder Thud and Princess Summer Fall Winter Spring. We went to school every morning. I pledged allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. Superman was my hero fighting for Truth, Justice and the American way. Someone would read a verse from the Bible and settled in until 3 O’clock and freedom. I went to bed saying now I lay me down to sleep and God Bless Everybody in the Whole Wide World. Every night we would say our prayers and my sister Linda and I would join in a call and respond with our Mom and Dad saying ‘See, You, In, The, Mor, Ning!” We always felt safe and warm in our cozy little home on Glenwood. I knew every house and every neighbor from Tommy O’mara, Danny Mullins, the Scanlons, the Randolph’s, Lloyd’s, the Morisons - that we called nosey, Susie Shute, the Wavpotiches, Zanusies and more… I believed that Columbus discovered America and that George Washington never told a lie. I loved America and waved the flag at parades especially when my uncle on the fire truck with his black and white Dalmatian and Grandpop, the towns chief of police, marched by. When I graduated from high school I was afraid to go to Viet Nam and was fortunate enough to go to college. I wanted to get a job where I could help people. When I showed up in South Carolina I got a job at the School for the Deaf and the Blind. I met the most beautiful girl I had ever seen and we fell in love. I became an instant dad and jumped at the chance to do my best. I worked that summer in construction, bought a house we could barely afford, got a second job in a record store, then Sears and teaching at tech using my computer geek skills. We pawned my little black and white TV for 25 bucks to get through the weekends. I played golf but put money into a 401k rather than a golf club. My father had worked so hard all of his life and told me I was in for a ‘rude awakening’. It’s wasn’t so rude but I started waking up to reality and started to understand the wisdom of his words. We had a beautiful little girl. We always believed that she could grow up to be whatever she wanted to be. Her brother Eric took his own life. Boy Scouts and baseball were not enough to save him from himself. He carried a burden, perhaps from the divorce, that proved too much to bear and the burden of that loss still haunts me today. Nonetheless we have forged on together and together we have achieved more than we ever imagined we would. Two TV’s, two cars and a house we call our own. We conquered debts thanks to Dad and my sister Linda and we built up our savings. Our daughter has achieved more than either one or even both of us put together. She is beautiful and brilliant and a consummate professional. She married a man with similar charms and together they have a home, two beautiful boys and two dogs they call a family.

In the meantime, what has happened to America? We went through a Civil War over 100 years ago. I considered that fascinating but ancient history. We went through the civil rights movement where the rights of women and races were championed. We built a beautiful and wonderful life in a beautiful and wonderful nation but…

What is happening to America? We appear to be tearing ourselves apart. It’s not the north and the south it’s neighbor against neighbor, friend vs friend and family members divided among themselves. It Fox News and the Liberal media that I believe is defining and dividing and pushing us into taking sides. We just suffered and endured a pandemic. Medical science asked us to wear a mask and wash our hands. Then they offered up a preventative cure with a modern vaccine but rather than join in a common cause we found another way to divide against each other. We allowed a man into office even with a minority vote but when he lost by enough to leave office he lied and lied and divided us yet again. I sit here tonight wring these words in fear and concerns that everything we know and love and worked for could be cast asunder because of this cancer of hate and greed that consumes us. We have a minority party that appears to rather destroy our economy than approve raising the debt ceiling that has been raised 69 times since 1965.

Queens Gambit - The strongest person is the person who isn't scared to be alone." - Alice Harmon

 The strongest person is the person who isn't scared to be alone." - Alice Harmon

In my opinion the most profound statement in the series and arguably in life.

A pivotal moment 

Physical poetry

The crescendo

E pluribus unum

The magic and the victory 

I am watching Queens Gambit now for the second time. It’s so funny that having grown up with three channels all of which signed off at night with the National Anthem, I now have ten different movie channels and every conceivable avenue of entertainment under the sun, yet there’s still Nothing on TV. Nothing worth watching that is. But the Queens Gambit is incredibly intriguing. Every nuance of Beth’s character is captivating and endearing. From her tragic beginnings in the orphanage through every phase of finding her way to success. So yes, when this song came on and she finds herself dancing in a momentary fusion of happiness and utter sadness, I wanted to see the original on YouTube. What a phenomenal resource. So I’ll go back to the program, hope and pray for her again that she will win and hold out hope that she will find her peace. Queen’s is quality drama in a sea of the mundane, much like Beth herself. As I’ve heard it said, it’s lonely at the top but it’s nice to know there are others out there that get it.

Undoubtably the best film I have ever watched. Finishing the second viewing this morning, I was already moved to tears a few times, the drama just keeps building as she prepares to play her arch nemesis Borgov. Her friend shows up to support her followed by a phone call in the morning where all of her former opponent/mentors call to give her guidance which she uses But in the end she goes back to visualizing the pieces on the ceiling and winning with her own unique talents. Then, while leaving in her limo, an international superstar still being told what to do, “Pull over!”. She steps out of the car and walks through an array of old men playing at benches in the park. She is recognized, applauded and invited to sit and play. She accepts in the purity of the sport and as she sets up her board she glances up and meets eyes with her gentleman opponent. As she looks and I look I recognize him as Shaible, her beloved teacher.

This film is so gentle and so powerful on so many levels. Her eyes… her eyes are beyond captivating. Her depth and intensity peers through a doe like vulnerability and softness. There are so many levels of character development and humanity. The consistency and believability of this person Beth Harmon, is impeccable. The nature/nurture debate is addressed. Her bio mother, math genius but self destructive. Beth is a prodigy in chess but sadly and painfully borderline in social skills. 

I have Every Streaming Service out there and yet I often say there’s nothing on TV. Nothing, that is, worth watching. This story, Beth’s struggles, her mother’s message and Beth’s triumphs are more visceral, more meaningful and impactful than any I’ve read, fictional or biographical. The author’s ability to create this person and the film director’s ability to bring to life on screen is something extraordinary. I’m so pleased that literature of substance is still being produced and consumed in our age of emojis on Twitter.

VANITY FAIR: Report: Donald Trump, in a Second Term, Wants to “Control…Every Facet of Life in America”

Report: Donald Trump, in a Second Term, Wants to "Control…Every Facet of Life in America"

Read in Vanity Fair: https://apple.news/AAlPH14y8S0mncVnDfhAqjg

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 What happens if the US defaults? What you need to know as the debt ceiling deadline nears.

Updated 2:47 pm EDT May. 19, 2023

In a move akin to raising the limit on country’s credit card, President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy are in a standoff whether to increase the federal debt ceiling for the 90th time since 1959.

In the simplest terms, McCarthy and Republicans, who hold the majority in the House, say they won't support bumping up the limit without assurances from Biden and Democrats that they'll support spending cuts. Biden says he wants the limit raised and the nation's bills paid before he'll agree to spending cuts.

Defaulting on the federal debt isn’t just a government problem. It has the potential to inflict pain across the country, including the stock market, which could translate to job cuts and losses in savings and pension funds.

Debt ceiling created more than 100 years ago

Until 1917, the Treasury Department had to get congressional permission each time it wanted to borrow money. That year, Congress passed the Second Liberty Bond Act, which streamlined the process and set a limit on how much could be borrowed.

In 1939, Congress set a single debt limit ($45 billion, a little over $1 trillion in today's dollars) for the Treasury Department and gave it wider discretion on how to borrow the funds. The law has mutated, but the general concept has remained the same: Congress has to approve increasing the amount, or the government can't borrow more money to pay debts. 

What is the current debt ceiling: $31.4 trillion

The debt ceiling – or debt limit, the amount the U.S. government can borrow to pay its bills – is now $31.4 trillion. Congress last pushed the ceiling up by $2.5 trillion in December 2021. As of Wednesday, the national debt, the amount the government owes its creditors, is actually over the limit: $31.46 trillion, according to the Treasury.

The Treasury has been using "extraordinary measures" to pay our bills since Jan. 19. That's when the country officially crossed the debt ceiling threshold, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen first warned that the country could default on its payments later in the year. 

Debt limit increases Congress has approved since 1980

When does the debt ceiling need to be raised?

In recent weeks, Yellen has put a finer point on the X date – the day the federal government would default – saying June 1 might be the last day the U.S. can pay its bills.

Others say that may be overly conservative.

One projection: Default could be several weeks away

Deutsche Bank projected in a report this week that if the federal government avoids default until mid-June, mid-year corporate tax payments could buoy federal coffers through July, but big first-of-the-month payments could make Aug. 1 the X date. Moody's Analytics estimates the X date could be June 8.

Regardless of the X date, Deutsche Bank's trendline still shows the narrow window the Treasury will navigate in the coming days.

When could Congress vote on the debt ceiling?

Both chambers of Congress were in session together on Thursday for the last time in May. They aren't scheduled to overlap again until June 6. That could create more urgency next week for McCarthy and Biden to find common ground.

How many times Congress has raised the debt ceiling: 89

Congress has increased the debt ceiling 89 times under every president with every kind of Congressional balance of power since Dwight Eisenhower.

Congress has also suspended the debt limit multiple times in the past decade. Most recently, Congress agreed to suspend the debt for two years in 2019, which allowed the government to keep borrowing. That suspension ended July 31, 2021. 

What happens if the US defaults?

During the past seven decades, the debt limit negotiations have been a tool for lawmakers to discuss and negotiate about the size of the budget. Those negotiations have become more contentious in recent years – maybe most notably in 2011.

Congress took negotiations to the edge of default in 2011, which sent the stock market tumbling. Americans' investments were further diminished when the near default led to Standard Poor's to downgrade the U.S. credit rating. 

How the stock market reacted in 2011

An actual default might have graver results for Americans and the economy. Moody's warned in a March analysis that credit rating agencies would, again, downgrade U.S. debt, which would again ripple through the financial system and Americans' jobs and finances. 

Without a resolution, some of the dire warnings:

50-year low unemployment rate could rise to 5%, or even 8% in the worst-case scenario, according to Moody's. 

Stock prices could fall as much as 45%, according to Yellen. 

$10 trillion in household wealth could be wiped out, according to Moody's.

Moody's estimates that even a brief default would drive up interest rates, causing a corresponding increase in home loan rates and new monthly mortgage payments. That would further weigh on a housing market that's been driven down by the Fed's efforts to fight inflation through interest rate increases.

Also, checks from the federal government could be temporarily stopped for:

Medicare benefits

Social Security

Military salaries

Tax refunds

Federal workers

Federal contractors

Who owns the federal debt?

The Treasury Department breaks down debt ownership into two categories:

Public: Debt owed to those outside of the federal government, including businesses, banks, insurance companies, pension funds, mutual funds, foreign governments, the Federal Reserve and others.

Intragovernmental: Debt owed by the federal government to another part of itself. This includes federal agencies such as Social Security, Medicare, the military retirement fund and others.

Foreign governments and international interests own about a quarter of the total public debt.

SOURCE USA TODAY Network reporting and research; Associated Press; Congressional Budget Office; Congressional Research Service; Treasury Department; Peter G. Peterson Foundation; house.gov; Bipartisan Policy Center; usa.gov; Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget; Moody's Analytics

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Originally Published 12:28 pm EDT May. 19, 2023

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USA TODAY: What happens if the US defaults? What you need to know as the debt ceiling deadline nears.

What happens if the US defaults? What you need to know as the debt ceiling deadline nears.

Read in USA TODAY: https://apple.news/AHcMUhGo2Sk2hZgNwKsE4dA

Shared from Apple News

Pete and Tess

 Chart

President	Accumulated Budget Deficit (in trillions of dollars)	Notable Causes
Ronald Reagan	$2.9	Increased defense spending, tax cuts, and economic recession
George H.W. Bush	$1.5	Economic recession, Gulf War
Bill Clinton	$1.4	Economic growth, budget control measures, surplus in later years
George W. Bush	$5.9	Tax cuts, wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, financial crisis
Barack Obama	$9.1	Economic recession, stimulus measures, tax cuts
Donald Trump	$6.9	Increased spending, tax cuts, COVID-19 relief measures

Please note that this table provides a simplified summary and there may be additional factors contributing to the budget deficits during each presidency.

 I have found YouTube to be a great resource on so many practical life skills topics but this interview surpassed and surprised me. We have a friend whose sister just entered palliative care and my mom passed several years ago after making the decision to go into hospice care. In both of these situations I try to be as supportive as possible but in my heart I know that this is still not me. I can still objectify the situation. I can be compassionate because it’s still not me. But how will I cross over that bridge myself? Will I resist and fight? Will I resign and go with dignity? You share the most intimate thoughts and insights about the human condition. The roles and responsibilities we put on each other and ourselves. About Jesus and Buddha and spiritual awakening. Thank you for taking your time to delve into these areas with honesty.

Why Elon Musk Is Right About Needing to Regulate AI Now - CNET

https://www.cnet.com/tech/why-elon-musk-is-right-about-needing-to-regulate-ai-now/


Sent from my iPhone

Abortion rights - to be or not to be

 Currently a birth certificate gathers this information:

All informational birth certificates will include the following information: 

• The child’s name
• The parent’s name
• The time and date of birth
• The city, county, and state of birth 
• The footprints and handprints of the baby
• 
  

The practice of taking a DNA swab of the baby will never happen in a democracy because it violates right to privacy laws etc. however I present the idea because it could and would solve numerous issues concerning accurate identification of the baby, the mother and the father. The biological birth mother’s identity is never in question at the time of birth whereas the biological identity of the father is. Rather than presenting another hoop for the mother, to the contrary it would establish DNA evidence of the true father even if she could not or would not want to identify him by name. Yes, he could avoid detection by never having his dna registered in the database so it would take a few generations before most all paternity matches would be automatically assigned. Now, like I say, this process will probably never happen but I’m not sure of the value of foot and hand prints on the BC and we have learned firsthand how important having our original birth certificate is in these last few years while trying to get our drivers Licence and Real ID. So a DNA sampling at birth would serve as a Real ID for life and far more fraud proof than a Social Security or Medicare Card.  But my point, again is not to burden the female but to support her. DNA would make the identity of the biological father irrefutable under any and all circumstances. No more, that ain’t my kid, scenarios be it on TV as sick and sad entertainment, or in courts of law. My point is that women carry the full burden of responsibility for a child from the first encounter whereas the father does not. It’s that basic biological fact that shapes our legal system and the current debate over abortion. My contention is that it’s men, not women, who push for an abortion. Men, get the girl pregnant, deny it, then tell her to take care of it.

The whole burden, emotional, physical and financial, falls on the female. I had approximately Zero male participants in TANF. You might as well call it PTWTW, put the women to work program, because that’s what it is. So men pressure females to have sex. Sex leads to pregnancy for the female. She often goes through the whole process, including abortion, by herself and carries all the guilt, shame, heartache, healthcare and myriad other  responsibilities by herself. Woman shelters are filled with women, not men. Men are out looking for new woman… and why? Because they can. They can deny paternity and paternal, financial responsibility. The hoops women jump through are endless but a dna swab of the baby would not be one of them.

The 12 week proposed legislation is more punitive than it appears on the surface as you point out. I think that if men were imposed upon with pregnancy and lifetime responsibilities to the same degree as women the arguments and policies around abortion would be far different.

Of course I could be completely wrong. 

Celebrating 45 years of marital bliss from 1978 til today April 5, 2023,

Pete the lesser half of

Pete and Tess

On May 4, 2023, at 11:14 PM, Robert Miles <rmiles6514@sbcglobal.net> wrote:

The basic principle for me is to leave each woman free to decide whether to continue a pregnancy. From what I found more than 90% of abortions are performed in the first 12 weeks. Legislatures don't have to be involved.

I disagree with Pete about requiring a DNA test. It presents another hoop for a woman to jump through, though involving the male partner is worthwhile, if possible.

Next time we get together, I'll share more of my direct experience.

Bob

On Thursday, May 4, 2023 at 11:06:31 PM EDT, Robert Miles <rmiles6514@sbcglobal.net> wrote:

I believe Cooper and don't trust Republicans to write any bill on abortion.

John, you are persuaded by parts that sugar coat the intent of the bill.

I skimmed through the 46-page bill. It is very intrusive. One comment says that it sets the stage for Mark Robinson to campaign on banning all abortions. Clearly, much time went into drafting the bill, but they waited until little time was available for debate.

I'll also forward a message from the League of Women Voters in case you're not on their mailing list.

Bob 

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/north-carolina-republicans-override-veto-abortion-ban-becomes-law_n_646391c9e4b0c10612ee51fd?utm_source=cordial&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=hp-us-reg-morning-email_2023-05-17&utm_term=us-morning-email

North Carolina Republicans successfully killed Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of a 12-week abortion ban on Tuesday, paving the way for the restriction to soon become law.

When the legislature held an override vote on Tuesday, every Republican voted for the 12-week abortion ban in the Senate, 30-20, and the House, 72-48 ― confirming that the state’s Republican supermajority had the power to override Cooper’s veto. All four Republicans whom Cooper had eyed as possible swing votes — state Reps. Tricia Cotham, John Bradford and Ted Davis Jr., as well as state Sen. Michael V. Lee — voted in favor of the abortion ban.

Keurig Amazon Review

 I’ve purchased several Keurigs from the single fill to the reservoir types. This Supreme is the best so far for several reasons:

A large reservoir that is easy to lift off, fill and replace 

A very sturdy and sure K Cup mechanism 

First think in the morning the unit power is off. Open the hatch, put in the K Cup, close the hatch, this turns on the power and you select your cup size. I choose Strong and 6 oz. The close lever is very sturdy and holds the k cup firmly, level, in place. The coffee starts brewing immediately with no pre heating or boiling sound yet it comes out hotter than our last machine. I add lot of cream and still put it in the microwave for a 30 second blast but that’s me. I think if you like Keurig you’re going to love this model.

Love

 

I was listening to In My Room by The Beach Boys and I was transported back to another place and time. I was back in a place we called the Canteen or just Canteen. We were kids and we would go to Canteen. I don’t know where it was, probably a church basement. I don’t know how I got there, my parents probably dropped me off. But I do remember being there inside. Somehow I see myself standing against a white wall. The lights seemed dim and in the shallow semi darkness I could watch the other dancers on the floor. The music must have been a juke box but I don’t know how the songs were chosen. All I know is that I wanted to dance? To the fast ones I wanted to shake, rattle and roll, but to the slow ones I wanted to hold someone in my arms. I remember the tension of the waiting. The thinking and planning of who I would ask. Would she say yes, or might she say no. There was that excitement of anticipation of the not knowing and the building up of the courage to ask… do you want to dance. If or when the offer was accepted we then held each other in the sway of the ‘shoo do be shoo be do’ sounds. This was romance. In the still of the night, darling I held you, held you so tight, in the still of the night. I would wrap my arms around her and feel the brush of her sweater on my chin as we nestled. Holding each other for three and a half minutes, sometimes looking across the room, sometimes eyes closing in the moment. These moments, these songs, these words, in the still of the night, together they were the meaning and the feelings of  romance. The feelings of being in love. There was a union, a closeness, an intimacy that we felt swaying to the music and holding each other close. Wrapping my arms around her and feeling her warmth and embrace. The scent of her perfume. The softness of her neck and sweetness of her breath. It was so intense and yet so innocent. There was no kissing, nothing below the waist, nothing after the dance except a thank you and the walk back to my group and my position on the wall. I guess we were 12 or 13. It wasn’t high school yet. It was canteen. It was when love was mystical, mysterious and new. That was the allure, the fascination, the magical magnetic mystery of young love. 

Do you want to dance?

Thank you 🙏 

America First?

 I am an American. A white male, born, raised and living in America. I love America. I’ve only known to love America and yet today, this morning, last night and probably tonight I live in fear. Probably not the fear that is felt in Ukraine or Israel or many other parts of the world but fear that we are heading in that direction. 

Today I am wealthy. I am married. We have a home that is paid for, money in the bank and money in the stock market. Not the kind of millions that actors, singers and athletes have, but money enough to live in comfort. More money than we ever dreamed of having when we used to pawn our little TV for 25 dollars to get through the weekend. I spent more than 25 dollars on beer and wine this weekend. We just had a most wonderful weekend with our family as described in my last post and yet I am anxious. I am in fear. Today I’ll meet my best friend John for a beer. We’ll talk about Karel, hopefully getting better. We’ll talk about politics. Often times John will have a somewhat positive view. Tess says that they will raise the debt ceiling and all will be ok. I’m in fear. Fear they won’t raise the debt ceiling. Fear we will lose our savings. Fear we’ll loose our income. Fear that they will create economic chaos to usher in their autocracy. That they will blame the democrats, the liberals, the woke, the immigrants for everything. That Trump will reassert that only he can fix us. Only he can save us. Save us from what? Democracy, freedom, integrity, decency, honesty. He is a bold faced , in your face liar. Is this what America wants as our leader? Fear, anxiety and fear. I can’t sleep. I can’t relax. I can’t meditate my way to calmness. I count my blessings. I know I’m more blessed than so many others but yet I’m afraid to loose what we have. I fear Trump and more than Trump I fear Trumpsters and haters. I fear the rise of hate and hatred for others. I fear the slogans of hate and the raising of the Swastika and the confederate flag and the Trump flag all as if in solidarity. I love America but This is not the America that I love. This is a part of America that I fear. I write out these feelings hoping that I am wrong. Praying that I am wrong. Hoping that Tess is right. That all of this is political theater and they will not deliberately sabotage our economy. That they will put aside their partisan pride and egos and actually put America First.

Now I lay me down to sleep

I pray the Lord my soul to keep 

If I should die before I wake

I pray the Lord my soul to take

God bless Mommy

God bless Daddy

God bless Linda

God bless Tess

God bless Lauren

God bless Sam

God bless Nolan and Wes

God bless everyone in our family and friends

And

God bless everybody in the whole wide world

Amen

New Belgium Family Reunion

 Yesterday, Sunday May 7, 2023, we met Elizabeth. If I could copy and paste all the text messages that brought this meeting about then you would get some idea of how much thinking, planning and last minute negotiation went into this fortuitous occasion.

This story begins about two or three years ago when Michael met Elizabeth, fell in love and got married.

Because this series of events transpired in the Out West and they wanted to share their love with those of us left behind, the plan to meet in the mountains began to take shape. Our original choice of destination was the Pisgah Inn, a picturesque place at the peak of the parkway. A lot of fun and excitement developed over the planning and anticipation of our shared spring fling. But suddenly a series of fires erupted in New Mexico rudely interrupting, ultimately canceling, our plans. That could have been where the story ends But neither discouraged nor deterred, Michael and his lovely bride Elizabeth decided to try, try again. Thus the target date became Sunday May 7th, 2023. The only question’s remaining were who, how and where? How to carve out 2 hours in each of our super busy lives. Meeting Pete and Tess in Hendersonville would have been a nice but a relatively dull affair so as the days ticked down to crunch time, Belgium Brewery in Asheville presented as a viable and far more engaging idea. After all what is more family friendly than cold beer on a hot day in a field of picnic tables?

And so the final plan was hatched. With the help of wings, wheels and google maps we all converged at our chosen destination within minutes of each other and despite the passage on many years linked with tenuous texting, from across the parking lot our eyes met and we made instant connections.
Greetings and hugs with a rush of words and we were suddenly family again. The kids, the dogs, the blending of young, old and in between there was a sense that something very special was happening.

Elizabeth was just precious. A perfect stranger bearing thoughtful gifts and inherent kindness that melted away any inhibitions on a first encounter. I was extremely intrigued as to how she and Michael met on line and think I asked before we even sat down.
Instead of rejecting, she immediately indulged my curiosity and thus ensured great conversations about finding one’s perfect match. Not only did I learn about Match I also expanded my classical music interests to include Debussy. ‘Alexa, play Claire de Lune.’

I also felt like I got to know Michael more than ever before. I think they bring out the best in each other. Having Sam and Lauren with us basically made all the difference in the world. Sam is such a natural engager. He has an easy charisma that makes everyone feel appreciated, comfortable and at home. And The boys, Wes and Nolan…. The next generation growing up before our very eyes, still took time to play a little game of Catch with Papa Peter. It’s just so great to have them here, present and involved in family activities. We are so blessed to have Lauren and Sam including them and including Papa Peter and Granma Tess in their world.

 I can’t leave without mentioning Holly and our little Zeke who, in their canine innocence, make us more human.

One of my first connections with Michael was mentioning that I knew he was a dog lover. I’ll never forget that picture of his Shepherd, who had climbed into their suitcase on the bed when he sensed they were leaving on vacation. This love was echoed when Elizabeth said they were racing through Asheville buying gifts for their pet sitters back home.

A final thanks to the young man who took all these iconic pictures of us under the arch at New Belgium.

Thank you to everyone who made this a most wonderful day. To Mamma Tess, for being Mamma. To Tess for having a Nephew Michael who discovered Elizabeth and brought her to us. To Michael being Cousin to Lauren. To Lauren and Sam, Nolan and Wes. 

May today be a day to remember but also to inspire making new memories together in the future.

Make America Hate Again

 This is my play on words for MAGA. There is something very self destructive going on in America and it’s like a dark cloud hanging over my head. I must say right here that still, despite the headlines, my life is almost perfect. I took Zeke for a walk today at Flat Rock Park and met several dog owners who remark about how cute Zeke is. These are men and women. I meet nice people everyday whenever and wherever I go walking. So my life in America is So So Good… but what? What is happening to us that we see day after day in the news? Today nine people, 8 innocent people and then the shooter, were killed/shot at an outlet mall in Texas. I just heard in the news report that Texas basically has no gun laws. Just go in and buy one. The last tragedy in Uvalde Texas that was a school shooting, the officers were criticized for not going into the school to confront the shooter faster. 40 minutes they stayed outside talking about what to do. The officer quit after the scrutiny… he quit because this is Insane. He is a small town policeman in small town America. He’s not a soldier in Iraq! We are creating an American horror story in the name of the 2nd Amendment and the right wing, fueled by right wing media and Donald Trump is turning us against each other with hatebtalk and lies. Who is doing this to us and why? Is it greed? Lust for power? Or just plain hate? Hitler was right??? How can something like this be said in America? How can this be said by someone who claims to be a patriotic American? But this is the kind of warped mentality that is being fed by this MAGA hate machine. I know Biden is not perfect by any means but I thank God for Biden and I believe that he is truly trying to save the soul of America. I would have thought this statement to be oh just too dramatic but oh my god what has happened to our soul?

So these are the things I worry about. Seeing hate in America by Americans on Americans. It’s very sad. It’s discouraging and it’s frightening. And along with this I’m afraid of loosing all our savings in a stock market crash caused by the MAGAs who refuse to raise the debt ceiling.

Now I’ve been told, that’s not going to happen. I’ve been told that hate is nothing new. Rationally I know that lying awake all night writing out these feelings are not going to fix anything but.. but I jaunt feel so hurt.

I love America. I love America. I love my wife , my daughter, my sister, my little dog and my friends. I love Jesus and God knows we need him here and now. He showed us the truth, the light and the way and yet we are so lost. 

Love thy neighbor as thyself. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Turn the other cheek. If he steals your shirt, give him your coat. In light of todays politics these things sound crazy but these are the words and the teachings of Jesus. Let his light shine down on us and help Joe Biden and those of us, the meek, who love America. Help us save her soul.

Texas shooting

 

Eight people were killed and at least seven others were wounded when a gunman opened fire at an outlet mall in Allen, Texas, on Saturday — the latest mass shooting to shatter an American community. A Dallas-area medical group said it was treating patients ranging from age from 5 to 61 years old. The 33-year-old shooter was killed by a police officer who was already at the mall near Dallas on an unrelated call. The gunman was armed with an AR-15 style rifle and had multiple weapons in his vehicle, according to police. The shooter's motive remains unclear at this time, but officials are investigating his potential ties to right-wing extremism after he was found with an insignia on his clothing worn by some members of extremist groups, a law enforcement source said. Officials have also found he had an extensive social media presence that included neo-Nazi and White supremacist-related posts.