Home

Home...
Familiar.
Normal.
Everything in its place and a place for everything.
Nice.
Boring.

New location...
Different view.
Different surroundings.
Different people.
Exotic? Yeah, maybe a little.
"Where's my stuff?"

Stay a few days.
Neat.
Learn.
Enjoy.

Back home.
Normal.
Everything in its place and a place for everything.
Familiar.
COMFORTABLE.
WONDERFUL.
Better than anything else.

Travel is more than a good thing.
It focuses your thoughts on how you've made your HOME a home.
It reinforces why/how home IS home.
Travel is necessary and wonderful.

We're glad we went
We're SO glad to be home.

Happy Father's Day

My Father died 13 years ago of lung cancer.
He was a smoker.
I nagged him to stop.
He resented my nagging.

He was also one of those "Macho" guys with a wall around him to keep others at a certain distance.
Sara Jean and I worked on that for years, and by the end of his life had moved that wall considerably.

My sister always claimed the two of us had been raised by completely different parents...
Almost six years my junior, she was right.
From my viewpoint she was always "Daddy's girl" and was a consistent source of friction between me and Dad.
In the worst argument we ever had, when I was sixteen, Dad and I were face-to-face and he drew back and made a fist.
Almost a grown man by this time I cautioned him...
"Dad, I'm not sure you want to do that. You may whup me now, but soon you won't be able to!"
He relaxed his fist. We talked.
And the resolution to the problem was to put a lock on my bedroom door to keep my room from being trashed.

From this narrative you can discern that my Dad and I DID NOT have a perfect relationship.
But I loved him. He loved me. There was never any question of that.

Our relationship grew closer as we both aged.
I was always proud of him...
He could do most anything he set his mind to... expertly.
I know he was proud of my accomplishments. As a matter of fact, I often wonder if my success at some of the things he had always dreamed of was part of the friction between us.

After all the nagging about smoking, I was angry about his lung cancer diagnosis.
Truly, I'm not sure he could have avoided lung CA... he had smoked SO many years.
Watching him weaken and slowly fade, my sister and I coordinated our efforts to care for Dad, (and by doing so, take much of the burden off Mom's shoulders).
We all worked as a team.

How many young boys don't have a male figure in their lives, providing support, and at least showing that men, just by "bringing home the bacon", show a willingness to bear a responsibility to their families?
My Dad wasn't perfect. But even through his mistakes I learned things I used to make my relationship with my own son better.

Dad, I'm thankful that during those last weeks of your life you knew we were there to make your exit from this life as comfortable as possible.
I'm grateful that you were able to let us know you appreciated our efforts.

I think of you every day. I miss being able to share stuff about our mutual interests in flying, nature, and mechanics.

And I will ALWAYS be thankful our last years were not like those we shared together under one roof.

God be with you 'til we meet again.

The Koran

I want an education.
I'm even considering trying to start a conversation with an official at our local Muslim place of worship.
I want to know what the Koran says.

I'm told the Koran, like the Bible, has contradictions.
Contradictions in the Bible are resolved by Christ's appearance on earth.
The New Testament establishes new rules-
Love the Lord.
Love others as you love the Lord.

What does the Koran say?
This is where I need expert input.

I'm told followers of Islam are told to do one of three things with "infidels"...(that's you and me).
1. Tax them.
2. Enslave them.
3. Kill them, and the preferred method of execution is beheading.
How much of this is true?

Today, from many friends I used to consider intelligent, I'm hearing "religion is the problem".
True Christians ARE NOT the problem.

Please...
Someone who knows more about the "Religion of Peace"...
Tell me the truth, and cite where I can get an education on the subject.

I HAVE To Kill You.

As is so often the case, I can't even remember the discussion that led us to get into the subject in the first place. But I was talking with a guy I THOUGHT I knew well...
He was my neighbor growing up. We went to the same grade school, same Jr. High, same High School. We were drafted into the Army within months of one another. He's a Viet Nam Veteran.
He's a Christian who practices his faith by doing wonderful works. I admire that in him, tremendously.

But, on this day, the bottom fell out. We were discussing the sorry state of our Nation. Somewhere in the discussion his shoulders slumped and his expression changed.
"I'm just one guy... what can I do?" he asked.
And I realized I no longer really knew this man I had "known" for sixty years.
I also realized my desperate need to find others who feel as I do and surround my family with them.

History is a hard teacher.
George Santayana is credited with the quote about those that don't know it being forced to repeat it.
And the rest of us have to suffer as we watch our world crumble while folks on "Watters' World" continue to vote.
I'm paying attention to Europe. Because with the "I'm just one guy, what can I do?" attitude, that's where we're headed. And that's interesting to me because of a guy named Neville Chamberlain.
If you don't recognize the name, do the research and learn some history.

I shout at the TV a LOT lately.
Our nation, founded on Christian principles, is at war with an enemy and we don't even want to admit it.
My Holy Book tells me to love everyone, including my foe.
Their Holy Book tells them they must do one of three things with people that do not believe as they do:
-Tax them.
-Enslave them.
-Or KILL them, with beheading being a preferable method of dispatch.

"Not all Muslims are bad people" I often hear folks on TV say.
And then I scream at the box... "The 'good Muslims' aren't paying attention to their Holy Book!"
But... I'm just one guy.
What can I do?

Protecting Gaia

Change the oil in your Dodge Ram truck with the Cummins Diesel engine and you'll end up with nearly two gallons of used motor oil in your receiving container.
Add to that container the used oil from two mowers and a garden tiller and like me, you may find you have a couple heavy containers full of yucky liquid.
I was under the impression the law today was such that I could take my used oil to any facility in the oil change business and they were required to accept my containers.
Where did I get that idea?
I was mistaken.

Jiffy Lube turned me down but suggested a business that "might" accept my oil for recycling.
My local tire store said "Yes, I'll take it for you", but it was obvious he wasn't happy about it.
"They used to pay me for this oil", he said. "Then they'd suck it out of my tank for free. Then they charged me $20", (this is a 300 gallon tank). "Now they're charging me $65."
This "green energy" business has, once again, turned out to be a pipe dream.

There ARE places that will accept used motor oil...
When I got home a quick internet search indicated both our local Auto Parts stores will still take it.
My question is, how long will that last?

Old tires.
Motor oil.
Old TV's, computers, microwaves and other electronics...
The "free lunch" idea here seems to be to just to take this stuff out in the country and dump it alongside a quiet country road.

(That's a joke... I KEEEEEEEED.)