Eye Contacts

Hazel was going to order a new set of contacts and the online company required a current prescription be provided. Another intrusion of government at the behest of special interest. Presumably fashion contacts were being ordered that could potentially cause eye damage.

What happened to a warning sheet with the order? Another alibi was that most eye injury come from using contacts at night. How does a prescription prevent that?

While I am ranting...do you really think those signs that say "Drive Carefully" make a difference? They cost taxpayer money, is it wisely spent? Got onto this while thinking about all the stupid warnings we are given - and ignore. How about those radio ads which, at the end, a voice rattles off some gibberish - yea for government. Think I will become a Libertarian. I may not fully agree with their view but at least they are going in the right direction. I feel surrounded by government, rules and laws.

Free Credit Report - Not

You are eligible to receive a free credit report per law. Today I decided to check credit report via TansUnion. I discovered you have to give them credit card info and that you are automatically enrolled in one of there offerings - that after 30 days will charge your card. You have to CALL customer service to cancel your membership. Be sure to read the Terms and Conditions on their site or it won't be free!

San Francisco Bound

We are planning to go to San Francisco on March 20th and return home on the 28th. Not sure which underpass we will sleep under while there. Kinda nervous about it because they tend to collapse during earthquakes and tanker truck explosions. Anyway, thats our plans.

We will probably stay with friends and relatives, I understand that Jax has extended an invitation although not sure I want to stay with a dog that runs away from cats. Unless it's one of those that escaped from the zoo.

New Cell Phones

Yesterday Hazel and I bought new cell phones. The purchase was prompted by bluetooth technology, we wanted to use the phones in our car which also has hands free link via bluetooth,

It's nice to have new phones and they seem to reflect some improvements but we have always used cell phones as phones, not as cameras, toasters, web browsers, etc. We are retiring our Motorola StarTacs. The StarTacs have been good phones and, although something of an anachronism, have become a small source of pride for me. I once went into a Verizon store and the salesman referred to my phone as an antique. My chest swelled at pride that I finally owned an antique, and that was several years ago!

And, I have had several people come up to me and ask "is that a StarTac?" "Yes" I reply. They then say something like "I wish I still had mine, it was one of the best phones I ever had." Hearing that encouraged me to stay the course. I bought the phones in the late 90's if memory serves me - it usually doesn't but I don't remember when it has failed me.

We will be contacting friends and family with our new number but if somehow we haven't relayed that information to you by the end of the month please call our old cell phone number. It won't work by then but that may mean we don't want you to have the new number...or maybe I forgot.

Well science marches on...or is marketing?

Lawsuits

I received an email today which had an attachment listing the "Stella Awards" for the year. The Stella Awards are named after the infamous lawsuit in which Stella Liebeck was awarded $2.9 million dollars in damages against McDonald's Corporation. Her claim was that the coffee was brewed too hot and scalded her when she spilled it in her lap.

The Stella Awards are real but this particular email contained bogus examples and as is usual will circulate on the Internet for years to come. There are real cases that you can find on The Stella Awards website but the unfortunate thing is this seriously distorts reality. The Stella Awards are seeking to exploit these judicial awards and make money. They have a stake in distorting the truth.

Our judicial system has major imperfections and yet provides one of the fairest and thoughtful approach to jurisprudence in the world. Instead of being titillated by the bogus and the extreme, lets keep our perspective. This article says it well.

Hyphenated Names

I read in the Wall Street Journal that hyphenated names are falling out of favor. This was a disappointment to me because I had looked forward to some interesting permutations.

For example, when the offspring of a hyphen grew up and married, and adopted a hyphen in their name, the government would have to start redesigning all their forms to accommodate the larger surnames. And the names themselves could get interesting, especially after several generations. Doe-Smith-Kosolavsky-Ivanovich-etcetera

Then think about the bride that wanted to make a statement, looking for a mate that had a surname that helped her express her feelings. Maybe her last name is "Im-Lotta" and she wanted to add "crap." No telling where that would end. (Anybody know someone whose name is "Inna"?

Revealed

A little known side of George Washington.

Can our Sons Peel a Banana?

I was sitting in my office at the computer and Hazel called out do you want a banana? I replied yes and she brought me one, partly peeled. She laughed and said once a mother, always a mother.

That raises deep concern about our grown sons. They are men now but I have to wonder if they learned how to peel their own bananas? Are mothers the reason men are viewed by women as often inept in their personal lives?

Aki and Pam, do you have to peel bananas for your husbands? Laura, is Chris similarly afflicted?

New Orleans Again...and Again

I'm back from New Orleans and trying to compile my impressions and information into some type of reasonably coherent and accurate portrayal of the city today. It is impossible to fully communicate something like this but on the other hand, I hope I haven't done a disservice.

I believe this time I have seen the city as it is likely to be for many years to come. Last April, stores had banners proclaiming their return to business - "Now Open," "Back in Business,"...but not all. Now, the signs are gone, it is business as usual. Those that were going to reopen have, and still there are empty storefronts. Some services such as dry cleaners are scarce or non-existent in areas.

This seems to reflect the state of the city over all. Figures vary but somewhere around 25-35% of residents have not returned, and are not likely to. The gap of their departure will no doubt be slowly filled over the years but it will take time. This means there will be occupied homes in blocks next to large groups of abandoned homes. The city has made gestures toward leveling abandoned homes but I have to wonder if they will follow through on the scale needed other then to allow developers to take over targeted neighborhoods.

The political corruption, special interest, and sheer ineptness seriously impede return to normalcy. There have been 186,000 applications for Road Home Funds. These funds are designed to assist homeowners in rebuilding, relocating - or still trying to decide. Only 20,000 have received assistance. Many were rejected to do paperwork filing problems - yes, assistance was available but people didn't know that they didn't know how to complete the applications. Maybe the new governor of Lousiana can improve things - many are hopeful.

Recent demographics, based on school enrollment, show that the largest number of residents to leave the city are those in the mid 30's to mid 40's. Older residents have returned and New Orleans is becoming an "in" place for young adults. Perhaps they will provide the necessary impetus to transform the city but there are serious blocks to purchasing a home there. First is the general state of the home buying industry and second is the very high insurance rates. This in the face of significant infra structure problems.

The problems are enormous, even without the corruption and self-interest. Crime is serious. Even though we stayed in a "good" neighborhood, we were cautioned not to walk alone. Often, gas stations close at 6 PM due to risk of robbery. Homes being newly built are scavenged for tools and copper. Air conditioning units are not being installed until the owner is occupying the home because thieves steal the motors for the copper wire - seriously damaging the system in the process. Never the less, we didn't really feel at risk.

So why did I go to rebuild and why do I plan to go again? Some reasons are difficult to express here. It is easy to say why build when there is the risk of another hurricane destroying the city? I think the best answer I can give is because it is their home. New Orleans has a very rich historical heritage that provides its citizens a unusual sense of community, a unique culture and savoir faire. Some residents trace back their New Orleans roots for generations and centuries.

I mentioned that many of the remaining citizens are older. Those were the folks we were helping during our trip. They had lived their entire lives in New Orleans. If they left, they would never be able to afford a home. With the help of Road Home Funds and the generosity of The New Orleans Episcopal Diocese, they could rebuild what they have, often I suspect a little better then before the hurricane.

We were rushing to complete one home so the couple could move out of their FEMA trailer before he died from stage four cancer, his wife would at least have a home. The other home belonged to a retired school teacher struggling with depression. She had lost a home 26 years ago due to flooding, this home was sitting on higher ground but still had a foot of water inside. Enough to require demolition and rebuild. New Orleans has been and still is there home.

The Episcopal program under which we worked is not associated with any government programs. The folks I described above received money from the church for the electrical/plumbing work on the understanding they would repay those funds once they received Road Home money. Last spring, when the diocese prepared their budget, they didn't anticipate having to pay for the electrical and plumbing (at least temporarily) and only allocated money toward the work volunteers do such as, drywall, flooring, hanging doors, windows, painting, etc. This budget was $6000 per house. Thus the funds were depleted faster then planned and fewer homes are being rebuilt right now. Some people have received their Road Home money and have repaid the Diocese, one owner felt so grateful that he wanted to pay much more then had been spent and had to be dissuaded (these are NOT wealthy people.)

One fear the Diocese has is that they will not get volunteers because people think they do not have the skills needed to rebuild. We met some very fine young adults (interns) - recently graduated from college that have volunteered months of time out of their careers. They came not knowing how to tile or any of the other skills, but quickly learned and can quickly train others. I saw a volunteer working that used a cane to get around and a woman in her 80's keeping the job site clean and organized. The volunteers were able to use them and I was surprised at how much they could contribute.

So why did I go and why will I return? Because these are simply people in need and I can help. It really has nothing to do with politics, New Orleans, or anything else.

New Orleans Again

We arrived earlier this afternoon for another work week in New Orleans. Early impression is that the city continues to return to normal...sort of. So far I haven't seen the multitude of "We Are Open" signs as seen in April. That's a good sign, business has progressed from announcing they are back in operation to the routine assumption that people now know they are back.

We met briefly with the rector here at Carrolton House. She told us that crime is serious, even in this "better" part of town, we need to avoid walking alone and should avoid leaving our cell phones, laptops, etc., in plain view in our rooms. Even though we are in a church facility, there is no guarantee of security. That is as I expected.

The other rather shocking news is that the churches are meeting this coming week to discuss the homeless problem. Rents have tripled and, most residents rented their accommodations. That has resulted in a large contingent of working homeless that simply cannot afford a place to live. Further, only recently did a homeless shelter open downtown, men only. There is no place for women or children.

To end on a good note, the weather is gorgeous, lows at night in the upper 50's or low 60's, highs in the mid to upper 70's in the daytime. A good time to come.

Today's Fire Call

I am a member of the local fire department as a volunteer fire police. Most times we assist emergency vehicles in reaching the scene - sometimes the ambulance personnel or outside fire responders, for example, do not know there way around St. James. The devlopment is confusing, so we post ourselves strategically to accelerate their reaching the scene. We also exercise traffic control around the scene.

I had a call today and sped in my car, red light flashing, to the scene and set up for traffic control. A contractor was hurt, probable back injury, on the second story of a house under construction. Since I was first on scene I had set up at the intersection to the short cul-de-sac where the house was located. The call was not a routine EMS emergency. The fire department was also called because they needed to get the person off the second story, no stairs had been built yet.

Soft ground and other issues ment the first two trucks, including our ladder truck, couldn't reach far enough for safe removal. A nearby town was called for their specialized equipment - whatever it was - and they couldn't do it. Another town responded but didn't have what was needed so we ended up calling a nearby facility that had an even bigger ladder rig. That did the job.

Now we had about 10 or more emergency vehicles spread around so a fire captain called me over to assist in moving one of the BRT's (that's fire department officialese for a fire truck and it means "big red truck"). He directed me to jump in the cab and to my surprise the siren started to wail. Now you have to understand that we seldom use sirens in the development as they can confuse and disrupt as much as help (check out insurance company stats). So I had to wonder where our BRT was headed that needed a siren. Turns out it was me! you know what? They have these buttons on the floor of the truck and all you have to do is step on one to sound the siren. Whoops.

Well we got the truck moved without further incident (the routine is to always have someone outside directing the driver when they back up). That was my particular job in the BRT.

The call took over two hours (usually around 25 minutes for medical) and no further problems, in fact I guess the way I handled the rest of the traffic was good because the fire captain sought me out after the call and complimented me. He probably did it though because it gave them a chance to laugh about the siren. Another day in the life of a fire policeman.

My blog

I haven't posted much lately and have wondered whether it is because I have grown tired of blogging or some other reason. Perhaps it is because I have drifted from its purpose. I started writing because it has become sort of a personal journal and like those I've written before, I am the audience and the contents are written for me.

I became stalled when I felt I needed to blog about Tyler and Maya's visit last month. Not that I mind writing about them but the process is a bit more onerous then simply throwing some words onto the screen. A blog about grand children should always contain pictures. My pictures, however, require substantial editing because I shoot in raw format. Blogspot gags if I attempt to load a 40 MB file so it has to be reduced in Photoshop, re sized, etc. The process takes time and then, of course I want to post the better photos. So I procrastinate and also postpone any other blogs until I get the pictures finished.

I know how much I enjoy seeing Maya's and Tyler's pictures so feel I need to do the same...but don't.

So I get blog constipation. Nothing comes out. I guess that is better then diarrhea of the mouth. Still.

I think I have to remember that I write this for my pleasure, if you like to read it, fine. If not, fine too. And most likely somewhere along the way I'll get those pictures posted. I hope the kids won't mind my posting their baby pictures when they are 13 or 14 years old.

Our Servicemen

Here is a moving video which I hope you will watch.

Recently US Marine Colonel Simcock foolishly asked for 6000 emails to share with his troops in Iraq. See this for details.

I say he is foolish because I believe he will be inundated with emails far far beyond the 6000. As word spreads across the Internet I suspect he may have to do something to turn off the tap on an over burdened Internet - and due to the "timeless" nature of the Internet, they will continue for years to come. Never the less, I'll feel better by sending an email.

And there is this web site that also provides a means of support.

I also want to extend my thanks to Stephanie Coyote. Without patriotic Americans like her we would have no reality checks. It is easy to get complacent until we are reminded that there are people in this country that not only oppose our being in Iraq but literally hate our servicemen. Stephanie is a fringe element thank God. As such she does us a service. Lets keep her fringe.

This is an interesting interview with the San Francisco Capt. Greg Corrales. Many people tend to condemn the entire city for attitudes such as the Coyotes.. I think Capt. Corrales says it well in his interview I've provided above. It will be interesting to see if Gavin Newsom reappoints her to the film commission. It is also amusing to see her cowardice when asked why she banned Marines from a Marine commercial.

Shorten the Campaigns

I think presidential campaigns - particularly for the party nomination have become far too long. They no longer provide a fair vetting process but merely a test of how politically cunning each candidate can be.

Financing a campaign of such longevity requires enormous amounts of money which means fund raising. And, in that process, the potential for corruption (okay, serious corruption) grows. Does the ability to secure massive campaign funds necessarily equate to leadership ability or something else?

I think the idea of "democratically" elected office holders should be changed to those elected that know someone and/or are will ling to compromise their ethics.

Now we find ourselves looking (hoping?) for a candidate to somehow self-destruct, savoring their downfall and welcoming another decision made for us lest we have to continue to think and evaluate. It also makes for great news and raw meat for the braying media hounds to render into pieces of destroyed hope and perhaps career.

Maya Returns

Miss Maya is coming today. She was here to visit us toward the end of August and despite a nagging conscience, I didn't get around to posting any photos from that visit. I guess I could blame Maya for my failure to post more on my blog. After all I shoot my photos in camera raw which are huge 30-40 MB files. Raw images give me a lot control over the finished result but also require me to get them to manageable file sizes to post on blogspot. Therefore I put it off and it is Maya's fault.

Oh you don't buy that. You say that's a cop out and really reprehensible blaming a beautiful, lovable, sweet child like Maya? Okay, I'll concede you are right.

And now that I have started on this I have to admit I enjoy looking at the pictures. Well, since she is coming today, and tomorrow, her friend Tyler will arrive, I expect to have even more pictures so will put off posting more right now. Another cop out.

Tyler coming? Yup and he is bringing his parents Pam and Josh.

Politicians and Military

Democratic Senator Jim Webb has introduced a proposal that would require troops to spend as much time at home as their most recent deployment. The idea is to force a reduction of troop levels in Iraq.

When I started my business career I was given sage advice by the VP of operations in the company I worked. He said "don't cover up a problem, fix it!" It was clear he lived by that standard and was one of the best managers I worked with during my career.

Webb's proposal is a problem cover up and may have serious unintended consequences. I dislike politicians getting that involved with the military operations and more importantly, it is inspired by an immediate situation as a way to achieve an objective without regard to long run consequences. A problem cover up.

Perhaps politician are used to obtaining their goals through such manipulation so think little of it. After all, they routinely achieve ends through compromise and working the system. Never the less, it is wrong. Both from the immediate perspective of being required to force troop withdrawals through such means and wrong from the aspect of an administration that is so adamant that the back door approach must be used. Sure would be nice if the politicians truly worked together for the best interest of the country.

Politics as usual.

Hybrid

Hazel and I have discussed getting a hybrid. We have considered the various qualities and characteristics we would prefer. We do not plan to do anything soon as we do not want to be tied down to the attendant obligations. And, there is a bewildering assortment out there. Labradoodles, labrahounds, dorgi, dorkie (have met a few of them), eskifon, bagle hound, be-apso, wauzer, puggles, whoodles, and more. Its tempting to get one for its name alone. Check out dogbreedinfo. There are some purebred dogs which I dislike and really put off by the idea of a mix of two such as the jack-rat-terrier. Just not my type.

What totally confuses us is this thing called mileage. What does mpg have to do with dogs? Isn't an Escape a cross between an American Eskimo and Chesapeake Bay Retriever?

Anniversary

On August 20th Hazel and I celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary by going to Charleston for a couple days, touring the city and eating well.






The bridge shown in these photos spans the north fork of the Charleston harbor to the pennisula holding downtown Charleston, something like San Francisco.

I believe the bridge is similar to the one being built to replace the eastern end of the San Francisco bay bridge. It is beautiful and a pleasure to drive.

Charleston has done a wonderful job of preserving and restoring its many historic buildings and this has done much, along with many fine restaurants, to insure a thriving tourist business. We took a carriage tour of the downtown and only as I write this do I realize that the last time we took a horse drawn carriage tour was on our honeymoon in Nassau, Bahamas. Seems especially appropriate and the trip, although short, was like a second honeymoon. It was hot, just like it was in the Bahamas but the heat didn't really dampen our pleasure.

I have wondered many times about the good fortune we had in meeting and making our life together. Of course there were difficult times but at no time did we seriously struggle to keep our marriage together, it has always been a central core of our lives. God has blessed us.

St. James Has no streets

I realized this morning that St. James has no streets. Kinda reminiscent of the days of yore when villages had little more then a cart path with hogs lying in the mud. Makes me nostalgic.

St. James does, however, have lanes, ways, drives, courts, circles and even boulevards. I guess streets are too pedestrian. Actually there aren't many walks so that makes sense too.

I think I'll check with the POA and see if I can raise some hogs.

Power of 10

Last night, on the TV show Power of 10, the contestant was asked "What percentage of Americans believe Andrew Lloyd Weber wrote Shakespeare's A MIDSUMMER NIGHTS DREAM?"

The answer: 28%

Lets hear it for public education! Yeaaaaaa