opinion

I Do Not Have a Favorite Shoe

Sorry, I did not have a favorite shoe. To me a shoe is a necessity not a luxury. Life would be tough without shoes. Looking at scenes during Jesus’s era and seeing those open sandals and bare feet. No Thank You!

I remember when going to grade school high top tennis shoes were the type to have. You just didn’t fit in if you did not have high top tennis shoes. My mother would shop at Thom McAnn’s shoe store, and we always got our shoes there. Are they even around anymore? A new pair of shoes always gave you a blister somewhere on your foot. When I started in corporate management Florsheim shoes were the brand to have. I had one pair, and they were the worse shoes in my life. After a short period of time, they were not comfortable and lasted less than six months. That was the last Florsheim I bought.

In the army I received two pairs of combat boots and one pair of class A shoes. Since I have a small foot, size eight, I received combat boots made for WWII They had a date of 1944 in the boot, and this was twenty years after the war. The boots received the most attention in my entire life. They always needed to be shined and one pair had to be spit shined for guard duty. They lasted many years after I got out of the army. Probably the reason they lasted was because I did not wear them that often.

I never did get into all these designer shoes or sport shoes like Nike, New Balance, Adidas or others. After I married, I accepted shoes from Target, K-Mart, or Walmart. Cared less about brand name but how they feel and wear. I am still in that position now.

In conclusion, I never had a favorite pair of shoes and never walked “The Yellow Brick Road” in them.

Daily writing prompt
Tell us about your favorite pair of shoes, and where they’ve taken you.
View all responses

Patriotism

A patriot is a person who loves their country. It is generally seen as a positive. Many have ancestry from a foreign country. They have seen or heard how their life has improved in this country compared to where their ancestors came from. They have realized they can believe a religion they may have been restricted from. The world is full of controlling countries and that may be the reason they immigrated. Whatever the reason, a love for a country is starting to materialize when they come to this country and feel the opportunities. Have you ever heard of anyone immigrating to Russia, North Korea for the opportunities?

Defending a country against its enemies, and a desire to see it succeed is very important. There are national cemeteries across the nation that are full of patriots that stepped up and fought and defended the country. Millions are in these cemeteries that made the supreme sacrifice in battle defending this love of country.

Most countries aim to instill patriotism in their youths from a young age, often through education and exposure to patriotic symbols and events. I remember in grade school they would raise the flag when the students were entering. When they were raising the flag, you would stop and wait until the flag was raised. We were taught about the many symbols and history of this country. Unfortunately, I have heard that this has diminished in the last years. If this is true, I am afraid that this will affect this country in the future.

Patriots believe it’s their duty to vote in elections. This is based on their sincere desire for their country to succeed. Patriots pay attention to the events that are happening in the country and vote accordingly. Way too many do not vote and do not have a clue what is going on in the country. I am concerned that this lack of interest could affect the future of this country.

Yes, I consider myself to be a patriot. I vote consistently and follow local and national news and events. I served in the military and was willing to give my life for this country. I respect the flag and symbols of the country. I love this country and have no desire to go to any other country. This country has been very good to me, and I have lived the American Dream.

Daily writing prompt
Are you patriotic? What does being patriotic mean to you?
View all responses

Complaints, Complaints, Complaints

What is happening to this world? Across the world you see unrest with massive demonstrations, violence, armed conflicts with many deaths. Russia and Ukraine are in a war. Gaza and Israel conflict goes on. China is threatening Taiwan. Three US soldiers are killed in Jordan. Farmers in Scandinavia and Paris are having massive demonstrations.

On a local level. The actual number is not actually known, but millions of people have come across the border. This is putting a tremendous burden on the health system and social services. In large cities crime is rising. You see videos of smash and grabs where large swarms of people just go in and grab anything they want. Homeless camps are springing up everywhere. Fentanyl deaths in the past years are scary.

Inflation is alive and well. For example, I recently purchased a large package of toilet paper, and the cost was twenty-two dollars. Six months ago, the cost was eighteen dollars. That is an over twenty percent increase. My property taxes just increased nine-hundred dollars. These increases are pinching my fixed income.

In politics all you see and hear is anger and hate. There is no longer a civil discussion on the issues. All they do is attack their opponent. Truthfulness is dead. Anything is said to fit their agenda. There is no accountability for out and out lies. Many government entities have been weaponized, and they use their authority to push the agenda. Equal justice under the law is currently missing.

So, what is a mere mortal like you and me do? Complain, complain, and complain some more. Another very important thing to do is, learn more about the agenda these politicians are pushing on us. Finally, vote in November.

Bloganuary writing prompt
What do you complain about the most?
View all responses

WHAT IS THE ATTRACTION? 

Ever wonder why you are attracted to someone, more than someone else? I have wondered about that through my years. It must be more than just physical even though that plays a part in some parts of life. In my opinion, interaction between other humans is the most important segment of our lives. Memories are built from these contacts we have throughout our life. Friendships, marriages and unfortunately enemies come from human interactions. As life continues you meet a large quantity of people. A relation is started when two people are attracted to each other. I am not an expert. I am just quoting my experiences and opinions. 

As you begin to grow up your world expands. You meet neighbors, new people from church gatherings and school that expands your life. Why was I attracted to Doris the neighbor from Lola. I do not have a clue. All the boys in first grade had a crush on Miss Lee the first-grade teacher. Our hearts were broken when she married the math teacher. In second or third grade I met Sandra. She was special. I was attracted to her, and she was attracted to me. We were very close friends through elementary and junior high and most of high school. What happened is a story for another publication.  

As you continue your life you may find out that the attraction that someone shows to you may have selfish reasons. For example, I went into the army and was shipped over to Germany for almost two years. In an orientation meeting we were warned that many of the German young women will do anything to get a ticket to America. That included lying to you, sex and getting pregnant. This wasn’t attraction, this was a planned plot to get to America. You may be attracted to her, but she may just be desperate to improve her life. One had to be very careful.  

Image result for magnets

For close to twenty years, I hired and fired hundreds of employees for a large corporation. This included women to work in an office environment. On rare occasions during the interview the prospect would offer services outside of the office to get the job. This wasn’t attraction, this was desperation to get the job. That killed her possibility of becoming hired. Qualifications are important but I also found out attraction is also an important part of the decision process. This also applies to male applications. I don’t mean sexual attraction. All my life I have been a normal healthy male and have not had any sexual attractions to my fellow males. I also consider ease of conversations to be a part of the attraction. Some individuals are so easy to have a conversation and continue the conversation. Others, not so easy. Eye contact is also important. I was surprised how many could not look you in the eye during the interview. It made me think, “what are they hiding from me?” I discovered I had more success in hiring individuals that had this attraction and would stay on the job for a longer period of time.   

There is physical and sexual attraction. Those hormones are powerful chemicals affecting your decisions and your body. Most humans are driven to marriage or having a significant other. Most want to leave the legacy of children. That is just life. Most healthy males enjoy the eye candy offered by the sight of the human female. I would speculate females are attracted to the male eye candy available too. So, you go through life, and maybe get married or find a significant other. But these physical attractions are still knocking at your front door. Do you stay loyal or let temptation take over? That is a decision you must make throughout your hormone driven years. Been there done that. Yes, it is tough to decide at times what avenue do you want to travel down. Feelings and hurt can be devastating. I remember telling my sons when their hormones were starting to flow.  “Son, don’t let your hormones lead your life, there are other important things in life, that must be considered, such as compatibility, comfort, trust and love.” I guess it helped, they both appear to be happy with their lives and relationships.  

I also discovered there can be attractions in the cyber world too. I have been on twitter, now X, since 2010 and have acquired over 5000 followers and I follow around the same amount. Most are silent but there is the small amount that you start conversing quite often and the attraction starts to emerge. In many cases you do not have a clue what they look like because many use avatars instead of actual photos and they are spread all over the country. You can tell the gender by name, but the eye candy luxury feature is not there, and you do not know the age gap. After some conversations you can figure out the age gap though. Now I am fantasying that it would be nice to meet these attractions face-to-face and see if the attraction is real. I am quite sure this will never happen though.  

Have you ever considered that these attractions may happen more than just coincidence? Do you meet these people for some unexplained reason? Are you meant to learn something from these attractions? Many times, I have the feeling that I meet a person for a reason. Of course, the reason for this encounter is the difficult part to figure out.  Life has been an adventure and there must be a reason for this life of many learning experiences.

In conclusion, I more than likely will never know why I am attracted to someone and not another. This is just one of those mysteries of life that will never be answered. It has been interesting writing about it though.  

A spooky scenerio
I don’t know if this is true, but it is spooky.
 
You’re sound asleep when you hear a thump outside your bedroom door.
Half-awake, and nearly paralyzed with fear, you hear muffled whispers.
At least two people have broken into your house and are moving your way.
With your heart pumping, you reach down beside your bed and pick up your shotgun.
You rack a shell into the chamber, then inch toward the door and open it.
In the darkness, you make out two shadows.
One holds something that looks like a crowbar.
When the intruder brandishes it as if to strike, you raise the shotgun and fire.
The blast knocks both thugs to the floor.
One writhes and screams while the second man crawls to the front door and lurches outside.
As you pick up the telephone to call police, you know you’re in trouble.
In your country, most guns were outlawed years before, and the few that are privately owned are so stringently regulated as to make them useless..
Yours was never registered.
Police arrive and inform you that the second burglar has died.
They arrest you for First Degree Murder and Illegal Possession of a Firearm.
When you talk to your attorney, he tells you not to worry: authorities will probably plea the case down to manslaughter.
“What kind of sentence will I get?” you ask.
“Only ten-to-twelve years,” he replies, as if that’s nothing.
“Behave yourself, and you’ll be out in seven.”
The next day, the shooting is the lead story in the local newspaper.
 
Somehow, you’re portrayed as an eccentric vigilante while the two men you shot are represented as choirboys.
Their friends and relatives can’t find an unkind word to say about them..
Buried deep down in the article, authorities acknowledge that both “victims” have been arrested numerous times.
But the next day’s headline says it all:  “Lovable Rogue Son Didn’t Deserve to Die.”
The thieves have been transformed from career criminals into Robin Hood-type pranksters..
As the days wear on, the story takes wings.
The national media picks it up, then the international media.
The surviving burglar has become a folk hero.
Your attorney says the thief is preparing to sue you, and he’ll probably win.
The media publishes reports that your home has been burglarized several times in the past and that you’ve been critical of local police for their lack of effort in apprehending the suspects.
After the last break-in, you told your neighbor that you would be prepared next time.
The District Attorney uses this to allege that you were lying in wait for the burglars.
A few months later, you go to trial.
The charges haven’t been reduced, as your lawyer had so confidently predicted.
When you take the stand, your anger at the injustice of it all works against you..
Prosecutors paint a picture of you as a mean, vengeful man.
It doesn’t take long for the jury to convict you of all charges.
The judge sentences you to life in prison.
This case really happened.
On August 22, 1999, Tony Martin of Emneth, Norfolk , England , killed one burglar and wounded a second.
In April, 2000, he was convicted and is now serving a life term…
How did it become a crime to defend one’s own life in the once great British Empire ?
It started with the Pistols Act of 1903.
This seemingly reasonable law forbade selling pistols to minors or felons and established that handgun sales were to be made only to those who had a license.
The Firearms Act of 1920 expanded licensing to include not only handguns but all firearms except shotguns..
Later laws passed in 1953 and 1967 outlawed the carrying of any weapon by private citizens and mandated the registration of all shotguns.
Momentum for total handgun confiscation began in earnest after the Hungerford mass shooting in 1987.
Michael Ryan, a mentally disturbed man with a Kalashnikov rifle, walked down the streets shooting everyone he saw.
When the smoke cleared, 17 people were dead.
The British public, already de-sensitized by eighty years of “gun control”, demanded even tougher restrictions. (The seizure of all privately owned handguns was the objective even though Ryan used a rifle.)
Nine years later, at Dunblane, Scotland, Thomas Hamilton used a semi-automatic weapon to murder 16 children and a teacher at a public school.
For many years, the media had portrayed all gun owners as mentally unstable, or worse, criminals.
Now the press had a real kook with which to beat up law-abiding gun owners.
Day after day, week after week, the media gave up all pretense of objectivity and demanded a total ban on all handguns.
The Dunblane Inquiry, a few months later, sealed the fate of the few side arms still owned by private citizens.
During the years in which the British government incrementally took away most gun rights, the notion that a citizen had the right to armed self-defense came to be seen as vigilantism.
Authorities refused to grant gun licenses to people who were threatened, claiming that self-defense was no longer considered a reason to own a gun.
Citizens who shot burglars or robbers or rapists were charged while the real criminals were released.
Indeed, after the Martin shooting, a police spokesman was quoted as saying, “We cannot have people take the law into their own hands.”
All of Martin’s neighbors had been robbed numerous times, and several elderly people were severely injured in beatings by young thugs who had no fear of the consequences.
Martin himself, a collector of antiques, had seen most of his collection trashed or stolen by burglars.
When the Dunblane Inquiry ended, citizens who owned handguns were given three months to turn them over to local authorities.
Being good British subjects, most people obeyed the law.
The few who didn’t were visited by police and threatened with ten-year prison sentences if they didn’t comply.
Police later bragged that they’d taken nearly 200,000 handguns from private citizens.
How did the authorities know who had handguns?
The guns had been registered and licensed.
Kind of like cars. Sound familiar?
WAKE UP AMERICA ; THIS IS WHY OUR FOUNDING FATHERS PUT THE SECOND AMENDMENT IN OUR CONSTITUTION.
“…It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people’s minds..” –Samuel Adams
If you think this is important, please forward to everyone you know.
You had better wake up, because Obama is doing this very same thing, over here, if he can get it done
 
The UN Small Arms Treaty that Hilary is negotiating would take away our 2nd Amendment rights.
And there are stupid people in congress and on the street that will go right along with him.
——————————————————————————————————————-
Just remember – the reason the Japanese didn’t invade the USA is because they knew that Most of the Citizens were armed.

How to fix Congress

*The 26th amendment (granting the right to vote for

18 year-olds) took only 3 months & 8 days to be

ratified!  Why?  Simple!  The people demanded it.  That

was in 1971… before computers, before e-mail, before

cell phones, etc.

Of  the 27 amendments to the Constitution, seven (7)

took 1 year or less to become the law of the  land…

all because of public pressure.*

*I’m asking each addressee to forward this email to a

minimum of twenty people on their address list;  in

turn ask each of those to do likewise.

In three days, most people in The United States of

America will have the message.  This is one idea that

really should be passed around.

Congressional Reform Act of  2011

1.  No Tenure / No Pension. A  Congressman collects a

salary while in office and receives no pay when they

are out of office.

2..  Congress (past, present & future) participates in

Social Security. All funds in the Congressional retirement

fund move to the Social Security system immediately.

All  future funds flow into the Social Security system,

and Congress participates with the American people. 

It may not be used for any other purpose.*

*3. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan,

just as all Americans
do.*

*4. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise.

Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.*

*5. Congress loses their current health care system and

participates
in the same health care system as the American people.*

*6. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose

on the American
people.*

*7. All contracts with past and present Congressmen

are void effective1/1/12. ****The American people did

not make this contract with Congressmen.  Congressmen

made all these contracts for themselves.
Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career.  The 

Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours

should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work.
*
*If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people

then it will only take three days for most people

(in the  U.S. ) to receive the message.  Maybe it is time.
*
*THIS IS HOW YOU FIX CONGRESS!!!!!*

*If  you agree with the above, pass it on. 

Social Security information
History Lesson on Your Social Security Card
  
Social Security Cards up until the 1980s expressly stated the number and
card were not to be used for identification purposes. Since nearly everyone in the
United States now has a number, it became convenient to use it anyway and the
message, NOT FOR IDENTIFICATION,was removed.
 

An old Social Security card with the “NOT FOR IDENTIFICATION”message.
Our Social Security

Franklin Roosevelt, a Democrat, introduced the Social
Security (FICA) Program. He promised:

1.) That participation in the Program would be
Completely voluntary,

No longer Voluntary

2.) That the participants would only have to pay
1% of the first $1,400 of their annual
Incomes into the Program,

Now 7.65%
on the first $90,000

3.) That the money the participants elected to put
into the Program would be deductible from
their income for tax purposes each year,

No longer tax deductible

4.) That the money the participants put into the
independent ‘Trust Fund’rather than into the
general operating fund, and therefore, would
only be used to fund the Social Security
Retirement Program, and no other
Government program, and,

Under Johnson the money was moved to
The General Fund and Spent

5.) That the annuity payments to the retirees would never be taxed
as income.

Under Clinton & Gore
Up to 85% of your Social Security can be Taxed

Since many of us have paid into FICA for years and are
now receiving a Social Security check every month —
and then finding that we are getting taxed on 85% of
the money we paidto the Federal government to ‘put
away’ — you may be interested in the following:

———— ——— ——— ——— ——— ——— —-

Q: Which Political Party took Social Security from the
independent ‘Trust Fund’ and put it into the
general fund so that Congress could spend it?

A: It was Lyndon Johnson and the democratically
controlled House and Senate.

———— ——— ——— ——— ——— ——— ——— —

Q: Which Political Party eliminated the income tax
deduction for Social Security (FICA) withholding?

A: The Democratic Party.

———— ——— ——— ——— ——— ——— ——— —–

Q: Which Political Party started taxing Social
Security annuities?

A: The Democratic Party, with Al Gorecasting the
‘tie-breaking’ deciding voteas President of the
Senate, while he was Vice President of the  US

———— ——— ——— ——— ——— ——— ——— –

Q: Which Political Party decided to start
giving annuity payments to immigrants?

AND MY FAVORITE:

A: That’s right!

Jimmy Carter and the Democratic Party.  
Immigrants moved into this country, and at age 65,
began to receive Social Security payments! The
Democratic Party gave these payments to them,
even though they never paid a dime into it!

———— — ———— ——— —– ———— ——— ———

Then, after violating the original contract (FICA),
the Democrats turn around and tell you that the Republicans want
to take your Social Security away!

And the worst part about it is uninformed citizens believe it!
If enough people receive this, maybe a seed of
awareness will be planted and maybe changes will
evolve.
But it’s worth a try.
How many people can YOU send this to?

Actions speak louder than bumper stickers

 

A new tax on home sales

Received this in an e-mail and just passing it on!

Did you know that if you sell your house after 2012 you will pay

a 3.8% sales tax on it?  That’s $3,800 on a $100,000 home etc. 

When did this happen?  It’s in the health care bill.  Just thought

you should know.

 

SALES TAX TO GO INTO EFFECT 2013 (Part of HC Bill)  Why

2013?  Could it be to come to light AFTER the 2012 elections?

 

REAL ESTATE SALES TAX

 

So, this is “change you can believe in”?  Under the new health

care bill – did you know that all real estate transactions will be

subject to a 3.8% Sales Tax?  The bulk of these new taxes don’t

kick in until 2013 If you sell your $400,000 home, there will be

a $15,200 tax.  This bill is set to screw the retiring generation

who often downsize their homes.  Does this stuff make your

November and 2012 vote more important? 

 

Oh, you weren’t aware this was in the obamacare bill?  Guess

what, you aren’t alone.  There are more than a few members of

Congress that aren’t aware of it either.

 

 

I hope you forward this to every single person in your address

book.  VOTERS NEED TO KNOW.

 

So much for the promise that “we are not going to raise taxes,

not one thin dime, for anyone making under $250,000 per year.”

IF this is incorrect, someone please enlighten me!

How did we survive?

This was received in an e-mail and I am passing it on.

To Those of  Us  Born   between  1930 – 1965  

At the end of this blog is a quote of the month by Jay Leno.. If you don’t read anything else, please 
read what he said.  Very well stated, Mr. Leno.
 
TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED THE
                   1930’s, 40’s, 50’s,   60’s and 70’s!! 
First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant.
 
They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can and didn’t get tested for diabetes.
 
Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered  with bright colored lead-base paints.
 
We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, locks on doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes,  we had baseball caps  not helmets on our heads..
 
As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, no booster seats, no seat belts, no air bags, bald tires and sometimes no brakes.
 
Riding in the back of a pick- up truck on a warm day was always a special treat.
 
We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle.
 
We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and no one actually died from this.
  
We ate cupcakes, white bread, real butter and bacon. We drank Kool-Aid made with real white sugar. And, we weren’t overweight..   WHY?  
Because we were always outside playing….that’s why!
 
We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on…  
No one was able to reach us all day. And, we were OKAY.
 
We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps  and then ride them down the hill,  only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem
 
We did not have Play stations, Nintendo’s and X-boxes. There were no video games, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD’s,  no surround-sound or CD’s, no cell phones,  no personal computers,  no Internet and no chat rooms.
 
WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!
 
We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.
 
We would get spankings with wooden spoons, switches, ping pong paddles, or just a bare hand and no one would call child services to report abuse.  
 
We ate worms and mud pies  made from dirt, and  the worms did not live in us forever.
 
We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told it would happen, we did not poke out very many eyes.
  
We rode bikes or walked to a friend’s house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them.
 
 Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team.  Those who didn’t had to learn  to deal with disappointment.  Imagine that!! 
 
 The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law! 
 
These generations have produced some of the best  risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever.
 
The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.
 
We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all.
 
If YOU are one of them, CONGRATULATIONS!  
 
You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated so much of our lives for our own good.
 
While you are at it, forward it to your kids so they will know how brave and lucky their parents were.
 
Kind of makes you want to run through the house with scissors, doesn’t it ?  I just did and Look…I’m stil here….
~
The quote of the month is by
Jay Leno:
 
‘With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu, swine flu and terrorist attacks, are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?’ 
 
For those that prefer to think that God is not watching over us..go ahead and ignore this. 
For the rest of us….pass this on.    https://2tts.wordpress.com/2010/01/24/how-did-we-survive/