Pretty Young Thing

Michael Jackson is dead............ yeah....................
Forgive me, but this isn't a huge tragedy for me. The guy was uber talented and had some great songs, but he was a weirdo even then. Then the whole child molestation charges. I know none of us were there, but come on...... a grown man having sleep overs with pre-pubescent boys= CREEPY! If that were anyone in my family, I'd march my keister down to the authorities and have their ass locked up! His family, staff,and the parents of the kids that took money for silence ARE ALL TO BLAME IN THIS AS WELL! Too many kids have suffered because everyone else didn't want to get involved or "didn't actually see it". I didn't see President Clinton getting a blow job under his desk, but I'm pretty damn sure he did.
There is a huge cult of celebrity that I have never subscribed to and really don't understand. I like Hugh Laurie from House but if I heard about his penis being identified by a child and having creepy sleep-overs then I say, lock his ass up, not oh boo-hoo, my favorite star.
All of this has me convinced that the world, and the US in particular, is slowly sliding down the evolutionary ladder right into profound stupidity. I grieve for my country

I van to be aloon

I have reached that point in my life where I am no longer "cool".
I am set in my ways, I like quiet, my dogs and hanging around home. I am okay with that though.
I still like interesting things. I daresay I am quite the opposite of dull. I simply have reached the point where I no longer care whether others find me all that cool or not.
I like to think of myself like a really good Chinese meal- full of differing textures and flavors. I am Catholic, yet I champion gay rights. I like old things, but I like the arts and crafts, prairie style which is the precursor of modern design. I love both punk music ( the old stuff) and I adore bluegrass ( but not new country). I used to fret about whether others found me odd, but now in my middle years, I embrace my weirdness. I don't need to be a hipster. It takes too much work, and it's far too negative.
To quote a famous naval officer, "I am what I am and that's all that I am"

"Thy friendship oft has made my heart to ache: do be my enemy for friendship's sake."

Friends wonder why I am reticent to get to know new people.It is self protectionism.
I admit to having trust issues. I am a very loyal and faithful friend, and I expect the same thing from my friends.
A few days ago, I was verbally attacked by supposed friends on Facebook. It was like a kick to the guts.It's not as thought I believed they were good friends, more like friends of friends, but I am stunned by the need of some to go for the throat when unprovoked.I cannot fathom being so awful, ever. Their own friends aren't all that enamoured of them either.
I have found that evolved people tend to give another person the benefit of the doubt. I find that people with some sort of belief system, other than selfishness, are kind to those that live differently. I have friends that are different religions, cultures and values and we all get along because we all have the same value: respect of others.
Next time you see that single mom trying to do her best, don't judge. You don't know all of the details. When you see the homeless man on the street, look into his eyes, give him a buck and tell him God, Buddha, or YOU care and love him.

" If people didn't milk the system"

As an observer, I find that those who are blessed to have enough to eat, have a nice house, medical insurance and such, are often the least empathetic the "have-nots".
I go to a college that is essentially a business/trade school. Many of the folks that go there have less than the minimum requirements of a high school graduate. They may finished high school, but their education was lacking in the basics, like algebra, writing, spelling. They have to take extra classes, for no credit, to get caught up to the minimum standards. They want to work, have a nice home, and drive a decent car, but some of them cannot progress. They aren't bad people; in fact most of them are very nice and hard working. They will not get into the program they need to get ahead. They come from families that are uneducated also. One young man I met, works full time and goes to college, after giving his mom all of his money. She's medically disabled and he and his siblings have moved back home so their mom won't lose her home to foreclosure and face homelessness at the age of 60.He is struggling to pass basic classes to become a certified auto mechanic, so that he can take care of his mom and himself. He went to Detroit schools and has had a very poor education. He's very well spoken, but writing is not his forte. Also, there are women, like myself that got married,had kids and were subsequently abandoned by their husbands. They are 40-50 and never finished college, and have to start over.They can't just pick up and leave that state, or get a loan from a rich family member. They're on their own.
What do we do for the people that aren't college material? All of the manufacturing jobs are gone, and unskilled labor is a thing of the past. I was deemed too dumb for algebra in high school, so I took business math. Now, in college, I have to have algebra. Some folks after taking the classes twice are told, "sorry, you cant get in to the program", and by then you're in debt for classes and have nothing to show.
People often like to pretend that nothing is what it is. "The poor are poor because they're lazy". If someone can't read and lives in an abadoned house, what do you think their chances are of getting employment?
Sad to say this, but WAKE UP WHITE MIDDLE CLASS AMERICA!- now that you're suffering the same fate of unemployment, poverty and welfare, you can see that it's no picnic.
When black and white inner city folks were losing everything and had no insurance, no one cared, but now that white middle class America is suffering " OH MY GOD! IT'S A NATIONAL CRISIS!!!!!
I am disgusted by the bile that comes out of people's mouths

The Prayer of St. Francis

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is discord, unity;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is error, truth;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is sadness, joy;
where there is darkness, light.

O Lord, grant that I may not so much seek happiness for myself,
to be consoled as to console,
to be loved as to love,
to be understood as to understand.

For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen.

The older I get the more I am convinced this is what it's all about. I have my own little things
that I like to do for myself, but truly nothing makes me feel happier than doing something for someone else.
I plan on meditating on this prayer and seeing where it's application leads me.