A bag of POOP!

I have decided to use my blog as a forum to tell off a few people.  I have always made it a practice to try to be a gentleman when confronted, especially when I was not at fault.  But I find that as I get older, it gets harder to swallow.  So, I just want to say a little something to some of those who have offended me.  

Today, I am giving this space to the lady who hung a bag of cat poop on my door in Newport News.  I know you will never read this, but it makes me feel good to tell the world what kind of person you are.  You accused my cat of littering your flower beds with waste on several occasions.  I was kind and gentlemanly and explained that I do not let my cat out of the house and pointed out that there were two cats who were almost identical to the one you see sleeping in my window in our building alone.  They looked so alike that the cat owners would even get confused.  But you insisted that the offending beast was mine.  

One day when you thought I was not at home because I was having my car worked on.  You attached a bag of feces to my door.  I watched you do it through my peep hole and my neighbor also caught you in the act.  When I politely confronted you, you lied.  I pointed out that I watched you in the act and so did my neighbor.  You still had the nerve to lie even when confronted with eye witnesses.  

The bottom line is simple.  My life has moved on and I no longer live next to a pill who lies and does spiteful acts to her neighbors even when she does not have the facts in order.  I do not have to live next to a deceitful liar who does not have the courage of her convictions.  I simply do not have to tolerate your nonsense any longer.  Sadly, you still have to live with yourself and the hatred and ugliness that you spew.  

I am also grateful that because of you and a minute few others like you.  I no longer behave like a gentlemen.  I confront at the first offense and I do not back down.  If you were my neighbor today, you would have been removed from the complex because I would have brought the pictures that I took to management and laughed as you were evicted.  Thank you for making me a stronger person!  

Thanks to you, I am still a nice guy.  But I am no longer a doormat for abusers!

A Monday in November

Sometimes I would like the world to stop.  Just for a moment, just long enough for me to gather my thoughts and to figure out what is next in my life.  But I guess that's the trick to 'real life'. You have to live it realtime as it plays out.  You don't get a pause button or a break.  The clock ticks whether you are ready or not.  I am grateful for what I have and for what I have experienced, but I do wish the world would pause for just a moment and let me catch up!

Holiday Blues

Hi All,

I am writing this note just to vent about my holiday blues.  I love the holiday time of year.  But for the last several years, the holidays have become a time of stress and worry instead of being a time for joy and family.  

As I look at the coming Christmas season, my heart is filled with worry and doubt instead of joy.  I am spending today alone until this evening when I will be with my family.  Unfortunately, when I am with them, it will be at my ex wife's place.  Not an invitation I wanted, but one that came as a result of her changing plans.  

She had made plans for tomorrow because she did not want to do the celebration today.  So one of my sons and I made plans together.  I had a nice place to go with friends, but canceled so my son would be able to enjoy the holiday with someone he loves.  Then the ex changed her plans and my son got me invited because he did not want to leave me alone (I did not tell him I had plans and canceled them for him.)

Being with my ex usually means that every time she will corner me at every available opportunity and tell me what a terrible man I was and how I ruined her life.  Oddly enough, she does not ever do that to the two other husbands she left in her wake or to the two other live in boyfriends she leaves behind.  And the guy she is with now will join the ranks, it's just a matter of time.  

So now, instead of enjoying my son.  I will be sitting at a place where I know the host does not want me and I will be miserable, even with my children and grandchildren.  But I will pretend to be happy because I love them and don't want them hurt.  

And next comes the pressure from the extended family.  I live in Virginia and lived in Colorado for over 18 years before I came here.  I can count the number of telephone calls and visits I have received from them in all those 28 years on my fingers.  One of the calls was to tell me my father died and one visit was when my oldest son got married.  These people obviously don't care much about me or my  life. But if I don't call them and make every effort to show them how much I love them at the holidays, I will hear about it every time I make contact with any of them. 

I am always supposed to understand that it is somehow my place to make all contact with my family.  And frankly, I don't.  I am tired of being everyone's last thought.  I am tired of not being invited to family occasions and I am tired of not feeling loved or cared for even at the most basic level.  Why can't they think of me, just this once?  

And then comes the money stress.  I live on a very tight budget and barely survive at that.  I am not starving and my needs are met, but there is not a lot extra around here.  I do not begrudge anyone any gifts and I love giving them.  But the stress to find money where there is none is just more than I can stand at times.  I just wish I was able to show the people I love how I really feel about them.  I wish I could spoil my grand children rotten!  But instead, I will buy some modest gift and hope for the best.  

When I was young, there was the hope that one day I would get past the hard times and life would get easier, but now I just don't believe that any longer.  But I also don't have that will to be creative and to keep surviving beyond it all.  

I just wish there was a place to go to escape the hurt.

Happy Thanksgiving

Hello Everyone, Just a note to tell everyone I hope you have the Best Thanksgiving Ever and may your home be filled with blessings through the coming year!

Tea Party Express

Today I read an article about the Tea Party Express. They are the conservative group trying to save America by refusing us health care options and by protesting what they see as out of control government spending. Sounds like a nobel cause, doesn't it. But it leaves a few questions open for me.

First, in reference to health care. Right now, there are millions of Americans without health care at all. Do these wise conservative sages know who pays when these people have major health issues and can not pay? We do, it's that simple. So as long as we sit back and do nothing about health care, Americans without coverage will simply be a burdon on the backs of taxpayers. An investment in health care reform, especially in health care that will cover all Americans, will save millions and even trillions in the future. Hawaii is a good example of what requiring health insurance can do for a state. Hawaii is the most expensive state in the union to reside in, except when it comes to health care. By Hawaiian law, employers must insure their employees. The end result is that they have the lowest health care cost in the country. So my question is this my conservative friends. How do you propose saving money by leaving millions uninsured and unprotected? Are you going to contribute the funds when these people are hit with major medical issues? Are you going to fund the expense of the medical test that they need? Or is your plan to simply let Americans die in the streets to save a few bucks on taxes?

Another question that I have for you is even more simple and not related to any specific item. I would simply like to know where you all were while your friend and leader George W. Bush was responsible for ending all of the government deficit ending programs and spent more than all other presidents in history combined? Wasn't spending more than all presidents of all time combined an issue to get excited about? And we have nothing to show for all his spending except for the pain and grief of all the parents, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters and loved ones of our soldiers that have died as a consequence of two wars that he started under false premises to support his oil interest!

It amazes me how a conservative government like George W Bush ran can be so extremely inept and can leave America in total devistation on the brink of a depression like we have never seen before and conservatives will still ask for more. Do you understand that it was your choice of leader who put us in the crisis that we are in? Do you understand that the new government has been left to clean up a mess that is literally of Biblical proportions? You act as if the 8 years of Bush tyranny never occured, but the fact is, you and your party are responsible for this mess and you should get on the bandwagon and help solve the problems, not contribute to making them worse!

Hopefully you will all wake up and stop being lemmings before you reach the edge of the cliff!

FOOD FUN ART

Look closely at these images, what do you see? You will notice that each and every part of the image is a piece of food, melons, corn, broccoli, bread, potato's and so forth. These were sent to me by another group and I thought some here might enjoy them!

Have a great day!

Adam and Steve

Adam and Steve
Sorry, I do not know who to credit for this art! If anyone knows, please write me and I will credit the artist.

I am tired of hearing Fundamentalist pastors loudly proclaiming "God did not create Adam and Steve, God created Adam and Eve!". The fact is that they could not be more wrong. God created us all, Adam, Steve and Eve. Fundamentalist in their twisted minds like to proclaim that only they have the ear of God and only they will given salvation by the grace of God. Again, they are incorrect, God in the scripture is very clear when He proclaims that "whosoever will" may come to Him. There is no place in the scripture where God proclaims that only fundamentalist will come to him, in fact, quite to the contrary. It is clear in the scripture that Jesus had a deep contempt for the pharisees and saducees of the day. They were the religious community who followed the law to the letter, but harbored hatred in their hearts like our fundamental friends. Jesus was so angry with them that He angrily cleared the temple because of their behavior. God has a place for gay people, He loves us and redeems us fully and compassionately. God will not turn his back on us and those who say He will are in serious danger of eternal torment. GLBT people need to take refuge and comfort in the fact that God does love us. We need to recognize that our fundamental brothers and sisters are seriously misguided. We need to reach out to them in love and Christian compassion. We need to be the example and to bring light into their limited and dark world. And for those of us who have been hurt by them and by the church, we need to forgive as they are Gods children too!

WORSHIP AT THE CHURCH OF YOUR CHOICE