I can't believe it has been so long since I've actually done a post here. Some housekeeping on the web site tonight and I hope to do a real post this week sometime!

Some buddies went up to Canada to see first hand how bad their health care really is. They figured that they would see piles of dead Canadians since we are told their health care is really bad. Here is what they found ...

It's been awhile since I last posted. I suppose part of that deals with having a birthday which tends to make me more reflective. After Christmas I bought myself a little present ... a new Canon EOS 40D digital camera. I took the camera with me when I spent a few nights in Mazatlan, Mexico. Sooner or later I will post some new pictures here! With the economy as it is I downsized my annual vacation plans this year. So instead of 2 weeks down under I spent 3 nights in a familiar tropical locale. Hey Lisa, I've already started my down under vacation savings account for next year!

I've had a health concern lately. I won't get into the details here but out of it I stopped ignoring my doctor and had a colonoscopy. Now for those that know they will be looking at getting one in the next few years I have some thoughts. First off, its the night before that is evil. I would be a good idea to have a extra set or two of underwear available! The second thought, the IV drip is great but you may want to suggest that the doctor wait another 5 minutes before they start. I felt the absolute worse pressure pain for about 30 seconds before I no longer was feeling any feeling. All came out good in the long run as I don't need to have another one for ten years.

I bought a new domain and will be moving my photography to that site. No definite date yet but it will be in May or June. More details as they become available!

That's it for this post. I am so ready for winter to be over!

This is too good not to post tonight ... George W Bush Presidential Libraium. Thank goodness the national nightmare is just about over!

Sometimes just aimlessly surfing the net can give you some great results. This morning I found Pennies for Peace. The idea is brilliant and makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. There is a YouTube video that I'm posting here for you all to see!

P.S. - Go Steelers!

Hi gang! It's been awhile since I've posted some links, so here are some links I've found interesting!

Snarky cards for sending that special message! A kid who has a bright future, 9-year-old author reveals secrets of picking up girls. If you want to do something good for others, try Secret Santa World , globalgiving - a million little earth-changing ideas, and TisBest - Give a better world.

I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year celebration. Peace and Love to all!

In the last 6 weeks I have done a great deal of traveling. I was in DC a week for a vacation and then Nome, Juneau, Ketchikan, and Fairbanks, Alaska for work. This story is from my time in Alaska.

One late afternoon while I was getting my tools packed up, ready to leave the store after putting in a 9 hour shift. The assistant manager swung by and asked if I could give her a hand. Apparently there was a drunk on the snow covered sidewalk in front of the liquor store entrance. I said sure and followed her to the far end of the store where the liquor department was located.

The first thing we did was to check out the situation. There was a man standing over another man who was knelling on the snow covered walk way. This is the guy that alerted the staff that there was a problem. We walked over and the man standing told us that this man had fallen and was to drunk to get up. He told us that this was a common problem with the Native Americans that live in the area. He also told us that he used to work security for a local business and had seen this scene countless times over the years. I don't know what his name was so we'll just call him John Doe.

Well the assistant manager headed back inside the store to call the police. I stood outside with John Doe and the knelling man. John Doe was helping us out but he was being a jerk. He kept saying things like "your company is really going to owe me for helping you out". I told John that we appreciated his help, but that is all that I could say. John and I did get the knelling man to stand up and we were able to steady him. Something just didn't seem right about all of this.

I've seen my fair share of drunks. It pains me to say that there was a time when I could've been the one knelling on a snow covered sidewalk. I had my battle with alcohol, and alcohol won. So now I stay far away from the spirits. As a side note: when I travel I generally have my dinners in a lounge. I can eat, drink my coffee, watch the news, and watch what a douse of alcohol does to people. This reaffirms my desire not to let alcohol control my life as it has done in the past.

The assistant manager came back out and told the knelling man that we had help on the way. John Doe started his "your company is going to owe me" shtick. He kept challenging us so we thanked him for his efforts but that we could take it from there. It was classic to watch someone get called on their shtick. John Doe kept saying "can you handle this ... I've dealt with this many times over ... are you sure" as he was walking away.

With John Doe gone we were able to concentrate our efforts with the swaying but standing man. The assistant manager didn't want the man in the store but he needed a place to sit down. The thing about stores in climates that can be harsh, they have transition zones before you enter the main structure. So we were able to walk the man over to the nearest transition zone and he was able to sit down on a motorized cart. The assistant manager went inside the store for a moment and I kept the standing man company, talking with him to make sure he was alert. He was getting more alert and I was able to get his name. His name was Chris.

I was also trying to get any information that would help the police find someone who could help Chris. He told me that he was just taking a walk and then just couldn't walk anymore so he crawled to the front of the store just when John Doe came by. The thing about alcohol, it distorts your age. Chris looked to be my age, but that could also translate to someone in his late 30's with severe alcohol abuse. Chris was able to tell me that he walked about a quarter of a mile to get to where he was at. The warmth of the transition zone was bringing him back some awareness.

Armed with this information, the assistant manager pulled out the phone book looking for his phone listing or his Mom's phone number. He had mentioned a couple of places as to where he was staying and she tried to track those down. All of this, to no avails. Meanwhile, I was still talking with Chris out in the transition zone when he told me he was 53. He also mumbled that he had a stroke a year ago.

A stroke ... he was not a drunk. Chris was rehabilitating from a stroke. Chris was only 3 years older than me. Talk about hitting one over with a basket full of bricks. There was a little tear that came out of my eye that moment. I wiped it away and focused since I knew the assistant manager would be back out in a moment. She would be able to track down assisted living facilities in the immediate area and give this information to the police when they arrived.

Chris and I talked some more and he was becoming more aware but still needed some more help. He pulled off his gloves and he had some paper money inside. I saw a 10 dollar bill that had been ripped in half, one section in each glove. I pulled out my wallet and found a 20, folded it in quarters, and gave it to Chris saying here was something to help keep his palms warm. I don't normally do things like that ... it might have been to dampen the guilt I was feeling. I give a fair amount to charities around the globe but rarely give to an individual straight out.

Just as Chris was putting his gloves back on the assistant manager came back out. I told her the latest information I had gleaned and I know she felt like a basket full of bricks had just hit her. She started to go back into the store when the police finally arrived. We gave him all of the information we had. The officer said that he would be able to track down where Chris lived. He was very familiar with the assisted living facilities in the area. The day was done ... it was time for me to head back to the hotel, grab some dinner, and then some down time before bed.

I got in the car, silly driving only 2 blocks back and forth ... . Chris had walked a quarter of a mile or so and I had to use a rental car. There was a good deal of reflection that day thanks to Chris. When I did move the car out of the parking lot I didn't go back to the hotel immediately. I drove around the area looking to see if I could find a police car, looking to find where Chris lived. I never found his place. I didn't see him again during the rest of my stay. I wish I had, at the very least I could've sat down and chatted with him.

A nasty cold is natures way of saying slow down. I've been wanting to do a post for weeks but something always gets in the way. So I'm going to post a few pictures today and some words in the next few days. Hopefully that will get me back into a regular rhythm.

I have been home for 8 days and don't think I have any more traveling for the rest of the year. My cold seems to have run its course but now Dad has it very bad. And today is not only Thanksgiving but it is his 85th birthday. Happy Birthday Dad!

That is all for now ... many more pictures and words to post in the next few days! Happy Thanksgiving to all!!

Hello all! I haven't fallen off the face of the earth but I have been busy. The last few weeks I have been working the graveyard shift and that throws off the old body clock. I have also been working on a new blog.

I am going to be transforming this web site into a community to focus on the mid life crisis. To do that I need to remove much of myself, and in particular, my political thoughts and ramblings. I have always regarded this web site as a child and now is the time to give it some independence from a dotting father. I have hired a web designer to do a remodel and am tinkering with the idea of adding sub domains. I will still be here as I know this will not happen over night. But changes they are a comming!

I have some pictures to post from my Montana excursion ... plus ... I'm headed to DC for a week and back up to Alaska for a few. The camera always come with me so I'm sure that pictures are to follow!

To those of you who don't know me, I'm a screaming Seattle liberal (and damn proud of it)! I work for a major corporation in their IT department, that has sent me to some very red states over the last year. I deal, and sometimes try to convince, those on the red side to come over to my way of thought. The last couple of weeks I've been in Whitefish, Montana. Whitefish is absolutely beautiful and is the resting spot for many going to Glacier National Park (many pictures to follow). The residents are the best … very friendly and a bit on the blue side of politics. However, when one reads the local paper you cringe when you see the red lambasting the blue on the editorial page and cartoon.

Last Friday I was reading the local paper and there was an article that Joe Biden would be in Kalispell, about 13 miles south of Whitefish, on Sunday September 7th. On Saturday they released tickets for a discussion at Flathead High School. So I headed to the local Obama/Biden office in Whitefish, a nondescript residential home away from the beaten path, and picked up a ticket. It was encouraging to see a line of people waiting for tickets.

Sunday came and I headed to the High School. Parking was a breeze but the line to get in was time consuming as TSA was doing the pat downs and camera checks. Evidence below ...

Once inside I was able to find a seat on the main floor sitting next to two middle school teachers. We chatted a bit and I found out that the area is still very red but there is a growing population of blue. They mentioned that even the reds are disenchanted right now, and with Ron Paul, things could get interesting. The high school gym fits probably a thousand or so, I'd say there were 700 proud members of the Democratic Party in attendance (the local paper states 1600 were there). What struck me about this discussion was the commitment it shows from the Obama/Biden camp to reach out to real people who have a real desire for change. Why on earth would a political party expend time, energy, and resources if there wasn't a genuine desire to reach common people?

I can't give you a run down on all that Joe Biden said … I started writing notes but he is a down home intellectual that cuts through the note taking. He was the right choice as a VP candidate. He talked about how Obama cuts through the partisan rhetoric, crosses the aisle to solve the issues that we face. He was a cheerleader, no doubt, but when it is all said and done we need someone to lead and to be honest and level with us. My Dad and I are always at odds. He watches Fox and I read liberal blogs. But the one thing he has stated, that no one can argue, is the biggest domestic issues we as a country will face in the next term is Social Security and Medicare. These are domestic issues that will take a good deal of movement across the aisle to get a working solution. We need to work together to find the solutions and Obama/Biden is our best hope. We will not get all that we want but we will be on a positive course. I feel that Obama/Biden can cross the aisle and get Congress to start working for the people. It is time to focus on the real needs of the people and not the special interests that the right caters to.

On Foreign Policy Biden is the expert. I trust him to make wise decisions on our National Security. He has the experience … as he joked about his age and time in the Senate, there are 44 members of the Senate that are older then he is. I found his story about Jessie Helms interesting. The short version is that you don't attack the person, you attack the policy. That is some very wise words and may explain why he has been in the Senate for so long. It will be interesting to see the Vice Presidential debates because the Republican Party attacks the person. I will say that I was most impressed with the wisdom and ethics that Joe Biden displayed today.

Invoking September 11th is a dangerous proposition in my book. I say that because I lived in Arlington, Virginia on that day. I find it interesting how that the right wing wants to tell *me* how I should feel. Well, did you live in my shoes that day or the days after? We forget that as a nation we were one in the weeks afterwards. Not only were we a nation but the world shared our pain. The world was with us … until … Iraq. And that is also when the country became so polarized. It didn't have to be that way. Biden touched on what I call the "what ifs". Just imagine what we could've done if we would have had agreement with the rest of the world and not forced our way into a failed policy. I feel that the Obama/Biden ticket will give not only the country but the rest of the world hope. I have a friend that works for the State Department that agrees with my assessment that it will take years and possible decades to repair the damage done in the last 6-7 years. I trust the team of Obama/Biden to heal the divisions on the world stage. Foreign Policy, as with any policy, is not a knee jerk reaction.

As I headed out the door after the rally/discussion I finally saw some protesters. I'd say these kids were in High School and had “NoObama” signs. They called a lady in front of me a socialist. I had to chuckle and wonder how they would feel if the draft was instituted. If we have another 4 years of Bush’s failed policies under McCain they may get that chance to find out.

A week ago I headed to a local farmers market in a neighboring town. I got lost and frustrated but eventually found the way. I got out of the work van and walked over to the stands. They had a musician playing a song that just brought a smile and a ray of hope, Imagine by John Lennon. Joe Biden affirmed to me today that hope is not lost. Hope came to a town in the very red state of Montana today. The message was change, but it is a message that shouldn't have been needed. But what really struck me today was that the message was delivered to a speck of blue in a sea of red.

That should make you feel very proud of our next Vice President of the United States of America.

Well the summer is winding down ... we are getting some 64 degree rain today in Seattle. It has been an interesting summer. I've done some writing which was my biggest short term goal of the summer. I will be posting some of my thoughts later this week! Fall will find me in DC the middle of October. It has been two years since I visited DC and I miss the heat, humidity, power, and history.

I was contacted recently by a person who wanted me to include a link to their site dealing with mid life crisis. There seems to be some good information at this site, give it a visit ... A midlife crisis.

Here is a little taste of my road trip. The photograph below was taken just east of Vantage, Washington on the other side of the Columbia River looking west. Enjoy!

A busy week coming up that will take me in to Eastern Washington, Idaho, and Montana. In 5 days I will drive about 1500 miles. Road trip!

on a Islam/Muslim hate web site. Well if you know me, you know this graphic means the world to me. This was the graphic used by Arlington County on their fundraising efforts for the families touched by the Pentagon Attack. This graphic is about love, not hate. Of course there is no contact link to that site so I can't express my displeasure. Hiding behind a wall to express hate is cowardly.

June 8th update: A little background story on the graphic above. It is not unusual for people to leave mementos at a designated place after a horrific event. September 11, 2001 was no different. I have pictures from an area where people left flowers, candles, and other mementos near the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery. I have never posted these pictures but several of my friends and family members have seen them. You would not have dry eyes if you were to see them. At the end of the day people from the DoD, Arlington County, the National Archives, and the Smithsonian would catalogue what was left. For me the most touching memento was a yellow T-shirt letting "Bob" know that his family would look after "Bob's" family for him.

During one of these cataloguing efforts Arlington County came across a graphic that someone left ... the graphic above. Arlington County Police Department was able to track down the artist and get permission to use the graphic in a fundraising effort for the families of the Pentagon attack. They sold pins and T-shirts that had been donated and all of the money raised was given to the families. It was a way to help in a helpless situation.

Later on the Commonwealth of Virginia used the graphic on a fight terrorism license plate. There was a concern with using the graphic because this was not a fundraising situation for the families. None of the money generated by the license plate went to the families. I suppose that is when the idea of using this image for other purposes was born. As much as I like the license plate theme I always felt that any money collected should have been put into an education trust fund or something along those lines for the families touched by this tragedy.

The graphic symbolizes all that is good within all of us. We were one on September 11th. Now using that graphic to target a segment of our society is just plain wrong. I've sent off an email to Arlington County Police Department. I don't know if that will do any good ... but you just don't know unless you try. I will not link to the blog that is using the graphic but you can contact me for the url or if you have any ideas on how to get the graphic pulled from an obvious misuse.

It has been a busy month ... first trip was a jaunt to the San Diego area to meet an on-line friend. If you are a regular reader and viewer of this site then you know I have an appreciation for all that Mother Nature gives us. The San Diego area is incredibly beautiful. I'm not a big fan of zoo's because I don't believe we should entrap animals of the wild and put them on display. However, the San Diego Zoo does a good job and all of the animals look healthy. I did stand in line to see their Panda baby ... only to prove to myself that Butterstick is the cutest ever. Butterstick rules!

And while I'm thinking about it, there is this great restaurant called Parkhouse Eatery. You must go there if you ever get down to San Diego ... it's not to far from the Zoo or the neighborhood called "Normal Heights". You just have to love a neighborhood that includes the word normal.

The second trip was back up to Alaska for work. I went to Juneau and Ketchikan ... I was very busy while I was in Juneau so I didn't get a chance to see much. But while I was in Ketchikan I did get a chance to see some of the surrounding area. I feasted my eyes on wonders of Mother Nature and was buzzed by an Eagle or two. I have added some other photographs on my Alaska page!

And yesterday I got back from my third trip of the month, a week in Montana for work. When I lived in the DC area the one thing I missed about the Seattle area was Mt. Rainier and the Cascade and Olympic Mountains. Montana has the Rockies but they don't have the allure to me that the above mentioned mountain ranges have. I spent most of my time in Polson and Whitefish and took some time to explore my surroundings. I am a city person but wouldn't find it hard to move to a smaller location to be close to all of the trees, mountains, and streams. Alaska is an extreme and Montana just doesn't do anything for me. It's nice and all but it's not home material for me.

It is nice to be back in my own bed. I'm tired and look forward to having the next four days off to recoup from a very busy month. More pictures and words to follow ...!

"Give yourself to life, and life will give itself to you."

-James Dillet Freeman.

In closing, as Keith Richards would say, it's great to be here ... it's great to be anywhere!