Now that I am Old

Well I finally reached that milestone. I turned fifty, however I was told not to look at as being fifty, I was told to look at it as being the 29th anniversary of my 21st birthday. Turning 40 didn't bother me but something about that 50th birthday. You are a full half century old, qualify for AARP, and other "senor programs" The one thing though that did make me feel old was my two oldest daughters took Janet and I out for dinner tonight and they paid for it. I think that is the biggest turning point in a fathers life when he realizes that his kids are becoming more and more self independent. Their reliance on me is not like it used to be. Sure they still come to dad for money at times, but they are able to do for themselves more and more. I t kind of makes me feel obsolete and not needed anymore, but also proud that they are able to do for themselves.

Fair Treatment from Fair Point

In the idyllic town of Tamworth New Hampshire, nestled at the base of the White Mountains just north east of Lake Winnepesaukee a group of dedicated veterans and other volunteers resurrected a veteran's memorial updating the names and adding markers. In this same community FairPoint Communications worked hard to take over the communications service from Verizon, as it did for all of Norther New England, and many of these veterans supported the buyout. One of the publicity ads supporting the buyout by FairPoint was how they wanted to be part of the community and work with the communities they are in.

Now a little bit of history and I do hope I get this entirely correct, but this band of volunteers who updated the memorial approached Verizon who at that time owned the pole seen in the picture that detracts form the solemnness of the hallowed memorial. Verizon told this group they would relocate the pole for $30,000. No FairPoint comes on the scene and when this intrepid group approaches FairPoint the price jumps to $42,000 but magnanimously offers to defray $12,200 of this cost from their "Community and Economic Development Fund" bringing the price to $29,800 a savings of a whole $200 over the cost that Verizon quoted originally. Jeffery Allen Executive Vice President for External Relations of FairPoint also suggested that the committee contact the Power Company and the Cable Company to get their donations for the movement of this pole. If FairPoint was truly interested in the community they would work with their tenants on the poles and find a suitable and expedient solution to this distasteful problem. With the amount of money people pay the phone companies for their service, and the state of the competition of the cable companies are giving the phone companies for internet and communications, you would think that FairPoint would be eager to generate the goodwill that moving these poles would bring.

Please let FairPoint know what you think of this atrocity in the middle of the Tamworth Veterans Memorial

ANOTHER REFLECTION

If many of you haven't guessed by now the visit of The Moving Wall to Ossipee was a very touching event for me. I worked hard on the event, and learned a great deal. We had a get together last Sunday at the organizers house, a way for them to say thank you for all the volunteers. We had a great time, and were able to look at the scrapbooks put together during the event, as well as seeing some of the pictures that were taken. It brought a tear back to my eye as I relived again the experiences of Memorial Day Weekend. I borrowed the guest books to read peoples comments over the last couple of days, and was deeply moved by all the great comments.

As a writer I dream of putting that combination of words down on paper that will stir all sorts of images in ones head when they read it, and there were several lines like that in the guest books, of sons lost or friends never to come home again. The one entry in the guest book that really leaped out at me is the following, I will not list the full name of the author but what she had to write was very haunting and powerful to me....

"God Bless You All! Robert, I'm so sorry for giving you that one last kiss, Kathy."
When I read this I had to stop cold in my tracks, a tear streamed down my cheek, and a lump formed in my throat. It conjured up all sorts of images of what might have happened. This powerful statement has now become a life's definition for me. Never leave someone without letting them know how you feel. In the lottery of life, you never know what may happen, and that last moment can never be recaptured. You may never have the chance again to tell that special person how you really feel, life is to short to waste any moment playing games or being angry. Part of me would like to write to Kathy and find out the story of this very poignant entry in the guest book, and part of me says to let the entry speak for itself, and bring out the images it does. Whatever I do, that one entry in a guest book at the Moving Wall in a small town in rural New Hampshire has had a life changing force in my life....

"Robert, I am so sorry for not giving you that one last kiss...." Don't let this happen to you

Government

"Power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely" -Lord Acton-

This was an observation made in the late 19th or early 20th century about people who have risen to power. I was reflecting on this quote this morning as I was mowing the back yard. It is very obvious in our form of government today. I was thinking about the founding fathers and some of my research on the Federalist papers. The framers of our Constitution had it right when they wrote that great document. I used to think it should be considered a living document meant to be interpreted in reference to the times it found itself, but the more mature I become, the more I realize that as the foundation to our country, it is in fact not a living document, but a static one. It is a document that must be static in order for the base of our country to be stable. You can not build a foundation for a house on live sand that is constantly shifting and moving, you have to put it on a stable compact base. The same is true for our country, and the solid unmovable base that the country is built on is the Constitution written by our forefathers. Further research shows that these great men, with a vision greater than the average man,intended us to have two houses of the legislative body. The lower house being the House of Representatives, similar to the House of Commons in Britain. The intent of this house was to be a body of common men who go to Washington to serve our Country as a legislative body and then to go back to their civilian jobs and their regular way of life. The second body was to be the Senate similar to the house of Lords in Britain where the upper class resided and worked their end of the legislation process. Unfortunately the House of Representatives has become a full time job to be re-elected to in perpetuity. The lines have become blurred and the the power that is inherent in the position has corrupted many individuals. Common sense has been thrown out the window, and the lust for money and power has become the norm. Lobbyist grease palms on a daily basis. While their is nothing wrong with lobbying to get your point across to the politicians, what is wrong is the amount of money that changes hands for political favors on a daily basis. It amounts to legal bribery as the money for the most part does not go directly into the politicians pocket, but for all intents and purposes it may as well.

I call for a return to the original intent of the government, and we do away with lifelong seats in the house. Elect business men who want to share their experience, but then return to their regular jobs when they are done, and don't give the power a chance to corrupt as it has a strong tendency to do

Fathers Day

I jokingly tell everyone that my gift to my wife on Mothers Day is that I take the kids for a day and give her some time off. Her gift to me on Fathers Day is I get to spend the day alone with the kids, who wins here.

The truth of the matter is for the most part I enjoy the time with the kids, and now that two of them are older the time I do get to spend with them is very precious indeed. The oldest Anya (21) is away working at camp. The middle one Khrys (16) is way to cool to spend much time with dad and or admit that she likes to spend any time with the old man. The youngest grace (10) is still at that age where time with Dad is fun, but at times she gets into that zone where no Dad you go do it, I want to do something else. For fathers day they "took" me ( I still ended up paying go figure) out to brunch at Whittier House where we had made to order Omelets and just about every other breakfast item you can imagine. I was given my cards and included in the cards was a $20 gift certificate for the local nursery, on top of a $20 gift card I had from Khrys at Christmas. Janet, Grace, and I paid a visit to the Greenery and I picked out five new varieties of Day Lillies. I purchased Apricot Sparkle, Barbara Mitchell,, Rose Emily, Prairie Wildfire, and Joan Senor. This brings my total collection of day lillies to 40. If you haven't guessed, I have a passion for day lillies, and hope to grow my collection to over one thousand before I die (so if anyone wants to make an addition to my collection any donations are accepted). It is a dream of mine to start to raise these commercially, along with Iris, and Peony's. After getting home from the nursery I changed clothes and Grace and I worked in the garden and planted my new treasures. I do enjoy spending time with the girls and it is a pleasure to watch them as they work in the garden. I had just finished weeding out this particular garden and spreading bark mulch on it, so it looks really nice with the new plants in it. I can't wait to see them in bloom, and each time they bloom I will remember the time I spent with Grace planting them, as each time the Hemerocallis Fulva blooms I remember the time with Anya as we dug up the entire patch separated them, replanted some and gave a bunch of them away. With Khrys it is every time I look at my flagpole and remember her helping me put it in, and the blueberry bushes out in the back yard. I remember the gift cards and for the most part I can tell you each year what I bought with those cards. You see my daughters I do love you all and remember the time we get to spend together because in a lifetime it is all to fleeting, and my wish for each of my daughters is that they have a garden of love where they can plant memories, and build off the ones I had already planted, because my gardens are more than just the plants in the ground, it is where I also plant the love of my family and my memories. Little do they know but each and every plant I have planted takes on a new meaning and a new memory for me to hold on to and cherish

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

We seem to take this for granted and forget what it really means

Please take the time to read these words. I tried to post the audio but it didn't work.

The following words were spoken by the late Red Skelton on his television program as he related the story of his teacher, Mr. Laswell, who felt his students had come to think of the Pledge of Allegiance as merely something to recite in class each day.

Now, more than ever, listen to the meaning of these words.



"I've been listening to you boys and girls recite the Pledge of Allegiance all semester

and it seems as though it is becoming monotonous to you.

If I may, may I recite it and try to explain to you the meaning of each word?"

I

me, an individual, a committee of one.

Pledge

dedicate all of my worldly goods to give without self pity.

Allegiance

my love and my devotion.

To the flag

our standard, Old Glory, a symbol of freedom. Wherever

she waves, there's respect because your loyalty has given

her a dignity that shouts freedom is everybody's job!

United

that means that we have all come together.

States

individual communities that have united into 48 great states.

Forty-eight individual communities with pride and dignity and

purpose; all divided with imaginary boundaries, yet united to

a common purpose, and that's love for country.

And to the republic

a state in which sovereign power is

invested in representatives chosen by the

people to govern. And government is the people

and it's from the people to the leaders, not from

the leaders to the people.

For which it stands, one nation

one nation, meaning "so

blessed by God"

Indivisible

incapable of being divided.

With liberty

which is freedom -- the right of power to live one's

own life without threats, fear or some sort of

retaliation.

And Justice

the principle or quality of dealing fairly with others.

For all

which means, boys and girls, it's as much your

country as it is mine.

***~~**~~***


Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country

and two words have been added to the pledge of Allegiance...

UNDER GOD

Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said

that is a prayer

and that would be eliminated from schools too?

A Lifetime

I was reflecting today as I am going to a 100th birthday party for a friend of the family. Can you imagine 100 years walking this earth. I am only 1/2 way there and I find it hard to imagine. The changes he saw in the world in his lifetime.

He saw presidents elected from the 27th to the 45th President of the United States. He was 6 years old when the World War 1 started, and 10 when it ended. He saw the Panama canal open when he was 6. He was 7 when the first long distance phone service was offered. At ten he saw the world wide flu epidemic that killed nearly 20 million people world wide and some 500,000 United States citizens. At 19 he saw Lindbergh make his historic flight. At 23 the Star Spangled Banner is adopted as our National Anthem. At 24 he saw Amelia Earhart make her transatlantic flight. At 27 the FBI is formed from the Bureau of Investigation. AT 31 he saw the start of World War II, and at 33 the Us enters the war. At 42 the US entered the Korean War. He saw several amendments to the Constitution pass.

At 51 he saw the US get more deeply involved in Vietnam at 56 the Gulf of Tonkin incident that escalated the war. At 50 the first satellite is launched into space.
At 51 he saw two stars added to the flag with the addition of Alaska and Hawaii as states. At 54 he watched John Glenn launch into outer space as the first American in space. He was 60 when Martin Luther King was assassinated. When he was 62 the Kent State incident happened. At 72 he saw the US boycott the Moscow Olympics.

At 78 he saw the Challenger explode. He was 82 when Iraq invaded Kuwait. At 87 Oklahoma City Bombings happen. At 93 the Trade Towers are attacked by hijacked airplanes. 95 years after his birth the shuttle Columbia burnt up on reentry.

He saw the rise of airlines during his lifetime. The growth of automotive traffic, the development of the Interstate Highway system. He was around when Television was invented. There was no such thing as a microwave oven when he was born, and many homes still had outhouses. Computers were just a dream, and space travel was only science fiction. Wars were still fought in the trenches, and planes had propellers. Helicopters were not even really a dreamt when Wendall was born. He probably saw more changes in the world and society than any other generation.

An American Hero

Who knows the story of Jack Lucas? He died today, but how many people know his story. After Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Jack Lucas at age 13 forged his mother's signature and enlisted in the United States Marine. He stowed away on a ship to hide his age from officials. He eventually ended up on the shores of Iwo Jima. While in combat on Iwo Jima, two hand grenades landed near him. Without thinking Jack Lucas threw himself on the hand grenades, with out any thought for his own safety, in order to protect his platoon mates. He absorbed the force of the blast with his own body, and after some twenty plus surgeries, some two hundred fifty plus pieces of shrapnel removed form his body. Jack Lucas became the youngest man in history to win the Congressional Medal of Honor, at the age of 19. After his service to our country he kept his promise to his mother and finished the 9th grade. Leukemia finally claimed this awesome heroes life. In a day when we seem to idolize rock stars, and rappers who sing about tearing down our society, we read stories about drugs, sex and rock and roll. We idolize athletes who can't keep themselves off drugs and charge kids for autographs. This awesome hero that any American should look up to because in a time of need he chose to put on the uniform of his country, and in a time of extreme danger he never had to think twice before he offered himself up a potential supreme sacrifice to protect his buddies. He did it because he knew it was the right thing to do, and he never looked back. Where do we find such men, I take my hat off to him and mourn his passing even though I never knew him.

We need more men like Jack Lucas, especially in a time when a man can sue a town because he is offended by a display of American Flags flying in town, because it violates his constitutional rights, and there are people in this country who applaud the man bringing suit as a true American Hero. I ask you who is the biggest hero Jack Lucas or the guy who hates what the flag stands for?

Energy Costs

Again a disclaimer that the following is not my idea but as a follow up to an earlier post on oil costs, this is the only option that is a viable way to control energy costs, otherwise our fuel prices wil just continue to skyrocket.

I constantly receive tips on how to make the oil companies “Knuckle under”. They don’t work. Here's something that might really work. The biggest problem?: “Some $260 billion is invested in commodity funds, 20 times the amount in 2003”, the Economist May31st, 2008.



This is money chasing money. Anywhere from $30.00 to $50.00 of the current price of a barrel of oil on the commodities market is due to speculation. Speculators are adding at least 25% to the cost of every gallon of gasoline, propane and heating oil. President Bush can end that in a minute with a National Security directive that forbids speculation on energy commodities (heating oil, propane, gasoline, diesel, etc), Congress can end it by law. If only legitimate buyers (energy dealers) and sellers (energy producers) are allowed to buy and sell energy products, prices will drop substantially and more accurately reflect real supply and demand. Some of these speculators are actually the countries selling us oil!



The New England Fuel Institute, the Maine Oil Dealers Association, the NH Fuel Dealers Association and other groups have been lobbying unsuccessfully for an end to speculation in energy commodities. We agree. Cutting speculators and hedge funds out of the market will cut prices to consumers like you and me.



This is everyone's fight; oil in New England, propane in the Midwest, natural gas in our cities and gasoline for the cars we drive; they are all traded and speculated on the commodities market. We've created a Web Page to lobby to ban speculators from the energy market. Go to http://www.otchoice.com/petition.asp and a) sign the petition and b) if you wish to, send an email or contact your Congressional representative. The timing is right, the Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee is considering a bill right now to limit speculation in oil & food. The question is, are we going to do something about it or just sit back and take it?



Please Sign the petition and send this to everyone you know. If everybody calls and/or emails their US Senators, we WILL see some changes.

Reflections

I know a lot of my most recent posts have centered on The Moving Wall, and I apologize, but for such a long time, it took up a great deal of my time and effort, and for the five days it was here, I all but lived at Constitution Park in Ossipee, drawn to the wall like a piece of steel to a magnet. I do have one last reflection on the time it was here. During that time I had a chance to talk to other Veterans who were in during the same era as I was, the early to mid 80's. I missed the horror that was Vietnam, but reflecting on my own time in Service, as a young Ensign assigned to a ship for the first time and sent over to our own foreign land Beirut, Lebanon. We did not realize it at the time, as there was no war on terrorism at the time. We sailors, soldiers, and Marines were at the forefront of the Global War on Terrorism. We were a multi national (read it 90% American, 10% other nations)thrust into a land to keep the peace between factions that had no interest in having the peace kept. They were and still are bent on killing each other because their beliefs in the same religion are so far apart they can never come to terms between them. This would be much akin to the Baptists declaring war on the Catholics.

When they realized that the Peace Keeping force was trying to keep them apart and maintain a very fragile peace in the area, they turned on us bombing the Marine Barracks killing some 250 Marines, Sailors, and Soldiers. This was the beginning and it has only escalated from there, the Achille Lauro, The USS Cole, The first World Trade Tower incident, The German Nightclubs, The British Subway, 9/11, The Shoe Bomber, and many more we forget or may have never known about. Beirut should go down in the history books as the start of the Global War on Terrorism, and unfortunately I do not see any end for it in sight. It will continue to affect the way we live and act for many years to come.

Volunterism

As I reflect on the enormity of the effort we put forth to make The Moving Walls visit to Ossipee, a positive, and memorable event for all that visited it, I have to be awed by the dedication and energy put forth by the volunteers who helped make it possible. From the efforts of David and Susan Dube who were the driving force behind getting the wall to the area, to the kids who came and helped erect the Wall and help with parking. The wall walkers who showed up day after day and stood on their feet for hours at a time helping those who needed help or a shoulder to cry on, or just someone to share stories with. It was an awesome experience for all the visitors as well as all those who volunteered to help. The planning paid off, and even those who just heard about the event at the last moment and showed up asking what they could do to help.

Looking at this event and the some 23,000 people who visited, the number of people who helped put the event on is minuscule. I also look at other things I help on or have helped on in the past like the Ossipee Old Home Week which I was involved with for several years, a week long event that costs some $20,000 to put on, and has an event going on just about every night including one of the most awesome fireworks displays you could imagine for a small community like Ossipee, is co-ordinated and put on by only a very small handful of people (last years committee consisted of only about 6 people who came to the meetings. The act of volunteering seems dead, people do not seem to be willing to put any time into helping the community, while they are very eager to criticize how things were set up or done.

My wish for the world is that more people would find it in their hearts to help make their communities a better place. Put some time into the community and help make it a better place. The rewards you get back far exceed any inconvenience you may have to put up with.