(#5843) I am still unable to correct the flaws of this existence

     In my more than 69 years of being alive on this planet I have been unable to correct the flaws of this existence. I don't know how to do that but I know I need to try. The magic formula for it has escaped all of us and the mental acuity to devise a solution for it is also beyond our current comprehension. If you are in doubt as to what I am talking about it is an existence where pain and suffering seem to dominate with little relative time to disappear it. My thought here is as lofty as it gets but I have never been deterred by difficulty even though it seems absolutely impossible.
     There has never been a rule book as to how to live in this existence except the ones we devise for ourselves for structure, not for existential creation. I am not trying to be a god either I am just trying to make this existence a better place for all to live in while we have the time. If I could also change time and space surely I would so that we are not left without each other in ways that break our hearts. If this existence is just some experiment as to how we live and react and some greater existence is recording it, then I am disappointed in the concept of being an examined experiment.
     If however anything is possible regardless of the logic then I will endure the last of my living to continue to delve into my mind for a magnificent solution for a more perfect existence before I leave it. I know my nature and it is as good as I may hope it to be so there is nothing more important to me than to make our existence on this planet bend toward the better and best. As it is now the worry is that our existence here will be denigrated from the current plateau to a worsening one. So I feel the urgency of the time to not only continue to advocate for the better and best in more specific areas but to also find a way to imagine a miracle of sorts that has a practical application to all of existence in reversing the pain and suffering we currently cannot shake.

(#5842) Don't let your fear keep you quiet about what is correct

      I know that one fear where you feel like you will lose either everything or your life. I get it that fear is there to remind you that you are vulnerable. But what fear also does is try to rob you of your courage. You can go either way and it is still a gamble. If your fear keeps you from any confrontation then for the moment you are okay. But once you acquiesce to fear your next time around with it will be even harder to reverse to courage. It is a slippery slope to give into fear without fighting back. Your mind will tell you that you have no hope but what your mind doesn't know is that you have no hope when you keep giving in to fear.
     What your mind should be telling you is that with courage you have hope. You stand against the hardships and bullies of the world and you will see another view that your mind never considered. There are others who are out there being courageous and actually fighting to end the trauma and drama of the hardships caused by fear. Hope is a mighty concept when it is all on the line. Fighting for who you are and for what you know is correct is the true American way. Not being subservient to cruel and brutish taskmasters, we Americans have always risen up to our courage and fought hard to defeat the forces of cruelty and injustice.
     My point here is simple. Do not be quiet about the wrongs going on around you. You are either for the good in the world or you are not. Being quiet about it just affirms your inability to be for the good. Once you take yourself out of the solution you are actually helping the problem grow in strength. Silence is acquiescence. We who are born into this existence have a right and a duty to defend and advocate for individual rights and freedoms. No other human being born into this existence gets to lord over us like they are demigods. We all deserve the freedom and liberty to live our lives as we choose with no one above or below the rule of law.

(#5841) Injustice triumphs when good people do nothing

      John Stuart Mill stated the concept if not the exact words two centuries ago. Yet the idea is sound. When good people stand by and let the worst of human nature progress, then the worst is on all of us. I am at a point where the means that justify the ends are all encompassing when it comes to stopping the momentum of evil. We, each of us has to ask ourselves what are we willing to do in order to put right the wrongs that are obvious and unrelenting. Those of us with a conscience anyway. The psycho/sociopathic notwithstanding. What are we each willing to do to help the cause of humanity?
     As the decay and rot of forces that are in control continue to flourish and devastate what are we the people to do? There must be a plan for doing something even when that something is beyond the scope of our simple understanding of the rule of law. No one wants to exist in a world where chaos and uncertainty is the basis for a foundation. Instead we need to create a hope for a change that regardless of method is necessary to avoid an even greater injustice. When the danger is no more then the normalcy of ethical logic within jurisprudence can lead us to a more critical knowing of the science of law. When we each know the sacrifice needed to keep and maintain a just society is when we all truly become one within it.
     In the meantime we are now in a dilemma. What is our response to the end of our dilemma and what shape and form will that response take? That is the unknown at the moment but in some amount of time we will know it. There is an unease among us that will bring about an end and our own tolerance to pain and suffering will ignite that ultimate response. I say that there is nothing off the table when it comes to survival. We each have our own breaking points as to how we are activated to move beyond doing nothing toward doing something. We will soon be at that point where the will of the one will be greater than the will of the other. Here is me rooting for the people.

(#5840) Back to almost normal with my truck

      I was a victim of a hit in run accident while I was driving and the other driver did a lot of damage to the driver side back and driver side of my truck. I wasn't able to identify the driver as he sped away and I was spinning on the overpass but I survived and that is the most important thing. I just had bare minimum insurance requirements for my truck so there was going to be no insurance compensation on my policy. Since the other driver sped off without being identified there will be no insurance compensation from him either. So it was down to me to get my truck back to a semblance of itself in short order.
     I was able to drive myself home and after assessing the damage, broken out and pinched tail light housing, rear door to my driver side was pinched in and wouldn't open, driver door buckled and wouldn't close all the way, rear quarter panel bent and buckled as well. The rear quarter panel I was able to pop out in places so it doesn't look wholly bad. The driver door we, a couple of friends, found at a salvage yard of the same color and replaced that. The back driver side door I was able to pound and reform back out of the way so that the door now opens and closes easily. The rear tail light I ordered a new one and remolded the area where it was to fit back in as close as I could for it to accept the new tail light. All things considered a little over $500 did the whole thing plus at the salvage yard they threw in a good bed liner for free.
     I still need to replace the door handle from my original door into the new door because of the key lock but that is going to be finished tomorrow. I needed my truck working today so that I could go to work. So tomorrow I will retake the inner driver door panel off so I can switch the door handles. My truck is battered and bruised but it is still roadworthy and the motor is still little used given that the truck is a 2002. After having experienced this episode I will be upgrading my insurance a bit more to cover collisions regardless of what the other driver does. I use my truck around here very little but that is not an immunity to being in the wrong place at the wrong time despite my obedience to the law.

(#5839) Heroes protect and defend people, villians do not!

      I know that all of us growing up watching television were for the heroes as they trounced any villain that came their way. We were still in our innocence and believed that no one should be hurt just because they could be. I never left that innocence behind. Instead I built upon it as a way to live my life. I know in my heart that doing good with people is much greater a feeling and consciousness than the harm and pain others seem to enjoy inflicting on those who cannot defend from it. Why the hero concept is lost here in America to the extreme it is today is mind boggling to me. I cannot understand how so many are less than what they started out to be.
     I know that life is hard and plans get interrupted but core principles should never be compromised when the choice is ours. A laziness from a failed comprehension of logic and ethical morality is most likely and altogether sad. I can look myself in the face in the mirror and know that although I am incomplete it isn't because I quit on being my best hero form. My life is a tribute to me never forgetting I am a hero type at heart and will never choose to be a villain. I cannot hate people and do them harm and walk away like nothing changed in me. How others can do that is a failure of theirs that they didn't need to actuate.
     I never chose to run the rat race and make decisions based on climbing over the top of others in order to achieve. I learned at a very young age that I would build myself into a person I felt comfortable living in the skin of. I had some setbacks and made some poor decisions for periods of my life but never to intentionally harm anyone. For the most part my life has been to refine me and learn talents that people would appreciate in me. I never cared to be idolized or even admired except in ways that actually deserved recognition. My life is simple and at ease. Which makes me one of the ones who can actually say that their life is much like what they always wanted. I appreciate all life and those humans who are like minded in this existence with me.

(#5838) Everyday I do something to pick up my spirits

      These next four years are going to be tough on me. So to offset the reality of it I am doing a self care process of picking up my spirits in some way every day. I was so fortunate to have discovered Sydnie Christmas' performances on Britain's Got Talent 2024. I watch them almost daily because each time a tear comes to my eyes and I still get goosebumps. The three songs she sings are absolute historical classics and her renditions of them are extraordinary. By the time I have watched at least one I am already in a good mood ready to tackle my day. It is what I need to feel like I am still a normal person and not some shadow of one.
     If I could for one second get everyone to watch and listen to Sydnie and her quest to live her dream through the BGT experience I wouldn't hesitate. Because she will put happy emotion into your life and remind you that you are human and not some caricature of one like in our current political climate. The 3 songs, Tomorrow from Annie, My Way of Frank Sinatra, and Somewhere Over the Rainbow from Wizard of Oz, Sydnie takes all 3 songs and puts her different twist on them that actually changes how we think about those 3 classics in a good way. Not only does she personalize the lyrics she emboldens them and brings them into the present. Especially with My Way, her gender change lyrics are beyond significant.
     I am not one to get hung up on anything of a entertainment structure but for some beautiful reason Miss Christmas has struck a chord with me that is amazing. Her voice is absolutely the full gamut of the spectrum with control that is incredibly precise. She is my diamond in the rough for bringing joy into my life even if only for a short time at least it breaks up the monotony of the horror we are going to experience in our politics. Do yourself a favor and YouTube Sydnie Christmas all 3 performances on BGT and then make sure you have tissues while enjoying the goosebumps.

(#5837) I don't know if our American democracy will survive

      The warnings were given for more than 2 years that the end of our democracy was imminent with a victory for republicans. Yet those warnings fell on deaf ears. So instead of a happier brighter future for our nation we are currently falling steeply into an abyss that will not bring anything but darkness. It has only been less than a week and we still have over 200 weeks left to endure. I know we are at our hearts a strong country but at this rate of the disemboweling of our democracy by the republican party the chances are not looking good for our eventual survival. What happens after is autocracy and tyranny so I know we will fight hard to prevent that but odds are not good for us patriots to keep our current democratic process.
     I will lay blame here by stating the obvious, those who didn't vote and those that bought lies because they were too lazy to learn truths, this is on you. Nearly 250 years of democratic rule in America is about to come to an end and all that is because we as a society have lost our way. I share blame here because I obviously didn't do enough to make sure this scenario would never unfold. I was sure that the American people would never elect an adjudicated felon/rapist to our presidency. Not only his past as a warning but his present in advocating for the project 2025 manifesto would surely have resonated with most all voters who are not wealthy. Yet that was still not enough to defeat him.
     It is obvious also to me that I do not have a finger on the pulse of America. Values and honorable principles seem to be at a loss while ease and greed are at a premium. I suppose in the big picture we Americans deserve what is coming and without a doubt have no one to blame but ourselves. Our misplaced arrogance has fully captured our mindset so fully that we think others have to be better than what we expect from ourselves. We have become the selfish self deserving lot of uneducated that was shown to us as despicable when we were growing up. So instead of helping ourselves create a society that was enviable we have created a society that will crush us. We deserve what our imbecilic arrogance has brought forth.

(#5836) Everything good comes from our heart

      According to my blog post title nothing good can happen without heart. So those who have no heart will not be able to do good. Now the word good is relative of course because doing good for themselves is how too many see being good. However, the good I am relating to is about good for all of us who live for a short time on this one planet. The psycho/sociopaths in the world to me are like what Agent Smith from the movie "Matrix" says he mistakenly believes all humans really are, a virus. Those who only see doing good for themselves however are the real virus, not the vast majority of all within our species. While the vast majority of the rest of us who live from our hearts are the true body of our human being species.
     In order for our social body to be healthy we must reduce the influence of the virus that makes us unwell. Containing the virus is intelligent through a quarantine. Which is once identified not allowing those who are at a dis-ease with the rest of us not to have a say in how the rest of us evolve and progress through time and space. As far as being able to recognize the symptoms of their viral behavior it is done through observation and time. When one or many are just out for themselves their lives will reflect that and therefore be noticed. Their peculiar brand of socializing is to enhance themselves beyond the normal for gain and power which also reflects who they are to a wide array of viewers.
     Once identified then a ban on psycho/sociopaths as influencers will be attached to their possibilities. I know it is a big brother type process but not doing something to keep the psycho/sociopaths away from the good health of our society is worse. If we do not recognize that it is our hearts that guide the beauty in life then we become more like dull robots than the amazing human being species. I cannot fathom the idea that our species would degrade our possibilities for what we could become to go backwards and settle to become less than we are. The future possibilities are captivating and stuff made of dreams when we all learn to trust that we are a species destined to become magnificent because we live from our hearts.

(#5835) Nothing ratified in our National Constitution can be reversed with an executive order

      For those who got us into this mess by not learning when in the formative years but then believing a conman this post is for you. I am not judging here but not learning is a choice. I can understand if difficulties occur which make learning evasive but we each have the choice to make sure we understand the basics of life and our role in it. I consider understanding our form of government, democracy, and federalism as basic. The only way a Constitutional amendment can be changed is through an amendment process. I will give an outline now as to how the process works by quoting President Harry S. Truman, the 33rd president of the United States.
     "The amendment process is very difficult and time consuming: A proposed amendment must be passed by two-thirds of both houses of Congress, then ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states. The ERA Amendment did not pass the necessary majority of state legislatures in the 1980s. Another option to start the amendment process is that two-thirds of the state legislatures could ask Congress to call a Constitutional Convention."-Harry S. Truman. So when you hear any politician, especially the one now leading our nation talk about how he will use executive orders to change our Constitution do not accept his lie.
     Our democracy is based upon the rule of law. If anyone chooses to change our democracy outside the rule of law then all bets are off as to constraints through rule of law. To negate the rule of law is to invalidate our social contract here within America. The people will not be constrained in their efforts to obstruct and block any demand made by anyone that is not constitutional  That is how we rebut any attempt by anyone to abuse our democracy outside the rule of law. We the people are the ultimate power in our government so is the responsibility to maintain our form of Constitutional government. If and when the time comes for us to force action because the rule of law has been violated then that will be our honorable duty!

(#5834) Unfortunately life is a series of adventures and misadventures

     I have pretty much given up on life's adventures to enjoy peace and solitude instead. But it seems that life''s misadventures have not given up on me. Oh well, such is the state of reality in our existence. Of course we should be trying to make our existence better for ourselves and those who follow us but it seems that too many don't care about that and instead have made themselves immune to the problems and suffering of others. They would rather believe they are gaining for themselves and blame others for their misfortunes. This time we live in could have been so much better but that moment of positive movement forward is on hold for now if ever.
     My mode now is to, if possible, minimize the pain and suffering heading my way and by extension anyone who like me didn't ask for this. All I can do at this time is to react appropriately and then try to get out ahead so that I am not reacting but being proactive. The nightmare scenarios running through my head are not helpful but they do give my founded fears a boundary to which at least recognize. I can imagine a real hellscape and hopefully that doesn't come about but I would be a fool if I didn't at least try to prepare for it. Hope for the best but expect the worst has always worked for me.
     I had the same thought back at the beginning of 2017 and rationalized staying here and fighting hard to prevent our nation from becoming a victim to a heartless soul. We did survive that and in 2021 got a leader who actually cared about people instead of this one again who only cares about himself. The misadventures that are still out there waiting to happen will still come around but at least I am not unprepared for most of them. As to having peace and solitude that idea is not possible now or at least over the at minimum next four years. However, I am not done fighting for a better world for all of us and if having to endure even longer then so be it.

(#5833) My truck

     My property is in a rural part of the city of Sacramento so I used my over 20 year old truck to do things here that were not kind to its appearance. My usual trips with it outside of moving to Washington state for a few months were very short and not that often. So my insurance reflected that this time around when I just covered it with bare minimum California requirements. The policy started 4 days ago. The accident was 2 days ago. So there will be no help from my insurance and since the perpetrator of the accident fled the scene with no way for me to identify him, I will be footing the cost for making sure the truck is still viable for traveling my normally short distances.
     I am already getting it up to speed with safety and legal obligations. Lesson learned by me unfortunately is to cover for more situations than bare minimum. It's okay though, outside the obvious damage it still runs smoothly. I will in some short time when my finances are more evened out be able to finance a newer vehicle with the appropriate insurance coverage. For now though getting my 2002 Dodge Dakota back into a semblance of order is high priority. By the end of the week most of my concerns will be met. A bit longer term is replacing body parts that are now scraped and bent but usable. No one likes to travel around in a junk pile but my truck still runs well even with scratches and scraps.
     I had been thinking about upgrading my vehicle for a couple of years but now it is a more important priority. So I will be looking to find something in my price range that offers a more modern ride. It would have been nice to have cameras on my truck so I could have identified the hit and run driver. I do have a police report out on what facts I could put together from the scene so hopefully that may help in identifying him. I don't expect he will have insurance coverage or even a valid drivers license. Which is why it would be wishful thinking that he would fix my truck with any coverage. It's okay though as I am a doer and have a plan for getting myself back on the road albeit in a view that is not pleasing to the eye.

(#5832) Yesterday's two different dimensional experiences

      I was driving to work and then I was spinning like a on a ride at the state fair. What is so vivid to me is that I recall the exact moment that the disconnect from me just driving to work and the spinning like a top happened. It was at minimum surreal. I asked myself how can I be spinning like this when a split second ago I was driving to work. It then came into my consciousness that I had been hit by another vehicle. I didn't have much time to process the act as I was trying to think what I should be doing to help myself stop spinning. It was at the next moment that as I was going around the offending vehicle was driving directly into my drivers door.
     As I was looking to my left I could see the other driver and his companion staring at me stone faced. Both men were in their 30's and looked to be white construction type workers from what I gathered in that split second from their clothing. Then the sight shifted as I continued to spin and they kept going forward on their way. I on the other hand kept spinning and after about one and a half turns I knew I had to do something to stop my trajectory. I was on an overpass rising up toward the apex. I hit the brakes and turned into the spin. As I slowed down and eventually came to rest backed up against the guardrail I looked to see the other vehicle cresting over the top of the overpass and then disappear.
     I was fortunate in that I was only traveling at about 30 miles an hour when the collision happened and also because there was little to no traffic at that time on a Sunday morning. However the chance of witnesses was also slim and although two stopped to ask if I was okay, both declined to wait to give a statement for the police who I called a few minutes after I composed myself. I did report a hit and run the best I could and we will see if anything comes of it. All I know is that the whole experience has unsettled me and although I couldn't make it to work yesterday I am sitting here typing this getting ready to work today instead. Yesterday could have been much worse and I truly know that.

(#5831) Setting the cruise control

      In no way am I just going to be silent about the future here in America but it won't be with the fervor of a Paul Revere who gave everything he had to warn of an impending doom. No, instead I will be quietly going about my opposition to what is coming with the knowledge that I did give what I had and not enough of us listened. My disappointment aside I am exhausted by the inability of our citizenry to be proud of our heritage. The one thing I thought would unite us was our decency and respect for noble principles. Yet I have been proven wrong. It seems that there is a lack of care for the honest and hard working that I thought was baked into what is was to be normal working class attributes.
     I have no general fix for it as it must come from each of us that have honest introspection. But I can endure to state the obvious and parlay that into a plan for how to proceed. It will take time because the damage to our democracy hasn't completely exposed itself yet but don't be fooled it is about to be exposed. Thus the cruise control aspect of my present future. Whilst I am taking in the trajectory of how things will change I need to be even keeled about it. I won't be surprised by what is going to happen because I have been warning of it for what is now decades. The republican party is no friend to the working middle poor class and the proof will begin to be seen shortly.
     I am not going to let my inner emotions get out of control nor let my inner emotions dictate to me any useless actions. I will however keep a stable demeanor through it all because that is how I expect to not only survive what is coming but be effective in overcoming it. I will never stop being a good decent human being no matter the cost. It is my destiny as it should be every person who has a mind and a heart. 1461 days of what could have been so productive is now going to be 1461 days of struggling to survive. I don't get our citizenry at all when the worst of who we are is considered more important than the best of who we are.

(#5830) My disappointment

      We Americans had two chances to elect a decent respectful president in 2016 and 2024 and failed. Both times the losing candidate was a woman as well. Which would have marked the first time a woman had been elected president of the United States. I have been and will always be an advocate for women in our society. First off the women in my life have shown greater character and behavior than the men in my life. That matters to me when evaluating whether we should be led by women who care enough to put themselves out there to lead. Another reason I advocate for women is because they have been treated with utter contempt in our American "equality" system.
     That women are not equal with men in our culture is a sign that men are petty and disrespectful when it comes to sharing equality. even though women have shown throughout the generations that they are equal to men in every way that matters. Then there is the emotional aspect of being a human being. Men are quick to deaden their emotional feelings about things that should affect them. Women are not so quick to let die the feelings of care and kindness. They would rather learn and understand what it takes to improve society not bury it. Not all men are condescending to women as a species less than them. Many of us know that we are both a physical and emotional being. We gain strength through physical power and emotional command.
     I have learned physical strength from men that did shape my future. I have also learned emotional strength from women that has evolved my soul to a place where my physical strength leaves off. Both men and women are strong shapers of my life and both deserve to have equal representation in our society. My disappointment is that other men who should know better have failed women so that those men can have some kind of control they absolutely don't deserve. It is their pettiness and lack of strength in too many areas of their lives that rules them and not the better and best of who they should be. In my consideration we made two huge mistakes in 2016 and 2024 by not electing two deserving women to power who would have made our lives special instead of grueling.

(#5829) Hope will never die out

      I do know this much. Despite how bad anything gets there will always be a hope for the better. I know this because of my own life experiences. While we remain alive hope will always be what gives us the motivation to continue. We all need that sometimes in our lives when the hopelessness of situations become almost unbearable. I have succeeded at a few things in my life but for the most part I have failed in many more. Yet I continue despite the failures. I continue despite the suffering and disparagements. I bow my neck and resolve quietly to myself that nothing any force on Earth attempts to dissuade me from life throws at me, I will continue!
     I have no mercy for those who would force others to quit their life and die. I have no mercy for those who laugh in the face of others who are forced into despicable living. I have no mercy for those who refuse to grow as a human being while denying others opportunities to grow themselves. I am not a real hard man but I am a hard man when it comes to those who are dead in their hearts to what life is all about. Existence doesn't need people who find cruelty and brutality as substitutes to kindness and compassion. Hope is the last place one can put themselves before no other option exists. That I even have to say this reflects the turbulent times we are about to experience.
     Just know this, those of us who would find peace, kindness, and opportunity for all are a greater force than those who are not. Because we have hope while those who don't only have their dirty deeds to comfort them. There is a corruptness to some humans that needs to be exposed and purged. The best of who we humans are will always be discounted when the worst of who we are is allowed to flourish. The battle for the soul of humanity is being waged so make sure you are on the correct side when the fighting for human destiny is fought. Prepare yourself for the time when you standing up for what is in your heart comes about.

(#5828) When a political party demands obedience

      We all are witnessing the undeniable truth of subservience in the name of duty. It isn't in our democratic party because we are the big tent party where all views of liberty and justice are acceptable. Unlike the republicans who are demonstrating the requirement of fealty to its leadership. Instead of the leaders representing the people the people in the republican playbook must represent what their leaders dictate to them. So instead of the leaders following through on the demands of the people the people are forced to follow through on what their leaders tell them to do. This isn't democracy it is tyranny.
     I for one will not be led around as if I were cattle. Especially by the latest crop of backward republican leaders who have no time for intelligence. They do have time to bully and be cruel. So I will not accept their "advice" as to how I live my life nor should you. Instead a quiet uprising of sorts is necessary. Using our current rights to protest and debate for as long as we still have those rights. The republican party is giddy over their opportunity to consolidate their power over our democracy and undermine it to establish a form of governance that is more controlled than free. The republicans will decide which hopes and dreams we are allowed to pursue and nothing less than obedience to their coming doctrine will be acceptable.
     Obedience will translate into subservience. We will all become molded into particular types without dissimilarity. Our cookie cutter lives will be our only option as a rule. What punishments may come for deviating from the rules will show themselves, most likely harsh and brutal. Picture what putin does to his countrymen who disobey his wishes and you then will know what the republicans will allow here. Having a leader who is a tyrant is not a happy event. The realization will come shortly for those who think it is some cool kind of fad. Many of us already know how this is going to be. Those who don't are about to learn a lesson they may well not survive. Freedom lost is very hard to recapture and there will be many who are going to find out in the gravest of ways.

(#5827) Ignoring all things trump

      One of my facebook friends, Barbie, reminded me that she is not giving trump any attention even if it is disparaging. I like her outlook and had even thought about doing the same but never resolved to do exactly that. Now I won't be an Ostrich with its head in the sand but I will try very hard not to give him anything. I know some of my latest blog posts have focused on the trouble we are headed into because of him but that is all I have for us on him. We who are aware already know what is coming even if not the specifics. We will not be caught out surprised by anything he tries to do. Even if he fumbles into something good he gets nothing from me because his intent is to only harm.
     So on January 20, 2025, the next 1461 days will have to be lived with me not paying attention to him or his underlings. I will get real good at being involved and entertained with my local surroundings I will re-establish my personal likes and curiosity about new facts and truths outside politics. I have nothing great to offer politically anyway as the rest of our nation is beyond comprehension at this point. I will continue to advocate for freedom, liberty, justice, and opportunity but I will not insert myself into the national discord of federal policies that are coming our way. Our society choose this path so they can deal with its inevitability.
     All I know for sure is that trump won't live another second inside my mind. I have more important people to think about who actually deserve my attention and respect. I only have so much time left as I have lived nearly 70 years as it is. Wasting time being disappointed and frustrated with trump is not what I have in mind. Instead doing and having fun where it is possible and being available to those who have needs I find I can help with. Being a good person is much better than wasting my time. As well learning new things that confront my habits and force me to open my mind even more. I really wish we all had a better society to live in but unfortunately too many of us just gave that wonderful chance away.

(#5826) Keeping my happy

      It has taken me many years since I was a child to recapture my happy. In our American declaration of independence it talks about us pursuing our happiness which is kind of like where I am now. Not so much pursuing but living. My life to anyone on the outside looking in at is nothing special or unique. It is more plain and ordinary than anything else. But what resides within me is special and unique and that cannot be witnessed by just looking at my life. You would have to be around me to see that inner happiness manifest itself in just about everything I do or say. I am human and the happy does slip away for short periods of time but for the most part it is who I truly am.
     Even when I am disappointed, like with the last election, disappointed being a kind description, I still find my way back to who I am. I have to move on like with everything that happens. Because I am in a state of constant evolution. My existence demands from me to stay current with my learning and understanding. So no matter what happens in this existence I keep moving forward until that final future moment when I cannot. So whilst I am still moving around as me I will keep my happy in the forefront of my life. For so many years I was disgruntled and unhappy because I couldn't seem to make my life work the way I wanted it to work. The problem was I didn't even know what I really wanted.
     I solved that problem of what I wanted out of life and ever since then the happy has returned to me. For me it was just the simple idea of me being in a place where I controlled my own destiny. Where the trappings of life were less important than the freedom I have to express myself. I have the liberty to exist despite not having all the conveniences available. My contentment is a product of accepting that simplicity is best for me so that I can live each real moment like it is a gift. I don't take anything for granted any more. I don't deserve or need privilege as an excuse to be happy. I am happy as a foundational core because I am alive and able to think and act for myself.

(#5825) Democrats use the power of the federal government to uplift us, republicans use it to punish us

      I know this and why the ones who voted for republicans don't is a mystery to me. It is not like republicans are hiding it either. They talk about cutting government spending like it is their only cause. What they do however is to help the wealthy maintain wealth. Well the last time I checked, 98% of Americans are not wealthy. yet for some reason more than 50% who voted last November voted for republicans if we rule out all the conspiracy theories. So that is the mystery to me. Add on top of that that the republican president elect inspired an insurrection on our democracy, was convicted of sexual assault and is now a 34 time felon. The mystery truly is baffling to me!
     I will tell you what I do feel and it is shame at being within an American society that doesn't value honor and decency above depravity. Yet here we are. Very soon the days of the federal government trying to make all Americans live an easier and less struggling life will be over. With the incoming president the federal government will begin to work on ways to make life more difficult and stressful for its citizens. Medicare/medicaid will become harder to receive. Social security will become a target for ending. All the federal government safety nets will become targets for elimination. All except those that benefit the wealthy. This will be our new future and too many of us voted for it.
     You may dismiss my evaluations all you want because for me it is out of my control. What happens next is what happens to you because too many of you thought you knew more than you actually did. I never had to say a word of care about the good going away and being replaced by the bad. I could have just let it all happen without making a single sound about it. But that isn't who I am. Yet the better and best I had to warn and describe obviously wasn't enough. I don't know how we all will get through this but I know it will be punishing to so many that it will break my heart. We wanted this as a society so this is what we will get. My shame for how we are such dupes is beyond description but just know that it is deeply embarrassing.

(#5824) I am a simple man

      There is nothing complex about me in the big picture. I am no genius, nor even a budding star. I am just a simple person who knows correct from incorrect. I haven't always known correct from incorrect because for me it was a learning curve that has spanned my lifetime so far. I am not done learning nor will I ever be. This is the fascinating part of being alive is that I get to keep adding to the information I already have. My mind helps with that because I do understand that my mind is like a data processing center. Information comes in and I evaluate it against what is stored in my memory banks.
     As you can see from this example we humans emulate our own abilities to help ourselves with knowledge. We mimic our own minds with technology that helps us gather and store information. Like computers and calculators. Our five senses are imagined in ways beyond our own ability so as to increase our ability to analyze, reason, and conclude. This is still very simple and is not so hard to understand like quantum physics or black holes. With each generation the envelope of information expands and gives us tools to better evaluate our Universe. Which to me eventually leads to a reasonable answer to the question of "why". Why do we exist and why do we not know?
     The great question of why is beyond any conclusion I will ever know in my short time in this existence but helping to answer that question for the future of our species is a noble cause. Not because of any ego inspired motivation but simply because we can ask the question. I have never believed that our species is limited in how we perceive if we give ourselves the chance to explore. The nature of a living thing is to survive and thrive. I see no reason to believe that we humans are not the same. To survive we must take care of ourselves. To thrive we must apply logical knowledge to our lives in every way possible. The simplicity of life is in the details of which we all can reasonably know with little effort if we so choose.

(#5823) Our human species is more than just procreating

      Each of us is given three attributes that will help us along in the journey of being human. Most of us are able to procreate which is more function than talent. Most of us are given emotion from which to identify with each other in ways that define our humanity. Most of us are given the ability to reason, analyze, and conclude should we logically develop should we so choose. Keeping our species alive and moving forward is highly important to at least having a chance to evolve into our full potential. However, without emotion and intelligence we are no better than the cattle we utilize for our survival. As procreating is necessary it isn't what defines our species as special.
     We humans have no natural greater enemy on this planet than ourselves. We in essence are the masters of Earth and what we decide to do affects the existence of all that is around us. That is how far we have evolved to this point. Yet to evolve further we must not go backward in our evolution. We cannot dismiss knowledge because for some it has gotten to hard to understand or too difficult to control. We cannot devalue our emotions because they are unfamiliar to some who will not acknowledge their importance. I say this because in the entirety of my life when the good of knowledge and emotion is what we do, and comes about, there is nothing better.
     Our minds and our hearts are what makes us human, not just our random ability to procreate. Procreation is a foundational essential but only a place to start from, not the brick and mortar of knowledge and emotion needed to build toward a more enlightened and bold future. We are human not because we can sustain the line of life, but because we can think and feel with action. we are more than the event of existing, We are a witness to all that is around us. We learn of the past and live in the present but we also dream of a future through our imagining. We have plenty of procreators amongst us, what we need are more who apply emotion and knowledge to what is now an imbalance, and make our world special to be a member to exist within.

(#5822) Never stop looking for the special in life

      We should all know that no matter what age you are time in this existence is short. Before you know it you will have passed through adolescence to adulthood to older age. It really does happen that fast. So whatever it is that you hope to get out of life must be a priority because in a very short time that hope will have ended. First however we must be preparing ourselves to achieve our hopes by giving ourselves an opportunity to reach that hope. What is regretful is having a hope pass us by and not to have been prepared for its arrival. There is still time to find another similar hope but even then that is no guarantee.
     So putting ourselves into a position to recognize our hope is essential. If you don't have a special hope for your life then none of this will matter but if you do then pay heed. Even a guy like me who has had his hopes before him and didn't recognize them still has a chance to find hope in another way. We all need to feel like we are special to someone or something so hoping to be part of what matters to us is a foundation to our lives that is a real need. The real beauty in life is that another day will come and another opportunity to experience our hopes is up to our determination. I cannot think of another paradigm in life that is as emotionally important as each of us finding a happiness in our hopes.
     There are those out there who have given up on their hopes because of disappointment or failure to find their hope. One thing life has taught me is that there is no end to anything alive if we never give up on moving forward toward another perspective. How we see our present and future is what is important not any moment unachievable from the past. Each of us has our hopes and each of us must respect that. When we all get to search for what is that special for each of us then and only then we may find our best chance to experience our hopes. Nothing in life is guaranteed but when we give ourselves a chance to be happy we are at least ready for that very thing to happen.

(#5821) The fate of my doggie Billy going forward

      I had been waiting for the test results on Billy and got them a few days ago. Though inconclusive, they say that most likely he has a tumor. Yet more tests need to be done to be 100% accurate. When I took Billy into see the vet he was lethargic and was expelling diarrhea. He had little to no energy and was not eating unless it was a small piece of cooked meat. Since that vet visit however Billy has perked up, eating and drinking with his usual gusto and even running around in the yard albeit not like a young dog. Still though it is as if he hadn't even gotten a growth. Yet the growth is still there.
     It has been several days and his activity is still normal. He is on medication for infection and pain but the only medication he has not currently run to course is his Amoxicillin for infection. Again to reiterate Billy is over 14 and a half years old. So the suggestion from the vet that I could have more tests done by a specialist who would then likely do surgery to remove the growth is not an option. The cost is the big prohibitor. Much like everything in our uncaring brutish healthcare in America, it prices not only our human loved ones out of its possibilities but our pets who we love as much.
     All that being said Billy is still back to himself. I will be extra vigilant with him letting him enjoy his life as much as possible every day going forward. I already treat him special but now even more so. If Billy does take a turn for the worse then I will go back to the vet and instead of trying to keep him alive I will allow the vet to end his time in existence. I had to do that not too many years ago with my pug Niky when her diabetes became untreatable and she was physically suffering. Just know that death has not set well with me throughout the entirety of my life and although I have come to an acceptance with death, I do despise its reality. In the meantime Billy puts a smile on my face and a glow in my heart that for right now cannot be beat.

(#5820) The dark days of trump are looming

      A leader should be bringing people together. The people who follow that leader should be of the same mindset. We either help people or we don't. With Joe Biden we had a president who helped people. With trump about to come into the presidency we have someone who is more focused on land grabs and denying people help. The difference will be stark and no one who voted for trump should be immune to what damage he is about to unleash on our society. Of course the wealthy will be beneficiaries but few others. Those who are in the working middle poor class who voted for trump are about to begin to understand the warnings we democrats had been shouting out loud.
     I am not trying to convey a "I told you so" bragging. I am letting you know that all the signs of this happening were in plain sight and yet those working middle poor class voters chose to ignore them for whatever selfish reason. Well, the shit is about to hit the fan so my suggestion now is to take cover and find a way to survive as quickly as possible. We have all been taken in by con men/women at different times in our lives so I don't hold any animosity toward those who were duped by trump and a wildly dishonest republican party. We all make mistakes but now we must find a way to rectify or minimize those mistakes because the consequences will be unforgiving.
     I think of our nation as a person who is into self harm. First, we fail to appreciate knowledge and how it can shape our lives for the better. Second, we too often deny our own best common sense instincts out of some allegiance to the illusion of grandeur. We wrongly put ourselves on a higher level than others simply because we were born as a different race and/or in a different geographic locale. I am an amateur in this next regard but this is what may be possible. As to the self harm, when we don't engage with all of our communities and know the suffering and pain that is out there we substitute the self harm as a way to feel something and therefore consciously justify our existence. The problem of course is that the illusion that comes with self harm is distorted and away from reality and the best of what we deny ourselves to become.

(#5819) Something needs to change

      I do not know what change we need but staying static now is how the worst of what is coming will be. Nothing does stay the same but some things are slower to change than other things. Yes, I am being intentionally vague because I am not one who is wise enough to spell it out with authority. Our civilization is under siege by those who cannot nor will not let the best of who we are as a species be our manifest destiny. Instead they are committed to keeping their boots on the neck of our existence so that they can be lazy and infectiously cruel. Their master plan is inside their heads and only benefits them.
     The rest of the majority of us are their prize and they will have us to be at their beck and call. Such a distorted and diseased concept but they have decided theirs and ours fate. Now it is time for a change before that fate they so desire can be cemented into our societies. Freedom and equality are not just words in this blog post. They are living and breathing concepts that have stirred the hearts and minds of countless generations before us. The sacrifices made in the past for us to now let that freedom and equality slip through our fingers is abhorrent to those of us who honor our foreparents' sacrifices.
     That something that must change may either be many small steps or just a few large ones. But have no doubt about it, it must happen or our reality will become less than a fond memory and more a nightmare in a very short time. It is at this point I would insert a statement about how strong and enduring we are as a freedom loving country but I cannot make that claim any longer. We, our American society, have shown that we care little about ideals of honor and courage. Instead we only seem to care about selfishness and being entertained. The republican party has spent decades working to undermine our best intentions as a democracy and their efforts are now about to pay off.

(#5818) Insurrection day!

      This is the first time in our American history where we who love America and the democracy it birthed are remembering an anniversary of an insurrection on  America's capitol. Not only are we remembering the horrible attempt to overthrow our government but a majority of our ignorant and selfish electorate chose to elect the perpetrator back into the presidency. I am still numbed by it all and clearly cannot rightly express my disgust and disappointment to a level that contains my fury. Never again will America be able to claim the high ground in moral and ethical questions when our own behavior eliminates us from the claim.
     The very idea of our democracy is to uphold the rule of law and promote equality, fairness, and liberty among other virtues. Yet what we currently uphold is obedience to dishonesty, acquiescence to criminality, and a neutral stance on living a life of honor and integrity. What is difficult for me to imagine is that others are not willing to grow and mature into strong, wise, benevolent people. Instead it is apparent that pettiness and greed overflow from our society as it's most abundant resource. We have laid bare the idea that capitalism is a means to promote democracy and instead have embraced capitalism as an end that justifies the means to cripple democracy.
     Our American society has devolved into the wild west scenario where guns and power rule and law abiding is scoffed at as weak. The inner hatred it takes to manifest that paradigm is considerable. Instead of fighting to make our world a better place to live in, too many are fighting to make our world a hellscape where only the brutes can succeed thereupon to spread their cruelty. Peace and harmony should be the goal of everyone who lives so that we all benefit from each other's gifts. We are human beings on one planet in our Universe. We are here with each other. No matter how twisted some may think, we are all genetically the same people and as such no one or several people should ever be allowed to desecrate our possibilities together.

(#5817) Getting my ducks in a row

      The new year is here and I am not happy about it. I have some unfinished things to accomplish within my own control and I need to get them done so that whatever starts happening outside my control won't affect me negatively. In my mind and soul I most always presume that it is better to be safe than sorry. So not procrastinating one minute is my determination. Of course nothing happens in a vacuum but as long as I do my part I cannot later kick myself for dropping the ball if there is a fumble. Mixing metaphors is okay with me as long as the mix makes sense.
     There are times when I need to focus on myself instead of others. I can do more than two things at the same time but some individual things require my full attention for at least some short period of time. Such is the case. I suppose it is in some ways like a new years resolution however in this case it is like a last year's responsibility. I am less certain how the new year of 2025 will play out so having myself up to date much like a computer upgrade is sensible. I have already stated that this year will begin heavily with me focusing on self care. I will never shirk an obligation of responsibility but my focus will be on me giving myself the best chance to get through what I know will be anguish and depressive incredulity.
     If I am to defend against the coming onslaught I need to have my mettle hardened and ready to employ. Much like girding up for battle the better prepared I am will only make my efforts a bit more possible. Right now I am still vulnerable in my mind because I am still in shock over the last election. In my heart I can believe some kind of fix was successful. I cannot prove anything nor am I going to be a conspiracy theorist. So what is left to do? If there was some kind of fix achieved then the coming battle to save our democracy will have to be an all in affair for all of us who understand the stakes. I need to be prepared and getting my ducks in a row is how I will be most effective for what is coming.

(#5816) I cannot watch the switch over from dems to the anti democracy party reps

      Daily, I used to watch politics on C-span and the intelligent cable news shows. Not anymore. For one thing the wrong party is in control of Congress so there is nothing I will get from watching them fumble around to destroy our democracy on either of the C-span channels. They certainly have no plans to help the working middle poor class so watching the pundits on the less harmful cable news shows commiserate about how we are all going to be screwed is not my idea of healthy forward thinking. So I will find other distractions of a positive nature to occupy myself. I will stay on my social media platforms so that the rest of you may enlighten me of anything that is productive but as far as me being engaged to lead the way with others that will not be my course.
     The idea that a majority of voting Americans think that giving this immoral criminal another shot at leading our nation is beyond me. Not only him but the political party, the republicans, who supported electing him is again beyond me. I am ashamed being associated with this current society of ours and I can only hope that a lesson is learned from all of this if it doesn't kill us. Facing at least four more years of coming pain and suffering at the hands of republicans is bad enough so watching it is even worse. I have better things to do with my time. I know it is coming so for me to watch it happen is counter productive. I tried to warn everyone of what is about to happen but it seems that not being aware is the new trend.
     If I were younger and had more energy maybe I could handle this horrible future we are about to experience with more fight. However I am not younger and cannot bring enough energy to bear. So I will try to enjoy the lesser things in life that don't constantly remind me of how we sabotaged ourselves and pulled defeat out of the jaws of victory. When I say I am ashamed of who we are as a nation I am fully disappointed to the nth degree. The only ones going around bragging about how great we are consist of imbeciles and psychopaths. This truly is a moment in time when all the good our nation has done over the last two centuries is about to become moot in the face of the harm we are about to unleash.

(#5815) I got the yardwork done yesterday and Billy came home with me from the veterinarian visit

      The one thing that had me worried yesterday was my dog Billy. I knew it was a 50/50 chance that Billy would not come home with me. Either treatment or having to put him down. Billy is a long hair Chihuahua who is 14 1/5 years old. He has been with me for 12 of those years. He has also been through a lot so if I was going to be told he was likely dying I wanted to spare him the suffering and let the Doc at the vet help him along. The Doc thinks he may have a fatal tumor but he also said it may just be an abscess. The biopsy will be in either today or tomorrow so either way Billy is with me and is on a medication regimen that is tailored to the growth being an abscess.
     I have been through this before in two different ways. My longtime cat Carter was attacked by some roaming dogs and although I had surgery done on carter it wasn't enough to save his life. He died at home. Also a few years later my pug Niky's health faltered, she was diabetic and after a year of twice a day shots of Insulin her health started failing quickly. At the vets, same Doc in all these situations, let me be with her when her final breath was taken. I kind of expected that yesterday morning. But I will never quit on my little wards because to me they are the children I never had.
     So bringing my dog Billy back home yesterday was somewhat of a triumph. He even looks and acts better after the two rounds of medications. I guess I was so stoked about Billy still being with me that I was able to finish all the hard work of grooming the front and back yards yesterday. Good thing too because it was supposed to rain today and that is exactly what it did today and is still doing into this late morning. I know we all have a limited time clock attached to our lives but it still hurts hard and deep when a life that is close to us is no more. I love being alive and I hate when we die. Most of us cannot fathom why the wealthy aren't trying to save every life with their unimaginable wealth when we the rest of us would do just that!

(#5814) Home day today

      All morning the wild Turkeys in the backyard creek area have been gobbling. Since about 5 this morning it has been more than intermittent. As well this morning my dog Billy needs a veterinary visit for a gland issue that could be serious. I am also hoping to do more yard work in the front and backyard. The possibility of rain may thwart me but it looks to be holding off until tomorrow. Either way though I can get a lot of prep work done if it doesn't and then complete my yard work tomorrow. I am interested in what is going on with the Turkeys out back though.
     They sleep up in the trees that are on the border of the creek so I am used to them being close but they are making a lot of noise, more than usual. I will go out now and at least look as it is now light enough outside to see. Well all I saw were a couple of Turkeys across the creek in a big Oak tree flying down from about 20 feet to a yard out of my line of sight. No more noise from them so it must have been resolved whatever it was. As to my dog Billy he is laying down comfortably for now so that in about an hour and a half I will gather him up and drive to the vets office.
     Billy is an older doggie, about 14 and a half years old but he is still vibrant and engaged up until the last few days with the swollen gland. I expect a solution for his ailment as the most probable outcome but you know how things go despite what we think. I have had enough pets over the decades to understand what happens when our hopes are dashed so I will hope for the best but at the same time expect the worst. This life we live is hard in that it takes from us when it wants and gives us little comfort for it. We do prevail though because we really don't have an alternative. Which is why we try to catch problems early on and accept the cost of solving them when it is our duty to do so.

(#5813) It isn't easy trying to do good as much as possible

      Doing good is the easy part but the process can very often be so tiring. It often reminds me of the myth of Sisyphus, his never ending pushing a boulder uphill. I am generally talking about how the doing good part is relentless in a time when others are not sharing that load. Which illustrates the effort needed to get doing good done. I think about how if we were all doing good the times we would need to do good would be exponentially lessened. Not that doing good is a bad thing but it would need to be done less if we are all trying to do good. The sheer volume of good doing that needs to be done is overwhelming. How do we choose between good deeds when the majority of the deeds are vitally necessary?
     We have to prioritize how we choose and that leaves me with an overall despair because regardless of our doing good many will not benefit from the little the rest of us can muster. However, doing one's part is always a priority because some advancement is better than none regardless of the minimalist outcome. When our species cares about each other we are at our best and that is my vision for our existence. It also puts us on track to evolve our existence toward a higher plane of understanding. You hear the term manifest destiny used in conjunction with land acquisition but for me it is our species advancing into the unknown to acquire more knowledge and innovations from that knowledge.
     So although tiring because of the workload of doing good it is still much better than the anguish of pain and suffering all around. So hopefully more of us will help take the helm and guide our species toward pathways that actually alleviate the need to always be doing good on a constantly needed basis. If you don't know or haven't figured this out yet we all owe a duty of care to our species. We do not live separate from each other nor individually as a rule. We are a community species that thrives when we are all part of the same quest. I guess what I am asking is that instead of being outside the reality of our problems we all roll up our sleeves and take on the doing good so that we can then move on to other more advanced possibilities our species is capable of achieving.