End of Year

“When I stand before thee at the day’s end, thou shalt see my scars and know that I had my wounds and also my healing.” Rabindranath Tagore

“Now national boundaries are not so important. The whole world is one entity, one body. That is the new reality.” Dalai Lama

Anther year is coming to a close. I will spend New Year’s Eve at home where it is warm and I don’t have to deal with drunks on the road. A couple of people from the office are going out. One of the ladies is throwing a party but didn’t invite me, which is fine with me. I don’t care to socialize with her. She is too nasty to too many people. Life is too short to have to put up with nasty people when you don’t have too.

Even though I have been swamped at work it ended on a positive note. I got a nice compliment from a lady, who in the past, has always been really rude and tried to get me in trouble more then once. My boss has always stood by me and now this lady finally understands why. I am really good at my job and the only way she could have possibly fixed a major accounting problem was with my help.

I also made a decision today to give a little help to a woman who was disabled and was only a couple of days shy of getting a payment in time for a prompt pay discount. She had also accidentally made her check out for a dollar short. The lady who was giving the party had gotten rude and refused to give her the discount so she made the trek into to office again today. I decided to honor the discount and the extra dollar. She had asked for me personally and her record of paying has always been excellent. There was no reason to treat her badly. My boss backed me up on that decision. She is a good woman and deserves to be treated with kindness.

That is one of the things I tried to do this year, spread kindness around whenever I could. I have been a shoulder to cry on many times at work. I have tried to give help to people who needed help. I handed out a lot of my Kleenex to people who had been in tears trying to figure out how to pay for hospital bills with no jobs and no insurance. I have been a shoulder for my Mom and have helped her with numerous problems this year. I have been a shoulder for my niece.

Happiness is a Warm Kitty

“The ability to see things normally is no small thing; to be really normal is the unusual. In that normality begins to bubble up inspiration.” Sessan

“Happiness is a state of mind. With physical comforts, if your mind is still in a state of confusion and agitation, it is not happiness. Happiness means calmness of mind.” Dalai Lama

In our neighborhood there are a lot of cats wandering around. A couple of years ago my Mom had been feeding a particularly skinny black cat that she had felt sorry for. Having owned cats all my life I could have predicted what was going to happen next. One day this little skinny black cat gave birth to four little kittens in our storage shed, three black ones and one gray one. Mom was surprised but bought some kitten food when they were old enough to eat it.

One morning when I went down to get the elixir of life other wise known as my morning coffee I was surprised to see this little black cat walk out of my Mom’s bedroom. I looked at her and asked if Mom knew she was in the house. It turned out that Mom had been letting the brave one of the quartette into the house. After shooing her out five times Mom decided to let her stay the night. The rest as any cat owner knows is history.

Since her own mother died several years ago, my Mom inherited the mantle of the most stubborn person on the planet. She finally retired a couple of months ago at the age of 82. She has an extremely bad heart. In 1999 she lost her husband of 55 years, my Dad, the only man she has ever loved. She has been emotionally battered since then. I moved in four years ago at her request to help take care of her.

Back to this little black cat that Mom had nicknamed Snickerdoodle. My brother and I renamed her Pixie since it was obvious that she was going to be a part of the household much to my cat Merlin’s distress. Merlin is a ten-year-old, highly skittish, Momma’s boy who was relishing being an only cat. If they gave out report cards to cats his would have an A+ in napping. Doing the proper cat owner thing we had Pixie spayed and got her all her shots.

Pixie has transformed my Mom’s life. If Mom raised us the way she raised that cat we would all be in Sing-Sing. Pixie is allowed up on cabinets. She sleeps with Mom. She gets feed meat from the deli section whenever she demands it. I even have to get extra meat so that Pixie has her treats. She is into everything. Mom will pull blinds up so that she can go from window to window and watch the squirrels. Pixie is sweet natured when she isn’t being a brat. She torments my poor Merlin who wouldn’t get any exercise at all if Pixie didn’t chase him.

The most important thing Pixie has done however is to give an elderly woman a new lease on life. My Mom has been happier these last two years since she has been in since the death of her husband. Pixie, more then anyone else, was responsible for my Mom finally retiring. I managed to slip into conversations enough that “Pixie really needs you to stay home with her” that it entered into my Mom’s subconscious and she actually retired. Pixie has been showing her gratitude by climbing up on Mom’s lap when she is resting in “Dad’s chair” a comfortable recliner. Pixie likes her naps on Mom’s lap so Mom will stay in the chair longer as she doesn’t want to disturb the cat.

Pixie has an arsenal of cute things to keep my Mom entertained. She talks to her squirrels. She plays with ribbons and things. She uses the rungs of the dining room chairs as her own little jungle gym. She rolls on her back and wiggles around making sure Mom is watching her. She bonks noses.

Charles Shultz titled one of his books Happiness is a Warm Puppy. Actually happiness is a conniving little black cat with a couple of white spots, which waltzed into our house two years ago and won an elderly woman’s heart.

Play

“The biggest room in the world is the room for improvement.” Japanese Proverb

”Compassion and peace are the basic elements for the survival of humanity.” Dalai Lama

One of these days I’m going to have to take the day after Christmas off from work. To say I wish we had been closed was an understatement. Half of the office was out and I ended up having to do triple duty because I was literally the only person in the office who knew how to post or even knew that everything had to be posted. Sigh.

Christmas was nice. My two favorite gifts are the DVD for The Forbidden Kingdom with Jackie Chan and Jet Li and the Stargate Atlantis action figure doll of Joe Flanagan’s Colonel John Sheppard, which is now sitting next to the monitor in front of me. Grin! My favorite gift last year was the Cabbage Patch doll that stuck her tongue out to “lick” the ice cream cone. Come on the clothes are nice but be real we still love to play with toys no matter how old we are.

I think one of the problems we have in life is that we take it too seriously sometimes and we need to relearn the joy of just playing like we knew when we were children. Children, whether they are human or animals, love to play. We really need to be able to have a sense of fun in our lives. Sure life can be very serious but you have to make time for just being silly. Remember the old adage “all work and no play?” Well a person who has forgotten how to play becomes very boring. Life is too short to be bored.

The picture is called Safe Inside.

Merry Christmas

“O God of light, let Thy figure of illumination play over every key of my life, that all the notes may unite in one song of harmony and love.” Paramahansa Yogananda

“Faith dispels doubt and hesitation, it liberates you from suffering, and delivers you to the city of peace and happiness. It is faith that removes the mental turbidity and makes your mind clear. Faith reduces your pride and is the root of veneration. It is the supreme lake because you can easily traverse from one stage of the spiritual path to another. It is like your hand, which can gather all the virtuous qualities.” Dalai Lama

The ice is sparkling like diamonds outside but at least there is a little sun.

I want to wish everyone a blessed and wonderful Christmas.

This is my Christmas picture for the year and is called Magic Night.

Thoughts On A Freezing Day

"I vow to offer joy to one person in the morning and to help relieve the grief of one person in the afternoon." Thich Nhat Hanh

"If you do not have the capacity to love yourself, then there is simply no basis on which to build a sense of caring toward others." Dalai Lama

Two of the hottest topics lately have been Obama’s picks for science positions in his cabinet and having Rick Warren give the invocation at his inauguration. And while it may be stretching things to tie the two together there is actually a connection at least in my mind. But lets start with a little background into my thought processes first.

To start with I have almost as many gay and lesbian friends as I do straight friends. I have no problems with either life style. What I do have a problem with is people demanding that people live only according to their narrow beliefs that are usually tied to their religion. When I was living in California several years ago there were a group of religious rights trying to get a resolution passed that would prevent gays from teaching in the district. I was accosted by one of these people, who was covered in religious pins and dragging along a child who appeared to be about seven. I was in no mood to be charitable to this woman. I told her that she was a hypocrite and that Jesus taught “Though shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” and that he put no qualifiers on that statement. He did not say “thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself providing he is white Anglo-Saxon, upper middle class, Republican, heterosexual with 2.5 children.” I told he she was not living Christ’s word and had no right to call herself a Christian. I also told her as far as I was concerned dragging a child around while engaging in hate mongering was child abuse and that she was a lousy mother. Like I said I was really pissed off. She never tried to get signatures at that grocery store parking lot again.

When I was running my science fiction/mystery convention one of my guests was the late Ray Sharkey. He died a few months later of AIDS. My staff and I all had pins that we wore that said “You can’t get AIDS from a hug” and I will always treasure the hug I got from Ray when he was leaving. We did a square for the AIDS quilt in his name. If you ever see it my section is the embroidered rosary. Mr. Sharkey shared my Catholic religion and he was buried with the rosary that we gave him.

This brings me to Rick Warren. Two years ago he was attacked by the religious right for inviting Barak Obama to speak at his AIDS conference. While I disagree with Mr. Warren and his views on gays I would like to suggest that maybe what Obama is trying to tell the world by inviting Mr. Warren is that he will be a President who will actually try to lead in the fight to find a cure for AIDS. Obama has already made clear that he supports Gay Rights. Maybe what he is trying to say to us now is that he will team up with whomever he has to stamp out AIDS. I have lost too many friends to AIDS. If Rick Warren is going to fight for a cure then he will have my support in that. As far as his views on homosexuals is concerned I would suggest that if he is going to call himself a Christian then maybe he better start living Christ’s words of loving thy neighbor with no qualifiers on it. Also keep in mind where Mr. Warren is speaking, first. What are people going to remember? They will remember Obama’s speech and maybe the prayer at the end.

It will take the dedicated work and funding of scientists to discover a cure for AIDS. Science is one of my loves and I find no reason why it can’t exist with my belief in God and my desire to follow Christ’s teachings. What I believe in though is an intelligent God. I have put forth the idea before that even if we take the science of physics all the way back to a primordial atom then where did that atom come from? I believe that is where God’s hands is. It is a personal belief. What I cannot believe in is a God that is stupid. Creationism is not science. Why should I believe in a God that cannot work according to scientific principals? I believe that the greatest thing we can do if we believe in God is to use the minds that S/He gave us.

I am really jazzed about the fact that Obama is naming real honest to goodness scientists to science positions. What a concept! I am hoping that these men and women will use their brains to come up with solutions that will solve the problems facing us with the climate and pollution and feeding an ever-expanding world. As a space geek I hope to see us reaching for the stars. And while I am a real Doctor Who fan I do know enough about science to realize that you can’t “reverse the polarity of the neutron flow.” It sounds impressive but I would be more impressed to see a man on Mars.

The picture is called Medieval Christmas.

Short Days and Long Naps

“Real happiness abides in self-knowledge alone. All else is fleeting. To know one’s Self is to be blissful always.” Ramana Maharishi

“If we have a sincere and open heart, we naturally feel self-worth and confidence, and there is no need to be fearful of others.” Dalai Lama

Today is the Winter Solstice or the shortest day of the year. It is also below freezing here in the Midwest. So far it doesn’t look like we will have a white Christmas just a cold and freezing rainy one.

I am actually ready for Christmas now. I am finishing up printing the last calendar now and I have a booklet that needs to go with it on my Chinese Horoscope artwork. This is going to a long time friend who is Chinese. I may go ahead and run off some Christmas cards for people at work. Several people have given me cards so I probably should give some back.

Everyone is down with a retched cold. Mom is coughing her head off. I’ve been feeling miserable for several days. It is probably what is contributing to my feeling emotionally drained. I am worried about my niece and her family. They are going through a rough time at the moment. I am worried about Mom’s health. She is forgetting so much lately. A couple weeks ago she was desperately looking for her car keys. I was helping to look for them as she thought she had dropped them in the car. Instead she had laid them down on the brick wall. Anyone could have taken them and taken her car.

I finished watching the last show of the Heroes arc called “Villains.” With a little luck they will get back to a less crazy story telling in the next arc starting in February. Even though this arc was disappointing I will stick with the show. I do wonder though of all the abilities on the show which one would I like? I am leaning towards Hiro’s time travel ability at the moment. I would like to go back in my life and talk to myself and make some different choices. I imagine all of us have things in our past that if we only knew what the consequences would be then we would change our actions.

The picture is from my November calendar and is called Let Sleeping Dragons Lie. A nap sounds real good at this point in time.

Cold Rush

“To Zen, time and eternity are one.” D.T. Suzuki

“Close contact creates clear understanding. Then suspicion and fear may not find much room.” Dalai Lama

It is ice cold and bitter here in the Midwest. The deicer freezes as it hits the window. The weather doesn’t look like it is going to improve any time soon.

The last couple of days have been emotionally draining with a serious family crisis. It isn’t over yet by a long shpt although hopefully we can get at least something done today via the lawyer. I can’t really talk about it now but my family member has my full support and love and I know I’ll hear from her frequently until we get a real resolution to the problem. The hardest part will be getting her over the pain of the past that is being dredged up again.

I’ve got Christmas shopping done and will finish my wrapping tonight. I need to do my brothers if he ever gets his rear in gear. He needs to mail the packages and it looks like Monday at the moment. Nothing like waiting to the last minute. I have a lousy cold thanks to coworkers coming in sick and coughing all over me so I wish he would hurry up so I can get my part done.

In the meantime I needed to do something pretty for my Mom to cheer her up. The picture is called Sitting Pretty.

Snow and Christmas Wish Lists

“You should be attentive today, for waiting until tomorrow is too late.” Bhaddekaratta Sutra

“We have to adopt a wider perspective, and always find common things between the people of north, east, south, and west. Conflict comes from the basis of differences.” Dalai Lama

I really think whoever wrote “Let it snow” did not live where it actually snowed. We have high winds and snow flurries coming in all week long. It is not delightful! And I wish the person who wrote the song all the ice and snow that is freezing those of us who deal with it on a regular basis. Maybe if he had to shovel the stuff he would have written a different set of lyrics.

The Christmas shopping is done and now I have to wrap it all. Sigh. I also have to wrap my brother’s gifts. Considering that he pays to mail them I can deal with that. I already wrapped my Mom’s gifts for my brother. She will wrap mine and blame it on Pixie. ;-) Speaking of the Pixster I found a buckle on collar so let’s see if she can manage to get it off. She has been playing a new game of undoing her collar and leaving it for Mom and I to find.

With Christmas songs in the background everywhere one of the most irritating has to be “All I Want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth.” It does make you stop and think however what are the intangibles that you would like to see for Christmas. The things you can’t buy in a store.

I would like to see the Illinois Governor do the right thing and resign. I’m sure a lot of other people would like that also. I would like to see the mainstream press get a clue and stop trying to insist that Obama is involved when it has been clearly stated by the people bringing charges that he had nothing to do with it. I think the man had been a little busy trying to put together his Cabinet and getting ready to be President to pay attention to a low-life like Blagojevich. I think some people need to realize they are not Bernstein or Woodward and Robert Redford is not going to play them on the big screen.

I would like to see some decent health care for everybody. I work in a small town hospital and you can’t believe some of the things that the insurance companies are pulling. Here are just a few examples. We have one insurance policy now from a major player in the field that is not covering Emergency Room visits. We have one that will pay for an operation but not for the anesthesiologist. We have one that if a woman comes into the hospital in labor they won’t pay because it wasn’t “authorized.” The women have pregnancy coverage but you have to preauthorize them going into labor? Doesn’t make sense to me either. We have one insurance company denying “medical emergency” for people who have fallen in the ice and snow and injured themselves badly. We have had people come in with high fevers, vomiting, and dehydrated, etc. denied as “not an emergency.” We have cancer patients in chemo being denied payment for their drugs because they are “experimental.”

I would like to see politicians put partisanship aside and work towards getting this country back on the road to recovery. It is going to take everyone working together to solve the problems. It would help if we stopped playing the blame game and just work together.

I would also like to see one of my favorite actors, David Tennant, make a complete and speedy recovery from his back surgery on a prolapsed disk. He is a great actor, my favorite actor to play the lead in Doctor Who, and from everything I have read a really nice down to earth person who quietly does a lot to help others. Having battled back problems all my life I can really sympathize with the man. In fact I am doing Christmas cards tonight rather then wrapping gifts because my back and neck are out and I can’t really sit on the floor and try to wrap until they settle down.

The picture is called A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes.”

Friday Potpourri

“The self cannot be realized by scriptures nor by intellectual probity, nor by the astuteness of the intellect. It can only be realized by him who chooses it.” The Upanishads

“Human rights are of universal interest because it is the inherent nature of all human beings to yearn for freedom, equality, and dignity, and they have a right to achieve them.” Dalai Lama

This blog will be a potpourri of things for this Friday. I had most of it written before Microsoft decided to crash Word and lose it all. Sigh.

We got our Christmas bonus checks today and it will get me through Christmas shopping which I need to do the majority of tomorrow if the gifts are going to get to people on time. I’ll have to wrap and print calendars like mad tomorrow if I am going to get stuff out in time. The cards will be done next as I can fudge on them a bit. If they get there late it won’t be as bad as missing the deadline for Christmas gifts.

Today turned very emotional at work with tears and in the end something positive coming out of it. I have mentioned before the one lady that others like to pick on. I was washing my hands in the bathroom when she rushed into the room in tears. I didn’t know what had happened but I knew I couldn’t leave her there alone and crying so I went up to her and hugged her and tried to comfort her. She didn’t really want to talk about what happened. The other lady who turned out to be involved came in and I finally left the two of them to talk. The other lady did talk to me later and told me what happened. She had learned a valuable and painful lesson. Some of the other ladies in the office had convinced her to do something that went against what she really believed in and as a result someone was badly hurt. She has resolved to be true to herself from now on and be the nice person she really is rather then trying to fit in with people who are not nice people.

Sometimes we are so desperate to fit in that we turn from our own true natures and try and be what we are not. In the end we only hurt and disappoint ourselves. When you try and live a lie you damage the essential part of yourself that is you. I had shied away from this person because I saw how others were turning her from the good person she was into something I didn’t want to associate with. I had felt her behavior myself and snapped at her a couple of weeks ago. I am fed up with the cruelty around me. I just try and do my job the best I can and keep to myself as much as possible being professional but drawing the line at being personal with these people. I have had to comfort three people in two days who had been hurt by others in the office. I have found myself in tears over the years by hurtful people and I try and comfort others now when I see them in tears. I refuse to relinquish my essential self to try and fit in. I will maintain my own standards of morality because in the end I have to live with myself. I am glad my coworker finally discovered that essential truth. To thy own self be true.

I have been following the story of Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich and the attempts of the right wing to try and link him to President Elect Obama. They keep wondering how could Obama not know? Obviously these people are not familiar with Illinois politics. ;-) As a resident of the state for 6 years I know very well how Obama couldn’t know. Like many Democrats he had as little to do with the Governor as possible. Obama concentrated on the Federal Government and the Senate. Believe me the Governor has not been popular with a vast majority of his Party members in Illinois for a long time. People like State Attorney General Lisa Madigan managed to avoid him as much as possible. Think how much easier it was for Obama to be in Washington. When he came to the State he spent his time touring the entire State in Town meetings. He didn’t spend any time with the Governor. If you managed to stomach listening to the taped conversations then you know that the Governor can’t stand Obama. The only time Obama ever injected himself into Illinois State politics was to urge campaign contribution reforms something that Blagojevich was very opposed to. My brother amused me the other night when he asked what was up with the Illinois’ Governors? It didn’t matter whether they were Democrats or Republicans they were corrupt. He couldn’t figure out how the State elected such great Senators but crooks for Governors. I really didn’t have an answer. I would imagine it has something to do with the history of Chicago and corruption from the Mafia. I just know that it is an interesting place to live. I wouldn’t want to run for office from there however. ;-)

The weather has been lousy here all month. We have had freezing temperatures and snow off and on all month. It did inspire me to come up with the above picture that everyone so far has just loved. It is called Fun in the Snow. Of course my Merlin wouldn’t be caught dead out in the snow let alone on a sled with a dog. He has been making a nest of the green blanket on my bed. We call it his security blanket. As much as Pixie torments him I guess he is entitled to a security blanket.

A Mind is a Terribe Thing to Waste

“He who exercises government by means of his virtue may be compared to the north polar star, which keeps its place and all the stars turn towards it.” Confucius

“When we lose control over our minds through hatred, selfishness, jealousy, and anger, we lose our sense of judgment. Our minds are blinded and at those wild moments anything can happen, including war. Thus, the practice of compassion and wisdom is useful to all, especially to those responsible for running national affairs, in whose hands lie the power and opportunity to create the structure of world peace.” Dalai Lama

I rarely turn to the mainstream press for my news any more. I am more likely to watch The Daily Show then the Sunday morning interviews. An article at MSNBC whining about how Obama’s picks for his administration are too heavily stacked with intellectuals who attended top name universities is a prime example of why I consider the mainstream press as nothing more then hot air idiots.

As I write this I am sitting in front of my Dad’s wall of degrees and certificates. There are 10 of them including his Phi Betta Kapa. My Dad was a man who never stopped learning. I have tried to live my life the same way. For me there is always something that I want to learn more about whether it is the mysteries of space or the very real concerns about the climate or the effects of pollution on human health.

I have always felt that faith and the belief in God doesn’t negate the importance and belief in science. You can take science all the way back to the first primordial atom and the question still remains of how did it get there. My answer is God. I would rather have a science based God then one based on ancient beliefs. The Bible was written for the people of that time. To try and warp science into supporting a book that was meant to try and show its followers that a belief in a monotheistic God was valid at the time the book was written shows a disdain for the minds that God has given us. To totally ignore the research into science that has advanced this planet is stupid as far as I am concerned.

One of the most frustrating things for someone who loves science as much as I do is to watch as the last eight years has been a repudiation of scientific thought wrapped up in a pseudo-science in an effort to push one religious view down people’s throats. It is the same mind set that tries to convince people that Obama is a Muslin when he is a devote Christian but fails to realize that being a Muslin is not a bad thing. Every man has a right to worship or not worship God as they see fit. They have the right not to believe in God if they so wish. Personal religious beliefs are just that, personal.

To ignore the advances in science and to try and warp science into supporting a creation myth is a slap in the face to God. He gave us minds to use not abuse. God is big enough to support anything science can discover. God doesn’t need to be restricted in our ability to go out and discover how things work. S/He doesn’t want us to let our minds stagnate. A mind is a terrible thing to waste.

The picture is called In the Beginning. It was inspired by an episode of Doctor Who where the Doctor took Donna back to the beginning on the formation of Earth and the Solar System.

Winter Storm

“Only a vessel that is half-full can be shaken.” Chinese Proverb

“Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.” Dalai Lama

It has been snowing all day. I went out earlier to get my hair cut and then to the store for my Mom and myself. I hate driving in snow especially since this small town only plows a couple of roads and no matter where I am going at least half of the roads are unplowed.

My Mom’s heart is acting up again. I made sure the house was quiet so she could sleep. She had talked about getting up and going to church this evening in the snow but I talked her out of it, either that or she still feels horrible and decided not to go. That woman can be so stubborn.

A word of warning of anyone looking for a new cellular phone company, avoid Sprint like the plague. I spent two hours Thursday night trying to deal with out sourced idiots because they screwed up Mom’s phone bill again! They are the most incompetent phone service in the world. They have a message on their site that they are closing down Customer Service e-mail. That should tell you something about how they view their customers. I have had fantastic service with T-Mobile.

The picture is called Winter Storm.

Gratitude?

“All humanity shares the sunlight: that sunlight is neither yours nor mine. It is life-giving energy, which we all share. The beauty of a sunset, if you are watching it sensitively, is shared by all human beings.” Krishnamurti

“Harmony on the basis of mutual respect is the key thing.” Dalai Lama

I woke up to snow this morning. Good grief it isn’t even December yet. It is the first day of Advent but still not December. I think I agree with my coworker who said we should have snow on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and then it needs to go away and leave us alone. Not going to happen. ;-)

I am printing out the first of my calendars right now. I finalized the design last night. Once I print my first one out I do not go back and change it. It is the only way I can stop myself from fiddling around with it and making constant changes. Sometimes I can be too much of a perfectionist and sometimes I need to get firm with myself and finish a project.

I am spending time this afternoon writing letters on behalf of my brother. He was put in a position of where he had to retire from the Army as his job was going away. They gave an incentive program to many servicemen like my brother to entice them to retire. What they failed to make clear was that they were going to take that money back if they actually started to receive their retirement benefits down the road. A good portion of the people they are pulling this on are servicemen whose lives are haunted by Vietnam.

I am keeping up on the political news these days and as I read about politicians like Ted Stevens in Alaska enriching themselves with ill gotten gain I wonder how they can live with themselves knowing that they put into effect the laws that are taking money away from our Veterans. They take pork in projects like “the Bridge to Nowhere” and leave the people who served their country high and dry.

Representative Ron Paul has this to say about the treatment of our veterans:

Congress recently voted to send $87 billion to Iraq, money that will be used to build everything from roads to power plants to hospitals. Yet while Congress appears ready to rubber-stamp unlimited monies for nation building in Iraq, thousands of our own soldiers at home are languishing with substandard medical care.

You may have read about conditions at Fort Stewart, Georgia, where hundreds of injured reserve and National Guard soldiers are housed in deplorable conditions and forced to wait months just to see a doctor. These soldiers made huge sacrifices, leaving their families and jobs to fight in Iraq. Now they find themselves living in hot, crowded, unsanitary barracks and waiting far too long to see overworked doctors. This is hardly the heroes' welcome they might have expected. Only an exposé in a major newspaper brought attention to their plight, prompting an embarrassed Defense department to rush additional doctors to the base.

Many of these men and women expressed shock at their treatment. They assumed wounded soldiers returning from Iraq would receive priority treatment, given the "support the troops" rhetoric coming from Washington. Their complaints went ignored, however, until the media became involved.

Similar mistreatment of soldiers has been evident throughout our occupation of Iraq. Some wounded soldiers convalescing at Walter Reed hospital in Washington were forced to pay for hospital meals from their own pockets! Other soldiers returning stateside for a two-week liberty had to buy their own airfare home from the east coast. Still others have paid for desert boots, night vision goggles, and other military necessities with personal funds. It's shocking that our troops are forced to pay for basic items that should be supplied to them or paid from the defense budget.

Perhaps the most shameful mistreatment of our veterans is in the area of concurrent receipt benefits. Existing federal rules force disabled veterans to give up their military retirement pay in order to receive VA disability benefits. This means every VA disability dollar paid to a veteran is deducted from his retirement pay, effectively creating a "disabled veterans tax." No other group of federal employees is subject to this unfair standard; in every other case disability pay is viewed as distinct from standard retirement pay.

For years veterans have fought for concurrent receipt benefits to no avail. Last week Congress finally passed a very limited concurrent receipt law, but the change is unlikely to satisfy those disabled veterans who need benefits the most. Under the new partial concurrent receipt bill, only those veterans in essence deemed "disabled enough" will qualify; this means roughly two-thirds of disabled veterans will not receive concurrent receipt benefits at all. Even severely disabled veterans who do qualify may never enjoy their long-sought relief, because the bill passed by Congress takes ten years to phase in. How sad that some disabled soldiers will die in the next decade without seeing a penny of their concurrent receipt benefits.

Members of our armed forces deserve more than platitudes when they return from foreign wars with illnesses or disabilities. Unfortunately, the trust our soldiers place in the federal government to provide for their health care has been breached time and time again. Last week's partial grant of concurrent receipt benefits will prove woefully inadequate for most of our disabled veterans, veterans who could be well-served with just a fraction of the billions Congress gave away in Iraq.

Happy Thanksgiving

“He is the happiest who has the happiness of God within his soul.” Paramahansa Yogananda

“I truly believe that compassion provides the basis of human survival, the real value of life, and without that there is a basic piece missing.” Dalai Lama

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving.

It is a good day to remember that if the Native Americans has not helped and welcomed our immigrant forefathers we would not have a United States today. Maybe we should rethink our own anger and hatred towards the immigrants who want to be a part of our country today.

So-So Saturday

“I have found that life persists in the midst of destruction and therefore there must be a higher law than that of destruction.” Mahatma Gandhi

“Another result of spiritual development, most useful in day-to-day life, is that it gives calmness and presence of mind. Our lives are in constant flux, bringing many difficulties. When faced with a calm and clear mind, problems can be successfully resolved.” Dalai Lama

My brother has finally gotten connected to the high-speed cable that I have enjoyed for a week. Of course he had to spend and extra $100.00 dollars while working with a tech in the Philippines and running back and forth between my computer and his to get it up and running. You would think with the kind of money they make on the routers that it would be free tech support wouldn’t you from here in the United States? And they wonder why our economy suffers. Too many companies out source to other countries rather then supporting our own people

Now of course I am stuck with trying to restore the settings on my computer to what I want. The idea that I may have preferences of my own were completely ignored in last night’s marathon to get his computer up and running so he has fast access to his Rush Limbaugh site. And yes I am not happy! I am getting real tired of his selfishness. Mom spent many hours cleaning his filthy room while he was down visiting his daughter and grandchildren. Her reward was he has the room all messed up again. He has hair dye all over everything in the bathroom. His mess is making its way out into the rest of the house.

I really dislike having to deal with selfish people. Their are too many people from the government on down who want their own way and the wants and needs of others don’t matter. No one cares about anyone else. It is all me, me, me!

I feel sorry for Obama. He has a giant mess to clean up and everyone expects him to be able to walk right in and fix everything up. I read an article the other day on how other countries expect Obama to be able to fix the American image abroad. He is one man but the expectations for him are staggering. So far he has been able to retain his calm and cool in the spotlight. I have been rereading his book The Audacity of Hope and I think that the essential goodness of this man will continue to shine through in his terms as President.

Now if someone could just figure out how to fix my brother I’d be really happy. In the meantime I will continue to be the main support for my Mother. I am the one she counts on for support in everything. I'll be going out into the cold shortly to get her shopping done for the week. She is my number one concern.

Some Thoughts on Art

“Great is the man who has not lost his childlike heart.” Mencius

“If a problem is fixable, if a situation is such that you can do something about it, then there is no need to worry. If it’s not fixable, then there is no help in worrying. There is no benefit in worrying whatsoever.” Dalai Lama

I’ve got my calendars for next year. If you are wondering where I get my quotes from I get two daily calendars for the year. One is Wisdom from the East and the other is Insights from the Dalai Lama. Both are published by the Andrew McMeel Company and are well worth getting. I also have the calendar kits for my art calendar that I create each year. The hardest part for me is trying to decide which of the 12 pictures that I want on the calendar. The only constant is the December picture which is always the Christmas card picture for the proceeding year. I have my Christmas picture designed for this year. I am almost done with the calendar and can start printing them soon.

Other then that I am spending most of my time trying to help mother out on various things. I am very much hoping that she is finally finished with working at the hospital and come January she will start getting money in from her investments and retirement so she will have no excuse at all to work. Woo-Hoo!

We are starting to get winter weather here including a few snow flurries. Nothing substantial yet which is fine with me because I hate driving in the stuff. Snow may be beautiful to look at but I hate driving in it especially here because the normal idiots on the road are even more idiotic in the snow.

With the cold weather coming in I’ll be spending more time inside. I probably will spend the time once I’m done with Christmas in exploring how to turn the website into a business and start selling the art work like I have been promising myself that I would do for years now. It would be nice to get a little more money coming in. The more important thing for me though is getting the art out to the public. I really like sharing my art with others. I bring my new pictures into work with me and put them on my computer as screen savers. My office mates look forward to seeing what I am doing.

One thing about art is that it needs to be seen by others. Art should never be locked away and viewed only by a few people. I always feel a bit sad when I read about a private collector buying artwork for their own purpose because that is that much fewer works available for the public to see. Art for its own sake just doesn’t make sense to me. Why should a person create art that they don’t want anyone to see? Art should have the widest possible audience so that it may bring pleasure to as many people as possible.

The picture is called High Flight and several people have told me that they would love to be on that balloon.

The Blanket

“Creeds and doctrines are like a raft to carry one to the other shore, and then to relinquish. Either cling to the raft forever, or reject it when drowning. Even better, become a strong swimmer.” Diamond Sutra

“Even today’s sophisticated computers cannot provide you with mental peace. Mental peace must come from the mind. Everyone wants happiness and pleasure, but if we compare physical pleasure and physical pain with mental pleasure and mental pain, we find that the mind is more effective, predominant, and superior. Thus it is worthwhile adopting certain methods to increase mental peace.” Dalai Lama

We are expecting our first snow this afternoon. In the meantime it has been drizzling steadily since last night. I decided to go ahead and do the shopping after work last night so that I didn’t have to go out into the lousy weather this afternoon. The weather change has brought my arthritis into overdrive and I’m going to just take it easy this weekend.

I brought out a forest green blanket that I got from the National Wildlife Federation one of the groups I belong to that tries to protect our environment. I don’t have a lot of money but I do try and join some of the people who care for this planet of ours and try to protect it. I believe you have to try and do your part to protect his fragile home of ours.

Back to the blanket, it is one of Merlin’s favorite things. He loves lying on the blanket, in part because it makes him rather invisible to his pesky little sister, Pixie. It is also an extra source of warmth and comfort to him. As he gets older he is also starting to show signs of arthritis. The blanket also brings out in him wanting more affection from me. He has always been a momma’s boy and as he gets older he seems to want more and more affection. He sees how everyone makes over Pixie and he wants his share of affection too.

People need that affection also. We have a lady in our office who has been the brunt of nasty comments and the cold shoulder from some of her coworkers. It isn’t that she is a bad person but she is overwhelmed by her job and others who are also overwhelmed have decided that she gets to be the target. I make sure to share my lunchtime with her. She is a sweet person and doesn’t deserve the way she has been treated.

Affection is something that everyone needs. I think if we all make it our job to reach out to someone who needs affection that this world would be a better place. It doesn’t take a big gesture to make someone’s day. It can be as small of a gesture as a smile to someone whom you see while shopping or a compliment to someone you encounter. You can hold the door open for someone and that would be a gesture that brightens their day. Something that is small and costs you nothing could mean something big to someone else.

The picture is called Best Friends.

Becoming

“Does a flower, full of beauty, light and loveliness say, ‘I am giving, helping, serving?’ It is! And because it is not trying to do anything it covers the earth.” Krishnamurti

“The antidote to hatred in the heart, the source of violence, is tolerance.” Dalai Lama

Yesterday was Veteran’s Day. My Dad was a World War 2 veteran. He would sometimes talk to me about his experiences in the war. I always was fascinated by his remembrances of that time and era. I have his scrapbook with old black and white photos from that time.

He would sometimes talk about other things connected with the war. I was fascinated by his description of the Navaho Code Talkers. I think it was his knowledge about these heroes of the war that got Dad interested in the books of the late Tony Hillerman. The Navahos, in spite of the fact that their lands had been taken away from them and they were stuck on reservations, were patriotic enough to do their part in helping the United States win the war. It was believed that less then 30 people in the world who were not part of the Navaho Nation would be able to decipher the code, which was their native language. Countless lives were saved because this code could not be broken. It is a story of true heroes and I would urge anyone who wants to experience a fascinating part of our history to read up on these exceptional people.

Dad and I both loved the books of Tony Hillerman and we would often try to be the first to get his new books and pass them on to the other one. I was saddened by Mr. Hillerman’s death and the world lost not only a great writer but also a true gentleman. He did so much in educating the world about the Navaho people. We can learn a lot by studying how the Navaho people live with nature and not fight against it.

I’ve been thinking a lot about my Dad lately. Today I went with my mother to pick out wallpaper for the hallway. I am realizing that in many ways that since his death I have had to pick up the pieces and do the things that he use to do for Mother. She just doesn’t seem to want to make decisions on her own. She also seems lost when there are problems and I have stepped in and helped find the answers for her and in many cases fought against companies that have tried to take advantage of her.

We have all heard the jokes about women complaining about turning into their mothers. As I sit in this room with Dad’s books and diplomas on the wall I have realized that in many ways I have turned into my Dad. That is a good thing.

To Help Take Away the Chill

“We all want to be famous people, and the moment we want to be something we are no longer free.” J. Krishnamurti

“When fear, hatred, jealousy dominate our mind, then the best part of our brain which can judge cannot function properly.” Dalai Lama

Although it may be tempting to do another political post I think I am going to pass this time around. Granted I do read The Daily Kos every day and while I agree with them more then I disagree with them I still have my own opinions about things and tend to vote and think how I want rather then how someone else thinks I should. I have my opinions and you have yours and if we agree fine and if we disagree fine. That is my view of what a democracy is all about.

Instead I am going to offer up help for the frigid weather we are now experiencing and those of you in California I really don’t need to hear how warm it is okay? I had to turn the defrosters on this morning to get the ice off my windshield and the temperature is dropping rapidly. Already parts of the United States are dealing with snow and no doubt we here in Indiana will be a real “blue” state soon with snow of our own. So to keep you warm here is my recipe for Out of This World Chili. If you like to cook take a look at the recipes section of my website. I think you will find some recipes there that you will like.

PS: To any Texans just leave the beans out already. As I told the last Texan who whined at me that they don't put beans in their chili, we won the war and we do. ;-)

Out of This World Chili
Serving Size: 8
Preparation Time:0:15 - Start to Finish Time: 2:30
"Slow cooking for a long time makes this one of the best chilies you will ever taste!"

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 pounds beef stew meat, R-T-C -- cubed
29 ounces low sodium tomato, canned -- diced, drained
31 ounces low sodium kidney beans, canned
4 ounces green chilies -- diced
8 ounces no salt added tomato sauce
1 cup red wine
1 large onion -- finely chopped
6 large garlic cloves -- minced
1 large green bell pepper -- seeded and diced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoons ground cumin
4 tablespoons chili powder
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
½ teaspoon Tabasco sauce
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons low sodium Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 ounces four-cheese Mexican-style shredded cheese

Heat olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven on medium-high heat. Add meat, onion, garlic and green pepper. Cook until meat is browned on all sides and vegetables are softened. Drain.

Add rest of ingredients except kidney beans and cheese. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Cover and simmer for two hours stirring every fifteen minutes.

Add kidney beans. Uncover and simmer for two more hours, again stirring every 15 minutes.

Serve with cheese sprinkled over top.

Per Serving: 419 Calories; 13g Fat (29.8% calories from fat); 39g Protein; 32g Carbohydrate; 11g Dietary Fiber; 78mg Cholesterol; 464mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1½ Grain(Starch); 4 Lean Meat; 2 Vegetable; ½ Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.

Going Forward

“Before you speak, ask yourself, is it kind, is it necessary, is it true, does it improve on the silence?” Shirdi Sai Baba

“When fear, hatred, jealousy dominate our mind, then the best part of our brain which can judge cannot function properly.” Dalai Lama

As an Obama supporter from the very start from when he first ran for Senator when I was living in Illinois I am of course ecstatic over his big win and the thought of him being our President. I think he will go down in history as one of the best President we have ever had.

As happy as I am about his election I must say that the reaction of some of the McCain/Palin supporters and the absolute vitriolic things they are saying about Obama now really disturb and sadden me. You would think that the viciousness of the Republican ads and the fact that the American people rejected those attempts at smearing Obama would wake them up to realize that something is fundamentally wrong with their view.

If this election has taught us anything it should have taught us that we as Americans are fundamentally decent people and we do not want the negativity and hatred that was shown by a few of the McCain/Palin supporters. That is what it was, a few people who allowed their prejudices to be exploited, and as a result the American people again have to face the scrutiny of the press from around the world and the entrenched view that much of the rest of the world has of us as “Ugly Americans.”

Some of the Obama critics might want to realize that the man doesn’t take office until January and he can’t make the decisions on what to do about the economy, Israel, Afghanistan, world trade or anything else until that time. The important thing is that he can’t make those decisions by himself; he needs the approval of Congress. He will be President but this is a democracy and we do have three entities that make up this thing we call democracy. Remember your civics lessons about the three branches of government. You know the legislature, the legal and the executive? It takes all three working together for things to work properly. Obama was just elected two days ago. He still needs to get a staff together. He is not in office. He can’t solve anything right now he doesn’t have the power. He hasn’t been sworn in. Back off!

One of the ladies at work who has been known to be a real prejudiced person and has made some nasty cracks about Obama in the last few days had a concept suggested to her today that really rocked her way of thinking. I made the comment that maybe it is time to stop thinking about separate races, and how people who are of mixed heritage like Obama should be categorized, and start thinking about how we are all one race. We are a part of the human race. It started her thinking. Hopefully more and more people will start thinking that we are one people.

In the meantime there has been enough hatred thrown around in this campaign and maybe the McCain/Palin supporters should emulate Senator McCain and start being a little more gracious towards President Elect Obama. The world has enough turmoil right now and we as Americans need to give our new President our support as we try and find a way to regain the respect this country once had and try and be there to help solve the problems that face us as a nation and as a planet. We have to stop thinking as Democrats or Republicans, black or white, rich or poor, American or foreigners. We need to start thinking of ourselves as what we really are. We are one people, one race, and members of one little fragile planet.

Vote, Vote, Vote

“The Universe is God’s own shadow.” Ibn al’Arabi

“Human life is more precious than man-made boundaries.” Dalai Lama

I will be following the election results avidly tonight. I would like to get that Apple computer they are offering over at the Daily Kos for the person who gets the closest in their predictions of how the various races are going to come out.

I waited in line for 1-½ hours on Saturday to vote. I had never thought I would see the day when Indiana might go Democrat but we may see that tonight. A majority of the people there Saturday were talking about voting for Obama. In our little town the candidate signs are running three to one in favor of Obama. I have talked to Clinton supporters while waiting for my Doctor and they are supporting Obama. I have heard core Republicans in my office planning on voting for Obama. In some cases it seems that there will be votes not so much for Obama as votes against McCain/Palin. I heard one lady in my office say she had always voted Republican but she can’t wait to vote against Palin.

One thing this election has seen is a powerful upswing in people actually caring about it. That is something that people have been apathetic about in recent years. People actually care. Get out and vote if you haven’t already. Remember you can only legitimately complain about your government if you actually participate by electing them.

Get Out and Vote

“We do not progress from error to truth, but from truth to truth.” Swami Vivekananda

“A truly compassionate attitude toward others does not change even if they behave negatively or hurt you.” Dalai Lama

Well by Tuesday night it will all over and we will see if History has been made and we have finally transcended race and elected Barak Obama President. I voted for him yesterday. I was downtown any way and decided I may as well try and early vote. It took close to and hour and a half but everyone was patient and no left before their name was called. This election has become important to many people who have been apathetic before. I was especially pleased to see so many young people there some voting for the very first time.

It doesn’t really matter at this point which candidate you prefer. It only counts if you get out and vote for your candidate. If you don’t bother to vote then you have no right to complain if things are done you don’t like. Your voice in government is the person you choose. If you can be bothered to choose a side and vote for it then why should any elected official pay attention to you?

Democracy and freedom are two-way streets. The elected officials have to be responsive to the public. The public needs to let our politicians know what we really want from them. The dialog goes both ways. I f government cannot be responsive to the people then we have a choice of electing someone who will be responsive.

The choice is yours, either you vote and make a choice or you shut up because those of us who did become involved don’t want to hear you whine. You had your chance to make your voice heard.

Space

“Light and darkness creates an opposition, yet depend on each other just as the step taken by the right leg depends on the step taken by the left.” Sekito

“One of the most powerful visions I have experienced was the first photograph of earth from outer space. The image of a blue planet floating in deep space, glowing like the full moon on a clear night, brought home powerfully to me the recognition that we are indeed all members of a single family sharing one little house.” Dalai Lama

The fuzziness of the last few weeks has finally lifted and I no longer feel like I am in a fog. I hope it means that this infection is finally on its way out.

I plan on trying to do an early vote today on my way to doing the shopping for Mom. Other then that I will be working on the calendar. First up though will be some new art as I have this image in my mind that I need to translate into a picture.

I love the Dalai Lama quote for today. This is the only planet that we have and we must take care of it. There is only one race when you come down to it, the human race. We can be proud of our individual heritage, as I am proud of being Irish, Scottish and Cherokee. We also need to know that we are part of the bigger picture and that all men are our brothers and sister.

The picture is called Earth Rise.

Serenity

“Do your work, then step back. The only path to serenity.” Lao Tzu

“Take your body and mind as the laboratory, engage in some thorough going research on your mental functioning, and examine the possibility of making some positive changes within yourself.” Dali Lama

While the new printer is handy being attached as it is to this machine, I have to say it is a real ink hog. No wonder the cartridges are cheaper then on the other machine they only hold a few drops. One project and I already had to change black ink cartridge. Oh well I guess it beats trying to save things to disc and then printing on the other machine. My major printing will be done on the old printer, which may be slower, but the quality is professional.

I got my holidays for next year courtesy of a great site by Brownielocks and the 3 bears You have to check it out as she has some absolutely hysterical but true holidays. I discovered her site about three years ago and she is wonderful. If you need a laugh or just a reason to celebrate she probably has something for you.

I returned to work today to a stack of adjustments that they didn’t know how to do. It was a long day and I certainly didn’t feel like being there as I was extremely shaky. Only two people asked how I felt. Some of the others were just glad I was back because they had to work and take up the slack while I was gone. Oh well it supports my art so I can put up with it. I will be glad when mother retires from there however. She is real sick with an infection given to her by a coworker. She is even talking of staying home tomorrow if she doesn’t feel better.

As the quotation above suggests I have done my work for today and now I am stepping back and will get started on the calendars. Being creative is a great way to get past frustrations.
After scraping ice off my windshield this morning I long for this picture. It is called Hawaiian Summer Morning.

Happiness

“One drop of the sea cannot claim to come from one river, and another drop of the sea from another river; the sea is a single consistent whole. In the same way all beings are one; there is no being that does not come from the soul, and is not part of the soul.” The Upanishads

“I believe that the very purpose of life is to be happy. From the very core of our being, we desire contentment.” Dalai Lama

Things are progressing. I still feel awful weak and shaky but I feel better then I did. The heavy doses of Advil appear to be helping as has taking two different antibiotics for the infection. I may finally be getting the upper hand on this. Regardless I go back to work tomorrow. My brother says that they really miss me. I think maybe the troublemakers regret going in and whining to my boss as she really wanted me to take the time off to get well and they had to actually do some work and pick up the slack. Be careful what you wish for because it can come back at you in unexpected ways.

I think it is very true in life that what you wish for may not always be what you expected. Sometimes you get it into your head that you want something and if you only get that thing everything will be different. You find however that when you get this thing, whether it be a job or relationship or something material, and your life continues to be the way it was before you got it. Often times I believe that our expectations in life are beyond what life can offer. We expect outside things to change our life for the better when the real secret to happiness comes from within ourselves. We want to be happy but we really need to think hard about what true happiness is and what we really need in life to make us happy. I find that if what I want is selfish then it doesn’t really make me happy when I get it. If what I want contributes to the happiness of others then I find my own happiness increases and I am content.

The picture is called Autumn Equinox. Enjoy autumn while you can because winter is coming fast and coming early this year.

Woo-Hoo!

“If my heart can become pure and simple like that of a child, I think there probably can be no greater happiness than this.” Kitaro Nishida

“Obviously, it is not enough for us simply to think about how nice compassion is! We need to make a concerted effort to develop it; we must use all the events of our daily lives to transform our thoughts and behavior.” Dalai Lama

Finally the web site is up and running! I checked out all the links and as far as I can tell they are all working. It was certainly a long hard haul to get it done but I am very pleased with it. Now comes the job of promoting it so that people know it is there. Check it out at: Art by Michele Wilson

I also just finished cleaning the upstairs. My brother has promised for months to clean our bathroom and hasn’t gotten around to it. We have a plumber coming tomorrow and I wasn’t going to let anyone seeing that filthy bathroom so I followed the old adage of "if you want something done do it yourself." The computer room and my bedroom also got cleaned while I was at it since we have someone coming to take out the air conditioners.

According to the doctor yesterday I have severe arthritis in the jaw that is affecting the ears as well as a virus infection. He ordered anti-inflammatory for the ear and I’ve been downing the Advil capsules. It does seem to have had an effect, as it isn’t quite as painful as it was. I am off today and tomorrow and will go back to work on Thursday. My mother’s last day of work is this Sunday and I will be very glad to have her retire. That is what is new in my life.

In the world I have been reading about those neo-nazis who wanted to assassinate Obama and kill so many black people. I wonder if it will dawn on the McCain/Palin campaign that their negative ads and speeches, when taken to the extreme, lead to this kind of hatred. This is the face of bigotry. This is what inflammatory ads and speeches lead to. It isn’t too late to stop the hatred and start focusing on the issues instead. Somehow I doubt they will do that. That is a really sad thing.

Monday, Monday

“The key to an easy relationship with other people is not to impose your ego, nor crush the ego of others.” Swami Prajnanpad

“Benefit first goes to the practitioner of kindness.” Dalai Lama

After many, many hours of work the website is starting to come up and together. I still have a few links not working the way they should but I am finally seeing light at the end of the tunnel. With a little luck the Art by Michele Wilson should be finished by the end of the week.

I am home from work again today and will be seeing the specialist at 2 o’clock today. I am hoping he can find out what is wrong and fix it! I am tired of being in constant pain. I am finding myself getting very depressed because of all the pain and what happened at work on Thursday. Even though my boss told me she is not firing me and she wants me well and back to doing the superb job I was doing before I became ill I am still finding myself worried. I am hoping that this doctor is as good as people say he is and he will find a cure.

I am enjoying the high speed Internet. I am still trying to get the wireless up and working on the other computer. In the meantime I am going to have to break down and purchase a printer for this computer. I need to be able to print things off while I am struggling to get the other computer to recognize the wireless.

The picture is called Lady in Red.

High Speed

"Every smile makes you a day younger; every sigh a day older." Chinese proverb

"What I believe, according to my own experience, is that a calm, peaceful mind is a very important element for sustaining the body in a balanced way." Dalai Lama

It was a real rough day yesterday. The final upshot from a meeting with my boss is that I need to stay home and get well because the pain is such a distraction that I am making a lot of posting errors. She claims that my fellow employees are worried about me. I know she is and that she cares. The jury is out on the others. I have an appointment with a specialist on Monday and he is going to have to do something. I cannot go on the way I have. Depending on what he says I may be out of work for a while in order to recuperate.

They have us hooked up to the cable Internet now so it should be a lot faster to do things. I can't get my workhorse computer to recognize the wireless yet but I will have to work on it and I'm sure it will be hooked up eventually. In the meantime I can access the Internet through my other computer. I hope to get the website completely converted over tonight and try and get the uploaded. That has been my major focus the last few days since AOL is taking the site down on the 31st.

Wow that upload of the picture was like lightening. I'm going to like not being on dial up.

Can You Hear Me Now?

The supreme consideration is man.” Mahatma Gandhi

“When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.” Dalai Lama

Remember that irritating cell phone commercial where the guy keeps asking “can you hear me now?”
I had to stop and listen to my lungs this morning a pour some inhalant down them so I could breath. Not the best way to start a week. If you have asthma you learn to listen.

When I worked at The Tattered Cover book store in Denver we would have celebrity autographs. The most massive turnout we ever had was for Colin Powell. That line looped up three flights of stairs and down and out into the street. I briefly got a chance to meet him since I was helping with crowd control. He is a real gentleman in every sense of the word. He is polite and gracious and obviously intelligent. He was a pleasure to work with.

Yesterday Colin Powell endorsed my candidate Barak Obama and he touched on many of the things that I have touched on in this journal. He opposes the mud slinging campaign being run by McCain/Palin. He knows the Bill Ayers rantings have no relevance what so ever to this campaign. He knows Obama is a Christian and he knows that Muslims need to feel free to follow their religious beliefs. He knows Sarah Palin is totally unfit to be Vice President let alone President. He questions McCain’s rashness in picking Sarah Palin as a running mate. He questions McCain’s bizarre closing down of his campaign to “solve the economic crisis”. He questions whether or not McCain even has a viable solution to the economic crisis.

The most important aspect of Colin Powell’s endorsement is his endorsement of Obama the man and his ability to lead. Our position in the world today is one of derision and scorn. Never has the phrase Ugly American been more apropos. Colin Powell knows how important it will be to have as President a genuinely good man and one willing to talk with anybody to achieve peace.

We Have Geek

“The secret to contentment is knowing how to enjoy what you have, and to be able to lose all desire for things beyond your reach.” Lin Yutang

“We must distinguish between belief and respect. Belief refers to total faith, which you must have in your own religion. At the same time you should have respect for all other religions.” Dalai Lama

We are in major geek mode today!

The Doctor Who scarf is finished and winging its way to North Carolina. The final statistics are 12 feet long, 1032 rows of 65 stitches wide, 53 different color blocks, and seven colors (purple, tan, brown, yellow, red, gray, and green). Number of hours put into this; I have no idea. Lots. Saw the complete First, Second, and Third Seasons of Doctor Who and half of Season One of Torchwood. Woo-Hoo!!!!!!!!

The “coming soon” placer page is up and running on my new web site. The next few days will see me converting everything over from AOL extensions so I can upload it to my own domain. Come visit me at: http://artbymichelewilson.com

We have geek. ;-)

Health

“Only the supremely wise and the abysmally ignorant do not change.” Confucius

“The modern economy has no national boundaries. When we talk about ecology or the environment, when we are concerned about the ozone layer – one individual, one society, one country cannot solve these problems. We must work together. Humanity needs more genuine cooperation. The foundation or the development of good relations with one another is altruism, compassion, and forgiveness.” Dalai Lama

One thing that is always foremost on my mind is health care. I work in the Business Office at a hospital and I know first hand the problems people are facing with health care and trying to pay for it. When you have dealt with tears from someone with no health coverage and no way of getting it and a bureaucracy and insurance companies that just plain don’t care; it becomes personal.

My own health is not the best. I have COPD in the form or chronic bronchitis and asthma. I am not and never have been a smoker so this isn’t something I brought upon myself. If I didn’t have health insurance through my job I would not be able to get it.

I deal with posting of insurance payments now and the reasons I am seeing to deny payments by insurance companies are staggering. The most common is “preexisting” which means the person who needs the help the most can’t get covered. I have seen labor being non covered as “it wasn’t an emergency.” I have seen the insurance company cover an operation but not anesthesiologist fees. One of our insurance companies now refuses to coverage Emergency Room visits. Medicare payments are so messed up that my mother’s doctor hasn’t received any Medicare payments in over a year. I live in the Midwest and in this little town the employment is factory based. All of the factories are letting people go because of the economy and that means health insurance is dropped.

There is a crisis in the health field and it is a heart breaking one. Lives are being affected and it feels like no one cares. We have a woman in our office whose job it is to try and fight and get help for people. She is over worked and tired but she fight on.

Something has to be done to help the people who can’t afford the premiums. People who have preexisting conditions and need medicine. I’ve checked and no way can I get health insurance on my own. $5,000.00? The insurance companies laugh at that. No way. We need to find a way to get health insurance for everyone. If people can not stay healthy they can not work and they can not contribute to the economy. It is as simple as that.

The picture is called Guardian of Health and is from my Guardian series. I am hoping to get the new website up and running this weekend.

On Sunday We Have Beefcake

“We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.” Ancient Native American Proverb

The picture is a gift for the fans of this Journal who like John Barrowman as much as I do. Enjoy. ;-)

I am waiting for my hosting services update in the next couple of days and then I will be moving my website over to its new home. I bought the domain site www.artbymichelewilson.com and we are now adding the feature which will allow me to put my website there. It will have a place holder of my own in a day or so (currently godaddy is doing that for me). I am doing a rework of the site to make the art the main page and then the rest of the webs with the recipes, poetry, cats, and writings will link to that. My plan is to have it all up and operational by the end of next week.

Today however episodes of either the Captain Jack stories in Doctor Who or Torchwood will be playing as I finish the scarf. The hands go on automatic while knitting so the eyes can watch eye candy.

Customer Service?

“In divine friendship there is ever increasing respect; each one thinks only the highest welfare of the other.” Paramahansa Yogananda

“When we meet real tragedy in life, we can react in two ways: either by losing hope and falling into self-destructive habits, or by using the challenge to find inner strength.” Dalai Lama

My big brother, “Who were you reaming out Sis?”

“Sprint.” If for no other reason then Customer Service hates me because I will ream them out if they mess up on my Mom’s accounts like they did here. She had spent three days with incompetents before they finally admitted they had put her payment request in wrong, she wasn’t past due, etc. I pull up the account on line to see it still is a mess. Upshot, in writing, they are crediting her account for two months of “Customer Service” and please, please, please call your daughter off.

Any more Customer Service is a contradiction in terms. Or as Shakespeare put it, “A tale told by an idiot full of sound and fury signifying nothing.” And yes I am well aware of the fact that is Macbeth and he was talking about something else, after all I have a degree in theater. However the quote is still appropriate because companies these days talk about service, outsource to India (like I really believe the AOL tech with the heavy accent is called Fiona) and they read back to you on scripts. However if you make enough noise they will do something, if for no other reason then to get you off the line. You shouldn’t have to ream them out to get service. Companies are nothing without their customers. They will cease to exist. In these hard economic times you have to take care of your customer’s needs because we can’t afford to give good money to shoddy products.

So one more crisis solved. It seems for the last nine years since we lost my Dad that my role has been to fix things that he use to fix. My older brother can’t get Army back pay? I fix. My younger brother can’t get his Social Security Disability? I fix. He needs to get diabetic supplies with little money? I fix. My older brother needs a job where he has benefits? I fix. J.C. Penny, Sprint, shoddy contractors? I fix. I don’t mind doing it but some days like today I wish I could get someone to fix for me. This headache, someone make it go away.

The picture is called Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Still Playing Around With This Thing

“We must learn that truth may be expressed in a thousand ways, each one yet be true.” Swami Vivekananda

“When you die you go alone, and the only light to accompany you derives from the spiritual practice or positive acts you have done.” Dalai Lama

Will the clown who put 15 days with 100 hours each into this week please leave. What a rotten week at work. I really need to find another job. I am so sick of the pettiness at that place.

One of my pet peeves is hatred and people who incite others to act in hateful manners. There has been a lot of attention paid recently to the McCain/Palin attempts to incite their followers by making hate comments about Barak Obama palling around with terrorists. I mean the nerve of the guy for being 8 years old when Ayers was a Weatherman and the kid probably wanted to go out and play rather then trying to stop him. Eight year olds are so irresponsible aren’t they? Obama served on a school board with Ayers. He put the welfare of children first. He didn’t pick the board he was a member of and the chance to do something to help underprivileged children was more important then making a grandstand gesture. Obama has denounced the violence and terrorism that Ayers espoused in those days. He has denounced the racism and hate mongering of his former pastor Jeremiah Wright. Palin said that Obama didn’t walk out of the sermons. The fact that he wasn’t there when those sermons were made does make it a little difficult to walkout on them.

What are McCain and Palin afraid of? Maybe the fact that Clinton left office with a surplus and us not engaged in wars and Bush has destroyed that surplus, gotten us involved in wars that can not be won, and the economy is tanking big time. They can’t defend the Republican record so they are resorting to hate mongering because they have no plan to help us at all. Health care crisis? Their solution is to tax our health insurance and give the money to the insurance companies. When you have no plan and can’t defend eight years of ruining our economy and jeopardizing our safety and the world’s opinion of us then I guess hate mongering is all you have left. Truly pathetic.

I’ve fiddled a bit with the layout of this blog and will probably do more later. Now I’m going to grab some supper and settle down with those knitting needles and watch Stargate Atlantis. Nothing like science fiction to get my sense of balance back and destress from a stressful week.

The Dalai Lama is recovering from surgery and I will definitely be keeping that good man in my prayers.

The picture is called Sunset Seas.