What will we leave behind?

This morning, I am running a temperature and not feeling all that good. Kind of achy and sick to my stomach. I wanted to go swimming, but there are several older folks there who have many serious illnesses and I do not want to give them a bug so I am staying home today and feeling sorry for myself, which I have no right to do as I have been blessed beyond measure in my life.

As I was laying in bed trying to feel better, Jackie was playing music from Pandora on the stereo. Many of the artist she was listening too, have passed but I realized that no matter what their personal life was like, no matter the health problems they may have had, now that they are gone, still millions of people can enjoy and appreciate their music, movies, or books. Whatever they left for humanity will stay with us for years and years. The recent tragic passing of Robin Williams is an example. He struggled from depression apparently for years and finally gave in to the temptation to get out of his pain by taking his own life. But still he will be remembered and loved by many people for a long time.

I have to ask myself, what will I leave for future generations? I know I have a family who will remember me for a generation or two, but did I contribute to society in any meaningful way? I had a lot bigger plan for my life. I wanted to be a doctor and help people. I gave up on that dream. I was talented in music but let that go and can no longer play worth a hoot, so that is gone. I built a data center for law enforcement and a communications network, but that too is long gone and the work I did for 30 years in in the dust bin. So it is easy to get depressed on my current condition in life. 

I will never be famous most assuredly. I doubt I will invent anything that will have an impact on society. I for sure will not leave songs or movies for future generations. So what can I or anyone else, who would be considered a normal person do for future generations? In my case I think it boils down to just a few things. Live as good a moral life as you can. Try to be kind to everyone. But most importantly for me, I believe I and you have a responsibility to tell and leave your stories. That is, document what you and other family members have done with their lives. 

I am involved in the hobby of genealogy and have traced my family back many many generations. In doing so, I have found stories and events that these people have experienced. The sacrifices they have made to make our lives better. Someone needs to carry this on in the future. I will leave my records and stories on-line and in hard copy form and pass it along to someone in my family. Maybe in this way a little immortality can be be achieved and something worthwhile passed on to other people to enjoy. At least I hope so. 

What will we leave?

This morning, I am running a temperature and not feeling all that good. Kind of achy and sick to my stomach. I wanted to go swimming, but there are several older folks there who have many serious illnesses and I do not want to give them a bug so I am staying home today and feeling sorry for myself, which I have no right to do as I have been blessed beyond measure in my life.

As I was laying in bed trying to feel better, Jackie was playing music from Pandora on the stereo. Many of the artist she was listening too, have passed but I realized that no matter what their personal life was like, no matter the health problems they may have had, now that they are gone, still millions of people can enjoy and appreciate their music, movies, or books. Whatever they left for humanity will stay with us for years and years. The recent tragic passing of Robin Williams is an example. He struggled from depression apparently for years and finally gave in to the temptation to get out of his pain by taking his own life. But still he will be remembered and loved by many people for a long time.

I have to ask myself, what will I leave for future generations? I know I have a family who will remember me for a generation or two, but did I contribute to society in any meaningful way? I had a lot bigger plan for my life. I wanted to be a doctor and help people. I gave up on that dream. I was talented in music but let that go and can no longer play worth a hoot, so that is gone. I built a data center for law enforcement and a communications network, but that too is long gone and the work I did for 30 years in in the dust bin. So it is easy to get depressed on my current condition in life. 

I will never be famous most assuredly. I doubt I will invent anything that will have an impact on society. I for sure will not leave songs or movies for future generations. So what can I or anyone else, who would be considered a normal person do for future generations? In my case I think it boils down to just a few things. Live as good a moral life as you can. Try to be kind to everyone. But most importantly for me, I believe I and you have a responsibility to tell and leave your stories. That is, document what you and other family members have done with their lives. 

I am involved in the hobby of genealogy and have traced my family back many many generations. In doing so, I have found stories and events that these people have experienced. The sacrifices they have made to make our lives better. Someone needs to carry this on in the future. I will leave my records and stories on-line and in hard copy form and pass it along to someone in my family. Maybe in this way a little immortality can be be achieved and something worthwhile passed on to other people to enjoy. At least I hope so. 

Near Goal and the Future

I am 6 pounds from my goal weight. But thinking about the future and how I am going to manage myself after I am at goal for a time. From what I can understand by reading and going to my support meetings and listening to other there who have been out for a long time. In my past diet life, I was always able to lose the weight but the hard part is keeping it off without a slow creep. Which unfortunately for me has always happened.

My surgeon and PCP have both told me that WSL is not a cure for obesity just a kick start to a lifelong diet. The difference of course is that our bodies have been surgically modified and we now have a small pouch instead of a stomach. So as I understand it and I sure hope I am not wrong, I will never be able to eat more than about a cup or so at one sitting. So I know that will help me.

My plan is to drop my calorie count down to 900 or so as it is now, for as long as it takes to get my weight down again. Then go back on a normal caloric amount that my NUT is going to set for me in the near future. I know of no other magic to regulate the weight. If I don’t get on the scale regularly and count calories, how in the world do I adjust my diet and reduce my weight? I know of no other way.

I hear over and over again people who have had WLS say…When my weight loss stopped…that makes no sense to me. When my weight loss stops is when I am dead. The rules of dieting do not stop anymore than any other law. If you put less calories in than you burn (use) you will lose weight. I know of nobody lost in the wilderness or any other condition where they had NOTHING to eat that gained weight. No you should not starve yourself, but I think many have a distorted idea as to what starvation really is. We can go long periods of time with nothing to eat without ill effects. I have people say that “gee I am hardly eating anything” but what are they eating and how much.

As I get closer to my goal weight I get even more apprehensive about my ability and know this is going to be the hardest part of the process. With the help of my friends, and support groups and my loving wife, I will be able to be really successful this time around. Only time will tell and I will post as much as I can about my progress.

Meet My Second Goal !!!

Well today, I finally met my second goal. The first was to actually have weight loss surgery. This goal is to have lost 100 pounds. This morning I have lost over 102 pounds. I weigh now not every day or even every week, but every other week.

My weight loss is starting to slow down now and I had expected that to happen. I have only been at this for almost 5 months now and should continue to lose weight pretty regularly for at least a year, so I feel I can meet my next goals. My next goal is to be at a BMI of under 30 which would mean that I am not obese anymore just overweight. Of course my finally goal is to have a BMI in the normal range. My far off goal that I may never meet is to weigh 165 pounds or less than I weighed when I got married and about what I weighed when I graduated from high school.

I have been very slowly adding some small amounts of other things to my daily diet. Like in the morning I have a little bit, just a bite of a vegetable and maybe a pinch of some fruit. I make these things for Jackie and have a spoonful of that stuff with my normal eggs and bacon. I am doing well now and finding that I am able to eat just fine with no problems and I am slowly migrating to what I think will be a life long meal standard that I can feel comfortable with.

Today I am very happy with myself and proud of what I have done so far. Last Saturday night I was helping Jackie at a women’s church function and many of the women there came up to me and said, boy you are skinny and looking good. That made me feel very good about myself. But I know I have a long way to go. Some are even starting to say, you have lost enough now, you are getting too thin. I don’t think so.

Restoring Honor Rally

I just watched the Restoring Honor Rally on the Internet coming from Washington DC. Very few political comments. I did not hear one speaker attack the current president directly. I saw no violence or hatred for any race or nationality or religious group. No signs, no banners other than flags.

I was flabbergasted as a CNN reporter was talking, on air, about all the tea party flags and banners. As he was speaking they panned the crowed and other than the Stars and Stripes I saw a few Gadsden Flags, some shirts saying Faith Hope and Charity. Are these tea party flags? If so I must be a tea party member as both fly at my home. Shows you how distorted the view is in the lame stream press. No police cars burned or turned over. No poor old black man beaten by union goons like other rallies. Just patriotic Americans showing their love for God and Country.

I also saw some of the MLK rally in the same town. Signs calling Glenn Beck names, Speakers calling GB and conservatives names. Union banners and signs supporting just one political party. Do these raciest think the ideals expressed by Martin Luther King belonged to just one race? Do they also believe that the ideals and deeds of Abraham Lincoln just belong to white people? They accused Glenn of hijacking MLK’s agenda. Do just these few own MLK? His niece spoke at the GB rally as did many many folks who were there on that original momentous day. We must all embrace the ideals expressed by MLK, all races and faiths. Is that OK with you Rev. Sharpton or do we have to ask for your permission to speak?

At the GB rally they had speakers representing all. They pointed out that all parties have made mistakes and what really matters is that we are all Americans and we have to help each other. There were over 240 clergy of all faiths from Christian, Muslim, Jewish and others gathered on stage behind GB. They linked arms and pledged their support. The press will downplay this event and probably ridicule the folks that were there. John Stewart will mock GB as he always does showing his dislike for real American values. He used to be funny before he drank the Obama kook-aid and became a hit man for uber liberalism.

There were 300 to 325K estimated by the media. It does not matter as there were a lot of folks there who want government to listen to the people and turn the government around. Return to the constitution and get off our backs.

Get on your knees folks and pray for our country. That is what Glenn was saying. Ask God to help our leaders and our country and ask for courage for all of us to do what is right. Show Faith Hope and Charity to all.

God Bless America.

For the Birds!!!!

This story was passed on to me by a blog reader and suggested I post it as an entry so here it goes.

I bought a bird feeder. I hung It on my back porch and filled It with seed. What a beauty of a bird feeder it was, as I filled it lovingly with seed. Within a week we had hundreds of birds taking advantage of the continuous flow of free and easily accessible food.

But then the birds started building nests in the boards of the patio, above the table, and next to the barbecue. Then came the poop. It was everywhere: on the patio tile, the chairs, the table ..Everywhere!

Then some of the birds turned mean. They would dive bomb me and try to peck me even though I had fed them out of my own pocket.And others birds were boisterous and loud. They sat on the feeder and squawked and screamed at all hours of the day and night and demanded that I fill it when it got low on food.After a while, I couldn't even sit on my own back porch anymore.

So I took down the bird feeder and in three days the birds were gone. I cleaned up their mess and took down the many nests they had built all over the patio.Soon, the back yard was like It used to be .... quiet, serene.... and no one demanding their rights to a free meal.

Now let's see. Our government gives out free food, subsidized housing, free medical care and free education, and allows anyone born here to be an automatic citizen.Then the illegal's came by the tens of thousands. Suddenly our taxes went up to pay for free services; small apartments are housing 5 families; you have to wait 6 hours to be seen by an emergency room doctor; your child's second rate class is behind other schools because over half the class doesn't speak English.

Corn flakes now come in a bilingual box; I have to 'press one ' to hear my banktalk to me in English, and people waving flags other than 'Old Glory' are squawking and screaming in the streets, demanding more rights and free liberties. Just my opinion, but maybe it's time for the government to take down the bird feeder.

If you agree, lets kick the current officials, in Washington DC out of office, when we can.

If you don’t agree, just continue cleaning up the poop

Can this country be saved?

I really hate to see what has happened to this country. I know what you are going to say, “stop living in the past”, “things were not that great in yesteryear”. But just in my life time, I have seen a country that had an attitude that said we are the best, smartest, hardest working, and freest country in the world. A country that put a man on the moon who now has to rely on others to do the heavy lifting.

Now we are being told that we have gotten rich, fat and lazy. We produce very little and more and more folks are depending on government for their daily living. Generations have been brought up on government handouts and subsidies becoming a way of life for families, for generations. More than half of the population really pays no income taxes at all. Oh yah, they take money out of your weekly pay check but when you total all the income taxes you paid against what your income tax return is after April 15th, many get more back than they paid in and those folks no matter how they look at it, pay no income taxes to live in this country.

Most of these government handout were never intended or even thought of by our founding fathers. Nowhere in the constitution does it say that a living is to be provided by the federal government. Most current government programs like Social Security, Welfare, Unemployment Insurance, and even the collection of Federal Income taxes has happened in the past 90 years.

My family for the most part and I have traced it back in most lines to before 1700, were poor farmers. We lived and prospered without these government handouts. When I was a kid we were poor. My father was poorly educated and his employment was very limited, yet he nor my family would have ever accepted or sought out any government welfare type programs.

My dad picked fruit, chopped wood, sold door to door, worked as a handyman and any other legal thing he could find when he was out of his normal line of work. Many holidays and hard times churches, fraternal organizations and other charities would leave food, clothing and other things at our house to help our family. Our extended family, grandparents etc. also helped in lean times. We did it without government charity just the charity of folks who cared to do a good thing.

I used to see folks using food stamps or cashing welfare checks at the grocery store and look away in embarrassment for those folks. I thought how ashamed they must be to have others see them forced to take a handout. Now it is kind of a normal thing and nobody even notices.

I know what you are saying, you are old and probably getting social security checks. Yes I am. I did not want to participate in social security and in fact worked for quite a time for employers who did not participate in the program. Try to find that today. Anyway I was forced to take part and paid my money. Now the government had taken some of my freedom away and some of my self reliance. Instead of planning and saving for retirement I had the government doing it for me. I did save in addition but many folks have nothing but social security these days. Once you are trapped in a government program it is very hard to get out of it and that is the plan in my opinion.

Today folks like us would be lined up outside the welfare office looking for a government handout just like our moms and dads did, as did our grandparents. Children are being raised with this expectation. They think this type of life style is normal and they get accustomed to the life. They accept that there is little need to try as the government will take care of them. They think they are entitled to have government take care of them. But deep down inside there is resentment and the feeling that “the man”, is keeping them poor and down.

In my opinion, this is building a kind of class status in this country. The lower class welfare witch, redneck trailer trash society. Cruel words aren’t they, but most people have said them at times to describe these folks. Then you have “the put upon” middle class who are just hanging on to keep from slipping into the lowest class. Then of course you have the rich. I guess the rich are those people who make more than you do and are to be hated. Instead of working to be like them we think it is the duty to make them share what they have with us less fortunate folks. In fact we elect political representatives who say they are going to get them and tax them and make them show charity to us poor folks.

I realize it is discouraging to see the guy driving by in his new BMW going to his multi-million dollar home and know there is no way in hell you will ever be like that at your age. I know that there are many folks who would love to have a good job, any honest job that would at least make it possible to acquire those things for our families that make life really worth while without getting government handouts. But after years of looking and trying those good jobs are just not there anymore. The question is Why?

Tell me why in your opinion this is the case if it is the case. In my next blog entry I will tackle the WHY.