Welcome, Anderson Cooper!
That Closet is getting increasingly bare as more people step out, realizing that this is their planet as much as it belongs to anybody else.
When it comes time to do so, every individual is going to do their dying themselves, so, indeed, they should also be doing the living for themselves, too
At any time an individual believes that he or she deserves their freedom and comfort than any other individual who has done no harm to others, it is at that point that they should lose that right.
- Michael
"The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said 33 children under the age of 13 died in the United States in 2011 after being left in hot cars."
Can you believe that a local TV station was interviewing a 'parenting expert' regarding this subject. The 'expert' recommended that a mother put her purse in the back seat of the car with the baby, and that a father put his house keys in the back seat so they won't forget the baby in the car.
WHAT THE SAM HELL IS GOING ON ?????
Whatever happened to "The fact that you have a helpless human life that you are caring for. What else does a person with a child really need?"
Sorry if you don't like that, but a child should **always** foremost in your mind. What the person in charge of this small life wants to do or find important comes secondary to being at least aware of the child's existence.
If you treat your kids as though they are part of your routine instead of as living beings who depend on you, then I can see you forgetting them. So I would suggest anyone who does this type of thing to reevaluate the way they view their children and life itself.
This quote comes to mind: "Procreating isn't for everybody!"
Humans might be the first living being to dumb themselves down to the point of driving themselves into extinction. 95% of all other species that have ever lived on this Earth are extinct. Silly is the person that tries to fool themselves into thinking that humans are exempt to this rule. According to George Carlin, humans are nothing but a mere temporary parasite on the face of this huge rock that is traveling - honestly - at 67,000 miles an hour through space!
I think ole George made a good point. Actually, he made SEVERAL good points!
- Michael
My Ex's parents had albino peacocks on their property.
The KATY Trail is a rails-to-trails project in Missouri that passes many farms and country homes, but on one side of this trail is an occasional deep ravine. A few years ago, when I bicycled the entire length of the KATY Trail front-to-back (511 miles total), I passed a jogger on the trail near Augusta, MO.
He had stopped jogging in the middle of the trail, and was looking at his cell phone with a very worried expression. He flagged me down, and I stopped to talk to him. He told me, "I just heard someone yelling 'HELP! HELP!' - Do you think I should call 911? I think someone ran off the trail, and they're laying down there near the river!"
First and foremost, I was surprised that he could get a cell phone signal out there. There are many places along this trail that have little or no cell phone reception. Secondly, I quickly calmed him, and told him NOT to call 911! I told him, "Look through those trees.", and I pointed through the trees that lined the trail, and into a fenced in farm yard. There was a large, albino peacock with his tail raised. He was doing the familiar loud, "Help! Help!" call, and this man thought someone had accidentally bicycled off the trail!
This is the call I'm talking about:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWTABEOFYoY
- Michael
Conrad's (the African Grey parrot) latest rant:
Between 2:00 - 3:00 PM each afternoon, I wheel Corad's cage from the living room into our office. I can put up a makeshift baracade in the hallway to keep the 2 bigger dogs out of the office, but it lets Rudolph, the pug, through when he wants to come to visit us. I usully open his cage door so he can climb out and perch on the open door, or play for a while on the top of the cage. Most Greys like to roam, and they aren't good 'perch' birds. I have trained Conrad to stay on his cage, and he will stay on top of his cage for a couple hours at a time without roaming. Today was no exception to this rule. I put him in the office, opened the cage door, and went into the kitchen to make myself a late lunch.
Seconds after I walk out of the room, just to get my attention, Conrad yells:
"Michael, eat shit and die, Bitch!"
From the kitchen, I answer him with,
"Conrad!".... then I walk back into the office, and look at him dead in the eye. He asks me,
"Is there something you want, dear?"
I said, "As a matter of fact, there I do want something. I want you to act like a sane, civil little humanoid, and try to talk politely to me for a change!"
I dip back out of the office, heading for the kitchen, and he answers me under his breath,
"OK, but you're such an asshole!"
I wasn't too far down the hallway to turn back, and I stuck my head back through the office door, and I said,
"I heard that! Do you want to repeat that to my face?"
He looked absolutely shocked that I would return, and he tried to deflect the situation by yelling, "I love you, Michael! I love you!"
I answered him with, "There! That is a better answer! I knew you could do it!"
As I head back down the hallway one last time, I hear him mutter under his breatth again,
"You big whore!"
(Editor's note:
I can see now that I am getting nowhere by correcting him, and that I should , in fact, save my breath for when the day does eventually come that I might need it!)
One of my favorite shots: (Taken near Augusta, MO, in Klondike County Park)
To get this shot, I stood on the banks of the lake that was created by reclaiming land that was once a quarry used for mining silica to make glass in a factory just across the river from the park.
When I bicycled down the KATY Trail, I would stay at Klondike on both, my trip going down the length of the entire trail, and on my return home.
I have camped in the park in a tent, and I have also stayed in the wonderful 'little cabins on the hill' - Cabin B is my favorite.
When I took this picture, I got up well before sunrise on this particular morning. The lake isn't far from my cabin, so I took my camera and my tripod, and I waited for this shot. I took several other pictures while I was waiting for this one moment.
In the perceived stillness that is Nature, you can hear the dew dripping off the leaves of the surrounding trees. A Skink that climbed onto the nearby wooden fence to bask in the morning sun takes time out of his schedule to satisfy his curiosity. He came over to the last post on the fence to get a better look, and watched me set up this shot.
The air was still, and I waited until the sun had reached the right angle in the sky to create it's reflection in the water, but before it burned off the fog on the lake.
This shot reminds me of a passage from a well known poem. In Greek mythology, Helios is the Sun God:
Cold hearted orb that rules the night,
removes the colours from our sight.
Red is grey, and yellow, white,
but we decide which is right,
and which is an illusion.
Brave Helios, wake up your steeds.
Bring the warmth the countryside needs.
- Michael
(This is a beautifully detailed miniature! I want one of these for my doll house! :)
In light of the fact that Hammond B3 organs have been recently brought to the fore-front of the band on shows such as "American Idol" and "Duets", a part of my tiny, wretched soul is perplexed.
The conundrum is thusly:
The pros:
1) The recent flourish of exposure of this endangered species - the Hammond organ - will keep it in the heart of musical American's minds. This guarantees longevity, at least to some extent.
2) The recent exposure keeps the "supply / demand" cycle tight, keeping their value and prices up!
The cons:
1) Could this recent exposure be too good to be true? How can a smart phone / iPad society possibly appreciate vintage quality - musical instrument royalty, if you will.
2) The same fast paced society tends to have a 'disposable' mind set. (Take, for example, the rate that historic buildings and other national treasures are being destroyed.)
Even though the Hammond organ is still being produced, they are, at best, a good facsimile of the original. I have played the new Hammond B3, and I absolutely love it. I want one!
HOWEVER....their sound is digitally produced, and their amplifiers are solid state, rather than built with tubes. The originals are no longer being manufactured.
Do we really want vintage, irreplaceable heirloom musical treasures finding their way into the hands of a non-appreciative, disposable society?
That, my friends, is the quandrum at hand! :)
- Michael
Several years ago, I was riding the St. Louis city bus system, and an elderly black woman was sitting in a seat directly across from me.
A black man, in his 50's got on the bus, and sat down beside her. We continued our journey for a few blocks, and I could see the elderly woman eyeing this man out of the corner of her eye.
When her curiosity finally reached it's threshold, she looked directly into his eyes, and asked him, "What do you do?"
He answered her, "Ma'am, I don't do anything."
She responded, "So, you're just sitting around, 'waiting for it', huh?"
(By saying 'Waiting for it', she was implying that he was sitting around, doing nothing, and waiting to die.)
He looked a bit disturbed, and answered, "Ma'am, I'm not waiting for ANYTHING!"
She said, "Oh, I think you are! I am 83 years old, and I go to work every day. I volunteer at a homeless shelter, feeding the homeless. I think YOU can do something more useful with your time than just sitting around 'waiting for it'!"
A couple blocks later, the man got off the bus in somewhat of a huff and a flurry.
After his exit, I jumped up, stepped across the aisle, and gave this woman a huge hug!
I told her how much I loved her, and how inspiring she was!
I know this woman was sent to me from a Higher Power.
Without my saying a word about my condition(s) or my situation, she looked at me and said, "Oh, honey, I'm not talking about YOU!"
She looked at my right arm, and my right leg, and she continued:
"I can see that you have your share of challenges, too, but I can also see that you are going places, and you are doing things. You look VERY busy, and you are making good use of your time spent on this Earth. When judgment day comes, you can answer proudly because you didn't waste the time that was given to you. Pointing out the widow at the man that just got off the bus, she said, "That fella, uh.... his story will probably end differently!"
Angels do, indeed, come in all shapes and sizes.
I have never felt so proud of myself, laughed AND had a bad case of the chills at the same time!
- Michael
