CHRISTMAS

Wow!!!! It's been a long time since I have made any comments. I had a birthday this month,barely,Dec. 1. And also it is very close to the big day we call "Christmas". It sadens me to hear folks say "Happy Holidays" to me because even with all the wonderful lighting displays, beautiful songs and all kinds of parties, the real reason for this day is all but forgotten. This is a special day set aside for the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Why are we letting others steal our special day? I am from the " old school" and it will always be "MERRY CHRISTMAS" to me. So may I say to one and all, HAVE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS.

Choices

Each morning when I get up, I say to myself, "this is going to be a great day", and it always turns out to be so. I also tell myself, "be happy", and I am. After spending 4 years in the Navy, and working in Power Plants for 36 years, I retired early and it has been wonderful. I can choose what I want to do each day, even if I do nothing all day. Oh, by the way, doing nothing all day does tire you out, and you have to "rest" some. [ ha-ha] The most wonderful thing is that I no longer have to be around Profanity or hear off color jokes. I no longer hear men refer to thien wives as "old ladies". I always hated that. I can now choose who or whom I want to assoiate with, so I no longer have to be around that kind of enviroment. I read a wonderful statement that I find to be true......" when you do things you ought to do when you ought to do them, the day will come when you will do the things you want to do when you want to do them". I worked hard all my life and did a lot of things that were not pleasant, also had to sacrifice a lot to provide for my family. Now , I can do those things I choose to do when I want to do them. Have a great day.

Read to learn

I really enjoy reading. I only wish I could remember what I read. Would't that be wonderful. Perhaps what we read is stored in our memory banks to be used at some future time in our lives. I believe that out of all we gather in our journey through life, the only thing we take with us is the knowledge we gain while we are here. So, I think we should be careful what we put into our mind. Don't you? Reading and learning go hand and hand. If we will live to learn, then perhaps, we will learn to live.

Beautiful life

" The longer I live, the more beautiful life becomes "........FRANK LOYD WRIGHT. I find this to be very true. I notice the beautiful things of nature all around. When I was younger I did'nt seem to notice. I think I realy enjoy watching the sun come up . Sunrises are very lovely with all the shades of red and the opportunity to have another day. Sunsets are even more beautiful. Those who do'nt take the time to witness the beauty of nature are missing a real treat. Life is indeed very beautiful the older I get. I find getting old is a real blessing because there are many who do not have that opportunity. I'm grateful for each sunrise and each sunset that I have the opportunity to witness. LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL. Please slow down and enjoy life.

Heads or Tails

" The Lord gave us two ends to use; one to think with, the other to sit on. Which one we use will determine how well we do in life. In other words, heads you win, tails you lose." Just a little food for thought.

The Legend of the First Robin

A small brown bird looked down from a tree and saw a Man standing beneath a heavy wooden cross. A crown of thorns encircled His head and cruelly pierced the skin. Moved by His suffering, the little bird followed along with the crowd surrounding the Man, and suddenly swooped down ane pulled one of the thorns from the Man's forehead. The Man lifted his eyes to the little bird and smiled a silent "thank you." as the bird flew on, a drop of blood fell from the thorn and stained his breast a bright crimson. And since that day, the humble robin wears a symbol of his mercy for that suffering Man......our Savior. I read this one day and thought I would share it. It makes a good thought for the day.

Today is sunday. For most of the world, It is just another day in the week. For the business world it is one of thier most profitable. You would think that people would remember that this day is the day "GOD" blessed and sanctified as a day of rest and mostly a day to give thanksgivig for all that we have been blessed with. What has happened to all the "Christians" out there? Do you think our nation would be better off if we "honored the Sabeth, and kept it Holy? I have the utmost respect and admiration for those business owners who close on sunday. My family goes to church every sunday. We do not shop or buy or do business on sunday. We also do not work on sunday. Nor do we recreate,Watch tv,go to movies, sporting events .ect. The Ten Commandments has not yet been rescined. Keep the SABETH DAY HOLY. I'll get off my soapbox now!!!

" Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty.".........HENRY FORD. Not having graduated from college, I don't consider my-self an "educated" person. I do, on the other hand, have a vast "knowledge" in a lot of ways. There is a lot to be said about "having common horse sence". I have encountered some highly "educated" people who were "dumber than a brick". You know what I mean? Now, please do not misunderstand what I'm trying to say. Getting an education is, and should be, a top priorty in a persons life.
So, it seems to me that there is a difference between "education" and "knowledge". Both are good. Just like the quote from HENRY FORD, I find myself much past twenty, but not quite eighty. Not a day has gone by that I did'nt learn something, no matter how trivial it may be, that has'nt been good. Each passing day I find that I desire to know more and more about many different things. DO NOT EVER QUIT LEARNING. Catch you later.

Big waves

I think that I shall never forget, Even if I live to be 100 years old, the day I sailed into the "Straights of Juan de Fuca". This was my introduction to "life at sea". This is one of those places you have to be there to know what I am talking about. Just the very name of this body of water sounds bad. I had'nt developed my " sea legs " yet, having not too long being out of "boot camp', and now here I was in the roughest water in the Pacific Ocean. What a way to get your "sea legs". Oh, by the way, I was on what Sailors call a "TIN CAN", not exactly a large ship. The waves out there were just great big mounds of water rolling to and fro. From the "trough" of the wave[ bottom] to the "crest" of the wave[top] was 80 feet high, and that is the honest truth. Needless to say, that is some really big mounds of water rising and falling, making our ship seem like a very small cork, trying to stay afloat without capsizing. In your wildest dreams ,you can't imagine how this feels to be "on top" one moment, then down in "the trough" the next moment. AMUSEMENT PARKS can't hold a candle to this ride. All the while you are asking youself over and over again, 'Why in the world am I out here????????? I never again saw that heavy of seas. After that introduction to sea life, nothing was ever "Bad" again. Well, thats it for now!

Be Happy

Today is the first day of the rest of my life. Now that is a profound statement. After living well over 6 decades,it seems as if time flies by. When I was a whole lot younger, time would drag on forever. Another thing that you come to accept is that you just learn to live with pain. Not that you suffer as such, there seems to be little bothersome aches here and there where you don' recall having before. In my mind I'm still the young buck I used to be and think I can still do as I did in my younger days. Well, the old body sure tells you different. Oh, I'm not complaining, because I've had a very good life over all. I get excited each morning when my two feet hit the floor because, you see, that means it will be a good day. A lot of folks can't do that .....they may be cripple or perhaps have no legs. So look around and count your many blessings and get down on your knees and thank your "MAKER" for all that HE has done for you. One thing that makes he whom we call "HEAVENLY FATHER" sad is for us as HIS children not to give thanks for all HIS many blessings that HE grants each and every day.I beleive that is one of the secrets of a good and wondreful life. HAVE A GREAT DAY. Catch you later.

Urchins

Let me pause a moment to share a few thoughts about the Holiday I least care about; even to the point of hating it. Kids will not like my thoughts at all. "Halloween". Who ever came up with such an idea anyhow? Just the very thought of celebrating SPOOKS and HOBGOBBLINGS dos'nt make any sense too me. It must be a comercial thing, with tons of worthless candy making kids climb the walls. Just ask school teachers about the kids behavior!!! WOW!! And this thing called "trick or treating. I never see any tricks and I have yet to have these little critters ever treat me. Well I guess I have upset a lot of folks and I am sorry, but I still don't like this so called Holiday, and if you don't spend money for all that "junk" you get called names. Enough about that. There are several other Hollidays I don't care for, but that is a whole different can of worms. Catch you later.

More About "Sick Polywog"

Afew thoughts about what is refered to as Motion Sickness or as us "ole salts" call it Sea Sickness. That is putting it very mildly because it is difficult to describe how you really feel unless you have "been there, done that" if you know what I mean. The best way I can describe it is to say "you would have to get better to die". Things are just fine untill the ship leaves the calm and serene waters and things start happening as it starts going up and down, up and down, up and down, and kinda sorta twisting also. Nothing is staying still any more. Your insides just don't know whats going on. It really started for me when I somehow managed to get to the Mess deck {chow hall] for all you landlubbers. Metal trays,forks,spoons, and food all over the place with people slipping and sliding, some down crawling, some all doubled over and kinda green and pale, lots of bad words floating through the air and just a regular "mad house". I managed to make my way down to my assigned station deep in the ships bottom where the motion is much less noticeable. i recovered somewhat and realized that I would possible survive after all. Well, more to come later. May you have fair weather and calm seas.

One Sick Polywog

Maby some out there can relate to this tale. Having not yet developed my " sea legs" I thought I was one "salty" Sailor as we set sail out into the "smooth" Puget Sound just out of Seattle. This was sweet. It late evening and in my mind I was thinking to myself, "Man this is the life". Little did I know that by early morning my whole world would be turned upside down and every witch way it could be. Everything not tied down was bouncing off the bulkheads, deck, the overhead and just all over. The deck would just simpely drop out from under you feet, then just as quicky, come up to meet you and at the same time you are walking on the bulkhead[wall] and life as you knew it a few hours ago just was'nt the same and never would be. I some how made my way to the Head [bathroom] and there was'nt an empty stall,sink or shower stall that was'nt occupied. At first I thought everyone was praying, But not so.......they were "SICK"...VERY,VERY SICK. Then it hit me.......I went out side and almost could'nt find a vacant spot on the life line to let it all come out, if you get my drift. One little detail that I had apparently missed or perhaps we were'nt told, was that we would be in the roughest waters in the Pacific Ocean.....The Straights of Juan de Fuca. Well, I'll save that story for another blog. OK?