The Fountain of Old

Another year has passed like a week and as I celebrated my birthday yesterday I contemplated the aging of human kind. I just turned 42 and I hardly consider that old but I remember how old someone my age seemed when I was 18. I don’t feel old on the inside - my mind still thinks I’m in my late 20’s and I guess that is a good thing. My body however tells a different story. Even though I’ve been told I look young for my age, the gray hair (white?) that started in my 30’s is more than evident and the lines are starting to stay even when I’m not laughing. I’m not worried about getting old – in fact my goal is to live to at least 100 provided I have my faculties about me. Genetics might be on my side as my Grandmother who just passed this year was 101.

Still the thought of looking older isn’t very appealing. Science has helped us cheat death but we have not yet found the fountain of youth. Therefore we are growing into a population of the aged. If I do live to be 100 or more I’ll have lived over 2/3 of my life as an old person in they eyes of an 18 year old. I wonder if science will ever find a way to make the body age slower to match our increased longevity. I mean real science, not facelifts and plastic surgery that so many people now resort to. I suppose it is bound to happen sooner or later, but until then I guess I’ll embrace my gray hair and lines along with everyone else. At the rate the years are flying by I will be 100 by next week anyway.

Lets Hear It From the Haters

As a gay man, am I upset with the hateful things Tim Hardaway said? Well, maybe, but I think there is a more important story here. The fact is we live in America were even the haters are granted the right to free speech. Personally, I would rather have someone come out and say what is on their minds openly and freely rather than pretend to be my friend and then talk bad about me behind my back. And forget about the heartless apology later. If you have the guts (stupidity?) to spew hateful things in the public media, don't try to brush it aside to save your career. Own it. Let the public decide if they find it revolting and continue to support you or not. Michael Richards (Kramer from Seinfeld) - that goes for you too.

Having said that - if you are in the business of making laws or polices that affect others (Presidents, Vice Presidents, Senators, or even business owners) you need to put aside your own personal beliefs and make decisions based on what is right for the greater good. You might not agree with homosexuality (or whatever) and perhaps your personal religious beliefs might forbid something, but you must realize that all Americans deserve the SAME rights. For example, just as everyone in America has the equal right to free speech, every American should have an equal right to legally marry the person of their choice.

Blinded by the light

No wonder President Bush always thinks he is doing a great job - He only gives speeches in front of groups of his supporters. Anyone who is still supporting him at this point will do so no matter what. He should try giving speeches in open, mixed company. A boo or two would do him some good.

My food tastes like butt

Several years ago we were blessed in Florida with a new law that bans smoking in restaurants. Finally we can smell and taste the food! We are also blessed in Florida with lots of nice weather for dining outside – especially in the winter months. We enjoy cool, calm, weather with sweet blossoms in the air and perfect settings by the water to enjoy a meal alfresco. But good luck trying to find any fresh air on a restaurant patio now – that’s where you will find the smokers! Whoever crafted our new law really dropped the ball regarding this major side effect. Why can’t they just ban smoking in restaurants totally? Smoke and food just don’t mix. If you have a habit that affects everyone around you with an awful stench and life threatening smog that you can’t control for even an hour, perhaps you should eat at home.

Of course everyone has a “right” to smoke, as long as you don’t affect anyone else. That includes your spouse and children at home and in your car. True that doesn't leave the smoker with many options, but you could always quit.

Lets Be Productive

Many people and politicians have been opposed to the war in Iraq since the beginning even though some may have voted for it based on the information presented to us at the time. Clearly we were misled and now a lot of people are understandably very upset at this devastating war. But I'm not sure I can agree with the time spent by Congress on a non-binding resolution to the increase in troop levels. If it is indeed non-binding, then it is non-productive. I will not, however call it a waste of time. I do understand the reason for it, especially since President Bush appears more like a Dictator each day. We do need to send a clear message to the rest of the world that we do not all agree his plan and in fact, many of us vehemently oppose it.

But there must be a better way. We really should be spending our time on something productive that can actually bring about change.

On the other hand, I do support impeaching the President for misleading the American people in starting this war. That would also be somewhat unproductive but certainly fair in light of what they did to President Clinton. It would also send a clear message to the world and to the history books that we were misled (ie: lied to) by this Administration. Many people have died for that misinformation.

Bags Are a Blessing

Who ever decided that bagless vacuum cleaners were an improvement? I was sucked into buying one (pun intended) by cleaver marketing and I curse the day I did. Before when the bag was full I simply removed it, threw it away and installed a new one in minutes. Now I have to take the machine outside (to keep the dust from going back into the room), empty its contents into an old plastic shopping bag (Bagless?), throw that out while choking on the flying dust, take the clogged filter out and clean it with a hose, let it dry (or it will mold) and then put it back together hours later. This is progress?

In the ads for these machines the brightly colored "stuff" they vacuum up looks so neat flying around in circles. Real dirt and dog hair? Not so cute.

A better solution would be to leave the bag in - but make them standard so that all machines use the same one. Then you wouldn't have a hard time finding the right one for your machine. That would be progress.

The Big Game!

The Big Game (Super Bowl) is on this weekend! But isn't there a big game every weekend? My thoughts on that are here. Once again I am truly amazed at the amount of MONEY circulating around this event. Will any of that money go to a worthy cause? Nope.

One of the big news stories this week was about counterfeit Super Bowl gear. The horror! No doubt a lot of money will be made on this merchandise. Of course I do understand the importance of copyright laws etc. but imagine how many poor people could be helped if they were just allowed to sell some of these products. But money does not belong in the hands of the poor and so there is a huge police effort to stop this practice. They say life is not fair and this is another perfect example.

My suggestion? Let the business of professional sports make their money on the tickets, advertisments and parties. Let the small businesses be allowed to use the official logo to create all sorts of memorabilia. Not only would you get neater stuff but more people could profit from this event. And the police could go about the business of protecting and serving.

Let's Pray It Works

I've waited a while to comment on President Bush's "New Direction" in Iraq because everyone else has already blogged about it. But I feel I should at least briefly put in my $.02 and I really only have one thing to say. While I feel his proposal is "too little too late", I pray with all my heart that it actually does work. This war is one of the most significant events of my lifetime and if we fail, it will have dire consequences. So I'm not going to bash this new policy - I'll leave that to the politicians because it is their job. For my part I will pray and pray hard that Peace and Democracy can prevail in Iraq.

Walk to Cool Down

If only people would leave their cars parked and walk or ride a bike instead whenever possible, we would not only reduce greenhouse gases but also stop the trend of being a nation that is over weight. It is a practice I do myself and it works very well. If I didn't have a 25 mile commute I would even ride my bike to work. I do carpool though - another thing more people could do.