I think there are many types of Angels, as varied as the colors on a landscape. They are Angels here on earth just waiting until its their time when they reach that final peaceful place. There are big bright Angels that make lots of noise and effect lots of peoples lives and spend a lot of time in the limelight. There are steady sturdy Angels that go from one cause to another working tirelessly bringing other Angels into their causes. There are Angels full of turmoil that struggle through life seemingly out of control just going along like pinballs in a pinball machine. Then there are the silent Angels that get up every day and go through life quietly, calmly, seldom asking for anything and shouldering every responsibility handed to them. Keeping a steady pace, never complaining, never arguing, never refusing to do what is asked of them quietly dealing with what life hands them without every saying "what about me".
My aunt Dee was one of the silent Angels. The youngest of three children with two older siblings with big boisterous personalities. She was the quiet Angel of the three. She seemed simpler, quieter, more settled. I have not had the opportunity to spend much time with her as my life has gone on, and today I dedicated some time to remember her. She was definitely the simple one of the three, quiet, never complaining, always seeming content to bring up the rear. Enduring life's struggles quietly, steadily working through marriage. Raising three children equally. Loving them deeply never demanding too much, loving them EXACTLY as they are. Supporting their lives no matter what they handed and demanded of her. Supporting and loving her husband with that same steady hand never asking for more.
Her final quietest battle with cancer she handled exactly as she had her life. Quietly, steadily, sturdily never complaining or asking anyone for help. Enduring all that cancer could throw at her without showing any signs of anger or despair.
I think of all the Angels, the silent ones must be God's favorites. You see they are his easy ones they never ask anything of him, they do their time hear on earth with a quiet competence that makes his job easier. I was fortunate enough to see my Aunt Dee recently and I may not know much about anything, but looking into her Blue eyes I am certain of two things. She knew she was loved, and she was ready to take on whatever is going to be handed to her the rest of her journey.
Friday, December 23, 2016
Monday, December 19, 2016
Is this the Golden Age of Automobiles
Saturday we went to Arizona Motorsports Park for a track day with ProAutoSports. What a truly great day on many levels. The racing community is truly a family oriented group. Tight knit, fun, personable, all encompassing and very welcoming to those who are just getting involved. The weather was a little colder than I like, but it was sunny and warmed up nicely as the day went on. I finally went out to take photos of on track action. I remembered how much I missed taking great track shots. So much more fun that taking a still photo of a car at a car show. Sports cars on track doing what they were designed to do.
Personally there were many things for me to enjoy. Friends at the track, watching Brian drive the R8 on track for the first time. Not as an employee of Audi with an Audi instructor riding along and babysitting, but driving his own R8 supercar on track. Doing the things all race nuts live for. Getting his confidence back after wrecking the Vette. Exploring both the limits of the car and his own. Going for a ride with an accomplished racer further learning the limits of the car, then driving with instruction, and finally going out on his own to find the limits by himself. Anyone who enjoys teaching, be it in a classroom, in a car, or giving horseback riding lessons truly enjoys watching the progression of someone who goes from apprehension to joy as they struggle to learn skills that take decades to perfect. That was the best part of the weekend for me, watching Brian progress from nervous anticipation to that happy ecstatic exuberance that we all go through when we get a chance to live some of our dreams and goals.
This was a really good weekend to go to the track if you love cars. From front wheel drive supercharged Volkswagen GTI's a amateur group of both Miata and Honda S2000 drivers. The local club racing BMW guys, a new Acura NSX, Two Audi R8's, and numerous Porsche's Corvette's Mustang's and such. Enjoying a track day is not just a one emotion adventure. Every one of the senses can be used to enjoy the day. Listening to the low growl of the big V8's, the tighter higher revving over head cam engines, hearing the C7 Stingray, Porshe 911, and Audi R8 V10 plus snap off paddle shifts with their automatic transmissions. Where else can you watch those three supercars snake around a track with unbelievable balance, braking, accelerating, shifting and launching full throttle out of the turns down the straights.
I turned some laps in Brian's R8 at the end of the day. He let me go out by myself to get a track fix while we are working on getting the Vette back together. I've had some R8 laps before, but considerably more controlled and with the automatic, not the 6 speed gated manual. Track enthusiasts have said since the inception of the R8 program that the V8 with the 6 speed is the preferred track animal. Not that I am in the same league as the professionals, but I can say after a session it is definitely a brilliant beast on the track. The balance is incredible, it goes where you point it, when you point it and has brakes that will stop it from the limit lap after lap all day long. AMP has a set of left and right sweepers at the end of a straight and that is my favorite part of the track. As I learned the limits toward the end of my session I sailed into that complex flat in 4th. Without any aero the R8 was unbelievably civil and stable with only a hint of lack of stability. Just a slight body lean as it struggles for grip while being overdriven into a fast corner. Stab the brakes blip the throttle and downshift to third while exploring the upper end of the 8200 redline while turning back right and launching through the short chute to the hard braking downshift to 2nd for the sharp right hander then heading south back down the track toward the pits. Truly a brilliant car, what the V8 lacks in brute low end torque it makes up with horsepower at the upper end and balance through the corners. Lap after lap bigger motored cars could catch me on the straights only to fall back as I slipped perfectly through and out of a corner. I had to quit early while I still had control of myself before the cars ability led me to believe that I had enough ability to keep up with it. I'll have to wait patiently until the Vette is done before driving on the ragged edge again. The only change I would make to the R8 is a splitter for the front to add some crispness to the turn in on high speed corners. Speeds that the average track driver probably wont get to anyway and not on the street for sure if you've got any sense.
This last weekend was a perfect example of why we should feel fortunate to have the lives we have here in the U.S. In this country you are either part of the problem or part of the solution. If you can't find a way to live and enjoy your life and everything this country has to offer then its your fault. Its all out there if you just go out and get it. Get out of your own box. Boxes are for storing things and I for one don't intend to go into storage.
Personally there were many things for me to enjoy. Friends at the track, watching Brian drive the R8 on track for the first time. Not as an employee of Audi with an Audi instructor riding along and babysitting, but driving his own R8 supercar on track. Doing the things all race nuts live for. Getting his confidence back after wrecking the Vette. Exploring both the limits of the car and his own. Going for a ride with an accomplished racer further learning the limits of the car, then driving with instruction, and finally going out on his own to find the limits by himself. Anyone who enjoys teaching, be it in a classroom, in a car, or giving horseback riding lessons truly enjoys watching the progression of someone who goes from apprehension to joy as they struggle to learn skills that take decades to perfect. That was the best part of the weekend for me, watching Brian progress from nervous anticipation to that happy ecstatic exuberance that we all go through when we get a chance to live some of our dreams and goals.
This was a really good weekend to go to the track if you love cars. From front wheel drive supercharged Volkswagen GTI's a amateur group of both Miata and Honda S2000 drivers. The local club racing BMW guys, a new Acura NSX, Two Audi R8's, and numerous Porsche's Corvette's Mustang's and such. Enjoying a track day is not just a one emotion adventure. Every one of the senses can be used to enjoy the day. Listening to the low growl of the big V8's, the tighter higher revving over head cam engines, hearing the C7 Stingray, Porshe 911, and Audi R8 V10 plus snap off paddle shifts with their automatic transmissions. Where else can you watch those three supercars snake around a track with unbelievable balance, braking, accelerating, shifting and launching full throttle out of the turns down the straights.
I turned some laps in Brian's R8 at the end of the day. He let me go out by myself to get a track fix while we are working on getting the Vette back together. I've had some R8 laps before, but considerably more controlled and with the automatic, not the 6 speed gated manual. Track enthusiasts have said since the inception of the R8 program that the V8 with the 6 speed is the preferred track animal. Not that I am in the same league as the professionals, but I can say after a session it is definitely a brilliant beast on the track. The balance is incredible, it goes where you point it, when you point it and has brakes that will stop it from the limit lap after lap all day long. AMP has a set of left and right sweepers at the end of a straight and that is my favorite part of the track. As I learned the limits toward the end of my session I sailed into that complex flat in 4th. Without any aero the R8 was unbelievably civil and stable with only a hint of lack of stability. Just a slight body lean as it struggles for grip while being overdriven into a fast corner. Stab the brakes blip the throttle and downshift to third while exploring the upper end of the 8200 redline while turning back right and launching through the short chute to the hard braking downshift to 2nd for the sharp right hander then heading south back down the track toward the pits. Truly a brilliant car, what the V8 lacks in brute low end torque it makes up with horsepower at the upper end and balance through the corners. Lap after lap bigger motored cars could catch me on the straights only to fall back as I slipped perfectly through and out of a corner. I had to quit early while I still had control of myself before the cars ability led me to believe that I had enough ability to keep up with it. I'll have to wait patiently until the Vette is done before driving on the ragged edge again. The only change I would make to the R8 is a splitter for the front to add some crispness to the turn in on high speed corners. Speeds that the average track driver probably wont get to anyway and not on the street for sure if you've got any sense.
This last weekend was a perfect example of why we should feel fortunate to have the lives we have here in the U.S. In this country you are either part of the problem or part of the solution. If you can't find a way to live and enjoy your life and everything this country has to offer then its your fault. Its all out there if you just go out and get it. Get out of your own box. Boxes are for storing things and I for one don't intend to go into storage.
Thursday, December 15, 2016
Moving Forward.
I have often thought that after going through the process of loosing my partner I was supposed to learn something from the experience and somehow make some kind of contribution to society to make things better. Its just been a thought rattling around in the back of my mind for a long period of time. I've considered volunteering to help with Hospice care because I believe it is the most important health care program that we have available to us, I just don't know what skills I have that I could make a contribution. I've considered writing a book about dealing with grief, but would that help anyone but me. Those are just a few of the things I've considered. With the holiday season upon us I've decided to post a thought about dealing with loss. Something that thousands of people go through every year.
Loss and grief are a fact of everyday life. You cant enjoy a full life without loosing a pet, partner, friend, child, husband or wife. It happens, yet nobody has an answer how to wake up the next day and successfully go on with your life. Some people immerse themselves in work, some family, some food, some spend money. Most pretend to go on with that "I can handle it" look all the while they are struggling with just waking up and getting out of bed every morning. I buried myself in the horse business travelling 36 weeks that first year, finding a new relationship so that I wouldn't be alone and just wandered through life day to day.
As awful as it was loosing my partner, going through the final six weeks taking care of him and holding his hand at the end was a to me, a privilege in some aspects those last few days and hours were the best we ever had. For some people its a quick accident or catastrophic health event and they weren't afforded the opportunity that I was. In the end the outcome is the same.
Basically there is no right way or wrong way to deal with loss as we all deal with it the best way we can. One thing I know for sure. No matter how I move forward there will always be one more person involved in my life. Often behind the scenes and only in my mind, but Ive found a way to find contentment knowing that the memory and the feeling of him is there in my mind.
This time of year is especially hard for me as well as many others who have lost loved ones. The mind is powerful and sometimes its hard to control the memories and feelings of past holidays spent traveling or sitting by the fire at home. One winter I put the dogs in the 5th wheel and headed from Bakersfield CA all the way to Vancouver BC to celebrate Christmas. It was a miserable long trip, the wind over the passes was brutal and there was a bad snowstorm in the Shasta Cascades. I was required to chain up the trailer in CA and then the truck in Oregon. The trailing vibrating because of the chains about drove me nuts. I had to use 4 wheel drive for hours while driving from norther CA through Bend Oregon in the middle of the night. We camped at a little place in White Rock BC and it ended up being one of the best camping trips ever. Those are the memories that make a heart warm. When I do something that I would think is special I often think of Mark first and how he would have enjoyed it. Even though chance has brought me somebody equally as special to share my life with, I realize that is exactly what it is, sharing my life with the past and the present. Sometimes it takes conscience effort to choose to look to the future, as bright as it might be, and not dwell in the past.
In this holiday season, take a little time and exercise some patience when you want to throat punch some idiot for not moving quick enough, driving stupidly, or looking like they would rather be someplace else when waiting on your table. You never know what their daily lives are like or what they are dealing with. Take an extra moment to think about one of those days when you were down and needed a break, or how much a friendly smile and a hello meant. Open a door for someone, or say thank you to that clerk that bagged your groceries. From experience I can say it may be the one act of kindness that gets that person through the day and up then next morning to put one foot in front of the other.
Make it a Merry Christmas, be thankful for the ones you love, and have a Happy New Year.
Loss and grief are a fact of everyday life. You cant enjoy a full life without loosing a pet, partner, friend, child, husband or wife. It happens, yet nobody has an answer how to wake up the next day and successfully go on with your life. Some people immerse themselves in work, some family, some food, some spend money. Most pretend to go on with that "I can handle it" look all the while they are struggling with just waking up and getting out of bed every morning. I buried myself in the horse business travelling 36 weeks that first year, finding a new relationship so that I wouldn't be alone and just wandered through life day to day.
As awful as it was loosing my partner, going through the final six weeks taking care of him and holding his hand at the end was a to me, a privilege in some aspects those last few days and hours were the best we ever had. For some people its a quick accident or catastrophic health event and they weren't afforded the opportunity that I was. In the end the outcome is the same.
Basically there is no right way or wrong way to deal with loss as we all deal with it the best way we can. One thing I know for sure. No matter how I move forward there will always be one more person involved in my life. Often behind the scenes and only in my mind, but Ive found a way to find contentment knowing that the memory and the feeling of him is there in my mind.
This time of year is especially hard for me as well as many others who have lost loved ones. The mind is powerful and sometimes its hard to control the memories and feelings of past holidays spent traveling or sitting by the fire at home. One winter I put the dogs in the 5th wheel and headed from Bakersfield CA all the way to Vancouver BC to celebrate Christmas. It was a miserable long trip, the wind over the passes was brutal and there was a bad snowstorm in the Shasta Cascades. I was required to chain up the trailer in CA and then the truck in Oregon. The trailing vibrating because of the chains about drove me nuts. I had to use 4 wheel drive for hours while driving from norther CA through Bend Oregon in the middle of the night. We camped at a little place in White Rock BC and it ended up being one of the best camping trips ever. Those are the memories that make a heart warm. When I do something that I would think is special I often think of Mark first and how he would have enjoyed it. Even though chance has brought me somebody equally as special to share my life with, I realize that is exactly what it is, sharing my life with the past and the present. Sometimes it takes conscience effort to choose to look to the future, as bright as it might be, and not dwell in the past.
In this holiday season, take a little time and exercise some patience when you want to throat punch some idiot for not moving quick enough, driving stupidly, or looking like they would rather be someplace else when waiting on your table. You never know what their daily lives are like or what they are dealing with. Take an extra moment to think about one of those days when you were down and needed a break, or how much a friendly smile and a hello meant. Open a door for someone, or say thank you to that clerk that bagged your groceries. From experience I can say it may be the one act of kindness that gets that person through the day and up then next morning to put one foot in front of the other.
Make it a Merry Christmas, be thankful for the ones you love, and have a Happy New Year.
Monday, November 28, 2016
Just another loose lug nut.
This weekend was the ProAutoSports Thanksgiving race weekend at Wild Horse Pass motorsports park. Running the Bondurant/Main (Mondo) configuration. Brian and I had a full weekend of car oriented events planned for the holiday weekend. Getting the car ready to race, Loading and delivering the car and Toyhauler to WHP on Thursday morning and setting up our spot in the pits, Going to the Phoenix Auto Show in the afternoon and eating a great Thanksgiving meal with more car friends, then back to the track to relax and sit by the campfire and enjoy time with "our racing family". It started out as a great holiday race weekend.
This was to be the 2nd time Brian drove my race car on track, We planned to share the car for the first time. This was my idea because the Mondo track is very technical and has some tricky spots known for eating cars. No need to bend a street car. Brian running in the street car groups to gather more seat time, and me racing on Saturday. I had him run in the Beginning group on Friday morning because he had not ever been on the "mondo" Track before. That proved to be too slow a group for him to be in. Being 15 years younger than me he has eye and hand co-ordination skills that I no longer have. His mastering the car has been a fairly fast process. I had him move up to the intermediate group for the 2nd session thinking that by the end of the day he would be running with the advanced group as he as getting faster each lap.
He started his 2nd session for the day and I hiked up to the top of the stands to watch as much of the track as I could see. Which was more than enough to judge his progress and keep a close eye on the car. With each lap he got more comfortable, he drives very smoothly, getting quicker passing cars and staying ahead of some very fast cars, He developed a rhythm quickly and what the car lacked in top end speed down the straights he was making up in the cornering sections of the track. Starting at the back of the group and running down other Vettes and Vipers and staying ahead of Porsche's and Vipers and only getting passed by drivers with more experience that he has. I was enjoying watching him immensely, My years as a horse trainer have taught me that, while I am fairly proficient as a horse trainer I was always better as a coach, I think driving race cars will be the same, I love to instruct and I enjoy watching the performance of a car and driver doing well just as I did watching my customers get along with their horses. He could see where I was in the stands and I was using arm movements to encourage him to go faster and push his limits. I was particularly enjoying his on track battle with a newer more expensive Porsche that was faster down the straight, but Brian could out brake him and stay ahead of him and gain distance on him in the curves. I was encouraging him to go faster each time he came by not knowing f he could see me or not. I was enjoying watching him very much.
Well by now most of you know the session ended with Brian drilling our Vette nose first into the wall going into the tower turn. It was a hard impact happening directly in front of me. Hearing the sound of the impact and the engine revving I knew the carnage would not be small. The car spun off the wall and thankfully did not back into the wall again and stopped. I laughed out loud and the guy next to me called me an asshole and said I wasnt very nice. I said it was my car, and I wasnt upset in the least because drivers with much more experience, more expensive cars had done more damage than that in the same turn. I walked quietly down the stands and over the pedestrian bridge and to the accident scene only stopping at the top of the bridge to tell Bill Pfeiffer, the first person to the car to let Brian know everything was ok. By the time I got across the bridge and down to the track and asked to go to the car, Brian was out and I could tell by his face that he was extremely upset. I didnt realize however how upset he was until I watched the go pro video with him later. Damn go pro microphone works pretty well. I told him it was ok not to be upset and I set about helping the safety crew load the car and get it off the track to keep the down time as little as possible.
I think I should explain my relaxed manner about all this because those that know me seem to be kind of surprised. One, in some respects I am just like my dad. He has the ability to handle difficult situations with an extreme amount of control and intelligence. 2nd. I know how well built the cage in my car is. I was there when it was built, and I've already had the opportunity to try it out. 3rd. those C5 plastic fantastics have steel frame rails and are pretty damn tough as well. 4th, I know the safety crew. Kyle, Bill, Kim, Gene, Jim, Hurley and Dan know what to do when an incident occurs and I had extreme confidence in them. I was only there to help speed up getting the mess cleaned up and tying to insure that Brian knew I was not upset. Finally, My partner Mark and I shared the car hobby on the same level, buying and collecting, driving, auto-crossing, going to all types of races and basically spending as much time enjoying cars together as we did apart in our professional lives. I did not know how much I missed that in my life until I met Brian. The fact that he and I can enjoy this together, that he wants to race and enjoys camping at the track with me and my racing family and enjoys working on the cars together just makes my already good life even better. Remember it was my idea for him to drive the race car in the first place. Firebird main is fast and tricky and his safety is foremost in my mind while we are at the track. At my age, I wont get another chance at happiness and I intend to make this one last until I am no longer here.
So after taking the front clip off the car it looks like a right inner fender, two front fenders, a bumper cover, front splitter, new non flat spotted tires, fixing both the front frame rail horns, and some fresh paint and she will be good to go again. Until then, we will have to enjoy a slow, track day at AMP where there are no walls to run into in December while we put her back together again. Maybe a fresh color applied by Chris at Elite Automotive finishes, I havent supplied him with any work in a while and its about time.
All things considered. I had a very good Thanksgiving holiday.
This was to be the 2nd time Brian drove my race car on track, We planned to share the car for the first time. This was my idea because the Mondo track is very technical and has some tricky spots known for eating cars. No need to bend a street car. Brian running in the street car groups to gather more seat time, and me racing on Saturday. I had him run in the Beginning group on Friday morning because he had not ever been on the "mondo" Track before. That proved to be too slow a group for him to be in. Being 15 years younger than me he has eye and hand co-ordination skills that I no longer have. His mastering the car has been a fairly fast process. I had him move up to the intermediate group for the 2nd session thinking that by the end of the day he would be running with the advanced group as he as getting faster each lap.
He started his 2nd session for the day and I hiked up to the top of the stands to watch as much of the track as I could see. Which was more than enough to judge his progress and keep a close eye on the car. With each lap he got more comfortable, he drives very smoothly, getting quicker passing cars and staying ahead of some very fast cars, He developed a rhythm quickly and what the car lacked in top end speed down the straights he was making up in the cornering sections of the track. Starting at the back of the group and running down other Vettes and Vipers and staying ahead of Porsche's and Vipers and only getting passed by drivers with more experience that he has. I was enjoying watching him immensely, My years as a horse trainer have taught me that, while I am fairly proficient as a horse trainer I was always better as a coach, I think driving race cars will be the same, I love to instruct and I enjoy watching the performance of a car and driver doing well just as I did watching my customers get along with their horses. He could see where I was in the stands and I was using arm movements to encourage him to go faster and push his limits. I was particularly enjoying his on track battle with a newer more expensive Porsche that was faster down the straight, but Brian could out brake him and stay ahead of him and gain distance on him in the curves. I was encouraging him to go faster each time he came by not knowing f he could see me or not. I was enjoying watching him very much.
Well by now most of you know the session ended with Brian drilling our Vette nose first into the wall going into the tower turn. It was a hard impact happening directly in front of me. Hearing the sound of the impact and the engine revving I knew the carnage would not be small. The car spun off the wall and thankfully did not back into the wall again and stopped. I laughed out loud and the guy next to me called me an asshole and said I wasnt very nice. I said it was my car, and I wasnt upset in the least because drivers with much more experience, more expensive cars had done more damage than that in the same turn. I walked quietly down the stands and over the pedestrian bridge and to the accident scene only stopping at the top of the bridge to tell Bill Pfeiffer, the first person to the car to let Brian know everything was ok. By the time I got across the bridge and down to the track and asked to go to the car, Brian was out and I could tell by his face that he was extremely upset. I didnt realize however how upset he was until I watched the go pro video with him later. Damn go pro microphone works pretty well. I told him it was ok not to be upset and I set about helping the safety crew load the car and get it off the track to keep the down time as little as possible.
I think I should explain my relaxed manner about all this because those that know me seem to be kind of surprised. One, in some respects I am just like my dad. He has the ability to handle difficult situations with an extreme amount of control and intelligence. 2nd. I know how well built the cage in my car is. I was there when it was built, and I've already had the opportunity to try it out. 3rd. those C5 plastic fantastics have steel frame rails and are pretty damn tough as well. 4th, I know the safety crew. Kyle, Bill, Kim, Gene, Jim, Hurley and Dan know what to do when an incident occurs and I had extreme confidence in them. I was only there to help speed up getting the mess cleaned up and tying to insure that Brian knew I was not upset. Finally, My partner Mark and I shared the car hobby on the same level, buying and collecting, driving, auto-crossing, going to all types of races and basically spending as much time enjoying cars together as we did apart in our professional lives. I did not know how much I missed that in my life until I met Brian. The fact that he and I can enjoy this together, that he wants to race and enjoys camping at the track with me and my racing family and enjoys working on the cars together just makes my already good life even better. Remember it was my idea for him to drive the race car in the first place. Firebird main is fast and tricky and his safety is foremost in my mind while we are at the track. At my age, I wont get another chance at happiness and I intend to make this one last until I am no longer here.
So after taking the front clip off the car it looks like a right inner fender, two front fenders, a bumper cover, front splitter, new non flat spotted tires, fixing both the front frame rail horns, and some fresh paint and she will be good to go again. Until then, we will have to enjoy a slow, track day at AMP where there are no walls to run into in December while we put her back together again. Maybe a fresh color applied by Chris at Elite Automotive finishes, I havent supplied him with any work in a while and its about time.
All things considered. I had a very good Thanksgiving holiday.
Monday, October 3, 2016
Making sacrifices, decisions, and not giving up even when the road ahead is all uphill.
Most of you know that I've trained horses for the last 35 years. My grandfather got me addicted to them when I was a little boy and I've never been able to kick the habit. It is not as glamorous a career as most people believe. Its dirty, the hours are long, the work is hard, there is no map to build a successful business from scratch, the operating expenses are exceedingly high, and the pay is dismal. If you get the opportunity to ride and train a good one, there is nothing like it on earth. I've been lucky enough to have several good ones. Some Great, some not so great, I've had good customers and bad, and I've had bad moments as a trainer. I always knew at some point I would have to have an exit strategy because successfully retiring from the horse business is rare. I've watched some the the most successful and talented horse trainers finish out their years living on the welfare of others. I knew that was not how I wanted to finish out my golden years.
When I turned 45, which was my target date for exiting the horse business I was training and showing one of the finest horses that I've ever had. It was a great year and I accomplished the goals that I had set for myself early in my career. It was time for me to leave. My parents never wanted me to train horses, they wanted a better professional career for me. My partner at the time hated it. I was gone to much, we lived too far from town, it was dirty, and no amount of income was enough. I decided it was time to make a change. Some of you may be wondering why this is such a big deal. The answer is simple. When you've trained horses all of your adult life, you don't have much of a resume, you see, Human resource departments don't consider "playing with animals" as job experience. Balancing the books, paying bills, constant travel, insurance, veterinary issues, don't count for much in the HR World. The job market was full of $10/ per hour jobs. You know I like to drive my race car and that doesn't pay the bills let alone supply enough income for any extra hobbies. I had to have a plan. If nothing else I needed some kind of professional experience to put on a resume. That's when and why I started Arizona Motorsports Connection e magazine. It wasn't much, it was fun, and it supplied me with the opportunity to move up into operating and managing Rebound Magazine, the official magazine of the NBA retired players association, which in turn allowed me the opportunity to become the operations manager for Moxie Distribution. I could have stayed at Moxie until the end except for the good cop bad cop management style of the two owners and this year the day before my birthday I became the 4th employee in less than three years to look for employment elsewhere. I lasted longer than all the others combined. During that time I also decided that it was time to find some personal happiness in my life. It was time for me to either live on my own, or find somebody in my life that was willing to accept me through the good and the bad and be willing to wait until I finished my transformation from horse trainer to business professional. My mother retired from Farmers Insurance Group, and my partner Mark was the state sales coordinator for Aflac when he passed away. I had considerable exposure to the insurance industry and I decided I was going to study and get my insurance license. While that may not seem to be a big deal for most of you it has required considerable energy and time on my part. I am a chronic test taking failure.
However actually getting your license is just the start. Actually becoming a contracted agent frankly is one colossal major pain in the ass. The major players in the industry make you take more tests, personality, word problems, word associations, one had a section with nothing but algebra equations and one more wanted you to rank how you felt after reading a sentence. Most wanted you to sign agreements binding you to them financially for at least 6 years, they will give you operating money but the payback is brutal.
I am please to announce today that I have signed a contract to work for Physicians Mutual Insurance. Initially I will sell Life, Medicare supplement, Dental, Supplemental Heath, Accident, Annuities, and Funeral Planning. I am hoping to have found a place to land and finish out my employment years.
I have gone back to training horses during this time to supplement my income and I could not have done this without the encouragement and support of my customers and I wish to thank Brian for his endless words of encouragement and support. He encouraged me to leave Moxie when the working conditions turned to shit and he has encouraged me to study, not give up, and to "go for it" while I have tried to reinvent myself in the professional career market. I could not have done it without him.
I am looking forward to my new adventure both Professionally and Personally.
When I turned 45, which was my target date for exiting the horse business I was training and showing one of the finest horses that I've ever had. It was a great year and I accomplished the goals that I had set for myself early in my career. It was time for me to leave. My parents never wanted me to train horses, they wanted a better professional career for me. My partner at the time hated it. I was gone to much, we lived too far from town, it was dirty, and no amount of income was enough. I decided it was time to make a change. Some of you may be wondering why this is such a big deal. The answer is simple. When you've trained horses all of your adult life, you don't have much of a resume, you see, Human resource departments don't consider "playing with animals" as job experience. Balancing the books, paying bills, constant travel, insurance, veterinary issues, don't count for much in the HR World. The job market was full of $10/ per hour jobs. You know I like to drive my race car and that doesn't pay the bills let alone supply enough income for any extra hobbies. I had to have a plan. If nothing else I needed some kind of professional experience to put on a resume. That's when and why I started Arizona Motorsports Connection e magazine. It wasn't much, it was fun, and it supplied me with the opportunity to move up into operating and managing Rebound Magazine, the official magazine of the NBA retired players association, which in turn allowed me the opportunity to become the operations manager for Moxie Distribution. I could have stayed at Moxie until the end except for the good cop bad cop management style of the two owners and this year the day before my birthday I became the 4th employee in less than three years to look for employment elsewhere. I lasted longer than all the others combined. During that time I also decided that it was time to find some personal happiness in my life. It was time for me to either live on my own, or find somebody in my life that was willing to accept me through the good and the bad and be willing to wait until I finished my transformation from horse trainer to business professional. My mother retired from Farmers Insurance Group, and my partner Mark was the state sales coordinator for Aflac when he passed away. I had considerable exposure to the insurance industry and I decided I was going to study and get my insurance license. While that may not seem to be a big deal for most of you it has required considerable energy and time on my part. I am a chronic test taking failure.
However actually getting your license is just the start. Actually becoming a contracted agent frankly is one colossal major pain in the ass. The major players in the industry make you take more tests, personality, word problems, word associations, one had a section with nothing but algebra equations and one more wanted you to rank how you felt after reading a sentence. Most wanted you to sign agreements binding you to them financially for at least 6 years, they will give you operating money but the payback is brutal.
I am please to announce today that I have signed a contract to work for Physicians Mutual Insurance. Initially I will sell Life, Medicare supplement, Dental, Supplemental Heath, Accident, Annuities, and Funeral Planning. I am hoping to have found a place to land and finish out my employment years.
I have gone back to training horses during this time to supplement my income and I could not have done this without the encouragement and support of my customers and I wish to thank Brian for his endless words of encouragement and support. He encouraged me to leave Moxie when the working conditions turned to shit and he has encouraged me to study, not give up, and to "go for it" while I have tried to reinvent myself in the professional career market. I could not have done it without him.
I am looking forward to my new adventure both Professionally and Personally.
Tuesday, August 9, 2016
Knowing when enough is enough.
I have many conservative friends. Republicans, Independents, even some fiscally financial conservative Democrats. They are good people. They work hard. They own businesses, they are raising families or have already raised them and are trying to enjoy the time they have left. They are intelligent hard working businessmen and women. They choose to worship god diligently, privately, quietly, and some not at all. Along with unhappy Americans they have chosen to support Donald Trump in his quest for the Presidency.
Herein is where the problem lies.
Trump has tried to position himself as the peoples choice. The one who is outside of political influence and above being bought and paid for. He is the non establishment candidate. He has proven throughout his candidacy that he is unquestionably the non establishment candidate. He has polarized and brought out record numbers of new registered voters who were all hoping to believe in a candidate who would be different, and better than those same old choices from previous years. These new voter also ares smart, hard working young and old Americans who believe that this is one of the most important Presidential races of our time. These people have been insulted and treated horribly by those from the left who have supported Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. Not because they are bad people, but because they chose to support somebody from outside the proverbial box.
Herein is where the problem Lies.
Throughout this presidential race Donald Trump has on many times been too flamboyant, too loud, too rude, and too dis respectful to everyone who has dared to challenge him. I have to admit that I was a Trump supporter at the start. I also am smart enough to "hide and watch" until the race is drawing to and end before I cast my vote. The absolute tragedy about Donald Trump is that he was given the opportunity to do something truly good for this country. Truly good for the millions of new voters who have come out to support him. They have supported him faithfully throughout all his missteps. He has consistently stepped on them, ignored their questions, and insulted their intelligence. His comment today calling on some of his 2nd amendment friends to possibly take care of Hillary Clinton has gone too far. The insult to the supporters of the 2nd amendment is the biggest slap in the face of all. They are not violent assassins. They are also hard working law abiding tax paying citizens with a deep belief in the laws and constitution of this country. At this time he has become the single most embarrassing being that lives in America. He acts like the schoolyard bully who knocks down smaller and afflicted children just because he can because he hasnt been challenged in so long he believes that he cant be.
Its time to pull the plug on his 15 minutes of fame. Its time for once, as Americans that we all come together and find a way to remove this scourge from our country. He is not only insulting Hillary Clinton, he is insulting every one of us. Especially those who chose to support him and give him a chance based on his promise to provide change from the status quo. WE all deserve better than this. Not because of how we look in the eyes of the world. I dont give one shit about that. I am talking about having pride in American, respecting the election process and above all, doing the right thing. I dont know if we have to sign a petition, start a movement, March at his rally's whatever it takes its time he was shown the door and by the way dont let it hit you in the ass on the way out.
Herein is where the problem lies.
Trump has tried to position himself as the peoples choice. The one who is outside of political influence and above being bought and paid for. He is the non establishment candidate. He has proven throughout his candidacy that he is unquestionably the non establishment candidate. He has polarized and brought out record numbers of new registered voters who were all hoping to believe in a candidate who would be different, and better than those same old choices from previous years. These new voter also ares smart, hard working young and old Americans who believe that this is one of the most important Presidential races of our time. These people have been insulted and treated horribly by those from the left who have supported Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. Not because they are bad people, but because they chose to support somebody from outside the proverbial box.
Herein is where the problem Lies.
Throughout this presidential race Donald Trump has on many times been too flamboyant, too loud, too rude, and too dis respectful to everyone who has dared to challenge him. I have to admit that I was a Trump supporter at the start. I also am smart enough to "hide and watch" until the race is drawing to and end before I cast my vote. The absolute tragedy about Donald Trump is that he was given the opportunity to do something truly good for this country. Truly good for the millions of new voters who have come out to support him. They have supported him faithfully throughout all his missteps. He has consistently stepped on them, ignored their questions, and insulted their intelligence. His comment today calling on some of his 2nd amendment friends to possibly take care of Hillary Clinton has gone too far. The insult to the supporters of the 2nd amendment is the biggest slap in the face of all. They are not violent assassins. They are also hard working law abiding tax paying citizens with a deep belief in the laws and constitution of this country. At this time he has become the single most embarrassing being that lives in America. He acts like the schoolyard bully who knocks down smaller and afflicted children just because he can because he hasnt been challenged in so long he believes that he cant be.
Its time to pull the plug on his 15 minutes of fame. Its time for once, as Americans that we all come together and find a way to remove this scourge from our country. He is not only insulting Hillary Clinton, he is insulting every one of us. Especially those who chose to support him and give him a chance based on his promise to provide change from the status quo. WE all deserve better than this. Not because of how we look in the eyes of the world. I dont give one shit about that. I am talking about having pride in American, respecting the election process and above all, doing the right thing. I dont know if we have to sign a petition, start a movement, March at his rally's whatever it takes its time he was shown the door and by the way dont let it hit you in the ass on the way out.
Saturday, August 6, 2016
Some Clarification seems Necessary.
I am writing this post to present a little clarity on my views during this Presidential Election.
This has been a truly historic cycle of events. We have a completely unqualified Republican candidate who entered this race with a 1% chance of winning the Republican nomination. His campaign has brought record numbers of newly registered voters into the political process. Running on no platform at all except not being a political insider. One who bowed to party pressure before the GOP convention so that he could receive financial support from the RNC for the general election. Picking a vice presidential candidate who by any judge of human rights is a total failure. Trump has also agreed to represent a GOP party platform that specifically calls for supreme court appointments and reversal on hard fought for and earned civil rights in this country. Recently he has appointed a new spokeswoman who has openly campaigned against LGBT rights. Worst of all. He has become a total media maniac. They hang on his every word and report about what he says every minute of the day. I originally hoped that after the GOP convention he would show some human character traits and not continue to behave like a schoolyard bully who desperately needs to have the living shit kicked out of him. I dont know any household in the United States where anyone would be allowed to behave the way he does. Frankly its time somebody put a boot in his ass and their fist in his mouth and taught his some manners.
On the Democratic side we have had history making events as well. The First Woman nominated to a major political party. Also from one of the most political corrupt families in recent U.S. history. From her involvement in the Whitewater real estate scheme, The White house travel and transportation debacle, He daughter is married to the son whose father is serving 80 plus years in prison for one of the worlds largest ponzi schemes. Her newly appointed campaign manager, who also handled her first presidential bid, is implicated in the current DNC e mail hacking scandel. To her vice presidential pick who was in charge of the DNC is a devout christian who is just as bad in his own way as Mike Pence. He will give you all the rights you think you deserve all the while taking your money and giving it to those he feels are less fortunate than you, Clinton had to battle a self admitted Socialist who also brought millions of new voters to the election scene who have never voted before. Also selling out at the last minute to try and unify the party so that Trump could be defeated. Lets not even take the time to discuss the fact that she has taken money from foreign governments, and superpacs that are funded by countries that continue to brutally kill and oppress women, LGBT, and Religious minorities.
Everything about this election is purely politics as usual. The American public is getting screwed while the two major political parties ignore what the voters are telling them. This election is strictly about those old political parties fighting for their own agendas at the cost of the American public.
The LGBT community and the minorities believe that Trump is the Devil and Clinton is their savior. The scary thing is Trump doesnt care what people think, and Clinton will tell you anything as long as she wins your vote and the American people are too stupid or too lazy to see the obvious evidence that is right in front of their eyes.
What is very true about this election is that it will have historic importance on the make up of the Supreme Court of the future. The Supreme Court is in place to without bias interpret the laws as they are written and apply those laws without bias when cases are brought before them. Something that they find increasingly hard to do. There is already one empty seat and Judge Ginsberg cannot live forever. So the next elected President could very well appoint two Supreme Court justices that will shape the laws of this country for years to come. This is were the serious issue lie. I believe that both Trump and Hillary have shown evidence of the ability to be bought for the right amount of money as long as it helps them achieve their personal goals and agendas.
Unlike most Americans today. I am not happy with the way our country is headed and I think vast reforms are needed. I am not happy with the status quo, or the choices that are being forced upon us. When I post videos in support of equal rights for the LGBT community it is because that is one of the issues that concerns me. Trust me I am not supporting Clinton in any way. I also cannot bring myself to vote for Trump, a man who has openly sold out to the far right in charge of the Republican party. I will vote for the third party candidate Johnson. You may think it is a waste of a vote, but I choose to view it as a statement of how unhappy I am with this country and our two political parties in charge. If enough people vote maybe the powers that be will see that a vast number of Americans are not happy with the way things have been handled.
I assure you the platform that the far religious right has pushed through at the RNC, is just the beginning. They will push harder and spend money like they are printing it if Clinton is elected. We need to fight for equal rights, banking reform, manufacturing jobs,a fair health care system, fair tax laws, and fixing our educations system which is broken from top to bottom.
This has been a truly historic cycle of events. We have a completely unqualified Republican candidate who entered this race with a 1% chance of winning the Republican nomination. His campaign has brought record numbers of newly registered voters into the political process. Running on no platform at all except not being a political insider. One who bowed to party pressure before the GOP convention so that he could receive financial support from the RNC for the general election. Picking a vice presidential candidate who by any judge of human rights is a total failure. Trump has also agreed to represent a GOP party platform that specifically calls for supreme court appointments and reversal on hard fought for and earned civil rights in this country. Recently he has appointed a new spokeswoman who has openly campaigned against LGBT rights. Worst of all. He has become a total media maniac. They hang on his every word and report about what he says every minute of the day. I originally hoped that after the GOP convention he would show some human character traits and not continue to behave like a schoolyard bully who desperately needs to have the living shit kicked out of him. I dont know any household in the United States where anyone would be allowed to behave the way he does. Frankly its time somebody put a boot in his ass and their fist in his mouth and taught his some manners.
On the Democratic side we have had history making events as well. The First Woman nominated to a major political party. Also from one of the most political corrupt families in recent U.S. history. From her involvement in the Whitewater real estate scheme, The White house travel and transportation debacle, He daughter is married to the son whose father is serving 80 plus years in prison for one of the worlds largest ponzi schemes. Her newly appointed campaign manager, who also handled her first presidential bid, is implicated in the current DNC e mail hacking scandel. To her vice presidential pick who was in charge of the DNC is a devout christian who is just as bad in his own way as Mike Pence. He will give you all the rights you think you deserve all the while taking your money and giving it to those he feels are less fortunate than you, Clinton had to battle a self admitted Socialist who also brought millions of new voters to the election scene who have never voted before. Also selling out at the last minute to try and unify the party so that Trump could be defeated. Lets not even take the time to discuss the fact that she has taken money from foreign governments, and superpacs that are funded by countries that continue to brutally kill and oppress women, LGBT, and Religious minorities.
Everything about this election is purely politics as usual. The American public is getting screwed while the two major political parties ignore what the voters are telling them. This election is strictly about those old political parties fighting for their own agendas at the cost of the American public.
The LGBT community and the minorities believe that Trump is the Devil and Clinton is their savior. The scary thing is Trump doesnt care what people think, and Clinton will tell you anything as long as she wins your vote and the American people are too stupid or too lazy to see the obvious evidence that is right in front of their eyes.
What is very true about this election is that it will have historic importance on the make up of the Supreme Court of the future. The Supreme Court is in place to without bias interpret the laws as they are written and apply those laws without bias when cases are brought before them. Something that they find increasingly hard to do. There is already one empty seat and Judge Ginsberg cannot live forever. So the next elected President could very well appoint two Supreme Court justices that will shape the laws of this country for years to come. This is were the serious issue lie. I believe that both Trump and Hillary have shown evidence of the ability to be bought for the right amount of money as long as it helps them achieve their personal goals and agendas.
Unlike most Americans today. I am not happy with the way our country is headed and I think vast reforms are needed. I am not happy with the status quo, or the choices that are being forced upon us. When I post videos in support of equal rights for the LGBT community it is because that is one of the issues that concerns me. Trust me I am not supporting Clinton in any way. I also cannot bring myself to vote for Trump, a man who has openly sold out to the far right in charge of the Republican party. I will vote for the third party candidate Johnson. You may think it is a waste of a vote, but I choose to view it as a statement of how unhappy I am with this country and our two political parties in charge. If enough people vote maybe the powers that be will see that a vast number of Americans are not happy with the way things have been handled.
I assure you the platform that the far religious right has pushed through at the RNC, is just the beginning. They will push harder and spend money like they are printing it if Clinton is elected. We need to fight for equal rights, banking reform, manufacturing jobs,a fair health care system, fair tax laws, and fixing our educations system which is broken from top to bottom.
Saturday, July 30, 2016
Dear Mr. Trump
Dear Mr. Trump,
I am a 52 year old Arizonian. I am writing you this letter seeking clarification on your personal views on an issue that has become very important to me and millions of other Americans this election.
A little background. I have been a small business owner most of my life, or I have worked for other small business owners. Fiscal responsibility, tax equality, control of my own health care and retirement are all very important issues to me. Safety in my home, at a shopping mall, theater, NASCAR race, or any public venue has also become one of my priorities. When I became old enough to vote, I registered as a Republican and stayed that way until George Bush selectively allowed his religious beliefs to influence his decisions. I believe there is no place in any representative government elected by the people for religious influence. That was when I changed to become a registered Independent.
I don't need to tell you the 2016 Presidential election has been one of historical significance and the outcome will have a direct impact on our future and how the history of our country will be written. I don't feel Hillary Clinton is in any way an appropriate choice to run our country. Not because she isn't qualified, because she has shown a history of making conscience choices during her political career that are better for her than our country. Gary Johnson has some great policies and seems to be as qualified as anybody to lead our country, but you know as well as I that he has no chance to win the general election. That leads me to my dilemma, you see Mr. Trump. I am a 52 year old gay man.
Being raised by a Religiously and Politically conservative family from the mid-west in a home town of 1500 people posed some real issues for admitting that I was a gay man. No sane human being would chose to live a life this hard, a life this full of compromise, a life this full of deceit, a life this full of stress, and a life this full of fear this is no choice, I was born this way. Not only was I raised in a conservative family, I am still a very conservative individual, I have very conservative views and values. I am not big on gay pride celebrations or equal rights lawsuits. I take a more personal approach to influencing the people I meet and make as friends that the gay community is nothing to fear, and does not have and agenda that includes taking rights away from others.
I am not a fearful individual. I have been standing outside a gay bar in Louisville Kentucky when somebody drove by in a pickup and shot into the building. I have always believed that I am responsible for my own personal safety. With the growth of Isis, and radical Islamists and their infiltration throughout the world I am no longer so sure that I am completely in control of my own safety. I do not normally patronize gay bars. I never have been a big drinker and never made bars a big part of my life style. Since the shooting in Orlando I find myself very aware of the people around me, the exits, even who sits close to me at restaurants and who is coming in and out of the entrance.
What I am most afraid of though. Is that in the near future, if I am fortunate enough to get married to the 2nd great love of my life. I will come home one day and that marriage will no longer be valid. You see, when I met the first great love of my life, marriage was not legal in the United States. Sadly that relationship ended when my partner died from liver failure due to Alcoholism. 10 years later I have been lucky to find love again. Marriage is a huge step, a huge responsibility, a huge commitment. Not one to be taken lightly. My Parents, and Grandparents have been faithfully, successfully, and lovingly married for over 50 years. At my age, that's not likely, but I do intend to live a long healthy life, married to one partner. I would like to enjoy that marriage without fear that the religious right, and the Republican party will not take that right away from me.
So Mr Trump here is my question for you. I am a serious individual and its a serious question that I believe deserves an honest answer no matter what it is. What are your personal views on equality for the gay community? When you choose Mr Pence for Vice President and you represent the GOP Platform. Which states,
in the words of the late Justice Antonin Scalia, was a “judicial Putsch” — full of “silly extravagances” — that reduced “the disciplined legal reasoning of John Marshall and Joseph Storey to the mystical aphorisms of a fortune cookie.” In Obergefell, five unelected lawyers robbed 320 million Americans of their legitimate constitutional authority to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman
We pledge to defend the religious beliefs and rights of conscience of all Americans and to safeguard religious institutions against government control. We endorse the First Amendment Defense Act, Republican legislation in the House and Senate which will bar government discrimination against individuals and businesses for acting on the belief that marriage is the union of one man and one woman.
I fully realize that gay rights are honestly not even a blip on your radar with all the other items on your agenda if you become the next President of the United States. However knowing that does nothing to put my mind at ease. Or the minds of the 3.4 percent of Americans who identify themselves as LBGT. Thats basically 8 million Americans. It is estimated that 22 percent of those 8 million voters are registered Republicans or vote on the Republican side of the ticket.
We don't want preferential treatment. We just want to be treated as fairly as the rest of the population. We are Doctors and Lawyers, Teachers and Bankers, Athletes and Race Car drivers, Farmers and Ministers and we don't have an agenda that seeks to force our beliefs on any body else. We just want to be accepted and respected the way we are.
So Mr Trump please take a moment to address this issue with a direct answer for those of us that would like to know.
Sincerely,
Dan Klaudt
I am a 52 year old Arizonian. I am writing you this letter seeking clarification on your personal views on an issue that has become very important to me and millions of other Americans this election.
A little background. I have been a small business owner most of my life, or I have worked for other small business owners. Fiscal responsibility, tax equality, control of my own health care and retirement are all very important issues to me. Safety in my home, at a shopping mall, theater, NASCAR race, or any public venue has also become one of my priorities. When I became old enough to vote, I registered as a Republican and stayed that way until George Bush selectively allowed his religious beliefs to influence his decisions. I believe there is no place in any representative government elected by the people for religious influence. That was when I changed to become a registered Independent.
I don't need to tell you the 2016 Presidential election has been one of historical significance and the outcome will have a direct impact on our future and how the history of our country will be written. I don't feel Hillary Clinton is in any way an appropriate choice to run our country. Not because she isn't qualified, because she has shown a history of making conscience choices during her political career that are better for her than our country. Gary Johnson has some great policies and seems to be as qualified as anybody to lead our country, but you know as well as I that he has no chance to win the general election. That leads me to my dilemma, you see Mr. Trump. I am a 52 year old gay man.
Being raised by a Religiously and Politically conservative family from the mid-west in a home town of 1500 people posed some real issues for admitting that I was a gay man. No sane human being would chose to live a life this hard, a life this full of compromise, a life this full of deceit, a life this full of stress, and a life this full of fear this is no choice, I was born this way. Not only was I raised in a conservative family, I am still a very conservative individual, I have very conservative views and values. I am not big on gay pride celebrations or equal rights lawsuits. I take a more personal approach to influencing the people I meet and make as friends that the gay community is nothing to fear, and does not have and agenda that includes taking rights away from others.
I am not a fearful individual. I have been standing outside a gay bar in Louisville Kentucky when somebody drove by in a pickup and shot into the building. I have always believed that I am responsible for my own personal safety. With the growth of Isis, and radical Islamists and their infiltration throughout the world I am no longer so sure that I am completely in control of my own safety. I do not normally patronize gay bars. I never have been a big drinker and never made bars a big part of my life style. Since the shooting in Orlando I find myself very aware of the people around me, the exits, even who sits close to me at restaurants and who is coming in and out of the entrance.
What I am most afraid of though. Is that in the near future, if I am fortunate enough to get married to the 2nd great love of my life. I will come home one day and that marriage will no longer be valid. You see, when I met the first great love of my life, marriage was not legal in the United States. Sadly that relationship ended when my partner died from liver failure due to Alcoholism. 10 years later I have been lucky to find love again. Marriage is a huge step, a huge responsibility, a huge commitment. Not one to be taken lightly. My Parents, and Grandparents have been faithfully, successfully, and lovingly married for over 50 years. At my age, that's not likely, but I do intend to live a long healthy life, married to one partner. I would like to enjoy that marriage without fear that the religious right, and the Republican party will not take that right away from me.
So Mr Trump here is my question for you. I am a serious individual and its a serious question that I believe deserves an honest answer no matter what it is. What are your personal views on equality for the gay community? When you choose Mr Pence for Vice President and you represent the GOP Platform. Which states,
in the words of the late Justice Antonin Scalia, was a “judicial Putsch” — full of “silly extravagances” — that reduced “the disciplined legal reasoning of John Marshall and Joseph Storey to the mystical aphorisms of a fortune cookie.” In Obergefell, five unelected lawyers robbed 320 million Americans of their legitimate constitutional authority to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman
We pledge to defend the religious beliefs and rights of conscience of all Americans and to safeguard religious institutions against government control. We endorse the First Amendment Defense Act, Republican legislation in the House and Senate which will bar government discrimination against individuals and businesses for acting on the belief that marriage is the union of one man and one woman.
I fully realize that gay rights are honestly not even a blip on your radar with all the other items on your agenda if you become the next President of the United States. However knowing that does nothing to put my mind at ease. Or the minds of the 3.4 percent of Americans who identify themselves as LBGT. Thats basically 8 million Americans. It is estimated that 22 percent of those 8 million voters are registered Republicans or vote on the Republican side of the ticket.
We don't want preferential treatment. We just want to be treated as fairly as the rest of the population. We are Doctors and Lawyers, Teachers and Bankers, Athletes and Race Car drivers, Farmers and Ministers and we don't have an agenda that seeks to force our beliefs on any body else. We just want to be accepted and respected the way we are.
So Mr Trump please take a moment to address this issue with a direct answer for those of us that would like to know.
Sincerely,
Dan Klaudt
Friday, July 22, 2016
An example of sheer stupidity.
I have watched the video of the recent police shooting in Miami, You can clearly hear the victim saying the guy has autism, he has a toy truck and not a gun and there is no danger. This is from a video that is taken a further distance away that the police officers were. I have stayed pretty much out of the black lives matter, blue lives matter discussion because frankly I think most of that is bullshit.
This instance though is different. A non English speaking, deaf, mute, monkey can CLEARLY see there is no need for gunfire. NONE. The North Miami Dade Police Union is a glaring, Let me say that again GLARING example of what is wrong with police unions today.
"Fearing for Mr. Kinsey's life, the officer discharged his firearm, trying to save Mr. Kinsey's life," says John Rivera, president of the Dade County Police Benevolent Association. "And he missed, and accidentally struck Mr. Kinsey."
Saying it was an accident and the officer meant to shoot the Autistic man is an example of just how little common sense, oversight, and how over reaching the police unions are. This is an instance when the police union and the City of North Miami should throw that officer under the bus. He should be blamed, Held accountable, fired, charged whatever it takes to make him pursue another vocation.
We as the general public rely on the Police departments to hire sane, intelligent, strong, safe individuals who can keep us safe. That was not a split second decision. the video was several minutes long, you can here them discussing what to do with the victim. If the officer is not sane enough, smart enough, or anything else he should never have had a gun, been in that situation, or been hired by the police force to begin with .
I realize this will be an unpopular opinion, I fully understand and support law enforcement in general having several friends that are involved in law enforcement. Trust me they have my utmost trust, respect and support. This instance requires us to place blame squarely where it lies.
The Victim in this instance was FULLY complying with what the officers asked of him. He wasn't running from a crime, he wasn't pulled over for a driving violation and acting like a smart ass, he has no record, he was not armed he was holding up his hands, being compliant and begging not to be shot.
In this single instance the victim is allowed any and all reparations that he can get.
The city of Miami, the Police Union, The officer should get their checkbooks out and their pens ready.
This instance though is different. A non English speaking, deaf, mute, monkey can CLEARLY see there is no need for gunfire. NONE. The North Miami Dade Police Union is a glaring, Let me say that again GLARING example of what is wrong with police unions today.
"Fearing for Mr. Kinsey's life, the officer discharged his firearm, trying to save Mr. Kinsey's life," says John Rivera, president of the Dade County Police Benevolent Association. "And he missed, and accidentally struck Mr. Kinsey."
Saying it was an accident and the officer meant to shoot the Autistic man is an example of just how little common sense, oversight, and how over reaching the police unions are. This is an instance when the police union and the City of North Miami should throw that officer under the bus. He should be blamed, Held accountable, fired, charged whatever it takes to make him pursue another vocation.
We as the general public rely on the Police departments to hire sane, intelligent, strong, safe individuals who can keep us safe. That was not a split second decision. the video was several minutes long, you can here them discussing what to do with the victim. If the officer is not sane enough, smart enough, or anything else he should never have had a gun, been in that situation, or been hired by the police force to begin with .
I realize this will be an unpopular opinion, I fully understand and support law enforcement in general having several friends that are involved in law enforcement. Trust me they have my utmost trust, respect and support. This instance requires us to place blame squarely where it lies.
The Victim in this instance was FULLY complying with what the officers asked of him. He wasn't running from a crime, he wasn't pulled over for a driving violation and acting like a smart ass, he has no record, he was not armed he was holding up his hands, being compliant and begging not to be shot.
In this single instance the victim is allowed any and all reparations that he can get.
The city of Miami, the Police Union, The officer should get their checkbooks out and their pens ready.
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
Disgusting Americans
I mistakenly thought that with the primary season over, The powers that be would try and settle into some sort of dignified attempt to conduct the election with some sort of class.
I couldn't have been more wrong. A group of old guard Republicans had to try and take over the convention and force another candidate on the voters who voted for Donald Trump. If you needed a reason to abandon the Republican party you needed to look no further. I know one of those delegates personally who wanted to replace Trump. Like him or not. Trump earned more votes that any or all of the rest of the candidates combined. Your arrogant view that you as delegates know best and should appoint another candidate makes me sick and is a prime example of what is wrong with the Republican party today. Your simple and insulting belief that you know better and you will force your beliefs on the rest of them. You are not fit to be a delegate and should be removed from your position.
So Trump chose a running mate that is viciously against gay rights. That's a problem. Its also a problem that Clinton takes Billions of dollars from countries in the middle east that persecute homosexuals daily. So does the RNC. That is a fight that we will have to wage until the end of time. There will come a day when we will have to march with dignity in the streets of this nation to keep the rights that some courageous few have fought so hard for us to get. Our right to marry wasn't won because we fought for it, It wasn't won because Obama supported it. It was one because 6 courageous couples joined forces and took the fight for marriage rights to the supreme court. It started years before that when Florida Governor Lawton Chiles refused to sign the 1997 defense of marriage act. Both parties are the same on gay rights. They give it lip service when it serves their cause. As long as the religious right exists in this country, we will have to fight for gay rights Not preferential treatment, Equal rights.
What appalls me the most is the gay communities vicious assault on Melania Trump. It almost leaves me speechless. She was born in Communist Slovenia, if any of you think that was so easy go there for a while and report back how that works for you. She found a way out by being a model and posed naked for a photo shoot in European GQ. So what. I applaud your judging her for it, but by all means then don't be upset when people judge you for your bedroom activities, for marching with your cocks and asses hanging out in gay pride parades, for riding in the back of pickups simulating fetish sex. We all know that is a much more dignified activity than posing naked while your working as a model. Even gay I would rather see a naked Melania Trump than a 400 lb man wearing nothing but a rainbow colored jock.
The way I see it we have no good choice in the election. They both lie, they both steal. and they take money from sources that are not in our best interests. The third choice. The libertarian from New Mexico is brilliant and would make an awesome president and doesn't stand a snow balls chance in hell of getting elected. Most of you don't even know who his is or what he stands for.
I couldn't have been more wrong. A group of old guard Republicans had to try and take over the convention and force another candidate on the voters who voted for Donald Trump. If you needed a reason to abandon the Republican party you needed to look no further. I know one of those delegates personally who wanted to replace Trump. Like him or not. Trump earned more votes that any or all of the rest of the candidates combined. Your arrogant view that you as delegates know best and should appoint another candidate makes me sick and is a prime example of what is wrong with the Republican party today. Your simple and insulting belief that you know better and you will force your beliefs on the rest of them. You are not fit to be a delegate and should be removed from your position.
So Trump chose a running mate that is viciously against gay rights. That's a problem. Its also a problem that Clinton takes Billions of dollars from countries in the middle east that persecute homosexuals daily. So does the RNC. That is a fight that we will have to wage until the end of time. There will come a day when we will have to march with dignity in the streets of this nation to keep the rights that some courageous few have fought so hard for us to get. Our right to marry wasn't won because we fought for it, It wasn't won because Obama supported it. It was one because 6 courageous couples joined forces and took the fight for marriage rights to the supreme court. It started years before that when Florida Governor Lawton Chiles refused to sign the 1997 defense of marriage act. Both parties are the same on gay rights. They give it lip service when it serves their cause. As long as the religious right exists in this country, we will have to fight for gay rights Not preferential treatment, Equal rights.
What appalls me the most is the gay communities vicious assault on Melania Trump. It almost leaves me speechless. She was born in Communist Slovenia, if any of you think that was so easy go there for a while and report back how that works for you. She found a way out by being a model and posed naked for a photo shoot in European GQ. So what. I applaud your judging her for it, but by all means then don't be upset when people judge you for your bedroom activities, for marching with your cocks and asses hanging out in gay pride parades, for riding in the back of pickups simulating fetish sex. We all know that is a much more dignified activity than posing naked while your working as a model. Even gay I would rather see a naked Melania Trump than a 400 lb man wearing nothing but a rainbow colored jock.
The way I see it we have no good choice in the election. They both lie, they both steal. and they take money from sources that are not in our best interests. The third choice. The libertarian from New Mexico is brilliant and would make an awesome president and doesn't stand a snow balls chance in hell of getting elected. Most of you don't even know who his is or what he stands for.
Wednesday, June 29, 2016
Are we really fighting for equality, or just whining and letting somebody else do the hard work.
The shootings in Orlando and the reactions from various people around the country has had me thinking for the last week. The posted reaction from politicians, some clergy, the Pope, and the gay community itself seem to be all over the board. Those of you who choose to read this will have to bare in mind that it's my own opinion and I don't expect you to agree with it. Frankly I actually care very little what most of you think. Some of you will express opinions that agree or disagree, How much credence that I give each opinion depends only on one thing. How much I value you as a human. I'll admit right now I know some of you enough and the answer is damn little.
WE as a gay community demand gay rights. Supposedly we want to be treated just like everybody else. We want legal benefits and rights. We want the same treatment economically, the same rights to bathrooms and wedding cakes and the list seems to be unending.
WELL IF THATS TRUE, THEN WE NEED TO START BEHAVING LIKE WE DESERVE THOSE RIGHTS. Marching in a gay pride parade, dressed in fetish wear is not the answer. Wearing only a rainbow colored jock and riding on a float with a bunch of drag queens carrying a sign saying "We are with you Orlando" is not the answer. A gay pride parade has not one thing to do with marching for gay rights. Its strictly an event for self expression. If you can prove me correct then somebody please cite an example. Its not marching for solidarity, I didn't hear anyone chanting "gay lives matter". Citing the feeling of safety because the local police had to show up in force and patrol trying to head off any violence is not demanding equal rights. Equal rights under the law maybe, but frankly that's a piece of paper that is worthless unless in the eyes of the world we are just as normal as everyone else. Every time we hide in the closet we are allowing prejudice, Every time we sneak into a bathroom because we are transgender we are allowing prejudice, When we form our own sports leagues, and gay Olympics, and car clubs etc. we are allowing prejudice and segregating ourselves. I myself am guilty of these types of actions. I tried to hide my sexuality most of my life, from my Parents, my family, my friends, business associates you name it. Its easier to lie about it by omission than to be brave and face the consequences by just being honest. You see at this age I am tired of the struggle. I don't attend gay pride events. Not because I am ashamed of being gay. I gave that up years ago. Because that type of behavior disgusts me. I don't want to watch a gay man hump his boyfriends leg, anymore than I want to watch a straight man hump his wife's leg. I don't want to attend a parade for nudists any more that I want to attend a gay pride parade. The scenery at both is equally disgusting and usually in poor taste. I don't want to parade around the streets advertising what I do in the privacy of my own home, and I don't want to know what you do in yours, and what the hell do you want the police and the government knowing as well.
Don't bother to argue that gay pride events are used as fund raisers in support of the gay community. Yes in some small part that is true. Tragically the amount of money raised at those events is usually embarrassingly small. Less that ten thousand dollars for a pride parade the size of Phoenix's, Less than two dollars for everyone participation. Cheap Bastards. There are some truly wonderful individuals in Phoenix that dedicate time, energy, and money to causes, and you can count them on one hand.
Basically what I am saying is that if we as a community want to be treated equally, then its time we start acting like we deserve it. We need to start doing our part. Time to mobilize, and march in unison when an injustice is done. If you are transgender and need to piss. Don't make a federal case about it. Just walk in and use the bathroom of your choice. Trust me some people may talk but the majority of them wont give a shit. We need to show up in force when the Westborough Baptist Church decides to protest. They always announce their intentions and frankly they are not one bit afraid of the gay community. The minister that was assaulted by the young girl last week should have been assaulted by many other gays as well. He earned it. He deserved it. Maybe if somebody clocks him upside the head with a bat everytime he spews his hatred he will learn to keep his ignorant mouth shut. Elected officials that make public statements that are disparaging to gays need to hear from us, through phone calls, emails and even marching to the courthouse or wherever his local offices are. We are too passive. We can get married and we do it at private homes or the justice of the peace or by some county official. Hell have a wedding, rent a venue, order a cake, have a reception and demand to enjoy the ceremony just like anyone else would. Put on suits, look like the responsible people that we are and attend political functions demanding attention by our actions and our voices. We are not a stupid group. We are intelligent, and we have valid opinions and beliefs and we have become far too passive.
I have become far to passive myself. From now on if I get caught up in the emotion and I want to reach across the table and touch my partners hand at a nice restaurant for dinner I am going to. Everybody already thinks to men at a romantic dinner are gay anyway. Time to show how proud we are of our partners and that we love them just like everybody else does. I am sitting at Starbucks listening to two Indian immigrants speaking in their native language. They have more rights than we do and I was born here.
WE as a gay community demand gay rights. Supposedly we want to be treated just like everybody else. We want legal benefits and rights. We want the same treatment economically, the same rights to bathrooms and wedding cakes and the list seems to be unending.
WELL IF THATS TRUE, THEN WE NEED TO START BEHAVING LIKE WE DESERVE THOSE RIGHTS. Marching in a gay pride parade, dressed in fetish wear is not the answer. Wearing only a rainbow colored jock and riding on a float with a bunch of drag queens carrying a sign saying "We are with you Orlando" is not the answer. A gay pride parade has not one thing to do with marching for gay rights. Its strictly an event for self expression. If you can prove me correct then somebody please cite an example. Its not marching for solidarity, I didn't hear anyone chanting "gay lives matter". Citing the feeling of safety because the local police had to show up in force and patrol trying to head off any violence is not demanding equal rights. Equal rights under the law maybe, but frankly that's a piece of paper that is worthless unless in the eyes of the world we are just as normal as everyone else. Every time we hide in the closet we are allowing prejudice, Every time we sneak into a bathroom because we are transgender we are allowing prejudice, When we form our own sports leagues, and gay Olympics, and car clubs etc. we are allowing prejudice and segregating ourselves. I myself am guilty of these types of actions. I tried to hide my sexuality most of my life, from my Parents, my family, my friends, business associates you name it. Its easier to lie about it by omission than to be brave and face the consequences by just being honest. You see at this age I am tired of the struggle. I don't attend gay pride events. Not because I am ashamed of being gay. I gave that up years ago. Because that type of behavior disgusts me. I don't want to watch a gay man hump his boyfriends leg, anymore than I want to watch a straight man hump his wife's leg. I don't want to attend a parade for nudists any more that I want to attend a gay pride parade. The scenery at both is equally disgusting and usually in poor taste. I don't want to parade around the streets advertising what I do in the privacy of my own home, and I don't want to know what you do in yours, and what the hell do you want the police and the government knowing as well.
Don't bother to argue that gay pride events are used as fund raisers in support of the gay community. Yes in some small part that is true. Tragically the amount of money raised at those events is usually embarrassingly small. Less that ten thousand dollars for a pride parade the size of Phoenix's, Less than two dollars for everyone participation. Cheap Bastards. There are some truly wonderful individuals in Phoenix that dedicate time, energy, and money to causes, and you can count them on one hand.
Basically what I am saying is that if we as a community want to be treated equally, then its time we start acting like we deserve it. We need to start doing our part. Time to mobilize, and march in unison when an injustice is done. If you are transgender and need to piss. Don't make a federal case about it. Just walk in and use the bathroom of your choice. Trust me some people may talk but the majority of them wont give a shit. We need to show up in force when the Westborough Baptist Church decides to protest. They always announce their intentions and frankly they are not one bit afraid of the gay community. The minister that was assaulted by the young girl last week should have been assaulted by many other gays as well. He earned it. He deserved it. Maybe if somebody clocks him upside the head with a bat everytime he spews his hatred he will learn to keep his ignorant mouth shut. Elected officials that make public statements that are disparaging to gays need to hear from us, through phone calls, emails and even marching to the courthouse or wherever his local offices are. We are too passive. We can get married and we do it at private homes or the justice of the peace or by some county official. Hell have a wedding, rent a venue, order a cake, have a reception and demand to enjoy the ceremony just like anyone else would. Put on suits, look like the responsible people that we are and attend political functions demanding attention by our actions and our voices. We are not a stupid group. We are intelligent, and we have valid opinions and beliefs and we have become far too passive.
I have become far to passive myself. From now on if I get caught up in the emotion and I want to reach across the table and touch my partners hand at a nice restaurant for dinner I am going to. Everybody already thinks to men at a romantic dinner are gay anyway. Time to show how proud we are of our partners and that we love them just like everybody else does. I am sitting at Starbucks listening to two Indian immigrants speaking in their native language. They have more rights than we do and I was born here.
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
The Apathy of the Educated.
I have to say I like Facebook. I believe at its inception it was based as a noble way to disseminate information to the masses and connect large groups of individuals. In my case it has allowed me to get in touch with friends from the past, family, keep in touch with people from parts of the country where I used to live, and I use it to publish some of my blogs and opinions. The part of Facebook that I find incredibly distasteful deals with the negativity and ignorance on display every day. I am going to use this blog to cite some examples that irritate me the most.
Lets start with the total lack of respect shown to our political candidates. When I was growing up there were political pundits, they drew cartoons and wrote editorials about their disdain for the candidates, but they were harmless and respectful as well. This new era of saying the most vile things about our politicians it disgusting. I have to admit I have been pretty hard on a few of them myself. Usually having the facts to back up my opinion. But I don't say vulgar things, or personal things about any candidate. Let me be clear. I don't think either of our choices are qualified to be President of the United States. Making critical posts about ones wife's ass, how tackily they dress, their ignorance, are just among a few of the less disparaging points. This serves no purpose but to bring the country down, and make us look ignorant in the eyes of the world. Which frankly I don't care about.
Next. Some of you know I recently quit my job. I have at age 52 started studying again so that I can change the direction of my life. Do you think I like that. Hell no, but I am a realist and the way things are in the present world I need to change myself so that I can produce the income that I am accustomed to. By the way. I am paying for it myself. No loans, no grants, no free education because I want a better job. I am responsible for the choices that I make and If I want to change my life then I should pay for it. Not the government or anybody else. If you went to school and you got a student loan then you should pay for it. If you graduated from high school in this country you are smart enough to read the ads for jobs on craigslist or the various internet sites Career Builder etc and see what the average salaries are. Do the math and figure out that if they are offering $10.00 per hour for jobs in your chosen field. Then when you graduate with $80.k in student loan debt you have no way to pay for it. I made $15.00 / hour as an operations manager for a small flooring distributor. I did not leave because I was unhappy with my salary. I left because one of my bosses was a rat bastard. I was responsible for moving $200K worth of product through our warehouse a month. I did the ordering, the receiving, the shipping etc. I was good at my job and proud of the work I did. The average starting wage for an operations manager in phoenix is around $11.00 per hour. When I hear the argument that fast food workers deserve a minimum wage of $15.00 per hour it really pisses me off. Especially when their percentage rate of getting my order correct is about 30%. Jobs in that realm were meant to be part time jobs to teach young adults how to work. They were never meant to support a family. Its not my fault that you were privileged when you grew up and you made it all the way through college and never held down a job. I pity you because chances are you are going to fail at your first few. Somehow we turned into a society of minimums. We do the minimum to get by at work, at school and most of us as humans to get by. Those same people who produce so little demand absolute perfection of others. Well my advice to you is go fuck yourself. Pay should be based on job performance.
The last think I am going to address is the shooing in the gay club in Orlando. Personally I don't care the shooter was a Muslim. I am not surprised that he was, but frankly I have been waiting for it to happen. I read a post on Facebook Monday where the author asked why is there no unity in the gay community, Why aren't they marching for equal rights like the blacks did. Good question. A pride parade is not a show of unity in the eyes of the world. It is no better than a circus freak show. I watched news coverage the day after the massacre on the pride parade in Los Angeles and one of the floats they featured showed some 400# man wearing nothing but a pride painted jock. If you think that is showing one ounce of respect for the victims you are just as disgusting as he is. Pride parades have nothing to do with solidarity, they are simply a venue for everybody to show some sort of self expression. At a straight bar two years ago after the pride event was over. One of the gay patrons was wearing a thong with an erect penis. He was the only one dressed that way. This particular pride event is held in a small town. Very respectful, the town comes out to celebrate it. It is the only pride event that I have ever attended. I asked him why he was behaving that way and dressed so inappropriately and his response was "because I can". That is the perfect example of what's wrong with the gay community. As much as you think that its about your rights and your freedoms and protections under the law you couldn't be more wrong. When you wanted to be treated just like everybody else, same laws, same protections "Equal Rights", then its your responsibility to behave like everybody else as well. Just because same sex marriage is legal now doesn't mean that you have reached equality and most of you think you have. Not to mention how little respect that you show for the people who have fought those battles for you. Let me give you a little insight about how equal you really are. I have been gay all my life. I may not have known it when I was younger, but I knew I was different. I had teachers, coaches, classmates all question it before I even understood what gay was. Men at restaurants used to stare at me when I was in high school, I didn't know why. When I figured it out I stayed in the closet for a long time. I have been in Topeka Kansas when the Westborough Baptist Church was protesting carrying their God Hates Fags and Aid's is God's punishment for Fags. Did it hurt. I would be lying if I said it didn't. I was standing outside a gay bar in Louisville KY one evening when a pickup drove by and sprayed the building with bullets. Nobody wanted to call the police because they didn't want to bring any undue attention to the "Gay Bar". I have to admit right now that I am more in love with my boyfriend than I ever have been. I view this as my last chance to have the kind of relationship that I have wanted my whole life. I came close once. At my age I probably wont get another. Someday I plan to marry this man. It is legal today to be married to another man, I thought I would never see that day. Can I walk down the street holding his hand and feel equal, NO, can we sit on the court house lawn in Prescott eating ice cream and can I lean over and kiss him, NO, can we check into a nice motel and have the desk clerk not ask if we would rather have two beds, NO. Just in case you are gay and haven't figured it out yet. You are not equal. We need to continue the fight, we need to be diligent, we need to act like respectful human beings and march for solidarity. We need to show up on the state capital steps in groups dressed as the lawyers, realtors, doctors, dentists, carpenters, mechanics, and operation managers that we are and demand to be treated as the equals we are. How about a million fag march to Washington is anyone willing to do that. It hasn't happened yet. The participants at the Stonewall riots must be sadly disappointed at how little movement has been made since they made those original sacrifices.
Lets start with the total lack of respect shown to our political candidates. When I was growing up there were political pundits, they drew cartoons and wrote editorials about their disdain for the candidates, but they were harmless and respectful as well. This new era of saying the most vile things about our politicians it disgusting. I have to admit I have been pretty hard on a few of them myself. Usually having the facts to back up my opinion. But I don't say vulgar things, or personal things about any candidate. Let me be clear. I don't think either of our choices are qualified to be President of the United States. Making critical posts about ones wife's ass, how tackily they dress, their ignorance, are just among a few of the less disparaging points. This serves no purpose but to bring the country down, and make us look ignorant in the eyes of the world. Which frankly I don't care about.
Next. Some of you know I recently quit my job. I have at age 52 started studying again so that I can change the direction of my life. Do you think I like that. Hell no, but I am a realist and the way things are in the present world I need to change myself so that I can produce the income that I am accustomed to. By the way. I am paying for it myself. No loans, no grants, no free education because I want a better job. I am responsible for the choices that I make and If I want to change my life then I should pay for it. Not the government or anybody else. If you went to school and you got a student loan then you should pay for it. If you graduated from high school in this country you are smart enough to read the ads for jobs on craigslist or the various internet sites Career Builder etc and see what the average salaries are. Do the math and figure out that if they are offering $10.00 per hour for jobs in your chosen field. Then when you graduate with $80.k in student loan debt you have no way to pay for it. I made $15.00 / hour as an operations manager for a small flooring distributor. I did not leave because I was unhappy with my salary. I left because one of my bosses was a rat bastard. I was responsible for moving $200K worth of product through our warehouse a month. I did the ordering, the receiving, the shipping etc. I was good at my job and proud of the work I did. The average starting wage for an operations manager in phoenix is around $11.00 per hour. When I hear the argument that fast food workers deserve a minimum wage of $15.00 per hour it really pisses me off. Especially when their percentage rate of getting my order correct is about 30%. Jobs in that realm were meant to be part time jobs to teach young adults how to work. They were never meant to support a family. Its not my fault that you were privileged when you grew up and you made it all the way through college and never held down a job. I pity you because chances are you are going to fail at your first few. Somehow we turned into a society of minimums. We do the minimum to get by at work, at school and most of us as humans to get by. Those same people who produce so little demand absolute perfection of others. Well my advice to you is go fuck yourself. Pay should be based on job performance.
The last think I am going to address is the shooing in the gay club in Orlando. Personally I don't care the shooter was a Muslim. I am not surprised that he was, but frankly I have been waiting for it to happen. I read a post on Facebook Monday where the author asked why is there no unity in the gay community, Why aren't they marching for equal rights like the blacks did. Good question. A pride parade is not a show of unity in the eyes of the world. It is no better than a circus freak show. I watched news coverage the day after the massacre on the pride parade in Los Angeles and one of the floats they featured showed some 400# man wearing nothing but a pride painted jock. If you think that is showing one ounce of respect for the victims you are just as disgusting as he is. Pride parades have nothing to do with solidarity, they are simply a venue for everybody to show some sort of self expression. At a straight bar two years ago after the pride event was over. One of the gay patrons was wearing a thong with an erect penis. He was the only one dressed that way. This particular pride event is held in a small town. Very respectful, the town comes out to celebrate it. It is the only pride event that I have ever attended. I asked him why he was behaving that way and dressed so inappropriately and his response was "because I can". That is the perfect example of what's wrong with the gay community. As much as you think that its about your rights and your freedoms and protections under the law you couldn't be more wrong. When you wanted to be treated just like everybody else, same laws, same protections "Equal Rights", then its your responsibility to behave like everybody else as well. Just because same sex marriage is legal now doesn't mean that you have reached equality and most of you think you have. Not to mention how little respect that you show for the people who have fought those battles for you. Let me give you a little insight about how equal you really are. I have been gay all my life. I may not have known it when I was younger, but I knew I was different. I had teachers, coaches, classmates all question it before I even understood what gay was. Men at restaurants used to stare at me when I was in high school, I didn't know why. When I figured it out I stayed in the closet for a long time. I have been in Topeka Kansas when the Westborough Baptist Church was protesting carrying their God Hates Fags and Aid's is God's punishment for Fags. Did it hurt. I would be lying if I said it didn't. I was standing outside a gay bar in Louisville KY one evening when a pickup drove by and sprayed the building with bullets. Nobody wanted to call the police because they didn't want to bring any undue attention to the "Gay Bar". I have to admit right now that I am more in love with my boyfriend than I ever have been. I view this as my last chance to have the kind of relationship that I have wanted my whole life. I came close once. At my age I probably wont get another. Someday I plan to marry this man. It is legal today to be married to another man, I thought I would never see that day. Can I walk down the street holding his hand and feel equal, NO, can we sit on the court house lawn in Prescott eating ice cream and can I lean over and kiss him, NO, can we check into a nice motel and have the desk clerk not ask if we would rather have two beds, NO. Just in case you are gay and haven't figured it out yet. You are not equal. We need to continue the fight, we need to be diligent, we need to act like respectful human beings and march for solidarity. We need to show up on the state capital steps in groups dressed as the lawyers, realtors, doctors, dentists, carpenters, mechanics, and operation managers that we are and demand to be treated as the equals we are. How about a million fag march to Washington is anyone willing to do that. It hasn't happened yet. The participants at the Stonewall riots must be sadly disappointed at how little movement has been made since they made those original sacrifices.
Wednesday, May 25, 2016
Transitions.
I hate Transitions. I thought that when I stumbled through the last big change in my life, it would be the last one. But as I evolve as a human. I have realized that sometimes change is inevitable and required to move forward with ones life. Many of you have noticed that I have made some drastic changes in the last few months. I left my partner because I was unhappy with the direction that our lives were going, and I quit a job that I really liked because I could no longer handle the Bi Polar nature of one of my bosses and his readiness to volley verbal abuse at me when he was having a bad day. I've had to endure enough undeserved verbal abuse in my life and frankly, I am too old to put up with that shit anymore. If your going to lose your shit with me you better be in the right. So the job search continues. I have one offer on the table and I have 1 week to make up my mind. I know, beggars cant be choosey but suddenly I think I deserve some choices. I can hold out a little longer and maybe a golden opportunity will come along.
As far as my relationship. A good friend of mine and customer used to tell me "life is simple, if you are unhappy, you make a change" Well as you can see I made a big one. I am sorry about any collateral damage, but WTF was I thinking in the first place anyway. Sometimes no attention at all is better that the attention you are getting. Thats a hard choice to make.
Anyway, off to bigger and better things.
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