The Other View

We have all had a few true friends....!!

A true friend in life is a rare opportunity...... We are all blessed with a few and some of us are given the opportunity to have more than others..... A true friend always looks out for you..... Will help you out when you get in a jam..... Knows right from wrong and will make sure that you walk on the right side of life and speaks out when you don't...... Instills values in you and sets examples by deeds and actions..... Always has time to spend with you and keeps your time occupied......  And no matter how strong the dissagreement will always love you and be willing to forgive you....... Well last night I lost such a friend..... The man that taught me how to hunt and fish...... How to work on cars...... How to farm....... The importance of God....... And the most important thing in life....(Manners)......  The values of one great man will live on in nine kids and many grandkids and great grandkids..... Dad would have been 84 in December.....

May he rest in peace.......

I thought I used to park here....!!

Have you seen your garage latey ? ..... Can you remember what the floor of your basememt looks like ? ....... Do you know how far it is to the back wall in your shed ? ..... Would you consider your house neat as a pin, lived in, or totally cluttered ? ......  I've  been selling houses for around 15 years and  have seen many examples of all three .....  In some cases it's quite obvious that we are mammals and related to  animals that like to collect things ...... Some would call us pack rats ...... I would  classify myself to be in the lived in catagory ..... Love to have my tools and my toys but  try to keep them dusted off and somewhat organized ........ Never did like a place too neat and never could really tolerate clutter........ But if you go to the link below you will see a garage that was put to a  different and bizarre use ...... This guy has to get the unique garage award and probably the neatest old guy ever to all the kids...... Click on this link.....

http://mfile.akamai.com/10676/wmv/ondemandwm.chumtv
.co
m/conventional/barrie/achannel/2008/01/jan2808-rinkhs.a

sx

How much junk  is in your trunk and how many toys are in the attic.....??

Some things you can't live without....!!

Today has proved to be one of the most educational days I have ever lived..... As most know I have dealt with chest pain and numbness in my arm and neck for some time now.....  Today I went in to have a Cardio  Cath test performed......  It is the test of all tests when it comes to the heart..... It is a scarry procedure but not too bad as far as pain..... It takes a camera through the groin and into the main blood stream inside your heart and closely examines all of the bloodlines.. The only real discomfort is when they shoot the dye inside your heart....It makes your ears very hot...  I am happy to report that I have no blockage and the doctor said that my heart is beating strong..... The fellow that was in the  room before me was not as lucky..... He was taken off the table and sent straight to surgery for open heart surgery..... But God was actually smiling on him today for this saved his life since the ticking time bomb was detected in time..... Then after my procedure  in recovery  I recieved a call that a friend that I had just sat and talked to yesterday while enjoying a glass of wine was found dead this morning in his garden..... I am assuming that he had a heart attack...... Then I started to wonder if this test might have saved his life...... Had he  any symptons that he may have ignored ?.... There are so many walking around that are getting warnings and are in denial...... The heart is something that needs to be checked if there is any doubt...... The life you save will be your own........

Have you had a good checkup lately......??

An oldie but a goodie....!!

What catagory do you fall under..??

Politics Explained

FEUDALISM: You have two cows. Your lord takes some of the milk.

PURE SOCIALISM: You have two cows. The government takes them and puts them in a barn with everyone else's cows. You have to take care of all of the cows. The government gives you as much milk as you need.

BUREAUCRATIC SOCIALISM: You have two cows. The government takes them and put them in a barn with everyone else's cows. They are cared for by ex-chicken farmers. You have to take care of the chickens the government took from the chicken farmers. The government gives you as much milk and eggs as the regulations say you need.

FASCISM: You have two cows. The government takes both, hires you to take care of them and sells you the milk.

PURE COMMUNISM: You have two cows. Your neighbors help you take care of them, and you all share the milk.

RUSSIAN COMMUNISM: You have two cows. You have to take care of them, but the government takes all the milk.

CAMBODIAN COMMUNISM: You have two cows. The government takes both of them and shoots you.

DICTATORSHIP: You have two cows. The government takes both and drafts you.

PURE DEMOCRACY: You have two cows. Your neighbors decide who gets the milk.

REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY: You have two cows. Your neighbors pick someone to tell you who gets the milk.

BUREAUCRACY: You have two cows. At first the government regulates what you can feed them and when you can milk them. Then it pays you not to milk them. Then it takes both, shoots one, milks the other and pours the milk down the drain. Then it requires you to fill out forms accounting for the missing cows.

PURE ANARCHY: You have two cows. Either you sell the milk at a fair price or your neighbors try to take the cows and kill you.

LIBERTARIAN/ANARCHO-CAPITALISM: You have two cows. You sell one and buy a bull.

SURREALISM: You have two giraffes. The government requires you to take harmonica lessons.

(Original source unknown . . . this version expanded and Illuminated by SJ.)

People do still care......!!

Fundraisers for people in need have been going on longer than any of us have been alive...... Last night my wife and son attended a trivia contest fundraiser for a small child that had been dealt a really bad hand in life....... She won the contest and donated the prize money back to the little guy..... She did keep the two bottles of fine wine that came along with the prize.... ( atta girl )...... Last night I played a free gig at Trout Lodge for a lot of kids, family of these kids and others that also have been dealt really horrible hands in life....... But for one magic night this free weekend and party on the dock at the edge of a magnificent lake took all the cares and worries off of their faces and replaced them with smiles...... They danced the night away..... This was all made possible by 4 hard working gals that raise money year round to pay for this event..... They are what I call a true charity..... Not a big orgazination whose overhead eats up contributions ..... High paid execs are like sharks that go on a feeding frenzy once they are used to a fat paycheck paid out of donations...... I prefer to keep my charitable contributions local and to a small group..... I usually play music for 6 or 7 of these benefits per year and at each one there is this strange feeling that God is right there with us...... I will only participate in what I deem a true charity........ God will only help those who can't help themselves........

What's the biggest fundraiser you've attended..??

I wish we could bundle everything....!!

Spending a good part of my day at the cardiologist yesterday got me to thinking..... What else did I have to do sitting there in a little room waiting for a knock on the door to get a few moments of the doctors time..... This office has 8 doctors in the group and they are all heart doctors..... In the course of the next few months I get to see an eye doctor, a dermatologist, a podiatrist, get a root canal at the dentist, report back to my family doctor, and to top it off I am going to have a cardio cath test done next week....... After all that I'm sure I will need to see a psychiatrist too...... Wouldn't  it be nice if you could find all these doctors in one group and see more than one of them per visit..... Charter and ATT had a great idea about bundling......

What else in the world needs to be bundled......??

Be careful on any machine....!!

My heart and prayers goes out to the family that lost the precious little girl in the accident on the ATV.... This occurence is more common than most would think..... I have lost a couple of friends to this vehicle..... If you own one be careful and respect its dangers..... Below is a partial list of some of the stats of accidents on this bike..... For the full list go to this link......

http://www.atvsafety.gov/stats.html

As part of its statutory mandate to disseminate data and information relating to the causes and prevention of death and injury
associated with consumer products, the CPSC is offering this online repository of all-terrain vehicle (ATV) related safety information.

(ATVs with 3, 4 or Unknown Number of Wheels) Year Reported Deaths¹ Estimated Deaths Estimated Number of Emergency-Room Treated Injuries

2006.............555

2005............666

2004...........745

2003..........654

2002.........548

If McCain or Obama wrote a blog....??

If McCain or Obama were here on the blogs, what would you say to them ?  Would you tell them what you really think or would you let the celebrity status cloud your thoughts and distract you from what you really wanted to say..... If they are as smart as they claim to be then I'm sure they read a lot of blogs ..... They both look like wholesome country boys that could take the truth...... I wonder how many have actually told it to them..... So here's your chance ...... Tell them what you really think about their chances to win and what you like or dislike about them......

Only one rule......... You can't use the word Conservative or Liberal..... Sorry Shan..... lol

What do you really think  of our Leader Wannabes ?

Kids Safety Bulletin - Swimming Pools

Today as we ate lunch by the pool at the hotel  I couldn't help but notice that we could see less than 6 inches into the water  and there was no life guard..... The water actually had a touch of a green tint to it and it was very cloudy..... I couldn't help but think of all the times I've heard or read of children being found on the bottom and nobody knowing they were even in there because of the foggy water..... Then I began to wonder why the health department who is supposed to make frequent inspections would allow this pool to stay open when it is this dirty.....  I wonder how many dirty pools there are on one given day and how many go without lifeguards..... Parents should never allow children to swim alone but I see it go on a lot more than I would like..... These are old safety tips but they can never be put in writing enough.......

Pools prove to be deadly for American kids each year.  Consider the following statistics reported by the Mayo Clinic:

·        Approximately 300 children under the age of 5 drown in backyard swimming pools nationwide each year. 

·        Nearly 70% of the children who drown were not expected to be near the pool when they were found in the water.

·        In the remaining 30% of cases, most children were being supervised by one or both parents, proving that it only takes a few moments for a child to slip under the surface and drown.  

Using the following tips to ensure fun and safety for your kids in and around the pool 

1. Install pool alarms – floating pool alarms alert you that something or someone is in the water (like a toddler who accidentally falls in)
2. Fence it in – Make sure access to your pool is blocked.  Fences and walls should be taller than a child and completely surround the pool.  All gates or doors leading to the pool should be self-latching and impossible for a child to open. 
3. Cover it up – A motor-powered safety cover can provide a barrier over the water when the pool is not in use. 
4. Maintain proper chemical mixture – improper chemicals can cause cloudy water that can mask dangers at the bottom or make it difficult to see children under water. 
5. Remove toys – Don’t leave pool toys in the water.  Children may try to retrieve a toy they wish to play with and fall in. 
6. Learn CPR and rescue techniques
7. Stock first aid equipment – First Aid should always be within close proximity of the pool because of the high risk for injury.
8. Monitor your kids at all times while they swim – Never leave a child unsupervised near a pool.  During social gatherings near pools, designate an adult to watch the water.  

Would you swim  if you couldn't see the bottom...??

How much has the list changed in 6 years.....??

Below is a partial list of the most respected and not so respected professions.... I wonder how much it has changed in the last 6 years...??

This could save a lot of fingers.....!! 

My hat goes off to whoever invented this saw..... I sat and visited with a gentleman today that has lost all of his fingers on one hand to a saw..... My father is missing two of his fingers due to a table saw..... Many kids get hurt in shop class every year by saws and other equipment.....  OSHA has made things better but there are still a lot of improvements that we could accomplish in the blue collar industry.... Watch the neat video below......

Is your place of work as safe as it can be....??

How do you cook your dogs....??

America has a love affair with hot dogs..... I probably would lose count in the first couple of months if I tried to count the number eaten in a year by me alone..... Almost anywhere you go there are dogs cooked and ready to go when the uncontrollable urge strikes...... One will find themselves eating cold left over bbq dogs straight out of the fridge...... It's one of the fastest meals that one can fix if in a hurry..... And it's also something that you can grab on the run.....

OK what exactly is that hot dog your eating made of? First off  do you really want to know? ....... Is U.S. Department of Agriculture  rules on dogs safe.?..... Would you buy dogs produced overseas ?....  Click below for

. More on the guide lines and ingredients in the USA.

This was just too cute.....!!

I'm happy to see 3.50 a gallon ?

The thought of $3.50 a gallon  had people up in arms a couple of years ago..... Driving home last night and seeing $3.55 a gallon didn't look so bad..... But one has to wonder..... Are they really going to stabilize or are we looking down the road to some more fleecing ?.... I'm thinking that we might be good until election time but who can predict the future ?

What do you think the future holds......??

Crops are horrible this year...!!!

Bee Decline Threatens Production of Numerous Crops that Rely on Bees for Pollination

Honeybees, Gone With the Wind, Leave Crops and Keepers in Peril
By ALEXEI BARRIONUEVO;
New York Times, February 27, 2007

Summary - Honeybees are flying off and disappearing in mystery that has flummoxed researchers and threatens production of numerous crops that rely on bee pollination; researchers call syndrome colony collapse disorder and say bees are presumably dying in fields from exhaustion or becoming disoriented and dying from cold; one study says that honeybees annually pollinate more than $14 billion worth of seeds and crops in US, mostly fruits, vegetables and nuts; investigators are exploring range of theories about disappearing bees, including viruses, fungus, poor bee nutrition, pesticides, bee stress; beekeepers earn much more renting their bees out to pollinate crops than in producing honey, and researchers are concerned that trucking colonies around country to pollinate crops could add to bees' stress and help spread viruses and mites of crops that rely on pollination

For Full Story:
http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?r
es=F10B1FF8355A0C748EDDAB0894DF404482

There is also the possibilities of the cell phone theory that the towers are making it impossible for the bees to navigate...... Einstein stated once that without the bees the world would die in four years.... I just don't see that many bees anymore......

Has anybody else noticed them missing...??