The Sky Is Falling...

Watch your heads, cast iron umbrellas perhaps? No, like Chicken Little, the doomsayers are wrong. From CO2 concerns to illegal aliens, there may or may not be real threats but most likely either public pressure, changes in behavior, or whatnot will in part care for the problem. No problem will ever be completely solved though. There isn't a magic bullet, and their won't be. Fear not, this is a condition that belongs in life.

If you are concerned that I am asking you to back down, change your mind, or quit, don't worry about that either. Even if you believe CO2 is the bane of the planet, a position I believe to be false, I want you to continue writing letters, talking, and reading about it. Continue crusading your causes. This will do several things. One, it will give you a sense of purpose. Though I don't care for "liberal" ideas, causes, or "logic", I do care for liberal people. Most of my family has fallen to that way of thinking. Another thing crusading does is to limit bad behavior. It forces Governments, companies, and people to stop and think about what it is they are doing. Oh, I'm sure the conspiracists just plan around it (or even use it). *laughs* I am sure Microsoft, the US Government, the EU, and the UN are conspiring to somehow use CO2 fears to create more Windows users right now, but they have to go around the little inconveniences brought about by public opinion.

Short term fixes for long term problems do not work well either. No fix works even less well, usually. The goal should be for longer term fixes, with adjustable variables built into the solution. Putting 6,000 guardsmen at desks so otherwise deskjockey border patrol can do more work is both short term, short of inspiration, and won't work. Building a fence won't work. Going after those who hire illegals won't work. Maybe all of these, a change in the birth right to citizenship, plus a hiring explosion of border and port (air and sea) control agents might help. Still, it will only help. What I don't understand (though I actually do) is why as the most hated nation on earth, we can't keep people out. Maybe if our lazy women would have babies, we might not have such a problem with finding workers (two fold ways, first we would have more people, second, the workforce would be dedicated to solid workers). Then again, we school them past their prime birthing ages by mandated schooling and wonder at our loss...

Anyway, don't worry. The world won't end, even if you, we, or I die. The world WILL change. There is nothing you can do about that. The world Will have problems. There is nothing you can do about that. What you can do is fight for your causes, realize your limitations (and the president's, congress's, and the Supreme Court's limitations), and relax.

Fishing and thinking work well together.

I suppose the combination of thinking and fishing is similar to peanut butter and chocolate, spaghetti and meatballs, or life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Of course, a fisherman cannot be bothered to think until his skills are adequate to allow his mind to wander a bit. After several days of fishing, my mind has become freed of the burden incumbent in the learning curve and now roams the open plain of the unconscious and the aware plains of thinking. The last two days of fishing have allowed my mind to unknot some thoughts and connect others as if tying line to a lure or detangling a backlashed spool.

The world is changing. The old terms, conservative and liberal, are being turned on their heads. Our current president is no more conservative than the president of Stanford. The senate is comprised mostly of slightly anti-communist democrats who changed parties, except for the continually devout commun... I mean democrats. The house of representatives is a mixed batch. Democrats are still communists and socialists (not the "useful idiots" who vote for them, just the bulk of national and state level apparatchik). In spite of that, the grassroots conservative groundswell continues and the grassroots of the left maintains it's psychosis as it shrinks into oblivion. The obvious disconnect with the national parties to their voters is a problem, especially since no third party has any real hopes of moving in or overtaking either party. Lets just say that the strings of the puppet masters are showing. The only solidly conservative I see potentially running for office is Newt Gingrich. He has no chance of winning. The parties are choosing our candidates, and keeping real conservatives out of the process.

In spite of the social difference the two parties seem to hold as differentiating from each other, the deeper issues that affect us more poignantly in the long run, are mutual to both parties. Shared world governance is one, and the most damaging one, that both parties are targeting. Imagine being ruled by the UN. If you think our bureaucrats are difficult to control now, wait until they aren't elected. Or, if you want a middle look, view how many laws are created and implemented by unelected bureaucrats right now here in America. There are 300 plus laws created every day by the various departments within the government. The size of the holes in cheese which allow it to be marketed as swiss cheese (or not) is among those laws. Nobody in the house or senate voted on that. The president didn't sign that bill. Yet it's law.

Now, step back a second though. We like to think there can be a world with no puppeteers. That is not going to happen. We like to think we can do pretty much anything we like. That isn't practical and their are some serious issues with that too. I suppose the question should be, can we choose the puppeteers to some extent? Can we guide those who guide the world (or at least the one we live in)? If you believe in America and the real American dream, you have to answer yes. Now, how much control can we really expect?

Fishing has been great this last week. I have landed 40 or more fish. Of those 15 to 20 were keepers, but since I didn't catch them in large enough groups at a time or was uncertain about their species when I caught them, I only kept 3. I will eat them this afternoon and think about my next fishing trip while doing so. I will also remember to thank God for the gifts. He has a great taste in nature, in every way you can imagine that sentence to mean.

Fishing In Iowa

Ok, so Iowa isn't one of the top ten destination states for fishing. As a fact, we might not even be in any rankings, anywhere, regarding fishing. That is ok with me. Fewer fishermen to contend with. As well, since I don't have to travel to fish in Iowa, for me, this is where fishing starts. And, fishing has started.

I haven't fished as an adult. Trying to remember back to the last time I fished, I can only guess it was in my mid-teens. My skills, if I had any, must be gone. That is fine, perhaps if I take my time now, I can learn to fish more correctly. I've purchased 3 reels and rods, tackle box, line, hooks, etc. ad nauseam. It was fun to make the purchases but information overload was a constant hazard during the process. The types, manufacturers, and styles of everything from hooks to reels to line is beyond the belief of the uninitiated tackle shopper. As well, when one finally settles on a list of pieces and parts, finding those exact items online or in the store is an incredible feat, even with a relatively short list. Still, with patience, a few dollars, and a little time, it has been done.

The reels I have (the open face reel is on the way) are bait-casters. I had heard such wonderful things about them. I have watched the pros get them out, rig them, and cast. Oops, not quite that easy. The first day out (yesterday, Wednesday May 3), my cousin and myself did a great job with our new bait-casters, of making birds nests out of fishing line that is. Neither of us brought our owner's manual for the reels. Looking over the device in my hand I began to crunch some numbers somewhere deep down. Just a few switches, buttons, and dials, I knew there was a solution. So, a little experimentation, a few practice throws, a few more messes, a few adjustments, and voila, I was fishing on my first day. So, I cast a few times and was having a bit of fun. My cousin was not.

My cousin is younger, and young for his mid-twenties sometimes. This was one of those times. He had no patience and less luck. I tried to help him, but he is a do it yourself (or no dice) type of guy when he gets into a contesting mood, so that didn't pan out. While I'm trying to set his reel, I allow him to use mine. That wasn't a great idea. I tell him how it works, show him how to cast, hand it to him, then watch as he messes my rig up, almost perfectly. Oh well. After a bit of working on my reel, he finally gets a few throws in but it is time to go. Frustrated yet exhilarated, we go home. His reel was removed as soon as we got home and he put on an old open face reel he had. I'm sure his bait-caster is pretty much doomed. *hmmm, perhaps a bargain is in the works... an extra bait-caster so they can each be pre-set for specific rigs... hmmm, perhaps all is not lost for that reel*

Today, we went again. This time we both cast many times. We both also caught several fish. I hooked the first two, and I thought he was going to cry, pout, or something. I changed to a larger rig to try for bigger fish and he went to my little kit. None of the bigger fish where biting, and the little ones kept feeding. I ended up going back to the smaller tackle so I wouldn't miss out on some of the fun. I ended up with 5 fish, he reeled in 7. All 7 to 10 inch crappie. We didn't keep a single one. The "book" he had indicated that the crappie needed to be 15" or longer to keep. Not so, there is no limit on size. Still, we did have fun and we are just learning. As I like to say, it's all good.

Deer hunting last winter, fishing this summer, and perhaps rabbit, squirrel, duck, and goose hunting this fall, my personal hunger for the outdoors and the sports thereout is being satisfied. I'm not getting to everything as fast as I would like, and I missed ice fishing this last winter. This autumn I may miss one or all of the seasons. Still, bit by bit, a piece at a time, I'm getting the gear, information, experience, and (most importantly) the confidence to go out and try something new or risk failure in familiar activities.

I hope you are able to begin stepping out and up to the challenges which interest you. It makes life a lot more interesting. It also seems to fill some void. And you never know, you just might find exactly what you've been looking for to complete your life experience at this point in your fall from the womb to the heavens.

What you see is not always what you get.

As I've been watching the news, my eyes seemingly try to deceive my mind. On FOX, in the New York Times, or through an ABC news show, America would seemingly be drifting on in it's leftward stagger. Everyone is happily talking about how things are the same, or worse (ABC and NYT are happy about status quo in the leftward seeming tilt). The deficit is going up because of government spending, a leftward thing to be sure. Entitlements are growing and expanding, definitely a leftward social/commun -ist thing. Gas prices are up, cheered by greens until they have to pay for gas to get to their local pot dealer. And of course, the continued invasion across the boarders by illegal aliens, supported by drugged out anti-Americans for the tired "Can't we all just get along, man?" reasons and supported by otherwise conservative business owners who turn cheap sweat into gold.

Still, around the edges, behind the scenes, and out of view the picture is changing. Conservative and religious groundswell has changed the direction of the country. If President Bush is out of touch it's not that he doesn't see the past or the present, but it's that he doesn't realize his hippier days are a dread to most and won't be repeated soon. That, as a babyboomer, his whole generation's dreams are being shredded, shoved back in closets, and put into proper social perspective by a realigning society. He, less so than Clinton but still true, is one of the last mustached Petes (a reference to the mafia godfathers who didn't want to get into alcohol after prohibition and where thus sidelined or killed by young turks). Both those hippy types are going down, and then away. Instead of getting into hooch, the new America is getting into God, morality, and honest politics.

Everyone knows president Bush is in trouble. The democrats like to dream that this is because his conservative notions aren't in favor. The truth is president Bush is in trouble for not being a conservative. The conservative base is growing almost as fast as church crowds are but the leadership is lagging, and he is the lagger in chief. In spite of his politically neutred situation, change is going on around, under, over, and sometimes right through him. We saw it with the last Supreme Court nominee(s) and I believe we will see it again in the alien debate. His pleas and protestations will be set aside and he will take his marching orders and do what has to be done. His hippy side will quiver and his wife will moan, but he will do it. I am sure he will do it after reading about his easing of gasoline regulations (it won't help in the short run but it might later on, still, it was a nice touch).

I see leaders in the house and senate, the president, the Supreme Court, and other people and groups stepping up to try and block the new advance of conservatism. The blockers are from both sides of the aisle. They are afraid, perhaps they are becoming aware of just how out of touch they are. They are really afraid we the people are going to force them to make changes that will affect real things that will effect them. Perhaps the rules they force on the rest of American business will be forced on them (yes, the congress and senate are exempt from many of their own hiring, discrimination, and other laws we have to obey). Democrats have to be feeling lonely. They know their old ways are gone. They can't openly root for Bin Laden anymore. They can't send their staffers (or go themselves) to communist countries like North Korea and show support like they have been. They can't leak security information to the newspapers or allow nuke plans to be sent to their favorite despots (I'm sure it was for personal or political treasuries though. Just business, right?)

Things are changing, and for the better mostly. Security is being arranged so that it actually works, rather than being a political and politically correct mess. Laws are slowly changing, abortion is being banned in some states, and other laws are on the way. Though the government seems to be growing, if you look through the growth, you will notice the growth is in discressionary (short term) spending while cuts are going on in more normally static (long term) expenses.

Be careful in the rooms of smoke and mirrors. Enemies smile and friends may frown. The walls may be real, glass, mirror, or not there at all. The truth is not what it seems and the ground is shifting. In all truth, I can't be sure if President Bush and his group are a.) fighting these changes, just losing the fight, b.) just doing what they do and sometimes fighting, sometimes helping the changes, or c.) are grand masters in the arts of politics, illusion, action, and outcomes. Whatever the real truth, now is a time to watch. History is being made. This will become known as a time of great change.

The tests we are given.

Yes, it's been a while since I posted, again. Well, this time I have a pretty good excuse. While trying to care for diabetes (there is a trick to it, I'm almost catching on), and restarting high blood pressure meds, all while in the middle of a seeming storm of activities, I fell into my next difficulty. By the way, I figured out which medicine had been causing exhaustion, it was the high blood pressure medicine for sure. On a side note, thanks for the bits and pieces Kiwi, they do fill in some gaps and lead me to do more research as well. Anyway, beyond making me tired, the bp medicine was interfering with my balance and responses. I was getting bruised and battered from bumping and stumbling, with no warning signs of dizziness or light-headedness. Not a problem, really, until I fell. I fell hard. I landed on my ribs, which themselves struck the edge of the bath/shower rim. Not only did I not see it coming, I fell like a rock. Perhaps it's better I didn't realize it was happening and try to respond as I probably would have just broken an arm, wrist, hand, fingers, or something else since my legs were dead to me. Still, I ended up bruising, fracturing, or breaking a few ribs. I had been bed bound for a week while trying to decide if I should go to the doctor... again. After a week, I finally pulled myself together and got in. Though it wasn't fun going back in, the treatment was worth it. A painkiller and advice not to fall again because falling hurts:) Oh, alright, I made up the advice part. Now, I hate the feeling I get on painkillers, but being able to sleep well, to partially function around the house, and to BREATH, makes it worth it.

On the upside, my blood sugar is down to and sticking around the low 100's. I'm weighing in at about 264. And I've been having success changing my diet, in part due to an inability to shop as I normally would have. I think the forced short term change will make the long term change I need to make in my diet easier. Oh, and I'm learning how to function on the pain pills a bit better. I've got about another week before the doctor will have me cut them down. I think though, the best part of all is I'm still ok with everything, the world, and all. I've had worse, I'm actually grateful for what I have and the tests before me and the gifts I've been given to cope with these things, and life is actually pretty good anyway.

I've thought about blogging before this but my mind couldn't wrap it's tongue around the little white pills enough to whisper a decent typing tune. I'm still not sure how this will end up, as my mind still can't get around to editing. I'll use the spell checker and that will be about it.

Blessings.

Wow, what a trip.

Since my last posts, I've been burning the candle at both ends. The medications my doctor strongly recommended, and I finally had to concede to, have been wiping the floor with me. In spite of that, my cousin and myself have worked like crazy to get my truck ready for the trip we just took to pick up his boat. Between this and that, I've had about 40 hours of sleep in the week leading up to the trip. Two days ago, after another long day of preparations, my cousin and myself left Iowa City, Iowa at 11:00 pm. He had just gotten off work and I had spent the day packing, taking care of a few remaining details, and such. So, without sleep, we drove a half ready 4x4 '72 Chevy K20 with a six inch lift from Iowa City to New London, Wisconsin.

It was supposed to be a 5.7 hour trip (according to Mapquest). Well, with hills, fog, darkness, and such it ended up being an 8.5 hour trip. All went well, considering the situation. We were going to stay overnight and drive back the next day but we were doing good after we picked up the boat, so we started back. Though we had no problems with darkness or fog, we were then towing a 15 1/2 foot boat so the hills and occasionally wind slowed us even more on the way back than the fog, darkness, rain, and hills had on the way up. We drove, and drove, and drove until it almost felt like driving hell.

We ended up driving all the way back, and more. My cousin had found a place to store the boat, but that would mean another hour and a half drive onto our already long journey. My cousin didn't want to go further. I pushed until I got my way. Not wanting to tow the boat "soon" again, not wanting to have a half done job, and not being sure if and when the truck might die, I just had to get it done. It got done and we got home at about the same time we left the night before.

Fortunately or not, I didn't really believe I could take my meds and get the job done, so I didn't take insulin or blood pressure medicine. I was also drinking a lot of Coka-Cola to help stay awake (plus other soda types to keep from becoming too bored with the fluid). No, diet soda just doesn't work, I needed the sugar and the caffeine. My "diet" was also fairly lousy, according to diabetes ideals. Peanut M&Ms and whatever else was handy and served to deal with hunger. Oh well, I figured I could pick up when I returned home on my new diet and regimen. I checked my glucose level before breakfast, my first shot, and actually anything else this morning. It was 234, the lowest I've had since testing. What? I have no idea, but I really wonder what is going on with diabetes. It seems like a good deal of fiction surrounds it's causes, how to deal with it, and diet. I will certainly evaluate anything I am taught about it, but I will do so with an extremely critical eye.

Watching the left squirm.

It is interesting to watch what demorats and their ilk are doing. Yes, there is a behind the scenes plan of attack, or as much of one as chaos mongers can arrange. I watch while one, with just a few high level supporters and a few demorat groups, tries to censure (not even a constitutional proposition) President Bush. Then there are a few over working the immigration scene, trying to exacerbate the issue among Republicans and conservatives (we just ignore them, their meddling actually helps keep us cohesive and internally conversant). And of course you have a few demanding we leave Iraq now while a few others try to indicate that the demorats will be harder on terrorists and in the war on terror than any Republican. Little, intentionally separated, gremlin-like groups of demorats and "liberals" trying to find a chink in the Republican armor. Little monsters trying desperately to keep from being flushed like the USSR, Iraq, and other rogue nations and groups.

The media is helping, actually, but this time by not reporting much of this. As well, the media seems to now be shielding demorats from themselves by not covering these apparently contradictory demorat actions as a group of contradicting ideas.

True, conservatives are not at all pleased with all the president has done. Then again, any good leader needs to lead sometimes and follow sometimes and the result is going to be mixed. As well, all-in-all, this president has brought back some respect to the office he holds, he has done some things right (at times by getting hammered by us in order to do it), and he is doing the one thing no demorat could or would do, he is protecting us. Demorats just don't understand that the very communist ground they stand on has been rejected out of hand by an awake and wary American public. They don't understand that the safe kind world where Americans could seemingly afford to be stupid and banal ended when we realized that the 3,000 dead could have been higher, that it could have been any one of them, and that it might happen again only with more dead anywhere in the US. They never have cared if "stupid, arrogant, and useless" Americans die, they have never been on our side, and it's showing.

Pull our troops out and let the terrorists have a sanctuary, they say. Don't worry about wmd secrets and super-computers, which can aid the design of such, get to China , they say. Don't worry about Iran and North Korea getting "The Bomb" they will never use it, they say. Socialism is good for the economy, or at least it makes people feel good, they say. Who are these people? How did they ever get elected? How can we get rid of them, their entrenched governmental mechanisms, and their open stupidity? Well, that's what I say.