My Tribute to the Jackson Family

They lost a loved one. Yet, they stood strong and together. They wanted to honor him and did it respectfully, grounded and with faith. The memorial to Michael Jackson was one done with reverence and compassion. The Jackson family drew upon their beliefs to show the world the real Michael Jackson. The best part of the memorial is it was done unrehearsed. No plan and no predetermined design of performances by contributors.

As I sat home watching the memorial on television, so many things flowed through my mind. Thinking, as Michael sits up in heaven was he pleased with what he saw? Did he realize just how much he was loved? Could he even comprehend the affect he had had on the world? So I began talking to Michael. I said, “Michael look, take a real long look. You hid from the world but it didn’t matter. It didn’t stop people from around the world from admiring you, simply because they loved you. So what if you were a bit eccentric. So what if you were shy. So what if no one really knew you. You were and always will be loved.”

As I continued watching the memorial, I could not stop admiring the Jackson family. Each speaker was hugged by Michael’s brothers and sisters when they finish putting their heart into words. They did it all to say I heard you loud and clear and thank you so much. Each song chosen to sing was the right song, for the right reason, at the right time. Michael’s memorial should be looked upon as an example of how memorials should be done. No blueprint, no outline, no script, only heart felt emotions, period. Therefore, I know he will Rest in Peace.

Yesterday I paid my respects to Michael Jackson. Today I want to tell the Jackson family, thank you for a job well done!

A Couple of Tidbits on my Mind

Landline or Cell

This is not the first time I have heard people talk about why one should disconnect one’s landline phone. Have you people LOST YOUR MINDS? Here is why I ask you this. Don’t you all remember that the wiring for landline phones are underground now? Don’t you remember that when a tornado, hurricane, or thunder storm hits a region, the towers for cell phones, computers, blackberries, etc are wiped out? Don’t you remember the electricity for your house is above ground still? Yes, electricity, you know the battery charger? Each time power has been lost no one and I mean no one has been able to use cell phones or computers but landline phones were still useable. Duh? Now do you still want to disconnect them for good?

Yes, I know one needs a cell phone, like for emergencies away from home. But get real people, like cars they can’t operate without the gas it needs. Like your food, you can’t use it for a connection to others without the fuel you need to cook your food. Imagine being in the war and you lose a couple body parts, you might not be able to walk or write a letter. Yes, I know that sounds a little cruel but it helps me make the point. You still need landline phone connections, like it or not.

Good old General Motors

Now it’s official, General Motors has filed bankruptcy. Now only God knows - up front mind up - how many more jobs are going by the way side. Yes, the company needed a shakeup but, they really should of thought of this about two decades ago. Darn shame it took a disaster on 9/11 to get the country going in trying to fix the mess it was in. Darn shame it took a recession in the US and depression in Michigan (where I live) to realize we were screwed economically. Too bad it took the changing of the guard (president) to make whatever attempt it could in fixing a disaster. I don’t know about you but I hope we all have learned something in this mess. Like, don’t spend what you don’t have. Don’t count your chickens before they hatch. That paying for something now is better than paying for it later. That the grass is not always greener on the other side of the fence.

The other side to this is the auto suppliers, engineers and those with families who ALL work in the auto industry are going to suffer the most. The sad part is no one and I mean no one seems to have thought of the old saying, “Don’t put all your eggs in the same basket.” Thank God that although both my parents worked in the auto industry, only one of their children, a sister of mine, worked in it too. The other four, including myself, we went in other directions. Hopefully, going back to basics has given us all just cause to reevaluate what is important in life and what isn’t. And the well paying auto industry job is not the answer anymore.

Wouldn’t You Change Your Mind?

Here’s the question. If you came home from work and found your house had been broken into and it’s in shambles, what would be your first thought? If you’re like me it would be, catch them and hang them high. If the law doesn’t I surely will.

Now here’s the information you’d get the next day. Those who broke in and destroyed your home were caught by the police. Now for the details. One, they were all 12-year-olds who are mentally challenged. Two, they were falsely told your home was going to be torn down and they could go in and take whatever they wanted. Three, they had to do it with guns to their backs. Four, sadly the real crooks were not the ones caught. Do you still want to catch and hang them high?

This is why I don’t understand why people are not jumping for joy that President Obama is not a stubborn ass who thinks he can do no wrong and is perfectly right about everything. As we all know, the controversy is about pictures, war pictures, war pictures that show torture. What the president wanted originally was to show them to the public. What the president found out later was, he could cause more harm than good. So he said it would be a no go due to new information acquired.

Don’t you remember when your mother and father would be so far off from the truth? But you couldn’t tell them so because children were to be seen and not heard? Well, all I can say is, thank you President Obama for realizing those you pay and supervise (your children) can be heard, not just seen. Thank you for changing your mind.

Now, if we could just get the other children out there to cross the street safely, like President Obama, they would stop at the corner, look both ways to see if it is safe, then cross. I know I would and that is exactly what the president did. So, those who are upset, maybe, just maybe, you need a refresher course on how to look both ways then walk between the crosswalk lines before crossing a street.

Hear Yee! Hear Yee!

Hear is my announcement. GET A LIFE PEOPLE! Okay, maybe I shouldn’t shout it to you. But my problem is all the e-mails I get to join one Internet social site after another. Give me a break please.

I am having a real problem here understanding when all of you out there have time for such lollygagging. Me, I work 15 hours a week writing display information at a museum. I teach writing workshops each week, including Saturdays. I go to gradate school at night twice a week, with three thesis papers to write for one class and a quiz every week in the other one. I tutor two children twice a week. I write as a freelance writer so I am always looking for work and at this time I am finishing my third book to take to market. I also write for web sites like ehow.com and helium.com that brings me passive income. So you tell me, when would I have time to be on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and any other social Internet web site. And I would like to ask you, when do you work?

I am not trying to be unsociable here, just wondering when and how do you make a living? As I said, I work. The other thing that bothers me is, do you ever talk face to face? As a believer in communication, I find it rather hard to see how anyone can say they communicate with many others when they spend more time on their computer instead of looking into the eyes, listening to the words out of the mouth, watching facial expressions and body movements, one on one. Without them to me, you miss out on more detail communication.

Yes, the social web sites are one way to network but it is not the only way. When you are out into the world, you meet, shake hands, hold conversations, monitor the body and can see whether or not the individual is for real. That is not what you can do on the Internet. Sure on places like You Tube, you can see the person but, they set it up for what they want you to see, not what is a natural reaction to words and movements. Remember it is acting.

Now maybe you can explain to me why it is necessary to join all of the web sites I mentioned before? Do you make any money on them? Do they get you hooked up with the right people to make money? If you are a writer, do you get writing jobs from them? I ask that question because most of the invites are from other writers. Anyway, if you got a good response to my question, feel free to comment. I really want to know. Convince me if you think you can.

I’m Back

Yes, you heard me right, I am back. Where have I been you ask? Fighting to survive is where I’ve been. Like others here in America, I had a real bad setback financially. This caused me to focus on how to keep a roof over my head and food in my belly. But, as the old saying goes, what goes down will come back up, and it is true. I am back in the saddle again. So here are some of my tidbit thoughts on current happenings.

Economy

To be real straight about it, the country is in the dumps and you already know that. What I hope is that people don’t expect Obama to turn this mess into a windfall in our pockets over night. As a matter of fact, he will not be able to turn this situation around for quite a while. This country spent the last eight years getting to this point and it will surely take just as long to come totally back. What we all have to do is learn to be patient. As another old saying goes nothing good comes easy. We must understand we have to get back to the basics first then learn how to become creative. Rushing to resolve our problems can only lead to more problems. As we look for solutions we have to realize and accept what caused them and then begin to fix it.

Financial Woes

Right now the country is experiencing an unemployment rate that is about to replay the early eighties. Have you forgotten what that was like? The rate at that time reached upward to around 18% nationwide and I know because I was working as an Economic Analyst for a banking institution and kept track of the those rates and many others. The real solution to the problem is learning to manage and save money as we stop being so greedy for material things. Have you forgotten that whatever it is you buy, you can’t take it with you when you die? We must again revert back to the thoughts of our grandparents, a penny earned is a penny saved. It‘s not as hard as you think. Trust me I know. It is the very way I was able to climb out of the financial cauldron I ended up in and had to find a way to recover. Ask yourself, what will I do with the money stimulus Obama give me?

Writers

You know newspapers have tanked. Magazines are decreasing in numbers. And writers everywhere are looking for ways to make money doing what they love to do, write. In these hard times, unless you are on staff at a publishing company that is making money, (we all know it isn’t happening) then as a freelancer (like me) the wheels are spending faster and faster against you. So where does that leave us? We have to stay focused on realistic goals. Now don’t get me wrong, there is money to be made out there. What has changed is thinking out the box. Ask yourself, how are people reading now? Is more on the internet or more in hardcopy? Are people truly wanting material to read and what kind? See where I am going here? It is called a “niche market.” Writers of today are really forced to master a niche market if they want to succeed. Without doing so and staying stuck in only one way of doing things will cost you with no return for your work. So think like a homeless, hungry person and find that niche for your writing and go for it. What have you got to lose when you are already on the bottom?

Presidential Debate; Give Me A Break

This independent voter saw a war going on, on stage. McCain was on the attack while Obama was too elusive. McCain got emotional and Obama was a straight arrow. Did it matter to me? You bet it did. What I saw in the debate was a personal battle between the two. Obama was on the defense protecting himself against McCain’s offense.

What I wanted to know was how each would establish dialogue with foreign countries. How would they end the war in Iraq? What exactly would they do about Afghanistan? What I got was McCain with an attitude. The rest of the world be dammed, because he didn’t trust a single leader in a single country. While on the other hand, Obama wanted to extend a hand but was not specific enough on how.

Another thing that pissed me off was, McCain repeatedly saying “Obama doesn’t understand.” Did he think everyone that was listening and watching was deaf and dumb? I heard you McCain. And by the way, that’s your opinion and not mine. This was supposed to be a debate (to discuss or argue points formally) not a personal war. But I guess since McCain didn’t go to college, he didn’t have any experience in debating. If I wanted to get ugly, Obama did go to law school which is where one actually learns how to debate an issue.

But let’s get back to the debate. Obama did give a few specifics (on middle class). McCain kept harping on his military experience. Well, his military experience does not apply to saving my behind economically. It will not reemploy all those who have lost their jobs. It won’t put a roof over the heads of those who have no place to call home. So McCain knows how to fight a war, but he doesn’t seem to “understand” the war is not the first concern of the homeless, jobless and the hungry.

I hope the next debate provides more insightful information on how the candidates are going to fix the “hell hole” this country is in. Tell me, how and when, this country stops rescuing the rest of the world as we die slowly, economically and emotionally. I want a real debate, not another neighborhood fight.

It’s Time

The mayor has resigned. He has owned up to the things he did wrong. He will have to pay a considerable amount of money back to the city. On earth, as it is in heaven, thine will be done, in the name of Jesus, Amen.

So be it is all we can say now. It’s time to move on, time to repair the damage, reinstall the hope and look to the future. There is plenty of soap in the bathroom, so go wash your hands and get busy. This will not be an easy task but must be accomplished at the speed of light. We waited too long to fix it, so the only choice we are left with is full speed ahead. This disaster is like a hurricane. Citizens of Detroit have been misunderstood, under served and forgotten. It’s time to get everything running again. Yes, this is a sad chapter in the book of life in Detroit. Yet, we’ve been down before and rose up and we can do it again.

Unfortunately, I was not able to see what happen but, I saw the news. Hopefully, the news media reported it right and left it up to me to decide if things were handled with tact. So long protestors, so long advocates, so long headaches. We must all realize hanging on to what can’t be undone would be foolish. Let’s drop the, who said, she said crap. Let’s accept we all have a responsibility now to shine a new light on the city. Let’s rebuild the ladder to the sky. Let’s show the country and the world that it is over. We have moved on to bigger and better things to do.

How do we start? We start with each other. No more discussion of the rights and wrongs of the mess. Let’s talk who helps lay the new foundation, who constructs the buildings, who install the electrics, who installs the plumbing, etc. You see, Detroit is like building a new house. You start from the ground up, making sure that each step is taken with precision so you only have to do it once. No house of straw, mud, or cards. One built solid. Solid like that old song we all loved, Solid Like a Rock.

It’s a new day in a new season. If nothing else, to thy own self and the rest of the world, be true