Universal Faith

                                                                             

     There is an old black expression "go with the flow" that exemplifies my view of the universe and life.  I think there is a force that moves through everything constantly expanding and contracting but always moving forward and toward good.  Inside the flow lies peace and serenity. Outside is a constant struggle.  I've studied many religions and found most are self perpetuating.  As soon as a child becomes aware, it's parents begin to teach their religion and their beliefs about life.

      A child then spends his or her formative years absorbing their caregivers attitude toward everyone else.  Thus most youngsters adopt their parents particular creed. Their belief in an old man with a white beard being their image of a supernatural superman who controls, guides and judges everyone according to His pleasure or displeasure and finally assigning the afterlife of each individual.

     I feel we do a disservice to many and cause them to live tumultuous lives by never finding or even looking for the flow of the river of the universe.  No one ever told them about it's existence.  According to Zen, you see without looking.  Serendipity itself.  I spend most of my life in peace, love and acceptance of whatever comes and find good in everything.  I went with the flow. 

 

People Good and Bad

       There are good people and bad people.  We should be glad that in America, the good outweigh the bad.  At one extreme are the people who would and do risk their lives to rescue a bewildered puppy in the middle of a freeway.  At the other end are the people who threw him out there in the first place.  Most of us fall somewhere in the middle between the antipode, all depending of the extenuating circumstances. 

      In this 2016 election, with +100 at the good end and -100 at the bad, everyone has an opinion.  Usually they tend to clump at certain points on this scale.  For me personally I rate Hillary at +90 and Donald at -97.  I used to tend Independent but I finally settled as an Obama Democrat.  Last July, I started working for Bernie Sanders and up until this year, July, as Bernie asked I gave my support to Hillary and every other Democrat running for any office anywhere.

     A rabid supporter  of Donald is personally not a bad person generally.  It's not his or her fault they were born dim.  When God passed out brains, they thought He said trains and they missed theirs.
The really bad people are the ones who prey on these innocent and ignorant people;  stealing their wages, money and their votes by filling their heads with lies. 

     I trust the judgement of dogs and cats more than any human and I choose my friends accordingly.  If my dog snarls when he sees you it's my signal to mistrust and rid myself of this person.  This woman pictured above passed this test from the day I met her.  She loves animals and they love her.

      

Guns and Death

     I decided not to post a picture of death and a gun.  There is more than enough of that on the internet.  One of my daughters told me her views on gun control and asked me how I felt about it.  Until then, I hadn't really thought much about guns.  I have owned many guns in my life although I don't have one now.  When I was very young, we hunted to put food on the table.  When I grew up I sometimes worked in dangerous situations owning bars.  I used a gun once to defend myself and my son from a drunken criminal.  So I'm glad no one ever banned my gun or tried to take it away from me. 

     I did take the time to look into gun control.  I don't think anyone has any necessity to own or carry around a military assault rifle.  To me it indicates some sexual need or frustration.  It reminds me of a crazy uncle who hunted rabbits with a twelve gauge shotgun.  He would hold up a shredded pelt and proclaim "got him right in the head."  And "everywhere else too"  I would reply with a disgusted retort. Like an AR-15, a whole lot of overkill.

     Banning guns won't quell gun violence.  Sixty-five percent of gun violence is self-inflicted suicide,  This translates to 51 deaths daily.  A lot, but the smaller portion of an average 117 suicides daily in the United States.  Sixty-six choose other means.  I, myself would overdose on heroin and go floating away on a pretty pink cloud.  No danger there since I live in a personal care home and I have no way to find any drug stronger than aspirin.

     So I suppose limited gun control would be a good thing for military ordnance.  Since the owners of such weapons other than terrorists and mental cases are more likely to shoot their foot off  than anything else.  For all guns they should have some kind of proficiency rating before buying.













  

Another New Deal

      Born under Roosevelt's New Deal.  I was three years old when Social Security was enacted.  I was one of those kids the Democrats said would not have to live in poverty when we got old without a pension, a savings account or struggling relatives.

      When I turned twenty-seven, another Democrat signed Medicare into law.  The Democrats said when we got old we would need more healthcare than we could afford.  Lyndon Johnson said people deserved more help from a government they supported with taxes. 

     When I turned fifty-four, another Democrat pushed through a children's health insurance plan that cared for a sick child.  That Democrat is today running for President of these United States. Vamonos y Votar por Hillery Clinton.

     When I turned seventy-four, the thirteenth President I've lived and worked under, another Democrat brought us The Affordable Care Act; Obamacare.  Now that I'm seventy-eight, I'm looking forward to number fourteen.

      When I look backward to that starry-eyed three year old, I think of Tom Batiuk's character, Crankshaft and wonder "how did I get here so fast."  Democrats kept their promise to me in 1941.

     

    

Leadership

           
      Lately I've been watching the Democratic convention in Philadelphia.  I see such a contrast with the disaster last week in Cleveland.  The people there reminded me of an old Jonathan Winters skit in which he interviews a republican who was visited by a space alien.  He was  asked what the alien said?  He said "take me to your leader"'  And did you take him to your leader? "Nope.  Didn't know who my leader was." At the convention, it was obvious that neither the audience or the speakers  knew who their leader was.

     Not so in Pennsylvania.  Every one is aware who the leader is and that they are there to select and elect a replacement for after his retirement.  Retirement, but not departure.  He will always be available for his knowledge and ability whenever needed in the future.  History will soon forget Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan and even Donald Trump but the books will always remember Barak Obama as the greatest president who brought us healthcare and prosperity against great opposition and obstinance from the opposing party.  Hillary Clinton has some big shoes to fill.  I have no doubt she will mold her own history as a strong President and intelligent people will never see her as just a woman.  The first woman following the first black man.  Our nation and people have finally progressed to where our founders envisioned.

 

American Working Cat

     This picture reminds me of the typical working class.  Kitty's job is keeping the area clear of disease carrying rodents.  She's a little disabled and walks funny but still goes to work every night.  For her service, she only asks a good meal, a dry bed and a roof over her head.  All any American worker wants and expects from their employer or this country.  Which brings us to the Democratic Convention.

     Kitty's needs are simple compared to those of humans.  Last week we learned that Republicans care as much about human needs as those of an animal like Kitty.  Or less.  That was broadcast loud and clear by every speaker last week.  That convention center in Ohio will need to be fumigated and disinfected before it will be usable again.  I once owned a car that had been sprayed inside by a frightened skunk.  We could still catch a whiff of that odor years later. Much like Conservative
Republicans.

     Being one myself, last night I tuned into the Democrats in Pennsylvania.  In speech after speech I found the opposite of all I heard last week.  Instead of skunk, I smelled fresh and clean mountain air.
I heard program after program designed to allow people to work and live in dignity.  I heard common sense instead of the gibberish recited by an old lunatic in front of every downtown bus station.  Yesterday it was sunny in Philadelphia and I'm looking forward to tonight.

Best Friends

     Two of my very best friends, Oscar and Destiny.  Oscar is a dachshund we acquired in a Walmart parking lot.  We had our pick of two rather sickly animals as someone was waiting to take the other one. We bought him and went straight to the vet.  Those of you who are familiar with my writing know I am more familiar with animal doctors than people doctors.  We took Oscar in to make sure he would get well from his malnutrition, flea bites and various other maladies that neglected puppies acquire. His next appointment was a recheck and to relieve him of his dog-hood.  He was going to live inside and would have no opportunity to use his equipment anyway.

      Oscar stayed with us through thick and thin, a apartment, a house and finally a tent in the woods.  His voice when giving a alarm sounded more like a Doberman than the small canine he was.  He was very protective of us especially with people he didn't like instinctively.  We actually, through experience, came to trust his instincts over our own.  Several people left our presence with teeth marks around their ankles.  He was by far the finest animal that ever owned us.

     Destiny is a whole other story herself.  She is one of those people who project love toward any animal.  They in turn feel trust, security and love instinctively.  They seem to know they are in no danger or pain from her.  And they always respond positively.  I've seen her petting chained up watchdogs and wild raccoons in perfect safety.  Hurt an animal in front of her and rather face a mama grizzly bear as she attacks. 

      As I said in the beginning, they are my best friends and I wouldn't trade a billion dollar winning lottery ticket for either one of them. 

Little Animal #2

     A few blogs ago I wrote about my experience with our little girl's cat.  She was run over, rushed to a vet late in the bight.  Underwent surgery for a crushed pelvis, a broken hip bone and a broken leg.  She was put in a cast and had to be cared for as far as elimination was concerned.  In other words she had to be cleaned whenever she crapped.  I left the story with my family caring for her needs.  In the words of Paul Harvey on his old radio show "now you will hear the rest of the story."

     The girls had named her "kitty cat mousy" for her habit of leaving a freshly killed rodent on the back porch every morning.  Maybe she thought of it as a breakfast treat for the family. Who can know what a cat thinks.  She remembered though that was when she got in trouble, she headed home for help.  And help was there.  With the TLC of two little nurses and their mother, she finally healed.  She was a little crooked and her gait was peculiar.  We knew she was OK when we found two dead mice on the back porch one morning.  I can only assume she brought one for each of her two nurses.

      Everything went well, life was good until nature called and she went into heat.  We were so intent on saving her life no one thought of having her spayed; The vet explained that with all her other injuries it would have probably have killed her at the time. The feline mating procedure is for the female to lay on her belly and raise her rear.  The tomcat wraps his front paws around her and bites her neck to hold her steady.  For cats, breeding is very painful for her. This is though, the usual procedure.

     Kitty because of her pelvis could not raise her rear so she lay on her back and spread her back legs.  This confused her boyfriend no end but they finally worked it out and she conceived.

      My job at the time involved out of town travel and meetings with crews around each area.  Thus when the day finally arrived, I was in Florida preparing to meet with about ten people.  My wife called me to tell me Kitty was in distress and stuck trying to get through the birth.  I told her to get her to the vet and do whatever.  She called again and this vet didn't want to do an expensive job without some assurance of being paid.  I told her to get me at the motel.  The crews arrived unaware of what was transpiring.  I got the call during the meeting and the men heard one side.  I asked the doctor if a cesarean was absolutely necessary and if one or both of them might die without it.  I finally told him to do it and I would take responsibility for payment.  One of my men looked at me with a stricken face and asked "is your wife having a baby" and I was tempted for a moment but answered  "no, my cat"  as relieved laughter sounded thru the room. 

     Kitty delivered three beautiful kittens as her first and last pregnancy.  We lived happily for a long time.through her lifetime.  I was glad to have known of her.

Puppy in a Drain Pipe

      It's amazing how many people will respond to a puppy in distress.  If a small animal like a dog or cat is caught somewhere dangerous people will move heaven and earth to effect a rescue.   I remember working with an ambulance crew just before the advent of fire department ambulances crewed by paramedics.  In those days the main qualifier was having a strong stomach and getting to a hospital as fast as possible.  One day we got a call about a child trapped in a storm drain and we got there in a hurry.

      We rode in an old converted Chevrolet panel truck with red lights and a siren salvaged from a defunct rural fire department.  This siren started with a low growl that built into a crescendo of bass sound that would physically blow cars out of our way.  We thought the new sirens sounded like kid's toy whistles.  At the site it turned out it wasn't a child at all and it was really a puppy whose cries sounded exactly like a human child.  Somehow he had gotten into the storm drain and got stuck in a bend of the main line to the sewer. 

     By this time the fire department was on scene along with police cars as well as a city work crew complete with supervisor and a backhoe and operator.  Everybody joined in the discussion and a decision was reached unanimously that the storm drain would have to come out along with a section of sidewalk.  News crews arrived from radio stations and newspapers along with an a lone TV  crew from the new station in the area.  The Salvation Army arrived with coffee and donuts. All in all about twenty five or thirty people were involved in the rescue effort.

     Finally it became necessary to rip out some of the street itself to get down to free the terrified puppy.  A huge cheer went up when a fireman emerged from the hole holding the bedraggled little dog above his head.  He was taken to a nearby animal shelter wrapped in a policeman's jacket.  What to me was exceptional were the extraordinary measures taken to rescue an animal; the same as if it was a human child.  There is hope for America with people like these. 

Belivers

      If someone you know and respect told you the sky is green, not blue.  But looking up, you see only blue.  And it seems like every one else sees blue, you become confused.  But you try to help your friend by supporting his delusional green sky idea.  So you pass it on to a couple of mutual friends who do the same thing,  Now it becomes a green sky movement and a million people think the sky is green and Donald Trump can win the presidential election.

     Most republican minds are a little askew in the first place so it's easy for them to subscribe to and support this nutso delusion.  Looking at the attendees in Cleveland, I see a lot of wizened old codgers and their blue haired crones cheering every lie uttered.  There are a number of nice looking women fifteen or so years younger than the average older man.  These are obviously second or third trophy wives.  Last are the teenage girls, obviously daughters, the next generation of imbeciles.

     I really pity most believers without real facts and reality backing them up.             
 

Half-truth & Damned Lies

   I'm done with the 2016 snake pit in Ohio. The final straw was Turtle Face's litany of the wonderful things they tried to do for America and were stopped by Democrats and Obama.  Any one of these measures carried a plethora of amendments that would have catapulted us back to 1869 or earlier.  I seem to remember a fight over the line item veto power in 1998.  It was ruled un-constitutional. 

    When Hillary is elected president, I will enjoin the fight to rewrite the line item veto power is case of nut-balls tacking on amendments that could never survive on their own.  It only makes sense that Obama should not have had to veto entire bills that if signed would have repealed Obamacare or cut out Social Security or denied climate change or the other perversions put forth by anti-abortion nuts.

      If every lie told since Monday had turned into snakes, the arena would be a four feet deep writhing mass of  reptiles.  My stomach won't take any more of Cleveland.

Gay no Ohio

      The first night of the Trump convention last night was a cornucopia of hate, bigotry and lies. Yesterday I wrote satirically of Fred Phelps leading the opening prayer.  As it turned out, he would have fit right in with all that followed, much better than that pansy ass preacher they dug up talking about peace and love.

     "We are the champions" music stolen from Queen playing in the background Thump emerged from a sea of fog. Just to introduce Melania.  It makes one wonder what he might do for an encore when he is going to speak.  Some entrance stolen from by-gone wrestlers, I suspect.

     If they were smart, they would realize the reason for their convention being so dull is the lack of gay designers, choreographers and all the gay personnel needed to make any presentation entertaining, stimulating, intelligent and enjoyable.  This lack among republicans is sorely felt when they try anything of an artistic nature.

     Being a man of the world, I seldom drink but when I do;  it's southern 'shine in a mason jar less than three days old.  For these four days, it's the perfect antidote.

Conservention in Ohio

     Today is the first day of the Republican conservation in Cleveland.  In case you haven't heard the good news about Jesus or Donald Trump, he is running for President.  Trump, not Jesus.  So all his friends? are having a convention in Ohio to adulate him.

     In planning this event, the first snag came in selecting someone to lead the opening prayer.  Donald wanted the Pope but he was busy having the pope-mobile painted in the rainbow flag colors and he was needed there to make sure they were done in the correct order.  James Dobson, Jimmy Swaggart, Ted Haggard and Jim Baker were all busy counting Sunday's take.

     All finally settled on the one man that embodies Republican principles and beliefs.  A man of action who practices what he preaches.  So to give the opening prayer and invocation:
Pastor Fred Phelps of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas.

     This to be followed by a litany of praise for Donald Trump by Donald Trump. The festivities start an 3:00 P.M. on CNN or all day on Fox Trump News network.    

Circus in Town

     In the old days we all went down to railroad station to watch the animals unload.  These days we all go to the airport to watch the same thing.  Instead of elephants holding the tail of the one in front, we watch republicans clinging to the ass of the one in front.  It's fun pointing out the ones with wide stances.  And betting on which one will head for the rest rooms first. 

     Finally we see Mr. P.T. Trump egress from his plane that is painted black with a bunny on the tail.  On loan from Mr. Hefner who is too exhausted to attend conventions since his latest marriage.

     At the parade to downtown there's a man on stilts announcing coming attractions like the woman with an Adam's apple just like a man.  A man that looks just like a turtle and many more attractions.  Ted Cruz invited God the last time they talked but I don't think He's coming to Cleveland.

     So get your Republican rose colored glasses, your popcorn and beer and settle in for a hilarious week.

Hungry ?

      I think we need a federal law that every establishment selling food have a unlocked dumpster out back accessible to the general public.  Any foodstuff removed therefrom can be eaten or shared but never resold in any way.  A companion law should be enacted that the bakery, grocery store or restaurant cannot be held liable for any illness that may result from ingestion of their discarded merchandise.

     In my experience, Walmart is one of stingiest companies and I think the most wasteful.  Walmart's here in Houston will only sell green bananas.  As soon as a bunch begins to ripen and turn yellow, out to their locked dumpster they go.  At closing time of their deli, everything unsold is gathered up and go to the dumpster.  I personally know a girl fired because she gave the food to a homeless woman instead of throwing it away.  She was caught by a supervisor and lost her job.

     Most bakeries throw away unsold food that isn't taken home by employees.  Knowing the closing time of a bakery can often result in two days worth of sweet things.  If you can catch a nice worker at 
Kentucky Fried or Popeye's on his way to the dumpster you can score two or three days of food..

     I know all this from being disabled, homeless, living in a tent in the woods with my wife who kept us alive over 18 months.  I'll be eternally grateful to all the people who got us here and the means to write this.

Trump / Pence Fiasco

     Trump I'm sure looks on this whole election as a big joke.  If he releases his tax returns he's dead in the water.  Do we want a president who owes millions to a foreign bank?  Who claims he has a billion dollars on hand but doesn't have six million to finance his own convention.  I'm sure Pence has plenty of money he siphoned off the state of Indiana.  He will probably retire after he and Trump are run out of town.  On a rail, preferably.

     Surely the American people are not stupid enough to elect Trump who will quickly resign and apply for his secret service protection and lifetime pension.  Leaving Pence holding the bag of crap he generated as his reward.  God save us and God save America.

     There was another dumb man in the Bible; the husband of Bathsheba.  Any man who would let his wife take a bath on the front porch under the king's apartment deserves whatever happens.  For dumb Republicans, they also deserve whatever happens.  Turn over some rocks in Indiana and hold your nose against what crawls out.

Making s Difference

    It used to not make much of a difference which party the elected president belonged to.   But since Reagan it's begun to take on more and more  importance.  For most of my life I always said it didn't make much difference who was in power in Washington.  I dealt with the same woman at the Social Security office; the same cop who gave me a ticket or let me off this time or the same people at the post office or the DMV.  But I think the attitudes of people we deal with every day have changed to reflect political party lines.

     We see this in county clerks like Kim Davis refusing to issue perfectly legal gay marriage licenses.  I think it's shameful how many things the Supreme Court has decided are legal that Republicans keep passing laws against.  It's untold how much money is wasted trying to get rid of Planned Parenthood.  And abortion.  By people who are against abortions until their wife needs one to save her life.  Or their girlfriend needs one to avoid a public scandal for her hypocritical public servant boyfriend cheating on his wife.

     It's ironic that Trump named Pence as candidate for vice-president.  A big backer of religious freedom laws that allow most anything as long as they believe God approves.  The very attitude that the people who came to America tried to leave behind in Europe. Religious intolerance has followed us here.                   

Demo Combo

     Bernie and Hillary, interchangeable and unbeatable.  Both have huge egos that they are willing to subvert for the good of the people and for the safety and progress of the whole Country.  The greatest asset of this alliance is that they listen to each others views and ideas and reach compromise satisfactory to both and to the American people.  Any political party is fortunate to have  one such person in it's ranks.  That the democrats have two seems a surfeit of riches.

     For all the Republican efforts to suppress voting will come to nothing when enough Americans realize that their leaders are not our friends, their elected officials for the most part greedy, arrogant, faux religious, toady imbeciles with no thoughts or ideas except re-election.

     Read and listen to their icon Donald and whenever he says Muslims, think Republicans and he will start to make sense. 

Voters

     I'm curious about the intelligence levels of republicans after reading parts of their party platform.   For some reason they are more concerned about obsolete laws in their book of ancient proverbs than in the US constitution.  They have an absolute abhorrence of anything to do with sex, genitals, bodily waste elimination, voyeurism to the point it's surprising they continue to reproduce.

      Basically it's a problem of  "do what I say, not what I do."  I remember the anti-abortion Rick Santorum whose wife needed and got an abortion.  Only because we still have secular law which the bible-bots want to be rid of.

     Republicans are against poor people, food stamps, abortion, health care, welfare, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.   Republicans are for more guns, more mass shootings, more foreign wars, more religion and less democracy and people voting.  They are against Mexicans, Muslims and black people.

     How do true-red republicans live with themselves?

Wild Ride

     I've been thinking about the past and some of the humorous things I've experienced back then.  
My little sister in her early teen years owned a beautiful Palomino horse like the one Roy Rogers rode in the old cowboy movies.  As i look back on this mare, I believe she must have been a lesbian horse although in this distant past, no one conceived of such a thing.  She hated all the male gender and abhorred having a man on her back and unless she had a more pressing need, would do whatever she could to get rid of him including rolling over and trying to crush him beneath her, resulting in two males with broken limbs that I know of.  With a female of any breed she was like a playful kitten, horse, human, or whatever as long as the gender was right.  Thus it was that the horse was tethered in the back yard.  Like any young girl, my sister was at that stage of transition from horses to boys.  She had ridden her horse from pasture to backyard, left her there when a boy came by and invited her to the Daily Queen or wherever teens went then.

    Meanwhile, the mare was getting thirstier,  hungrier and more angry by the hour.  

Finally, our mother asked me to ride her home and she would follow and bring me back. Sounded like a simple plan to me.  "Where's the saddle", I asked.  "Oh, she rode her bareback."  "Is it too much to ask if she brought a bit and reins"  Who knew what rapport she might have with this pet of hers.  Maybe she guided her with psychic commands.  By some good luck, this mare was guided in the normal manner by the steering wheel of bit and reins. After attachment and backing to the porch and at last I was aboard and ready for a gentle walk back to the barn.  But this she-devil had her own ideas when she saw an open gate to freedom and her pasture only a couple of miles away.

       By the time we reached the front yard  she was in full gallop mode at top speed. Normally a horses accelerator is controlled by the pressure if a rider's legs against her side.  By the time we cleared the yard, all thought of control was out of the question.  I had one hand on the reins, the other wrapped in her mane and holding on as tight as possible, legs flying every which way desperately trying to sit as tightly as possible to keep on board. Each second of success pile up until you become convinced your balance will save you and you are not going to die sliding alongside the road.  Until about halfway there, you hear a pack of neighborhood dogs barking, roused by all the commotion rapidly approaching .

      Pictures rise in your mind of movies you've seen where a horse reads up and throw its rider when surprised by a snake on the path.  Surely, this encounter will have a similar result.  Ha!. With the thought in her mind only of fresh grass, gallons of cold water and a cozy stable, the dogs were past by the time anyone noticed leaving only yelps and whimpers where the ambush failed.  At last, we arrived at the gate, foaming and blowing  and both still alive, although it took me several minutes to be able to stand up after sliding to the ground.  She just stood there placidly munching grass  Her mission accomplished.

   She was a lot like our president.  He sets a goal and goes for it regardless of obstacles or distractions like barking dogs in the way.  With healthcare or gay rights, he just rolls on home where he was going in the first place.  I've lived and watched 13 presidents now.  Roosevelt and Truman and Johnson were strong, Carter was strong in his honesty, but Obama is quietly strongest of all.  In my opinion.

Police Change

     One can't help feeling sad, angry and frustrated at the spate of gun deaths of black men and white police officers.  The media would like nothing better than a full scale war between the two factions and do their best to foment such.  They couldn't care less about individuals dying as long as there is a news vacuum they manage to fill every day.  No one suggests a solution to this sorry state of affairs.

    There is a solution although it would involve much time and effort.  These two things are anathema to the populace raised by TV in thirty minute intervals.  Real life does not happen in short time and sometimes solution takes years.  Leaving aside the racism that is finally lessening with each new generation.  It will finally die out maybe in the lifetime of our grandchildren but surely in that of great-grand children. It's really sad none of our contemporaries will live that long.

     I think there are too many men and women taught by our own government to kill people without remorse in order to win battles in insane wars.  I feel we would be better served if no combat veteran would be serving as a policeman on the street.  I envision an entire street force made up of men and women  rarely experiencing episodes of PTSD which seem to be the result of  kill conditioning in conflict with their basic impulse to help instead of hurting others.  A woman can do anything a man can do as well and sometimes better.  I have personally seen a female cop attacked by a man being arrested.  She had him on the ground handcuffed in seconds.  All police officers should be trained in martial arts before they can carry a gun.  Deadly force may end up being necessary but as a last resort, never the first.  There may be short or easy solutions but they must come from minds much more qualified than mine.

   

Home Care #3

     This is the last installment of my life in a personal care home gone bad.
 
"The care home business is a joke. There's no wonder so many disabled folks are homeless. I have visited so many homes with deplorable conditions"

     This is the comment pf a personal friend who is trying to find a better place for me that I could move to.  At this point it seems futile so I'm kind of resigned to living here and seeing what might happen.  Every time an ombudsman or a Human Services agent visited in the past, I told them I had no problem.  Because I didn't and could work it with out the owner.  I don't talk with him  because he is seldom around any more leaving everything up to his 24 hour surrogate.  The next time any state agent contacts me I will give them a copy of this blog.

     Up till now, animals were not allowed in the house on the basis that so many people have allergies.  Yesterday the caregivers dog arrived with it's bed and bowls for food and water in the living room.  It is allowed to wander around diners legs during mealtime. I suppose it wandering in the kitchen is no more unsanitary than food preparation or medicine dispensing with a bare hand without any use of gloves such as used by a roadside taco stand. I guess disabled people are automatically immune to each others germs although my three hospital stays this year tell me otherwise. 

     So for now I'm stuck here.  I have heard that conditions in other states that have expanded Medicaid are much better.  Unfortunately I live in a Red State whose governor  doesn't believe in helping people although he gets around in a wheelchair himself.  If you have a loved one in a care home check on them often.  Conditions can change in a heart beat.   
 

Home Care #2

     As promised yesterday I will continue with my description of how quickly things have changed at my residence.  As I noted I have been here 18 months, always felt comfortable and secure and extolled the virtue of being here. It always felt like a home.  No more.  When the refrigerator was secured with a padlock, not allowed to turn on a light before 5:00 AM in the dining room because it disturbs the 24 hour caregiver who sleeps on a couch in the living room.  No one is allowed   in the kitchen after 10:00 PM or outside on the patio that people use to smoke cigarettes.  I understood the removal of the coffee pot since there are only two of us who drink coffee.  We buy our own supply but we have to ask for sugar or cream if we don't want to drink it black.  I hate that we need to ask since her facial expression and body language say it's a lot of trouble for her and she resents having to do it.  There used to be some sugar for residents use in a jar but now it's hidden just like paper towels and you have to ask for a napkin.

     Breakfast now is about the same, except that now the toast is dry with nothing  available to put on it, not even cheap margarine.  There is always scrambled eggs, McDonalds style potato patty, poor tasting sausage links and either oatmeal, grits or cold cereal.  I usually pour the milk off my cereal and save it for the next day's coffee.  I hide it under the bread in the bottom of the big freezer outside my door.  Lunch is always one and a half of a tuna salad or bologna sandwich, some potato chips and a small cop of Kool-Aid.  We used to sometimes get tea but not lately.  The drink is only Kool-Aid, cold water and in a blue moon, some cola. Dinner is usually hot dogs if not some hamburger and elbow macaroni.  I counted we had hot dogs for lunch or dinner six times this week. Condiments for the hot dogs are mustard or ketchup.  We once had a jar of relish but I got the last of it yesterday.  I would really like some chili or chopped onion to go with the potato chips and Kool=Aid on the naked wieners on the cold buns.

     I did forget that on Thursday, we have frozen pizza from Walmart that gets topped with sliced onion and bell pepper, then baked in an oven.  The crust gets hard as slate and you have to eat with hands as a fork won't cut it.  Again napkins all hidden somewhere.  Luckily I stash toilet paper on my wheelchair to use when nothing else is available.

     Tomorrow I will wrap this up of how to cope in a house with no special disabled facilities and what I looking for and how. 


     












   

Home Care

     For the last 18 months I have resided in a personal care home.  Over that time people have come and gone leaving five of us a permanent core group.  At present there are seven residents.  I had negotiated a monthly payment based on my income.  I don't know how much anyone else pays except that most are helped by Medicaid since most are mentally disabled.  I am the only person here with a physical problem that is covered only by Social Security and Medicare and supplementary insurance.  I pay every month out of my SSA check and keep the rest to help my son in his last year in college and the co-pays on my medication.  In mid-year, I had an increase in income so I raised my care payment voluntarily by a proportionate amount.  I've been happy and satisfied until this last month when everything changed so drastically,  I have been looking for another place to go.

     Last year when it got hot they installed a new central air unit outside and kept it on coming  through vents in the bedrooms making it comfortable all over the house.  This year the only air is two small units in the living room where our 24 hour solitary caregiver sleeps.  I have asked to no avail to turn on the air at least at night.  I have just resigned to changing out of my wet night clothes every morning.  By day I stay in my room where it reaches 85 degrees at the hottest part of the day.  Up to last month. I used my laptop at the dining room table where I eat.  It was fine with every one for 18 months until the new CG decided it had to be moved to my hot room.  Previously there were three caregivers on 8 hour shifts.  One of them usually fixed coffee in a pot.  Most of them started breakfast at a little past 4:30.  I would turn on my laptop to watch news summaries at 5:00.  We used to have fried or scrambled eggs, French toast or buttered toast or pancakes.  We got sausage or ham, syrup or jelly and often orange juice.  We used to keep our personal food in the refrigerator.  I had bagels and English muffins.  Marmalade and fruit like pomegranates.  Now the refrigerator is tied shut and padlocked when it isn't guarded  like the TV remote which stays hidden in her desk drawer

     I'll write more tomorrow when it's bright enough without the overhead light with it's missing third low watt bulb.  I will then discuss the dietary changes, seating arrangements and time restrictions, etc.
Also what I'm looking for in a place to go.

Top Secret

     I don't understand why anything is classified.  It seems like too many read it and know all about it before someone decides it is a secret.   Two can keep a secret if one is dead.  If Israel is such a good friend and ally, why do we keep catching their spies spying on us?  I'm sure with all their people and electronics, they know all  about anything before our officials and classifiers and it was on the way to Tel Aviv before Obama can hang up his phone.

     Russia and China are not far behind Israel at finding out our secrets.  If we do anything off the record like sending a high altitude spy plane over Russia piloted by Gary Powers who was subsequently shot down.  Our inept spies didn't know they could shoot so high.  We owned up once the secret was out.  Britain said we were idiots for admitting it. Their reaction would have been "what spy plane, what are you talking about?"  And "Gary Powers, never heard of him, don't know him.

     My opinion is that Top Secrets live about three days of relevance before they are obsolete and yesterday's news.  The world has evolved so fast and is so interconnected the whole concept of secrets is a fool's endeavor.

     I am still gathering data on group homes, assisted living homes, etc. like the conditions encountered nationally in a group home like the one where I'm a resident.

Governors

     Living in Texas with a Republican governor makes me qualified to write about what a disaster
it is electing Republicans to do anything more official than scooping up roadkill from state highways.   I guess we should be proud of Mr. Abbott since he was able to get a $35,000,00  bribe from Trump to drop complaining about the university scam,  The Florida AG was only able to get $25,000.00 for the same thing.  I haven't seem how much all the other Republicans got but I imagine it was pretty substantial. 

     I read about the leaders in Illinois and Kansas and their policies doing the opposite of what they said would happen.  Unfortunately, most of the red states are in the same boat.  Teetering on the edge of  bankruptcy, unable to fund their schools, their infrastructure or their social services.  Wisconsin, Florida or Mississippi.  I don't know the details of the problems in other states that caused them to vote in such incompetent politicians and get so little benefit.

     Here in Texas though, It's sheer stupidly, ignorance and foolishness.  It's no accident that the dumbest representative in congress, Louie Gohmert, is a Texan.  An imbecile elected by other Texas imbeciles.  The tragedy is that the same idiots also voted in other Republican dimbulbs like corrupt Greg Abbott. Ken Paxton AG under indictment for fraud & Ted Cruz chosen by God Himself.

     A simple example of how much Republicans care about people is illustrated by Texas turndown of Medicaid Expansion.  Probably because it came in such a way that prevented Republicans from grabbing most of it for themselves.  To paraphrase Forrest Gump "stupid is as stupid does."