Anyone who knows me will tell you how important Sunday evenings are to my weekday productivity. The block of time from 4pm to 8pm on Sunday is critical to my mental acuity for the rest of the week. Crucial. Sometime in my mid to late twenties I discovered that going to bed by 10pm on Sunday nights really sharpened my focus for the following days and nights.

Keep that in mind. Hey, you ever did something that you KNEW you were gonna regret, but you just HAD to do it?!? See, I hear sounds in my head man. Been hearing them for as long as I can remember. Mainly music and musical instruments. All of the time. I may even hear voices. Singing voices, okay? Don’t judge unless you’ve never heard a voice in your head……..Fair?

These sounds call out to me and sometimes I just have to listen. This past Sunday was one of those occasions. It was the perfect storm. I was home alone. It was early, about 2pm. Dinner was cooked. My laundry was done. My grass had been cut. I had been out on the bike for a few hours already. Perfect. I had that all too rare “time to myself” moment.

So the creative urge forced me to turn on all of my instruments. First plugged in my bass then turned on the amp. Next plugged in the guitar and turned on the amp. Then my looper pedal. Then my computer and interface and midi keyboard. Plugged in my condenser mic. Opened up Studio One 5. Then the monitors. Then it hit me. This is the first time in weeks that all of the instruments were on at the SAME time. Yep.

It was 3pm. What seemed like a few minutes later I had recorded some sounds that I had carried around in my head for days. It was 11pm. Time for an MP3 file. 12 midnight. Listen to the recording. 1:30am. What seemed like minutes later it was 6:15am. Time to get ready for work. On a Monday morning. With barely four hours of sleep. It’s already been a long week. And I’m already hearing more sounds.

I wish every day felt like Saturday.  I’d sleep better at night.  My days would last a little longer.  I might laugh a lot more.  Would definitely smile a lot more.  Probably would have more hair.  And fewer gray hairs…… I’d be in better shape because I would excercise more.  Come to think of it I would have to excercise more because I would eat less healthy. I wouldn’t feel the urge to do EVERYTHING at the same time ALL OF THE TIME  which would reduce my anxiety.  I could listen to more music.  I could PLAY more music.  Maybe I’d get better at playing music….I could spend more time with family.  Stay more connected with friends.  Not dread the all too inevitable “Monday Morning”. 

Well today is Sunday.  A new week.  Let me see how many “Saturday” things I can get done today.  Guitars for breakfast sounds good……

A breakfast ride to start my day. An F18 Hornet for brunch. Live music with my son’s band for lunch! Can’t wait to see what’s for dinner…….

#doingwhatIwanttodo

So it’s Saturday.  I’m going to try to do everything I want to do today.  Off to a good start. I like motorcycles. I love fighter jets. So I rode a motorcycle down to this beautiful monument. It is Navy F18 Hornet in Blue Angel livery.

Almost picture perfect. If only this plane were in the air and I were in it……

Man it’s been a busy few weeks. I can’t remember the last time I posted to this page on consecutive days.

A few months ago I was blessed with a new position at my company. This new opportunity required six weeks of training (three in a classroom and three in the “field”). That was challenging enough, but add in an hour commute (WITHOUT TRAFFIC) and six hour daily classes with a good bit of lecturing…….had me recalling Danny Glover’s classic line in the Lethal Weapon movies: “I’m too old for this shit”!

To make things even more interesting the two home improvement projects that were supposed happen six months apart (one three months before the training and the other three months after) converged on the date of the last week of training to create a perfect storm of sorts. Add in a second dose of the Corona Virus as all of this was going on……I could hardly catch my breath.

Now I finally can breath. Exhale! I write for therapy. When I started this page I told myself to make an effort to write every day. However it is difficult to write when you are preoccupied with other things. So I’m gonna get back to basics. I’m going to write about life’s simple pleasures. Starting today.

In my little corner of the world it is Friday July 22,2022. It is near sunset. It is hot! But I like this time of day. Work week over for now. Weekend ahead of me. Ideal time to do exactly what I want to do. Now let me go figure out what that is. But first, take a deep breath. Exhale…….

Question: how many days in a week, a month, a year have you spent doing everything (and only) you wanted to? Nothing more, nothing less. How many?

Oil companies are financially raping the American citizens. Guess what? We are letting them do it. I know the word “raping” may seem too strong and/or inappropriate. I was gonna use “taking” or “stealing” instead. But they’ve been “taking” from us for 40 years and stealing from us for 20 years. I could have used “fleecing”, but they are not wasting their time trying to conceal their thieving ways. Boldly and brazenly they just tell us right to our faces that they’re gonna take our money and it’s nothing we are going to do about it.

The oil companies say that the current prices have gone up because of demand, shortages and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. At the same the oil companies made an average of almost 300 percent profit from 2020 to 2021. Not revenue, PROFITS! THEY ARE GOING TO KEEP PUSHING THESE PRICES UP TO SEE JUST HOW FAR WE WILL LET THEM GO…….

It’s probably not fair nor accurate to blame one person or group for the current state of gasoline prices in America. That being said I’d like to share some history that many may already know.

“Google” ‘gas price history by year’ and check out the stats. Stay with me now. The average price per gallon in 1929 was 21 cent. From 1929 to to 2000 the price went from 21 cent to $1.51. That’s only a $1.30 in 71 years! That’s an average increase if 2 cent a year. If that trend had continued to the present the price for one gallon of gas in 2022 would be $2.07. That’s right.

Now look at what happened from 2001 until 2010 and then again from 2011 to 2020. The average price per gallon was $1.46 in 2001. By 2010 the price had risen to $2.79. In 2020 the price was $2.24. Two years later the price is now $4.98. In only 21 years the price increased by $3.52, or an average of 16 cent per year!

You ask why I point to the year 2000 as a point of reference? Well, the year 2000 was the year that oil magnate George W. Bush became the president. George W. Bush, his father and all of his long time political allies used their influence to allow the oil industry (HIS INDUSTRY) to financially rape, take and steal from the American people. Look at the data. This is not a coincidence nor a conspiracy. It is simply a fact. For 71 years gas prices increased an average of 2 cent a year. Enter the Bush family and gas goes up 16 cent a year for the past twenty two years. Every excuse in the world has been used to justify the exorbitant and excessive increases. Notice how the prices never decrease at the same rate? Think about it.

Think. How many businesses make MORE money when faced with a crisis than they do when the “market” is good? Oil company profits go up when there is a hurricane, tornado, a shortage, a surplus, a war, a broken pipe line, an oil spill, a damaged vessel, an oil rig explosion, you name it. Any time there is any type of incident prices go up.

Side note: gas went over a dollar a gallon for the first time in 1980. The significance: the same Bush family allies were in the government with then newly elected President Ronald Reagan.

Anybody remember the Civil War of The 21st Century? I hope that this is not a question that future generations have to ask. Civil War. One of the most ironic and tragic of all oxymorons. A fight between friends essentially. These “friendly fights” oftentimes result in the costliest, bloodiest and deadliest of all. The American Civil War of 1861 bears this out. More American soldiers died in that war than all soldiers from all nations in the Vietnam War.

Fast forward to the present. America, dare I say, we are in the midst of a modern day Civil War. Surprisingly and sadly few people even realize nor care. Those in power, corporate leaders and politicians, have this nations’ citizens exactly where they want us to be, totally dependent on them and in opposition with one another. Through money, power, sex, religion, fear, love, hate and ignorance society has been lead to the mental and emotional state that we currently find ourselves in. We Americans are blessed with numerous opportunities and choices to pursue a good life and I am grateful for that. However, we’ve become so pacified by the opportunities afforded that we sometimes overlook the responsibility to hold each other accountable. You better believe that big business and politicians love this. One way or another they are all on the same team. The powers that be conveniently use this situation to “allow” us to choose sides, blame one another, finger point, question each other, ridicule each other, judge each other, mistrust each other and ultimately fight each other.

Meanwhile we stand by as unnecessary shootings take place, discrimination and racism persist, domestic violence and police brutality go unchecked, prices for goods and services escalate to all-time highs and our children’s schools are left to physically and financially fend for themselves.

We know better America. We can do better too. We all need to be more involved with our local government and politics. Town. City. County. State. Get involved. Go to meetings that affect your community and livelihood. Make your presence be known and voice be heard. Who knows…..Check out the PTA meetings for your childrens’ schools. If we have hours to spend on social media then we certainly have minutes to spend for the betterment of our families, right?

The current Civil War is notable for the fact that the people sacrificing their lives are unknowingly not participants on either “side”. In other words they did not sign up nor were they drafted to fight. They are casualties of the very freedom that we CHOOSE to live by…….

So let’s see. 2022. Opposition. Civil unrest. Blame. People dying. All the while costs are rising and corporate America is benefitting. Go study the Civil War of 1861 and then research the number of deaths by gun in this country each year since the year 2000. Add them up…..IN THE LAST 22 YEARS we have had nearly as many people killed by guns than in the that war. Hopefully for the sake of us all the near future proves us to be……more civil.

How many more funerals will there be before we, as a nation, as a people, do something about gun violence in this country? And for the record I’m not speaking of just the senseless mass shootings. I’m speaking of ALL types of gun violence: mass shootings, hate crimes, black on black, white on white, Hispanic on Hispanic, domestic violence, bank robberies, store robberies, car jackings, drug deals……COME ON AMERICA! It’s been way too much for way too long.

I am not a politician, nor a lobbyist or historian. However, I do know when and why the Second Amendment was ratified. Over the years I have noted some of the cases surrounding the “Constitutionality” of this Amendment. In my OPINION those of us who use the provisions of the Second Amendment as the basis for opposing stricter gun control laws are WILLFULLY or WRONGFULLY ignoring the context in which it was written. If you don’t believe me just use your own common sense as you consider this question: How much has the world changed since 1791? Since 1891? For that matter since 1991? Yeah I know, right…? And yet, many of us, while living in our own solitary comfort, insulated from the backdrop of needless death, shameless killings and thoughtless murders, use the Second Amendment as an unjustifiable reason and baseless excuse to own ANY type of gun we desire. IF THIS IS YOU, YOU ARE WRONG. Before your emotions take over all I ask is that you take a minute to consider the following: Does having a driver’s license allow you to own/operate heavy equipment or commercial trucks? Can you go to the local military base and drive a tank? An assault vehicle? Just asking… I love fighter jets. When I buy a plane ticket I cannot request to fly in an F22 or F18. Just like the rest of America I am given a seat on a commercially available passenger plane regulated by the FAA and NTSB. PERIOD!

My neighbor owns a stock dragster and a Sprint car. The fact that he has the legal right to drive does not give him the right to drive those particular cars on the road. The cars are not “street legal”. PERIOD!

While the Second Amendment gives us the “right” to gun ownership, there are no amendments that prohibit laws to be passed to make gun ownership a “privilege” and to make certain guns illegal. If you are not intelligent enough to comprehend this or you lack the integrity to accept its truth, then YOU ARE THE ENABLERS OF THIS SENSELESS GUN VIOLENCE. PERIOD!

Admittedly I do not know the gun laws of my city, my county, my state or this country. But whatever those laws are is simply not enough. Children, dare I say toddlers, are dying in schools while privileged adult men and women who have the authority to enact change are busy pointing fingers and turning a blind eye. I have a painfully uncomfortable question for the leaders of our individual states and this country at large: HOW MANY SENATORS, REPRESENTATIVES OF THE HOUSE, GOVERNORS AND MAYORS WOULD HAVE TO DIE AT THE HANDS OF UNQUALIFIED PERSONS WITH GUNS BEFORE YOU GOT UP OFF OF YOUR LAZY, PATHETIC WEAK ASSES AND CHANGED SOME LAWS? HOW MANY? ARE ANY OF YOU WILLING TO DIE TO PROTECT THE SECOND AMENDMENT? NO? THEN WHY ARE YOU STILL DEMANDING THAT INNOCENT CHILDREN DO SO? To all of the members of Congress and their respective families: All of you are cowardly failures if this remains status quo. And to think some leaders had the audacity to question the decision of the Uvalde Police Chief for his failure to “do something”. Your actions are just as inept and irresponsible if not moreso.

Some lawmakers want stricter gun laws. Some want improved mental health legislation. Some want tougher criminal sentencing. Why can’t we have all of these? Please do not lie to the American people and say we do not have the money to fund them all because WE DO! PERIOD!

Believe it or not some leaders are trying to make “US” believe that the way to solve the gun violence issue is to…….add more guns to the problem. They use a small sample of analytics to justify their stupidity and expect others to follow suit. “Got a flooded basement, just add more water”. “Got a flat tire, just normalize it by flattening the other three.” “Two kids fighting in class, let the other twenty kids help break it up”. “Too much salt in your food, just add MORE salt”. “Building on fire, just add gasoline to it.” Stupid shit man.

I don’t know. Couldn’t we have a federal law that requires a minimum number of hours of firearms safety training before attaining a gun permit? Why not require registration/permits for ALL guns? How about a 90- day waiting period/ background evaluation before being eligible for any gun purchase? How about this: All guns must be registered through each state’s respective police department upon purchase. Cars gotta be registered through the MVA……How about this: Gun owners should be required to carry liability insurance as part of the “right/ privilege” of ownership. Car owners gotta have car insurance……How about this: Any/ all gun crimes carry a mandatory minimum 2 year sentence and lifetime ban from gun ownership. Hey, felons used to lose voting rights for life……Just thinking out loud.

I don’t want to rehash all of the mass shootings, but I have to discuss one. The first school shooting that I recall getting major media coverage was Paducah, Kentucky. I remember feeling extremely shocked and would not have believed that school shootings would become so commonplace and acceptable. That was 1997. At this point I don’t know what is more troubling: Living through all of the shootings since then or not knowing just how many more we’ll live through in our lifetimes…..

It would be fitting if all of Congress was forced to visit towns where mass shootings took place so that they could see the pain and anguish the surviving victims go through. Maybe have a meaningful and progressive dialogue for action.

On second thought maybe that’s not such a great idea. Many of the Congress members would probably take their guns with them………

It’s been a long time coming, but we are getting there. Our back yard was full of trees. We had some removed. The terrain was uneven. We had the ground leveled as best we could. There was no grass. After three weeks we got it to look like the picture at the bottom. I was going to hire a contractor to sod or seed my newly cleared back yard. Got two estimates: $3800.00 or $4100.00. DIY to the rescue. Several cubic feet of soil and many pounds of grass seed later there are signs of green grass life. I like green grass if you didn’t know…..When the world is way to anxious to share how challenging life can be, I’m thankful for the simple things to remind me how rewarding life actually is. Spring 2022 looks promising. Can’t wait for Summer.