Monday, January 30, 2012

What Is The Worse Sin Against God?

An interesting question. The Holy Books of all religions are full of sins that we can perpetrate against God. The Ten Commandments are a prime example and are pointed to as the rules God handed down to us directly.

While I will not argue with the sins listed in the Holy Books, even though many are archaic and meant for another time and place. I personally do not see the one sin that I consider the 'worse  sin against God'.

The worse sin against God is 'claiming to speak for God'.  There are a growing number of individuals that preach, in their respective religious affiliations, who not only preach the word of God, according to the Holy Books, but claim to be speaking for God. Their claims go well beyond the normal 'interpretation of scripture' and extend to actual conversations with God that they claim to be 'first person encounters'.

NO ONE SPEAKS FOR GOD!!! If the Holy Books are to be believed; God has laid down His laws and all we have to do is follow them to achieve a place with Him. Ministers who claim these first person encounters are stepping well beyond the duties that I prescribe to a minister. Which chiefly are the education of the masses to the Holy Books and guidance for those who need it.

I look at any of these claims of first person knowledge of God as dubious. Especially those that claim  near daily conversations.

God is not a 'speaker' of wisdom that He rains down in us like a spring storm. God is a 'listener' who we can 'spill the beans to' and through reflection gain insight into our problems. Through the 'free will' that God has endowed all of us we can use this insight to solve our problems and move on with our lives.

 Be very suspicious of anyone who claims that God has told them personally to do something. Especially if that something comes any where near your wallet. God does not ask for us to build cathedrals or monuments in His name. What he does ask is that we, each in his/her own way, achieve faith in Him. Through this faith you will achieve Gods graces. Not through listening to the 'usurpers of Gods word'!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have noticed that my writings, over the past year, have increasingly taken on a religious theme. Kiddies I have not become a religious fanatic. What I have always truly enjoyed is the study of the Human Species. There is nothing more interesting than human/God interactions except maybe human/God/science interaction.

I am not an expert in this area but I am an eternal student of the subject. My observations are mine alone. I do not want or claim to seek any followers of my thoughts and that reason is very simple.

I believe that mine and your relationship with God is an individual relationship absent of any organized attempt to pigeon hole us into one belief or another. Follow your own path. Think for your self. Weigh all the information you garner. Make your own decisions. Form your own relationship with God according to your conclusions not that of any other person.

Love ya,
Randy

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Oh How I Hate To Take Pills!!

I sat in my recliner several days ago staring at a pill for over two hours. I hate taking pills of any kind. Always have and I am sure that I always will feel this way. Trying to fill my mind with any thoughts, other than that pill, I found myself thinking about 'avoidance'. We all try to avoid things that we feel are unpleasant and push our minds toward those that we find pleasurable. I believe this to be the natural order of things.

But I have this belief that if we do not face our unpleasant circumstances, especially when it is a satiation that we can remedy, we will not be prepared to face any unpleasant things that are unavoidable. There are always unavoidable unpleasntries that crop up in our lives.


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“Most people have come to prefer certain of life’s experiences and deny and reject others, unaware of the value of the hidden things that may come wrapped in plain and even ugly paper. In avoiding all pain and seeking comfort at all costs, we may be left without intimacy or compassion; in rejecting change and risk we often cheat ourselves of the quest; in denying our suffering we may never know our strength or our greatness.”


When I first got sick last month I totally denied the seriousness of my situation. After all I never get sick. I am a rock that keeps on rolling down that hill smashing everything in my path and coming out smelling like a rose. So when my rock fell into a little indentation in the ground I went into denial and let that little indentation turn into a widening crevice. My avoidance reflex kicked in and my common sense went on vacation.

Throughout history our species has used 'The Art Of Avoidance' to sweep aside things that we knew were wrong but our 'out of sight, out of mind avoidance relfex' kicked in and gave us , what we believed, was a rational reason to avoid that situation.

The Holocaust comes to my mind immediately when I think of 'mass avoidance' of a situation. It was to unbelievable for us to take it seriously so we avoided addressing it, even when mounting evidence was building up. Not until our soldiers, in the field, saw the atrocities first hand did we start to come to grips with this tragedy.

Quite a leap from my pill avoidance to The Holocaust but I think you may be starting to see my point.

Experience is the best teacher. Experiencing both pleasurable and unpleasurable life situations is necessary to our mental growth. These experiences help us build 'coping mechanisms', to deal with the unpleasantness when it arrives.

I know that, as a parent, we try and shield our children from all the unpleasant things that come up n their lives. Are we doing them a favor? I think not! I tend to think that we are over protective and foster the 'avoidance reflex ' in our children. We are not preparing them for what may come their way.

Of course children need to be protected from the hideousness of our lives especially at a young age. But there are situations that can be used as teaching tools to improve children's ability to cope.

In the end it is the parents duty to filter these situations and decide which are appropriate for their children to be presented for educational purposes.

I know!!! I just threw another monkey wrench into 'the parenting handbook'. I love to make y'all think.

Love ya,
Randy

 

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

I Always Thought I Was Immortal!!

It's true! I always thought that I was immortal and because of that belief I have lived my life to a fullness only an immortal can attempt.

Well kiddies I am not immortal and neither are you. A shame because I would have loved to had the chance to go into space as an explorer. Another crushed dream, lol.

My mortality, the time God has loaned me here on Earth, has been severely tested over the past month. I have discovered some things about myself that I would have laughed off just a few short months ago.

My little adventure into reality started this past Christmas, 2011. I had been suffering from what I believed to be the flu for a week by Christmas day but my condition was getting worse by the day. Finally on December 27, 2011 at around 3 am I had reached a point that I actually thought I was going to die. I never thought that I would be able to pin point a time and place for my passing but there it was staring me in the face.

My friends know, and I have written about this before, that I live alone and that I do not fear dying alone. At least that is what I thought before December 27th last. My fears about dying have always been ones connected with not being found for weeks after passing. I am admittedly a vain person and do not want to have my lifeless body seen like those that are always showing up in the television show 'Bones' each episode.

What I found out about myself, on that December night, is that I fear death in whatever form it comes to me.

I was sitting on a recliner struggling to breath that night. My lungs had been steadily filling up with crap and my lung capacity was decreasing rapidly. I was gasping for air and had the feeling that I was suffocating. Suffocating!!! An unbelievable feeling that I would not wish on my worst enemy.

My breathing was becoming very rapid as I tried to pull in the air I needed. I found myself talking with God between labored breaths. At one point I notices my fingernails becoming a bluish color and my feet were swelling. I know enough about the human body to know that that bluish color meant I was becoming cyanotic.

I called my neighbor and he rushed over and drove me to the emergency room. My stay there was about twelve hours long. I was diagnosed with a severe case of bronchitis and a week later a pneumonia diagnosis was added. Two weeks after that they added Congestive Heart Failure to my growing list of diagnoses.

I have been pumped with enough medications to sink a ship and am slowly recovering. I was told this morning that my recovery will take a minimum of 3 months and possibly 6 months.

So it seems that I am not the immortal man that I have deluded myself into thinking I was; but a mere mortal like every other person. I have found that I fear death just like anyone else. Maybe more now that I have had a taste.

With this new found knowledge in hand I have taken yet another look back on my life and have added so many more regrets to my already long list.

I had made my peace with God a long time ago and always thought that when called I would go willingly because I was going to a better life. My experiences, over the past month, have proven that premise fatally flawed.

I am not ready. I suppose that we never really are ready to give up this life. I have so much more to do. Physically I may be on shaky ground to accomplish what I want in the time I have left. Mentally I fell like I can go on forever.

Hopefully my mental immortality will pull my physical mortality along long enough for me to accomplish what I want.

If Not!!! I have had a wonderful life even with all my missteps and failures. I have a legacy of four amazing children and am loved. A man could do much worse.

Love ya,
Randy

Monday, January 23, 2012

Read Between Obama's Lines Tomorrow Night!!

During the State of the Union Address, tomorrow night, you will hear words like 'fairness' and 'responsibility'. These are famous 'focus group' words. Words that make us feel good. Politicians study these words to see which ones elicit favorable reactions from the people. Politics is a game of 'rhetoric' in which words are chosen for how they make us feel rather than ones that convey substance that we can study and decide on.

Politicians want to make you feel good while actually giving you very little information about issues. If their words make you feel good then you will feel good about the person uttering them and consequently vote for that person. In the end it is like a high school prom queen contest. One driven by popularity rather than issues.

So what is wrong with words like 'responsibility' and 'fairness'? Nothing unless you study the context in which they are spoken. Nothing when used properly.

My interpretation of 'responsibility' and 'fairness', when applied to citizens of the United States is; 1. Responsibility is the act of taking care of yourself and your family without assistance of the government unless in extreme circumstances and 2. Fairness is getting what you have earned as a productive part of our society.

But tomorrow night President Obama will give those words completely different meanings. In The Presidents world; Responsibility is the act of those who have achieved success to pass that success onto those who have not achieved and Fairness is the act of spreading the achievers wealth to the non achievers unearned.

?Have you heard these definitions before? Maybe put into different words by the German philosopher and socialist, Karl Marx, in the late 18th century?

Karl Marz said; “From each, according to his ability; to each, according to his need”. Basically Marx is saying that what must be done is to take what one person earned, legally, and redistribute it to those who have not earned it. A process of raising the non achievers up on the backs of those willing to achieve.

I know that this sounds good to some in our society. Getting someones earnings for doing little or nothing. But riddle me this kiddies!! How long do you think the achievers will be willing to achieve if they will end up giving it to the non achievers. I think that if they were smart enough to be successful they are certainly smart enough to realize that if we are all to have the same stuff why work because the government will give it to you.

Anyone remember the long food lines in The USSR while communism was in full force? I heard that the government gave out medals to those who achieved. Have you ever tried to feed a medal to your hungry children?

I am not saying that we do not have inequities and problems within our system. We certainly do. But in a society where most people are productive and because of that the society is thriving; those in need will be taken care of and taken care of well.

Please study what you are told, by any politician in any political party, and strip out all the 'feel good crap' and look for the substance. Then take that substance to the voting booth.

Love ya,
Randy

Friday, January 20, 2012

Illness Continues!!

I have had a relapse in my condition and that has kept me from writing. My bronchitis has morphed into bronchitis plus pneumonia.

I have had a lot of problems breathing and my concentration, probably due to my decreased oxygen supply, has been affected.

As soon as I start to feel better I will return to my rants and raves, lol.

Take care everyone and I will see you all soon.

Love ya,
Randy

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Jesus Christ Created The First Zombie!!

Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out - the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, "Don't cry."
Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said "Young man, I say to you, get up!" The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.
They were all filled with awe and praised God. "A great prophet has appeared among us," they said. "God has come to help his people." This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.

Luke 7:11-17

In Luke's own words he proves that Jesus created a zombie. Hebrew word for zombie מטומטם
Two thousand years later we are at the brink of 'The Zombie Appocolypse' and are ill prepared to deal with it. Even though the bible, in Luke's own words, proves to us that zombies are a reality; Christianity has failed to prepare its followers for what will be an annihilation of the human race.

Few people are prepared. Governments, with their halfhearted outlook play down the coming epidemic. When I look at the failures of most of the worlds religions and the worlds governments I see gross incompetence in protecting our species.

Governments want to concentrate on 'cyber attacks' and ignore the inevitable. There will be few left to man computers and attack anything once the 'Zombie Hords' are gnawing off the arms of computer geeks everywhere.

Major sections of the bible tell The Easter Story or how Jesus rose as a zombie.
  • Matthew 28:1-20
  • Mark 16:1-19
  • Luke 24:1-53
  • John 20:1 – 22:25
Many religions take communion as one of their sacraments. We are taught that in communion we are consuming the 'body and blood' of Jesus Christ. I see this as a clear sign that Jesus Christ, histories most famous zombie, was giving us instructions in the 'ways of the zombie.

Is Further Proof Needed??


The above chart shows a hierarchy of historical zombies and their goals toward 'global domination'. It shows how those historical zombies, who have reached zombifcation through different means, want to dominate the human species. Conversions to religions that ill prepare humans for what is coming and a culture that teaches us that zombies are to be feared but revered at the same time makes us weak against their attack. Easy prey for the flesh eaters.

I believe that only 1% of the worlds population are even remotely prepared for this inevitable attack. That 1% will not be able to hold out very long against an army that neither cares what happens to them and is on a feeding frenzy.

Kiddies get you heads out of the sand and look at the mounting evidence. Search for the truths about the little reported zombie attacks, in the 20th Century, in Southeast Asia, during WWI and WWII, after the recent Japanese tsunami and here in the United States after Hurricane Katrina.

Knowledge and preparation may save you but only if you begin to prepare NOW!!!!!

Good Luck!!

Love Ya,
Randy

Monday, January 16, 2012

Crime Spree Spread From Wisconsin To New York And Beyond!!

Over the past week I have been on assignment to cover a 'crime spree' that covered half the United states and involved hundreds of individuals. I will attempt to piece the story together for you. It's complicated and confusing. Uncovering the truth was difficult and at one point, when I questioned the 'king pin' of this operation, dangerous.

The story starts in the Bronx, New York. A drug dealer nick named 'Gambian The Pouch' was arrested in a drug sting last fall. He made a deal with the Bronx District Attorneys office to provide operational details, including names of the organizations leaders as he knew them, in exchange for a lighter sentence in a facility where he would be protected.

                                  Gambian The Pouch just after his arrest.

The story, as told to me by 'Gambian The Pouch'  is one that involves an organization so complex that it covered several states with all transactions completed in secrecy and complete anonymity.

Gambian was able to give law enforcement enough information to lead them to a higher up in the organization. A person named Bryan Stime of Kent, Washington. Stime, known in drug dealing circles as 'The Skeleton' because of the plastic skeleton that is known to frequent his car, was picked up on a tip from the New York Stats Police. He was found to be in possession of 'crack cocain' that was ready for street distribution.

                                              Stimes bony companion.

Stime, facing a long list off drug related and traffic violation charges, was quick to give up his main supplier and as it turns out the 'ujnder king pin' of this operation.

On the tip from Stime, police in Madison, Wisconsin arrested Beezow Doo-Doo Zopittybop-Bop-Bop. The 30 year old was charged with a concealed weapon, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of marijuana and a violation of probation. This was enough to hold him until a case could be built for running an 'interstate drug ring'.

                                Beezow Doo-Doo Zopittybop-Bop-Bop

At this point law enforcement realized that Beezow Doo-Doo Zopittybop-Bop-Bop may not be the king pin they originally thought him to be. There had to be someone pulling his strings from above.

This entire case has been built on criminals giving up the next person on the ladder and with Beezow Doo-Doo Zopittybop-Bop-Bop it would be no different.

After several hours of interrogation Beezow Doo-Doo Zopittybop-Bop-Bop gave up his bosses. A group so vile and secretive that they were not know to law enforcement prior to this time.


Beezow Doo-Doo Zopittybop-Bop-Bop gave up Japans feared 'water mafia'. A shadowy group made up of former Japanese National Water Polo team members. The Bronx District Attorney is quoted as saying, "I have often wondered where these Olympic water polo players go after their careers where over".

World wide law enforcement has begun investigations of all retired water polo players. Retired Hungarian National team player Andris  Bolyai , at the time of his arrest said, "There are only so many coaching jobs in the water polo world. A man has to be able to make a living."

So after months of investigation, involving hundreds of law enforcement officers, in multiple countries, this case has finally been put to rest.

Randy


PS.....I reiterate; I write fiction.  LOL!

PSS.....This is a compilation of 4 stories that I found on the Internet last week. The actual stories can be found at:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/06/beezow-doo-doo-zopittybop_n_1190410.html?ref=weird-news#s610466&title=Tamaseseri_Festival

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/06/giant-rat-found-bronx-new-york-foot-locker_n_1190141.html?ir=Weird+News

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/06/skeleton-in-passenger-seat_n_1190126.html

Monday, January 9, 2012

Our Teachers Are The Products of The American Education System!!

Reading, Writing and Arithmetic taught to then tune of possible racism or at the least gross stupidity and insensitivity.

Mathematics homework at Beaver Ridge Elementary School in Norcross, Georgia has shown light on the ugly head of 'lack of common sense'. The teachers are simply trying to combine the study of Social Studies with that of Mathematics. In itself not a bad idea. The problem arises in the subject matter not the attempted lesson.

Examples of mathematics homework given at this school:

"Each tree had 56 oranges. If 8 slaves pick them equally, then how much would each slave pick?"

"If Frederick got two beatings per day, how many beatings did he get in 1 week?"

Looking at these questions I have to ask; are the teachers racist, ignorant, insensitive or a combination of all of these?

Honestly I do not believe that the teachers are racist but they can and should be blamed for a lack of common sense that lead to the asking of such insensitive questions.

Lets look at these questions individually and see where the teachers went wrong.

Question #1, "Each tree had 56 oranges. If 8 slaves pick them equally, then how much would each slave pick?" The skill they are looking to be practiced here is 'division'. A simple problem and I am sure most children will get it correct.

So the child gets the answer correct and then has so many other questions that will be left to the parents to answer as this was a homework assignment. Questions like; 'What are slaves?', 'Why are 8 slaves picking oranges in the same tree? and 'They have to live in Florida so what are they bitching about?'

Question #2, "If Frederick got two beatings per day, how many beatings did he get in 1 week?" The skill they are looking to be practiced here is 'multiplication'. The children will be asking; "Why are the being beaten?', 'What are they being beat with?' and 'Are all beatings the same?'

Yes I am being ridiculous!! This is an idiotic exercise, by these teachers, that was doomed to failure and some of them had to realize it.

I want to propose a question. Just for the fun of it.

"A Southern California farm owner was tasked by the U.S. Department of Immigration to count all his workers and check their identification for legality. He found that he had 12 Caucasians, 8 Orientals, 8 Blacks, 87 Mexicans, 5 Woman and 1 Arab."

"Out of all these workers; 7 were gay, 4 were lesbians, 3 had 1 arm or less, 6 were cross dressers and 13 had a missing testicle."

Answer these questions using the information listed?

1. How many total workers are on the farm?
2. What are they growing in the farm?
3. How many Quonset huts are used to house the Mexicans?
4. How many U.S. Department of Immigration employees does it take to screw in a light bulb?

Extra Credit question; " Why was the Arab the only one arrested and water boarded?

Oh Yeah!! I can be insensitive, lol.

I think combining two disciplines of study is a very good idea. Next time use a bit more COMMON SENSE in making up your questions.

Love ya,
Randy

PS....Answers to the questions; 1. 121, 2. Food, 3. One plus a small utility shed, 4. One if he is left on his own to do the job or 3894 of he is being supervised under INS Regulations, Extra Credit~Racial Profiling and Quotas baby.

PSS..Please remember that I am a writer of fiction and parody. Sort through all the shit I write and look for the lesson. I promise that there is one.

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Courage Beyond Her Years!!!

COURAGE~~the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery.

That is the dictionary definition of courage. I almost agree with it except for two words; 'without fear'. Anyone who has been in the military and has faced a combat situation, knows that courage, or the difference between a coward and a hero, is that few seconds a hero has the courage to hold on beyond the point where others break. Every soldier, whether courageous or not experiences 'fear' in those situations. I can tell you from first hand experience that fear is present and actively working on your mind.

When I read the story of Jesica Joy Rees 'courage' jumped to the front of my thoughts.



Jessica, 12 years old,  was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor in March of last year. Another was found this past September. She passed away on January 12, 2012.
Ten Months this child suffered at the hands of a relentless disease that I have seen break the spirit of adults with years of life behind them. Jessica did not hide her head in the sand; she found her ground to fight on and she fought with all she had until the very end.
Jessica recorded her fight in her Blog in the hopes that others could benefit from her experience. She was trying to get 50,000 Likes on her FaceBook page; one for every child that has been diagnosed with cancer. I was on her page at 11:30 am today and she had 96, 213 Likes. Almost double her goal.
During her fight, and along with her parents, she started The NEGU Foundation, a nonprofit organization to raise awareness of pediatric cancer, support sufferers and raise money for research.
She always signed her posts with the acronym "NEGU" (NEE'-goo), short for "never ever give up."
You can read more about Jessica on her FaceBook page; http://www.facebook.com/jessicajoyrees?ref=ts&sk=wall.
Or on the Team NEGU - Never Ever Give Up, http://www.facebook.com/jessicajoyrees?ref=ts&sk=wall#!/TeamNEGU.
The NEGU Foundation sells "JoyJars" stuffed with candy and toys to sick children. More than 3,000 were sold and distributed in 27 states last year, according to the NEGU website.
If you ever want to define 'courage' for someone; just tell them to read about Jessica and her family. They are the epitome of courage.
Love ya,
Randy
PS.....in the short time it took me to write this some 300 more people went to her FB page and clicked LIKE. Join them please!! This blog was gleamed from a story off The Huffington Post.

Friday, January 6, 2012

What Lurks In The Minds Of Some Politicians!!

There is no one, on this planet, that wants to see Barack 'Obamination' Obama out of office and back in Hawaii enjoying his home state more than I. NO ONE!!

But spending, no wasting, time insulting Michelle Obama is not the way to achieve the goal of sending the present administration out of Washington, DC and into footnote status. I have said this before and I will keep repeating it until the 'political neandrethals' squeeze it in between the remaining two pieces of gray matter they are still rubbing together.

First Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner and world renowned Porky Pig Impersonator insults Mrs Obama because he believes her posterior is to large. A cheap shot coming from someone that has not only never kissed a meal but one who should be investigated for smuggling an extra person, in his pants, and onto the floor of Congress.


                               Congressman Jim 'Porky Pig' Sensenbrenner 

Now Mike O'Neal, Kansas House Speaker, sends out an email referring to First Lady Michelle Obama as "Mrs. YoMama" and comparing her to the Grinch. The subject line of the email reads "Twins separated at birth?" It includes side-by-side pictures of Michelle Obama and the Grinch with similarly windswept hair. The forwarded part of the email reads, "I'm sure you'll join me in wishing Mrs. YoMama a wonderful, long Hawaii Christmas vacation -- at our expense, of course."

                          
Mike O'Neal, Kansas House Speaker and President of  American Human Jowl Research  Foundation

These two men are not only insulting the First Lady; but are also degrading the positions they hold through the use of cheap and misdirected comments.

I remember when President Clinton, during his first Presidential run, used the catch phrase "It's the economy, stupid" against then President H. W. Bush so successfully. A simple line that had a devastating effect.

ITS THE PRESIDENT PORKY AND JOWL MAN NOT THE FIRST LADY!!

If you have to attack President Obama do so with the facts. With solid 'conservative values'. With intelligent rhetoric that compares President Obama's failed policies.

Do not cheap shot the First Lady or the Obama children.

Let me tell you what affect this sort of attack has on some segments of the 'voting public'.

SYMPATHY VOTING! SYMPATHY VOTING! SYMPATHY VOTING! SYMPATHY VOTING!

People will cast votes of sympathy, for President Obama, because of what is perceived as unnecessary and ignorant rants against his wife.

Please do not make the task of unseating this administration harder. If you have substantive information that will assist in this task please let the world know.

If you think like 'Porky Pig or Jowl Man' keep your freaking mouth shut and crawl back into your cave.

Love ya,
Randy          

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Romantic Or Stalking~~You Be The Judge!!

I was at the grocery store about a month ago and while shopping I struck up a conversation with, what I mistakenly thought, was a very nice woman. We even strolled the isles, pushing our carts, and talking for a good 45 minutes.


It was a pleasant experience and as we parted, after ferrying our groceries to our cars, she even said, "Hope to see you again". We drove in the same direction when we left the store parking lot. A coincidence I assure you. She pulled into a parking lot for a condominium complex and I continued on to my house.

A few days latter I was in town again on business and as I passed her parking lot I decided to leave a note, on her car, asking of she would like to have dinner with me. Let me say here it was the only time I have ever tried to contact her and have not seen her since the grocery store.

She never contacted me so I let it drop as I figured she was not interested. Hey that's life! You win some, you lose some and sometimes you never get in the game.

Last week I got a letter from an attorney and a visit from a police officer. It seems my grocery store woman decided that I was stalking her and filed a law suit against me. The suit, as they ofter are in North Carolina, was delivered by a sheriffs deputy.

My innocent gesture for dinner had turned into a legal mess.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The above story, for me anyway, is totally fabricated. But for a police officer, in the Chicago suburb of Stickney, it is a fact of life. Police Officer Chris Collins used the information from a ticket he had written to track down Evangelina Paredes and ask her for a date.

In his letter he told Ms Paredes; "It's Chris ... that ugly bald Stickney cop who gave you that ticket."

"I know this may seem crazy and you're probably right, but truth is I have not stopped thinking about you since," it continues. "I don't expect a girl as attractive as you to ... even go for a guy like me, but I'm taking a shot anyways."

The note  goes on to say he would understand if Paredes did not get in touch.

"But hey," it continues apologetically, "I did cost you $132 – least I can do is buy you dinner."

Officer Collins and the Stickney Police Force are now being sued for 'violating her privacy by searching motor-vehicle records for her address, then leaving a handwritten note on her car windshield outside her apartment two days after she was ticketed.'

The suit states that "The letter caused plaintiff to suffer great fear and anxiety," the lawsuit says. "Plaintiff could not believe that a police officer would use his access to her personal information to find her home and stalk her."

She also accuses Collins "of using his "authority and position as a police officer not to protect the public, but to attempt to manipulate the plaintiff into going out on a date with him."

I am an admitted romantic and I see no stalking here. I see a guy, who had an attraction to this woman, and took a shot at a date. Sure the circumstances are a little strange but to raise this to a the level of stalking is a bit over blown.

This suit speaks to Ms Paredes insecurities not to Officer Collins mental condition. What, I believe, Officer Collins is guilty of is 'poor judgement'.

Stalking is a serious offence and should not be taken lightly. But the rule of common sense needs to be applied to cases like this so that a persons 'innocent romantic intentions' are not turned into a 'letigious circus'.

Hopefully Officer Collins has learned a valuable lesson. I also hope that this suit is dismissed and Ms Paredes gets the help she needs.

Love ya,
Randy

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

I Have Been Sick~~And It Was Not Fun!!

I have been away from the blog for 3 or 4 days because I have been ill. I wonder if anyone noticed, lol? Probably that guy in Siberia who reads this blog religiously noticed but I have not heard from him lately. My number reader is probably frozen to a pole some where. Damn!!


A few weeks ago  I noticed that I was having problems breathing especially in cold weather. Last week I noticed my left ankle and leg starting to swell. I never think much about it swelling because there is a plate and screws in it from a soccer injury. But when my right started to swell the next day I did get concerned. I headed for the doctors and the start of a very long week.

My breathing had gotten to the point that I could not take a deep breath and in cold weather I was having panic attacks because I could not breath at all. I was diagnosed with a sever case of Bronchitis with further tests pending. Put simply; I was not getting enough oxygen which made me feel weak and helpless. Not a good feeling when you live alone and have to do everything for yourself.

I could not walk more than 30 feet without being so out of breath that it triggered a panic attack. There were a couple of times I actually thought it was my time. I am sure, in my mind, I was blowing this all out of proportion but anyone who has had an attack like this understands.

The doctors started me on a antibiotic and a drug called Mucinex. In about 3 days I was breathing at about 60% capacity and feeling much better. Still very weak and not able to eat very much.

It seems that Mucinex has a few side affects which, of course, I was lucky enough to experience, lol. I actually got a glimpse of what it must be like for a person on 'chemo'. With vomiting and diarrhea being handed me freely I spent more time in the bathroom than any where else in my house. It is a horrible feeling having your body out of control. Yes out of control but even worse my body was in charge and it had no idea what I liked.

When I saw that doctor yesterday there was one question left unresolved. Why are my ankles swelling? I saw no connection to the bronchitis.

I have had, what could be called, a mild case of Congestive Heart Failure(CHF) for many years. It has been kept under control with diet and exercise. Not that I had become a 'health nut' but I knew when I could and could not do some thing because it was risky.

It seems that my bronchitis had pushed my bodies ability to heal itself to the brink and my CHF kicked in big time. Hence the ankle and leg swelling. So I guess there was a connection.

In the past 48 hours I have noticed a marked improvement in all areas. The swelling is almost gone and my breathing has improved. I am not supposed to go out in the cold air for awhile. Funny that we are experiencing the coldest weather of the year at the moment.

The net result is that, yet again, I face more changes in how I live my life. New rules for nutrition and exercise are headed my way. I was told to stop drinking but I beat the doctors to that because, thanks to Christine, I had quite drinking over 3 months ago. One slip there but it was Christmas so I get a mulligan, lol.

I should live a good long life. which is good as  just received, yet another, rejection on my book. An even dozen now I think. So I am headed back to the drawing board with a fist full of editor suggestions. God has given me the time and I will not waste it.

So that is my health update. I will be back to insulting politicians and others tomorrow. The Iowa Cacasus' are today and I am sure I will have a lot of fodder to help me.

One last question remains. What will my beloved lasagna taste like made with 'whole grain pasta'? Please God do not mess with my lasagna.

Love ya,
Randy

PS....I am sorry Christine that I did not tell you about the CHF last night. Between your moving and my illness you have enough on your plate.