I Remember 20 Years Ago Today I Remembered 20 Years Ago

I remember it like it was yesterday that day 20 years ago. We had lunch at Tanner’s in Snellville. The ‘20 Years Ago Today’ line always made me think of the Beatles Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band album. That line is in my head today like it was twenty years ago when she turned 20.

The she I am referring to is my daughter Rose. Rosalie Athalie Bigelow to be exact. Her middle name was my mother’s name. Her first name was chosen by her Mom who wanted her named after a rose bush we had. This rose bush was something special. I was in the Air Force when Rose was born and her mom and I lived in a trailer in Tucson, AZ. Trying to grow anything outside in Tucson is difficult let alone a rose bush but this one seemed to like it there. It was vandalized by a neighbor with an axe but even after being split in half, it kept blooming. It was because of it’s strength that Rose’s mom wanted Rose named after it. Rose is as strong as that rose bush.

I’m not going to go through Rosie’s entire life story. First of she would probably shoot me if I did but there just isn’t enough room in this blog to do that. I could write for weeks and not cover it all. I will cover some things though.

Early Years

I got custody of Rose a year or so after my divorce from Rose’s mom and after I got out of the Air Force, we moved to the Atlanta area. That was 1978 and we’ve been here ever since.

I remember getting Rose her first pair of glasses. I had noticed her squinting so I had her eyes checked and she needed glasses really bad. I wait way too long. So long in fact that when we got home that evening after getting her glasses she got out of the car and looked up at the night sky and stood there for several minutes and finally declared “Look at all the stars!”.  I can laugh about it now but I was mad at my self then for waiting so long.

In High School Rose was voted ‘Most Unique’. I can’t think of a more fitting honor for anyone of any age to be called. She is unique always has been, always will be.

Growing up and adult life

Rose always seemed to work. She got a job at the age of 15 at Po Folks waiting table and being a hostess. She was very good at both, She worked at Embers Seafood and Grill in Sandy Springs as a Hostess and exceled. While she worked there she sometimes had to fill in for the Chef and it was there she found her love for cooking. More on that later.

Rose worked in the corporate world for a period of time. She had a higher calling. She wanted to care for the homeless. She ran a homeless shelter in Atlanta that catered to the Family and worked to get people out the shelter and back to work. I remember Christmas parties at the shelter and the total respect that Rose was shown by the residents of the shelter. They loved her and she loved all of them.

The shelter is closed now but there are some people still around that Rosie still takes care of as she has moved on to her next endeavor, catering.

She is a very good cook and she cooks for lots of people. She likes to smoke large sums of meat. She is just getting this part of her career started but I have no doubt she will do well.

To Sum This All Up

It was 20 years ago today that I said it was 20 years ago today that Rosie came into my life and I thank God she did. She is my hero, and I am totally amazed at the shear number of lives she has touch in her short life. Thank you Rosie and Happy Birthday Sweetie!

Let's talk about courage

This is a true story about courage, not mine but someone else's. I won't mention his name because I haven't cleared this with him.

The story starts way back when we were just kids. We had fun as kids, we played together whenever we were together. As we got older we kind of drifted apart. Our lives took different paths. He went to college and I chose the military. Keep in mind that this was the late 60s and early 70s, that's right, the Vietnam War. His philosophy was much more liberal than mine. I was somewhat scary conservative even back then. We didn't see each other for years at a time.

When I got out of the military, I moved to the Atlanta area and he was living in New York. He was married with two kids and I was divorced with custody of my daughter. I immediately found a job and went to work. I wasn't aware what he was up to until one day he and his family showed up on their way to finding a new place to live. They spent a couple of days and I showed them around the area. Then they left to continue their quest to find a new home.

Something happened to them as they were driving but I didn't hear about it for a few days when he called to say they turned around and decided to move here. I was thrilled to have them nearby. As time went by, they had a third child and things seemed good. But maybe not so. There were marriage issues that I will not go into that resulted in a divorce. He got married again to a woman who would be the love of his life who had to little girls of her own so now their blended family formed bonds and friendships that would endure anything.

Two things played big roles in his life. They were music and religion. Let's look at the music for a minute. He played the guitar and banjo. His kids played guitar, banjo, violin, harmonica and God knows what else. Between all of them, they can play anything. They are a talented bunch I got to tell you.

Now let's talk about religion. I don't know when religion came into his life but I'm glad it did because it gave him a sense of purpose and being. He and his family gave so much of themselves and touched so many lives.

I can tell you who I am writing about now because my cousin Scott died of cancer last Saturday with his wife and children by his side.  He had a rare courage because even though he was in awful pain, every time we saw him, he would ask how we were doing. He was my lifelong friend, wonderful father, remarkable human being, and I will miss him until I see him again.

The Parsing of the 2nd Amendment

What the 2nd Amendment Says

A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

What I Think It Says

I'm not the smartest guy in the world so I rely on research in most cases. The key word in the second amendment is the word 'militia'. Some on the left say is means the military and the second amendment means the military are the ones that should own the guns. Lets say for a moment that militia means the military. The commander in chief of the military is the president. He controls the military. The military consists of about 2.3 million troops active, Guard , and reserves.  Oh, before I forget, lets highlight another important word in the second amendment. That word is 'regulated'. One of the definitions of the word regulated is 'Control or supervise something by means of rules and regulations'. So to me a well regulated militia is one that is controlled of supervised by rules and regulations.

What happens when that control breaks down or the president commands the military to do something that jeopardizes the security of our free state? This is where the last part of the second amendment comes in. It is up to the people to regulate the militia and the only way that can be done is through our right to bear arms. There are approximately 300 million guns in the US. Yeah some may be single shot 22 cal. rifles but by just by mere numbers, we vastly out gun the military. That is a main reason my friends, why no country would ever think of invading our country. That is also the reason why a lot of countries would like to see our guns taken away.

We owe it to ourselves to defend our right to have guns with everything we have and if that right goes away, let the war begin.

 

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The Good

Yes the fiscal cliff deal had some good parts to it. First off, the Democrats were thanked of the floor of the house for finally acknowledging that the Bush tax cuts benefited more that just the rich. For years that's all we heard about the tax cuts. Secondly, the Bush tax cuts for most everyone have become permanent. no more wondering if and when they expire. Businesses can now plan their expenses regarding payroll which they could not do before. The Alternative Minimum Tax has been fixed. I don't know a great deal about this but I know Congress was fixing it every year so from what I understand, it has been fixed for the long term.

The Bad

There is bad stuff in the deal that we need to talk about. First off was the tax increase on individuals making more than $400K and couples making over $450K. That sounds like a lot of money and it is if it belonged entirely to the tax payer. Have you heard of a Sub-Chapter S Corporation? That is a small business entity where the corporate taxes are paid by the people who own the business. I used to be an owner of such a business so I know how it works.

For example, let's say Bob Smith started a small business and he set it up as a Sub-Chapter S corporation because he wanted the protection of the corporation. Since he is the only share holder, he must pay the corporate taxes on the profit of the corporation as if the profit was all his own income. When the tax rates are low, there is more money to return to the business to help it grow, maybe hire more people and thus help grow the economy. That was the entire point of the GOP opposing tax increases on the "rich".

The next bad thing is the extension of unemployment benefits. What! How can I say that!? I believe that continued unemployment benefits makes the recipient less motivated to go and look for work. I am close to retirement and I have always worked except for very brief periods. I never applied for unemployment, I got my ass out there and did what I had to do to provide for me and my family. I found work.

The Ugly

How the fiscal cliff deal evolved and was resolved is the ugly. We knew it was coming. We knew the last time we (Congress) kicked the can the last time. I blame both parties for this. Obama said any deal needed to have a balanced approach of both tax increases and spending cuts. That is not what happened however. $1.00 of spending cuts to every $41.00 of tax increases is hardly balanced.

Why can't we have the negotiations on C-Span where we all can see how it is being done? Why can't we see for ourselves who is holding up the resolution to the problem and who is working to get done what is best for the country?

What's Next?

The debt ceiling debate is next. The GOP's last chance to do something about the enormous spending problem we have. Sure to be another ugly process.