HeartlandGemütlichkeit

The Galactica BattleStar Trek War Prophecies and the Obama Space Conspiricies

2010-02-22T13:00:00.005-05:00

A long, long, long, long, long, long, long, long, time ago (about 44 years at least) the Prophecies of the Holy Mackerel Space Force began to warn us that an evil overlord who many would believe to be a Force for good, would became a pawn of evil and about the impending doom we are about to face. They now are coming true and our time is short. In light of the current news,Obama Halts Space Program it has become quite clear what he is up to. He doesn't want us to see what the International space station will become!!

I will present the evidence as it has been foretold to us:

This was the 1st Prophecy:

This

became

What they foresaw was

this

will become

The second prophecy involved mechanical men.

This

became these

Prophecy cont.

2010-02-22T13:00:00.003-05:00

Then the 3rd Prophecy: We all know what General Electric makes:

So then as prophesied by the Galatican Prophecies:

AND WE ALL KNOW WHO A BIG OBAMA CORPORATE BACKER IS!

GE!!!

They foretold of an evil emperor

and she has held great power!!!

But FEAR NOT, They also foreshown to us hope and help!

will become

We have a heroine predicted

And she came

Then we had

and he came too

But the most telling prophecy we should have paid attention to

was about a boy born of suspicious circumstances and questionable credibility who would grow up to not be able to handle the power given to him

and this

What further proof do we need than this?

We have been warned!! May the FORCE BE WITH US!!

DO NOT LET THIS HAPPEN TO US!!!

A Springtime Resurrection (retold)

2009-03-31T20:56:00.002-04:00

Dear Friends, relatives and coworkers,

Over the last few years we have unfortunately seen too many friends and acquaintances seperate, after extended periods of marriage. Below is a note I just wish to share with some of you about an experience that changed my perspective and thus my life, that I hope may give all of you something to think about.
Thanks for your friendship, fellowship cooperation and consideration.
God bless you and Happy Easter

A Springtime Resurrection

or
(lessons learned of love and life that I learned from death)
by
Ken Farnham

For the last 20years, I am somewhat nervous in anticipation of the changes of spring and what it brings in March. Although it is my wife’s birth month, it also contains the anniversaries of my parents passing away. During the Easter vacation time of 1986, I was at work (instead
of vacationing) when I got the phone call from Terri, saying that my father was comatose in a hospital in Arizona, due to some complications after the removal of his gall bladder. We all packed up and flew out to Arizona, where we met my brother and tried to comfort my mother. My brother and I went to the hospital, where we were informed that my father did not have any brain waves and was kept alive solely by mechanical means. We decided to have the cords removed, so I went back to be with my mother and my brother stayed there with my father. He
called shortly afterwords to say that my father had finally passed away.
We did not expect my mother to survive my father, due to her having scleroderma, a degenerative disease that affected her connective tissue. She needed a lot of assistance, which my father usually provided. But due to the abundance of services available where she lived, and out of the goodness and kindness of many friends and relatives, my mother was able to continue to live on her own in herhome for 2 more years!
In late 1987 or early 1988 however, she called and told us that she felt she needed to move to be closer to us. We moved her to an independent living center here in Mount Vernon, where she made new friends. It also turned out to be a great opportunity to reacquaint ourselves with each other, seeing that we have not lived near each other for over 16 years! It was a time of
catching up and reminiscing.
On Thursday, March 30th, 1989, I was on my next-to-my last day as building principal for the school for the mentally handicapped here in Mount Vernon. It was a position that I detested and was anxious to leave. I had just about lost my sanity, my wife, my family and any desire to remain in the field of education. I was planning to clean off my desk so my replacement would have someplace to work at the following Monday. That afternoon I was at the local hospital with a student, whom we suspected was sexually molested by a relative. I went with the child and the social worker in order to step in if there were problems with the relative. I returned late that afternoon to the school to find out that there was a call from the retirement center where my mother lived.
They said I should come to her apartment right away. They said mom was very weak and not feeling well. When I got there, they said they had called the squad and that they would be there shortly. My mother was weak and quiet but talking. She was saying how she had dreamt about my father previous that week and how he was walking in a forest and wanted
her to come along. I drove her car to the hospital following the ambulance. The student and family and social worker I was with earlier, were still there, but I had no interest in talking to them. The nurse and doctor came in and did some preliminary tests and said that my
mother should be transferred to a Columbus hospital, because they did not have the facilities to deal with her condition in Mount Vernon.
I phoned Terri and told her I was going down to Columbus. It was dark and drizzling, and it was a long slow drive to Columbus. The ambulance did not even turn on its flashers. We arrived early evening in the darkness. The hospital staff were not sure where to put my mother, due
to the emergency rooms being full. She was placed in an area, which was cold and dimly lit, away from the main emergency room. There were 2 other patients in beds partially surrounded by hospital curtains across from my mother: a man handcuffed to the bed with a security officer by
his side; another bed had an elderly man, probably in his 80’s or 90’s, with no one else with him.

The time passed slowly. There was a young female intern doctor, who seemed somewhat perplexed on what to do with my mother. They did not run many, if any tests. My mother said she was uncomfortable, due to the tightening of her skin on her back. She was susceptible to
bedsores. I went to the nurses station where the doctor was discussing where to place my mother and they decided to put her in the communicable disease wing, where the beds were available. They said it would be a little while before she would be taken there. I asked them if my mother could have something to put under her to soften the bed and an extra blanket.
While we were waiting, I overheard the doctor talking to the man handcuffed to the bed. He appeared to be in his late 40’s early 50’s. They told him his heart was giving out and that there was no more they could do for him. He was sent there to die. The jailer was the only one
to be in a position to offer comfort or solace, but he seemed to have lacked any concern for the prisoner’s fate or condition.
The entire time we were there, the other older gentleman did not move. No one came, no one called about him. I overheard the doctor saying that he probably was not going to make it through the night. They gave me no indication directly on my mother’s status. They transferred my mother to her room around 10pm or so. A social worker came and asked me what we wanted to do. I asked her if we would need to check her into a nursing facility or would she be in the
hospital for a few days. I did not think she would be able to go back to her apartment immediately. I should have picked up on the social worker’s body language and how the social worker said she was not sure where my mother should go when I asked her when my mother was to be released. She “couldn’t give me any prognosis” and there was nothing more coming from the doctors or nurses. I talked with my mother a little longer. She was falling asleep. Oblivious to the “hints” the staff were giving me, I asked if she would be ok overnight and they
just nodded. I told my mother I had to go back and clean off my desk in the morning and that I would be back by lunch that next day.
I drove back in the dark cold mist. It was so late, that none of the roadside fast food restaurants or service stations were open. I went home, kissed Terri good night and planned to get up at 6 to go and “finish my job” at the school. Around 3am, I received a call from the hospital. They said they got my mother up to go to the bathroom and then put her back in bed and then she passed away. I never should have left.

The grief I felt was excruciating, but I learned two things that affected my entire life: First, no job is worth more than family! I stopped being a workaholic and learned to put my family first. On my dying day, it will probably not be my coworkers who will be taking care
of me.
The second and more important impression left with me is the even more importance of people and family. If I wasn’t there, my mother would not have had anyone trying to make her more comfortable in her final hours. She would have been alone, like the other 2 individuals in the
emergency room. I learned that unfortunately in this day and age, there will be many, many more individuals, dying with no one to care for them or care about them. In the last few years, we have had numerous friends and acquaintances separate or divorce. I wish they had seen what I had seen that night. For those who are together, look in your partners eyes and tell them you love them. Learn to forgive. Learn to give. Learn that this life can be lonely and cruel enough, and that we need each other to serve as a shelter and support in the times of trials and
crisis. Work on your marriages, daily. Encourage one another. There are enough problems and faultfinders out in the world. I have yet to find anyone who does not face trials and troubles. For other friends and relatives who are single or have separated, please keep this in mind.
The last few years of having our in-laws nearby, it has been reinforced to me that the marriage vows made at the beginning of a marriage are there for a long time, as a foundation for later years. A house is not built in a day and its strength is dependent upon the foundation it was
built upon. I fear that those who have separated may have a “nearsighted vision” of life and marriage and often are not willing to take the steps for admission of ones own faults and offering
forgiveness to each other. I have yet to find anyone with out faults. I have seen however, too many couples living separate or unfulfilled marriages, thinking their possessions or “friends” will be there to help them in their time of need. Usually it ends up that no one will be there when you don’t invest in each other. Invest in people.

The death of my mother has “resurrected” in me the importance of my love for my wife and family. I pray that you may also know that resurrection in your own life. Imagine what your final day would look like if you were in that same emergency room.

An aside to this also, at this time of Easter, is that you should know that God loves us. He sent us his only Son to tell us that. He sent us His only Son to die in our place. (I would find it far more easier to give my own life up rather than giving my son up to die for a people that showed us no love or concern.) Just to tell us he loves us. What we do with that love is up to us. What we get out of it depends of what we do with His love. If your spouse told you they really loved you and you ignored them or did not speak with them, who is the one that will suffer the most? God Loves you and wants you to know that. He could not have shown us any other way. He could not have loved us any more. As undeserving and as unpleasant and as unloving we are, God showed us His love in a manner that we can never adequately thank Him for His
love. May God bless all of you at this time of Spring and
Ressurection.
thanks,
Ken

...but we all knew him as a "jerk" (not really)

2009-02-10T20:26:00.009-05:00

I am writing this tonight, because just about this time (8:30 pm) on this date 19 years ago we got an unexpected phone call. A call that would change our entire family's life. We had just driven back from a Wycliffe interview in Holmes County, about an hour and a half from Mount Vernon. We had left in the morning on a bright sunny, but cold day. We came home that afternoon in a blinding blizzard, having to pass a stalled semi truck on a hill, with no visibility. We were interviewing with Wycliffe Bible Translators to see if we would be a good match. They were wanting to send us to Papua New Guinea. We really wanted to go to Germany.
Let me backtrack a moment. The young man on the right of the picture was a friend from Ashland College, who was involved with the Christian fellowship there. He played guitar and sang, quite well in fact. He and Terri had gone on a date or 2, but not much else. His name is Wes Collins.
Later on he met a young lady that really caught his fancy, and her name was Nancy. (How's that for poetry). They got married in June of 1975. We were fortunate to attend their wedding

Years had gone by and we had looked into going into the mission field over the years, but no one was interested in my skills as a special education teacher and they weren't willing to risk me, due to my having MS.

But time passed and we eventually tried again to check into mission service about the time my mother passed away in 1989.

So back to the phone call. We just arrived home, fairly tired from a difficult trip when the phone rang. It was Wes. They had been doing translation work in a village called Comitancillo in the remote mountains of Guatemala. The children were in a education program called the Field Education Service (FES) and 2 of the teachers were leaving. If they couldn't get replacements, Wes and Nancy would have to return to Guatemala City and work on the translation project there so the kids could get a decent education. So he was just wondering if we would be interested in filling those slots. Let's see? Interview today? Call from Wes in dire need of teachers that evening? Guatemala.... Germany... They both started with "G". Why not? Terri had studied Spanish in high school and college. I knew no Spanish. (BTW- we had actually bought end of the season winter jackets for the kids and I had gotten German language tapes out of the library) because we were going to Germany, or so we thought.
So after a whirlwind support raising trip that spring, we had arrived in Guatemala August 1, the same day Sadam Hussein invaded Kuwait. I'm not sure if Guatemala felt like they got the bad end of the stick with me coming down there!

So here they are: Wes, Isaac, Molly, Nancy and Elisa

Here we are as we prepared to go.
The experiences of Guatemala were life changers for our family. It has only struck Terri and I the last few years in that we took the only grandchildren that her parents had to a 3rd world country that was still dealing with remnants of the cold war guerilla warfare.
There are many stories of Jugo Mam (Hugo Mom is how it is pronounced; meaning "juice of the Mam" the language group they were working with) apple cider, eating chicken necks, getting little sleep in the "not so quiet" villages, carrying 500 lb. sacks of corn (or so it felt when you also have amoebic dysentary), and meeting many, many, many wonderful people, whom we now call friends and many more wonderful memories.
Who would have ever guessed that a friendship with a guitar playing "greaser" would affect us in a deep and profound manner. It was a blessing and continues to be so.
Wes and Nancy now "commute" to Peru, where he is teaching nationals from all over South America translation skills. Their translation is finished and unforturnately we have never been to any of the dedication ceremonies for any translation. Someday we will.
Our prayers and thanks go out to this wonderful couple and family, because our family is all the richer because of them.
Sooo Isaac, have any good chicken necks lately?

I Post for My Kids

2009-02-10T20:11:00.002-05:00

My father didn't talk much as my brother and I grew up. We knew somethings, but not a lot. This is the reason I write this blog: so that Amy and Will and any(?) future grandkids may just know a little about their dad. The rest of you can join in if you wish.

Check one off the "Honey Do" list

2008-12-31T09:38:00.002-05:00

Retirement is a "Real Blast"

2008-09-15T17:26:00.005-04:00

I've been stripping the bathroom walls;

Terri arranged for the Goodyear blimp to fly directly over our house in honor of my first retirement day.

Terri also arranged a day off for herself too. Our dear friend "Ike" decided to help bring in my retirement.
Our power was out for about 11 hours and our phone for about 22hours. All the local schools were closed (but not Marion's :))
But overall, retirement is great!!!

Retired at last!

2008-09-15T17:25:00.002-04:00

As Terri said, "Here's why we won't be moving for awhile."

2008-09-01T21:17:00.006-04:00

This one was from my way to work at sunrise on a road close to us.
It looked as if the tassles were on fire.
It was just beautiful.

This is one of the numerous glorious sunsets we see from
our deck in the back.

They're back!!

2008-07-21T20:13:00.002-04:00

In a world of uncertainty, inflation and evil run amok,
we don't need Batman, we need
these guys
to help us through these troubling times!!
Enjoy!

Jon and I have a lot in common,

2008-07-20T13:49:00.003-04:00

or maybe Terri and Liz do?
(poor souls)!

So , what are you doing now that you're "retired" Ken?

2008-07-05T17:31:00.004-04:00

Watching German Polkas on
Youtube!
(What else better could one do?!!)

This is my most favorite one. It's called "Schneewalzer" or the Snow Waltz.
Wenn kein Schnee mehr runterfällt
und es blüht auf dieser Welt
wenn die Drossel singt im Wald
und des Jägers Horn erschallt

Wenn die Sommersonne glüht
und im Feld der Mohn erblüht
wandern wir durch Wald und Feld
ach wie schön ist's auf dieser Welt

Den Schnee- Schnee- Schnee - Schnee- Walzer
tanzen wir
du mit mir, ich mit dir
Den Schnee- Schnee- Schnee - Schnee- Walzer
tanzen wir
ja und seit dieser Zeit, da gehör ich immer dir

Musikanten spielen heut'
und so schnell vergeht die Zeit
Musikanten mit viel Schwung
bringen Frohsinn alt und jung

Darum stimmt jetzt alle ein
fröhlich soll der Abschied sein
und wir singen eh wir geh'n
denn schon bald gibt's ein Wiedersehn

Den Schnee- Schnee- Schnee - Schnee- Walzer
tanzen wir
du mit mir, ich mit dir
Den Schnee- Schnee- Schnee - Schnee- Walzer
tanzen wir
ja und seit dieser Zeit, da gehör ich immer dir

Some day Terri and I will get to
Austria
and hear this live!

Happy Belated 4th of July!

2008-07-05T14:07:00.001-04:00

Go For It!

Forget about the bulldozer for my birthday!

2008-05-15T20:26:00.000-04:00

Please Excuse the Spelling...

2008-05-12T20:00:00.003-04:00

We were studying Habakuk in Sunday School yesterday morning and got to one point about living by faith and not necessarily by the possessions that we own. I have a tendency to zone out (or fall asleep as Terri aptly puts it) throughout a good bit of church and Sunday School. But I was struck by this part and began contemplating what our teacher was saying while starring out the window at the cold bleak rain. I was thinking about Mother Teresa and her faith, how little she "owned" and the misery she has seen and I am sure how many times she felt insufficient in her own strength to deal with it all. Then it hit me how just the act of breathing and seeing nature and the basics of life are all a gift and everything else is all an added bonus. One could be satisfied with the minimum; in bleak boring times or even trying times with a faith and knowledge that Life is truly a gift from God and we should be eternally grateful to partake in even the smallest of life's sensations and pleasures. I guess part of this is that my aunt is struggling daily just to breathe and get around. I'm sure that she would love to just have the opportunity to breathe normally. I'm truly looking forward to retiring and leaving the "useless" paperwork behind, but I must remain vigilant that I am still blessed and that the "suffering" I go through palls in comparison in how greatly blessed I am. I will be thinking about this more as the time goes by.

Excitement last weekend..

2008-05-04T17:36:00.004-04:00

Went to Beulah Beach up by Lake Erie for the weekend with our friends and saw these while on the trip, just behind the camp property!
I also got to see another bald eagle briefly sitting in a field on my way to work on Friday. Unfortunately, my camera phone doesn't have a zoom on it.

Now that's a "stumper"!

2008-04-21T19:49:00.003-04:00

I just wonder what they used to move this "monster". It took my brother and I 3 hours to grind up one little stump the other day.
For size reference, note pop bottle in foreground. The stump is about the size of our mini-van, if not bigger.
Stump located outside of Marion, Ahia on Rte. 95

Something to consider after 32 years

2008-04-20T20:49:00.002-04:00

The following is an email I shared with my fellow employees. I am adding the article which also helped me to remind people that in some aspects, we haven't changed enough in the last 32 years.

Lest We Forget

Some of you have only known me as special ed. teacher for students with cognitive or learning disabilities, where in reality, I have been more involved with the multihanidicapped severely/profoundly handicapped individuals for most of my volunteer and professional career.The other month in the 4th Grade Ohio history class that I am "included" to help in, the students were learning about what was being developed in the second half of the 1800's. The text book talked about how state "schools" or hospitals were developed to help people with disabilities and mental retardation. The text made it seem that this was a great development. I wish to expound on that a little and ask you to bear with me.
Almost 100 years later, my first teaching job was at Apple Creek State Institute. The institute was involved in a lawsuit due to inhumane treatment of the residents. It began when the Ohio governor was across the road from the institution dedicating a brand new AIR CONDITIONED hog facility. Needless to say, there was no air conditioning at the institution. The parents ended up picketing the governor's visit, demanding at least the same respect for their family members as was given the hogs. The parents asked the institution's Superintendent Delaney what they should do and he informed them they needed to sue him. Thus came Sidles vs. Delaney where the whole process of de-institutionalization began for Ohio.
For many of the families, doctors back then and before often told parents of new borns with handicaps that they should place the child in the institution and forget about them. The institution ended up housing homeless, alchoholics, emotionally disturbed individuals and hearing impaired and blind individuals. When I visited the institution as a college student with one of my professor's in the early 70's, I waited in the "day hall" (about the size of a gym) where there were approx. 50-100 male residents of all ages, with only 1 or 2 staff to "supervise" them. Some of the residents were clothed, many were not. There was feces and urine on the benches that lined the walls and on the floor. There was definitely no air conditioning. There was nothing for them to do other than sit, fight or walk around aimlessly like animals in a cage. Later on, I had also visited Mount Vernon State Institute as a student and toured the programs and it was similar in circumstances. No activities for the residents to learn. Residents attacking each other and bathrooms with no toilet seats, toilet paper and feces on the walls.(almost 15 years later I ended up having an office across the hall from those same restrooms after it had been changed to an administrative building) The year before my wife and I went to work at Apple Creek, 1977, the superintendent told all the staff to turn in their cattle prods and other "behavior control" methods. He had boxes of them turned in.
As a teacher at Apple Creek a few years later, I had about 10-12 students. Most had never been in any formal schooling. I had 18-21 year olds in my class. I had one student who would literally climb up the windows and who would constantly run out the door. I documented him at running out approximately 6 times per ten minute period. He also would eat his clothes. He eventually died of eating and choking on a pair of socks. The residential direct care staff did not give the residents much to drink, because they didn't want the resident "wetting themselves". I had to remove a student from the bathroom one time as he was drinking out of the toilet because he was that thirsty. There were countless situations of that sad a magnitude that I could relay.
I am writing this because I am retiring after this year. After 32 years in education and serving students with disabilities and their families over these years, I have heard people say even to this day that we need to have some place to put these individuals. I still hear people say "They don't belong with us." I do agree there need to be places for those who need the help or for families that are unable to care for their siblings, sons or daughters, but I think we should never forget where we were at one time and hopefully never return to. We must treat all with dignity and with greater respect than we have for farm animals. We should not forget that someday we all will probably be dependent upon others for our own care and that we should treat those who need it now, with the same respect we would wish to be treated with when we also may be so "disabled".

If you would like a great resource book, look up Christmas in Purgatory . I'm not sure who the author is or if it is still in print. But it serves a great reminder of what should have never happened, but unfortunately still happens today.

The following is an article dated April 15, 2008 from the Houston Chronicle by By JEFF CARLTON Associated Press Writer :

DALLAS — More than 800 employees at Texas' 13 large facilities for the mentally and developmentally disabled have been suspended or fired for abusing patients since fiscal year 2004, state officials said Tuesday.
In response to an open records request from The Associated Press, the Department of Aging and Disability Services said that 239 employees were fired or suspended in fiscal year 2007 for the abuse, neglect or exploitation of residents.
There were 200 such disciplinary actions in 2006, 203 in 2005 and 180 in 2004, according to state records. The breakdown by school was unavailable. The 13 state schools and centers combined have about 12,000 full-time employees.
The revelations come a month after Gov. Rick Perry's office confirmed that the civil rights department at the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating allegations of abuse and neglect at the Denton State School, the state's largest with about 650 residents. It's at least the second such investigation into state facilities, including one at the Lubbock State School in 2006 that revealed widespread abuse.
An advocate for the mentally retarded called the number of employees disciplined "stunning."
"It indicates to me that there is clearly a culture of abuse or neglect in these facilities," said Jeff Garrison-Tate, president of San Antonio-based Community Now.
Texas has 13 large institutions, called state schools or centers, in which nearly 5,000 mentally retarded or mentally ill residents live full-time with round-the-clock care. That's about five times the national average. By comparison, New York and California combined have about 4,600 residents living in 17 institutions, according to data compiled by United Cerebral Palsy.
State records show more than 450 incidents of verified abuse or neglect in fiscal year 2007, a year in which the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services investigated nearly 3,500 allegations at state schools. About 51 percent of the confirmed incidents involved neglect, 31 percent involved physical abuse and 16 percent involved emotional or verbal abuse. Less than one percent of the cases involved sexual abuse.
State officials also acknowledge at least three state school residents have died since 2002 in which abuse or neglect by caretakers was a factor.
Laura Albrecht, a spokeswoman for the Aging and Disability Services office, said the firings and suspensions reflect the state's "strict policy" on abuse and neglect.
"We have gotten even tougher," Albrecht said. "Our employees go through training to recognize abuse and neglect and to report any incidents."
Perry told The AP that the suspensions and firings indicate that state schools are trying to rid themselves of bad employees.
"What I make of it is that the agency is doing its job," Perry said. "If there are individuals who have broken those parameters of employment, they need to be removed, they need to be fired, need to be dealt with."
The Denton facility, where a notorious abuse case occurred in 2002, underwent its most recent comprehensive inspection last April. The school was cited 25 times for failing to meet federal standards.

Citations included:
_ Failure to "ensure clients' rights were protected, including the right to be free from abuse, neglect and mistreatment."
_ Failure to "have or to use policies and procedures that prohibit mistreatment, neglect or abuse of clients."
_ Failure to "have evidence to show that all allegations of abuse, neglect, or mistreatment were thoroughly investigated.
A more recent inspection in January found that the Denton State School "failed to educate direct care staff on basic first aid, health, and emergency needs."
Perry was notified in March that the Justice Department was investigating the Denton school, said Perry spokeswoman Allison Castle. The notification letter, obtained by The AP, said the investigation "will focus on protection of residents from harm; medical and nursing care; habilitation and treatment; and the failure to place residents in the most integrated setting as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act ... ."
"We certainly welcome their findings and the governor wants to ensure all residents of state schools receive the highest quality care," Castle said.
State Rep. John Zerwas, a member of a legislative committee studying state schools, said lawmakers need to look into allegations of abuse coming from the institutions.
"If the state is going to assume some of the responsibility for the ongoing care for these individuals then we have to make sure they be provided the highest quality and the greatest safety," said Zerwas, R-Richmond.
Garrison-Tate said he has personally witnessed incidents of abuse and suspects only the most egregious cases result in firings and suspensions.
"The bottom line is people are getting really injured, and they are not safe," he said.
___
Associated Press reporter Kelley Shannon in Austin contributed to this story.

These little piggies went to market....

2008-04-20T20:40:00.003-04:00

You know when you live in the Mid West when this is your view on the way home from work. I was behind 2 trucks pulling ammonia tanks on the way to work the same day.
Picture taken in Mt. Gilead, Ahia.
I followed them all the way to Mount Vernon.

Will you be my friend?

2007-12-27T20:41:00.001-05:00

With deference to my "long suffering" offspring.
I'm not sure if they find this funny?

Here We Are Again!

2007-12-02T19:57:00.000-05:00

GO BUCKEYES!!!!!!!!!

What I Really Want for Christmas...

2007-11-22T12:59:00.000-05:00

What Real Men really need!!

Happy Big 30 Josh & Justin

2007-09-23T18:16:00.000-04:00

Happy Big 3-0!!!!Justin & Josh

Great to have everyone here!

Otis, Will, Josh, Amy, Terri and moi

Sweet!!!!!

2007-09-23T16:07:00.000-04:00

GO TRIBE!!!!!!!

May the Blue Bird of Happiness.........

2007-06-19T21:41:00.000-04:00

Now it's Vacation Again!
(sometime I'll write some more)

With sunsets like this, who needs t.v.?

It's Vacation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-03-25T08:05:00.000-04:00

To start out our vacation we watched this on Friday night:

And last night we saw this:

The similarities are remarkable!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (eating spinach and spinal both have "spin" in them!)

Truthfully, I enjoyed Miss Potter much more than Spinal Tap. It was a very enjoyable evening.
That and the BUCKEYES are going on to the FINAL 4!!!!!!!!!! Go Bucks!

Big Bin..

2007-03-18T21:54:00.000-04:00

Bin busy,
bin sick,
bin ready for vacation!
That's about it for now.

A Walk in the Park

2007-02-19T21:20:00.000-05:00

Amy got here safe and sound, in spite of the snowstorm!
We were also grateful to have Pat and Jeff join us too
at the Franklin Park Conservatory for the
Chihuly Exhibit.

Self Serving Dinners(Diners)?

2007-02-19T21:16:00.001-05:00

All I have to do now is figure out how to get them to uncover the grill, light it and baste themselves and we'd be all set!

Happy Belated "Global Warming?" Valentine's Day from Ahia!

2007-02-15T18:46:00.001-05:00

Minus 5 degrees F!
6 " of Snow!
2/14/2007
3 half days of school last week,
only 1 so far this week.
Happy Valentine's Day Everyone!
(see below for why this is posted late)

Watch Out Jimmy Carter!

2007-02-12T20:27:00.000-05:00

They're coming to get you!

Darn Fangled New Inventions!

2007-02-11T11:31:00.002-05:00

Enjoy!
(Why am I thinking about the Swedish Chef!)

Role Model?

2007-02-10T18:07:00.000-05:00

Fame, Fortune, Looks
She had it "all"?
I wonder what her "life" was like.

May she rest in peace

Two In A Row...

2007-02-10T18:01:00.000-05:00

What a great view while rinsing off plates!
To think that we used to "complain" that we were
too far out in the country!

Served to us Fresh Daily (from God)

2007-02-09T18:09:00.000-05:00

No Words Necessary!

The Greatest Thing in the World

2007-01-31T20:48:00.000-05:00

I am teaching a Sunday School class this semester based upon Henry Drummond's The Greatest Thing in the World (which he presented in 1874)
His book is based upon the Love chapter in Corinthians. I decided I may dedicate some of my postings to some of our discussions and thoughts. To start out, let's begin with the source itself:

1 Corinthians 13 (New International Version)

Love

1If I speak in the tongues[a] of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames,[b] but have not love, I gain nothing.
4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. 11When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. 12Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

13And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
New International Version (NIV)Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
I have asked the class to read this daily for a month (as the author suggested)
Have a Happy Valentine's Month

Something to Warm You Up During the Cold Winter Doldrums

2007-01-29T21:25:00.000-05:00

Enjoy!

and

What Next? Bart Simpson at the ballet?

2007-01-11T17:22:00.000-05:00

Coming to the Columbus Symphony

I think I'll pass.

Been sick the last few days, so not much new to report as of now.

Aloha 2007!

2007-01-02T20:53:00.000-05:00

Cruising

Tatoo- zin'
Blue- Suede Shoezin'
and Hula hulzin'

I had a Golden Time,

with my family
and my "lava-ly"
wife of 30 years!!!!!
(Now it's late; I'm jet lagged and ready for some snoozing!)

Go Buckeyes!

Well, Hawaii, can you beat this?

2006-12-20T21:55:00.000-05:00

We are anxiously awaiting to see!

But hopefully we won't see these!
Go Buckeyes!

December Musings

2006-12-18T21:20:00.000-05:00

1) I REFUSE TO MOW MY YARD IN DECEMBER!!!!! I DON'T CARE HOW LONG THE GRASS GETS!!
2)How many of you have to wait for stray pigs to get out of your way on the way home from work? Unfortunately, I didn't stop to take a picture.
3)This last week's meteor shower was the best I have ever seen. We saw about 20 in a half hour period.
4) Next time we go to the Melting Pot we are just going for the cheese and chocolate! Great food! Excellent chocolate!
5) Funny link: Clinton Kills Santa

After 30 Years.......

2006-12-18T17:10:00.000-05:00

For My Main and Loving Squeeze! I love you more now than I did then!

Thanks for the memories and putting up with me for all that time!

Happy Thanksgiving! It has been one......

2006-11-23T19:29:00.000-05:00

Wild turkeys on the "lamb" at a New Jersey train station (photo Yahoo News)

Great day and great sunset(s)!

Some good friends and family and new acquaintances

and then some local flavor to add some color!

All and all I am thankful for many things we often take for granted
(especially that we eat turkey and not,"Snake on a Stick"!!!!- courtesy of Tim Hoiland, former MK student of ours who is now in Cambodia)

and did I mention, the BUCKEYES(#1) BEAT MICHIGAN(#2) last weekend?
42-39
Go Bucks!

Short Ramblings

2006-11-12T09:54:00.000-05:00

This one is a little late, but it's still funny:

Preschool Political Ad

Also, we went to see Stranger Than Fiction last night. Great movie!

Buckeys still #1

Go BUCKS! Beat Michigan!!!! (Sorry Greg)

It's Still A Great Country!

2006-11-08T21:58:00.000-05:00

Congratulations to all my "Blue" friends. You won this one. See you at the polls again. We'll be back.

Happy Anniversary (Or How I Became Conservative)

2006-11-05T20:26:00.000-05:00

On November 9, 1989, a new era appeared. It was the collapse of the Berlin Wall. I find this photo quite relevant, because in October of 1972 I was at this wall (right where it says "David"), touching it directly from the Western side. On the other side were armed guards, barbed wire and dogs, not to mention mines too probably. This summer I had several old friends ask how did I change from being a "pacifist" liberal to being a conservative. We were also discussing politics with Will too. I have been meaning to write this for some time. For those who don't know me, I was a McGovern/Carter supporter in my late teens/early 20's. I've changed and I believe this picture and the events that lead to this picture are some of the reasons for my change.
Before going to Germany, I had pretty much accepted that we were fed mostly propaganda here in the US about the communist countries and the Cold War and Vietnam, etc. After high school, I had the oppurtunity to be an exchange student in Germany for a year. During that year, I listened to the East German radio and tv programs. I was able to visit the "border" and I was able to cross over into East Berlin, through all kinds of checkpoints. There I saw a depressed and "enslaved" city. It had not changed much since WWII. I was able to walk back to the western zone, most in Eastern Europe could not. Many individuals died trying to escape the communist countries while I was there. The west was vibrant, alive and FREE. I listened to my German teachers talk about their relatives who still lived in the East, who had rationing and few freedoms. I also listened to my German host family talk about their experience during the war and what little choice they had under Hitler. I realized that much, if not most of what we were being fed by the liberals about communism wasn't much different than what the official communist party was telling its people.
After Terri and I were married and had children of our own, we became involved with the Right to Life movement, mainly because we saw how involved a neighbor (who was pro-abortion) was involved. It was in those years we saw how the newspapers rarely, if ever gave any positive information about the Pro Life side.(In the early 80's, a local Wooster reporter didn't want to give Terri any news space for the Pro Life side, because the editor said that "abortion was a dead issue" The regional Planned Parenthood director refused to debate Terri on a college campus if Terri brought along pictures of normal child development.) It maintained that abortion was nothing and that the fetus was only a tiny mass of cells. We also were hearing the drumbeat from the media that the sociatal definition of a "quality of life" was replacing any value of just life itself. They were justifying euthenasia, especially with individuals similar to whom Terri and I had worked with every day. The drumbeat reminded me of the stories my German relationships had told about the rise of the Nazi party. At the same time, people with values were being harassed for wanting a say in their child's education. Some were sent to jail for homeschooling their children. (I find it sadly "humorous" that homeschooling is now an official option offered by public school districts, often encouraged for trouble makers!) More and more in the 80's I found scenarios written in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 to becoming more and more true, not from a conservative "book burning" witch hunt, but from the liberal political correctness developing.
While in Guatemala, we were there towards the end of the guerilla warfare(due to the collapsing of the Soviet empire). Most of the conflicts were out in the countryside, with scattered attacks and power outages. There we observed that, like in most cases I believe, the ruling government was corrupt (the "Christian" president who was elected while we were there, later fled with $60 million of the treasury money), yet the guerillas weren't much better and that for the most part, the majority of individuals wanted to work to feed and take care of their families and not support one way or the other. While there, we saw many unheralded selfless acts of kindness done by missionaries. We also saw extreme poverty. We were saddened to return to the United States and hear from the liberals that our economy was the worst it ever was and how everyone was struggling. We did not see nor hear of anyone in the US paying to ride on garbage trucks. In fact my assistant at the school I taught at (after returning from Guatemala) fed her dog steak and her husband made over twice as much as I did (a teacher with a Master's degree and 16 years experience) being a cook at the state prison nearby. I questioned where the liberals got the idea that the "economy' was the worst there ever was.
I do not claim that whatever a "conservative' says and does are always true, but I find it more often than not to be the case. A conservative acting inappropriately resigns, apologizes or is replaced. The recent situation with the President of the NAE and the former Hillsdale College president are indicators of that. Most liberals it seems offer excuses, blame others or are not held accountable by the press or their cohorts. I place a high value on truth, honesty and virtues.
As far as pacifism, I still struggle with this issue. While we attended the Mennonite Church, we had several discussions about pacifism. One interesting point that struck me was that someone brought up and most agreed that when persecution started, many Mennonites "fled" to safe countries. It was asked, what happens when there were no more safe countries? Just as we would want the police to intervene if someone was attacking us on the streets, don't we expect the same if attacked by others outside our borders. In Saddam's case, he had already attacked Kuwait. Hadn't we learned anything from WWII? I've known many individuals over the years who have served in the military, who weren't the massacaring marauders, but rather saw it as a sense of duty, responsibility and a willingness to sacrifice for others so we might live freely. I do not doubt there are "evil" people in the military, but I also saw the difference in a country we conquered and ones conquered by the other side.
So, these are my thoughts, experiences and insights. They are not in as detail as they should be, but they are some of the influencing factors of how I got to be where I am today. This country is a great country and we should never, ever take our freedom for granted. I know several of you disagree with me over these thoughts, but realize also what price was paid to give us these freedoms and by whom. As I learned in Germany, there is no guarentee that what happened there, couldn't happen here. I 'll do my part to keep the facists out, please do yours to keeps the "leftist" despots out (remember that Stalin and Mao killed millions more than Hitler!)
Happy Anniversary Germany!

It's November, but it's beautiful anyways!

2006-11-05T20:20:00.000-05:00

Picture tells it all.

It Definitely Ain't the Hokey Pokey

2006-11-05T20:15:00.000-05:00

This is what "it's all about!"

Thanks to my main squeeze!!!!!

Tag Nab It, I'm it

2006-10-30T19:49:00.000-05:00

Amy tagged me with her "tag werm", so here is my list (not that anyone reads this):
1. One book that changed your life: Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo (I read this during the summer I was working in the kitchen of Vic & Irv's, washing gazillions of pots and pans and it helped me to realize that how hard it may seem, LIFE is a gift, from God, and that we should not over look many of the basic things we take for granted. It is an antiwar book, written about WWI, but I found it more inspiring about appreciating life and all that is around us.

2. One book that you’ve read more than once: The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury.

3. One book you’d want on a desert island: The Bible

4. One book that made you laugh: Get Fuzzy
5. One book that made you cry:A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer
6. One book that you wish had been written: A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking
and Mere Christianity by CS Lewis
7. One book that you wish had never been written: Although I have never read it, Mein Kampf by Adolph Hitler would be right up there. One that I read, but I wish it wasn't written solely because of a horrible English professor I had at Ashland College, is Moby Dick. The prof was incredibly infatuated with Melville and she was a radical feminist, so all we heard the whole time was how Moby was about mens' domination and suppression of women. It was too much for one semester and ruined pretty much any type of enjoyment I may have recieved from reading the book!

8. One book you’re currently reading: Over the last 2 years I have been trying to finish Einstein's Clocks,Poincare's Maps Empire of Time by Peter Galison. It takes a certain mindset for me to keep reading it.
9. One book you’ve been meaning to read:
To reread the many Russian lit. stories, especially by Tolstoi, that I read in high school. I enjoyed them tremendously and would love to have the time to read them again.

10. Now tag five people: I don't have many friends my age with blogs, so I'll have to dig into the younger generation (not that they read my blog anyways!)

Don
Will
Peter
Jon V.
Josh

My Wife Never Thought She'd Hear This: Beautiful OHIO!

2006-10-06T17:47:00.000-04:00

Well, it's been a wonderful day! Sitting and eating breakfast while watching a pinkish orange full moon set in the dark predawn morning. It's Friday! Payday! Gas at $2.07. Buckeyes play tomorrow. Beautiful fall country side with harvesters bringing in the soy beans, horses in the fields. Driving home with the "Hall of the Mountain King" playing on the classical station and the trees in royal beauty. Empty country road closer to home, being heralded home by rows of drying corn obscuring the vision on the side, but framing the colored foliage in front of me. Iced tea with lemon and 2 pink sweetners and some roses for my sweetie to accompany on the drive home. A full moon tonight and a pleasant temperature all weekend. Today is a day fit for a king, but meant for all to enjoy!

Beautiful Ohio! Go Bucks

Amazing!!!!!

2006-10-05T20:56:00.000-04:00

Follow the link and see!

Camera Brain

Go Bucks!

And I Thought Massachusetts Was A "Blue State"!

2006-09-28T21:01:00.000-04:00

For all our friends in Mass.

Two Interesting Videos

2006-09-24T20:47:00.000-04:00

Seeing that we really don't watch that much tv, I like to check out web videos and found these 2 quite interesting. I am always intrigued by the creativity of people. That's why I enjoy kids' talent and art shows. It is amazing what people can come up with!

Here We Go Again
I'm not that big of a punk fan, but I give many kudos to their choreographer for the simplicity of the routine, but how interesting it is.

Domino Art
I would have hated to sneeze when he put that up!

Go Bucks!

I Should Have Never Watched "The Birds"!

2006-09-22T21:14:00.000-04:00

This was what our back yard looked like last evening:

For my long suffering wife!

2006-09-22T21:09:00.000-04:00

This reminds me of our dating years! Poor Terri didn't know what she was in for!

Go Bucks!

One of the Most Beautiful Times of the Year!

2006-09-16T18:25:00.000-04:00

Fall and Spring are my favorite times of the year in Ohio!

The following "sunsets" were on the same evening within 10 minutes of each other!

And finally this red tail hawk was over on the post behind our neighbor's yard last week:

I saw a heron slowly flying by this morning and watched a flock of Canadian geese slowly glide by and land in the field behind us. With real life like this, who needs television!

PS- Go Bucks!

I Was Vandalized by Hillary!!

2006-09-16T18:00:00.000-04:00

I was vandalized by Hillary
(click on photo to enlarge)

and Bill

the other day at work on my completion of my 52nd orbit around the sun! They dug up some old, and embarrassing decisions I had made in my foolish youthful days!

But after seeing the Iron Curtain and Berlin Wall and living in Guatemala, (where you take your life in your hands when it comes to politics), all I can say that this is a great country and I enjoyed being "ransacked", (but I'm still wondering why they picked me to do this stuff?)

Thanks guys! or ladies I should say!

Good-bye Summer!

2006-09-03T21:13:00.000-04:00

Well, summer of 2006 is done for all practical intents and purposes. School has started and I have been sick for the last 3 days. So much for enjoying the last 3 day weekend of the summer. Anyways, this summer I:
1) got to spend some wonderful time with my "main squeeze" up at Prince Edward Island (sorry no pictures this time. It is extremely beautiful up there. You can trust me on that!) On the way we made several stops to see old friends (and not so old) and relatives and catch up on days gone by. It was really a wonderful trip in which we have fond memories, except we seemed to have left behind a lot of rain,( so bad in Cooperstown, that they declared a state of emergency while we were there!);
2) I was able to get a lot of stuff done around the house that I haven't had the chance to get to. It was one of the most productive summers I've had in years!:
3)I actually read a whole book through! (Kite Runner);
4)I saw both of my best friends from high school, whom I haven't seen in a long while!
5)Did not get to an Indians nor a Clippers game(yet);
6)saddened by the news of the loss of 2 wonderful people we knew when we were in Guatemala. They will both be surely missed. They were true saints and walked humbly with the Lord!:
7)Will was home for 4 weeks, which went by way too fast. I realized that this was probably the "longest" we will see him, now that he is an adult(or at least he thinks he is!). Our "other" son, Jon got married too, which brings me to the next point that;
8)we only had a handful of weddings to attend this year!!(past years we have had close to 10 or more a year!)
9) I did not loose weight and unfortunately, I put on more! I did get the bikes down however. One step at a time.
10) we sure had some beautiful sunsets this summer and saw a lot of meteorites during the meteor shower.
So good bye summer, hello fall.... one of the nicest times of the year in Ohio!
Go Bucks!

As the sun sinks slowly over the .....

2006-08-15T21:12:00.000-04:00

new leach beds! Now how's that for excitement in Ahia?!

With Deference to Erma Bombeck,

2006-08-12T12:53:00.000-04:00

1) The septic tank always backs up when company is coming!;

(our septic system!);
2)Our driveway was vandalized this week by a Tolstoy loving, hopscotching, graffiti vandal!

3)I am forever grateful for Satchel (no matter how sick it gets, and this one is bad!!!):

4) Congratulations to our #2 son, Jon and Ashley!!

Gotta go mow the yard, fix some bikes and wait for the guy to give an estimate for a leach bed! At least it's sunny today and we saw some awesome meteorites last night!

What I learned this summer (and other musings)

2006-08-06T09:45:00.000-04:00

What I learned at Hard Knocks U. this summer so far:
1) Don't use the newer "whitening" toothpaste if you have sensitive teeth. After a half bottle of ibuprofin over a week's time and finally a trip to the dentist, all I needed to do was just go back to the regular toothpaste;
2)When traveling back from Michigan (to see good friends, Greg and Carol,
and their little dog Mollie too), I learned that you either a) need to carry at least $105 in cash or; b) have the accident near an ATM machine to post "bond" in a traffic accident scenario! Otherwise they take your license away from you, (but only if you are from out of state! )And no, the police do not accept credit cards. The laughs and conversations were worth the trip however!!!!

And in other news:
a)Amy, after today, you will no longer have to ask Jon your standard question!
b) I always did like Satchel!

Was ist Gemütlichkeit?

2006-07-31T19:58:00.000-04:00

For the few of you who have been reading this, some of you may not know what Gemütlichkeit is. Here is the Wikipedia link: Gemütlichkeit . But for me, this is how I have known or experience gemütlichkeit.

It is being rocked to sleep in my mother's arms in the middle of the night after being awake for a long time due to the pain of numerous ear infections;
It is going for a hike to Gent's Creek(sp?) in the early spring as a 7 or 8 year old, with the snow just beginning to melt. On the hike back it startedto rain gently , so I sat inside someone elses "fort" with a transitor radio playing "Listen to the rythm of the falling rain"
Sitting at a hillside cafe one late summer evening in Würzburg, Germany, having a glass of wine while the city lights slowly begin to turn on as the evening gets darker:
Standing outside a house in the Tyrolian Alps on New Years Eve, listening to a family singing the "Schnee Waltz" on a cool, crisp clear winter's night;
feeding seagulls pieces of bread by holding them up and having them snatched out of our hands at Pemaquid Point;
listening to my daughter when she was a preschooler singing for me a Christmas carol on a tree stump, with a sincere and sweet voice;
playing Scrabble with Will and Terri (and actually beating these language geniuses!);
holding Terri's hands and hugging her to sleep;
sitting on our deck, watching the sunset and listening to the Indians (lose yet another game!) or just watching the sun go down and listening to the birds and insects and watching the fireflies starting to appear.

I've learned to slow down over the years, if that is possible. I learned from various experiences that I am often like a spoiled child who recieves too many presents and rushes through opening each one, but not really enjoying any of them. I've learned through my MS that I may not have all the senses that I enjoy now, and that I should learn to cherish simple pleasures such as sight, touch and hearing. I have learned that time is the only real "thing" that we possess in this life and that instead of trying to accomplish many tasks to "obtain" something, I need to use it more wisely and enjoy what time I do possess and spend it more with family and truly enjoy what God has given us. When I first became a Christian, we took a jeep ride up to the top of a mountain in Colorado. On top of that mountain was a cross, with Psalms 46:10 on it: "Be still and know that I am God" To me, that is somewhat the essence of Gemütlichkeit, being still and Living what life should be like and enjoying the greatest treasures around us that we often ignore , rush by or take for granted. Life is truly a gift from God!

Sherm and I are "kindred spirits""

2006-07-29T16:20:00.000-04:00

as in relation to my first posting...

Sherman's Lagoon

Where have we gone wrong?

2006-07-23T08:20:00.000-04:00

Will got in from Japan last night, late and sans luggage, but, sob, he's got a "monkey on his back"!!!!
He did manage to get some Chipotle in however. Maybe that will cure him?

Hello

2006-07-19T15:58:00.000-04:00

Well this is a test of new waters for me. I finally have some time to try this out and see what happens. Hang in there folks. I'm getting old.
The first secret out, is that if you really want to know me, you must know that I would love to be a conductor. Not a train conductor, but an orchestra conductor. I think it began when my parents took us to a 4th of July concert in a near by village when I was an early elementary school-age student. They were playing Sousa marches and I was hoping to be picked to "conduct" one of the songs. I didn't get picked, but I have always wished I could have the oppurtunity to conduct. Mind you , this comes from someone whose college flute teacher finally said to me one day out of exasperation, "Ken,(with a Texas drawl) try to make it sound musical!"
After hearing Karl Haas one evening state "how there is a first time for everyone to hear a classical piece, such as Beethoven's 5th", I realized what a thrill it would be to conduct a youth orchestra or I imagine being Beethoven and conducting that piece for the first time. I was exposed to classical music by a friend of my brother, who had Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture" on a record. He let me borrow it and I have always loved that piece.
So that being said, welcome to HeartlandGemutlichkeit and make yourself feel at home.