"No mass exodus to other countries..." 'Glenn Mickens' (The World Watchdog)

Glenn Mickens has lived on Kauai  with his wife Ruth for the last 26 years. Born July 26, 1930 in Wilmar, California, USA) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. He pitched in four games (two of which were starts) for the 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers. He also played for five years in Japan, from 1959 until 1963 for the Kintetsu Buffaloes. There, he compiled a record of 45–53 with a 2.54 ERA.  Glenn also  served in the Army for 2 years and coached baseball at UCLA for 25 years. 
Last but not least Glenn would really like to see Kaua'i give the county manager style of Government a chance.

Mr. Mickens is locally known
as one of Kauai county's
political watchdogs
and Nitpickers...
Mahalos Glenn!

No mass exodus to other countries

With all our shortfalls and problems the people of the world are still coming to America over any other country out there. 

I see no mass exodus from the U.S. to go to other countries. 

If any Republican president had accomplished what Obama has in his 7-plus years they would be making a place for him on Mt Rushmore! 
1-He has gotten us out of thus worst depression since 1929.

2- Jobs have been increasing and unemployment is down.

3- Obama nailed the #1 criminal of the world, Osama Bin Lauden.

4-Obama initiate an  affordable health care program that may have flaws but is at least started whereas others just talked about it.

 5-No mass attacks (a la 911) have happened under his watch.

 6-The  stock market is close to its all time high which also happened under  President Obama.

The waste in the federal, state and local governments is inexcusable. Sure there are some dedicated politicians, however when laws are passed they are usually skewed towards the bottom half of the population, even when they fit the top half money talks and those wealthy walk. 

Tell me another country you would rather live in rather than the U S of A---I couldn't? When I played baseball in Japan for 5 years and lived there for 6 months at a time I would ecstatically shout for joy when my plane from Japan hit the ground in America.

Should changes be made--certainly. But to yell Domesday about our country is idiocy once you have had the chance to live in another nation with THEIR problems. 

I once played winter baseball in Caracas, Venezuela--a beautiful city about 3000 feet in elevation. But in going across Lake Maracaibo to play another team we had to wait till the Military got across with their boats and we foreign ball players were warned NOT to voice our disapproval of what was going on or those soldiers stationed all around would fire at us! You hear about freedom of speech being censored all over the world but it is still ones right here in America. 

Editor's note, Dakinetalk guest bloggers do not necessarily represent the opinions of dakinetalk. Guest bloggers are given space to express their beliefs and or opinions. We feel there are many roads and like to give people space to express their thoughts,after-all that's what dakine is...

Aloha, James "Kimo" Rosen---Blogger-n-chief, dakinetalk blog---

P.S,
Check out this YouTube video of an Ass listening to music;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1C1x71fSt2s

P.S.S.
Check out Glenn's Wikipedia page;
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glenn_Mickens

With all the stress of the world, don't forget to
watch the sunrise or sunset, it's free! 

Above photo-"Tree of Tunnnels Rd."

Photo, James "Kimo" Rosen

Hana Hou, (Encore) Shared From Facebook...

"A poem about Donald J. Trump..." 'James "Kimo" Rosen' (Kimo's world #121)

James "Kimo" Rosen is a retired professional photographer
 and amongst other things lived in a tent outdoors for 7 years.
Rosen currently resides on the tropical island of Kaua'i
with his best friend and spiritual adviser Obama Da Dog!

Kimo's world #121

Editor's note
The thing I like must about blogging about Donald Trump is my blog numbers jump!  
My blog is only a hobby blog and on any given day I may receive 100-200 hits. When I blog about the Donald I receive 500 plus hits. This is extremely good for a  blog run as a hobby.

Therefore  here I go again, this time, not as heavy, just having a little fun with a poem I penned. Feel free to write in your own verse.
All are welcome, haters and supporters! 

A poem about Donald J. Trump.

Right when American thought they were down in the dumps, along came Mr. Donald J. Trump.

Haters will hate,  but everyone loves a good debate. The ratings soar when Trump becomes sore.

One things for certain, with Trump you will never be bored.

He is a ratings magnet and never goes stagnate.

His wife loves 'The Donald' because of the way he Fondles.

Some say his whole presidency will be that of a lame duck, those are only the haters whom know only how to say a word that rhymes with luck!

This meme was used
to promote this blog
on Facebook!

 

 Many are hoping 'Making American Great again' will become our fate again...

There are bound to be some more bumps along the road for Mr. Donald J, Trump. We only hope Mr Trump's health remains without any major cancerous Lumps.

The Dollar bill may soon say, "Trump bless America" and that is the time when the hippies say, they will leave America.

Hillary may frown because many consider Trump a clown, but to 
all a good election, and Mr. Trump says at 69 he can still get a good erection? 

For the record he is talking of the high rise, Trump tower.
  ;-) 


P.S.
Check out my friend Carrie Eckert's opinion article supporting my opinion on Trump in the 04-06-16 edition of The Garden Island News;
Trump supporters not the ones in the wrong
http://thegardenisland.com/news/opinion/mailbag/letters-for-april/article_429f8be8-fbc6-11e5-955f-0307fa9d2206.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPhmLl3pOcc
One other thing, many cannot understand why I like Trump. I cannot understand why anyone would vote for Hillary. Enclosed is a YouTube video that I challenge any Hillary supporter to watch and look at objectively.She was totally against same ex marriage for many years, listen to Anderson Cooper and Chris Mathews catch her in lies. Hillary and the Clinton's Are the narcissists and liars. I used to like them, until they became the epitome of corrupt politicians and the reason I despise Washington so much. I encourage everyone to watch the enclosed video below;
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPhmLl3pOcc

More dakinetalk reading on Donald Trump;
1-Trump supporters must come out of the closet! (Kimo's world #118)
http://dakinetalk.blogspot.com/2016/03/trump-supporters-must-come-out-of.html
2-Trump, the election and the Jewish connection...(Kimo's world #119)
http://dakinetalk.blogspot.com/2016/03/trump-election-and-jewish-connection.html
3-Trump-fulling... (Kimo's world #120)
http://dakinetalk.blogspot.com/2016/03/trump-fulling-james-kimo-rosen-kimos.html

P.S.
Check out Trump hiring a black woman veteran right on the spot, this is remarkable;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uY_SclGgKWI

The Garden News published Trump-Fulling under a different title on on March 29, 2016!

http://thegardenisland.com/news/opinion/guest/opened-minded-folks-seem-to-be-expressing-lots-of-hate/article_a17cd067-1049-5b82-9704-fab5211afb5f.html

The Garden News also published this column of mine on Trump back on  March 10, 2016

"Trump supporters must come out of the closet."

http://thegardenisland.com/news/opinion/guest/trump-supporters-must-come-out-of-the-closet/article_ca4239eb-917e-560d-94d8-c07d0eeebe7b.html

Hana Hou, (Encore)  Shared From Facebook...

"Passwords rule our lives..." 'Judith Whitehead' (Inspiration Sunday)

Judith Whitehead lives in Amherst New York

( A suburb of Buffalo, N.Y.)

 and has worked in the ophthalmology

 field of medicine for over 30 years

Passwords rule our lives

I remember back in the 1970's when times were much simpler. When we got married there were no “passwords” to “get into” anything, no computers, no electronic banking etc. Everything was just

“Manual”. 

If you needed cash to spend on the weekend, you had better get to the bank before it closed on Friday for a manual cash withdrawal.

 There were no ATM's and when you made a deposit or
withdrawal it was written down in your bank book in ink. The checks were not even numbered, you wrote your own number on the check to keep track. Simple, simple days with no security securing your life or transactions. No terrorists to fear and not many citizens carrying a gun for protection.

What has our world come to in the last 40 years. Back in the day there was no fear of being in public places, such as airports, movie theaters etc.

My head is just bursting with passwords to get into my own accounts. I start the day at work entering 3 different passwords to get into three systems, health records, personal code punching in on the computer, Internet access etc. And those passwords have to be updated and changed every few weeks--better use a different combination because a similar one won't work. If I need to get into my bank, my phone, my computer etc, they all require passwords. They swirl around in my head all day; at times I do get locked out, having a brain “fart” and unable to recall those simple words I use day after day. Security is needed to re set the password, which causes a delay in my work.

Now we have expert hackers that try and gain access to our accounts; they can even get into large corporations or governments, they are so adept at this crime. Is any of our information really safe any longer? Our information is out there for anyone to steal or share. The world wide electronic highway is alive and well all over the world.

Yes, the Internet has made it easy to shop, bank, pay bills, get information...anything is accessible. Do you want to find someone, a long lost relative, a friend, personal records on someone, etc. It is all there for the taking.

We seemed to manage back in the 1970's just fine. Is it a mixed blessing or a danger to our lives now?

Time will tell in the future, maybe not in our lifetime but surely our children s' lifetime.

My children, like many born in the 80's have no idea what it was like to live the simple life unadorned with secret passwords and numbers to enter the electronic world. Computers only came out in the 80's for personal use and they were clumsy and expensive and could only do limited tasks for the common person. Now computers are shrunk down to a hand held size or even smaller like a watch, and are less expensive. They are loaded with new technology that is mind boggling.

We have let ourselves become so dependent on them that we can't manage without them; if the world would “shut” down today our children s' generation would be clueless. 

Many have never looked up an address in something called a phone book. I can't believe they still drop them off at our doorstep.

Our technology today is both amazing and scary as it can easily be used against us as an individual or a country. Beware of hackers and suspicious e-mails and protect your information as it can change the direction of your life.

"Judy, Judy, Judy!"

Hana Hou, (Encore) Shared From Facebook...

Politicians work for the people..!" 'Chester "Unc" Lau' (Source)

Dakinetalk's favorite Uncle (Chester Lau)

"Unc"  is really passionate about creating a national Caregivers day.

'Unc' currently resides on the Hawai'ian Island of Oahu. 

He is a retired cinematographer,

 and  enjoys giving the politicians a bad time...

Politicians work for the people~~~ Chester "Unc" Lau~~~

Right on,politicians work for the people,thy are NOT KINGS OR QUEENS  !!! cut out the perks ,what good for the tax payers are good for them,impeach them after six months if they DID NOT fulfill  the tasks them promised in their campaigns...George Washington,Thomas Jefferson and the Marquis de lafayette,please help us on our SECOND AMERICAN REVOLUTION BEFORE CHINA BUYS THE U.S.WITHOUT FIRING A WEAPON  !!!

L'oncle Ammusant  AKA~ Chester "Unc" Lau

This is really a great letter.  I am most impressed by the fact the gentleman that wrote it, a registered democrat, signed his name and address to it. Snopes.Com confirmed this letter to be true. http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/schoonover.asp

You can be Republican, Democrat, Liberal, Conservative, Independent or Libertarian and I bet this will hit a nerve. Our country is in real trouble.

Senator Patty Murray
Senator Maria Cantwell
Washington, DC , 20510
This is really a great letter
 Dear Senators:
I have tried to live by the rules my entire life. My father was a Command Sergeant Major, U.S. Army, who died of combat related stresses shortly after his retirement. It was he who instilled in me those virtues he felt important - honesty, duty, patriotism and obeying the laws of God and of our various governments. I have served my country, paid my taxes, worked hard, volunteered and donated my fair share of money, time and artifacts.

 Today, as I approach my 79th birthday, I am heart-broken when I look at my country and my government. I shall only point out a very few things abysmally wrong which you can multiply by a thousand fold. I have calculated that all the money I have paid in income taxes my entire life cannot even keep the Senate barbershop open for one year! Only Heaven and a few tight-lipped actuarial types know what the Senate dining room costs the taxpayers. So please, enjoy your haircuts and meals on us.

Last year, the president spent an estimated $1.4 billion on himself and his family. The vice president spends $ millions on hotels. They have had 8 vacations so far this year! And our House of Representatives and Senate have become America's answer to the Saudi royal family. You have become the "perfumed princes and princesses" of our country.

In the middle of the night, you voted in the Affordable Health Care Act, a.k.a. "Obamacare," a bill which no more than a handful of senators or representatives read more than several paragraphs, crammed it down our throats, and then promptly exempted yourselves from it substituting your own taxpayer-subsidized golden health care insurance.

You live exceedingly well, eat and drink as well as the "one percenters," consistently vote yourselves perks and pay raises while making 3.5 times the average U.S. individual income, and give up nothing while you (as well as the president and veep) ask us to sacrifice due to sequestration (for which, of course, you plan to blame the Republicans, anyway).

You understand very well the only two rules you need to know - (1) How to get elected, and (2) How to get re-elected. And you do this with the aid of an eagerly willing and partisan press, speeches permeated with a certain economy of truth, and by buying the votes of the greedy, the ill-informed and under-educated citizens (and non-citizens, too, many of whom do vote) who are looking for a handout rather than a job. Your so-called "safety net" has become a hammock for the lazy. And, what is it now, about 49 or 50 million on food stamps - pretty much all Democrat voters - and the program is absolutely rife with fraud and absolutely no congressional oversight?

I would offer that you are not entirely to blame. What changed you is the seductive environment of power in which you have immersed yourselves. It is the nature of both houses of Congress which requires you to subordinate your virtue in order to get anything done until you have achieved a leadership role. To paraphrase President Reagan, it appears that the second oldest profession (politics), bears a remarkably strong resemblance to the oldest.

 As the hirsute first Baron John Emerich Edward Dalberg Acton (1834 -1902), English historian and moralist, so aptly and accurately stated, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." I'm only guessing that this applies to the female sex as well. Tell me, is there a more corrupt entity in this country than Congress?

While we middle class people continue to struggle, our government becomes less and less transparent, more and more bureaucratic, and ever so much more dictatorial, using Czars and Secretaries to tell us (just to mention a very few) what kind of light bulbs we must purchase, how much soda or hamburgers we can eat, what cars we can drive, gasoline to use, and what health care we must buy. Countless thousands of pages of regulations strangle our businesses costing the consumer more and more every day.

As I face my final year, or so, with cancer, my president and my government tell me "You'll just have to take a pill," while you, Senator, your colleagues, the president, and other exulted government officials and their families will get the best possible health care on our tax dollars until you are called home by your Creator while also enjoying a retirement beyond my wildest dreams, which of course, you voted for yourselves and we pay for.

 The chances of you reading this letter are practically zero as your staff will not pass it on, but with a little luck, a form letter response might be generated by them with an auto signature applied, hoping we will believe that you, our senator or representative, has heard us and actually cares. This letter will, however, go on line where many others will have the chance to read one person's opinion, rightly or wrongly, about this government, its administration and its senators and representatives.

I only hope that occasionally you might quietly thank the taxpayer for all the generous entitlements which you have voted yourselves, for which, by law, we must pay, unless, of course, it just goes on the $19 trillion national debt for which your children and ours, and your grandchildren and ours, ad infinitum, must eventually try to pick up the tab.

 My final thoughts are that it must take a person who has either lost his or her soul, or conscience, or both, to seek re-election and continue to destroy the country that I deeply love. You have put it so far in debt that we will never pay it off while your lot improves by the minute, because of your power.

For you, Senator, will never stand up to the rascals in your House who constantly deceive the American people. And that, my dear Senator, is how power has corrupted you and the entire Congress. The only answer to clean up this cesspool is term limits. This, of course, will kill the goose that lays your golden eggs. And woe be to him (or her) who would dare to bring it up.

Sincerely,
Bill Schoonover
3096 Angela Lane
Oak Harbor, WA

 Hana Hou, (Encore)  Shared From Facebook...

"Je Suis L’Homme" 'Bettejo Dux' (Vintage Bettejo)

Bettejo Dux has lived on the cosmic Garden
 Island of Kaua'i for over 40 years.

Bettejo is a regular opinion writer in the Garden Island news

 and is the author of the famed novella, "The Scam." 

 Her latest fiction"Children of extinction"

 is now  released and available on Amazon!
Bettejo has a gift of mingling
 the present, the past, and the future. 

www.bettejodux.com

www.amazon.com

Je Suis L’Homme

But, by all means, come out of the closet, if you're in one.

I'm an outspoken atheist, have been for years, but I don't claim to have come out of a closet. I was in a big room. Just me. No religion. An only child. Playfully-- one day--I  knocked down the walls and set myself free.

My father had sent me to the nuns to be raised and I loved them.  Wonderful teachers.  They were all in love with my father who brought them flowers and made them smile. They were happy women. About in the fourth grade all my  friends took First Communion. They wore white dresses and veils and married god or something--I never quite understood--and I felt left out. So I asked,  "Could become a Catholic?" He answered. "Yes. When you're old enough to find out what it's all about."

When I found out what it was 'all about', I said, " I wouldn't touch that with a ten foot pole."  So off I went in a thousand different directions. Strangely enough, it was an Irish Priest, Father O'Connell who I met--befriended, shared a beer with on the porch of the Manila Yacht Club-- who sent me on my way to freedom. He dubbed me a 'free soul'--a phrase I liked-- and knew nothing about, but the more I learned the more I loved the idea.

When the walls came down I found myself surrounded by other bipeds. Related to the apes.  Chimps. Monkeys without tails. Darwin got in the act.

I found human beings. So beautiful. Skin white and black and brown and yellow and pink and every color in-between. Eyes  blue and green and gray and brown, snapping and flashing with intelligence. Hair a vast assortment of shades.  Red. Yellow. Black. Brown. They painted.  They wrote. Composed music. Danced and sang.  Young and old and in-between.  Male and female and other preferences. Once I knew a homosexual stallion. (They're unipeds.)  He liked boys not girls. Never bothered me.

Humans think, therefore we are. Carry no guns. Carry no flag. We're citizens of the world.   "Breathes there no human with heart so dead who never to herself has said, This is my home, my planet earth."

So, if you chose to be a Klansman--hide your face and wear a white robe--burn a cross.  Come out.  We'll stand on the sidelines and watch you pass.

If you're a witch who needs to be exorcised, talk to Sarah Palin. She'll arrange one. We'll stand on the sidelines and watch.

If you 're a Nazi, wear a brown shirt-- easy to find--and goose step. Tattoo a swastika on your forehead for all we care. We'll stand on the sidelines and watch.

Strap on a bomb and blow yourself and others to smithereens. Why not start with each other? We'll stand on the sidelines and watch.

I'm proud to be related to the Chimp. Wonder if she's happy to be related to me?

Bettejo breaking bread and
 discussing life with her friend
and mentor, Richard Dawkins.

P.S.
For further reading  about Kaua'i you may want to read"Dairy on a ferry."
http://dakinetalk.blogspot.com/2014/04/dairy-on-ferry-james-kimo-rosen.html

Bettejo endorses Steve Saylor for President, Check out his YouTube videos'.
Mr. Saylor lives on Kaua'i 6 months of the year....
Video #1;
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PPMPsVJoz4
Video #2;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKV8lFyv4e0
Video #3;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOoER6zcLZo
Video-#4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12qq10y8OAg
Video #5
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nbDn6dyOAc
Newest video #6
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsbZSzIQtHA

Bettejo's new priceless possession is Richard Dawkins' "Brief  Candle in the Dark."

Editor's note, Dakinetalk guest bloggers do not necessarily represent the opinions of dakinetalk. Guest bloggers are given space to express their beliefs and or opinions. We feel there are many roads and like to give people space to express their thoughts,after-all that's what dakine is...

Aloha, James "Kimo" Rosen---Blogger-n-chief, dakinetalk blog---

Hana Hou, (Encore) Shared From Facebook;

"Trump-fulling..." 'James "Kimo" Rosen' (Kimo's world #120)

James "Kimo" Rosen is a retired professional photographer
 and amongst other things lived in a tent outdoors for 7 years.
Rosen currently resides on the tropical island of Kaua'i
with his best friend and spiritual adviser Obama Da Dog!

Please note that this blog also appeared as a stand alone
 opinion column in the 03-29-16 edition of the Kaua'i Garden Island News;
http://thegardenisland.com/news/opinion/guest/opened-minded-folks-seem-to-be-expressing-lots-of-hate/article_a17cd067-1049-5b82-9704-fab5211afb5f.html

Kimo's world #120

Trump-fulling

Every-time I blog about Donald Trump I lose a  friend on Facebook and at times even in real life. I find it very "Trump-fulling."(~The act of losing friends, because you may endorse Donald J. Trump~)I just made that word up!

With over 1300 friends on Facebook I  have been trying to downsize for quite awhile. Being a Trump supporter has made downsizing quite  easy.

I enjoy meat--however I have many vegan friends, I am heterosexual--however have gay friends, I am a God fearing individual--yet have agnostic and atheist friends. It seems you cannot be a Donald Trump supporter and have  Bernie Sanders or Hillary Clinton friends, not because Trump supporters don't want to be friends, but because the Sanders and Clinton people are not the peace lovers they claim to be?

Who will be next to either not talk to me or un-friend me because my opinion may be different from yours? 

My friend Christine Muscarella Frost recently shared a thread on her Facebook timeline that is  pretty much a sign of the times;
Chris has given permission to share her thread below;
"I can't wait until this election is over and done with. I'm so tired of seeing the HATRED posts that FB friends keep posting. Do you know if you don't like one or more of the people trying to get nominated by their party, all you're doing is keeping them in the limelight and drawing attention to them?! And yes, I do scroll past these hate posts, but it makes going on FB to see fun stuff challenging" Rant over. 
  Me~~"So ironic that the peace generation, our generation is spilling these hateful memes instead of positive memes about their own candidate."~~
Chris~~"I agree 100%. Maybe that's why it's really getting under my skin and driving me crazy? Some days that's all I feel like I see on FB and hear on the news."Christine Muscarella Frost 

I have never seen so much hate directed at one political candidate, that of Donald J. Trump. The strangest part is much of the hate is being driven by an aged peace freak generation of the Vietnam  war protest generation. 
      
Why so much hate from a group in their youth that wanted nothing more than peace?  My opinion, old age, dementia and drugs have taking their toll on many in my generation. 

Why the lack of respect for the U.S. citizens voting for Trump? I on the other hand respect those voting for Hillary, Bernie, Cruz or any other, after all this is America. The tolerant Liberal is ALWAYS the most intolerant of other's views!!

This meme appeared on Facebook
to help promote this blog.
The Donald told me to do it!  ;-)

The TRUMP Haters are sick of reading, seeing and hearing about Trump, yet continue to post anti- Trump hate on their social media posts. Giving Trump exactly what he wants , more publicity. Doesn't anyone get it. This is exactly what Trump wants!  He's playing right into his haters and supporters, go figure!  Donald Trump really is a marketing genius.

May God, Darwin or whomever you pray to, bless America in this time of need. I really hope it's God, however I still respect you if it's Darwin-- because I'm not like the others whom don't respect others for not thinking like them.

This election thus far has been very Trump-fulling for me.Who wants to hop on board, potentially loose some friends, in the mean time "Making America Great again!"

Baby Theodore James Kushner pictured above with
Donald Trump's Jewish daughter, Ivanka.
Donald is denying his daughter named the child
after political GOP rival Ted Cruz!  ;-)

On a positive note; This past Easter Sunday, Ivanka Trump Kushner, 'The Donald's' Orthodox Jewish daughter gave birth to a baby boy named Theodore James Kushner.
Many are saying that Trump intentionally planned for his daughter to have a baby during this pressure cooker filled week to help the undecided voters. After-all who doesn't love babies? 

Mazol Tov To Ivanka Trump Kushner on the birth of her baby boy! A special Bris will follow in eight days. The Bris is a special ceremony for the circumcision of Jewish boys.
Since I am Jewish, someone asked me if it hurts? My reply, I couldn't walk for a year!


People Magazine
Ivanka Trump Welcomes Son Theodore James
http://celebritybabies.people.com/2016/03/27/ivanka-trump-welcomes-son-theodore-james/

More reading on Donald Trump;
1-Trump supporters must come out of the closet! (Kimo's world #118)
http://dakinetalk.blogspot.com/2016/03/trump-supporters-must-come-out-of.html
2-Trump, the election and the Jewish connection...(Kimo's world #119)
http://dakinetalk.blogspot.com/2016/03/trump-election-and-jewish-connection.html

P.S.
Check out Trump hiring a black woman veteran right on the spot, this is remarkable;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uY_SclGgKWI

The Garden News published this blog as a stand alone column on March 29, 2016!

http://thegardenisland.com/news/opinion/guest/opened-minded-folks-seem-to-be-expressing-lots-of-hate/article_a17cd067-1049-5b82-9704-fab5211afb5f.html

The Garden Island News also published my article, 

Trump, The election and the Jewish connection;

http://thegardenisland.com/news/opinion/mailbag/letters-for-april/article_0fcb8750-89f5-5fac-b032-a2f90f1bff53.html

Hana Hou, (Encore)  Shared From Facebook...

"Neighbors that can make or break your living space..." 'Judith Whitehead' (Inspiration Sunday)

Judith Whitehead lives in Amherst New York

( A suburb of Buffalo, N.Y.)

 and has worked in the ophthalmology

 field of medicine for over 30 years

Neighbors that can make or 
break your living space

We have moved a few times in our married life and have been pretty fortunate to get “good” neighbors on either side of us. The definition of “good” neighbors in my book are people that are
pleasant to talk with, look out for each other when something doesn't look “right” in the area and share some thoughts and fun times during neighborhood functions such as annual garage sales.

We moved into this “young” neighborhood several years ago, actually we were the seniors then being in the age range of the 40's .

 Most couples were starting their families and were no more than 25
years old. Fortunately for us we had more mature neighbors on both sides of our home, neither were novice homeowners and were coming from previous neighborhoods.

We really lucked out 15 years ago when we built our home. We are not the kind of people who live in each others “pots” as the saying goes. We don't get involved in the “he said, she said” minutia of
people and keep it light with conversation. We have found this is the best way to keep good neighbors happy.

"The birds, chipmunks and deer are almost
 tame around us and almost stop
 to pose for a photo of which I have many."
Judith Whitehead

 

Many homes over the last 15 years have turned over owners; we started out as “wisteria lane”and many neighbors got a little too close and that turned ugly. Several homes on the street are on their third owners. Some were transferred for their jobs and careers and some by choice.

Through all the years my neighbors on either side of us have been the originals; we are the last hold outs of the street. We confer with each other off and on and reassure each other that we have no plans on moving any time soon. It gives us comfort like an old shoe, that our consistent predictable families remain the same. Sure their children have grown up in that time and moved on to start their own lives but the basic homeowners remain. We enjoy watching their children return home for visits and look in amazement how time has whizzed by – how could they have grown up so fast before our eyes. We feel the same in our minds, but don't exactly look the same. We exchange pleasantries that “we haven't changed a bit” but we know better; 15 years takes its tole somehow.

No longer do we mow our own lawn or shovel our driveways; it's too much of a workout at times and we have lost too many friends and associates having health outcomes that were unnecessary and with dismal outcomes.

Coincidentally our neighbor is also the “snow plow guy” and we get first dibs after a snowfall which is most appreciated. Each neighbor is always around to lend a hand if we need a stump chopped or a
bush trimmed; they seem to have all the tools necessary for the job.

We take in packages for each other and alert one another if we are going to travel. We have lived in this home the longest of all our other homes and have watched the area populate greatly over the years.

No longer is the main street that enters our area quiet; it has been built up with businesses and brought much more traffic into the
 area.  I guess they call that “progress”, although I am not so sure.

At least we can still come into our development and escape the traffic and madness out there. 

We spend many hours sitting out on our quiet porch in the nice weather and watch the many critters that have moved in with us as well. The birds, chipmunks and deer are almost tame around us and almost stop to pose for a photo of which I have many.

Our friends stop and pose for a photo
and say hello!

I guess there is comfort with familiarity and for now I will continue to enjoy my neighbors and take comfort in our safe haven.

"Judy, Judy, Judy!"

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