I've seen fire and I've seen rain,

I've seen sunny days that I thought would never end.

I've seen lonely times when I could not find a friend,

But I always thought that I would see you again.

Its only going to get down to -15 in Virginia, Minnesota, over night, in the teens in Huntsville, Alabama, where my son Brian lives.  Brrr!!  Could get some rain over the weekend here. 

Our constitution is set up so that representation is by either two from each state in the senate or by population in the house.  Nothing is set up to offer representation by sex, race, or religious affiliation.  50.8% of the population in the US are women, and yet women only make up 20% of the US Congress.  80% of Congress is white, while the US population is only 63% white.  The scary part for me is the 92% Christian. 

So we have a white, male dominated, theocracy in power in the US.  How comforting.

Anybody else notice that a "balding 40 year old white male" exploded a bomb next to the NAACP headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colorado, yesterday?  Sounds like an urban terrorist, a hate crime at the very least.  No media attention.  I guess because nobody was killed. 

But if protesters stage a peaceful march for equal justice under the law - front page news.  The "thugs" are rioting!  Call out the national guard. 

We're being played and manipulated by the rich and drummed into conformity.  Don't make waves.  Maintain the status quo.  My favorite - buy a new car, but make sure its black, gray, or white. 

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than the things you did.  So throw off the bowlines.  Sail away from the safe harbor.  Catch the trade winds in your sails.  Explore.  Dream.  Discover."

Mark Twain

CBS sportscaster Jim Rome tweeted his thoughts about marching bands during the recent bowl games and started a firestorm in response. Mr. Rome tweeted, "Is there anyone not in band who think those dorks running around with their instruments are cool?"

One of the responses was,"please tell the marching band members of the USMC how "uncool" they are" and included the photo below.  Mr. Rome received over 8,000 tweets in less than 24 hrs. condemning his badmouthing marching band members. Mr. Rome deleted his tweet and issued this apology, "Band members-I hear ya.  I was out of line. I do not condone bullying of any kind and that was not my intent."

I am one of those who stay and watch the half time performance of the marching bands at the HS games we attend.  Corey was a marching band member so I know how much time they put into their performances.  I watch a lot of college football and have always been disappointed when the stations break for half time and gives stats and replays instead of showing the marching bands.  Some of the colleges have awesome bands, as is exemplified by the performance by Ohio State below.

The Republicans will have control over the House and Senate starting this month.  It will be interesting to see how they govern (if at all) after all these years of being slugs to keep President Obama from getting anything done. 

Virginia, Minnesota, is the little town I lived in until the end of 5th grade.  It is located about 100 miles south of the Canadian border.  My family moved to Southern California in 1963 because my mom suffered from seasonal depression as a stay-at-home mom.  We settled in Chino.  I have a weather app on my iPod mini where I can monitor the weather of Virginia.  Last night it got down to -21 degrees.  As I write this post at 11:47 Pacific Time it is clear and sunny and -2 degrees in Virginia.  Here in Ontario it is clear and 70 degrees.

My kids laugh at me when I tell them I can remember walking to school when the thermometer at the bank on main street read -40.  They always add, "oh ya dad, ten miles, up hill in both directions..."  But its true.  (not the up hill part LOL).  The walk to school was only about 6 blocks and we wore several layers of clothing, including long johns, pants, ski pants, mittens, and a parka with a hood. The scarf across my face would freeze from the moisture in my breath.  Its a lot different living in that part of the country. 

Same-sex weddings can start today in Florida as Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Sarah Zabel lifts her stay and rules that the state ban on same-sex marriages is unconstitutional. Some county court houses in the state will stop performing any marriages at all in order to not have to perform same-sex marriages. That'll show 'em! Another domino falls, this one in the South.

I have to admit I have made this comment over the last couple of days.  It also pertains to the loss of all the Christmas lights in the neighborhood. 

NYPD, once again, uses the funeral of one of their own to make a political statement by turning their back on the mayor as he delivers the officer's eulogy.  Shameful. 

Does television mirror real life, or the other way around?

I was watching a three-part NCIS show the other night and afterward got to thinking that the show seemed to be written to convince the show's viewers that the story line was occurring in real life, and that it was OK. 

The story told of a young Justice Department attorney who was investigating the NCIS agents in the story for committing crimes in their investigations and covering them up.  Now if you follow the story you know that the main star, Agent Gibbs, went to Mexico and assassinated the man, a drug cartel lord, who killed his wife and child with a sniper shot and Agent Ziva David murdered the man who killed her father by throwing him off of a freighter onto the dock.   As a side note, Agent David is an agent of Mossad, the CIA of Israel, who is assigned to the NCIS team as a liaison to Mossad.  Oh and her father is/was the head of Mossad.

The story took great pains to paint the attorney as the bad guy, as a suck up and climber in the Justice Department.  Towards the end, the agents, including the NCIS director, were seen shredding or burning official files.  So as the attorney closed in on arresting Agent Gibbs, the directors of NCIS and Homeland Security went to the attorney's boss at the Justice Department and got the attorney's investigation shut down.

Does this really happen?  Are murders conducted, on our behalf, by federal agents with impunity for the sake of national security?  Do we work hand-in-hand with Israel conducting hidden missions for the security of the nation?  

Those that are marching in major cities all across the nation are asking for more accountability of deaths at the hand of law enforcement.  Doesn't matter if the victim is black, white, or purple.  If you see the protests as just a "black thing", you are missing the point of where we draw the line on what the government can do in the name of our own security.  And we know that "the government" is just a front for the filthy rich.  Just sayin'. 

I can't tell you how many times I have read memes on facebook and then gone to google for a simple search to debunk them. 

Be open-minded and be willing to alter your beliefs with new evidence.

Strive to understand what is most likely to be true, not to believe what you wish to be true.

The scientific method is the most reliable way of understanding the natural world.

Every person has the right to control over their body.

God is not necessary to be a good person or to live a full and meaningful life.

Be mindful of the consequences of all your actions and recognize that you must take responsibility for    them.

Treat others as you would want them to treat you, and can reasonably expect them to want to be treated. Think about their perspective.

We have the responsibility to consider others, including future generations.

There is no one right way to live.

Leave the world a better place than you found it.

Read more at http://www.inquisitr.com/1692212/atheists-rewrite-ten-commandments-mythbusters-adam-savage-judged-new-commands/#60XHrlz4FFvkOLtC.99

Ah the 45 rpm record player.  That sure brings back some memories. 

I thought conducting a political protest by turning their back on the big screen while the mayor spoke at the funeral of a police officer was in very poor taste.  Hopefully it won't happen again for the second funeral which is to be held in the next couple of days I believe.

I took my FJ Cruiser in for a 5,000 mile service on Friday and asked if they would take a look at the battery.  The service writer opened up the hood and discovered that it still had the original battery from Japan.  Not bad for a 2007 model with 148,000 miles on it.  I ended up needing a new one, but I think I got my moneys worth out of the first one. 

Karen, Josh and I took down all the decorations and packed them away on Thursday.  Couldn't hardly walk afterward.  Luckily I had a chiropractor appointment Friday morning.

Happy Birthday to Stephen Arthur Stills of "Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young". Stills is on his third marriage and has five children.

I have had the opportunity to see Stills perform twice.  Once was up close at the Greek Theater where we sat in the fifth row from the stage.  Stills is an incredible guitar player.

Stills started out with the group "Buffalo Springfield" before joining up with David Crosby, Graham Nash, and Neil Young in 1967 at the Laural Canyon home of Cass Elliott of the Mamas and the Papas."

Neil Young was in "Buffalo Springfield" with Stills, David Crosby was with "The Byrds", and Graham Nash was from "The Hollies."

Stills singing "For What Its Worth" with Buffalo Springfield.