A Morning At the Library

Do you recognize the picture shown below?  Right!  It's a library card catalog file.  You use it to get information about a book or topic.  Well, actually, you DON'T use it.  At least not any more because they've been replaced by, what else?, a computer!  I lost a dollar to my grand daughter Brooke because of this sad fact. 

The funny thing is that since this happened I've been informed that card catalogs haven't been in most libraries for at least 15 years.  (That's how observant I am!) It's much less work to use a computer and young people can manage it better.  That shows you how long it's been since I used a card catalog.  I usually know exactly what I want in a library when I go so I go directly to the shelf.

I've taken my grand children to the library many times.  They've become very kid-friendly with story hours, game & puppet corners, videos, computers, and a variety of other things to attract kids.

So if you have or come upon one of those old card catalog files, buy it.  They've become a hot antique. Go figure.

 

No Place Like Home

We just returned from our annual three-day trip to friends' house in Meshoppen, PA.  Meshoppen is a small, very rural community about 40 miles northwest of Scranton, PA. 

Before the discovery of more advanced drilling techniques, it used to be primarily agricultural and actually still is but many large land owners in the area have signed leases that give their mineral rights to companies that extract and transport natural gas-a very, very hot commodity at the moment. 

This phenomena has transformed the region somewhat in that millions of dollars are flowing in-along with more people, trucks and heavy duty construction equipment.  The land owners are not complaining though since they are benefiting as well.

While I could go on to explore the pros and cons of one of the aspects of gas drilling (fracking-a very controversial method of extracting every cubic foot of gas possible), it is not about that.

I'm actually commenting on a Founders Day event recently put on by a neighboring town.  There were thousands of booths and displays-and people-up and down Main Street and among them was at least one booth decrying the evils of government in general and gun control in particular.  One of their slogans is "if guns kill people, then pencils misspell words." 

According to the couple we were visiting, there are more than a few people in the area who completely agree with the sentiments expressed in that profound lack of logic-a fact which I took the opportunity to point out.  While our hosts are gun-rights enthusiasts, they agreed and laughed about it.  So I don't mean to disparage them in any way but it is interesting to see how the further you get from 'here', the more this kind of thinking pervades the community.

What does that say about the chances of seeing progress in the area of gun control on a national level?  I fear the issue is doomed-or to put it another way-death by GSW!

Another Graduation

Congratulations to Cole James Stockwell who graduated from Kindergarten today.  First Grade, here we come!

More to see

Don't forget to check out the photo albums on georgeswebpage.com.  Lots to see.

georgeswebpage.com

It's Graduation Time

It's that time of year again-Graduations.
Over the years graduations have increased tremendously.  Throughout my life I participated in 4 graduations-eighth grade, high school, college (B.A.) & graduate school (M.S.) with the last one being forced on me by Sandi.  Otherwise it would have been three.

Yesterday we celebrated our youngest grand son's first graduation-from preschool.  The next one will be Tuesday when Cole graduates from Kindergarten.  The next after that I think will be Brooke's graduation from elementary grade 5 to middle school.  And on and on it will go for who knows how long.

What is one to make of all of this?  I used to think bah humbug, it's all ridiculous-too much too soon but I've changed my mind completely.  It's great watching how happy the kids are and the pride they take in their accomplishment.  What could be wrong with that?  What's the harm?  None.  If anything it's one more opportunity to be with the family. 

So I say congratulations Nicholas and anyone else.  I hope there're many more.

(Warning: This is a political statement) Can it get worse?

Conservative House Majority Leader Eric Cantor: Out
Even more conservative Tea Party republican Dave Brat: In

The key issue is apparently U.S.  immigration policy-or more precisely-the lack of it. 

Will the rest of the red states follow Virginia?

Brace yourselves for a very political late summer-early fall.  TV ads galore, phone calls, signs, billboards, etc. 

Early summer 2014

Click here to see several reasons why I like late spring/early summer.

georgeswebpage.com/photogallery

Happy Birthday

Happy birthday to Becky Stockwell Sullivan, born on this day 1975.  She and her brother have been a constant source of pride and happiness to us, their parents.

Family Gatherings

Yesterday was easily one of the nicest days you could have and it was even better with the family over for an early birthday celebration for Becky. 

I love watching the grand children play in the yard.  Then as the last one left the house I noticed on my message board a picture of me left by either Brooke or Courtney.  These message board drawings are beginning to become a tradition. 

Who are the most dangerous people in this country?

 Joe the Plumber: ‘Your dead kids don’t trump my constitutional rights’

We should fear not the Taliban or other Muslim extremists but  Joe the Plumber (remember him from Obama's first campaign run?) and others of his ilk. 

Ignorant, low-life morons who haven't a decent thought in their empty heads and the logic of a chicken.  They're this country's most serious threat.

 

 

Memorial Day 2014

With every passing year, I become more and more appreciative of those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. 

While people are enjoying the arrival of long-awaited warm weather, family gatherings, children's sporting events, picnics and parades people tend to lose sight of the fact that someone served to make it all possible.  So on this Memorial Day take a moment to quietly acknowledge their sacrifice.

Above picture is grand daughter Brooke preparing to take the ball down field at one of her many soccer games.

Should people be guaranteed a certain income?

The above question was prompted by the recent strike by fast-food workers who are demanding a $15 an hour minimum wage.

What do you think of this?  Is a certain income level a right everyone should expect or is a person's income a function of free market forces such as your initiative, level of education, work ethic and individual responsibility? 

If a person is unhappy with their income, shouldn't they take the steps necessary to acquire the skills they need to earn more or is it OK to simply demand more money?

Is the nature of a fast-food workers responsibilities such that they deserve much more money than they're getting?  Is there a concerted effort to discriminate against them or are they simply earning what their jobs are worth?

There are many issues where I come down on the liberal side but this isn't one of them.  I fully believe that each person should take responsibility for themselves and for their particular lot in life.  Sure, bad luck strikes us all once in a while and it certainly is difficult to accomplish some goals but that's life.  No one owes you anything.

Don't like how much you're making?  Take the initiative to do something about it.  There are many, many government provided training programs available.  Take responsibility for yourself.  Oh, and hold the fries!

Game postponed to 4 o'clock. So what to do until then? A random video of the day

Raising a family

Last night Cole & Nicholas came over to began a 5-day stay with us while their parents are away.
While we've had all the grand children for days at a time before we've never had them on school days-until this morning.

It certainly is enough to make one admire the working parents of young, school-age children.  The boys are pretty good about getting up on time but then there are deadlines to meet, i.e. get dressed, have breakfast, brush teeth, take medicines where appropriate, pack lunches, pack school bags, etc.  Then it's off to the bus.

There's a little break throughout the day but then it's off to get them off the bus and pick the other up from daycare.  Then it's dinner, homework where applicable, baths, stories, family time and finally bedtime.   That's the routine to be followed every day, 5 days a week all school year.

Then there's the other piece to it:  feeding them.  For example after I brought Nicholas to school, I went to Stop & Shop to get the few things their parents either didn't pack or were already consumed in the short time we had them.  One hundred thirteen dollars later I left the store-and I know I'll be going at least one more time.  After all,  we like to eat too.

Parenting today is difficult and expensive and pretty much lifelong.  But is it any harder or more expensive than it was for us?  More expensive? No.  Harder?  I think so. I can only imagine how single parent families manage.  It must be extremely difficult for that one parent, doing all those things and working and trying to find a minute here or there to relax. 

Goodbye, Naples. Hello, routine

Back home-where spring cleanup chores await.  But it's not all work, work, work.  This is also the season when the grand children resume their sports. 

I've posted many things here about Brooke's soccer and Cole and Nicholas's baseball.  So it's time Courtney got her due.  And guess what she excel's in-the longjump.  That's right, Courtney is setting records for her age class in the long jump. 

In recognition of her accomplishment, I (with a little help from Adobe Photoshop) herewith post this certificate.

Update from Naples

Between incorrect parts being ordered by an insurance company and its A/C contractor who have no interest in working with a so-called valued customer, we still have no A/C.  Maybe Monday or Tuesday.

That's the bad news.  The good news is that the weather has been reasonably cooperative.  The days have been hot but the nights are comfortable enough for sleeping so it could be worse.

Now on to other things, i.e a little bit of Florida fauna. Seen here are two such examples spotted beside the lake behind our condo.

Greetings from Naples, FL

Well, here we are, our yearly end-of-tax-season trip to our condo in Florida.  Except there's one little twist this year as previously reported.  We still haven't got our A/C unit fixed although the guy is supposed to be on his way as I write this.

Florida is no place to be without A/C-even in April-May.  It's 83 in our condo now and over 90 outside.  I don't really mind it all that much except when we sleep at which time it's cooled somewhat and the ceiling fans help a great deal.

It all reminds me of the many years we had no A/C at all at home.  We simply had to endure the hot, humid summers with a small window fan.  And somehow we did it-as we will now.

One of the projects I will be undertaking while we're here is to put together a photo album which I'll put on my web site georgeswebpage.com.  I have to take the pictures, configure them and make the album so it will be a while.  Stay tuned and stay cool!

More of life's little annoyances

Having a condo in FL has many advantages. While many people would not like this, it has become our permanent vacation destination-which is fine by me. 

But when things go wrong and something needs to be done, it can be a major pain-especially when we're still in CT and we're trying to deal with people in Florida. People by the way who have a very, very different definition of the work ethic than us folks up north.

One such example recently occurred when renters reported that our A/C unit wasn't working.  We have a home warranty insurance policy so I put in a call for them to schedule servicing.  Unfortunately, the people they hooked us up with are idiots.  They couldn't get phone numbers straight and they gave me a date that turned out to be incorrect.  My home watch person deserves a medal (and undoubtedly more money) for having to deal with them.

Once the technician makes his service call, the A/C company reports back to the warranty company.  That's where we are now-and it's taking forever which is a problem since we're going to be there soon and it's getting hot down there-very hot.  So what all this amounts to is that instead of relaxing I'm going to have to deal with this as soon as we get there.

Another little annoyance associated with this is when I called the warranty company to see if they had a record of this yet, the lady I spoke to barely spoke English so I found myself constantly yelling "WHAT.  I don't understand you."

I suppose some people would say something like aw, you poor thing.  You have two homes and you're having problems.  How awful for you!  Yeah, well....I guess but it's still a pain.

Thus endeth my rant for the day.

This says it all

Not all Tea Party advocates fall into the category indicated by this picture but I think there are enough of them to make one realize where they're coming from, i.e. ignorance!

Spring Break

The kids are on spring break this week so they've been spending part of their time with me.  Here are two pictures (also on the photo gallery page of my website georgeswebpage.com) of some of the things they did to stay active.

In one picture Brooke, Cole & Courtney make Oobleck and Gak both of which are fun activities that result in a playdough-type substance. 

The second picture is of Cole painting an airplane he made out of recyclable materials.  It was a project for his kindergarten class to be brought into school when they return.  This is in honor of Earth Week.

God and public schools

A few days ago a man came to give us an estimate on some driveway repairs. After we got the information we wanted, the conversation wandered off course and he learned I am a retired teacher from Sandy Hook School.

When he found that out, he had the usual sad, serious look on his face.  Then he said that at the risk of being politically incorrect he believed that terrible things and others like it happen because they (whoever 'they' are) took God out of the schools.  He then went on to elaborate and finally left.

I exercised a rare bit of constraint by not saying anything and just let him finish.  The fact though is that regardless of where God may-or may not-be at any given time,  has nothing what ever to do with the actions of deranged lunatics.

Regarding the God in Schools issue, rather than repeat something I read a while ago, I will post a link to a blog that states pretty much my position perfectly.  Here it is:

http://www.adamhamilton.org/blog/view/86/put-god-back-in-public-schools#.U06K0sfeN1Z

By the way, I should add that the author of the piece you're about to read (I hope) is senior pastor of The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, where he preaches to more than 8,000 per week.

So he's clearly not some wild-eyed atheist. 

I'd be interested in reading your reaction to the piece I cited.  If you're having trouble logging into the comments section of this site, you can write to george.stockwell@gmail.com

Happy 5th Birthday to Nicholas George Stockwell

Happy birthday, little buddy.  You're the last of the four and you're 5 already. Amazing how the time goes.

Meet "Chicken" Sandi

Grand daughter Courtney gets her grammy to hold one of the 8 chickens owned by Mike & Becky.

 

To see more photos and photo albums, click here: georgeswebpage.com

Time for spring cleanup

Now that the spring-like weather is in sync with the calendar, here's my list of spring chores:

Get the lawn tractor started.  Put up the snow blower & treat gas.
Get leaf blower going.
Restack left over firewood to make room for next year's supply.
Cut, split and stack pile of logs to start drying process.
Clean out flower beds around perimeter of house.
Clean out garden area and repair deer fence around it.
Repair stone wall in front.
Clean up rest of leaves that blew back into yard over winter.
Clean house windows.

When all that is done, I have to turn my attention to back woods where there's quite a bit of stuff down that's suitable for firewood.

All of this needs to be done in between baby sitting, volunteering and grand children sporting events.

Never a dull moment.

A rainy day...but the sun was out.

It rained today in Kinder land.  This was week II for weather in grandson Cole's kindergarten class.  It was sunny outside but with the help of some ice, water, food coloring and a 2-liter soda bottle, I was able to demonstrate the water cycle which is what's responsible for rain.  Then we looked at pictures of different kinds of clouds.  Another great day.

The topic for next time is recycling.  I think I'll make a sculpture out of geometric shapes.

A recent day in kindergarten

As I may have posted in a previous piece, every Wednesday afternoon I go to my grandson Cole's kindergarten class at Sandy Hook School to do science experiments.  Cole's teacher is a former colleague of mine so she has been gracious enough to make time for me.  Plus she gets help with the science curriculum.

The topic for the next two weeks is weather.  On Wednesday we focused on wind so I did 5 experiments demonstrating air pressure.  Next Wednesday is rain so the focus will be on clouds and how they're formed.

Science is a topic kids are naturally curious about but it is often the one given the least amount of attention at school.  That trend needs to change or we have no hope of ever improving our youth's performance on science assessments-not to mention it's impact on technical progress and innovation.

In this picture I'm demonstrating a neat trick with a funnel and a small rubber ball.  From here we moved to a large lab table with a sink and we did more.  Then I gave each child a take home science sheet explaining how they can redo the experiments with their families.  Lots of fun and maybe even some learning.

To see more pictures of my days in kindergarten, click here: georgeswebpage.com and go to the photo/albums/videos link.

Happy April

IT'S APRIL...FINALLY! Goodbye and good riddance, March.  I think the worst is almost behind us.  Just one more little blip.  Check it out:

 

OK, OK so it's an April Fool's joke I hope you realized.

On a serious note, check out the link below to learn more about the month of April-a month, by the way, that is rich with historical significance.

georgeswebpage.com/almanac 

Sandy Hook 5K Run for the Families

Many people showed up for the Sandy Hook 5K race Saturday morning.  Grandpa was on babysitting duties while the parents ran.

Some thoughts about the minimum wage

The Connecticut General Assembly voted Wednesday, March 26th,  for legislation that would raise the state's $8.70 minimum wage to $10.10 by January 2017.

I have some thoughts about this. 

First of all I find myself agreeing somewhat with those who opposed this law---but not for the reasons they state which is that such a law will put an undue strain on businesses thereby actually doing more harm than good because it will result in lay-offs.  That argument  is absurd.  We're talking about an increase of $1.30 per hour over the next almost 3 years.   Plenty of time to prepare.

But what is equally true is that it simply won't accomplish what the president and the rest of the democratic party say it will.  To think that the life style of those earning minimum wage is going to significantly improve is just as absurd as the idea that businesses will fail.

The root problem is that too many people do not earn the amount of money they need to provide for   themselves and their families.  The answer is NOT to keep giving them small, insignificant raises.  The solution is to provide opportunities to acquire skills that are more marketable and therefore valuable.  If such people choose to take advantage of these opportunities, then all well and good.  If they don't, then they get what they deserve-or more precisely-earn.

This way we still expect people to be personally responsible for their actions while at the same time lending them a helping hand. 

Now, doesn't that make sense?

Let's have a history lesson.....

See a pattern here?  Anyone?  Anyone?  Bueller?