Angels don't come with wings. They are everywhere. They don't stick out.
You have to find them, and they don't even know they are Angels.
Becky and Sonny are my angels...but every once in a while, another one comes into my life, and it is always unexpected.
I sent Outback Gift Cards out this Christmas, and I made a little comment in Facebook about the thank you's I got this year, compared to last.
It looks like that was a good recipe for shaking the angels out of heaven.
Georgia took Becky out last night.
They ate dinner and went shopping. When they came back, I got a gift.
Most of the people I know these days are living month-to-month.
So when I do nice things for people, I don't expect anything in return. Just a thank you.
Besides, kindness always seems to be returned in other times, and in other ways.
I call those who send kindness my way, My Angels.
But when an act of kindness is returned almost immediately, things change.
I call those Angels, my friends.
And having an Angel for a friend, is one the greatest achievments I could hope for.

Political Ideology Definitions

Questions often arise as to what is a liberal? What is a conservative? What does it mean to support the Left? Or the Right? What does a certain political party stand for? Although positions change over time and it's never good to make generalizations about what a certain group thinks, this section tries to clarifies some of the basic ideological definitions. Politicians have a wide range of opinions; thus, any particular leader doesn't necessary fit neatly into these categories.

The original definition of a liberal was someone who advocated change, new philosophies, and new ideas. A conservative was someone who avoided change, instead preferring to stick to the tried and true. In modern times, these definitions have expanded to include a wide set of political beliefs (which are defined below). To be Leftist or agree with the Left political point of view is synonymous with being liberal. To be Rightist or agree with the Right political point of view is synonymous with being conservative. The Left and Right terms were created because political ideology is viewed on a continuum; most people generally hold views somewhere in the middle. For example, if you agree more with liberal ideas, you're considered more Leftist in your thinking. The graphic below illustrates the continuum:

Liberal (Left) <------------------- Moderate (Middle) -------------------> Conservative (Right)

Generally speaking, the Democratic party follows a more liberal platform; the Republican party follows a more conservative platform. The following table summarizes the current ideology of the parties (the links section gives more detail on what each party stands for).

	Liberal (i.e. Left)	Conservative (i.e. Right)
Representative Party	Democrats	Republicans
Business	Increase regulation and worker protection	Ease regulation and keep government out of business
Taxes	Increase taxes	Cut taxes
Abortion	Pro-choice	Pro-life
Social Spending	Increase	Decrease or maintain
Defense Spending	Decrease or maintain	Increase
Immigration	Grant amnesty to illegal aliens; don't build a fence along the Mexican border; allow illegal aliens to obtain driver's licenses; prevent the creation of a national ID card & database to track people in the country.	Prevent amnesty for illegal & driver's licenses for illegal aliens; construct a Mexican border fence; create a national ID card & database to track people in the country.
Death Penalty	Ban	Maintain
Government Size	Increase the government and use more socialistic policies	Reduce the government and use more capitalistic policies
World Peace	Negotiate first and only take military action if sanctioned by the U.N. and other world organizations	Work with world bodies and use negotiation, but take unilateral pre-emptive action if necessary to protect America
Same-Sex Marriage	Legalize	Ban
Affirmative Action	For (i.e. maintain race-based preferences)	Against (i.e. ban race-based preferences)
ANWR Drilling	Prevent the Alaska drilling	Pursue this and other domestic oil sources
Kyoto Treaty	Sign this treaty	Don't sign this treaty
Crime	Protect the rights of the accused first and foremost	Provide maximum punishment and protect the rights of the victim first and foremost
School Vouchers	End the program	Expand the program
Doctor Assisted Suicide	Allow	Prevent
Missile Defense	Scrap this program	Pursue this program
Three Strikes Law	Overturn this law	Maintain and expand these laws
Minimum Wage	Increase	Lower or eliminate altogether
Social Security	Increase age of beginning eligibility (e.g. 68 or 70); increase salary limits subject to tax	Privatize; i.e. allow citizens control over their own money and allow stock investments
Health Care	Make 100 percent government controlled	De-regulate and introduce free market reform
Personal Responsibility	Government needs to protect people from themselves	People should be responsible and be held accountable for their own actions
Malpractice Lawsuits	Do not cap punitive & pain/suffering damage amounts	Cap punitive & pain/suffering damage amounts
Religion	Maintain separation of church and state; prevent faith-based government initiatives	Introduce more religion in schools; allow faith-based government initiatives

 

You may be a Muslim If:
01. You refine heroin for a living, but you have a moral objection to liquor.
02. You own a $3,000 machine gun and $5,000 rocket launcher, but you can't afford shoes.
03. You have more wives than teeth.
04. You wipe your butt with your bare hand, but consider bacon unclean. 
05. You think vests come in two styles: bullet-proof and suicide.
06. You can't think of anyone you haven't declared Jihad against.
07. You consider television dangerous, but routinely carry explosives in your clothing.
08. You were amazed to discover that cell phones have uses other than setting off roadside bombs.
09.You have nothing against women and think every man should own at least four.

The 10 Commandments are just basic manners. If a god has to tell you that, that works for me.
Preservation of the species should be obvious. If Jesus has to tell you to love other people, that works. 
There are many gods, and many heavens. Some don't believe in Messiahs or hell. Read up!
If you believe your religion is the only one, you aren't paying attention.
Stating your religious beliefs as facts is wrong. That means you think you don't have to prove anything you say.
Telling people that god talks to you and not to them, is arrogant.
My Simple Religion
Nature is god. It tells us what to do.
Life is heaven. Look around, its beautiful.
Every day is a miracle. Walking on water does not impress me.
Death is frightening, but it isn't the end of everything. Death only marks the end of a life.
If god has gender, race, or form, it is not obvious to me.
I can't understand god. I will never be smart enough.
Believing this works for me.

Said "Hi" and "Final Farewells" to some very special people.
We've seen some of the prettiest country I've ever seen.
Saw Niagara Falls, Buffalo, Erie, Cleveland, Akron, New York City, Hoboken, Ocean City NJ, Ocean City MD, Annapolis, Washington DC, Ligoneer, Ohio Pyle, Pittsburgh, Mars, Washington, Hershey, Columbus, Louisville, Sparta, Wheeling, Mt Pleasant, New Castle, Franklin...and loved it all.
I think Pennsylvania is a better kept secret than Colorado.
We've seen all four seasons...and they put on a great show!
The birds and flowers and critters were spectacular.
Almost everything here has something special about it...like the flower that had spores that flew 100s of feet in the air.
Its been a very good year.
Special thanks to:
Becky, Georgia, Mikey, Sonny, Rob, Arden, Scott, Jim, Lonnie, Jeff, Tass, Annette, Ida, Ruth, and the wonderful people of Pittsburgh.

Oh the joys of embibing on Christmas Eve!
I bought a bottle of Honey Whiskey...mmmm...so good.
Now, I'm a little out of practice when it comes to drinking, so as I reached for my glass of sparkling honey, I knocked it over onto my keyboard,
thus voiding my warrentee and goobering up my laptop in one swell foop.

My solution......
a wireless keyboard duct taped to the top of my laptop (I could have used bailing wire).
Tell me I'm not an Urban Red Neck.

You still live in my heart, and I will always love you.
Until we meet again my friends, I'll do my best to show your love this year.
And to all of those who are losing loved ones this Christmas Holiday,
use the time you have left to tell them how much of a difference they made in your life.
Don't waste a minute feeling sorry for yourself.

Reality is defined as what a real, not in your head...
But reality became real for me when I was born..and as far as I know, it will be gone whe I die.
Realty for me, will become unreal, so it isn't illogical.

To add to that - I think life is a vacation from whereever we came from.
We are not supposed to live forever, and I think its stupid to want too.

And another thing - The 10 commandments.
These shouldn't be called commandments. They should be called "Manners".
Its rude to kill someone, go after their wife, want their toys, steal from them, lie to them...its just rude.
You won't go to some aweful hell for it, but this planet is too small for a lot of that kind of thinking.