Finding a new Home Town

When does a person decide it is time to relocate? Are we weary of the city we currently reside in? Are we looking for employment or better employment?

I read that women have an easier time hunting for a new career or at the very least a new job than men do. I found this to be an interesting comment and wondered about the validity of it until I spent some time thinking about this concept.

First, the article must have meant single or women without children, as most women I know go out of their way to keep their kids in the same school district unless it is absolutely necessary to move. So they keep less than lucrative jobs, and relegate themselves to "living with" their current employment status in their efforts to keep the family unit status quo.

So I am picking one group of women today, to focus on...that is women with grown children, no husband, and in a less than stellar job situation.

Perhaps the author of the aforementioned aticle knew as we do that we wear different hats throughout our lives.
We are party planners, bookkeepers, childcare providers, cleaners, cooks and run a taxi service. We serve on PTA boards, sell unknown quantities of cookies, gift wrap, raise funds, and do charity work.
So it shouldn't be a surprise that we are able to move into a new job or career, or even into a new city for that job easier than most men do.

Women make friends easier and have more friends than men. We are queens at networking and sensing when someone needs a helping hand.
That is just how it is. We are wired differently.
As the future unfolds, we will see more women as heads of countries, owners of businesses, and in the political arena. Women are getting tired of "dumbing" down to make men look better.

We have a lot of catching up to do, so changing careers or locations is just another step in that direction.

Bullying and Implications-This IS front page news.

The news has been inundated with the tragic results of teenage bullying. It is a widespread problem and finger pointing accompanies each and every article. What these articles don't seem to address is how do children and adults become bullies, and what needs to be done to curtail this old/new issue that has become front page news in many cities.

Obviously bullies have been around since, well, since forever. I don't recall bullying to be so prevelant when I was a child or teen, but then there wasn't the instant news updates through the wire services, or the internet when I was a child.
There were bullies, we have all seen them in action or been the target, but it never seemed to be such a virulent situation.

The finger pointing in my youth went to the home these young thugs lived in, and were dealt with by a parental visit, or by the victims themselves. Parents were held responsbile for their childrens actions, but every once in a while it was found that the parent was a bully as well, passing on the "wrong" model to their offspring.

As young girls we were given instruction to protect our younger siblings, and basically given permission to deal with any bullying issue in the best way possible.
Bullies pick their victims to a variety of reasons, and weakness is a key factor in who becomes a victim.

Just like a young child who throws a tantrum as long as there is an audience, so does a bully (now entire groups as well) need an audience or reaction to be successful.

So who is indeed responsible for halting the actions of these young miscreants? I use that word without remorse, for to me bullying is something that can be controlled and should be either by parental units or the law, or by peers. Can the victims themselves stop this harrassment. Old movies show resolution to bullying by a good punch in the nose, or by the underdogs winning a sporting event. Is bullying glamourized in some of these movies?

Where do these kids ever come up with the idea that bullying is okay? Are they so in need of attention themselves that somehow they think that this is an acceptable way to get this attention? Are parents so self involved that they turn a blind eye to what their children are capable of; part of the "not my child" syndrome. When did it become okay not to be responsible for ones actions or activities?

Researchers, affiliated with major universities are attempting to find these answers right now.

I believe we all need to look hard at this lack of civility in our youthful population today. Maybe it begins by looking in the mirror.

The world we live in.

This isn't exactly a headline, as much as a comment a friend made today. She pulled out of her parking spot only to note a flat tire. So leaving the car and flashers on she called AAA and waited.
She pondered the world we live in when a neighbor slunk out of her house, grabbed her mail, and made her way back to her door, never once looking up or making any eye contact. No conversation, not a word volunteering a phone or other aid.
My young friend could only become more depressed, therefore commenting on the state of the world we live in.

This subject has been touched on many times recently. It is the "not my business" syndrome, or the "I didn't see anything, therefore do not wish to be involved" mantra. A sub text of this would be a "not my kid" statement. (I'll save the last for another time).
A recent headline screamed " Is Civility Dead?".

Well young friend, it is a heck of a world we all live in now. There are many folks who feel that if there isn't anything in it for them, then they can't be bothered to lend a hand or an ear. We are a self absorbed society, and during a recession it seems to get worse. When we could use a hand or an ear the most, it is absent.
We tuck in, not letting anyone in, lest they wish for something we have.

Guess what? This is not the first recession this country or world has been in. It may take a while but it will eventually turn around. It is just the nature of things.
We were growing fat on plastic and big fancy houses mortgaged to the hilt. Some of us weren't paying attention.
Eventually the plastic had to grow thin, and the bills come due.

When I was a young woman, in my early twenties, another recession plagued this country.
I was young and in love, with good friends and a whole family, and friends families, and we somehow all came through it.
Looking back I realize that I just assumed that since we all were young and struggling, and just starting out in adulthood, it was okay. We learned how to scrimp and save, and make our meager ends meet.
We really didn't have any thing to lose.

I believe that this stinky old world will change again and for the better. It will not be tomorrow or next week, or even next year, but it will change. The calamity of our times, will help to make us all wiser, and less wasteful, and maybe kinder to our fellow man, or woman.
This change will begin with each and every one of us. A helping hand without a request. A ride offered, a meal shared, a donation to those needier made. A smile, a thank you, a genuine conversation, and this world will change.
I am not naive. There will always be armed conflicts and problems that continue on with no end in sight. But in our own little neighborhood, in our ever expanding circle of friends, things will get better. Step at a time, our lives will improve.

We read of strangers rushing in to help, of extreme gestures to aid those in need and homeless, and of the cabbie who returns a large sum of cash found left behind. Little steps my young friend. Who cannot smile back at a smile. Who can pass by a collection can for a worthy cause.
So be the person who smiles first, who holds the door open for a stranger, or who reaches high on the shelf at the store for an elderly shopper.
Doesn't cost anything, and we can't afford not to be that person, can we?

Eight year old boy crashes family van going for gas.

If for some reason you didn't read or hear about this event, here is a recap.
Seems like this young boy, takes the keys, starts the family van and decides to take it out to get fuel for his family. Outcome, boy crashes van.
About every six months or so, there is a story similiar to this that makes the news, and when it does, the same thoughts go through my mind.

Where were the parents or guardians when this occured? Why did this young child believe he/or she could drive the family car? How do children drive as far as they do without someone noticing that it looks like the vehicle is driving along by itself?

This most recent event answers at least one of the above questions. Dad was sleeping.
Where was Mom?
Dad fluffed it off saying that his son was just trying to do a favor by fueling up the family vehicle. Nice gesture, but bad follow through.

Okay so somehow the young lad manages to start the vehicle but if it is like most cars, doesn't the brake have to be depressed to shift the car into gear? Unless he is a NBA prospect, how does he do this?
To the boys credit he seemed to be going only five miles an hour. I have followed drivers who have gone that speed but they usually have white hair and are driving a car that is old enough to be considered an antique, and gets taken out of the garage or driveway once a month for errands. So no one else in this community is up early enough to see a creeping van and the boy hits a tree or pole.

My guess is that at some point Dad let this child ride on his lap and "drive" or puts him on the riding mower with him. Why else would a young lad or lass begin to think that they could drive a vehicle?

Suppose this young boy had made it the gas station. Making it to the gas station, and he manages some how to pull next to the pump?
Did he know how to pump gas? Did he also take the credit card out of Dad's wallet, to pay for the gas?
So many questions but so few answers.

I come from a large family and even the most mischevious of us would never have thought of taking the family car out before we had a drivers license.
Nope, never.
So where does this mindset begin?
Perhaps we will never know, but if you are out one day driving and notice a vehicle creeping along, with a just a top of a head showing through the windows, do the right thing.
Call 911, and get on another road.

Laying off Ronald McDonald

When I first decided to write these headline blogs, I had imagined that they would be about the little funny or quirky fill ins, either on line or in print that gets picked up and inserted to fill a space. ( yes I do still read actual newspapers as well as the virtual ones).

This particular headline caught my attention today in the business section, though I am not certain that it really belonged to that category.

The quick synopsis is that there is apparently a group of finger pointers who feel that the fictional Mc Donalds representative ( also the name of a very important "house" that caters to very ill children and their families) is responsible for childhood obesity and all the problems that accompany it.
This anti Ronald group wants him laid off or retired, thus I guess, solving all the woes of the over weight children who have been lured by the promise of a Happy Meal.

Now I consider myself I pretty good reader, who grasps literary concepts on the first read most of the time, but this I read over twice. I guess that I couldn't actually believe what I was reading.
Then I read almost all of the comments as well, and had a breath of relief, when I realized that almost all the posts I read had basically the same opinion as I did.

Are we as a society so inept at being parents that a bunch of us get a group together along with "social specialists" and dietary watchdogs and blame childhood obesity on a happy meal and the clown whose image is printed on the cup?
I was dumbstruck at the thought.

First...have you ever had a Happy Meal, even pre the healthy substitutions? A tiny burger, a handful of fries and a mini drink, with the toy being the lure of the whole meal. We all have swung into the drive in lane of that restaurant with the golden arches and spoke those words into the crackly speaker, I'll have a Happy Meal with soda and the toy is a girl/boy.
No ketchup please.
Then for a time, when the meal is passed into the back seat, a few minutes of silence while a lunch time hunger is satisfied and we proceed upon our way.

So we (the parents) drive our children into the take out lane, we pay for the food, we choose the food, and Ronald is the villain for making our kids overweight.
Hello...is anyone there?
Supposedly sixty percent of those surveyed believed that Ronald and the evil Happy Meal was responsible for the sad state of the health of our children.

I guess that this all so powerful clown is also responsible for the lack of exercise our children get, or the hours spent in front of the television or video games. He is preventing us from preparing healthy meals for our families, healthy snacks for in between meals, why Ronald must be like the great and powerful oz. With all this power why hasn't he run for office?

I know that the time of the family dinner is an old concept, and that late work hours may prevent some regular healthy fare at the proverbial dinner table...but wait.
Here is an idea all you sixty percent, over the weekend, plan your menu, make double batches or choose a quick but healthy dinner and leave Ronald alone. It can be done, it just takes a little effort.

Take walks with your kids, go shoot a few baskets, have them help with yard work or help an elderly neighbor do the same. Limit the tv usage, turn off your cell phones and spend some time with your kids.
Find out what food is being served at school, subsidized by the government by the way.
Is it healthy? Are the healthy items a la carte and reasonably priced as well as available? You might just cringe if you looked at some of the items on the "regular" menu at your children's school.
Good nutrition and good health is taught and learned by observation.

Just place the blame where it should lie. Take responsibility for what your family consumes, and this just doesn't mean Moms but Dads as well.
But leave Ronald McDonald alone. He didn't do anything wrong, we did.

Man Tries to Bring Possum Back to Life

So this is one of those stories that somehow made both online and print media.
First the blurb about a man who attempted to recusitate a dead possum. Now most of us I would assume, would know that obviously this person who would try to bring a varmint back to life was not a member of Peta. Nor a member of an animal rescue group.
Yet this story made the rounds.
It was chatted about on Facebook, that ubiquitous social network, tweeted, and I am sure was discussed around more than several water coolers.
After several days of press, it comes to light, that this person was inebriated.
Was anyone really surprised about that revelation?
This was not a beloved pet, but a wild animal who met an untimely end.

Yet the fact is that someone in the press must have felt that this was newsworthy.
The speed at which even the most inane act made the national headlines is something that perhaps we all need to take a look at with a fresh perspective.
Did we need to know this? Was there no other news item that could have been inserted in it's place?
Are we all so news deprived that this became the topic of the day?
Or is it that we are all so weary of all the bad news we are bombarded with on a daily basis, that a laugh once in a while is needed and because we need that laugh, articles ( though this was more a blurb) like this one continue to show up on our home page, as a filler on page five of our local newspapers, or as a tweet on someones twitter.

I personally would rather have the story that meant a little more than this example of person who had too much to drink, and so tried to revive road kill.
What do you think?

So much news, so little time.

My goal for this blog is to take a news story and give my take on it.
It may be a big headline or one that appears between two ads. It could be politcs, or it could be an obscure local headline, or maybe just something I think should be newsworthy to appear on actual newsprint.

Everyday something makes me shake my head. And hey, now my family won't have to listen to me comment.
I was part of a forum on a newspaper which was dissolved and has never come back.
It was like losing part of my family.
We chatted amicably, or argued vehemently, but in the end agreed to disagree.
Some of the members even went as far as to have a picnic, meeting each other for the first time and getting to know each other without their log in labels.

It's no doubt been done before,and that is okay, plenty of room on the internet.
As I have written before, it you like what your reading please come back if not..well there is a bazillion other blogs to read out here. I won't be offended.

I'll still pull out the proverbial soapbox and give you the dailykaws.