I wasn't to thrilled when my alarm went off at 6:15 am this Saturday morning. I wanted nothing more than to sleep in but my commitment to making a difference got me moving contrary to my body telling me "No". Today I was headed to a new volunteer project at a place called Pet Pal Rescue (www.petpalrescue.com). It's a no kill shelter that houses mostly dogs and cats but also other small animals.
We started the day helping the regular staff there do what they do everyday which is clean the kennels for all the puppies. Each pup has an inside kennel with a doggy door leading to an outside kennel. And once a day they are lucky enough to get let out into the play area outside of their kennel. It wasn't easy work. Every inch of their small concrete living quarter had to be scrubbed down. Half way through disinfecting the rows of kennels with my hands feeling somewhat raw from all the bleach and cleaner used in the bucket I asked myself why I had willingly signed up for this job. But that thought only lasted a split second as I thought about how much of a need there was to make these precious little dogs life that much better. They deserved a clean and healthy environment to call home just like you and I have when we walk through our front door.
The payoff was at the end though when all the hard work was finished. With so many dogs and cats needing a home I wanted to load them all up in the car and take them home. Of course that can't happen but I was able to spend another hour or so with them to make their day. After playing with the cats I chose to visit the dogs on the "sick" side and take them out one on one in the play area. The sick side is completely separate from the "healthy" side and is obviously where the puppies who have a medical problem stay until they are better. These dogs don't get any attention from potential adoptees due to their condition so I felt the need to try and make their day a little better.
I spent about 15 minutes each with 3 different dogs. Two of the pups that I took out were full of energy and so happy to have someone to run around with. And they all shared one thing in common and that was a hunger for love and affection. The first pup I took out would make anybody melt. He ran out all excited to the play area and went straight for my lap when I sat down. He curled up in a ball and wanted nothing more than to just be held and loved. And so there we sat for the full 15 minutes and all we did was comfort each other. And it's in a moment like this where silence is golden. I didn't know his story and he didn't know mine but what I did know is that this little guy was in total heaven for a small portion of his day. And I'm sure that times like this are few and far between for him in his life. And to be able to do something that has this kind of an impact on another living being is truly a blessing.
And that my fellow human beings is how important it is to take a small amount of time out of your day to make the world around you a better place. A little bit can go a long way. We are all born with the innate desire to love others and experience happiness by doing so. Sometimes we get a little and give a lot and are disappointed. But sometimes we give a little and get back more than we can ever ask for in life. Please do something positive after reading this. You and somebody else will be happier for it :)
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Monday, December 1, 2008
The 2009 Challenge for You and Me
Once again I'd love to share a great idea of mine with all of you out there. I hope you're not rolling your eyes already wondering what I've come up with this time :) I'd also actually love to get some feedback and involvement from all two and a half humans that read my blog. Alright straight to the point...
I'm challenging you to join me in setting 3 goals that you want to accomplish in 2009. They can be whatever you want with only one condition that has to apply to each goal. Each goal's intended purpose needs to have an end result that positively impacts either yourself or somebody else or both. Your goals can be whatever you want them to be. They may be big or small. They may also be pertaining to your personal or professional life or they may pertain to yourself, your family, your friends, or any combination of the three. As long as the intended outcome is a positive impact on you or somebody else that is all that is required.
Here's my three goals for the year 2009:
1) Volunteer at least 100 hours in my local community
2) Get involved in a small group or class at my church
3) Take an active role in providing solutions to challenges that my national government faces by submitting at least one idea (entry) a month to my new president, Barack Obama, through his website - www.change.gov
There you have it. Now it's your turn to think of what you want to accomplish for next year. Feel free to share your goals by making a comment on this article or if you don't feel comfortable doing that then I'll let you off the hook this one time :) Just make sure you're working towards something positive next year and hopefully it'll make you and those around you better off.
And remember one thing - APATHY is your own worst ENEMY when it comes to making a difference.
I'm challenging you to join me in setting 3 goals that you want to accomplish in 2009. They can be whatever you want with only one condition that has to apply to each goal. Each goal's intended purpose needs to have an end result that positively impacts either yourself or somebody else or both. Your goals can be whatever you want them to be. They may be big or small. They may also be pertaining to your personal or professional life or they may pertain to yourself, your family, your friends, or any combination of the three. As long as the intended outcome is a positive impact on you or somebody else that is all that is required.
Here's my three goals for the year 2009:
1) Volunteer at least 100 hours in my local community
2) Get involved in a small group or class at my church
3) Take an active role in providing solutions to challenges that my national government faces by submitting at least one idea (entry) a month to my new president, Barack Obama, through his website - www.change.gov
There you have it. Now it's your turn to think of what you want to accomplish for next year. Feel free to share your goals by making a comment on this article or if you don't feel comfortable doing that then I'll let you off the hook this one time :) Just make sure you're working towards something positive next year and hopefully it'll make you and those around you better off.
And remember one thing - APATHY is your own worst ENEMY when it comes to making a difference.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Happy Thanksgiving!
I just wanted to wish all of my readers out there a very Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you have a safe and enjoyable holiday with your family and friends. And just a shout out to all of my family and friends to let you know how much I appreciate your generosity and support you've given me throughout the years. You are the best!
Now... time for football!! And good food!!
Now... time for football!! And good food!!
Monday, November 10, 2008
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
A Great & Historic Era Begins!
Yes We Did
&
Yes We Will...
continue to make our country and our world a better place as our new President Barack Obama encourages us to make a greater impact on everyone in the human race by seeking out our own individual opportunities to make a positive difference in those around us. It's up to YOU. It's up to ME. It's up to ALL of us to get involved or stay involved in this greater movement to improve our own future and our own destiny. I'm proud to have taken my own opportunities to volunteer in my community and will continue to do so and I hope that you all will do the same or continue to do so if you are currently involved in making a difference. America needs you and you're determination.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Pumpkaween Time!
Thought you all would like to see some pumpkins that a friend and I painted for Halloween. The pictures aren't the best since they're from my cell phone but enjoy anyways :-)
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Bend Over And No... K-Y Won't Be Provided!
I love freedom of speech. I hate insurance companies. And that led to a lovely combination when I wrote my check out for my annual condo insurance policy about two minutes ago. You see my policy went up nearly 14% from last year. Why is that you ask? I'm wondering the same thing.
All I've done is give these scum bags my money for the last 3 years to cover the inside contents (drywall and everything within my condo) in case of a catastrophic loss. All I've received for the last 3 years in return is absolutely nothing! Except for an increase in what I owe them for the services that they never provide. And I'm sure if they had to provide their services they'd raise holy hell not to provide them siting some ridiculous reason like because the GDP of Russia has increased in the last year due to increase in petro dollars that they can no longer cover my losses as listed in our agreed upon contract.
So instead of listing just the policy number of my "insurance" policy in the memo line of the check I just wrote I took the liberty of adding "INSURANCE SCAM CHARGE" in front of it. Now I know that that will make no difference in my renewal fee but at least it relieves some pent up anger for the largest scam artist industry in the entire world - insurance companies.
I think I'll go watch Sportscenter and be happy now :)
All I've done is give these scum bags my money for the last 3 years to cover the inside contents (drywall and everything within my condo) in case of a catastrophic loss. All I've received for the last 3 years in return is absolutely nothing! Except for an increase in what I owe them for the services that they never provide. And I'm sure if they had to provide their services they'd raise holy hell not to provide them siting some ridiculous reason like because the GDP of Russia has increased in the last year due to increase in petro dollars that they can no longer cover my losses as listed in our agreed upon contract.
So instead of listing just the policy number of my "insurance" policy in the memo line of the check I just wrote I took the liberty of adding "INSURANCE SCAM CHARGE" in front of it. Now I know that that will make no difference in my renewal fee but at least it relieves some pent up anger for the largest scam artist industry in the entire world - insurance companies.
I think I'll go watch Sportscenter and be happy now :)
Running a Productive Democracy
It's not hard folks. I don't know if I'll ever live to see the day that a democratic process is run correctly. All you have to do is look at the big picture and follow the money. That's what it comes down to. Who's really in charge and who pays the bills. That should be the citizens but unfortunately it isn't. Here's the very simple steps for success in a democratic process:
1) Ban all forms of lobbying and special interest groups. Make them illegal. If any politician of any kind (federal, state, or local) is found to collect even 1 penny from them then their career in politics is immediately over. No second chances!
2) Make it MANDATORY for all governments (federal, state, and local) to balance their budget on a yearly basis and abide by this in the strictest of form. The state and local governments are already responsible for doing this. Time for the feds to buck up. Government should not be allowed to run on a Chinese credit card. If you can't fund a program you can't have the program!
3) Get rid of political parties. No Democrats or Republicans or Green Party or Reform Party. The only choice that is given to anyone when registering is to be an independent and to put forth your stance on each issue as you believe is correct. Your constituents will decide from there if they want you to represent them.
4) Get rid of the electoral college. Every single vote should count. Reform the voting process into a run off format. Instead of picking one candidate that you like you rank them - for example from 1 to 5 or whatever the case may be.
5) Politicians get paid based on their productivity and performance. By this I mean if you show up to work and vote on all bills then you get paid in full. If you go the extra effort and develop legislation that passes into law you get a reward "bonus" for that effort. We also need to base all elected public official's salary based on performance. We could use a variety of tools to gage their pay including the economic success of their nation/state/locality along with approval ratings from the citizens. The better the results in these categories the better their pay is. If the normal citizen doesn't show up to their job or if they produce poor performance results then that often leads to no bonuses or little to no raise or even worse termination. The same thing should go for our elected public officials.
6) A bill consists of one issue and one issue only. No pork barrel add ons. And every bill is made 100% transparent to the media and the citizens in a timely fashion (at least 2 weeks) before the floor vote is conducted. This gives all of us an opportunity if we so choose to speak up when we either like or don't like what we see and flood our representative's office with calls with that feedback.
You see it's not hard. With these simple yet strict rules a democratic government can flourish and be extremely beneficial to the citizens that it serves. My name is Dustin and I approve this message ;-)
1) Ban all forms of lobbying and special interest groups. Make them illegal. If any politician of any kind (federal, state, or local) is found to collect even 1 penny from them then their career in politics is immediately over. No second chances!
2) Make it MANDATORY for all governments (federal, state, and local) to balance their budget on a yearly basis and abide by this in the strictest of form. The state and local governments are already responsible for doing this. Time for the feds to buck up. Government should not be allowed to run on a Chinese credit card. If you can't fund a program you can't have the program!
3) Get rid of political parties. No Democrats or Republicans or Green Party or Reform Party. The only choice that is given to anyone when registering is to be an independent and to put forth your stance on each issue as you believe is correct. Your constituents will decide from there if they want you to represent them.
4) Get rid of the electoral college. Every single vote should count. Reform the voting process into a run off format. Instead of picking one candidate that you like you rank them - for example from 1 to 5 or whatever the case may be.
5) Politicians get paid based on their productivity and performance. By this I mean if you show up to work and vote on all bills then you get paid in full. If you go the extra effort and develop legislation that passes into law you get a reward "bonus" for that effort. We also need to base all elected public official's salary based on performance. We could use a variety of tools to gage their pay including the economic success of their nation/state/locality along with approval ratings from the citizens. The better the results in these categories the better their pay is. If the normal citizen doesn't show up to their job or if they produce poor performance results then that often leads to no bonuses or little to no raise or even worse termination. The same thing should go for our elected public officials.
6) A bill consists of one issue and one issue only. No pork barrel add ons. And every bill is made 100% transparent to the media and the citizens in a timely fashion (at least 2 weeks) before the floor vote is conducted. This gives all of us an opportunity if we so choose to speak up when we either like or don't like what we see and flood our representative's office with calls with that feedback.
You see it's not hard. With these simple yet strict rules a democratic government can flourish and be extremely beneficial to the citizens that it serves. My name is Dustin and I approve this message ;-)
Saturday, September 13, 2008
A Piece of Cake
There are many things in this world that are definitely easy. Things like sleeping in, watching the lawn boy cut your grass, or eating a delicious bowl of swirl ice cream while deciding which on demand movie to order on a Saturday night. But one thing that's definitely NOT simple is completing the entire voting ballot on election day. Now bear with me folks because I know how sick and tired you are of all the political diarrhea now. It's all over the place and we have another month and a half left of it before the big day.
But I think the whole voting process should be simplified. I don't think voting in a competent matter should be so hard. I mean really why does picking our political leaders have to feel like a multiple choice pop quiz? If you're anything like me then you know exactly what I'm talking about. You rush into the polling place before work or maybe even on your lunch hour to fulfill your democratic obligation of what makes this free country so great. And you're faced with a ballot with scores of names and amendments and choices that you've never seen or even heard of before this critical moment. God help me so I don't guess wrong you're thinking. The fate of the very country is now riding on your shoulders at this crucial moment in time.
Of course everyone knows at least a little bit of info about the presidential and vice presidential candidates. If you don't then you're a complete moron or maybe you live in the deep forested regions of the Rocky Mountains in Wyoming. They don't have civilization there anyway right? Anyway, beyond the president and vice president you may have heard of a few of the senator, congressional, and gubernatorial candidates but what about all those other ones? Like the 2nd seat for city council in district 15 of providence 8 in the 3rd ward of the sub county of Leeward township. Exactly! What in the hell is that?! And of course there are 23 names of people you've never even heard of running for seat #2! See... now you feel my pain. Uugghh!!
So here's my solution. With all the technology available the majority of all precincts have went to an electronic touch screen for voting. This needs to be put in place in 100% of all voting precincts. Just add it on to the national debt if needed. We're Americans and credit cards are a way of life anyway. And besides the much advanced and yet simple process that I'm about to propose will allow millions upon millions of citizens make reasonable choices when voting so it'll be well worth it. Ok so onto the good stuff...
The next thing that needs to happen is that all candidates running for all offices across the United States have to submit their official positions on all major issues facing the American people to their respective election boards. Then a computer program is developed to create an electronic questionnaire of these major issues and the level of importance to the voter. The voter (you and me) will then fill out the short multiple choice questionnaire based on our personal beliefs before voting using the electronic voting machines. After we enter our answers to all the major issues then the computer automatically matches our personal views with the candidate for each position that most closely coincides with our choices. We can either vote for that candidate or choose to vote for any of the other candidates running for that particular position.
And that my friends would be a piece of cake!!
But I think the whole voting process should be simplified. I don't think voting in a competent matter should be so hard. I mean really why does picking our political leaders have to feel like a multiple choice pop quiz? If you're anything like me then you know exactly what I'm talking about. You rush into the polling place before work or maybe even on your lunch hour to fulfill your democratic obligation of what makes this free country so great. And you're faced with a ballot with scores of names and amendments and choices that you've never seen or even heard of before this critical moment. God help me so I don't guess wrong you're thinking. The fate of the very country is now riding on your shoulders at this crucial moment in time.
Of course everyone knows at least a little bit of info about the presidential and vice presidential candidates. If you don't then you're a complete moron or maybe you live in the deep forested regions of the Rocky Mountains in Wyoming. They don't have civilization there anyway right? Anyway, beyond the president and vice president you may have heard of a few of the senator, congressional, and gubernatorial candidates but what about all those other ones? Like the 2nd seat for city council in district 15 of providence 8 in the 3rd ward of the sub county of Leeward township. Exactly! What in the hell is that?! And of course there are 23 names of people you've never even heard of running for seat #2! See... now you feel my pain. Uugghh!!
So here's my solution. With all the technology available the majority of all precincts have went to an electronic touch screen for voting. This needs to be put in place in 100% of all voting precincts. Just add it on to the national debt if needed. We're Americans and credit cards are a way of life anyway. And besides the much advanced and yet simple process that I'm about to propose will allow millions upon millions of citizens make reasonable choices when voting so it'll be well worth it. Ok so onto the good stuff...
The next thing that needs to happen is that all candidates running for all offices across the United States have to submit their official positions on all major issues facing the American people to their respective election boards. Then a computer program is developed to create an electronic questionnaire of these major issues and the level of importance to the voter. The voter (you and me) will then fill out the short multiple choice questionnaire based on our personal beliefs before voting using the electronic voting machines. After we enter our answers to all the major issues then the computer automatically matches our personal views with the candidate for each position that most closely coincides with our choices. We can either vote for that candidate or choose to vote for any of the other candidates running for that particular position.
And that my friends would be a piece of cake!!
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Working Wonders
Often times we all shy away from speaking about our faith and/or religious beliefs. The thought of the topic makes most of us cringe with fear that we may be over stepping our bounds with those around us. I'm certainly of the same mindset but today I'm gonna take that chance and let you in on a few small aspects of my own personal journey in this thing called faith.
I've never been a church person to be honest with you. Growing up a good little catholic boy I shuddered every Sunday morning when mom made us kids go to 8 am mass whether we liked it or not. I mean come on all you parents out there don't you realize that Sunday morning is better meant for SLEEP than religious rituals that bore your little child monsters to death?! Needless to say I was turned off from religion and have been for many years.
That was until I saw an advertisement before a movie on the big screen at my local AMC theatres. What?? An advertisement for church at the movie theatre you ask? Yes'em. It wasn't until after I saw the same ad about 3 or 4 times that I thought what the hell (I'm glad God forgives *smile*) I'll give it a shot. So off to this church I go and needless to say my first impression was not exactly church like.
As I walked in I was greeted with a warm hello which was expected but then I entered into the auditorium where the service was held. The first thing that hit me was a view of these HUGE banners hanging from the rafters just above the stage up front that had pictures of an expensive and fancy sports car and a very lavish upper middle class McMansion in the middle of America suburbia. Then to top it off was one word that completed the magnificent banner - "MONEY". At this point I'm thinking to myself "What is this church all about?!" But instead of jumping up, grabbing my wallet, and running for the hills in fear of them taking me for everything I got I managed to calm my inner thoughts and stay for the sermon. And I'm glad I did :-)
I've never been to a place of worship that was more inviting and tolerant of it's congregation as Harborside Church is. You see the reason for the big banners and all the hoopla is that each month the pastor takes one topic and discusses how God wants us to live our life with the right intentions in regards to this topic. I soon found out that the church was doing a series on how finances affects each and every one of us in our everyday life. That first month they reinforced to me how important it was to spend responsibly and not to forget that life isn't all about what we have in physical possessions but rather what we can offer each other whether it be in friendships, financial help, or spiritual relationships.
Looking back I certainly appreciate my mother's efforts to get us boys to our Sunday sermon. For in her attempts she was subconsciously instilling the basic principles and values that all Christians strive to live by even though her little boy didn't realize it at the time. As for my father he has consistently preached to us kids that he has one and ONLY one expectation of his sons in this life here on earth. This expectation is to be a good person regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves in in life. But I am just now understanding the concept of how to put both of these incredibly important lessons together in hopes to become the testament of love that the good Lord wants us to become everyday that we reside here on earth.
So almost a year later I have to say that I now can't wait for Sunday mornings to come along although I do get my much need sleep by picking the 10:45 am service to attend. I'm slowly growing in my spiritual journey to understand what the good Lord has in store for me. I'm certainly not even close to being an expert or even a half informed novice but that will come with time. For He is working wonders within me for what feels like the first time in my life.
I've never been a church person to be honest with you. Growing up a good little catholic boy I shuddered every Sunday morning when mom made us kids go to 8 am mass whether we liked it or not. I mean come on all you parents out there don't you realize that Sunday morning is better meant for SLEEP than religious rituals that bore your little child monsters to death?! Needless to say I was turned off from religion and have been for many years.
That was until I saw an advertisement before a movie on the big screen at my local AMC theatres. What?? An advertisement for church at the movie theatre you ask? Yes'em. It wasn't until after I saw the same ad about 3 or 4 times that I thought what the hell (I'm glad God forgives *smile*) I'll give it a shot. So off to this church I go and needless to say my first impression was not exactly church like.
As I walked in I was greeted with a warm hello which was expected but then I entered into the auditorium where the service was held. The first thing that hit me was a view of these HUGE banners hanging from the rafters just above the stage up front that had pictures of an expensive and fancy sports car and a very lavish upper middle class McMansion in the middle of America suburbia. Then to top it off was one word that completed the magnificent banner - "MONEY". At this point I'm thinking to myself "What is this church all about?!" But instead of jumping up, grabbing my wallet, and running for the hills in fear of them taking me for everything I got I managed to calm my inner thoughts and stay for the sermon. And I'm glad I did :-)
I've never been to a place of worship that was more inviting and tolerant of it's congregation as Harborside Church is. You see the reason for the big banners and all the hoopla is that each month the pastor takes one topic and discusses how God wants us to live our life with the right intentions in regards to this topic. I soon found out that the church was doing a series on how finances affects each and every one of us in our everyday life. That first month they reinforced to me how important it was to spend responsibly and not to forget that life isn't all about what we have in physical possessions but rather what we can offer each other whether it be in friendships, financial help, or spiritual relationships.
Looking back I certainly appreciate my mother's efforts to get us boys to our Sunday sermon. For in her attempts she was subconsciously instilling the basic principles and values that all Christians strive to live by even though her little boy didn't realize it at the time. As for my father he has consistently preached to us kids that he has one and ONLY one expectation of his sons in this life here on earth. This expectation is to be a good person regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves in in life. But I am just now understanding the concept of how to put both of these incredibly important lessons together in hopes to become the testament of love that the good Lord wants us to become everyday that we reside here on earth.
So almost a year later I have to say that I now can't wait for Sunday mornings to come along although I do get my much need sleep by picking the 10:45 am service to attend. I'm slowly growing in my spiritual journey to understand what the good Lord has in store for me. I'm certainly not even close to being an expert or even a half informed novice but that will come with time. For He is working wonders within me for what feels like the first time in my life.
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