JUNEteenth 2006

   Another school year has passed as I kept busy at Elmwood, Schavey Road and Lansing.   The desire to teach is still in me as I look at students I've had in the past and find many remember me.   I put in applications with Waverly and Dewitt.   Juneteenth celebrates the time at the end of the civil war when many slaves finally got the news of the end of slavery.  On 6/19/1865, Union troops arrived in Galveston Texas  freeing the country's last slaves, in Michigan last year, Gov. Granholm declared the 3rd Saturday of June to be Juneteenth National Freedom Day, to become the 20th state to make it a holiday.    The Pistons basketball team lost as the Red Wings did without a championship for Detroit.   Phillip played freshman baseball for Waverly and is playing for Uncle Mark's Panther team this summer.   He pitched and played 3rd base for a 9-9 team coached by Mr. Bird  and Mr. Dimick.    Santana gave birth to 5 kittens in May so the menagerie grows.   Jon bought a Pontiac G6 as he graduated from MSU with a Political Science degree.   Jane has been suffering with pain in her jaw that doctors have not diagnosed and have put her on anti-seizure drugs they give epileptics.   Her MRI came back normal so we don't know if this will be long term or some kind of nerve problem or blockage, that will clear up in time.   Growing old is not easy and challenges wait each new dawn.

"55" Revision of a police state

   Officer shot himself," The headlines of today will be the movies of tomorrow", Jeff Lutz is a sick person who for whatever reasons subjected us to being put in the search perimeter and is now facing charges of  felony false report.  Janis Ian will soon be 55 like myself, who quietly hit doubles 5's with my wife and 2 younger sons in Florida.  I'm currently enjoying a glass of blueberry wine in the solitude of my safe home.  I was cancelled twice today for jobs in Lansing, a first that kept me safely  here free of a police state.   They are tearing down the old Fisher Body plant, which before my time was Durant and the final assembly plant of Oldsmobile.  My father 4/6/08 and grandpa worked for Oldsmobile after coming to Lansing from Glasgow Scotland. My brothers Frank and Jim worked skilled trades there as well as myself for 32.5 years.  Times change and GM is on the brink of either being a has been or moving into the new competitive future that may leave it's retirees in an uncertain and less comfortable days of future passed.  The wine has now mellowed me into a state of ignorance is bliss, so love peace and happiness is my closing.

Monday Morning 3:03a.m.

   A little after 3:00am I let Wiley out and just after going back to bed started hearing sirens.  It sounded like a police chase but I kept hearing short bursts of a siren, like a car alarm.  But it kept moving around so I knew that wasn't what I was hearing.  I got out of bed to observe a Lansing Police car at Barton and Willow and 2 Eaton Co. cars cruising up and down Willow and Thomas L Parkway. This continued for an hour with the police cars communicating with their quick bursts of their sirens and then the sound of helicopters above.  When we woke at 6:30 the car was still at the corner and the news said the area from Saginaw, Waverly, Willow and Maycroft was about to be searched for a fugitive who had shot an Eaton Co. officer behind the West Town  Plaza around 3:00.   I went out to get the paper and saw cars blocking the road at the light and up the hill, so I knew to take the boys to school I would have to take Waverly road and not be able to get back to the house.  When we got near the intersection of Saginaw and Waverly we saw the SWAT teams with guns drawn going from building to building down Waverly and eventually they went past our house and through our back yard.  I was teaching at Windemere View and they were also in a code red lockdown.  They never found the shooter and ended up calling off the search at 10:30pm.  But the trauma of living in a South Central surreal world makes me more insightful of the fear some live their everyday lives under.  The SWAT team left our gate open and after Wiley twice was outside in the front did we find this.  Spring did arrive despite the reality that it is still below 40 degrees this week.    Jane went to Curves and found she had to go through Mar Mor to get back home during the lockdown. 

Future shock revisited

     The 100th weekend assignment is to tell 5 things about the 5 years ahead.  Jon will be a graduate of Valparaiso Law school working in some big city firm. Luke will be a male nurse after getting his 2 year degree from LCC and enrolling at MSU.  Phillip will be pitching for MSU on a full ride scholarship.  Jane will be working full time for Kohls customer service and I will be teaching 3rd grade at a charter school.  Simon will be doing bookkeeping for the Radison hotels.  Hopefully the cats and dogs will be gone or comfortably numb.   Abortion will be illegal and the Muslims will have basically destroyed Muhammad and his Islamic teachings. GM is a subsidiary of Toyota and all cars are hydrogen hybrids.  Rock and Roll never forgets and all the best of the 60's plays on radio and television.  January was one of our warmest in history and February has been winter but not extremely cold or snowy.  Phillip and I are done with our therapy and back to normal or even better.   This journal will be long since forgotten or floating in cyber space of obscurity.   Barak Obama will be president in a flourishing economy driven by third world awakening of freedom.

Another Year 2006

On December 28th we went for Simon's sentencing in Mason at 1:30 as the rain started pouring and soon thundered.  But the weather for us was a good omen as Judge Boyd gave him a 1 year probation $700 costs,  for jostling with an officer and domestic assault, a far distance from the kidnapping charge.  We did have to wait at the court until 4:30 to complete the paper work but it was the fairest treatment we could have expected.  All 6 of us have lived peacefully in our little house watching the bowl games despite the lack of sunshine the past week.  I also turned in the 2003 Impala and we got a 2006 Malibu LT to replace it. Jane picked out the green-silver color and hopefully it will take us through our 3 years lease time.  We have much to be thankful for as faith in the Lord is always the best solution to guidance in our lives. 

CHRISTMAS 2005

  On December 1st Simon was released from jail on lesser charges and on the 28th we will find out his final sentencing.  Dippy is now an indoor cat and has only went outside twice.  We went to mass at Holy Cross at 10:00 this morning as a complete family.  I proctored at Cooley last weekend and subbed in Lansing last week.  We had dinner at Ybarra's yesterday and Mark had presents for everyone.  December the temperature was below freezing the first 3 weeks and only reached 40 the last 2 days.  Jon got a full ride offer from Valparaiso Law School and is seriously  considering accepting it.  Phillip and I have both been going to physical therapy with my shoulder  now much better and his elbow has more bend but  his MRI shows he may require surgery.

ADVENT

   I now am in Lansing's substitute system and have been busy since I finally got an email through to Queen Hildenbrand and she fixed her error.  Simon has been in the Ingham Co. Jail since October 23rd another chapter in his journey to find himself or make us old.  It is a grey day warm but rainy as opposed to the snow on Thanksgiving.  Advent began yesterday as we face a different Chistmastime with Simon perhaps spending  time in Mason with only a 20 minute visit a week.  It would be easy to be depressed about this and I know he is but bad choices he has made hurts us all.  Advent is a time of waiting looking to the light of the world the CHRIST.      We all need to reflect on what life means and our purpose in the plan of this world in regards to an afterlife.  Our hope of peace on earth and goodwill toward men will have added importance this year.  Phillip will have to see a specialist about his elbow and I will begin physical therapy this week for my shoulder.  Dippy showed up last Tuesday all cut up and beaten and I have been nursing her back to health and she does look and sound a 1000% better.  But it has created a territorial problem with the other cats and Melon is now crapping in the hallway.  This week will give some answers to our questions and will usher in December.