Summertime and the living is easy... or could be...

You haven't noticed but I have been having trouble getting going, my getup was gone... leaving me behind. But for no reason I have located, I was going to move a part to the gunsmith working on my favorite target rifle. I called him after nine, making sure I would be welcome with the part, dressed, shaved and put my teeth in... got on the Trusty Triumph and was off. I had made sure to take my camera (took no pictures) and was armed (anyone on a motorcycle is already dangerous). I had the part and paperwork for it.

I got lost, Kent is the Post Office of the address, but Covington, Washington is where I needed to be. I got refueled and found a map and decided that I could get there, I had a map now. Sure enough, I found a fine twisty road to get farther East then turned down the correct road, and turned into the drive way of his home/shop. He has such a lovely lot of firearms, being worked on. He had another Stevens with the need for an extractor like the one I had purchased, I gave him the number of the supplier that I bought it from so he could get another one (here in Washington State!). One complaint he had, wasn't the amount of work he was going through, it was the amount of guidance from goodness gracious government (most of which sat unopened on a stack out of the way). I did not suggest it was good of the government to supply fire starter (if they made it on real soft and flimsy stuff - he might not need to buy toilet paper). But I know, he has too much work to stop and read more regulations that he might not understand - or won't improve his craftsmanship. He is proudly Italian, now American, I would (if I were the NRA or supporter of more guns for citizens in America) reach out to the gunsmiths in Europe, if they were willing to set up shop here. There is a need. Now, if you are a smart young person, wanting to be in business for yourself - you should look into this fine profession, we aren't giving up our guns, and they do wear out and break. If you are thinking of the hot sexy, and all the fun shooting full auto and piles of cash that one sees on television - go become a lawyer or a banker.

Back on the motorcycle, and down the road to Highway 18, Federal Way, Dash Point Road (lovely twisty turns and views) Tacoma, the Main Library of TPL, and then back home. To find what I had forgotten in my excitement of the leaving. I forgot any key to open the Caravan, or the house... I am so old. But I was at the correct house, and looked it over carefully, searched all my pockets - AGAIN. Still no key, no hurry, so I don't break open the front door, there were two ways in that my wife (the Home Fires Security Matron) hadn't secured. The old Earl rose to the challenge and I was in... I may be absent minded, fat and faint of heart - but I had a dark past almost professionally going to Hell. I don't recommend it, except you seek the light when it gets really dark. Better to live in the Light... still, I could have waited for the Security Matron and slept away the afternoon, or gotten back on the Trusty Triumph and tooled up Mount Rainier - looking so cool and solid in the Sunshine.

Old dog no tricks...

Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota, points out some interesting facts concerning the last Presidential election:

~Number of States won by: Obama: 19 McCain: 29
~Square miles of land won by: Obama: 580,000 McCain: 2,427,000
~Population of counties won by: Obama: 127 million McCain: 143 million
~Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by: Obama: 13.2 McCain: 2.1

Professor Olson adds: "In aggregate, the map of the territory McCain won was mostly the land owned by the taxpaying citizens of the country. Obama territory mostly encompassed those citizens living in low income tenements and living off various forms of government welfare..."

I don't know that the above is at all true. It just feels so wrong. But I am here to write about why the economy isn't working and I am not working either...

I play some computer games, the only one online I am slugging through is CastleVille now. The game designers have the typical stupidity of the government - and being a citizen of America and a player on CastleVille I discovered that I am almost as stupid as they are.

The government has decided that they must make lots of money, to spend lots of money, so they have a greater measure of success. The game designers decided that they must make lots of money, to spend lots of money so they have a great measure of their success.

Earl doesn't have a job, doesn't want to owe for a new business and is often preparing to leave the mortal realm for the Heavenly one - so I am cutting bills, paying off loans and trying to smile at more people - measuring my success in reflecting goodness gracious and smiles that keep the dark away.

The government increases the pace and pages of regulations, without ceasing. Prayers without ceasing would be more effective, but they don't really believe in God.  The game designers want the players to play faster, offer buy ins (with real dollars) to gain glory and success. They also sell ads and ad space and design their game to cause more clicks, to reduce screen, add ads, and impress ad space buyers. 

I am tired. Suddenly realizing this is why business is slow, business is tired. No one in government is cutting regulations, REALLY CUTTING! No one in government is reducing the intrusion into the daily lives of the citizens! WHY! If I don't know what my taxes will be for the next ten years, why work, why plan, why struggle if the government has become the ugly cancer on my life? 

The game designers have made me tired, too. There are too many things to rid the game of, monster and ugly out number the beautiful, as fewer gamers participate daily the remaining gamers must decide to drop out, prioritize or just lull. Nice thing about the game - it is not a real life. Turn it off and feel just a little guilty for abandoning my fellow gamers. I have done it twice, on two other games, and the games have never ended up on my dream schedule.

So the government and the game designers have beaten business and Earl into a passive watcher. Wanting to play harder, work more, remembering the glory days when HP could start in a garage, Jobs could get with friends and amaze each other, and I was fully employed really defending the America I loved, sure it was mythical but it hadn't gotten bent yet, we are close to broken now.

Slash and burn, clear the trees, gird them and start tilling the soil. IF the game designers or the goodness lost government  want to increase players and participants in the game, economy or life in general. CUT THE REGULATIONS, quit building challenges and barriers to moving into the future. The people and business are ready to grow.

On the whole 9/11 event --- the government was stunned that it was supposed to have stopped this type of attack. And then decided to pretend it could stop it for ever and invented more agencies and departments and obstacles to better relations to the world, the people and the idea of law. IF THE PRESIDENT HAD SAID we were going to be attacked tomorrow and every day there after, we might have had a better solution than the mess we seem to be mired on now.

There are people in the world that hate us for what we are, for what we pretend to be, and for what we will never become. Some of those people are very dangerous and willing to die for their mark on History or death of their fears and enemies. Get over it, build your life on solid values, not fears, base it on Love not lust, envy, and sloth...

The government and game designers will never ever have your best interests in mind.

 

 

 

Once upon a time, I had a great job...

The part I want to highlight was that after an operation or training exercise or a day of fun at the range, I would get to clean my weapon. It was that kind of job. Lots of uniforms and lots of weapons and ammunition. But when you got back to base, barracks, security - you started cleaning everything and accounting for all missing, in-operational and incomplete equipment. I could whip through a rifle and pistol, magazines, backpack, rucksack, radio, and stuff one hangs on all over. Oil, wipe it off, reassemble, do function check, and have someone inspect it and get it to bed. Tracks and trucks the same way, the tubes and tanks, and the helicopters and other aircraft had even longer recovery maintenance. No sleep until it was ready to go out again... what no sleep! Nope. Never know when the SHTF moment is going to strike.

I liked knowing that by the time my comrades in arms were ready for their own sleep or recovery time, they would be without a care. Then they would get off to home, rack, washing the laundry, writing or calling important people that they wanted to touch... but couldn't.

That clean up and preparing for the next operation or attack or recovery is never in those movies about what one has done during the day. It is boring, but needed for the next time. I am now out of that job, long out, and don't have to clean my rifle (don't call it a weapon, you might scare the neighbors) until I am ready. Of my position, I treat my tools better than I did when the government was providing the opportunities to use them, and I have only a shadow of the anti-gun goofs plotting to take all my weapons away. I am sure once they get the firearms they will be back for the knives and the bows, then the different chemical compounds. I just don't have enough years left to think it matters as much as they think. I will concern myself more over manners, values, smiles of folks and pleasing God Almighty. Still, I will clean my weapons, until the next time.

No I am not the President, but I am hiding my shooting...

kind of.

Normally, I am there with all the targets and talk and such. But today I just went, paid my money, waited for a spot, posted the target, and shot my forty rounds, only bringing back thirty-nine cases, and one was split.

I did enjoy the day, talking to the other shooters and admiring their stories, rifles and attitude. So maybe it was better than I can write about it, or I will just enjoy that day and hope yours was a great one, too. Even if it wasn't anything to write home (or on a blog about). The Blues should be playing now, my wife is out watering the garden and her flowers, I can go back to reading of lives lived in adventure - which is always a little bit more unsettling than talking about it later --- always trying to live in blest boredom. Amen.

No, I cannot blame the President, any of them...

A President presides, doesn't lead, doesn't rule, doesn't shoot, doesn't legislate, find work for me or better my condition. If you get the President back to what his job means, he doesn't have to be on television, on the internet, hiding his buddies from Congress. He just presides.

So I am responsible for the complete collapse of the housing market, fools betting on the economic numbers in many ways, electing representatives that don't understand high or low finance, supply and demand (too much BS and no one buys it), and the failure of the world beyond my computer cave.

Well, I guess I will go pay the bills, exercise, go to the range (forty rounds at 200 and 300 yards. Y'all have a great day!

Earl's Financial and Economic advice...

Take your gross income, put ten percent in the thankful for the bounty and the blessing, take ten percent and invest in your future (savings, land, stocks, tools, education), live on the remaining eighty percent - which will be attacked by the government for your own and their own good. Always, every payday.

Never borrow money: instead get another job, delay buying, grow up. Every dollar you spend on interest payments for the privilege of borrowing slow you down from success, if you are thinking you should be paying interest when you retire you have no business reading this post. If you think borrowing money for education will make you a faster success, eat lots of ice cream and potatoes and gravy -- when you are fat enough race a mile and see if you come in first.

So you want to buy a lottery ticket, some one has to win. I am lucky, the shredder is beside my desk, when I want to buy tickets I can just put the dollar into the shredder and save all that angst waiting for the winning number on my ticket. Seems my old tickets all got shredded. It does take a bit of time to get smarter.

Look at the average of the Congressmen and President and Judges - and they all spend money they don't have, for things they don't need, with that levy on your income that 'they' say is your fair share.... see? Hope the country has enough time to get smarter.

I have heard/read it again...

Have to stop the drug flow, have to stop the rape, have to stop the murders.... you all realize that you can't stop the rain, tornado, hurricane, earthquake, tiny little things yet unknown...

But I am very tired of the excuse that if we don't have a law and enforcement against it, everyone will become corrupted. NEVER HAS BEEN TRUE.

Remember prohibition? No alcohol, and some folks winked and made lots of money.

But mostly I am certain tired of being thought as big a fool as that drunk down the road, or as  misunderstood as the fool that thinks clouding his mind and body with stuff he doesn't understand now is going to make him something better than he was when he started to get 'wasted'.

I am going to mow my lawn.