Its not that bad.

Another topic that's been hot and heavy lately is Gay Marriage. Some are opposed to the thought of same sex marriage. And some people aren't. We need to consider divorce, abortions, adoptions, and the family unit. And how this will affect the "normal" family. And what, if anything, will happen to your family and your values. 

The divorce rate in America according to www.divorcerate.org/, for 2012 puts America at number 6 at 3.4 per 1,000 people. Or roughly 50% of first marriages fail, and 67% of second marriages fail. Hell, I've been married and divorced twice. I'm afraid of any kind of commitment to anyone now. What if I make another mistake, what if the woman I marry decides she needs to spend all the money we have, or if we have children can we raise them together? Everyone should know that marriage is basically a transaction. It is a business, a bond, a contract between two people understanding that they will be tied together for life,or a number of years to help and stand beside each other. What you do affects the other person, and what they do affects you. I didn't learn this, but I understand it now.

"Divorce rates all across the globe have been rising rapidly owing to certain problems like incompatibility between couples, infidelity issues, lack of trust and understanding, and financial pressures. It is sad to observe that the rising divorce rates across the world and see marriages breaking." (divorcerate.org) 

The two prominent arguments against gay marriage are: a gay family will only have two mommy's or two daddy's and that will be detrimental to a child. Or that marriage is a holy union between a man and a woman in the eyes of the Lord. When you get married in a church it is, "in the eyes of the Lord and congregation." When you marry elsewhere it is in the eyes of the state. It is a ceremony to let people know that you have decided you are done looking, dating, and searching for that someone to spend the rest of your life with. 

The union, or marriage can be done by someone who can officiate you legally. Or, in California you can have someone pay a small fee to be a Deputy commissioner of marriage for one day. The license you pay for is signed and sent to a state department to be put away in a file. You keep you at your house, in your wallet or purse, or you can frame the paper. It is used to let people know that legally you are together. 

Divorcing is a dissolution of the contract of marriage. It's another piece of paper that voids the marriage contract. That's right, another contract to end a contract. It goes pretty easily if the two parties decide on who gets what. Money, children, financial burdens(debt), usually gets in the way of being easy. Money is one thing, you can make more, financial burdens leave one person drowning in debt for months or years, and children get a new look at how they see the parental units. 

My parents divorced when I was one. My mom remarried, they got divorced. She remarried and they have been together for close to 20 years now. I witness first hand what  it was like to be that child. My brother and I looked to her for what we needed. She worked, helped with homework, provided everything we needed, and made time for us. Having to dedicate time to another human being dependent on you is a hard thing. People work, have relationships, need alone time, and sometimes need rest. Some single people can barely make time for family and friends. A single parent without the help of the other parent is pushed to the brink of going insane in a matter of minutes. My brother and I tried with our mom!

What about those children, the ones left behind by one parent, or even both parents. The marriage has dissolved into a bickering, childish display of," look who I am screwing" or "look how well I am doing without you." The child, or children, who at one point had both parents constantly with them, sees this and will think this is normal and when they do have a relationship it falls to pieces as well. But, what if the child grew up with two people who loved them and spent time with them? Had dinners with them, helped with homework, was there for the big moments in life? What if? There are too many scenario's to play out. We have children with horrible parents or living in a shelter who need a loving family.

I'm not saying single parents can't be the only parent, its been going on for years. But having two parents does relieve some of the pressure. I don't have kids, I can only say what I have seen and heard from relatives and family. My upbringing is one thing, I was on the child side. Most single parents are the hardest working people I know. 

Abortions are brought up in just about every argument these days, so I might as well bring this up.  If you haven't read Freakonomics you should, www.freakonomics.com/. The author uses math and statistic to look into problems of the USA. Abortions and crime statistics are one of the area's they looked into. I'm not too concerned about the crime statistics. I am about the abortions." Nearly half of all pregnancies among American women are unintended, and 4 in 10 of these are terminated by abortion. 22% of all pregnancies end in abortion."(www.womenscenter.com). I will not tell a woman what she should do with her body. And I did not look into what the reason for the abortion was. 

22% is a large number, if you consider the female population of America is almost 160 million. That is 35 million women getting an abortion! But what if half of that 35 million didn't go through with it, and gay marriage was legal? The children who are unwanted now have a chance to be adopted and put into a home with a couple who are in love and married. The child would have an advantage of having two people who cared and were honestly worried about them. We would still have a problem with bedtime, teeth brushing, and room cleanliness. 

Should gay and lesbian couples be allowed to marry? I don't have to make that decision. I have plenty of gay and lesbian friends, and would honestly like to see them able to get the "benefits" of being married. The ability to use the better insurance plans, the tax advantages, the ability to make a health decision for the other person. I know they would be good parents. They would have a set of values that they teach their children. And hopefully those values are honest and good values. To treat people with respect, dignity and honesty. 

If I have a family and I don't approve of gays and lesbians and what they do, I need my family to understand why. If it is because of religious views, then by all means I will teach it. But, I have to be mindful, if I teach hate and disgust it will be learned and passed on. It might not stick with them forever, but they will dispense your hate and disgust until they form a view of the world around them and what they will or will not accept. 

Gays and lesbians are not threatening families, they want to have families. They want to be able to have rings and ceremonies. They want to work all day, come home, make dinner and bitch about the neighbors yard and why the grass is so high. They want to be able to call the insurance company and ask to add another person, and then pass out from the price hike. They want to be able to look at the bank statement and fight over who spent too much money on a shopping trip. Everything that goes on in a "normal" marriage.

That's about all I want to write about this. I tried to think of reasons why they should not marry, but other than church and religion. I got nothing. If you feel the need to message me or send me hate mail, thank you. I will read it and hopefully try better next time.

GO!

Watch this Bill Burr video

New House

Hello all! Sorry for the delay in blogging. I've been working, going to school and buying my first house. It seems to take up most of my time doing those three things. I did enjoy the feeling of signing my name numerous times though. Now to get the feeling of bills down. And not just regular bills. I'm talking about the bills that come out of nowhere. Things you have to have. Trash service, lawn care and maintenance, house maintenance, updates and upgrades to my new-old domicile.

So the house thing. I've calculated it up before, how many times I've moved in my life, and it wasn't pretty. About half of those times were when I was younger and my parents took all of the financial burden. But the past few years it was on me. I did live with roommates for a hot minute. And I did live in Iraq for a while. Besides those times, I've moved about a dozen or so times on my own. Moving sucks. A new place is great, it holds new possibilities and new roads to wander down. But when you rent, you are paying another person's mortgage, you throw away cash on down payments, and you can't make it your own. You can paint the walls, but when you leave they need to be back to the original color. You can't extend or expand on the house, the flooring stays the same, and the appliances are usually hideous. You take it as is, for a lack of better wording.

The house I bought is a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, a 2 car garage with a huge yard and bad ass back patio. I have a fireplace in the living room and one on my back porch. What?? Yes on my back porch. I'm close to a lake, I've got places to put things, and finally a place to stay at for years and years without having to worry about when I will have to move or where I will move to.

The downside to this.... I had a termite infestation. The living room had this ugly dark brown, wood paneling around the walls. I decided to take it off, and that's when I found the trails. There was drywall up, but the termites had eaten most of the paper from the drywall. They tunnel through concrete and then the gypsum to get to the wood, paper or whatever they want to eat. My heart sank to the bottom of my gut! I did some research and found it usually cost around 10 grand to have this stuff repaired. That was the average people had paid to remove insulation, drywall and framing. Luckily I found a good contractor who is taking care of all the little bastards destruction for a fraction of the "average". Plus I am doing some work as well. Might as well get my "diy" going. I'm hoping in 30 years this place looks awesome. I'll be 63 by that time and will need a place to just come home, relax, and then complain about the world to my neighbors.

There are other downsides, like the amount of bills I pay, grocery shopping, cleaning....etc. But at the end of the day, its mine and I can do what I want to it. If I want to paint the whole house blue and yellow, I can. But, I worry about resale value. So I am making an effort into what should go in the house, and what I would like in a home. I have to feel comfortable and know that at any time someone can come over and feel comfortable. They don't need to live there, just come by and say, "yes, I can crash on this couch and not have to be drunk to do so." What makes you comfy and what makes me comfy may be totally different, but that is okay.

So far I have decided that my living room will have hardwood flooring, a new ceiling fan, a pass through to the kitchen, and a new fan. Colors...... I haven't decided yet. The kitchen, bathrooms, and closets will all have makeovers. The bedrooms will get some new carpet and paint. That's about it for the inside. I plan on adding a privacy fence, metal roof, some landscaping, and maybe 4 goats. Nah, probably not goats, maybe a dog.

GO!

Being a Veteran....

I usually read the news at work, during my breaks, at lunch or during a lull in my workload. Today I was reading a Yahoo News report on the NRA press conference. I know it was dumb of me to read anything from yahoo, but I like to read the comments. As i finished the article and moved on to the comments I was ready for the idiotic responses by numerous people. Just like the comments from the presidential election, these were less idiotic.

I did come across quite a few people who said there should be an armed guard or two at the schools. And some who were against it. I then read from a commenter that they didn't think a Veteran should be allowed around children because of PTSD and the soldier going crazy. Someone even likened a veteran doing security at a school to having Rambo around children.

It got worse as I read on. There were people who assumed all soldiers are prone to kill because of being deployed. They assumed that because soldiers have had to fight for their lives that they were somehow unstable and mentally incapable of protecting a child.

I'm for gun owners rights, I'm for having an AR-15 if you want. I don't know of anyone who has a "military grade" weapon. But in the past few years I have heard of quite a few people hunting with an AR type of gun. Does that make them crazy? Or does it make them prone to go and shoot up a public place? I don't think so, but that is just my opinion.

But back to my thoughts on being a Veteran. Prejudice towards veterans, the civilian's who swore to an oath to protect the Constitution from all enemy's foreign and domestic; who knew what would happen if sent to Iraq or Afghanistan; who train on a weekly, if not daily basis for numerous types of scenario's, are all prone to going "crazy". I was upset, just disgusted with those Americans who have lumped so many into that stereotype.

Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines.... almost every single member of the Armed forces joined up to better themselves, to make a difference, to challenge themselves. They wore a uniform that only few get to wear. The ones who served many years ago and were drafted in wars they did not believe in, served the USA.

I didn't love every minute I was in the Army, I didn't enjoy doing all of the training. I did love the guys I stood by in formation. I did enjoy working on a helicopter. I still to this day feel like I made a difference in someones life. I may not have been the epitome of the "GI Joe" type of soldier, but I did take the step and served.

To say that veterans can't protect children, or that they shouldn't be allowed around schools....... Maybe then those people who have those thoughts should look around at the neighbor's they have. In almost every community there is a veteran. Someone who has served with honor and dignity. They may have done it for college money, for a chance to do something bigger than themselves, they may have felt they needed to change, they may have done it because it was either the military or jail. Whatever the reason, not every veteran was drenched in blood, reborn in a gunfight or mortar attack, or so traumatized from deploying that they should now be deemed insane.

At any point the military may have up to 5% of the population of the US. The Marines may fight with the Sailors, the soldiers may yell at the Airmen... but we all have each other to care for and take care of in battle. There is more compassion in a Veteran than there is in anyone of these hateful people.

Many of these veteran's that the NRA proposed could volunteer to secure the schools have children and want them to be safe. Don't count them out, don't assume to know anything about the military unless you served.

I am just one veteran, there are many more just like me. I do not have PTSD, I do feel I can give back to my community and would be more than happy to stand guard at a school so the children felt safe and the parents knew someone with better training than the average rent-a-cop, was there to protect them.

We don't have to allow guns inside the halls, or in the classrooms. We don't even have to have them at the schools. But having a Veteran at a school., who has training, and a pride in them to do what is right..... that could deter a person from another tragedy.

Here is the link......... my rant just kind of went on about being a veteran.

http://news.yahoo.com/nra-calls-armed-police-officer-every-school-162851713.html

And a transcript of the NRA press conference. Some of it I agree with, but not all.

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/National_Rifle_Association_press_conference_transcript.html

School, the Government, and some rocks!

Its Hump Day. Apparently some sort of camel, or a hill will be prevalent today. I'm not sure yet. It is Wednesday and I am going on 2 plus weeks of no work to do. So I have plenty of time to blog, read lots of articles on news websites, and my college books.

On Monday I started my 3 set of 8 week courses at Central Texas College. I'm taking physical geology, government 2, and statistics. Statistics start in another week or so, its online so it will all be on my own time. Government seems to be fun, geology alot funner. I'm just hoping I can get into a school to complete a full on bachelors degree.

I am not well versed in politics, as most Americans today are not. We see the candidates on television damning each other. We hear the ads on the radio whispering to us to vote correctly. We hear the CNN's, the FOX news, and the MSNBC's tell us who is right and wrong. The "experts" give us information/opinions on what should and should not be done for the candidates to win the Presidency. We are charged as normal citizens to pick and choose the candidate we feel most likely to represent us. But its the electoral college that does that. We just go in and do a vote just in case. I guess in a way the popular vote counts by telling our congressman and women, and senators who the people like. I'm still unclear as to how the whole process works.

And that is why I am taking government 2! Government 1 was a great class. I learned that no matter how many times I would read something, none of it made any sense at all. People explain things to me, and the next day I completely forget. I have retained some information though. I know to win a congressional seat you need to spend in excess of 1 million dollars. To become a senator you need to spend about 2 million. The spending does not mean you will win, it just means you have a good chance of winning.

Either way, the government should focus on what the people want, working in the confines of the Constitution, and they should realize they are working for the public(not lobbyists).

Geology- By far the most exciting class for me(at least I hope it is). Rocks, minerals, dirt, sand, erosion, human interaction, planetary buildup......... Environmental studies! On paper and most of the book is boring as hell. The pictures in the book look really neat. I need to know and understand the processes of the Earth. I actually enjoy knowing how the Earth works. Not the world, the Earth. The world is a complicated mess or governments, terrorists, idealists, and people who just want to live with limited interaction from crazy people.

The geology class is full of people. I think the teacher said 39?? It is a required class, but damn! The building barely has A/C now, and all those people in one room make it even hotter. Most of them are mouth breathers- this equates to 5 to 10 degrees added to the room temperature over 30 minutes. Add in the Texas heat making people sweat and you have the most horrendous, foul smelling room. I tolerate it by thinking of South Korea or Iraq "honey-suckers". Its a good class though, and the teacher is pretty rad.

In conclusion, government is important. The Earth is cool. And I'm bored at work yet again.

Everyone should look at Ron Paul, or Gary Johnson(not sure if he is still running). I don't agree with all of Ron Paul's ideas or Johnson either. But I do know Obama is not helping America by giving handouts. Romney is unsure of himself. And this Ryan fellow that Romney picked may beat up Romney at some point. At some point the best we can do is pick a President via shortest straw.

Why did I do that? And new ideas to change the worlds mind about .......

As the 5 of you who read my amazing blog know I have started doing Insanity. Yes the infomercial workout sensation that beckons you to lose weight by spending a nice, crisp 100 dollar bill. Why did I choose this one? What am I doing about the loss of 100 dollars? And does it work?

First off I chose this one because the "host" or "trainer" Shaun T. looked and sounded as though he wanted me to choose this one. And my brother and I chose it together. You don't need oodles of gear like P90X. No gym membership. And once you start, the moves are easy to remember.

I don't look at me losing the money. I look at it as losing weight. Having to catch my breath from walking to and from places, just isn't cool. Having to see myself in the mirror each day, huge gut and all, was not appealing to me. And I felt horrible.

Insanity totally works, but you have to put in the effort. Of course anything will work if you put in the effort. I just like Insanity because Shaun T. makes me feel like he is right there with me. Of course I know he isn't.

I'm slowly losing the weight, gaining self confidence, and rethinking my habits. Namely drinking and smoking. I like a cold beer and jager-bombs. I like to smoke. I really like to smoke alot. But neither one of those things actually make me feel better. The drinking does to a point, but the I pass out and wake up with a hangover and I feel like crap. I smell bad, because I start sweating out the barley, hops, and whatever else they decided to put in the beer mixture.

Smoking only causes me to smell even better!(sarcastically said while inhaling on a camel blue) Its a cool look for me... If I was Don Draper. But, I am no Don Draper. I cannot sale ketchup popsicles to a woman with white gloves. And I damn sure can't have a scotch at work. Plus, I look horrible in suits.

I'm really bored at work so I decided to write this.

As I'm looking back on what I have written, its almost as if I am trying to convince myself that I need to stop these things. Will I? One day I am hoping to stop smoking. I think I will keep the beer just in case. Maybe no more jager-bombs for a bit.

Why is my butt so big? Because I keep my beaver tail hidden!

As I grow older I realize that I am going to gain weight. I realized that my hearing will begin to diminish. I know that at some point I will become even more grumpy than I have been in my younger years. So when did my butt get so big? When did my gut get so big?

I blame Bud Light/Jager bombs, Dr. Pepper/Big Red, Cheeseburgers and a lazy attitude. I said goodbye to the Army lifestyle around October of 2010. I was in Iraq. I had made up my mind to end my career as a military man and move on to something "better". I gained weight, I lost all motivation for what I did, and I quit giving my all.

Fast forward a few months and I gave my farewell speech to Alpha Company in Kansas. That was a sad day. Not a "boo hoo, I'm gonna need a tissue", but more of "am I really doing this?' The next few weeks were a blur. I left Kansas, moved back to Temple, Texas and started reintegrating myself into society as a civilian. I drank everyday, I slept late, I ate way too much.

When I left for Arizona I stopped drinking mostly, but I kept eating. Delicious mexican food, amazing cheeseburgers, Whataburger. I drank only the finest 44 ounce Dr. Peppers and ate the fattiest snack foods. I was physically bulking up for a winter sleep that I would never partake in, partly because I am not a bear.

When I came back to Temple, I moved in with my little brother. My room was upstairs, and for about 14 steps, they seemed to be the longest steps ever. I would be out of breathe going up and down them. I still ate horribly, I drank alot and I kept up my liquid diet of Dr. Peppers and Big Reds.

The day my brother, his fiance and I moved into our newly rented house I noticed a large mirror in the bathroom that was now mine. The first shower I took, I scared the crap out of myself. Who was this large, overweight, beast of a man. I wasn't even a beast, I was a pudgy, dumpy, slouching mess. I won't say I was disgusted, but i was embarrassed.

Last week I ordered Insanity. I weighed myself too, 245 lbs. WHAT THE HELL! I have never been this big! I have let myself go, way beyond anything I have ever known. I'm hoping this video will get me motivated enough to lose some weight. Thanks go to my brother for doing it with me, otherwise I would probably stop at the first sign of pain.

The weight gain bothered me, frustrated me, and got me depressed at some points. I would lose my breathe while walking(smoking doesn't help either). I could barely play frisbee golf without getting sore. I have clothes that I purchased while in the Army that I can't even wear anymore.

When I would tell myself that it didn't bother me that people made fun of my beer gut, or my "fat ass, or my "chubby ness" I lied. I hated that person, I hated myself(for that brief moment). I would drown myself in beer or food. I was unhealthy in all the wrong ways.

My goal isn't to lose weight so that I can run a marathon, hike a mountain, or battle androids. I am losing weight because I am tired of my stomach hiding my feet from me. I am tired of going out of breathe from tying my shoes, walking to my truck, or going up a flight of stairs. I am not that big, but enough is enough. I want my old clothes back, I want my guitar to sit in front of my when I play, not on my side.

My motivation is that big mirror in the bathroom, My brother for helping me, and the thought of my ass crack showing. No one wants to see my ass crack when I bend over to tie my shoe. I'm not going to live forever, but I don't want to shorten my life any more than I already have.

GOAL 1 - lose 25 pounds in 2 months.
GOAL 2 - Quit Smoking
GOAL 3 -  lose 45 pounds in a year

Catch up to the past few months!

HEY! Its been way too long since I last posted. I've been slacking.... or I've been at school or work. But that is no excuse for leaving my 5 followers out of the loop! HAHA....

Okay, so as most of you know I have already gone to and finished guitar building school in Arizona. It was a good experience, and now I realize that I would love to do that full time, but it just doesn't pay the bills. I still owe the school some money, so I don't have my guitars yet, but I will have them one day.

I moved back to Texas and am now working for a government contractor, and going to school at CTC for Environmental Science. I'm hoping to finish up with an Environmental Engineering degree at some point.

Work is work. Boring sometimes, fun sometimes, but its always work and its a paycheck that helps with things like rent and food and gas. If you are in the military now and contemplating on getting out or staying in. STAY IN! It sucks while you are there sometimes, going away for a week, a month or a year. However, in the end it is worth all that to retire and get a little extra each month. Plus you forge relationships with people, when you leave them they seem to slowly diminish. On part of both parties, but still. It sucks.

School is awesome. I loved every minute of guitar building school. Learning the ins and outs of the build process and making a tree stump into a playable instrument. I also found out that I love to build amplifiers. It has to do something with the electricity or what have you.

Environmental Science classes have not started yet, but I do enjoy my CTC classes. So far, History I, GOVT I, Speech, and Comp 2 are complete. I'm signed up for more classes that start in a week or so and I am so ready to get going. Although I have to relearn algebra, its going good.

I am trying to work out my schedule to be able to spend more time with friends, take care of other projects and get into building guitars once again. Its a long tedious process, but my education comes first. Followed by my job, and then beer, and then finally sleep. So in between all of those things I am making time. I'm thinking I may give up beer to allow more time to sleep, or see friends.

Hope everyone is good. I have not bought a penguin yet.

Follow your heart.... but make sure you don't take it all the way out, you need it to live.