OldDuane

Ahhh, explitive, sad....sadness almost overwhelming...

As we age, the years accumulate and inevitably things change.  We ache and we groan.  We loose our teeth and our hair.  And we loose family members, pets and friends.  These losses occur with increasing regularity and sometimes take us by surprise.
Such it was with me an hour ago as I learned of the passing of Sir Terry Pratchett.  Sir Terry passed quietly in bed at his English home....with his cat sleeping next to him and his wife and daughter surrounding him.  A rare form of early onset alzheimers took him and the official cause will be the same as the one that grabbed my mother a decade  ago..."dementia"  

His characters and stories will live on for generations and when I finish crying today I shall endevour to reread them all.  Actually I shall have to listen to them on the computer because one of the other losses in my life as been most of my vision...listening is much easier for this old man.

So the "Discworld" will live on for many millions of its followers.  Sam Vimes, Rincewind, Esme Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg, Greebo, Lady Sybil, Havelock Vetinari, Cut Me Own Throat Dibbler, Gaspode the talking dog, Captain Carrot, the Burser, Agnes Nitt, Tiffany Aching, Angua, the Igors, and even Death will continue to get into the hearts of so many readers over the years to come..and they will live on in the hearts and minds of those that already know them....but Sir Terry...they will miss you..as will all of us, including one old man in Arizona.

Rest In Peace My Friend...Rest In Peace.

Ah, yes....Saturday early afternoon.  Sitting here replete with just a few crumbs from my lunchtime quesadillas, a cup of coffee and a beautiful day outside here in Arizona.  Life can be very good for this old man.

Thinking of how blessed I am.  In many coastal areas of the U.S. I would be looked at with scorn.  Living in a double-wide mobile home, no car (because of health issues) no television (because of sanity issues), don't get out much unless it's to medical appointments or church.  Sometimes a real treat is when a friend will come by and we go to the McDonalds about 3 miles from my house.  But for I would imagine 90% of the world, this would be incredibly luxurious and almost heaven.  

In this day and age, with evil running rampant. Politics and religion tearing apart the fabric of all societies.  I shake my head and wonder at the lack of thinking in the world. 

My theory for the last few decades has been that 90% of all the citizens in the world, all the billions upon billions of people that really have no say over how they live.  Well I believe that given the opportunity they just want to live quiet lives.  To live without the yelling and hate that is thrust upon all of us.  To work hard, have a wife and children, to raise those children to adulthood and instill in the children a decent morality and give them a life that is maybe a step above what the parents achieved.  To maybe live in a pre-manufactured double wide like mine, 1,444 square feet with electricity, running water and a small yard.  Look at the overcrowding and squalor in so many parts of the world.  The suffering of the homeless and destitute.  
I've been homeless, I been very well off.  And worked my ass off (figuratively speaking) so have seen both sides of it.

Why now, as a senior citizen (I prefer the term "old fart asshole"), why now should I have to look around and see  the crap that goes on.  Invasions, beheading, starvation, taxes, sharia law, a ruling class that shits and spits on everyone else, a media that stigmatizes all that the rulers tell them to.  Why should our children be told lies about our history and told to be ashamed of our country?  Why should the word "illegal" be ignored? Why should I be afraid to criticize the rulers in public?  Why do people feel free to do morally repugnant acts and then criticize those that would object?

Damn, look at this....a musing upon a glorious day and a wish that all could have the blessings I have been given....and this has turned into a rant against the world as it is now.  I realize that many on DA are very anti-Christian, while I try to be a devout believer in GOD... so we will have our differences of opinions to put it mildly.  But no matter your beliefs, isn't what we see everyday enough to make us scream in frustration and try for a change to a positive and just world for all to share?

Sheesh, I wonder if any of this made sense....nah, don't care, got it off my chest.  Thanks for putting up with me and my rants.

May God Bless You All

Have been reading some of the profile pages of DA members....
There are some really cool people out here......there are some really talented people out here.... there are some very political people out here, and way out here....
Someday, and that day may never come, I may ask a small favor......oops, wrong place.
Someday would be great to talk to many of you...
I guess some of the conversations/debates get pretty heated and while they are fun to read (sometimes) they can get pretty uncomfortable.  Kind of listening to 12 year olds in tantrums.
Oh well...
In case anyone would be interested in my opinions (I pray that no one is that bored) I'll kind of go over them now.
Politically..........I am now, what I never used to be...we all start out with ideals and of course supreme knowledge...ie; democrats./left wingers...  I was never a demo but held many of those idealistic beliefs during my younger years.  Gradually became a Republican, and grew more and more conservative...Realized that the Washington Republicans and actually anyone in the Republican party was really a democrat with some morals.   dropped out of the party and while non-aligned at the present time lean far to the right of the spectrum.
I agree with the Tea Party, which despite all you have heard, is really about shrinking the government and lowering taxes.  For some an accurate label call me a Libertarian-Monarchist.. Yeah, the US has never had a Monarchy, who cares...real world time, there is always a strongman/warlord/dictator/king/queen in power...why not make it a monarchy and let them strut around to give us some national pride...just limit what they can do...
Ethically............I am a born again Christian and take my faith very seriously....I've been many bad things in my life....recovering druggie, alcoholic, cigarette smoker (oh no), ran around on my spouse, was a terrible father, earned a living by hurting other people....I honestly don't know how many times I've been incarcerated.....God reached out and hit me upside the head with a two by four sever times...really really hard...got my attention and now I follow my Jesus wherever he shall lead me....happier and more content with my life than I ever was before.
Physically..........I have Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis, Severe Neuropothy, am nearly blind, and have survived mouth and throat cancer......Oh...and I'm overweight, but have lost 60+ pounds in the last year.
I could go on now, but realize I'm just putting this down for myself....so will continue it later.... so to anyone that has read this...Sorry to waste your time, and thank you...may God Bless.

A year.....An entire year just came and went....okay, it'll went here in about 8 hours.

Not sure about this year, lost some dear people, gained some others....have grandsons in their mid 20s all of a sudden.  How'd that happen?  Stopping to look at it, I'm still a kid inside...sort of.  

People ask me how old I am, I tell them "My body feels about 120, and I act like I'm 12...go ahead and pick a number somewhere in between and betwixt...close enough"

So on a grey and somewhat snowy day....

Happy New Year to All.....
and
May God Bless you All this coming year.

Oh look, it's a journal entry.....
I have all the creative talent of a dead rock.  Told a lie there....used to draw some great fantasy maps, but that was twenty or thirty years ago and on paper.  
Have taken some decent for a rank amateur photographs...almost all of my cats and dogs... so just to have something on my "art" page  will put one or two up in the next year or so.

There are so many incredibly talented people here, it's a great privilege to be able to add some of my favorite artworks to my favorites collection.   

Be warned tho', I am OCD and if I allow myself my favorites collection will soon mean that I need to build a new wing onto this page......

Be well everyone.


oops,  and prosper