Blog

A "blog" is a weblog -- basically a notebook online. It may contain the hidden thoughts of a person or it may just be drivel. It might include all his angry ideas -- or the "popcorn" opinions of a genius -- or the active meanderings of a typical person on a "moronic" kind of day. Or all of the above.

Garbage, or genius? Considered opinion, or random thought? And what's the difference to you the reader?

Does the blog entertain -- even just sometimes? Or is it always dull. If it IS dull to you --- stop reading it. If it sometimes hits a deeper strain -- keep at it, and hope for the best.

I like blogs like I like other people's "twitter" accounts -- sometimes raunchy, sometimes telling secrets, sometimes filling in the blanks or collecting the dots! I don't want to be on twitter myself, mind you; but I like peeking at the inside of someone I know just a little -- especially if they are active "tweeters."  

Pain, Learning, Growth

Have you ever asked yourself: "What have I learned today?" It's a difficult but important question. We can and should learn something every day -- without fail, without omission, without even consciously thinking about it.

Learning is what human beings do!  Sometimes that learning is incidental to something else -- sometimes it is essential. Today I had my students give an impromptu speech about their "opinion on public nudity, fashion, and dress codes in work/school situations!"  This is a relatively "light" topic but it is a key indicator into what generation each student identifies with. The opinion also comes from: career choice and profession, whether one has kids or not, whether one is in a relationship or not, what one's religious background consists of.

It's fascinating to see how many zealots and puritans we have in the South.  They make exceptions for Miley Cyrus (VMA Awards last night) but not for other people -- or for themselves.  

Shooting and Death

There was an "argument" in the Student Union at Savannah State University late last night -- resulted in the shooting and death of a student at the hands of another student, who has yet to be found.  Even though there were a number of people near the incident it appears the "shooter" may be hiding in the Campus Commons apartment complex on campus, in plain sight of everyone.

Perhaps the students nearby don't want to "give him up" to police? Perhaps the "shooter" has people terrified of what might happen to them if they reveal his location? For God's sake people -- give him up! A death by gunfire in a simple student argument is only a precursor of what could happen in the future. Don't let life on campus become like a Charles Bronson revenge movie!

Stock Market

Hopefully people did not "sell everything they had" during the recent downturn in the stock market, because if they did so, they lost a lot of money.  Market corrections must be endured and not be the cause of "panic selling."

Learn to be patient; learn to be smart; learn to be vigilant without being afraid -- too much.

Erika Coming

Next week Savannah is likely to get lots of rain from either Hurricane Erika or Tropical Storm Erika.
It is approaching Florida this weekend and then will make the turn left or right to the Gulf or along the Atlantic Florida coast. If it picks the Florida coast side we in Savannah will see tons of rain from it (rain just like the past three days only more constant) and/or hopefully no wind or tidal damage.

This is the time of year I don't really like -- the time everyone in Savannah worries about landfalling hurricanes.

The US Stock Market and China

There are lots of poor fools who think that China "owns" the US because it has bought a lot of US "paper" -- government bonds, T-Bills, and even property in the US. That does not mean we are in any way dependent on China -- except to pay our payout dates on bonds, and be good stewards of our own economic growth.  When the US market is so nervous it drops 2000 points over several weeks because China's economy is finally "slowing down" from its "artificial rate of growth" (Shanghai Composite, etc.) and is devaluing its own currency (to catch up with the "truth" of its own growth or lack thereof) then the US market is being run by thieves for fools!!!

Our markets are strong -- our workforce is working well -- our businesses are mixed: some are working brilliantly (Apple, Tesla, Pixar, Chevron, etc. etc. etc.) and some are just working very well (Google, Johnson and Johnson, Exxon, etc. etc. etc.) ---- but, and this is a big but, none of them is in "trouble."  

Morning Glory

Yes, I could be a "morning person" if I really had to be.  When I ran my bed-and-breakfast I was up well before six AM to prep and cook breakfast, make the coffee, make sure the table and front parlor were set up, etc. Now that I am a teacher again (stuck with an 8:00 AM class) I can still get up at 5:30 and do all the necessary things before I head off to class.

When I quit working and finally retire -- I will probably want to get up early just to enjoy every minute of the day -- we have so few days in our limited lifespans. But, right now sometimes getting up early is really a pain in the "tuchus" (except for coffee).

This morning as I stopped for coffee at Parker's Downtown -- I hung back for a moment and just witnessed how many people were up and about -- stopping for breakfast just like I was, even sitting at outdoor tables in the pre-dawn darkness, and certainly looking up at a newly born blue sky (as I was).
It was all so very reassuring.