A Strange Journey

Today is September 23rd 2007. This is the first day of fall and the temps are going to be in the high 80’s. This has been a very strange year for me so far. My wife died in April, and I had to stop work in March because of medical problems.

Since March my life has been in a downward spiral that is an amazing tail of bureaucratic red tape, and extreme generosity. If not for the generosity of friends I would have been out on the street by the end of March.

I have found this simple truth in America today. If you are rich, a child, an illegal immigrant, or born into the welfare system, you are protected and have your advocates. If you are working class from working poor to upper middle class and you fall on hard times you are in serious trouble. The most common responses I received to my calls for help were "I would love to help you, but there is nothing I can do." Also, on this side of the equation is the fact that in Fort Wayne / Indiana, there is no central contact for aid. You must deal with dozens of agencies, all with their own policies and paperwork, much of it duplicate. I also found that if you have limited mobility it is an added burden. Most of the government agencies will not come to you, and they will not tell you that a phone interview is allowable unless you really press them. Additionally I cannot figure out for the life of me the usefulness of the Trustee offices. Their paperwork is staggering, the requirements are bizarre, and its frankly easier to get blood from a stone.

The other side of this equation if the generosity of friends, and neighbors. At one point a friend cosigned a loan without question. Friends and neighbors ran errands, brought in food, and ultimately their intercession saved my life.

I was one of the fortunate, I am now getting the care I need, in a facility with some amazing people. There are many others out there who are not getting the help they need. Fort Wayne city council is willing to fund all kinds of questionable development projects, but you never hear them talk about funding more housing for Fort Wayne Housing Authority, you never hear them talk about increasing and simplifying the Trustee office support programs, and you Never hear them talk about aid for senior citizens. I guess we are not a Politically Correct enough group.

Nelson, you just don't get it!

Nelson, it does not matter if 100% of the money you sent to Pittsburgh comes back to Fort Wayne as media buys. What matters is that you are saying that there are no businesses in not only Fort Wayne, but the entire state of Indiana that could do the job! I have seen your commercials, trust me, your money would have been better spent in Fort Wayne.

If you have no confidence in Indiana and Fort Wayne businesses now, why should we anticipate you would have confidence in them as Mayor.

The light of my life has gone out

For my beloved;
You are gone, that is all I know, that is all I see, that is all I feel. I have reached depths of despair I did not know existed, and I have found boundless love in friends and family to help me survive.
People who knew you only through me have written odes in your honor that make me proud to be alive.

Life is a Very Precious Thing
by tvFANatic20
This poem (although terribly written) is in honor of a friend, and a loss he recently suffered

Life is joyful,
and life is fun,
when you start as a child, fresh and young
Then you get sightly older, and then suddenly,
you find yourself,
with the weight of the world,
the cries
the problems
the wishes
the dreams
of the world on your shoulders
Soon you meet someone, who you can open your heart to,
and share a name, a family, and a beating heart
Then crisis rears its ugly head,
and your love can build a brick wall to block it out,
until eventually,
it crumbles,
and your spirit will live in memoriam.

The essence of my wife, was in her love for people. She was a CNA at both Lutheran Homes and Kingston Care in Fort Wayne. She loved the job, and her patients loved her. To her it was more then a job, it was a calling. I know that she was driven to recover by her desire to get back to work.

My wife, Janet, was a deeply spiritual person in many ways. She loved studying the Bible. She loved to search for meaning and strength in its passages. I know that she is now happy, peaceful, and pain free in the biggest Bible study of all.

I miss you my love. I will see you again.

No Suprise from City Council Harrison Sq. vote

No surprise, City Council rubber-stamped the Harrison Square development giveaway after holding the required meeting to get public comment. These are the councilmen who voted for the project, Tom Didier, R-3rd; Tom Hayhurst, D-4th; Tim Pape, D-5th; Glynn Hines, D-6th; Sam Talarico, R-at large; and John Crawford, R-at large.

These councilmen decided to not listen to most of their constituents and instead allowed themselves to be struck deaf by the jingle of gold coins. If they are running in a primary in your district, I say the time has come for a change. We need to show politicians that their constituents matter, not the special interests.

If you think that this deal is not about money and special interests then you need a reality check. I say follow the money and you will see exactly where the support for this project lies. The developers, the Real Estate brokers, the building contractors, the politicians, these are the people who will benefit from this project, not the ordinary citizens of Fort Wayne who will not be able to afford the shops, restaurants or condos if they are actually ever built!

Now, reading this you might think that I am against Downtown development. Nothing could be further from the truth. If Hardball wants to build a stadium for a “Single A” baseball team with their money that’s great. If builders and hotel chains want to build downtown then we should do everything we can to make it easier for them to do so. But not with my tax money!

My tax money needs to go to fixing potholes, painting lines on the streets, neighborhood code enforcement, police, fire, and any number of improvements that are needed to enhance the quality of life for Fort Wayne citizens!

Mayor Richards was looking for a legacy and he got it, too bad that he did not have the gumption to stay around to see if it will succeed or fail.

Peters uses outside of state vendors!

How telling is it that the largest campaign expense for the Peters campaign went to an advertising firm located outside of not only Fort Wayne, but Indiana! There are obviously advertising firms in Indiana and in Fort Wayne, Matt Kelty was able to find one.

If Mr. Peters will not do business in Indiana and Fort Wayne during a campaign to be its Mayor, how can we be sure he would do business with Indiana and Fort Wayne firms if he was elected.

This is just another reason to vote for Matt Kelty on May 8th. But let’s summerize for those just starting to follow the campaigns.
• Mr. Peters is backed by the current leadership and is just a cog in the machine. Matt Kelty is not a career politician, he is a businessman, a family man, and not part of the elite republican cabal currently running the show.
• Mr. Peters up until this week was an ardent supporter of Harrison Square, now he is suddenly (I don’t think so) calling for a referendum. Matt Kelty has spoken out against the Harrison Square boondoggle since its inception.
• Mr. Peters laid out his Bold Plan for the Future of Fort Wayne in a slick booklet called Fort Wayne First. It was full of wonderful ideas, but there was no talk on how these ideas would be translated into action. He talks about increasing lots of programs and adding new programs. He never talks about the funding for these programs. Matt Kelty on his website lays out not only the issues but his action plans to deal with the issues.

It all boils down to Mr Peters is all sizzle and no steak, where as Matt Kelty is lots of steak with a good bit of sizzle!

Forget Global warming, Hell has frozen over!

Nelson Peters calls for referendum on Harrison Square project! Forget about global warming, the climate changes are because hell has frozen over. I don’t know about you, but I’m going to get a hard hat, I expect pigs to fly any day now.

From the inception of this swindle, Nelson has nothing but praise for the project and has been one of its most ardent cheerleaders. Now as we draw closer to the Primary and Nelson finds himself on the wrong side of the issue in a failing campaign he actually believes that the citizens of Fort Wayne will accept this slight of hand without comment.

I have always been fascinated by politicians without a spine. The successful ones are able to bend like a willow and come out smelling like a rose. The unsuccessful ones just look like fools.

We need leaders who will not stick their finger in the air to see which way the wind is blowing before making a decisions and setting policy. We deserve leaders who are not fools. On May 8th we must vote for Matt Kelty. To do otherwise will put the future of Fort Wayne in question.

Primary time in Fort Wayne

May 8th will probably pass by as a normal day for most of the people in Fort Wayne. This is a shame. May 8th is Primary Day. In Fort Wayne there are candidates to chose from in most of the races, but the most important race is for Mayor.

In all likelihood, this primary will determine the next Mayor of Fort Wayne. I cannot speak for the candidates on the Democrats side, frankly I am not interested in their politics or their policies and I will not be voting for them. On the Republican side however, the race is between two candidates as different as day and night.

The two candidates are Matt Kelty and Nelson Peters. Matt is a businessman, Nelson is a politician. Matt has a vision for Fort Wayne, Nelson has other peoples vision for Fort Wayne. Matt is an independent thinker, Nelson is a cog in the current machine.

I say it is time to get rid of the machine. Let's get an independent free thinking person in the Mayors office. I believe that Matt Kelty is that person. When he is elected the Mayors office may be able to actually do some good for Fort Wayne.

March, in like a lion?

So far March is making its presence known across the country in a big way. Death and destruction everywhere, and just plain ugly weather across the country.

People will wring their hands and say its a manifestation of the Evil Global Warming plague that we humans in the industrial countries have foisted upon the planet. Myself, I'm not so sure.

I believe that we are arrogant if we believe that we effect the planet in any meaningful way. Could we hurt the planet, possibly. Would it heal itself, I think so. My rational for these feelings come from reading various sources. Some like State of Fear by Michael Crichton are definitely in the global warming is a myth category. Other books I read or movies I watch (like Al Gore's) go the other way.

As March roars in like a Lion (an old saying), I just don't think we have all of the answers. Can we be better stewards of the planet, probably. I believe though that we are trapped by the hyperbole and venom surrounding the issue. Once we can come together without going for each others jugulars or making the discussion about politics, then we will be able to accomplish something. Till then we will just watch and wait.

Is the Ground Hog ever right?

Who decided that the Ground Hog was a great prognosticator of seasonal change. I mean let's get real, with a 50/50 chance of getting it right, my turtle could do the job!

If you want to tell me that Ground Hog Day is a great day for party them I'm there, but when its ugly winter like it has been, with apparently more on the way this weekend, I don't want to know when Spring is coming, I just want Spring to be here!

I hate to admit this, but I am becoming a two season man. I love the Spring with its prospect for new life, moderate temps, and that wonderful Spring smell. I love the Fall with it amazing colors, warm days and cool nights. Summer is just to hot and winter is just to cold. Maybe I need to move to a nice tropical island and just worry about hurricanes.

Mother nature, the ultimate jokester!

The cosmic joke continues! Today, beautiful day. Bright sun, no wind, temp 18 degrees in NE Indiana at 8:00 AM. What is going on this year? Yesterday, no sun huge wind (gusts to 40 mph), wind chill in the teens, but temp in the 30 's.

I'm so confused! Now the weather forecasters (oxymoron) are calling for a winter weather alert with snow, ice, and rain starting Saturday during the day into Sunday. If you ask me this sounds like a CYA (cover your ass) forecast. To paraphrase: If you predict it, it will come! :lol:

The amazing part of this, is that I know that in August when it is 90 plus with 1,000,000,000 percent humidity (after all this is Indiana) I will be longing for winter. How bizarre is that. I guess that why human nature is such a fascinating study.

Life sucks and then you die!

As I deal with the reality of a family member with a critical illness, I am finding out some interesting truths:

If you are wealthy, the system works for you.

If you are a leech on society and have never worked a day in your life, or you are an illegal alien, not only does the system work for you, but it bends over backwards to assist you.

If you are working poor or middle class, not only does the system not work, but it bends over backwards to make sure it does not work.

The smaller the business, the more willing they are to work with you.

The larger the business, the less they care.

There are people and organizations that have an incredible capacity to help and do good. Unfortunately they are few and far between, and usually the victims of the system themselves.

Life is a bowl of cherries, but most of us are feasting on the pits.

I am sorry for the bleak negative tone of this writing, but it has just been a very bad week. On the upside, the sun is out, temps may reach the upper teens, and my wife is still alive!

Matt Kelty for Mayor

The race for the mayors job in Fort Wayne is under way. Several candidates have signed on for the Republican primary on May 8th. Chief among those are Nelson Peters, candidate of the party, for the party, and by the party and Matt Kelty, the "underdog".

Matt is the "underdog" because he is not the party candidate. He is not beholden to the local power structure, and actually has ideas that are good for the Fort Wayne community, without lining the pockets of the local establishment.

I make no bones about it or apologies, this writer is unwavering in his support of Matt. Please stop by often as the campaigns evolve for the actual truth you will not find in the local media.

Matt and Family

Welcome to the New Year and a new reality!

2007 the year the Democrats returned to office. What more can be said, the tears are shed and now we have to hang on for dear life as the Congress like a pendulum swings way to the left. In a country that was already reeling from the effects of political correctness, all we can expect is that wedge issues will become more prominent, political correctness will overtake reality, taxes will go up, government will grow, and the health of the country will decline.

This is democracy in action and the country deeply divided as it is voted for this change. Let us man the bulwarks and hold fast against this invasion of sanity.