Morning Greetings all – I went to bed tired and physically spent. Pushed my sick behind too much yesterday. I didn’t think I had done too much till I got home at 6pm and couldn’t stop coughing, couldn’t breathe and had to lay down for a while. Next thing I know its 4:30am this morning. My chest was much better, I could breathe and had some energy as I woke. Now some energy for me is maybe getting to 30% because I have had nothing now for several days. But each day has had some kind of improvement and I think I’m getting better. So I’m a ray of sunshine this morning.

Sunset on bay in Ocean City
Photo by Mike Hartley

I would have loved to make a post yesterday but I didn’t anticipate having to crash so early. And in an effort to make up for missed time and opportunity I might just throw a few together today.

Changes

Being I’m such a disorganized and random individual I thought I’d at least try to present my thoughts and images in a different layout that might be easier for you to follow along and maybe lead to better thoughts about what I’d like to say and the images I might use to illustrate them. Well, at least I’m going to give it a go. Don’t expect anything special for a while. It will be gradual.

Political Crap

Might as well end this now, one way or the other. Do we start to seek the truth and come to a consensus and direction and leadership by both sides working for the good and future, or do we just retreat to our MSNBC/FOX  camps, take up arms and supplies and just get to deciding this argument? It won’t take much to trigger the later, being we’ve migrated to both camps already.

Just as troubling or maybe more so than what the President said, is the two versions. He says he didn’t say that and a Senator who was in the room said he said it repeatedly. That one Senator was a Democrat. As I have read so far this morning, only one Republican Tim Scott, stepped forward and say yes the news reports were basically accurate. Lets just get to the truth with this man can’t we? If he can’t take ownership of what he says, then what the hell is he doing running our country. We don’t need a liar running the country from either party. We need someone we can trust. Integrity is everything.

Well, enough politics for the day, I’ve got to shop for food and ammo. Just kidding, actually shopping for a special birthday celebration. Would be nice if life was like it was before where we weren’t consumed with hostility and concern, to be able to go through a week and not be worn out by the news and conflict. But that was wrong also on my part to be comfortably numb to some serious and underlying problems this country hasn’t come to terms with yet.

Don’t Stress, its only a matter of time. 
Photo by Mike Hartley

Maybe those days are finally upon us.

Random Thoughts of the Day

Life is short. Thats it.

I’m a star when it comes to thinking about eating better. I’m something far less brighter when it come to doing it.

I used to think I had a lot of faults, now I feel much better about myself due to our President.

Irony = Trump signing a MLK proclamation less than 24 hours after his comments on Haiti and African Countries.

Karma = the MLK statue falling on the man wants to be another kind of King, on Monday.

My WP spell check says shithole is not a word. – maybe it will be added this year. Google has it. “an extremely dirty, shabby, or otherwise unpleasant place.”

Maybe today will be better. I’m going to try to make the best of the S-hole I find myself in.

Shouldn’t the rider be the one wearing the helmet? Sort of like the way this country is going. Everything seems to be ass backwards. Instead of moving ahead we are paralyzed. Instead of taking care of serious problems, we are focused on new ones of our own creation. Instead of getting spending under control, we’re pissing all over the place.

Helmet?
Photo by Mike Hartley

Things lately seem to be very split in perception. And each side thinks the other is totally biased and corrupt and bad for America. I wish I saw a way out of this before now. In some ways freedom of the press is exactly what is being used against each other. Selective news, extreme statements not substantiated with a factual base, personal assaults based on gender or race.

For every Republican that thinks Trump is draining the Washington swamp is a Democrat thinking the swamp is now covering the country. I really don’t see a way, such a divided country can continue. Even if Trump has done something illegal and is impeached then that will galvanize the Republican base that thinks he was unfairly run out-of-town. And this is exactly what our adversaries love to see. A fractured country. An economically weakened country. A country without strong leadership.

It’s really a sin. People on both sides failing to stay fully educated. People not willing to listen to each other. People always having to talk or yell over each other. Hell we might as well line up on two sides and get it over with because I still think its coming to that unless someone who is seen as having everyone’s interest at heart, who is SMART, Articulate, has Character (not a character) and can rally the people without a war to back it up, can save us. Of course no one person can save us and if anyone is proving that right, the character in office now is proving that. For in his own words “I ALONE, can fix this”. Well, you can’t and it’s very evident. It’s a strong team of people under a strong leader and communicator. And you will never wake up to that fact either.

So in the mean time its back to the range and getting my HQL and stocking up for a rainy day. Don’t worry, I look at shooting as a sport. And I hope that day never comes where I look at it as something else.