I was out in the world of Air today. You know, life in the American world.
I had the Television on, and was about to change the channel. I pointed my manly remote towards the screen. It was just after an hour of “Cold Cases” on A & E. This show came on that I’d never watched. It was called “Jordan’s Crossing”. I was stunned by the clear, and perfect, voice of Sheila Shandra, singing “Ever so lonely eyes”. I stopped in my remote’s tracks, and listened. I was compelled by the voice of the most beautiful woman on Earth. Her clearness is angelic. No man, who breathes, could possibly resist her sweet tone of suffering. She has no band to speak of. Her life is in her voice. Joan Biaz? No, this is meditation of the soul; it is a rendering of why we live. I thought whoever does the show really knew the feeling of it, and decided to bring relevance to a quiet moment in time. To the director of “Jordan’s Crossing”, you made me hope for something. Sheila’s voice is a clear, and hopeful, message to the world, that there really is hope for peace, and a little, just a little, place for us to be in a quietness.
She mesmerizes me with her clear tone of a chanting. I put it on my computer’s player, put my headphones on, and remembered the reason for our selves. “Never so lonely eyes”; hear it, my friends, and you will drift with the molecules.

I’m a news junkie! I’m watching, or listening at least, to MSNBC news. Everything I have heard this morning leads me to believe that these news channels are concerned with, almost exclusively, gossip!

They just did a story on a murder/kidnap story. It is a tough-break story but for MSNBC, is THE story?
Here in iowa, we just had a story about a kid, from Bonaparte, who killed his whole family. He, allegedly, killed his Mother Father, and three sisters. Talk about tragedies! This kid, allegedly, was into drugs pretty bad, and had been banished from coming around his family. I can't imagine what he's going through right now. But, look what he's, allegedly, done. My God, what happened?

Oh shit, Paul McCartney abused his wife! They ‘here’ the gossip and their lips scream out to the masses: “Paul abused her”! They have no facts, no conclusions; they just scream out what they hear!
“We’re waiting for a statement from Sir Paul McCartney.” Meanwhile, they spread the gossip as if it were fact! Then a scroll rolls across the bottom of the screen saying: “McCartney was born in 1962, in Liverpool. He and Linda Eastman were married in 1969.” Yeah, that’s what the scroll said. So, Paulie married Linda when he was 7 years old? They are so frantic about getting this juice out, they roll out the wrong dates. I know the Beatles; they Beatles are my ‘boys’; don’t throw (rolling) stones at the Beatles (Until it’s proven to be true anyway!). Leave Paulie alone I say! (Until he’s proven to be an ass hole!). Your honor, I object! to this assault on ‘my boys’! If it is true Paulie, I feel bad for you.
You can’t believe gossip. Well, yes you can I guess, but hold off on the judgements. And damn it, Paulie was born in 1942!

OH, here comes another one! “Where’s Wesley Snipes!”, they say. He is wanted for tax evasion. He owes twelve million dollars says the IRS! (How does a guy get that far behind on his taxes?). God, I don’t know if I made even one million $ in my whole working lifetime! How does a guy not pay his damn taxes? MSNBC says they can’t find poor Wesley. Personally, I hope they don’t find him. I like Wesley Snipes; he’s “the Blade” man! Anybody who can kick ass like that is my kind of guy! Let’s all go kick some ass! Let’s start at the IRS! Then, we’ll go to London and kick some more bloody ass!

Oh oh, here’s another one! “People see corporations making a lot of money, so they have confidence in the economy,” the news girl says. “The ‘DOW’ went passed 12,000 points, a new record for its 110 year existence”. What does that mean for the common people?
What does that do for my son and his girl friend, who make $7.00 an hour, and are trying to get into a position where they can get married and start a life together. Actually, she doesn’t make that much. Sure, she makes tips but doesn’t even earn the minimum wage, as a salary. Through the years, I have gained a great deal of respect for those girls who wait tables at bars and restaurants. They make the company a good deal of money, and put up with a lot of crap from customers. And, they must smile all the time. She comes home tired and sore from walking and waiting on people all night.
My son works for a janitorial service. After the day is over for the places he works at, his day begins. They both work hard and have a wonderful little girl. They get nothing from the ‘DOW’; they get hardly anything from anybody. 12,000 on the ‘DOW’ means nothing to them; these are the forgotten people in this surge of money. I am so proud of them both. Nobody invests in them, accept us. They can’t invest in the ‘DOW’. But, and this is a good but: They are happy together. Put that on your ‘DOW’ rich boys! Hey, I’m happy too. Put that in your corporate stash, big boys!

I am common, heppy, and I am proud! Put that on MSNBC!
Joe

What a gorgeous day. She is dressed in her finest, and begs to be seen.
I have an idea; let's all go camping!
I guarantee the food, the joy, the moments on the water, the camp fires that inspire every person to reveal those things they love, will be at their sharpest.
Imagine getting up on a cool morning, throwing on your flannel shirt, and starting the camp fire. Get out the camp stove, and start the morning coffee. The feels, sounds, and smells of the outdoors get into your lungs.
The coffee smells, and tastes especially good, and enlivening. The only sounds are the song of the Birds, a bellowing Bullfrog, the crackle of the camp fire, and soon, the smell of Potatoes, bacon, and eggs sizzling in the pan.
Everything you experience is better. You climb into the little 12-foot boat and row out onto the clear, peaceful, water. Thoughts are sharper, as you think about the beauty. You can't help but get into Nature's wonder. Trees line the lake's shoreline; the morning Sun breaks open the early day. There is a good snag just across the water. You float by the snag. You plop a fishing line into the lake water, and wait. It isn't long before your pole bends with the sudden violence, against your fish line. The battle begins with great excitement. You know now, that you will eat fish this afternoon. You come back to camp with dinner. The rest of them are up now, and most are huddled around the camp fire. Others are getting food ready for breakfast. Man, what a great it is!

Hey, let's all go camping!

Joe

It is Staurday morning, seven hours from kickoff. It will be a brisk night at Kinnick Stadium where, once again, the Iowa Hawkees will try to stifle the enigma that is the Ohio State Buckeyes. It's the battle of the 'eyes'. My hopes go with Drew and the boys. Let's get them this time. Good luck Drew Tate; our fate rests with you.

I have finished my book. It is gone, and finally out of my head. That thing has been languishing inside me since 1983. I actually, was only able to subdue it when I became ill, and had the time to sit and write. That was 2001. The drain of the birth is lifted and I feel empty. It changed, in plot, when oil production began to peak and it seems to me that water may become the 'oil' of the future. Since it takes place in the not-too-distant- future, I thought that would be the best course for it to take.
I'm happy it's gone, and yet, it's like a child leaving home.

But we here do have the Hawkeyes.
What a great day this is. Happy day, everybody!
Joe

Sometimes, life is so painful.
My son and his wife, Patty, moved, with their two little girls, to Pella Iowa. Pella is the most beautiful little town. They have an "economy within". That means they produce, sell, and buy, within themselves. It is home to Pella Windows, probably the world finest. It is home to two Dutch bakeries that deliver their sumptuous cooking around the world. It is home to Vermeer Industries; they make every imaginable heavy equipment from Trenchers, and Graders, to butt wipers! They supply the world. It is a perfect American community. Each year they have the Tulip festival, which is so glorified that it is against the law to defame a Tulip (who would want to?)
Community, what a beautiful word that is. They take care of each other, a rarity these days.
Jeoff and Patty were the right team for each other. It seemed such a sure thing.
Well, it didn't work out that way, and they were divorced yesterday. We went up to give them support through this.
Life, sometimes, is very painful.
The little girls, 7 and 11, were very hurt by this. My wife was looking for Ashley, and found her in a closet crying. She's having difficulty with this sudden turn in her life. Kayleigh seems okay, but might be hiding it in her own little closet.
The hurt they feel hurts us more than any personal pain. We cried together when we got home. It is so hard to try and be the strong ones when you are really crushed. We are 121 miles from our baby girls and can't be with them when they go through these things. They do have cell phones, and both called when we got home. I hate phones, but those cell phones are very important now! It is a way for them to keep us close.
We love Patty and hold no animosity towards her. It's hard because Jeoff is so angry. He knows how we feel so he tries to put the best face on it for us. I cannot tell you how much it hurts to see the little ones so sad.
On the way home the Garth Brooks song, "The Dance" came on the radio. Diane immediately burst into tears. And I am not a big county music fan, but that song was so close to what has happened.
Isn't it an awesome song? I don't know how to put songs on this blog; but the words were so very pure. It is a true metaphor for life's pain.

"Looking back on the memory of
the dance we shared 'neath the stars above
for a moment all the world was right
how could I have known that you ever say good bye

and now, I'm glad I didn't know
the way it all would end, the way it all would go
our lives are better left in chance
I could have missed the pain
but I'd have had to miss the dance

Holding you, I held everything
for a moment wasn't I a king
if I'd only known how the king would fall
Hey who's to say? you know I might have changed it all

And now I'm glad I didn't know
the way it all would end the way it all would go
our lives are better left in chance
I could have missed the pain
but I'd have missed the dance.

Yes my life is better left in chance
I could have missed the pain
but I'd have had to miss the dance."

I will always picture these two beautiful people dancing at their wedding. There was this big globe that turned shedding sparkling light on them. They were so happy. We were so proud.
We will always love them both.
They could have missed that pain, but they'd both have missed the dance.

Joe