United States Mint Police (Photo credit: cliff1066™)

As I sit here in my office and think about life in general it always comes back to the same thing no matter what it is always about politics. 

Politics in the nation, politics in the world, politics in the office and politics at home. Why does life have to be so dam political. Why is every decision every made dependent on someone else and their opinions. Why is how much we pay for gasoline or an orange depending on what the people in higher power believe it should be.

I often wonder what the future holds for all of us this these times of troubles. How long are regular Americans going to to able to survive when the weekly pay check of $300. ends up being $230. after we fill our gas tanks? Is it going to come down to feeding our families or having to fill the tank to get back and fourth for the 200 lousy dollars a week to survive.

I myself feel like I am  in sinking mode. No matter what I do there never seems to be enough money for everything especial with gas prices escalating to parts unknown and food prices also on the rise. How much can we all take before we just slide into the dark abise with no hopes of floating again? Rent, heat, lights, phone, food, gasoline, car repairs, these are just the tip of the ice burg of what Americans pay on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis.

Is it going to take finding a second or a third job to be able to maintain? That is of course is if you can find one job. America the beautiful seems to be becoming America the struggle. Politics and politicians make our lives the way they are. Do they struggle daily and wonder where the hell their next meal is coming from? Of course not making the yearly salaries they do that won’t be a problem.

How far can this all go? Where is the light at the end of the tunnel or is this tunnel a never ending ride to no place good? I want to stop this train from hell and get back on the gravy train and once more plant my feet back on American soil with pride knowing that things will be alright and will change for the better.

I honestly don’t see much difference in America and third world countries at the moment, we too have people living in poverty with nothing but the shirts on their backs. The homeless are on the rise and have been for a very long time. Living in cars or under a bridge. Not knowing if you will get a job and even after that if you will be able to survive and tread water with the dollar amount written on your check at the end of the week.

I feel sad with the happenings of today, I feel sad for people who are good and try their best to make it all work, I feel sad because looking into the future is a grim sight. I don’t see anything changing for the better only for the worse. Whats next on the agenda taking those who are burdens out back and standing them in front of a wall to be shot? maybe in a long run it would be more humane. 

Sometimes  i believe cults and small groups of people trying to make their lives and others better have the right idea. They want to make a universe that is not all about struggle, but about unity and working together to make life better.

Yes I know I am ranting, but voicing my opinion on paper is all that I know. It is not hurting anyone and maybe it will make me feel better. Seeing woman with babies walking down the street holding signs that says we are hungry, or Veterans begging on the street corner makes me angry! In this place that is supposed to be wonderful and take care of their own and others around the world, I would say they are not doing a very good job!

Stopping world hunger is a joke for sure, America cannot even stop American hunger let alone any place else. Until the day that the politicians see what is really going on with the little guy and always seeming to make it harder just for us, I guess fixing things will not happen.

I don’t want to be rich, but I do know that working my ass off every single week for nothing is getting old. I am a good person and try to be the best I can, but it seems that makes no difference. I will continue to struggle and try to make ends meat but how long before my utilities have been turned off and there is no food in the frig. Being evicted from my apartment will be next and where will I go? Who will care if I am one of the many living on the streets with no place to go?

More of Mine:

Medical Oddities

Gout Causes and Effects

Living in This Day and Age in America

“My son is already giving me lists of what he wants for Christmas,” Shannon, a single mother, told me. “I don’t even know if I’ll still have my job come Christmas. I can’t be thinking about who’s going to be President next year. I got other worries right now.”

I was a single mom, too, so I know first-hand the struggles Shannon and other single moms face every day. But I did not have to contend with the pressure of Christmas in October, and I did not live in fear of losing my job during a bad economy when chances of getting another job would be next to none.

Shannon’s comments are typical of what I hear from many people I have talked to in my community. They are tired and worried, and they feel defeated and frustrated. Any “extra” energy they have after all their daily and weekly responsibilities are satisfied is NOT going to be used to support a campaign for an election that’s more than a year away. I know how that feels! There are times when I wonder if I’ll have the inner resources to help. So far, I’ve been able to dredge it up from my inner reserves. Why do I push myself? Because I know what is at stake for Shannon, for our communities and our country; I know what is at stake for me and for you. I know that our history of providing opportunity and support for all Americans is at stake and I know that I – we – have to fight with everything we have to make sure our citizens have every possible opportunity to achieve the “American Dream.”

Maybe you feel like you have so much going on that you can’t begin to think about who’s going to be elected President in 2012. But, the fact of the matter is that President Obama is the President of the United States TODAY and will continue to be President until at least January 2013. And OUR President needs our help RIGHT NOW to overcome the obstructions created by Republican members of congress. President Obama wants to champion for the single moms, for the working poor and the middle class, but the GOP keeps holding OUR Country hostage by blocking every attempt get legislation passed that would benefit the majority of people living in the United States of America.

We are at an important pivotal place in our Country’s history and whether you are a single mom or not, what is going on right now in our political system affects you today and will continue to affect you for years to come. But you can do something to help protect your personal interests: You can get involved by volunteering for one of your local candidates or for President Obama’s team. And don’t say you don’t have the time. You can do as much or as little as your schedule allows. If you have two hours, you can make phone calls to people in your community. Or you can help sign in people at an campaign event (and have some fun in the bargain!). We as individuals need to understand what is at stack not only for our country but for ourselves. We can no longer afford not to think about it. I’m in. How about you? Our democracy depends on you. Will you get involved?

(Fight scene of Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, image from Google Search) 

Life is ……..

1. A journey to this world

A journey has a start and an end, so does life. From the date we are born, our journey starts. Longevity is possible, but nobody can escape from Death. Everyone is subjected to the natural law, universal law and laws of social development. We have to grow from a toddler to a child, a teen to an adult then, and finally an elder. Out of the different laws, we are free to develop and stretch ourselves, but there are many unknown difficulties that always surprise and exhaust us.

How to have a happy journey becomes a critical issue that needs our full attention to deal with. See beautiful things, meet nice people and be productive……. In other words, we have to plan, act and adjust for our life continuously. Great effort, with no guarantee of reward, is required to obtain happiness. We all have an exciting journey, but the degree of joy depends on how well we overcome the hardships throughout.

2. Battles between no choice and with choices

Once our life started, we encounter a lot of “no choice” and “with choices” circumstances. A typical example for “no choice” condition is our coming to this world. “With choices” situations can be study or work, what to study and the career path to be built, etc. We enjoy or suffer from the consequences. Everyone is battling for a better position, to have more choices and always yield the best in life.

The battles in life are inevitable and continuous, and yet essential to one’s happiness. We are actually a life warrior. Be prepared to win and lose over and over again. Fear won’t help at all. All these years, I know that whenever I have been defeated, take a good rest to heal up and start all over again.

3. A movie that we act and direct

Life is like a movie. We are the protagonist. Very often there are other characters in our life movie. All acquaintances are parts of the setting. We have to decide on what kind of protagonist we would like to be, make appropriate decisions and take actions accordingly to bring forth the desirable performance.

Act according to one’s heart requires the minimum effort, but the outcome may not be satisfactory enough. Some people adjust their acting time after time. The directing job is also crucial if we would like to have more controls over what to happen and the result. Life movie is a little bit tricky because there are no take two sometimes. Hence, we have to be wise and don’t try any risky plots. I always tell myself to play safe and hopefully I will be able to replay the scenes many times in my mind with minimum regrets.

4. Struggles between fullness and void

Once life started, we start confronting Nature, people, animals, plants and a lot of other things. Everyone seems to be rich, but sooner or later we will notice that losing is also unavoidable. Life becomes many struggles between fullness and void. We have to find ways to secure all the good things and avoid them being devoured by the bad ones.

Some people will argue that once we die, void is the result and so what’s the point of striving so hard to obtain fullness. Whenever this thought hits my head, I like to remind myself living at the moment. Fullness is a relative and subjective concept, and it is difficult to measure. It is better to expel unnecessary pressure by simply trying our best to get whatever we can and enjoy the most out of it. To live is to struggle and see how much one can enjoy in the transient life.

It is normal to get frustrated and question life. As mentioned before, there is no model answer to what life means to a person. Let’s hope everyone can figure out her own answer, appreciate one’s own existence and enjoy every moment in life. If you have any other beliefs, welcome to leave a message and share with us.

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Other articles about life that you may be interested in reading:

You Need a Prison Break

Create and Count Your Blessings to Make Yourself Happy
 

     The struggles of living in the south are numerous. I find I am afraid to go to the corner store, Due to the multitudes of people hanging about, Half dressed, under ware hanging out. The voices of the many are loud and terrifying. The fear that rips through you when you pull up to a red light and you spot a half dressed male running in the direction of you vehicle. Children with high caliber handguns showing in the back of their pants.

     I wonder at what happened to humanity, this seems to be a world of animals. You have to look out of windows with bars that make you feel jailed in your own home; so what if they are decorative. This in itself adds the fearful question of will you make it out should the house catch fire. Will they kill my dog when I am gone too, for a T.V. or what not.

   I see the same town I was born in growing desolate of the charm I grew up with. I drive down the same streets I have all of my life; But it is no longer my home. A Zoo filled with wild animalistic behaviour. Wild, aggressive, dangerous situations ever where you look. I once saw a pregnant woman approached at a red light. shot in the head and pulled out of her vehicle, then left dead in the road. All for the animal that wanted her car.

   I am sure these problems are every where, but I cannot help but wonder, “Where are all the peaceful, considerate, friendly people of my home town. I find that I am now a minority, One of a dwindling number of my own race in the town I call home. I do not and will never understand the hostility I see on a daily basis, for the sins of our forefathers. The Fear to speak out at the reverse injustice will not be mine. The past is the past in my humble opinion. What I am speaking of is the present.

   This is a bigger problem than our elected and our civil servants will ever be able to get a handle on. The only hope I have for a better day is if pack up and move like everyone else. It is a sad feeling that the living conditions in my so loved home has become nearly unbearable.

   There will be more to come…

The character with the simplest dream is Lennie, George’s mentally handicapped companion.Lennies dream is to be able to “tend the rabbits” on the ranch, that George and Lennie will probably not get. Lennie is constantly breaking his own dream by getting into trouble, this putting the pairs employment at risk, and making Lennie’s dream further away. If Lennie was a normal guy, in the sense of his mental capabilities, then his dream would be perfectly reasonable to achieve. Lennie is not as mentally capable as his peers, so I believe, “…[he] won’t be able to tend the rabbits.”

Another character in Of Mice and Men who has broken dreams is Curley’s wife. Her character is of naivenature; the fact is she would believe something that is way too good to be true, much like her dreams. She was once told by some shady men that she would become famous, she believed the men. The only thing that was standing in the way of her dreams was her “uncaring mother.” Curley’s wife didn’t like her mother’s better judgement, so she ran away from home, and married Curley. She now lives a “lonely” married, farm girl, life.

The first character with a reasonable dream is Crooks, a socially isolated,African-American stable buck. Crooks has many dreams, one of them is friendship, being black makes this almost impossible for him, and so he is “nearly crazy with loneliness.” Crooks also longs for freedom and to work for himself. Crooks had these two dreams come alive when George and Lennie said they planned to get a “stake” and live there. Then Crooks faced the figures and realised that millions of men had that dream, only a handful ever get to live them. Crooks’s sudden realisation had broken his dream.

Another person who has had his dreams broken is Candy, an old crippled male, whose actions lead us to thinking he is worthless. This man’s dream is to be part of the stake that George intends to buy. Candy, in his head, knows that it is near impossible, but he knows anything is better than his current standard of life. Candy also has some fears, because he has only got one hand, he is afraid of not being needed as he “aint much good with one hand”. The fact he is a cripple stands in the way of his dream.

George is another character with something standing in the way of his dream, and that obstacle is Lennie. George has high spirits about getting his Stake, but during the course of the novel, his aspirations are torn, piece by piece, by the mess that Lennie causes. Dreams seem impossible with Lennie ruining everything good that has come to George. George is burdened by Lennie and the trouble that follows closely behind. George’s life would be so much easier if he was alone.

The novel Of Mice and Men shows that every decision we make can decide whether our dream becomes reality or end up broken. George knew Lennie wouldn’t survive on his own, so he decided to let Lennie come with him. At the time that was a nice thing for George to do, but in the future, his dreams get smashed. Candy knowing he is cripple doubts himself and thinks that he will never fulfil his dreams, leaving him sad. The novel shows us that, decisions that we make now decide how our future will be, whether it be good or bad.

I know I can’t. I want a job I would really love doing. I want a fulfilling and happy relationship. I want all things to be not perfect, but at least can give me happiness. Am I not happy with my current life? I am and I am not. Yes, I am happy, but at the end of the day, when I look forward to the life ahead, my tongue will always get sour. I know I have to do something – break the ice, break the current trend, and make a big leap to that big change for success and happiness in the future. But this other question comes in – how? Any suggestions?

Living from pay check to pay check is horrible. Some people have tried taking on jobs they thought they would never do. Living in poverty is some families are now living our now living on the  streets and eating out of dumpsters. It’s sad that our government would let this happen. I’m not happy about struggling but, I have faith that things will get better.

Not having much money can be a drag and it could cause numerous health problems. If there are legitimate ways for people to make extra cash than do what you have to do. Money can get you off the streets and put you in that comfortable home.

   Ummi heard the drool of the engine of the planes flying in and leaving the airport. She had half the mind to turn back to cradle her baby in her arms once more. But the thought of his future kept her from doing so. Her good for nothing, philandering husband, was not in the habit of supporting her and her baby. She must struggle through to make a life for herself and her only child. No doubt she would not be able to help herself without cooperation from her aging parents. Her parents were prepared to go all out to see that their only daughter’s wishes could be granted. Thus she couldn’t let them down by admitting defeat and giving up hope of being independent.

   As she walked the steps leading to the cabin of the plane, she wiped a tear as it flowed down her chiselled face, which was full once upon a time. Stress and a loveless life had robbed her off her youth and vitality. She hoped too that life in a foreign country would help her forget her miserable past and probably pave the way for better relations with friends who had encouraged her to take the giant step into the unknown.

   The flight to Malaysia from Indonesia was roughly 3 hours, but Ummi felt as if it were 3 days. At the Penang Airport, a group of her friends from her village in Jakarta were eagerly awaiting her arrival. All of them were well dressed and appeared happy and contented. She looked at her attire and compared it with theirs. She hoped that she too would be sharing the same benefits.

   The drive by taxi from the airport to the apartment where her friends lived was short but it was a drive with many hairpin bends. By the time they reached the destination, Ummi was feeling nauseated and uncomfortable. She had a quick wash, had a simple dinner and went to bed to the disappointment of her friends. 

   The next morning she woke up with a headache. Noone was around to even make her breakfast. She observed that the apartment was well furnished and clean. She also read a note scribbled on a piece of paper on the coffee table informing her that all her friends were at work and that they would be back late in the evening. In the meantime, she could grab whatever there was in the kitchen to feed herself. She was reluctant to raid the kitchen but her hunger pangs got the better of her and soon she was tucking away at some buns and bananas.

   The next day, the gullible and unsuspecting Ummi, followed her friends to their workplace. Her boss was a young man, who seemed to examine her through x-ray eyes. Ummi felt shy but she had to put on a brave front. The man asked casually if she was ready for work. She replied in the affirmative. He called her closer and put his arms around her. She was taken by surprise and tried pushing his arms away. He advised her not to resist because all her friends were in the same trade. How else could they afford such lovely clothes, good food and a comfortable apartment to live in?

   Ummi felt cheated. She felt that her friends had betrayed her trust. She had left her decent dwelling and home to come to a strange place only to fall into a trap. Who could she turn to for help? What is she going to tell her parents? How is she going to face her only child? Answers to those questions can only be given by those who share the same fate as Ummi.

Louise May Alcott b. Nov. 29, 1832 d. Mar. 6, 1888 (novelist)

Alcott received writing instruction when she was young from such credible authors and literary scholars such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Theodore Parker. Alcott didn’t realize that she would write under the assumed name of Flora Fairfield. She used this name to write her poetry, short stories and thrillers. She used her second pen name, A. M. Bernard, to write a piece for the Boston stages on her Civil War experiences. This is the piece of her writing that would turn her into a serious writer. Once she wrote and published Little Women, Alcott now had financial security. She had a demand for more books, so she kept writing novels and short stories for the rest of her life.

Margaret Bourke-White b. June 14, 1904 d. Aug. 27, 1971 (pioneer photojournalist)

Margaret Bourke-White first became interested in photography at a young age. After she graduated with a degree in 1927, she became the first female photojournalist to work Life magazine which began in 1935. She was also the first female photojournalist for Fortune magazine in 1929. She would develop many forms and techniques photography and would become the first Western photographer allowed in the Soviet Union.  In her early career, she would cover the social and political issues of the 30’s and 40’s. She was the only female photojournalist that the U.S. Army credited at becoming a female war correspondent. Later on in her life, Bourke-White would cover the Korean War which would give her some of her best photographs.

Mary Whitehouse b. June 13, 1910 d. Nov. 23, 2001 (activist)

Whitehouse is most notably known for her work on the ‘Clean up national TV’ campaign in the 1960s. She was appalled by what she saw on television over the dinnertime hour. She began the movement for the campaign in Birmingham, Alabama, where she spoke before a crowd of 2,000 people. Before long, Whitehouse gathered 500,000 signatures and began to make a difference. She began to be criticized by the media and receive hate mail. She didn’t let this stop her, however; in 1965, she founded the National Viewers’ and Listeners’ Association, which helped give her give her a push for legislative changes in television programming. She would continue advocating for this until her death at age 91 in 2001. 

Queen Elizabeth II b. Apr. 21, 1926 (royalty)

Queen Elizabeth was the first child born to Dutch and Dutchess of York, George and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon in London, England. Her baptism took place in Buckingham Place where her father was king. Elizabeth and her sister Margaret received private educational training at home. She began to study law and constitutional history. At the age of 14, she would begin her volunteer work, making a radio broadcast to all the children in Britian. At age 21, she received the change to go with her parents and her overseas for the first time to South Africa. In 1947, she wed Phillip Mountbatten and had fur children: Prince Charles, the next heir to the throne; Princess Anne, the Princess Royal; Prince Andrew, the Duke of York; and Prince Edward. In 1952, she received news that her father had died and now she was Queen Elizabeth II.

Maya Angelou b. Apr. 4, 1928 (author, activist)

Maya Angelou was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Her parents divorced when she was 3, and she was sent to Arkansas to live with her grandmother. Angelou is best known for her poems and novels, but little know she is also a singer and actress. In fact, Angelou is also an activist for African-American rights. Her time spent as an editor on “African Review” helped her take her writing more seriously. In the 1960s she joined the Harlem Writers Guild and became interested in black activism. She had a son, Guy, whom she had only at the tender age of 16. By this time she had toured Europe and Africa. In 1970, she would write “I know why the caged bird sings,” probably one of my favorite books by her–and what helped me inspire to become a writer. She read a poem, “In the pulse of the morning” at President Bill Clinton’s inauguration in 1993. She has mastered such languages as French, Spanish, Italian an Arabic. Angelou has been a professor of American studies since 1981, and shows no signs of slowing down.

Billie Jean King b. Nov. 22, 1943 (athlete)

Billie Jean learned how to play tennis at home. She would fight on the court for equal prize money for men and women. In 1971, she would become the first woman to win $100,000. In 1987, she was elected into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. She also campaigned for better pay and recognition of women tennis players. In 2007, she would launch ’Green Slam,’ which was a program to make tennis more environmentally friendly. She is one of Time’s most influential people of the year.

Anne Frank: b. Jan. 12, 1929 d. Feb. 1945 (author)

Anne Frank was born in Frankfurt, Germany. Her writing took us into War World II, even 60 years later. She was born in January 1929 and not long after, in 1933, her family had to flee to the Netherlands. The Germans were starting to starting to form under Hitler, which in 1942 led Otto Frank to take his family into hiding. He refused to take his family into a work or prison camp.  Anne describes everything about the annex to us, even to the smallest detail about the creak of the floor. It was sad how they couldn’t live without making a sound for two agonizing years. In 1944, the family is split up as secret police invade the annex. The family goes in 3 different directions — Holland, Poland and Germany. Otto Frank is the solo survivor of his family, and publishes his daughter’s writings for the world to see. I always think “what could’ve been” when I read her diary or biography. She had a great life ahead of her, and it’s an injustice that it got cut short. She died, at 15, of typhus in a German concentration camp.

Oprah Winfrey b. January 29, 1954 (talk show host)

Oprah Winfrey, who works and lives in Chicago, is most notably known for her talk show, “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” She’s originally from the south, born in Kosciusko, Mississippi. However, many don’t realize that in 1971 this rising-star, only 23, left Mississippi for her new home in Nashville, Tennessee. Here she would study radio and broadcasting at Tennessee State University. In 1976, her sites were set on Baltimore as her new TV chat show, “People are Talking,” began. This successful show lasted 8 years until Oprah wanted to move to Chicago to start a new venture — a new show called “A.M. Chicago.” It didn’t take long until 1986 when she first premiered her show she has today, “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” She’s considered to be one of the most powerful and wealthy people living in America, and in my opinion, one of the most inspirational. An advocate for children’s rights, Oprah has submitted bills to Congress and gotten them approved. She has even won the Bob Hope award. 

Caroline Kennedy b. Nov. 27, 1957 (politician)

Caroline Kennedy — the famous daughter of J.F.K. and Jackie Kennedy, and now, the only survivor of her immediate family, was born in New York City. As a little girl, it’s said she would walk her dad to the oval office. After earning a bachelor of arts degree in 1979, she began to work at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. However, she also focused on non-profit organizations, such as becoming president of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation. In 1989, she graduated from Columbia Law School and began practicing on her own. In 1999, Caroline lost her brother to a plane accident off of Martha’s Vineyard. In 2000, she picked up an offer she’s kept turning down. She agreed to join the Democratic Convention.

Paula Abdul b. June 19, 1962 (celebrity)

Paula Abdul has loved to dance since she was eight years old. It’s not surprising when she went to a summer camp at age 15 and appeared in Junior High School, a musical, with several of her friends. She went on to study Communications at California State University, but became one of the girls chosen as a Los Angeles Lakers cheerleader. In fact, it only took a few months of being on the team before Abdul was chosen as the team’s chief choreographer. Six months later, she would leave SCU without graduating to focus on her dancing career. She would later go on to work on the Jackson 5’s Victory Tour. She’s inspired many young talents on American Idol after developing her own musical career. While she’s no longer on Idol, she’s still on Twitter and in Los Angeles.