New Stuff on OFP, Genealogy and the Media

I've put a few more pages on OFP. I:

• Added a couple of NRPI Responses
• Added Summary to Shams Home Page
• Added Correspondence - Real Estate auction sham w/IRS/Government
• Added NRPI Responses (2) - Correspondence from a former NRPI Employee(?)
• Added Commercials and Links to Commercial Music page
• Added Article - Cemeteries and Headstones Being Lost and Images

The last one ties in with my "Losing History" blog posts here.

Otherwise, I've been looking for a job - had a couple of "phone-screen" interviews, and haven't heard anything back, yet.

I've also been researching and entering more and more people into my Genealogy Database. I now have 11,372 Individuals, 3855 Families, and 405 Sources. Every time I think I was wrong about my extended family (those in my DB) having come to Central Indiana and making it pretty much what you see today from heavy woods and forests, I find even more who came at around the same time. And whenever I drive through some of the "woods" we have left, and think about it, it absolutely amazes me that most of Central Indiana was completely covered like this, and people in MY family came here with their families, and cleared a lot of it to make the farmland we drive through the majority of the time, with just axes, hoes, saws, horse-drawn plows, blood, sweat, and tears.

If that can't stir your interest in genealogy (where and when were YOUR family here, and who were they?) then I don't know what will.

Oh, yeah... We went to see the travelling Vietnam Memorial Wall in Colfax last weekend. After going the length of the wall, we stopped and talked to a couple of soldiers who were on one of the armed transport vehicles there - One had been to Iraq and the other wanted to go, but they don't need the job he does.

More people should talk to more of the soldiers who have been there and WANT to go or go back. My wife is adamantly anti-war, but seemed to soften her tone once she talked to these guys. The guy who had gone said he had six kids, and not only is willing to go back, but WANTS to, because he thought of HIS kids when he saw all of the kids there. Under Saddam, the kids all ate what was thrown out in the garbage. And the insurgents don't give a shit (he didn't say that, I did) about who gets injured and killed, including women, children, old people, and other non-combatants, as long as they get a bunch. He talked about the media and how they do interviews for hours with these guys, and only show the few parts where they may say they wished they were home. The media also doesn't show the kids coming up and hugging the soldiers, the people who are so happy we're there and don't want us to leave... they show the killings and blood and guts, because that's what sells! I said something about the protests about us being there reported, and he said something like "You get 50-100,000 people protesting in a city the size of Indianapolis with a population of Indy, New York and Chicago combined; point the cameras at them, and they will yell." It happens here, too. Even my wife said that everyone should talk to those who were there... And don't get one view, but get many. (Talk to the guys who tell you about the good we've been doing there... The media will show you the problems... )

Holy Shit! Doesn't EVERYONE understand that? We go to NASCAR and other races to see the stars and the CRASHES, of course hoping nobody gets hurt... (I hope!) We wanna see THE BIG ONE! Why are the "X" games so big? Because while they have great stunts, they also have spectacular crashes! No matter WHAT anyone says about Sex and Violence on TV, that's what sells the most! Well, in Iraq, it's what sells, too. Hasn't anyone else noticed that the media only report on the controversies? They don't report on the good things that happen, only the bad.

I've noticed that the Mississippi Coast has been advertising recently. Have we heard anything about New Orleans or the other Gulf cities and towns so devastated by Katrina? What about the rebuilding in the Tsunami zone, where so much media was reporting about so much death and destruction? No one is there talking about how things are going now. If they do, they send a 2nd-tier reporter, and MIGHT give them 2-3 minutes. Then its back to scandal, conflict, death and destruction.

Come on America. They do the same thing with Politics (report only on the controversies, the "flip-flops" and the gaffes (mistakes)), and if they can, they MAKE it happen. Very few people watched the Democratic You-Tube debate, if Jay Leno's audience is any indication (I didn't). Well, apparently, Barrack said something about the war and meeting with all the states (foreign) involved. Hillary said she wouldn't do that, and called Barrack "naive". Of course, no one heard anything about it because Brittany Spears had a melt-down at a paparazzi, and Lindsay Lohen got arrested for drunk-driving again. (What can be done to save these poor girls!?) Well, Barrack and Hillary, now, are "fighting", and the media are pushing that - between keeping us informed about Brittany and Lindsay.

It's almost as bad as the reporters driving up and down the bunch of people outside the New Orleans dome after Katrina asking what they thought about the government not being there. Does anyone remember there were floods, fallen trees, and other debris that the ground crews had to get through? ... And if they had done the "food and water drops" there would have been rioting (remember... people were shooting others, and even at those who went to save people) and a drop or two would probably have killed someone by landing on them. Of course, the media would have reported THAT situation as "Why did they drop it HERE!?... or at all?" (Duh! Could it be because THAT'S where they people were?)

Remember that most media is biased. They are not supposed to be, but they are. They have their favorite people, and know who and what will get viewers to watch, and that's what they put on. They will NOT report on the good things and rebuilding going on in Iraq. They will report on the killings, the "behind schedule" and "missing the deadline" things.

Read between the lines.

-wds

New Stuff on OFP and What Have I Been Up To?

It's been a while since I've posted. What have I been doing? Well...

On Orange Frog Productions

1. My grandmother died April 21, 2007. I created a tribute page to her, received a few comments and created a Responses page.
2. I got my Handicapped Voting at the National Guard Armory in Lebanon, IN viewed by politicians by sending a letter to the editor pointing to the page, and got responses, which I posted on a followup page.
3. I created a page of links for Crossroads Work One/Training deaprtment from a hard-copy they had posted on a wall. (I will NEVER understand why webpages with single-click access to the page in question are NOT created... Instead they create a table with links typed in? GEEZE!)
4. I added a Commercial Music page, which I keep updated fairly regularly (I have since I put it up, anyway!)
5. I added a couple of Rumors (Urban Legends/Lies/What-have-you)
6. And updated a few other pages.

Personally

1. I've been trying to get my feet healed. I'm diabetic, and have an ulcer on each foot.
2. My grandmother had TONS of pictures and papers, and I've started scanning them. I have three (3) file-boxes, here, and Dad has 3-4 at his house. I have scanned well over 1500 items, and have only gotten through the first 3/4 box! Right now, I have to keep my feet up, so I can't scan anything very easily. When I can keep my feet down, I will have to start again.
3. I've been updating my genealogy database. I have added at least 300 people in the last couple of months.
4. I've been meeting with the Crossroads Job Placement facilitator almost weekly. We send out my resumes to a number of jobs, some of which I've found, some that she's found, and some that we've found together. I had a pretty strong nibble a while back, and thought I'd have heard from them by now, but they were moving from one building to another, and had some (physical) security issues. I'm still hoping.
5. I've been working on a PHP/MySQL thing to handle the external links and links pages on OFP. I've still got a ways to go, design-wize, but think I'm getting there.

Part of the geneelogy part came about from my grandmother's funeral. A guy who I'd met a couple of years ago, but hadn't had much contact with since then, attended and talked to me, telling me I should join a group he'd joined, of people with many connections to my family in Indiana. I did, and found more info there. Then he, himself, is taking pictures of cemeteries around Sheridan and Boone County, where many of the people in his genealogy DB are, and I'm finding that may are related to those in MY DB.

Of course, all of this is taking time, and when I get a job, I will have even less of it to do some of these things. But, I obviously, keep myself active (well... mentally, maybe...)

Oh, yeah. For the past couple of years, I've not cooked much for myself. My wife went on a diet last year, and has lost over 50 pounds, herself. Well, I was weighed before minor surgery, recently, and have found that since I was last weighed (in 98?) when I couldn't find too many scales that would weigh me, I've lost at least 50 pounds myself! I think most of it's come since she went on her diet. (It's GOTTA be her cooking! LOL) If that's the case, it won't be long before I can get weighed at the doctor's more regularly (long as I can stand, I guess). So, I guess I'm getting healthier, in some respects, too.

That should cover it for now. TTYL. -wds

Holidays and Work

Most people who work in white collar and labor jobs get certain holidays off, and the Fourth of July is one of them. Most people in retail work shifts that force them to miss something, usually eight hours during the day of the Fourth, but most get to spend evenings with family and friends and watch the fireworks. There are those who work the holiday for 1-1/2 to 2 times the pay. And there are those who don't care ...

Then there are those who are "trapped", and can't plan anything for Holidays in the middle of week. This also includes other holidays which have not been moved to Mondays to allow for long weekends. (And, if they ever do that to Thanksgiving or Christmas... GEEZE!)

My wife works third shift at a factory in Lebanon. She goes in at 10:30PM Sunday through Thursday (leaving at 10PM, getting home about 8:15AM), and she normally sleeps between 9AM and 3:30PM-4PM on the following days. Those are her "Mondays through Fridays".

With the Fourth of July coming up, Wednesday, we were looking forward to sitting out in our driveway and watching the fireworks, like we've done since before we were married. But, because the 4th falls in the middle of the week, and Management was short-sighted - or those in HR are being dicks about it - she has to go in to work at 10:30PM Wednesday night, "just like normal" (which, technically, is her Thursday).

Day shift gets the 4th off, and if night shift got it off, it would be (most of our) Tuesday night. But the fireworks are done on Wednesday night (you know... The FOURTH OF JULY), and around here, and especially with Daylight Savings, they will go off between 10PM and 11PM. This, of course, means Day Shift gets to have family over (or visit), go to parks, parties, etc. ON THE FOURTH, but Night Shift gets shafted, again (other stories).

As of today, she's scheduled for Wednesday night, meaning she will probably get Tuesday night off. So, she might be able to spend time with family, but again, she will leave for work around 10PM, which is shortly before the fireworks go off. HOWEVER, if they figure out that they screwed up, and give her Wednesday night off, she will work Tuesday night, get home shortly after 8AM, and will have to sleep through Wednesday, probably at least until 2PM.

Someone is going to talk to management about this, but they will probably just shift the day (the full eight (8) hours off. So, for the Fourth, she will either be sleeping, or will have to be at work when the "festivities" of the fireworks happen.

I don't understand why they can't split the shift, so they work for four (4) hours Tuesday night, going in like normal, but leaving four (4) hours early, then not have to go in on Wednesday night until 2AM, which is four (4) hours after they would normally start. Or it could be two (2) hours on Tuesday night (until midnight), and go in at midnight Wednesday night. Either way, she could get her sleep, spend the day with family, and actually get to see the fireworks.

I know she's not the only one in this situation (and I don't mean just in her factory). She said, when I mention the schedule in the last paragraph... "They won't do that... They don't care...".

Helluva place to work, huh?

-wds