Displaying 1 - 10 of 229 entries.

My Health Journey in Retirement

  • Posted on November 6, 2023 at 6:07 pm

Today I was thinking how I have been wanting to share my health journey with others because it might be helpful to someone. I don’t even know if anyone will read this but hopefully, if it helps even one person, it will be worth writing.

My journey started back in June of 2020. My friend had suddenly died in her sleep and she was only 58. I immediately was in a state of shock. I was living in my new home in Cadillac, the one that she rode up to see with me when I was curious about it. She was there when I decided this was the one! I had spoken with her a couple weeks before. She had gone up to Lansing to drop off her money for the family Wharton Center tickets. She was happy and excited but both of us were worried about this Covid 19 disease. When I first heard of her death it was through the horrible Facebook posting of a couple of friends. I at first thought they must be talking about Ellen DeGeneres. They weren’t. That week I became extremely tired. I had to go lie down. I felt unusually exhausted. I remember walking across the street to the lake and having to stop to catch my breath. I just figured it was stress and shock from my recent news. However, it was much more and the beginning of a bigger issue.  Of course, being one of 14 kids I was always raised to tough it out. I also didn’t like to go to doctors and rarely did even though I had good healthcare.

June stretched into July and I became very ill. I thought I had food poisoning from my local Burger King.  If only it were that. I became violently ill. I couldn’t even go to the bathroom for many days. I could only urinate and vomit. I didn’t pick up my mail for several days, so my mail lady called the police for a wellness check. They said they could call an ambulance. Of course I told them that I thought I was getting better. What a crock! That was on a Thursday. By Sunday, I told my sister I would go in on Monday.  She told me I was going right now. She called my brother to come help me go to the hospital. So, I did!

I ended up having a complete blockage and a hernia!  They were ready to put me in an ambulance to go to Traverse City for surgery. I called my son to let him know what was going on. As I am talking, the staff is acting very concerned. It was then that they realized my heart was doing crazy stuff. I was in Afib which is an irregular heartbeat. Most people are in sinus rhythm. I was in crazy land with my heart bouncing around like a ping pong ball from high to low. This was the beginning of my real health journey!

I spent 10 days in the hospital. The staff was great. I had a bit of my intestine removed and I couldn’t eat for the whole time as green gross fluid was being taken out through my nose. I produced a lot. I was in a room that was right in front of the nurses station which I just thought was so sweet because it was private. Later, I realized how serious it was. Months later. The night before my last day, I was moved to a shared room, which I thought was weird because I was leaving the next day. I wasn’t very wise. My son came home to help me. He was great, even played his guitar and sang for me in the hospital.

When I got home, it was very difficult. I had planned on staying downstairs on this nice couch/bed I had purchased that sat a little higher than a regular sofa bed. That was insane. It was so painful to get up from. The next day I ordered a hospital bed as my bedroom is upstairs. I had trouble even getting my legs up on the bed. Everything was difficult and it was compounded by my weight. My son was upset. He hadn’t seen me in a couple of years, so seeing me so ill and so unable to do anything shocked him. I am assuming he was scared.  I was still rather oblivious to all that had happened with me. I was just thankful to be home and alive.

This is where my journey really got serious. I knew I needed to get some weight off and be healthier. I could barely walk without pain. I would sit in the kitchen on a stool to cook or do dishes. That was a far cry from my life before. I started by taking the walker I was using and trying to just walk a bit throughout the day in the house. This was all during the pandemic and I am thankful that my son could be with me as he lives in California. It was tough though.  I had no real clue how or where to begin. I just started to try eating better, but I had no real plan.

Another friend wanted me to take a National Diabetes Prevention Class online through zoom. She said we could see each other that way. This was in September of 2020. I was extremely resistant. I told her it was closed as the class had already started and the link didn’t work. She emailed the coach and it was opened back up. I had no more excuses, so I signed up just to please my friend. I am not one to do group activities and share that way, but with her push, I did it! It turned out to be a life saver. I received a package through the mail that had these items shown in the picture.

National Diabetes Prevention Kit
My Gift

I had no idea that I had just signed up for a yearlong class, until I read the fine print. That was a shock to me, but it turned out to be a wise commitment. Classes met weekly for the first six months. I learned about reading labels, going low fat, moving more, and what a true portion is….among other things. The biggest thing I learned is how to change my lifestyle. I don’t think I would ever have figured this out without the class and the great coaches. My lifestyle is completely different today. The way I eat and move now I will do for the rest of my life. At least that is my plan.

During that year, I also had to get a cardiologist and deal with the Afib. I had two cardioversions within two weeks of each other. The first one didn’t work. I had to spend three days in the hospital taking a drug called Sotalol.  I had to be watched closely taking this drug. At the end of the three days, I had another cardioversion. This time it worked. I was in sinus rhythm for the next year until sometime in October of 2021. I had a drug change which made me realize that the heart drugs I am on are designed to slow the heart down, so, they slow the metabolism down. I mention this because this all figures into my health journey. I had another cardioversion in January of 2022. It lasted a few weeks. It lasted until I had to deal with the deaths of my brother in-law and brother. My emotions got the best of me and once again I went into Afib. With drug changes, I have been stabilized but I remain in Afib. My resting heart rate is kept well under 100bpm. I don’t really feel it and I can do all kinds of activities and not feel exhausted and tired.

So with all that I was going through, I managed from around August of 2020 to today, June of 2023, to lose 125+ pounds. Most was lost before I had the medicine change but I continue to lose but at a slower steady rate. This has been life changing for me. I swim five days a week at the YMCA 1/3 of mile combining water jogging with dumbbells and hand paddles. I walk much more and I use a vibration platform every morning for twenty minutes. I am a different person. I can move more and I am definitely healthier. My journey isn’t over. I consider myself, much like my art, a work in progress. I am 68 years old. My journey started when I was 65. My point is it is never too late. I am sharing this to hopefully inspire other people. I eventually took another class with the National Diabetes Prevention Program. That one really focused on movement. I probably would have never joined the YMCA without the push from that class. I am thankful for that program and also for my local YMCA where I have discovered so many wonderful caring people. When I have time, I will share my lifestyle plan for those that might want to know what I did and am doing to lose all that weight and keep it off. For now, I just wanted to try an inspire others to not be afraid to try something new to change your life in a positive way.

News flash: As of today when I finally got around to posting this, I am now swimming ½ mile, five days a week…progress!

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Van Gogh in America

  • Posted on January 17, 2023 at 8:51 pm
This is the front of the Detroit Institute of Arts with the “Thinker” showcased.

Countless years ago when I was an art student at Michigan State University, I drove over to the Toledo Art Museum. I remember being mesmerized by a simple Van Gogh painting of wheat fields and crows. I stood there wondering how on earth he could possibly paint wind because it sure seemed like the wind was blowing the wheat. Since then, Vincent has always been my favorite artist. So, when I read about the Van Gogh in America exhibit I really wanted to go. I, the retired woman, who is still afraid of getting Covid and avoids crowded spaces. I told my sister in-law, Freda, about it, and she was all set to join me. All of my mental excuses were gone about traveling and Covid and we made out plans.

We went down on Sunday but purchased our tickets online which meant we were set for 1:30 on Sunday afternoon. We arrived on time and struggled with parking but lucked out in the end by getting the last close space. It only cost $15 which I count as a steal. Entering the Detroit Institute of Art made me realize that thousands of other people were feeling drawn to the exhibit just as I was. Most were unmasked. We masked up but we were definitely in the minority. The line was long as they counted people off and only let so many in at a time. I couldn’t believe the crowd. I am used to attending art museums in quieter settings where you don’t have to climb over people to see the exhibits. Many people seemed like sheep still staying in lines as we moved through the exhibit. We were told once we were in we could go through at our own pace and interests but, alas, people truly remained sheep.

I took many pictures. I was amazed at the breadth and even style changes of Vincent’s work. So many pieces reminded me of other artists as well. I wasn’t expecting that. Some would have been his contemporaries and others must have been influenced by Vincent in some small way.

I noticed that some paintings were larger than I expected them to be after viewing them in books and some were smaller as well. The chair painting seemed like a lonely self portrait of Vincent himself to me. As I was walking through the exhibit I found myself wondering what Vincent would do today with access to all of the different materials and sources available today. Vincent lived a simple life. He didn’t have access to the array of materials and sources we have today. If I want to see someone’s art I can simply Google it. Vincent had his mind and sometimes meager materials. There were times when he didn’t have oils to paint with but he drew. It makes me wonder about what and how he thought. How did he interpret things the way he did. He obviously had a love of the working poor. His paintings and drawings almost caress them as they toil at digging the soil or working at the loom. He sees in them more than the burden they may carry. He sees their humanity. He sees the beauty in the ugly. He caresses their toil as if they are somehow closer to God.

Strangely, the clog and shoe pieces really stood out for me. The shoes made me think about my father. Dad was a teacher and a farmer. He worked harder than any man I know and I respected him more as well. When he died in 2006, I saved his shoes. I don’t know why but I always thought I would draw or paint them. I even moved them with me to my new home. Now, I don’t know exactly where they are as I still have boxes to unpack in the garage. The shoes that Vincent created took me back to daddy. There he was back in my head putting on his shoes and getting ready to go work in his garden. I could feel the love I have for dad in Vincent’s artwork. My emotions were surfacing and it was powerful. Vincent made me think about dad. I wonder what Vincent was thinking when he drew this image that was so powerful in my mind.

Some of Vincent’s landscape scenes were gentle mixtures of a bouquet of colors. Swirling, lovely colors that were dreamy in many ways that made the eyes move gently through the painting. Olive trees that moved in the soft breeze of the day and flowers that swayed in a beautiful array of color. These are magical paintings. How could a man understand the subtle beauty of a bouquet of roses? Vincent painted beautiful flowers that somehow became more beautiful with his brushstrokes. He caressed the flowers and the background as well. My favorite flower painting at the exhibit were these roses. So lovely. I would have bought a mug with those roses on it. I had to settle for one with the master himself, but that’s okay.

There was a simple drawing called Sorrow of a woman who obviously appears to have lost it all. That piece reminded me of Kathe Kollwitz. I wondered if she was ever influenced by Vincent. Her work was from the time of war in Germany so she is way after the time of Vincent but, her drawings have some of the same feeling to me as some of Vincent’s drawings but especially this piece. She may have been influenced by many artists and of course Vincent influences many artists today, even myself. I love the swirly backgrounds and the emotion I feel from Vincent’s work. It moves me unlike other artist’s work. I somehow feel connected to it in ways I don’t always feel from other artists and I don’t always understand.

I saw in a few paintings a definite influence he must have picked up from Georges Seurat. I was surprised by this. Those paintings still had the contrasting colors of brushstrokes but they were very small, very much like the pointillism of Seurat. I was sure on viewing these that he must have respected and loved Seurat’s work. These pieces were more controlled with intense little brushstrokes that were mind boggling when thinking of this man who created over 900 pieces of art in his short life working for around 10 years. How long he must have worked to capture and achieve this affect I cannot imagine. There were some other pieces that reminded me of both Gauguin and Renoir. It must have been exciting for these artists to share their ideas together. Today we have many advantages but what fun it must have been to live amongst other artists and create art for art’s sake. To live, breathe, drink, and eat art. Today we are all wrapped up in our cellphones and social media. It is hard to imagine the life of an artist like Van Gogh living small and yet creating such beauty. It boggles my mind. It is wonderful to take in the rich colors and soft palette of many of his pieces or the bright ones and the wonderful contrast he creates with color. The movement he creates with brushstrokes creates a dreamy, mysterious quality. A still life of fruit suddenly becomes more about the ever moving and gyrating background. I forget the fruit and start lingering on the swirling lines. My eyes are captivated. I ended the show looking at a Starry Night piece. No. Not THE Starry Night as it was absent from the show, but one that is still very captivating none the less. I leave in the darkness of that night feeling like we have received a gift of light from one of the most gifted artists of all time.

We went to the little pop up Van Gogh restaurant where they were serving little French type sandwiches. Nothing really special as the baguette was much too hard for my liking, but the Chocolate mousse type dessert was divine and melted in my mouth. I bought a sketchbook and this mug in the gift shop for my little souvenirs of the day. The best part will be my memory of receiving the gift of love that is Van Gogh. I am hoping this will motivate me to start creating again. He is so inspirational and I hold him deep in my heart as I prepare my studio for more work to be created.

In a final note, the show will run through Sunday, January 22nd, until late into the night. If tickets are still available you can find them here.  https://dia.org/

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Illness and the Pandemic

  • Posted on July 31, 2022 at 12:18 pm

Moving was life changing. I went through 25 years of accumulated stuff from living in Sturgis, 23 at the same home!  I gave things away. I threw things away. I delve through a lifetime of stuff trying to weed out the unnecessary, only to fail a bit because I still have boxes three years later sitting unopened in my garage. So, if you are planning on moving, get rid of more than you are planning.  Moving gave me a clean slate with my home. I could set up each room however I chose not worrying about who I had to please…because I only had to please myself!

I love my new home. I spent a lot fixing up things that needed to be done from roofing, venting, electrical, and fireplace issues. Then I settled into my new home only to find myself moved and in the middle of a pandemic living in a beautiful environment where I didn’t really know anybody. Thankfully, I do have family an hour or so away which kept me sane.

I am used to being by myself. I tend to be a solitary, loner in many ways. I enjoy being alone and finding ways to be creative. I like to make art and write. Drawing, painting, and working with clay are really my loves. I can get lost in time in my own brain which is helpful when faced with the confines of a pandemic. I started using Instacart for shopping and now I prefer it. I really don’t care for grocery shopping as it’s highly overrated!  

In June, I lost a good friend. Ellen died in her sleep. She was only 58 and I will never understand how a healthy person just doesn’t wake up one day. It has been a tragedy that has haunted me for these past two years. She was an amazing person and touched so many people. I worked with her at school. I, of course, was an art teacher and she was a gifted math teacher. My last year teaching, we worked in a group together on some special projects for school. I am so thankful I was in her group. We had a lot of fun in our brainstorming sessions.  Ellen went on a spur of the moment trip with me to look at the house I ended up buying. I had visions of her eventually visiting me on the lake. It never happened. The pandemic happened and then she died. Her death caused me great personal stress. I immediately started having issues, which I tried to deny. I had to go and rest during the day. I felt out of sorts. I tried to walk to the dock and felt dizzy and had to stop and catch myself. In the water, I felt a swirling sensation, like I was going to fall. I thought it was just old age, but it was so much more.

In July, I became deathly ill. Of course, I just thought I would get better. I wasn’t around anyone so I knew it wasn’t Covid. My mail lady even sent the police to check on me because I hadn’t picked up my mail in days. The police came to my dining room window. I had to go down from my bed to see them. I told them I was fine. They said they could get me an ambulance. I said I thought I was getting better. I wasn’t. My sister wanted me to go in. I was resistant. I never doctored much….like next to never. I had only gone once a few years before to the emergency room and it was in the middle of the night and I thought my head was going to explode. I was always told and learned to “tough it out.” There was no toughing this one out. After  listening to my sister, I finally went to the hospital thanks to my brother taking me. I ended up having a complete blockage and a hernia. I spent 10 days in the hospital and had a small section of my intestine removed. It was truly a touch and go time. I was fortunate to finally get the care I needed. I don’t know how much longer I would have lasted with necrotic tissue in my intestines.

Surviving my illness caused me to reevaluate my life. My son came home to help me and it was an eye opener for him. He had never seen his mom in such horrible shape. He was both scared but also angry. Angry because I let myself get to this place. I get that now. I didn’t then. The illness became a blessing in disguise. While in the hospital, they also discovered I have Afib which explains the issues I was having after Ellen died. The symptoms were all part of the Afib diagnosis. Afib is having an abnormal heartbeat, a beat that is not in sinus rhythm. It causes many symptoms including fatigue and dizziness. This diagnosis as well as the hernia and blockage made me realize I needed to change my lifestyle. I began a challenge for myself. I wanted to get healthier. In my next writing, I will tell how I did this and what I am currently doing. I am still amazed at what I have accomplished but there is always more to come, so stay tuned!

My kitchen with Ellen looking at the home I eventually bought!
Just a few of the countless boxes I moved!
A glimpse of my new home!

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Retirement

  • Posted on June 14, 2022 at 3:10 pm
Lake Cadillac Beautiful Sunset
Living room Sunset view of Lake Cadillac

I have been neglecting this website for years. Not because of a lack of caring but probably because of life in general. Four years ago I retired from teaching. Since then I have been making some big moves and life changes. I still am interested in art and politics as well as education but life interrupts many ideas and plans.

I had one goal for retirement. I wanted to move to a place where I could have a lake view. I have accomplished that goal.  Originally, I was going to stay around Sturgis as there are beautiful lakes there and I was part of the community. However, after my brother, Zike, moved to Leelanau County from Alaska, I started to want more connections with family. My son had moved to California and I had looked into potentially moving there but sadly I don’t have enough money for California. The housing costs there are ridiculous! I grew up in an extremely large family of fourteen kids. I felt drawn back to get to know my family better. I started thinking about my roots in the Maple City area. One night I realized that my heart yearned for family, so I changed my retirement destination. I looked around Traverse City and the surrounding area. I even considered Big Rapids but not that seriously. Property in the Grand Traverse and Leelanau counties was very difficult to find in a price range I could afford. I was almost going to give up my lake dream as I had sold my home and had around 20 days to find a place to move to. I was still looking at Zillow on my own when a property popped up in Cadillac that made me immediately call my realtor and ask for a viewing. After making plans with my friend, Ellen, we made a quick trip to Cadillac and the rest is history.

Moving was a bit crazy but my brothers, Zike and Bob, were super and helped me get moved. They essentially moved my art/pottery studio and the guys I hired moved my house stuff. Even though I purged a lot of stuff and had given things away….I should have gotten rid of more. Here I am three years later with boxes in my garage that I have not yet unpacked.  However, my home is my dream. I have the view I dreamed of and I love it even in the winter when it is cold and gloomy.  The lake is alive and always reminds me of a breathing being with the ebb and flow of the water. I am proud of my life and what I did not just as a single mom, artist/potter, art teacher, but also as a person making goals.

I am hoping that my story and life appeals to other people and if it does, please feel free to interact with me through comments.

Lake View
View From My Porch

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Retirement Here I Come

  • Posted on June 17, 2018 at 11:27 am

mug

Retirement, here I come.  Wow, I have worked so hard for so many years!  It is a little daunting to think that when my fellow teachers are getting ready in August for the next school year, I will be just doing my thing.

This year I wanted things to be special for my students.  I wanted to celebrate my retirement, so I did.  I made it possible for students to win prizes from me.  I did drawings at the end of the school year and around 100 students got prizes.  I gave out everything from special mugs, to art supplies, to my Staples “Easy” button.  It was a lot of fun seeing my students get so many things from me.  I know it sounds crazy, but I really liked giving them something from me.

When I was in second grade, we knew we were moving for the next school year.  My teacher, Mrs. Schmidt, gave me a case for my books.  I treasured that case and she was always my favorite teacher because of her thoughtfulness.  I wanted my students to feel special, just like I felt.

I noticed over the past school year that I was having a brain shift.  Instead of thinking about school all of the time, I started thinking more and more about what I wanted to do in retirement.  The major thing I want to do is get back in my pottery studio and start working again.  However, I also want to work with two dimensional art materials. So, of course, I have been pulling things apart in my home in an effort to eventually make things more streamlined for the things I want to do.  Leaving school was a massive event because I had twenty five years of material built up that I brought from home to donate to the cause.  Art teachers really are the best pack rats around.  We save everything.  Much of that has now come home and I am a bit overwhelmed with the amount of books and things I have saved over the years.  If I was smart, I would pretend I didn’t see any of this and just dump it. However, I love my books and I know there is no way I am going to dump them.  I have a lot of research I have also done with middle school art.  What do I do with that?  Do I add to my other blog and help motivate young teachers?  I have no idea whether I will do that or not.  I just know that I love all things art and I am happy that I will be able to spend days pursuing my own interests in art, whatever they may be.

So, back to the home front here, where do I begin?  I have created this really cool room in the basement for creating two dimensional art but I have a lot of stuff to put away yet and of course I am avoiding that at the moment.  After spending so much time getting the art room ready for the next art teacher, I am so tired of going through “shit”.  Can you blame me?  I guess I will hope that by summer’s end my house is in good art making form.  Seriously, it needs to be before that…but there is so much to do.

I told my son I was thinking of renting a dumpster.  Oh, he was all for that and even suggested that I get rid of some other stuff.  Of course, I have already been thinking that way because some day I still might like to end up at my dream destination of a nice home on a lake!  Nobody wants to move a bunch of stuff they never use!  It all takes organization and drive.  I have little of either at the moment.  I just want to relax and destress from the busy spring I have had.  I just wish I had the strength to move heavy boxes.  It is frustrating as hell to not be as strong as I was when I was younger.  I have to call up friends and ask them to help…so hard for someone like me to do!

So, with all of this on my mind, I had a proud moment when I finally turned in my keys and went home.  I thought about my parents and how proud they would have been of me.  They knew about the $30,000 debt I was left with when I went through the divorce.  They knew that I raised my son from the time he was just two months old….all by myself.  They knew that I struggled at times and didn’t have health insurance for myself while I was out selling pottery to make a living.  They knew that I would do anything for my son, so I went without many things to provide for him.  They knew that when I was considering going back to teaching that it was money always that got in the way.  They loaned me money to make that possible.  They knew that it was also a struggle for me to move away from the comfort of living near them to take this job opportunity down at Sturgis.  They knew that I did everything I could to pay them back all that I owed them.  When I sold my house up north, I paid Daddy back.  Mom, had already passed away by that time.  I owe everything I am to my parents.  They gave me so much in the way of who I really am.  What I believe about the world and people, I owe to them.  Over the years, I was careful with money and figured out ways to build my retirement with what is called that third legged stool.  I owe that whole philosophy to my parents.  I knew I couldn’t retire until I would not a burden for anyone else.  I had a goal in mind that a couple financial planners said I needed to obtain.  I met that goal and knew I would retire this year because of it.  So, when all is said and done, I know my parents would be proud of me.  However, most of us don’t get to have our biggest cheerleaders with us when we retire and especially, not the baby of a large family of fourteen kids!

So, as I move into my retirement, I will eventually get this place organized like I want it.  If you stop in and think I am a bit in disarray, just be patient with me because I am now on retirement time!

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It Wasn’t Me!

  • Posted on November 6, 2016 at 6:04 pm

Whenever anything breaks in my art classroom, my students will all say, “It wasn’t me.”  I always find it fairly funny that no one wants to take responsibility for their actions when something goes wrong in my classroom.  However, my students have learned this behavior from what they see happening in the real world.  I have avoided writing on my blog for some time because I have just been so damn mad at the Democratic Party and the rigged primary election…that I just had nothing to say.  Words escaped me for many months.  I have decided to just let everyone know that regardless of what happens on Tuesday, it wasn’t me.

I am not voting for the lesser of two evils: Clinton or Trump.  That is like asking me if I want to be swindled or groped.  I will pass.  I am voting for Jill Stein, someone that I really have great respect for and admire.

I really don’t know what will happen although I suspect with all of the powerbrokers on Clinton’s side that they will manage to get her the election through hook or crook.  It is shocking to me that no matter what she does, no one sees what she does as illegal, corrupt, and/or dishonoring of the office of the presidency.  The fact that she can even run is shocking to me.  She can let her maid look at her documents for printing or she can sell arms to countries that will probably put them into the hands of people that will kill American troops and get her payback through the Clinton Foundation.  She can mishandle and ungodly number of documents that any teacher knows shouldn’t be done in a school setting let alone a government setting where people’s lives may be at risk.  She can make every poor decision from Iraq, to Libya, to Syria, and still be called the “most qualified person” to ever run for office.  She can get questions from Donna Brazile before a debate with Bernie, showing just what a cheater she is and nobody seems to care.

I feel like my party, my Democratic Party, has abandoned me.  So, I left them this summer.  It was a mutual breakup.  They said they didn’t need me.  They really despised those Bernie supporters and decided they would court the Republicans.  Now, it is interesting to see them coming to Michigan trying to get all those voters to get in line to vote for the most corrupt politician of modern times.  I refuse to line up for that one as I have some self respect left.  I finally figured out that the Democrats have been making us all swallow a bitter pill for many, many years.  I just have to give a shout-out for Jimmy Dore because he really does tell it like it is.  He pulls that scab off really fast.  It is only painful for a moment and then you are left with the thought of how damn stupid you have been all of these years voting for the lesser of two evils.  It didn’t really get you anything.

I think our country is in a very bad place.  Both parties have lost their way.  Neither of them properly represents the American people.  If they did, we would not have so many poor and one paycheck away from being poor people in this country.  This article is a real eye opener and everyone knows how expensive it is to live today.  http://www.alternet.org/economy/real-numbers-half-america-poverty-and-its-creeping-upward

Healthcare for the average person is unobtainable if it isn’t paid by his or her employer.  After this election, is it going to change?  We seem to want to put all of our money into war or war goods.  We aren’t taking care of our people, infrastructure, or anything else that really matters to most people.  Education has become a testing nightmare being taken over by private corporations.  Higher education is becoming unobtainable for many, as it is so expensive.  So, what are people to do?

I think we need a third party.  I am voting for Jill Stein in the hope that she can get that magic 5% that will help get the Green Party federal funding and be allowed to be on all state ballots.  I encourage others to do the same.  My vote does mean something.  I am trying to break the duopoly of the two parties that are a cancer on our country.  If more people would realize that we can take our country back, if we revolt from this system that has been set up to provide a feeding ground for corrupt politicians; then maybe we will survive.  However, if we keep going like we are our environment won’t last let alone ourselves.  I am begging people to think about another alternative.  Hillary has been beating a drum for war with Russia.  Troops have been readied for this.  She will not stand up for us.  She will stand up for those corporations that keep giving her money.  To think that she will magically be someone different than she has been her whole life is to be a fool.  I am not a fool and my vote will count for what I want, not what the Democratic Party wants and not what Hillary wants.  Just remember, she was a Goldwater Girl. I will vote for Jill Stein and I hope someone reading this will also think about doing it as well!  Regardless, pray for peace people! It is mind boggling to think that we could have had a President Sanders!  Just remember…it wasn’t me!

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Yes, You Can Leave Your Abusive Spouse: The Democrats

  • Posted on July 17, 2016 at 8:23 pm

I have been a lifelong Democrat.  I have spent many years actually arguing that Democrats are not as bad as Republicans.  Yes, I know that is kind of a silly argument because bad is bad.  Just how bad does one have to be to be a better bad than the other guy?  I have finally realized that to continue this relationship is akin to continue being married to an abusive partner.

We all know the arguments about spousal abuse but let me share my thoughts about this.  The abuser holds all of the cards because the one being abused actually feels powerless.  The abuser cajoles us with that thought that they will change.  It is kind of like Hillary saying she will actually push for many of Bernie’s ideas; after all, the Democrats have included some on the Democratic platform.  Isn’t that proof enough that she will be a better spouse?  I think we all know of that spouse that says they will go to counseling and then he/she never goes back after the first session, or the spouse that isn’t going to drink anymore, but goes out on another bender.  Even though Hillary, Bill, and Democrats did everything they could to short our votes from Bill showing up at polling places, to magically having many voter registrations disappear or change voting preferences, to white out on Bernie’s name, to many other obstacles put in the way of Independent and Democratic voters, including strange exit polls not matching results, we are now all supposed to hold hands and sing “Kumbaya”.

We all see the abuse coming.  We know when we are going to get punched in the gut.  We brace for it and hope it isn’t going to be too hard this time.  Then when Hillary starts working on Social Security with the Republicans, we better get used to the idea of working longer and having less to retire on.  It is then that we will feel that punch in the gut.  If you aren’t sure what Hillary will do, well, it’s because she is always saying different things.  It depends which audience she is with at the time.  http://www.salon.com/2016/04/15/hillarys_social_security_mess_a_frustrating_half_embrace_of_a_good_policy/

Hillary and the Democrats are going to guilt you, just like your abusive spouse.  When your spouse tells you to stay to keep the kids together, you feel like your braking up your kids lives for something worse than a parent that abuses the other one.  The Democrats will say we must stay with them because of the Supreme Court.  That has been the kids in this relationship the whole time.  What will the kids do, if we leave our spouse?  Heaven forbid what will happen!  If you are staying out of fear, the abuse is only going to get worse.  How else could these Democrats continue to claim to be against so many things that happened on the Supreme Court like Citizen United and then turn around and embrace them by dismantling prohibitions on receiving money from lobbyist and political action committees?  http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/business-a-lobbying/269266-dnc-rolls-back-restrictions-on-lobbyist-donations

Some people put up with abuse because they don’t think they can survive on their own.  Their spouse makes the money.  How can they ever make it on their own?  I can say it is difficult but really don’t you already feel alone?   Your spouse may be sitting next to you but he/she is not really there for you.  Just like the Democrats, they are only there when they need something.  Right now, they need your vote. You have power; you just don’t know it yet.  Trust me, as soon as they get it, they will be back to their old philandering abusive ways.  If you think you are going to get that health care they promised you, think again.  Anyone that has really researched and read about healthcare, whether they are Republicans or Democrats down deep knows the system we have is broken.  It is time to embrace single payer.  Single payer will cost less for everyone, including business which is what the Republicans should be embracing.  At my own school, we have a tiered system.  If you want better insurance, you have to pay more.  The top insurance in order to insure a family is now pushing the unbelievable number of around $25k a year, a year!  Did I say a year?  The school has to cough up nearly $17K and the teacher around $8K.  Who can afford this besides someone like Hillary and Bill that get $250K for a speech?  As to single payer, I will always remember Hillary saying, “Never, ever!”

As you can see, Hillary tends to flip flop on her ideas, not unlike your abusive spouse who can appear so kind and loving one minute and fly off the handle the next.

You can survive without that abuse.  In fact, you will grow stronger the longer you stay away from it and start realizing your own self worth.  I know it is difficult to leave.  You may be Catholic, much like me, and you may be thinking that marriage is supposed to last a lifetime.  You have been indoctrinated after all.  Maybe your parents were Democrats that talked about FDR and JFK, much like mine did.  However, while you were sleeping, your abusive mate switched personalities just like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.  The Democratic Party is the same way.  Many years ago, too many to count, they were a party of principles.  They had ideas much like FDR and JFK.  They believed in people, not corporations.  They stood for minorities and women’s issues, now they stand for corporations!  They were the party, you could believe in.  Now, they are much like that abusive mate that tells you what he/she thinks you want to hear and then does whatever the hell they want to do.

All of my life, I have stood up for the Democratic Party.  I have supplied excuses for them when they put up someone I am not too crazy about for the presidency.  They have had some candidates that were really strong progressives, but sadly, they were always taken out and usually by some stupid thing, much like the “Dean scream”, where a mountain was made out of a mole hill.  That scream had nothing to do with policy and everything to do with just getting rid of Dean.  Then along came Bernie Sanders, a seventy four year old Jewish guy with a passion for the people.  I am sure the Democratic Party thought it was a hoot that Bernie was going to run as a Democrat.  I can recall many times when different Hillary supporters told us he wasn’t a “real” Democrat and he was a SOCIALIST!  Heaven forbid.  They failed to remind us that Hillary started out with Republican roots.  It was like he was a demon from some dark and dreary place, but we all listened to Bernie.  He was the messenger.  He was the guy talking policy.  He told us our country could be so much better.  He told us that there is a future we could believe in and I believed him.  I still believe in Bernie.

The Democratic Party has fooled me way too many times.  This year, I did my research, just like past years.  I learned all about dark money, the Clinton Foundation, Wall Street speeches that I cannot find the transcripts for, and a Secretary of State’s Office that made up their own rules.  Hillary Clinton was investigated by the FBI and still may be being investigated.  We have been told it is a vast right wing conspiracy but sorry Democrats, I have found out there is some there actually there.  Why the Democrats have chosen to put up their weakest candidate shocks me but also make me think they must all be as deeply flawed and corrupt as she is.  They know she is lying and yet they keep telling us not to believe what we are seeing and hearing.  It is about semantics and that word “is”.  How Barack Obama can say she is the most qualified candidate to ever run for office is just mind blowing to me and an insult to every other person that has run for the presidency.   Yet, those are the words that her stand-ins keep using, “The Most Qualified” person.

FBI director Comey told us all the terrible things she did to expose our country’s deepest secrets but declined to indict her because of the word “intent”.  Intent is hard to prove in any case, but I don’t think the law was written with the word “intent” in it.   Now, sometimes laws do say intent.  Like the time, many years ago, when I was a juror on a marijuana case where the state was trying to prove that a guy was intending to sell marijuana.  When we met as jurors, we all thought it was a stupid case because we didn’t feel they proved intent.  How do we know what he intended to do?  We knew they had an undercover officer.  Why didn’t they wait to see if actually sold the drug? Now, Hillary will have another excuse for perjury charges.  She didn’t intend to lie.  She thought she was telling the truth.  There is such blow back of years of Clinton scandal that I can see that I don’t want a future where we are constantly lied to, by a Democrat no less.  It was bad enough when Republicans did it, like “lying” us into war!  Just connect the dots with all of these articles and think about what is going on!  https://medium.com/@blairerickson/the-iceberg-7eb3ea7a68e2#.tru1ojmq3

We have also been told by both corrupt two parties that we have to choose between bad and worse, that whole lesser of two evil things.  We can vote for lying Hillary or lying Donald.  Which one is worse?  I am a moral person.  I am not a liar.  I am a person that has convictions and believes in building a better world.  I think our youth are the future and I am so worried about that future.  What are our kids going to have besides a mountain of debt, poor health insurance, and insecurity?  We tell them to go on to school which gives them an ungodly amount of debt.  When they get out, they have to deal with predatory lenders which make many of their lives a living hell. Many settle for jobs that are beneath their education.  Others delay getting married, buying a house, or other things because they are so stressed about their student debt.  When they get their job, they discover that many of the perks have vanished, such as in the world of education.  A teacher could usually count on good health insurance and some day, a decent pension.  Well, those new young teachers don’t get what the old ones had.  I know this is true for many other careers as well.  Our youth are getting the shaft.  Now, they have this one opportunity to change the world.  They could elect a real progressive and somehow through all the Democratic manipulations they are stuck with the Democratic standard bearer of Hillary Clinton.  I think having our youth put up with more of same old political shenanigans is the biggest form of abuse imaginable.

So, I, being the good parent I am, will no longer put up with that abuse.  I know my child will be better off with a different future. Bernie’s message resonated with me unlike any message in my past.  If Bernie Sanders is not the nominee, I will vote for Jill Stein.  I suggest that every young person and parent of a young person should do the same.  Her stands on the issue are very much like Bernie Sanders.  Here is a really good reason to vote for Jill.  Just listen to what she is saying and think about how the banks were bailed out.  We need a revolution in this country and the only reason a third party can’t make it is because we have never had the guts to go all in and make it happen.  I suggest that the time is now.  Bernie was a once in a lifetime candidate.  We will never have another chance with a candidate like him, at least not in my lifetime.  If the Democratic Party is allowed to get away, once again, with their fraud of a primary election, they will become even worse, not better.  Don’t let them steal your vote any longer.  Vote for who you believe in, not some promise you know will never come.

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Feeling the Bern

  • Posted on March 2, 2016 at 7:00 pm

Feeling the Bern

I am a sixty-year-old woman that had pretty much given up on having a candidate to vote for that was not the lesser of two evils.  This year, my dream candidate arrived in an unlikely package of a seventy four year old man that calls himself a Democratic Socialist.  I see Bernie Sanders as my once in lifetime political candidate cut in the model of FDR.  He is running a campaign that is both positive, which is how I have always lived my life, and issues oriented.  The appeal for me is the way he includes everyone in the process.  He knows he needs the people to be with him, not just for the vote but to make anything happen.  It really is not about him; it is about us!  How unusual that in politics today where most candidates are so full of themselves that they can’t even understand how us little people live, we have an opportunity to vote for a person that has always stood up for the people and is willing to take this on, even if it is the last thing he does!

I have had people say to me that he is too old.  My father lived to be ninety-seven and was a sharp person.  I feel no one has an expiration date stamped on his or her forehead.  Some people unfortunately die young; others seem blessed with long life.  Bernie’s ideas and platform have called me to him.  He believes we can make this country better and I believe it as well.  If other countries can provide universal healthcare, why can’t we?  My sister died an early death because she didn’t have health insurance.  I feel strongly about this topic.  I have given money to people on Go Fund me pages because they needed money for surgeries.  This should not be happening in our country.  A poor person’s life should be as valuable as a wealthy person’s life.  Republicans like to call us a Christian Nation.  I don’t particularly care for that label, as I believe in a separation of church and state.  However, if you want to go with that idea, then what would Jesus do?  Would he let people die on the street or suffer?  I doubt it.

AS far as tuition free public colleges go, I am all for this.  As a teacher, we have been pushing for college for everyone for the last several years.  Unfortunately, college is largely unaffordable for most people of lower and middle economic standing and thus unattainable.  I believe we need to be an educated nation.  It is better for our work force and it helps to teach tolerance of other people’s ideas.  We should be embracing college for all that are able to withstand the rigors of a higher education.  We should also be investing in trade schools as well.  I recently read an article about many American students going to Germany for their free college program.  http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-32821678

Germany wants an educated work force and they know some of those foreign students are probably going to stay there and be productive in Germany using what they have learned.  Our country needs to embrace the concept of free tuition for public colleges.  Our kids are the future of this nation.  Do we really want some of our best and brightest students to skip college because they can’t afford it or leave after a year because they have accrued too much debt?  Do we want our children enticed to live in other countries because they have a better life style?  Do we want our children facing massive college debt that largely forces them into years and years of an ever-growing debt payment that sometimes gets larger because they can’t get the principal down on their paltry salaries?  I think we can do better as a nation.  We seem to have plenty of money for prisons and war.  Maybe we need to invest in our children first!

A few years ago, I read that the cost to house a prisoner at the little prison in Coldwater, Michigan was around $27,000 a year.  Most schools in Michigan are getting around $7000-$7500 to educate students.  I know that most prisons cost like double the figure from Coldwater, so that seems like a bargain.  However, from my point of view, I could see that money easily spent on educating people instead of building prisons and especially those “for profit” institutions.  Bernie also has talked about how the years from 0-4 are so important for children’s future well-being.  He wants affordable childcare for parents that have to work.  He has mentioned getting the proper training for the childcare workers so these children can be in a loving environment where they are nourished.

Bernie wants to invest in our country.  He knows our infrastructure is pathetic.  We need everything repaired.  There hasn’t been much invested in this country in years.  Why can’t we invest in our country?  We spend an unbelievable amount of money on these wars that seem endless to me.  I think we need to invest in our roads, our water systems, affordable housing, airports, modern transportation systems that move the masses, and building businesses that can thrive in this country.

Bernie believes in the American people and he will do everything he can to keep jobs here.  He has been against many of the trade bills that have devastated our country and moved so many of our jobs out of this country.  He bellows on and on about the 1% and how much they own and how little the rest of us own.  He has ignited a flame in the people with that bellow and it is what happens when he tells it like it is to the masses.  He asks us to have the courage to join him.  How can we not join the man who has dedicated his life to the people of this country?

This ad means so much to me.  I look at my students in school and I see all of them in this ad.  Yes, I know that the ad features adults but I see my students.  I think our country needs to come together and be the best that we can be.

TOGETHER from HUMAN on Vimeo.

Now some people might be wondering why I am not a Hillary Clinton supporter.  Back in 2008, I was a John Edwards supporter because of his issues addressing poverty and healthcare.  He was a flawed candidate and I moved on to Hillary Clinton and had an opportunity to attend a rally at South Bend, Indiana.  I was impressed with her and left supporting her.  Naturally, when she came into this election, my first impulse was for Hillary and that first woman president concept.  However, I study politics and read a lot about what is happening.  I discovered that Hillary was involved in things over the last eight years that really left me wondering what I ever saw in her.  It’s the whole money thing.  My son is always asking me when is enough enough?  Why do the rich always want more?  Her speeches to Wall Street firms for hundreds of thousands of dollars just put a nail on that coffin for me.  Her ties to Wall Street, the $350 some thousand that a Wal-Mart billionaire put into the Hillary Victory fund, her questionable ethics when she was Secretary of State, and the interesting Clinton Foundation donations during that time are inexcusable.  To add to this, she pushes for troops on the ground and war, which has created crises in Libya and Syria and make me see her as a very flawed candidate.  When she said we would never, ever have single payer, I wondered why anyone would support her.  Her constant use of the word “I” and not “We”, (Well lately, she seems to have gotten that message.) tell me she just doesn’t get it.  She has really become the candidate of the “establishment” Democrats.  This, for me, is just unacceptable and excessively far right of where I want the Democrats to be.

In reality, I feel like my party has abandoned me in favor of a center right party that appears to be a lot like the old Republican Party before it went very crazy.  I find myself unsubscribing from emails, un-liking Democratic candidates on Facebook, and very discouraged by the direction my party is going.  I see people pretty much the way Bernie does when he was asked a question about religion which I will share in the video below.  I believe we should be giving each other a hand up not stepping on people’s fingers when they are trying to pull themselves up out of despair, poverty, suffering, getting an education, getting a job, and volunteering.  We are all connected and it is time we all see what Bernie sees.

I can’t seem to embed this video, so here is the link.  I get the link to work so you will have to copy it and paste it into another url tab.  I am sorry you will have endure the ad first.  I guarantee it is worth watching.

http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc-quick-cuts/watch/bernie-sanders-gets-personal-on-religion-629654595662

 

 

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The Summer of Trump

  • Posted on August 27, 2015 at 4:50 pm

This summer has been an interesting one for politics.  I have always had an interest in politics and I love watching what Senator Bernie Sanders has been doing.  However, according to the media treatment and attention, it is the summer of “Trump”.  I don’t know if Donald Trump will sustain his lead but he has managed to keep his name in the news on a daily basis.  None of the Republican candidates seem to have any conceivable idea of how to take him on, so he wins!

I listen to Trump and the things he says flabbergast me.  He has no filter and that seems to be what the people following him like about him.  He appears openly racist towards Mexican people by referring to the children born here of undocumented Mexicans as “anchor babies”.  He wants to change the 14th Amendment so that birthright doesn’t necessarily happen.  He also seems to have issues with women and a variety of other people that try to call him out on his behavior.  Whatever he says and does seems make him stronger; no matter how ridiculous he sounds to me or anyone else that finds his behavior disturbing.

With all of this, I wanted to share what has been on my mind and it is somewhat funny.  I see Donald Trump as being a lot like Vladimir Putin.  They are both powerful men that are full of themselves.  As a woman living in a patriarchal society, to me, they come from the same cloth.  This past year our country has been perturbed with Vladimir Putin for all of his antics.  Many times the media tries to make fun of him.  It might be his antics of running around shirtless or some other form that they show to convince us he is horrible.  I don’t personally know what either of these men is truly like.  I just know how they both come across through the mass media and that is what I will share with you.

When I see Trump looking smug, I also see Putinvp courtesey vanity fair looking like this.

THE CELEBRITY APPRENTICE -- Episode 912 -- Pictured: Donald Trump -- Photo by: Ali Goldstein/NBC

THE CELEBRITY APPRENTICE — Episode 912 — Pictured: Donald Trump — Photo by: Ali Goldstein/NBC

Trump with an eagle, Putin with a leopard.putin with animal

martin schoeller courtesy of time mag

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trump’s view of women, Putin’s view of women.

darren decker, miss universe organization120+putin+approve+femen+at+hannover+my+gawd+dat+putin_f89cf3_4528458

 

Okay, not Trump but his kids swimming with dolphins. Putin swimming with dolphins.trumps kids swimming with dolphins

courtesy of buzzfeed
Trump on Time, Putin on Time.donald-trump-01-435

courtesy time

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trump at the Central Park Horse Show, Putin on a horse.trump at the central Park horse show

vladimir-horse

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trump with puppy, Putin with Puppy.donald-trump-435

VLADIMIR-PUTIN-WITH-DOG

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trump with gun, Putin with gun.

Trump-gun

Picture taken on September 14, 2009 shows Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin examining a rifle during a visit to a weapons manufacturing facility in Tula. Putin made a routine working visit to the town and surrounding region. AFP PHOTO / RIA NOVOSTI / POOL / ALEXEY DRUZHININ (Photo credit should read ALEXEY DRUZHININ/AFP/Getty Images)

Picture taken on September 14, 2009 shows Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin examining a rifle during a visit to a weapons manufacturing facility in Tula. Putin made a routine working visit to the town and surrounding region. AFP PHOTO / RIA NOVOSTI / POOL / ALEXEY DRUZHININ (Photo credit should read ALEXEY DRUZHININ/AFP/Getty Images)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trump shirtless (Sorry, this one is photoshopped.), Putin shirtless (Not photoshopped).donalld-trump-shirless (1)

epa01091304 Russian President Vladimir Putin enjoys fishing on the Khemchik River in Republic of Tuva 15 August 2007. EPA/DMITRY ASTAKHOV RIA NOVOSTI/KREMLIN POOL

epa01091304 Russian President Vladimir Putin enjoys fishing on the Khemchik River in Republic of Tuva 15 August 2007. EPA/DMITRY ASTAKHOV RIA NOVOSTI/KREMLIN POOL

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trump with Bush #1, Putin with Bush #2!from getty image

chinadaily.com.cn

 

 

 

 

 

Trump with Hillary, Putin with Hillary.
trump_clintonfrom mir-politika.ru

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trump on Mexicans.

Putin on Gays.

ABC Latest News | Latest News Videos

Maybe with these images and videos you can now understand why Trump merely reminds me of Putin!

I posted this here just for a laugh, although the election is really, in my mind, no laughing matter.  However, in the mood of what this post is about, here are two final images brought to you from the minds of photoshoppers online that show you just how silly Trump and Putin can be made to look.

Trump on a lion (photoshopped), Putin on a bear (photoshopped or not?).trump on lion

putin on bear

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Workplace Deaths

  • Posted on July 13, 2015 at 5:17 pm

This past year I have noticed several incidents of work place deaths around the country and especially right here in Michigan.  I always notice these ever since my nephew had his hand cut off while working a summer job after he graduated from high school.  I am acutely aware of issues related to safety in the work place because of my own nephew’s loss.  However, I believe most people are unaware of safety issues even in their own work places.  Most of us assume that we are not at risk of injury or death when we go to work and we believe that our employer is looking out for our best interests at work.  In most circumstances, this may be true, but sadly, it is not true for all circumstances.  I am writing this today just to make even one person more aware of the safety issues that may come up while they are at work.

Here is an astounding statistic that I took word for word form Mibiz online.

“Every person who leaves for work in the morning in good health should expect to return home at night in good health. That did not happen for over 117,000 Michiganders in 2013.” – See more at: http://mibiz.com/item/22206-10-essential-elements-of-a-safe-workplace#sthash.HhdkxKCE.dpuf

Two recent cases brought all of this up for me once again.  In Ionia, Michigan, Wanda Holbrook recently died when she was caught in some kind of robotic machinery at Ventra Ionia Main, a company that makes auto bumpers, trailer hitches, and some kind of plastic parts.  She was a maintenance worker.  The case is being investigated by MIOSHA, so I don’t know what if any violations were made at this time.  In Germany, a man was also killed by robotic equipment at a VW plant.  It grabbed him and crushed his chest against machinery.  These two cases stood out for me as they both involved some kind of robotic machinery.  After reading about these two cases, I decided to look at some other cases involving worker deaths.

This poor kid, Jeremy Mc Spadden, Jr., probably never thought his life would end playing a zombie at a corn maze, but it did.  Workers were paid $50 a night to dress up like zombies and run through the corn while paid customers rode a bus loaded up with paintball guns and shot at them.  What could possibly go wrong?  The company was fined because of the risk they put the workers at with the uneven terrain and the lack of instruction on what to do if their goggles obstructed their vision.  The kid ended up being run over by the bus!

A worker out in California at Bumble Bee Foods was performing maintenance on a 35-foot oven when another worker filled the pressure cooker with tuna and turned it on.  Here is a good video with an interview with his daughter.  I am sure his death would have been prevented, if some good safety procedures had been in place.

I came across a document from the National Council for Safety and Health that is very interesting and actually a quick study.  It highlights seven preventable deaths.  Each person deserved better and died a preventable death.  At their website, you can find out just what your rights as a worker are as most people just don’t think about these things.  I suggest that you give all of this some thought and think about your own job and whether it seems safe or has potential safety issues that should be addressed.  http://www.coshnetwork.org/

Andrew Beckman

In some cases as work is moved out to other countries and factories are closed completely or streamlined with fewer employees, people become more desperate about their jobs.  Sometimes they will work in situations that they may even know are not safe because they need to take care of their families and are holding on to their version of the American dream.  A Michigan steel worker was killed on the job back in 2014.  He was loading steel rods onto a flatbed by himself when they shifted and landed on him.  A full five minutes went by before anyone found him.  I am sure this man would have been better served working with another person.  So, what do you think was the price of Andrew’s life?  The company was cited by MIOSHA for $4900 for basically improperly training him with using a special sling to lift the 3000 pound load.

Another man in Michigan died just this month when he fell at a Walker packaging company.  His death is being investigated.

Many people probably still remember the worker who was crushed last year working at Grand Rapids Plastic, Inc.  Recently, they received a hefty fine for many safety violations.  I remember reading about the case last year.  Many of the people comented in the online article on the unsafe work environment at the plant, many were people currently working there.  People will take many jobs to take care of their families and sometimes they are unsafe.  His wife has retained Geoffrey Fieger as her lawyer.  This is probably a good move on her part but it certainly won’t bring him back.  I heard her on the news and I do know that she wants justice for her husband.

These accidents are happening all over our country and of course, around the world.  The big question is which of these are truly accidents and which are preventible?  One of the things that I came across about MIOSHA and the fines was that they usually negoitiate with the companies and the fines end up being half of the original cost.  Supposedly, the company is expected to take the balance of the money and put it towards better safety protocol.  I am sure some use it wisely and other companies seem to turn up with more violations year after year.

This was not a happy post.   I wasn’t trying to make anyone happy even though I am a very optimistic person.  I am merely trying to get people to become more aware of their own workplace environment and that of their children.  Over the years, I remember talking to students that were repeatedly burned by grease at fast food restaurants.  I am thinking maybe they could wear special gloves or there must be some way to shield them from exposure to the grease but it is time people started letting their inner voice question some of the things they are asked to do at work.  Are you slicing or grinding up meat?  Has anyone really taught you the safe way to do that?  Speak up if you think you know a safer, better way to do something.  Talk to other people on the job.  Just how did that guy lose his finger?  Was it really his fault or was something malfunctioning on the machine he was working on?  Sometimes, people are asked to multi-task, not the safest thing to do if you are cutting something.  When I am at school using my paper cutter, I am very aware of how easily I could lose a bit of my fingers.  Students are always talking and asking questions.  Sometimes, I just stop them and tell them I have to focus on cutting paper because I don’t want to be cut.  Many have asked me if I have ever cut myself.  Thankfully, I haven’t but I am keenly aware of others that have had that misfortune.  Please take your safety at work seriously.  When you get in your car, you buckle up.  When you go to work, make sure you are rested and aware of your surroundings, and up on any safety protocol!

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