Well, it's that time of year again that American families come together to celebrate Thanksgiving. For my international family/friends, click here to find out the history behind Thanksgiving. As Thanksgiving is a holiday that we are supposed to be thankful, I'd like to write about what I am thankful for...

1. My life. God blessed me enough to allow me to wake up this morning. Yes, it's not always great. Yes, there is strife. Yes, there are times when it just sucks. That doesn't mean that I hate my life. I've had a great life overall. I have a place to live. I have a job which has had its ups and downs, but everyone goes through that (I've got to work on Thanksgiving Day and the day after). I have money to buy food and clothing. I have a SUV which gets me where I want/need to go. What more should a person want?

2. My wife. She's the best. God has blessed me and I'm very lucky to have the wife that I have. For those who don't know, my wife was born and raised in the Philippines. God was kind enough to lead me to her. At times I think about all the decisions that I had made prior to meeting her for the first time and it makes my head swim as I think had I not joined the Navy, had I not gone to Japan (because I had to opportunity to go to the Philippines, but in doing so I would have never met her because I would have never gone where she lived), had I not gone to her sister's specifically to me her for the first time Thanksgiving 1993. She really takes good care of me. We've been living apart for the past year and a half, yet she's still willing to be with me. She lives in Jacksonville, Florida taking care of our house while I'm in Picayune, Mississippi on my last tour of duty. It's about a 10 hour drive one way for me to go see her, so I don't go that much. I go about once every 5 weeks or so. There has been a few times when it has been two months, but again she is willing to stay with me even though we don't get to see that much of each other.

3. Our family; both mine and my wife's.

God has blessed me with a family that has and continues to take really good care of me. Most of you know about my family, but not all. When I was one year old, I was adopted by a family that looks nothing like me. My mom is Irish and my dad is German. Made my life interesting at times when I was little. This was in 1971, so I was adopted by a family who was able to look past the color of my skin which was a big deal back then. My dad's sister was able to do the same and that cousin had done the same. So I come from a family that is more racially tolerant than some and had taught me by example to look beyond the cover of a book to see what's inside.

God has also blessed me with in-laws that have and continue to take good care of me. Not all of us like our in-laws. The continual joke for the husband is to hate at least the mother-in-law if no other member of the wife's family. I could never hate any of her family (well, at least most of her family because ALL families have that one part that no one likes, they only tolerate at best). I married the baby of the family of 9. Since I met them prior to getting married to my wife, they have and continue to treat me like one of the family. I love and miss them all very much.

4. My friends. God has blessed me with people who I am proud to say are my friends. They are good people who allow me to be me. They don't expect me to be anything else. They don't try to change me into someone they like. But that's why they are my friends.

Again, Happy Thanksgiving to all and please take time out to be thankful for what you have and think of those who will not be with their family this year.

Pregnancy pact?

Before I go on to my rant, you can find the story behind this blog here.

I'm not sure if you have had heard about this, but there are a group of at least 17 high school girls in Gloucester, Massachusetts that had made a pact to get pregnant. Some are as young at 16 and even younger! They were supposedly high fiveing each other each time a pregnancy test came back positive. Are you kidding? I remember when I was in high school, high school pregnancy was a thing to be ashamed about because we all made fun of the girl who got pregnant calling her a whore and slut and that sort of thing. It makes you wonder where we have gone wrong. Some people blame the movie "Juno", but I don't think so because they said that the movie glorifies teenage pregnancy. I've seen the movie and I don't agree with that. Could it be because of famous teens like Jamie Lynn Spears? Possibly. Could it be because parents aren't talking to their teenage girls about the consequences of being pregnant? Probably. I've got a 13 year old and the wife and I have already starting talking to her about what a pregnancy would do to her. About how life altering it is. How as a teen, you're life ends when you bring a child into the world. My brother has done the same for his teenage girl. I also told my daughter that she would kill me if she got pregnant before finishing high school and college because that possibility ends when you bring a child into this world. Well... OK... you still might be able to go to school, but probably not. Having a baby is such a big responsibility. There was a time in the world where teenage pregnancy was the norm, but that was a long time ago. Back then, the age expectance was a lot lower than it is today. Teens were taught how to be a mom or dad at an early age back then. Now, it's just not a good idea. Now, you life HAS to be put on hold because taking care of a baby is a 24/7 job. You really don't have time to do anything else. Has anyone out there ever tried to take care of a baby AND go to school at the same time? It's very hard if not close to impossible especially if you don't have someone to help you.

My trip home to the Philippines...

I started writing this while I was in the Philippines. It's only now that I am finishing this because one of my friends asked me to post a blog about my trip.

They say home is where you hang your hat and mine hangs in the United States and the Philippines.

I really enjoyed my trip home to the Philippines. Granted, I got sick a few times, but it was overall fun. I've got a blog for my trip that you can find here. I've also started adding pictures to my personal web site. You can find those here. Sorry, but you won't find any personal types pictures there (like family pictures). There are a few extra things that I'd like to add here in this blog that aren't in my other blog.

Visiting the family was great! Some of them couldn't understand English and my Tagalog is not that good, but that was mostly the little kids who had been born during the past 11 years since the last time I was there, which brings me to another thing.

It was too long between visits. 11 years really is A LONG TIME! Some of the "kids" that I knew 11 years ago now have kids of their own. I hope it won't take me as long the next time. I've missed so many birthdays and special events like graduations and the like that it makes my head spin just thinking about it. *needs to stop typing to let head stopping spinning* Most of the time I spent with the family was like getting to know them all over again. The only ones that I really knew were the brothers and sisters; it was the nieces and nephews that I had to get reacquainted with. I also had to get acquainted with their kids. Don't ask me all their names because I don't remember them all. I do remember most of them, but to match a name with a face is a daunting challenge because there are just so many of them.

Here's another thing... Being helpful is one thing, but it can get rather annoying when it's just too much. I go to put my dirty dishes away and I actually get in trouble for doing it! I go to lift something and I get in trouble for that! I feel like a helpless little baby. I'm sure I could have gotten them to do a lot more for me if I would have asked, but I HATE feeling so helpless. I understand and can appreciate the family wanting to help me, but really! I CAN help myself and I CAN be helpful when given the opportunity.

I really miss the Philippines and I know that I will hate to leave. Let's start with you can get anything you want there for just a little money and end it with 360° 24/7 "eye candy", especially in Baguio because it has like 3-4 universities/colleges. Sorry guys, but I didn't take any pictures of the "eye candy" because I didn't know how I'd be able to explain that one to the wife.

As I am writing this, my niece is sitting beside me with her baby niece and all I can think of is how much I hope it will not be another 11 years before I come back. I really hope it doesn't take so long before my next visit. I don't want to come back to see the now little kids with little kids of their own. Not that I hope that they won't have little kids of their own, I just hope that I get to see them one more time before they have kids of their own. Besides, I have a "daughter" there anyway that I love very much. I say "daughter" because the wife and I unofficially adopted her 12 years ago when she was just a baby. I'll post a picture of her and the wife that I took in Manila near the Mall of Asia.

There are things I'm going to miss about the Philippines and some things that I won't. Take for example the traffic. I LOVE Baguio, but I HATE the traffic. It's a lot more crowded now than it was 11 years ago. Part of the problem is the college students. They come to Baguio, but don't leave after they finish college. I can't blame them because Baguio is a lot cooler than any place else in the Philippines. The warmest average high temperature here is about 75°-78°F as compared to outside Baguio which can get up to 90°F +. What's bad is that it's a lot warmer now that it has been in the past. It would drop below freezing a lot overnight, but now it doesn't.

Here's something... What is it with some people and their inability or just unwillingness to follow even the most simplest of instructions? I'm sitting at the airport in Detroit awaiting my last flight back to Jacksonville and this though occurred to me because of the flight to the Philippines and back. Take for example the dip who thinks it's OK to stand up at the end of the flight BEFORE the Captain has turned off the fasten seat belt sign. I was on a flight that was actually delayed because too many people stood up before the Captain turned off the fasten seat belt sign. On this flight there were people getting up and moving around while the fasten seat belt sign was on. The Captain told us that we would have to sit where we were until everyone sat back down. We had an elderly lady actually get up to use the restroom while on final approach coming into Detroit! She just made it to her seat by about 1-2 minutes before touch down! What got my goat about that was there were two people sitting beside her that should have told her not to leave her seat! What about the person who does not return their seat back and/or tray table to their upright and locked position AFTER the announcement has been made to do so? What also gets me are those who still don't after the steward/stewardess asks them to.

OK... It's time for another good idea, bad idea. Good idea... Traveling to see the world. Bad idea... Traveling to see the world with small kids. I already told the wife's family in the Philippines that if we DO have any kids, they will not see them until they are 7-8 because I don't want to travel with small kids on an airplane. Case in point was when we left Jacksonville at the beginning of this trip. There was a little boy who didn't want to sit in his seat. His mom said it was his first time to fly. I'm going to guess he was about 3-4 years old. He was Filipino. How do I know? He kept screaming, "Ayaw," (pronounced I-yaw) each time his mom tried to get him in his seat. In Tagalog, that means I don't want or I don't like. I'll give the stewardess credit. I don't know if I could have kept my cool has well as she did. I think I would have just told the Captain we need to turn the plane around so these people could deplane because that's what she was telling the mom.

That's about all the extra stuff that I wanted to say. I'd better get to posting this because I left the Philippines in the beginning of May.

God bless the little babies

What’s up with all the bad things that are happening to babies lately?

I’ve been wanting to write about that, but have been kinda busy lately. I just can’t see what would posses someone to put a baby in a microwave! And not only that, but to turn it on!!!! I heard they had to separate that guy who did it from the rest of the inmates because the prison officials were afraid of what the other inmates would do to him if they found out. I hate to be this way, but I say what ever they do to him, he deserves it. This whole story that he was not mentally stable is just a bunch of crap.

What about the woman who killed her 3 month old (or was he 5 months old) by allowing him to ingest crack? He got it from her breast milk because she was an abuser. She claimed that she had only breast feed him once, but as we all know, once is enough. Oh, and did you know that she was ordered to take drug screening tests and that she failed the test after her initial court case?

Part of the reason this really upsets me is that my wife and I can’t have kids of our own. It’s been over 12 years and we still don’t have any of our own. I know she would make a wonderful mother. I would hope that I would make a good father. I at least know that neither of us would be as messed up as some people out there. We would NEVER even think about putting our child or anyone else’s for that matter into a microwave for any reason. We would NEVER allow our children to take illegal drugs let alone give it to them. I couldn’t see either of us being able to abuse our kids.

Art sensorship????

I was listening to the radio the other day and overheard something about a high school student at Tomah High School in art class. This student decided to paint a picture of fire on one side, heavenly clouds on the other side with the Cross in the middle and it had "John 3:16 A sign of love" somewhere on it in reference to the Bible. You never guess the grade he got on it... Go ahead... Guess... Give up? He got a 0! Yep, a big, fat goose egg!!! What upsets me is that art is SUPPOSED to be all about expression. A Frenchman can sculpt Jesus out of poop and call it art and get away with it. I person can pee on the cross and call it art and get away with it. An American high school student paints a Christian icon that’s profound to him and he gets a 0?!?!?!?!? WHAT IS UP WITH THAT!?!?!?!?! *pondering* I wonder what would have happened if a Jewish kid had painted something that related to the Jewish religion. Answer... He would probably have gotten a high grade. Why...? No one wants to be seen as Anti-Semitic because there are possible legal ramifications that would hold up in a court of law. What if the student was Islamic and had painted something along those lines. I know for a fact that he/she would have gotten a good grade as well. Why...? No one wants to be seen as intolerant towards Muslims even if they are. This is most likely out of fear than anything else. Class polices prohibit any violence, blood, sexual connotations or religious beliefs in artwork. I’d be interested in seeing if that would hold up if this painting would have made reference to any other religion.

This just goes back to my last blog of attacks against Christians. I have been thinking on this and I’ve come to this conclusion. Jesus knew that from the time he began his ministry to the day He would come back that for His followers, life would not be easy. He knew that His followers would ALWAYS be persecuted and ridiculed. He said that following Him would not be easy and His is right of course. What’s terrible too is that attacks not only come from outside, but also from within as Christians attack Christians; one branch attacking another. Don’t believe me, just ask the Irish and I’m sure they will tell you all about it.

Religious differences

Religion. For some, it's the center of their life. For others, they'd much rather not have it in their life at all. This last Sunday on the Catholic calendar was the Ephinify of the Lord Jesus. This is the part of the story of Jesus' birth where the three wise men came to visit Jesus. It marks the official end of Christmas for the Catholic. What has set me to write this blog is not that, but what the priest had to say during his sermon on that day. Part of his sermon centered on the three major religions of Christianity, Islam and Judaism and the way we stand by our religion. Before I go into what the priest had said, I read a true story at Snopes.com a couple of days before that relates.

To make the story as short as possible, a Marine was in Chicago visiting a friend before deploying to Iraq. For those who have not been to Chicago, the majority of the streets are one way. Well, while attempting to park in front of his friend's apartment, the one way street he lived on was blocked so that the Marine couldn't go down the street in the right direction. Being a Marine, he over came and adapted by going around the block, then backing in up the street until he was in front of his friend's apartment. When the Marine went to leave after his visit was completed, he noticed a man leaning on his car. When he approached the man to get him off his car, the Marine noticed that there were scratches where the man had been. When the Marine went to confront the man, the man told him that the Marine didn't own the block and that all he did was brush up against the car; therefore, he couldn't have scratched it. The Marine also found out that the man was a Jewish lawyer. When the Marine when to press charges for the scratches on his car, the lawyer accused him and his friend, who was acting as a witness, of being anti-Semitic. This lawyer was luck that Marine just didn't kick his butt instead of pressing charges. Just imagine what would have happened to that Marine if he had done that.

This brings me to my point and to what the priest had said. The priest was talking about how Christians, Muslims and Jews take insults to their religion. In the case of the Marine, try and say something bad about Jews and all of a sudden you are anti-Semitic (which we all know is bad in legal terms). Try the same thing with a Muslim. You are labeled an infidel and are told that you will die for your comments. What about Christians? We are taught to turn the other cheek. A good point is with Christmas. Who ever heard of a holiday tree? It's a Christmas tree. Why as an employee can't I say Merry Christmas if I want to? Why are some companies making their employees say happy holidays instead of Merry Christmas? If you don't like the fact that the majority of us celebrate Christmas here in the United States, well TUFF! Get over it! Try making a Menorah into something generic like a holiday tree and see what happens. It's not a Menorah, those are just holiday candles. Try calling the Quran just a book and see what happens. Cartoons that put God and/or Jesus in a bad light or that are putting them down is funny or OK, right? I was just thinking about that cartoon that depected Muhammad and how mad Muslims got.

Why is it that others can bash the Christian and get away with it? In a court of law, I'd be very surprised to learn someone who bashes the Christian religion would be sentenced or even found guilt of something as compared to one of the other aforementioned religions. I know that we are not supposed to judge each other in such a way. That's for God to take care of, but in my humanity, I can't help myself for having negative feelings for those who bash Christians. I guess it's kind of like Bush bashing. It's just the thing to do because it's popular pastime. Or maybe I'm just being too sensitive, but I don't think so.

The priest at mass also mentioned the isolated problems that the Catholic Church has had with some of her priests. What I want to know is why it's OK for a celebrity or a high ranking member of our government to perform sex acts outside of marriage, but it's wrong for a priest to do so? When Clinton did what he did with Monika, why wasn't he persecuted like the Catholic priest? Granted, his position in life is a lot different than a priest, but really... Is it really that different? Again, what about celebrities? They are mostly 100% times worse as they go from marriage to marriage and are unfaithful to the point of you needing to ask yourself, why did you get married in the first place? It's very rare that you find a celebrity couple that has been married only once. The big thing for me is that when all those priests were first found out, all of sudden, ALL Catholic priests had the same skeletons in their closets, which is just not true. It's actually a minority. Also, they are just as human as you and me. They have lusts just like you and me. What they need is our prayers and not our hate. It's true that they are supposed to be better than we are, but again, they are just as human as we are when it comes down to it. The only human that was able to resist sin of any kind was Jesus.