Foggy Start - NEW Year 2005

Awoke to FOG for first day of 2005. Foggy or not I was happy to see a whole new year. 2004 rolls out in the path of massive death from the Boxing Day Tsunami that hit a dozen countries and killed over 100,000 and counting...

Want to know what to do? Check out the New Year's Eve

Global American article at:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/GlobalAmerican

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Happy New Year.

 

 

SNOW in Houston

It was 15 years ago - 1989 - the last time we had snow. It caught us by surprise on Christmas eve. As L and I drove to church suddenly the flakes were falling and falling. All during church it kept falling - leaving a white blanket on our cars. Amazing. SNOW!  It snowed in Victoria, about 100 miles southwest of us, for the first time in 86 years - and they got a foot of it! 

Of course people here don't know how to drive on it. Coming back on 59 we got to the Brazos River bridge and someone had spun out on the ice and a line of cars was backed up, so we took the turn-around and detoured home another way.

Of course it all melted on Christmas Day, but it was a nice change, and a treat. But with the war still going on in Iraq - an explosion from a suicide bomber in a mess tent killed over 20 a few days ago - I just couldn't get into the holiday spirit. I hope 2005 will be a better year.

Aftermath

Well, the campaign is OVER and I'm finally poking my head out again. The incumbent got fewer votes than ever before, but I still lost and so did all the other challengers. But it was a great learning experience and it was my first time on a general election ballot.

Now to move FORWARD.  After nearly 30 years of practicing law I am ready to try something different. There are too many lawyers and the work is not really that exciting. I liked international negotiations a lot more than having to do a divorce.

But our system seems to discard those with the most experience - the few international jobs now go to young kids who know very little but get paid the big bucks. Forget getting a corporation to hire someone over 50 regardless of talent. Same for the law firms. Age discrimination is not legal but is the norm. And the incompetent seem to rise quickly to the top (e.g. Rumsfeld - no war plan, no armor for the troops, etc.).  Sometimes I think we've changed from being a nation of the best and brightest to a nation run by the best connected who know how to kiss up (it's not WHAT you know but WHO you know that counts).  In the long term, it will be our undoing.

So, for me, it's either back to doing the mundane or I need to create something new and interesting, but what that is remains to be seen. Last week I was so bored I even applied for a job in Iraq!  No, it's not a death wish, but a desire to do something more interesting than hunt down land titles or hear an ex complain about their spouse they want to divorce. 

Even running for office was better than that. We shall see what develops.

6 Days to Go - Getting ugly

Six days to go before the election, and it's getting ugly. I'm not talking about the national campaign, but this Congress race. 

The 20-year incumbent, who hasn't had a sign or campaign office in a decade, suddenly has tons of both. And he's even throwing out negative attack ads, a sure sign of desperation.

My only question is: Where do I sign up to get attacked? Heck, DeLay's giving name recognition to the first-time Democrat challenger by attacking him.  I want some equal time! LOL.

Heck, I'm the one pulling away the incumbents GOP voters, the moderate ones who are tired of him. The Democrat's base is only 35% of the district. There are at least 40% moderate Republicans that refused to vote for DeLay in the March primary in his home county - a greater number. Ummmm.

So, if I get attacked in the next few days, I'll know that I've "arrived."

Actually, like many voters, I'm ready for this election to be OVER. It's gone on too long and is too negative. I have tried to focus on issues instead of mudslinging, but mudslinging is winning out...where's my mud ball?

Campaign End stage

The campaign is, thankfully, near an end. The outsome is still uncertain. I just saw a poll that said the incumbent (DeLay) is at 47% --pretty low for a 20-year incumbent. It seems like every day there is another story in the papers about his ethics or other problems.

We actually got to debate at a candidate forum hosted by the Clear Lake High School debate team - DeLay waited until 30 minutes before it started to call and say he was coming. When I got the word I immediately called the TV stations, who started walking in during the debate--too late for him to duck and run.

Afterward, to my amazement, a lot of people came up and said how I had impressed them. About half of them said they were switching their vote to me as a result. Too bad it wasn't televised live. My poll numbers would skyrocket.

So the underdog continues to do it grass roots. Ended up on another TV station tonight.

I am TIRED. Ready to wrap this up. It's an excitiing finish. No clue as to how it will come out yet. Anything could happen.

 

DeLay's Aides Indicted While I fix my car

I had a radio talk show interview today, Meria Heller from Arizona, then was getting my car transmission fluid changed --which was taking forever since it was a trade with a client who couldn't afford to pay -- when news broke of several of my opponent's (Tom DeLay) aides getting indicted.  I didn't find out about it until news time.

Suddenly, things are changing. Anything could happen, with 40 days to go to election day. God works in mysterious ways!

Reving Up

Thank God August is dead. I felt as if  I'd been fried under a microwave all month. September SOUNDS cooler, even when it's still hot.

The political season has begun. My underdog campaign against the dragon DeLay somehow survived the heat and the economy that has been on life support. The trickle down economics hasn't really been trickling - I think the heat evaporated it on the way down.

Florida must have really ticked off the big guy in the sky - two hurricanes in one season! First Charley, then Francis. And it may get knocked down again by Ivan. That what happens when you hang chads and let Ralph Nader back on the ballot!

Ummm. Heat may have fried some of my brain, or Ralph's - along with everyone else running. DeLay is polling 45%, the lowest ever and is promising if he gets reelected he'll start eating vegetables again. Ok, maybe not vegetables...

Later..Henri the dog is demanding a break. Never deny a dog that needs to go...