Life With Jules, and other stuff

The title can be deceptive. Maybe. I get, y'all. I understand that people are angry that another black man was killed by yet another white police officer here in America. I understand people want to protest for justice to be served. I get it! I really and truly do. But... When a group of degenerates (not those protesting, bit those who want to destroy) enter the picture, things turn ugly...QUICKLY!  We have had days of riots and looting across this country since the unnecessary death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Buildings, homes, businesses, police stations, vehicles, police cars have been burned. Degenerates are making it a point to be disrespectful in front of news crews by throwing the bird, being confrontational, and so on. LEADERS in their own communities are standing up and telling them to "go home" and to stop behaving like the lunatics they are.  If Martin Luther King Jr. were alive today he would be extremely displeased and disappointed...

So, I am about to take a small step toward a terminal degree. I earned my Master's Degree in History & Culture of the Middle East in 2010; my Master's Thesis was on The House of Wisdom and my concentration area was the Abbasid period. I am trying to decide what I want to focus on for my doctoral degree. I have narrowed it down to three major areas of history: Early American, Middle/Near East, and Russian. I have my reasons for all three. Early American history has always been a favorite of mine as far as American History is concerned. I love the Colonial and Revolutionary period of our history. How our country came to be an independent nation. How our government was formed. All of it. I also teach American History at a local college, which is great fun! Not to mention my ancestry having a big part in our early history. I could just continue on and expand on what I've already done in my college career and go more in-depth with the Middle East, but look towards the Ne...

We've been dealing with trying times the past few months. All of us, all over the world. Many of us, most of us have found ourselves stuck in our homes, climbing the walls, clambering to get outside and do something. Well, here in the States, we are finally able to get out and do activities, in a limited scope, but still. Me, I am still kind of stuck in the house. Why? Because I am considered a health risk. I am obese by medical standards. I am healthy in that I don't have heart disease or diabetes or anything like that. I just weigh more than I should. Why do I write this? I want to go to church. Actually get up and go to the physical building. I want to go back to my office to work. I want to go to a mall (I can't stand malls) and just walk around. I also have a friend living with me who does have health conditions that if I were to get ill from this virus and expose him to it, he could get seriously I'll so out of respect for him I stay in most of the time. I g...

I don't know about you, but when I blow out the candles on my birthday cake I close my eyes and make a wish. Does it come true? Not always. But it's just that bit of the child in me I've carried with me into adulthood. My birthday is coming up and I will be 48 years old. Oh my goodness! I am nearly half century old! Or half century young. Yea, that's a better perspective. And while we've been on stay-at-home restrictions the past couple of months I've had time to contemplate what I really want for my birthday wish. While I normally don't tell, because hey, we all know if you tell it won't come true, this one I will tell. What are the chances my birthday wish this year could truly happen anyway, right (you'll understand in a moment)? So, a few posts back I talked about a celebrity crush. More recently I discussed "The Americans." He starred in that show as well as the last few seasons of "Homeland." Yes, I am speaking of Costa Roni...

That question was posed to me recently. Yes, as a matter of fact, I have been to a concert. Four in fact. My very first concert was in 1986. Yea, I got to see The Monkees on their 20th Anniversary Tour on July 5, 1986 in Sarasota, Fl. My sister took me and our brother. It was great! Herman's Hermits and Gary Pucket & the Union Gap were also there. My second concert was on July 5, 1997 in Mission Beach (San Diego), Ca. We received free tickets through MWR on the Navy base. I loved this concert! By far the best concert I have ever been to. It's too bad Michael Hutchence completed suicide later that year. He was a talent. The next concert I went to was one I actually paid for myself, lol. But it was worth it because I finally got to meet the singer my dad went to school with as a boy. One half of the Bellamy Brothers: David Bellamy. Oh, and his sons' group (Noah & Jesse) also performed that night. It just happened to be the 45th Anniversary of their graduat...

Right now, and really for the past several weeks, our country has been on a slippery slope. This pandemic required us to go into a lockdown mode restricting us pretty much to our homes. Many businesses closed, some permanently at this point. Restaurants went to drive-up or curbside only; some even started offering delivery.  But this is America! We have basic feeedoms guaranteed to us in our Constitution. Herein lies the slippery slope. Our President made a decision early-on to restrict travel abroad to limit the spread. He discussed with the state governors how they will proceed in stopping the spread in their states (Amendment 10). He put together a task force to follow the spread closely and keep us informed; a couple of those individuals do not have our best interests in mind, but I leave that to you to decide. State governors are now exercising their authority in slowly opening up their state and therefore economies. Well, there are a few who are being rather harsh...

I don't know if the title is correct as I am not really going to describe what it means to be an American in this post. No, instead I am going to talk a little bit about the different places I have lived. Sure, I could talk about all of the states I've visited, but since I have not yet visited Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota (I think), Hawai'i, and Alaska, I think the first idea would be shorter. So let's get started, shall we! I was born and spent the first 14 years of my life in Michigan. I didn't like it there. Was there a lot to do? Sure. Four seasons. Lots of lakes. Apple orchards. Parks. You name it, you could and still can find plenty to do there. I just never really like being there. I can't quite explain it. I still have plenty of family there. My mom, brother, niece, aunt, uncle, cousins. However, my absolute favorite place in Michigan was Lake George. Grandma had a cottage on the lake. We would go boating in the spring, summer, and ...