Boomer Randomness

Things are pretty good in my life right now, for the most part, but some old feelings return right around September 1 st each year.   I go through a little slump for a couple of days but my feelings usually resolve into something good.   This is almost exactly the same post I wrote this week last year and I’ll share again.   Thanks for visiting.   I am struggling with a few things this week.   For one, I can’t believe August is already over; what happened to June and July?   For another I had a ten-hour work day yesterday, which mostly consisted of finishing projects that were all overdue; I hate missing deadlines.   And of course the week was filled with concerns about Hurricane Isaac.   As far as I know, all of my friends and family in the New Orleans area got through the storm with little or no damage. And I miss Mom. I can’t believe it has been seven years already (now eight) since she died.   That week was filled with...

No birds.   No barking dogs. No rustling of leaves in the wind.   The only sound during most of my visit was the distant rumble of front-end loaders scooping up soaked discarded household debris from front lawns. It is hard for me to believe that Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans eight years ago this week.   Eight years!   Six weeks later I was helping my sister discard her still wet household belongings, most of which were destroyed during the three weeks her house sat in ten feet of stagnant water. My strongest memories of that week are the smell of mold and the absence of sound.   I wore a mask, gloves, jeans and a long sleeved shirt to protect myself from the mold as I entered the house each day.   In the middle of the afternoon, when I could no longer stand the heat, humidity and sadness, I changed into clean shorts and a t-shirt out in the open in the back yard.   I was alone most days (my sister was at work most of that week, one ...

The ‘I Have a Dream’ speech fifty years ago today was a turning point for all Americans not just black Americans.   It was a partly improvised 17-minute oration that cited history, scripture, politics and economics as it challenged the United States government to live up to its founding principal of freedom for all citizens while at the same time challenging demonstrators to remain calm but persistent. Many white people of mid-boomer age who grew up in the South in the 1960s might think the speech and the 50 th anniversary activities are not for them.   In my opinion, that view is like saying that the freedoms our country is built on are only for white people.   And sadly, that was true for a large chunk of our history.   Our Declaration of Independence declares that we are all created equal but for much of our history only white men could vote. I grew up in a racist environment.   Many family members were racist and some still are.   I won’...