Garage Sale

The last garage sale we had about ten years ago, I swore I would never do it again. Next week I will break that promise when we have our second garage sale. In an effort to declutter, the house seems ten times as cluttered due to going through closets and making piles of things to sell, things to keep, and things to give away. Sometimes I get mixed up about which pile is which.



Today, I am going to rummage around in the attic and shed for things to sell. Next week, we will be pricing items. Then on Thursday or Friday, we will get the yard fixed up. Early Saturday, I will put out tables and hang clothes line. From 8:00 am to Noon the sale will be on. At 1:00 pm, we will burn the leftovers.



I had better get to work. Why did I ever agree to do this again?



Until the next time

John Strain

Weekend Replay: A Sense of Wonder

Audio blogger was down until about 3:00 PM today and that is why my post is so late. Today's selection was first posted Tuesday, September 16, 2003. If you like, you can read the



Text Version.

Until the next time

John Strain

Suffer The Little Children

Mark 10

13   And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them.

14   But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.

15   Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.

In 1962 I was five years old and I remember one fall afternoon sitting in my kitchen with my mother and two siblings. I was listening as my mother was explaining about the current event of the day - the Cuban missile crisis. My brother and sister were 11 and 8 respectfully and mom was answering their questions. As the talk of nuclear war and what that might involve went on, I became very frightened and started crying. My tears halted the conversation and I was comforted and reassured, but I can still remember that fear. It was the fear only an innocent can feel. Maybe my tears were the result of learning about the world's reality.



I mention this story to serve as a benchmark for what children are being exposed to today. As I watch the news, the talk is of terror threats and warnings. A real war rages on, but is often the third or fourth story. I understand the business of news and though we complain about the content, we do not seem willing to turn off the television until news companies alter their approach. Sometimes I think we blame the news companies for our own fascination for the macabre. We look at car wrecks when we pass. We do not want to see but we still look.



I am not writing as a call for any one thing. My purpose is only to bring to your awareness how drastically different things have become in forty years time. From a "Leave It To Beaver" society to the "Osbornes," the change has been striking.



All of this talk of war and terrorism, the sexual and violent content on television and other media forms must have a negative impact on our most vulnerable members of society. We take their innocence from them earlier and earlier. There has always been abuse and children have endured hardships at the hands of society in other generations. How will history judge this generation? Will MTV, sex, and violence be equated with atrocities from other times? I fear our laissez faire attitude about this problem. It seems debate on the topic is more to defend the media and societal norms than to consider any possible damage being done to little children.



I do know that when I was five years old the mere talk about nuclear war and the thoughts of my own possible death was quite disturbing. Fear is only one emotion and our society is raining down information uncut and uncensored on everyone. From Janet Jackson's self promoting exhibitionism to the vitriolic rantings of partisans - what in God's name is this doing to our children?



These conditions make parenting and grandparenting all the more important. The caretakers and stewards of the children must shield them as best they can. For the other things which may be more disturbing, they will have to help them live with the images and thoughts. It is a shame though how society will sacrifice the precious commodity of a sweet innocent soul to make a dollar from a voyeur.



Until the next time

John Strain

It Was All My Fault

Last week I wrote about the demise of my Canon Powershot camera and my Canon scanner. The culprit I blamed was by Belkin USB hub. It somehow delivered too much electricity and fried my two little friends.



Since this happened right after I moved my computer into the new workstation, I felt it was probably more than a coincidence it happened. I investigated. I looked on the internet for my Belkin hub and it was supposed to have a power supply delivering 5 volts. In fact, it was hooked up to a power supply delivering 9 volts. I plugged my modem power supply into my USB hub and my hub adapter into my modem. Somehow, the modem worked fine, but the extra 4 volts was enough to close the book on my camera and scanner.



On one hand, I was glad to know what really happened. On the other hand, I felt stupid. In my defense, there is no identifying info on the power adapters to pair them to their device. Regardless, I hooked them up wrong and made the magic smoke rise.



My next task is to call Canon and tell them what happened. Even though the devices were out of warranty, they were very nice and were apologizing to me for the problem. I would not be right for me to receive free repairs since it was my own negligence, which caused the problem. Now, if they want to be gracious after hearing my admission, I am not one to look a gift horse in the mouth.



You may remember the story about my son and the poker chips. He ordered a $10 roll of poker chips, but received a nice case with ten times the number of chips he ordered and two decks of cards all valued at $100. I called the company to tell them about the mix up and they told us to keep the item as a reward for our honesty.



The last task is to fess up to Belkin. I wrote them an email requesting an RMA # for the hub. I told them about how it fried my stuff. I did receive the RMA # and here is the letter I sent along with my fried hub.

Dear Sirs,



My original message via email explained how two peripherals connected to this hub were fried. My camera was ruined one evening and my scanner bit the dust the next morning.



Since I sent that message I discovered the cause of the problem and it was my fault. I had moved my computer and in the process of reconnecting everything, I interchanged the power supply of my modem and my hub. The result was, the hub was connected to a power supply of 9 V instead of the 5 V it was supposed to have.



The power supply enclosed is not the power supply hooked up to the hub at the time of the incidents.



I do not expect you to replace this since it was my own fault, however, if it can be repaired at a lesser cost than a new one, that would be nice.



Sincerely,

John Strain

OK, I feel better. Confession is good for the soul. I will let you know what happens with all of this, but I have a good feeling. I believe my honesty will be rewarded. I can rest assured that I did the right thing. No matter what happens I am already satisfied.



Do you believe honesty is the best policy?



Until the next time

John Strain

Lighting Up

• In 1998 451 billion cigarettes were consumed in the United States.

• Individuals with a mental illness consume 44.3% of the cigarettes in the United States annually.

• Studies indicate a smoking rate among individuals with a mental illness from 58% to 88%.







Source: The Psychiatric Times, February 2001

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It is interesting how many psychiatric patients smoke. It is incredible to contemplate the money they spend on cigarettes annually. Today is the 3rd of the month - check day. Once cashed, those government dollars will work overtime purchasing cigarettes. When the inevitable health concerns arise, more government dollars are required, this time from Medicare to provide the care.



No matter how much "out of it" one of our patients is, he/she seems to have a 6th sense about smoke time. Many of our patients are indigent or have no family to bring them cigarettes. Therefore, we provide "unit cigarettes."



Some might think it odd for a hospital to provide cigarettes to a patient. However, not to do so will often result in a patient getting upset and possibly requiring additional medication. We figure a cigarette is cheaper than an Ativan. They are necessary to keep the peace.



Still, researchers are studying the link between tobacco and schizophrenia. We know nicotine alters brain chemicals. Some of the altering is beneficial for schizophrenia, but some of it makes the disease worse. Regardless, smoking is one of the few pleasures these folks have left.



If you would like to read more about the connection between smoking and mental illness, do a google search of schizophrenia and smoking.



I just wanted to point out a few facts that had me flabberghast.



Until the next time

John Strain