Everyday Heroes

The media's general focus is the latest celebrity scam or recent speeches from the White House....we all look at the bigger events that are happening....why not take a minute to go over the smaller seemingly insignificant events that happen on a daily basis?
Where has our focus shifted to? The latest fads at the Emmys, Angelina Jolie's relationship with Brad Pitt, and more recently, Mary-Kay Olsen's split with her boyfriend. Who really gives a crap!
We don't see MSN.COM or YAHOO.COM fill their pages with the giving American's all over the country. We don't see the smaller events that occur all the time that make a large impact on our society as a whole.

In Chicago an elderly lady was at an airport when she noticed a man with shiny shoes. She always thought highly of people who wore shiny black shoes. She made a comment to that man. Soon after she found out that her flight was delayed overnight and she would be stuck at the airport unable to afford a hotel room.
The man with the shiny shoes not only gave her dinner, but paid for her stay at a luxury hotel where a limo was waiting for her in the morning to take her back to the airport.

In Michigan, a fellow won a small lottery in the amount of $10,000. While most of us would take the money to buy us something or pay off debt, he donated the entire amount to the local United Way Chapter.

In California, a 5 year-old girl was walking down the street with her parents when she saw a man with a cardboard sign. Feeling compassion for that man she took big steps to help feed the homeless and hungry. Her goal? To raise $1,000 in two months to donate to the local food pantry. Initially she wrote over 150 letters to her family friends requesting soda cans to recycle to help feed the hungry. The response was huge. Soon her class at school was involved and pretty soon she was getting money in the mail from all over the state. In two months she raised over $3,700.00.

In Pennsylvania, a 95 year-old man, a barber for 37 years passed away. Never married with no children, this man spent the majority of his life in his little barber shop giving cuts to men and women. A charismatic and compassionate man, as described by his customers, this man was alawys helping somebody. At the time of his death, the sum of $800,000 a modest savings from this fellow was donated by his request to a local foundation that helped young and old with physicial and developmental disabilities.

It's the smaller acts of kindness that make a biggest difference in our lives. They may not gain a headline in a newspaper or on TV, but will have a huge impact on those around us. Never underestimate the power of kindness in people.

Role Reversal

As I stepped into the role of being a stay-at-home dad while I went to school full time I didn't realize what I was getting into.
I thought it would be easy...simple...I could work out when my wife got home from work, I would do school work while our daughter played, I would have quality bonding time with my daughter, and we would have ample family time.
Then reality set in.....working out became even harder to do as my wife gets home later and later, doing homework is a joke when she plays because she is always looking for something to get into, and family time?? Every day my wife is off I go off to do school work (I'm taking four online courses) which gives us even less family time than before I became unemployed.

The role of being a stay-at-home has a lot more than to it then fun days of being home and enjoying your children. It has endless cleaning, dishes, laundry, snotty noses, poopy diapers, baths, naps, soothing of crankines, just to name a few. Many days my wife has come home and I have been so thankful to have her home with us, just to help share the load of household chores (and help soothe our cranky daughter who has gotten tired of being in the house with me all day).

On the flip side of that, I have really enjoyed all the time I have gotten to spend with my precious little one. The moments I relish the most are when she climbs into my lap and brings me her books and I read her the books as she listens so intently to what I have to say. Those moments in our long day at home make it so much sweeter. I am blessed to have been given the opportunity to have the roles reversed and spend time at home. It has definitely given me a new appreciation to stay-at-home moms. It can be so very rough, but very rewarding.

To Treadmill or not to treadmill?

As the married pounds pack on me it's easy for me to not care about taking care of myself "I'm married now, I've got the girl, who cares." Unfortunately this kind of sentiment rarely works as my wife calls me the female in the relationship.
Coming from a larger family I battle with my weight. I'm shorter than most men (my wife is taller than me) and from grade school to high school I battled my weight. At 20 I went on the Adkin's Diet and dropped a necessary 40lbs off my frame and became what I was told "buff."
Sad to say that as the years have gone on and the stress and responsibility of life has gotten greater the pounds have gradually come back one.
It doesn't help that my wife has always been naturally thin and lost her 40lbs of baby weight in 3 months and I look at a cookie and gain weight.
So I have decided that while I'm the stay at home dad that I have to do something physical while I am at home. Tonight we are looking at treadmills and and are going to decide if that is a worthy investment.
My friends tell me it isn't....I will end up using it for a clothes hanger and it will collect dust. You think they are right?? I just can't see that....sometimes when I'm home and my daughter is asleep I get an itch to start running. That's when I think that a treadmill will come in handy.
I don't know yet...I will keep you posted.

Customer of Size

With the recent headlines of Kevin Smith, a popular director of Superbad and other comedy-related movies had made me think twice about flying with Southwest Airlines.

Smith, who was traveling on board a Southwest Airlines was asked to get off the plane after the flight attendants told him he didn't fit in the seats.
In all truth, the famous director had situated himself in his seat and had actually lowered the arm rests. It was argued however (as he Tweeted about this) that he "spilled" too much over into the next seat that he was taking up unnecessary room for the passenger seated beside him.
A big no-no for those that decided to kick him off the plane after he threw a fit (naturally). Who knew this would get so much publicity. If you look at his Tweeter he was quite graphic and crude in nature in defense to his situation. Now Southwest Airlines looks like the bad guy for being considerate to other passengers.
That being said we all know that by far America is fat. Well, most of us. We walk around Wal-Mart and see a large portion (no pun intended) of bigger-than-normal folks. They already suffer enough humiliation for their larger than life size.
For some older folk you can recall the days where flying you used to be fun and relaxing. Now with all our recent terrorist events as one lady put it "it became a herding of cattle." By the time you make it through 15 security points you finally get on your plan, tired from being at the airport two hours early not to mention hungry and thirsty. Then what do you get? A cup of water, not one drop of food (unless you pay $15 for a bag of dried fruit) and you get off hot, tired, and grumpy.
Go a step further and feel for the fat person. They get on the plane, all squished to begin with, and have to sit next to people who are generally smaller than you and you have to go above your pride and ask for the seatbelt extender. God forbid you actually have to sit in the middle seat....no using the bathroom for you, hope you can hold it.

In Southwest Airlines defense the policy for "Customers of Size" is pretty clear:
"Customers who are unable to lower both armrests and/or who compromise any portion of adjacent seating should proactively book the number of seats needed prior to travel. The armrest is considered to be the definitive boundary between seats and measures 17 inches in width. This purchase serves as a notification of a special seating need and allows us to process a refund of the additional seating cost after travel (provided the flight doesn’t oversell). Most importantly, it ensures that all onboard have access to safe and comfortable seating. "

What do you do when the majority their customers are unable to or can barely fit their seat? Accomodate to their size and create larger seats? Lets face the facts, America isn't getting any smaller and whether or not Southwest Airline admits it, they will eventually have to address the issue otherwise people will have to start buying two seats no matter what or they will kick everyone off the plane.

Smith did Tweet that he usually buys two seats, not because he's too big, but because he likes having the seat next to him empty. Can't say as I blame him. Flying is far from a pleasurable experience anymore.

Electricity Rates

It's unfortunate that costs continue to rise for just about everything: food, gas, interest ratest for credit cards, clothing, etc, etc. now Empire Electric Company is talking about raising costs for Kansas and Missouri users. Several recent in the Joplin Globe articles are indicating that Empire Electric is seeking to increase the cost of electricty by 20% for Missouri users and 25% for Kansas users or $25/monthly for the average electricity user. The rationale behind this? To help cover the $5.2 million dollar expenses for recent changes in their system. The "system" changes hasn't been evaluated fully and no one really knows the actual systems they need to help financially cover.
Fortunately, more recent events. Looking at a more recent article it states:
" David Springe, consumer counsel for the Citizens’ Utility Ratepayer Board, says the public should be aware when a hearing on the request is scheduled and turn out in force.

The Kansas Corporation Commission isn’t expected to act on the increase before next summer. "

In the last week there have been several public meetings with Kansas citizens to advocate on their behalf and show the financial detriment this would be on the average user.

Surprisingly, there lacks a commission in the state of Missouri that is currently working on our behalf to resist this increase in electricity prices. What can we do to help? I don't really know maybe form a commission to work on our behalf. It's sad to say we will see a significant increase in our bill only to not do anything about it.

Finite Math

This topic makes me shudder. Currently I am taking all online courses....it has its benefits and downfalls. I'm am naturally an auditory and visual learner (most are) and the lack of that stimuli has left much to be desired.
So far, fortunately, I have fared okay with my online courses up until this semester.
Currently I am enrolled in Finite Math with the head of the Math Department. Sound nice, huh?
This class from the get go has been a knock-down drag out kind of class. I am an ant with a kid putting a magnifying glass over me...well, that's how I feel right now.
I've been a big boy about this class so far however. I am being tutored by the Learning Center (as often as they will let me and as often as my busy stay-at-home dad schedule will allow) and that has helped a little, however, as soon as I take an online quiz the sweat starts beading up on my forehead. So far I have failed a few of the quizzes. They are worth 40% of my total grade. I have a midterm in a a few weeks. I emailed the professor expressing my concerns. He offered his assistance which I will take him up upon, but I feel like a loser for my inability to grasp this kind of math. Am I stupid??
Any advice??

In the meantime I will just sit back and watch my already receding hairline continue to grow sparser and my gut continue to expand. Oh boy.

Abuse of Eminent Domain in Joplin

Everywhere we look here in town there seems to be construction and widening of roads. The latest construction are is between 20th St-32nd St on Connecticut. The road has been closed for 6 months or more.
They are also currently surveying the strip of East 7th St. that connects with 249. It's evident that the traffic on this road has increased significantly since the opening of 249, but it's also evident that once again the City of Joplin is exercising it's authority of flashing their rights to the private landowner.
For those of you who are unaware of what exactly eminent domain is do yourself a favor and visit the following website. This will tell you in great detail what to expect with eminent domain.
To sum it up for those who are too lazy to view this website it's the 5th Amendment that allows the government to possess private property for public use. This Amendment is exercised mostly for the widening of roads. However, in a recently article by CBS there is another growing trend.

Many gaps exist in the domain process and in some cities there are private developers that are taking full advantage. A private landowner must give up his land if a developer can prove to the city governement that by ceazing the land will cause an increase in land value and personal property taxes. To make it easy: governement will boot the currently landowner and tear down the home and let a private developer build a bigger home that will generate more revenue for the city. Sound crazy?? It happens. Take for example the story in the CBS article (this is all direct quoting, I did NOT paraphrase this:

"Jim and Joanne Saleet are refusing to sell the home they've lived in for 38 years. They live in a quiet neighborhood of single-family houses in Lakewood, Ohio, just outside Cleveland.

The City of Lakewood is trying to use eminent domain to force the Saleets out to make way for more expensive condominiums. But the Saleets are telling the town, "Hell no! They won't go."

“The bottom line is this is morally wrong, what they're doing here. This is our home. And we're going to stay here. And I'm gonna fight them tooth and nail. I've just begun to fight,” says Jim Saleet.

“We talked about this when we were dating. I used to point to the houses and say, 'Joanne, one of these days we're going to have one of these houses.' And I meant it. And I worked hard.”

Jim Saleet worked in the pharmaceutical industry, paid off his house and then retired. Now, he and his wife plan to spend the rest of their days there, and pass their house on to their children.

But Lakewood's mayor, Madeleine Cain, has other plans. She wants to tear down the Saleets' home, plus 55 homes around it, along with four apartment buildings and more than a dozen businesses. "
Is this not sickening??

This struck home for me due to the City of Joplin will be exercising its authority once again in 2 years or less as they widen the road I live on.
However, on the bright side of things, recent petitions in the state of Missouri could limit the 5th Amendment by not allowing the posession of private property for monetary gains. We shall see how that pans out.

Facebook exposure

I finally broke down and got a Facebook profile about 6 months ago after the horrible nagging of my wife. You see, my wife has an addiction. A Facebook addiction. There is not one day that goes by that she won't get on Facebook to "check friend's status' " or "post some pictures." The list goes on and on. Fortunately for her, it's a great way to stay connected with old friends from St. Louis (where she grew up) and also maintain (somewhat) her social life. I find that in some ways Facebook is the new email or new forum. People feel free to post whatever they like, inappropriate or not, on Facebook.
Take for example, my wife's recent facebook status: Do you still continue to produce breastmilk once you've stopped breastfeeding for six months?

My jaw dropped. Seriously?? Did my wife just put something that personal on Facebook? And not all her friends are females on Facebook, she has plenty of males that read it as well. What makes her think that putting something of that personal nature on Facebook for everyone to read? She didn't see anything wrong with this post. She argued that there is such thing as freedom of speech. I continued to bicker with her "would you say the things you say on Facebook to people personally, as in, up in their faces??" She says she would and that everyone is known to post personal things on Facebook...well, most of the time.

Unfortunately, I too have been guilty of posting the "TMI" of my life (too much information for those of you who don't know what that means).
Take for example, the birth of our daughter 16 months ago. The birthing process was nothing short of amazing (and gross) and I felt it was necessary to capture the entire adventure on tape...and with my camera. Fortunately our little video tape is now tucked into my wife's bottom dresser drawer for privacy purposes but my photographs...well that's another story.
Let me just say before I go on that this was not done intentionally to embarass my wife. This was a mindless stupid error that I will forever pay for the rest of my life.
Excitedly I got onto my wife's Facebook to post the most candid moments of Averi's birth....all of which I knew were tastful in nature and was sure to excite those who were waiting to see pictures of our first daughter.
I uploaded the pictures -- 20 to be exact -- and waited for all the feedback from the pictures.
Instead of feedback, I got a phone call...from my brother in law (my wife's younger brother).
He cleared his throat "um...Matt, I saw those pictures on Facebook of Jess and Averi, man they were great but..." he finishes quickly "I saw my sister's boobs on Facebook and I just thought you would like to know." He ended the conversation quickly. My face reddened. My poor wife. Along with her brother many others had already viewed these porn-like graphic images on Facebook.
I broke down and told my wife who insisted that I delete them immediately (which I did as quickly as I could).
Lesson learned: sometime the openness of the world wide web can be scary and you should always be careful what you say...and what you post....on Facebook.
Now to go update my Facebook status.....