Memorial Day 2015, My rant.

In a past life I was in the United States Navy. My time serving our country was a difficult one, at least for those of us serving. It was post Viet Nam, and moral was low, one may say it sucked. As we all know though, "Life is what we make it."

I am not a good creator, though.

When I was assigned to the USS Wainwright, I was young and naive. The truth is, I have not grown very much since then. Now I am older and am still kinda stupid, yet I have an understanding of the roll my ship had in the global theater. It was minor, yet my ego makes me wonder just how critical.

The Wainwright, while I was aboard, made many political manoeuvres, yet we never really did anything overtly aggressive. We participated in the subversive and closed wars of Reagan. I don't know what would have happened if my ship had not been where she was, yet I know we would not be where we are now.

Yet, looking back at our choices back then does not change the reality that we live in today. Our world is even more fucked up than in those desperate days of the early '80s. We cannot deny this obvious fact. It truly is not the fault of the military,  they have executed their orders faithfully. They have done their duty without a hitch. We have the best armed forces in the world, bar none.

One of my closest friends participated in the Panama fiasco, another was critically wounded in a "training mission" in "South America" as a SF member, And another was in Iraq and was wounded while on patrol and even now deals with PTSD and other related brain injury issues. They all have wounds which will never be healed. What did they sacrifice their bodies and minds for?

Like religion, our political outlook is manipulated by those whose selfish interest supersedes those they serve, that would be We The People. 

I salute those who serve. I salute those who have made the choice to self-sacrifice for our way of life. I was a fuck-up back in the day, and maybe still am. Yet I understand that my country needs young women and men to step up and fight and sometimes kill, to keep our way of life a real and evolving dream. Those who have served did what they were told to...without question. They did as they were told, without without reservation. 

Do you, the reader know why?

Maybe it is because our country, our ideals, before being perverted by self-interest groups, ARE the ones everyone should strive to achieve.

Our country, The United States of America, is the greatest place in our whole wide world, bar nothing. We should never forget this, we need to live it and earn the privilege of saying those words honestly...Every single day of our lives.

We are the best because we earn that privilege. We are the most important nation in the world, not because any deity has said so, but because we work for it. We are the best because we earn it. It is not a god given right, but one that we work for.

Our men and women fight for our right to say these words, they give their bodies and minds for the privilege we take for granted. Let's think though, what did those young and somewhat naive solders and marines and sailors and airmen do to ensure our freedom?

They trained for so long in a formal school while training in the field, sweating and bleeding. Then they get sent to an emotionally and physically dangerous environment with little instruction. When they come home, they are stigmatized and labelled as outcasts.

These people gave all of themselves to protect our way of life.

By Definition, they are heroes. So, let's treat them as such. When you see someone on the side of the road, please remember the choice they made and please don't just pass them by thinking, "Oh there is a guy. It is so sad that they live like that." Just remember he or she, may have done a profound act to protect our way of life and possibly suffered for it.

Every single one who has served is a hero, they would have done as they were told. Many gave more than we can understand, more than their lives...they gave their very essence as a person. They gave for US, and our way of life and now it is time for us to return their honor, to show them that their duty and service was worth their personal and group sacrifice.

My salute and respect is what I can give to those who have given of themselves. I stand in honor to all of you who have given yourselves to the glory of what we call THE UNITED STATES of AMERICA.

Thank you, Neil M. Turner.

olc

Yesterday was a gorgeous day. It started put sunny and ended starry. The air was crisp and clear. The kid had a thing with her choir at some early hour, so I dragged her out of bed. After dropping her off, I walked around downtown and maybe got a few good pics.

I was able to get the bike started and ride a little a little later in the day. Then I went home and wrote a little more on the profile on yourcaring.com. Finally I have completed it and can restart our moving campaign, Yeah!  

The Runtyun got home and we had some supper. I was moved to mount the Grinner, camera in hand, and take some pictures. The Blue Ridge Parkway is a great place to ride. I know it well enough so I don't have to worry about the technical side of the ride, so I can let my eyes roam a little and really enjoy and unwind.

Having been lucky, I pulled up about 45 minutes before sunset. I finally found the turnout that has a wonderful view. Sometimes fate works in my favor.

I pulled my camera gear out and started to take a few shots of the bike. In the back ground was Looking Glass Mountain. The sky was had some clouds which are pretty incredible. I'll post something soon at From the Wondering Lenz of OLC, in the next day or so.

About this time a beat up old pick-up pulls in and parks on the other side of the area. Being the paranoid that I am, I kept it in my peripheral view, but thought nothing more about it. After a bit a lady and child got out of the pick-up. The kid was young, maybe 8 and the lady, his mother, I assume, was short and attractive. 

I only noticed these things because they where the only moving things in the area. They meandered in my direction and we talked a little. She spun a story about camping and being wary of bears. We talked more, then she finally dropped the Boyfriend bomb. I don't think I was being suggestive in our conversation. Actually, I was trying to pull away trying to get good pictures of the world.

She said she was not sure what she was going to do, so I made a few suggestions on where to stay for the night. During our talk I made no overt, or subvert attempt to coerce her. Yet, again she found it necessary to tell me that she had talked with her BF. I squelched the urge to tell her that by saying these things about her BF, she was making herself more vulnerable to people with less scruples than me.

She kept trying to go, but then coming back and asking questions. I began to wonder what was going on with her. I built a story of a woman who was trying to escape from something. I tried to come across as safe and trust worthy. I even gave her my card and told her to contact me for some pictures if she wanted.

Finally, she got into her pick-up and started to go. But when she got to the road, she just at there for a long time. It seemed like she was trying to decide something. She must have made up her mind because she finally drove off.

Guess I didn't make the cut.

Yet, I wondered what was really going on in her life. I feel it must have been something pretty profound to put her out in the middle of no place contemplating throwing in with the likes of me. I feel that she was reaching out to me, but I was unable to make the connection.

I went on and played around with the camera and got some interesting shots of the moon. While I was taking those pics, some guy pulled into the pullout and talked my ear off about shooting the moon. He had several portfolios of his work. It seemed he showed them all to me.

Actually, they were interesting in their own way. It seems he uses an inexpensive Point and Shoot camera. But his technique was what was most interesting to me: He would shoot the camera at the view finer of a telescope and take his picture. 

His images came out amazingly well!

Finally, it was time to go, yet, I could not get that woman and her child off my mind off. I guess I was wondering what was really going with her. Yeah I know, there is a little stalker in me.

I tried to put myself into her place to figure out where she would have gone. I considered her alternatives. Finally, I it put all aside side and just rode the Parkway home. After all, it really was not any of my business. If she really wanted me to help her out she would have asked, right?

The ride home was totally uneventful, kinda like a dream where nothing happens, but when you wake up there is a smile lingering. The sky was darkening to the deep purple of night, yet no stars were out. The bike flowed through the curves smoothly. Though I felt a little concern for the woman and her child, I understood there was nothing I could for them. That feeling of inability lingered.

Finally, I made it home to the loving embrace of The Runtyun. I woke up a couple of times in the middle of the night a little curious about the fate of my short-lived friend and her child, but I quickly fell back to the slumber I so needed.

That is it for now. Let me know what you think. Should I have been more forward in my concerns with her? Should I have even talked to her in the first place?

Let's have a discussion.

OLC