A visit to my parents’ home, chewing the fat around the table, lead to some interesting conversation. My father read some bits and pieces of an obituary he had in hand.  We talked about the person’s life somewhat. My mother mentioned that my dad saved many obituaries to which we both agreed was partly due to his being a person with a great interest in history. He stores most of them in his old high school yearbooks. Then I mentioned it was not that unusual for folks to save various clippings including obituaries, usually each news article something of importance to the person doing the collecting. I mentioned our fantastic collection over at Westbrook Historical Society. Each scrapbook is very different , some have war news clippings mostly of people from the city who left to go to war and some never coming home. There are stories of neighbors, wedding items, social columns and so much more. My father agreed he had a connection somehow to a survivor in the obituary or the deceased. He stated that they were an excellent source of information in the event one may be searching for a family member. The more we talked about the reasons for such a collection, the more we realized it was to have information at our fingertips. Somehow, I got sidetracked. I began to think how the internet has changed almost every aspect of business across America. These obituaries provided so much information, that maybe it would be an excellent idea for some company to start a database. The purpose of the database would be to have the addresses of one’s final resting place. 
                    Okay, so you think I may be kooky. However, think about it. The following is a fictitious account. Aunt Martha died in 1926. Her obituary stated that she was buried at San Angelo Cemetery, Las Cruces, New Mexico. So now you have an address for a cemetery. You can send a card for any next of kin to retrieve at the mail slot counter in the office. You may even want to send flowers. Maybe you think of that deceased person on their birthday. Yes, you can send a Hallmark card. It is no different than visiting your loved one’s graves on Memorial Day. It is no different than buying a star in their name.You could get a message to the deceased person’s family. It would be your final address. I am certain the Post Office would be excellent guardians of the mail and also appreciate a slice of work that the internet has not taken over yet. Anyhow, you just never know what topics are discussed at the family table.
                    The topic quickly changed to air travel. We all know that travel by air is much more complicated since ….well… you know. It should come as no surprise when we are all asked to undress, and slip on a designer airline Johnny… our flying clothes. If you are a guy, you may get lucky and wear hospital scrubs. What could we do with all of our travel items? Well, those cool canisters they have at the bank might hold some of our valuables. Press the button and send them through a PVC vacuum tube to the airport of your destination. Hey, but what about all those items we can’t leave home without? We might need our surfboards, rollerblades and all the crazy material things that we cannot leave behind for a week. I am thinking about the last time I flew and my life was a wide open Ziploc, for all the airport personnel to see. I think they could even see it on those wide screen overhead TV’s. Well I must say that my life is not THAT interesting. My father suggested maybe we would all be on the plane in our Johnnies and scrubs with a huge balloon flying behind the plane carrying our important stuff. Anything to be safe….
                    I think I am not alone in my belief that our government has done us some great injustices. When did being a politician become so lucrative? If I had any idea this was the way, I might have gone to school to be a politician. In today’s paper was an insert of a limited edition with Obama’s picture on it. Underneath his smiling face is the caption “Change has come- Historic Victory” It only costs 19.99 plus shipping and handling. Now I don’t recall seeing a plate with George Bush’s face on it. I can’t believe the genius marketing. I do recall a bronze bank of Kennedy’s bust I had as a kid. Is it lucrative to be a politician? I think so. I wonder if Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln might be able to be compensated for back pay. Now those were men. The problem with us is that we want it all NOW. The world does not run like a Google Search. A farmer cultivated his land for many years and improved on the soil. Is there anyone in the house that could wait that long for progress? When you raise your children, you invest yourselves, your time, and hopefully your product will shine. You watch your child progress. Why don’t we have patience to wait for progress? When you don’t cultivate your crops, they die. Progress takes time and we are not going to get it NOW.    
                    Now if only our CEO’s and our 500 Kings in Congress would take advantage of Free Bus Fridays, Greyhound or Amtrak, instead of their limos and jets, maybe they could relate to us and we could relate to them. Why can’t they work from home and do conference calls, and be more efficient like we have been forced to become? This hysteria which seems to be sweeping the Nation with newly formed committees such as the Hate Violence Task Force. I guess they investigate acts of graffiti which is offensive. Want to read about people and their hysteria? Read “The Conscientious Objector: Portland Maine to Portland Oregon” It can be found on this blog. People have not changed. They are pretty much persuaded by what the media tells them. And by the way… where is our President George Bush? It would have been nice to hear a little more from him these past few months with our given crisis upon crisis, though he probably stepped aside to give Mr. Obama center stage. Mr. Bush is still our President for short while longer. Let’s stay passionate America and remember that each of our leaders brings something to the table. Don’t wait for our government to make changes that will be in our best interests. That will not happen. In fact, it most likely will not be in our best interests. It will be up to us to make a difference, not them. Keep the passion.