The Mailbag.

First, I've decided to answer my first piece of "fan" mail.
Not just because it is good to give these people some airtime to make things interesting and "balanced," but because it sets a precedent on how I will deal with certain things in the future.

Names and locations have been changed, because, unlike others, I value some semblance of privacy and decency.

The rest of the content of the submitted editorial remains unaltered.


Easton: Look in Mirror
While Middleground school Superintendent Hank Easton complains annually for more money, his bank account sure doesn't. His overpriced, $250,000 salary could hire almost 10 new teachers for the Middleground School District.

School taxes have more than doubled over the past 10 years Easton has been in command. Although significant improvements have been made, is the school system twice as good? Not even close. Depending who you ask, the situation is worse, especially in terms of preparing students for college.

I hope one day Easton looks in the mirror and realizes how many foreclosures he has caused indirectly by not budgeting within the district's means, and that he himself has caused poverty in his own district that he uses as a perpetual soapbox to stand on.

No, Mr. Easton, asking the state or federal government for more money is not the answer. They will just raise taxes again themselves and make people even poorer as a result.

You can teach a kid high school kid algebra with a 99-cent notebook and a 25-cent pencil if the kid is interested, motivated, and the teacher is decent. High school education results are more of an American culture problem than a money problem.

The same could be said to the teacher's union and Mr. Easton. Stop being so greedy and think of all the great things we still have that others don't- before we don't.

Georges Pompidou
2001 MHS alumus
Middleground

I picked this particular missive for a reason: it is rife with so many misrepresentations and so much misinformation that I almost don't know where to start. I do, though. I'll address it point-by-point.

1) I used the opportunity offered to me to become a spy 4 years ago to expose misconduct, corruption, and to help bridge the partisan gridlock with workable, real solutions before the country reached the point of no return. This liaison/laser-like focus work was done on a volunteer basis. I am going to operationally define the word "volunteer" for you, so that you are no longer disoriented, get confused, or spread misinformation.

2) That being said, I always have, and still do "work for free." Any large sum of money coming my way is called "damages" for unethical, unwanted, invasive, and frankly inhumane treatment that I've had to deal with. It's as if I was just walking down the street to grab a hoagie at a place highly recommended by Person A, minding my own business, and was assaulted and had my clothes ripped off by Person B. Then, I was awarded damages. Then you have the gall to call me a stripper? If there's a better analogy, it escapes me. When you are hoodwinked, you are hoodwinked.

3) If I were greedy, I would have sued the pants off of the hospital I was admitted to last year when I had a near-lethal scrape with lithium toxicity and suffered physical trauma as result, just like everyone was telling me to. Alas, I didn't. It's called class. They deal with this stuff on a daily basis, and they are compassionate people. I'm sure it wasn't intentional. (I almost certainly would not have had that episode had I followed the doctor's instructions and stayed hydrated, but nearly unpredictable factors like a heat wave and a windowless room with no circulation created a perfect storm situation. As a matter of fact, I just plain stopped taking Lithium after this happened. Why? My family asked me to, and I honored that request.) I am alive, and I am thankful.

Also, you know what? I feel that I can give money away better than the government can. Especially to the poor, neighborhoods, schools, and causes that are near and dear to me.

My time to the sick and afflicted is priceless (Who can put a price on their health?), but it is free. There are few things in life that bring me more joy than petitioning the Lord on someone else's behalf for restored health. Or even bringing them back to their loved ones, and giving them a new lease on life.

I receive SSD benefits because I qualify for them (I wonder why?).
And guess what?
I ask not for another dime from the state.
In fact, I could repay it all and then some.

My complaint (Shared by many, it is almost unanimous.) is that "the rent is too damn high."
I don't care who you are, but $25 a week would have anyone a little miffed.

I am re-arranging my life to remedy this problem, and I'm surely not demanding anything more of the state.

4) You know just where to send your sour grapes about the "perpetual soapbox" that you complain about. Same place I did. Nothing changes. Unless you have some sort of hookup and can get it done immediately. Until then, you're just going to have to wait like everyone else. (Just so you know, this is MUCH, MUCH more than a soapbox, as I have told you before, and will show you again later. It's a tripod.)

Hopefully there will be less envy and cheap potshots against hardworking volunteers, because hopefully these bitter individuals will be prosperous in their own right. Why? Because that person they kept taking cheap shots at actually followed through and did the lion's share in pushing through meaningful change.

Thanks for taking the time to write.

-Yours Truly

Now that I've got that out of the way, some useless/useful information that held some significance to me.

The other day, as I was going through a shoebox-sized plastic box of old mementos, including old pay stubs from McDonald's, old letters from my retired 5th grade teacher, and mix cd lists amongst other things, I found some old leftover patches and badges from my days in Scouts. I found my Quartermaster badge (Along with my previous position badges such as Patrol Leader and Assistant Patrol Leader.) I also found the only three merit badges I had earned, as I was mostly into it for the brotherhood and companionship. They were the Rifle, First Aid, and Citizenship in the World merit badges.

Interesting factoids.


Before I finish, it's time to get down to justification, or being seen right in the sight of God.
The first step is listening to Him.
Without it, it is a hopeless endeavor.
He is omnipotent, omnipresent, all-wise, doesn't play politics, doesn't form cliques, etc.
People do these things, not God.

 Isaiah 30: 26-32

Here, the Hebrew word for "name," "shem" (pronounced "shame") was given to be synonymous with "fame" or "reputation," according to Mr. James Strong's Biblical concordance. We could just as easily add "pull," "weight," "power", or "influence" here.

He is the Shepherd of my Soul.
He is in Paradise as we speak.
Notice that geographical boundaries do not stop him from carrying out the duties of a shepherd.
Nor does the world stop spinning simply because he is currently physically not with us.
He does not have to be.

Isaiah 11

His power and influence, even from a distance, is an unbelievably heavy burden.
Anyone speaking for him? They just might turn into a flamethrower.



Isaiah 29
Jeremiah 30
Isaiah 30: 18-23 


We all like a bit of certainty in an uncertain time of rumor and fear mongering.
The American family deserves it.
It is a right, not a privilege.

We are stronger united than we are balkanized, confused, and angry.
Our best days are yet ahead.

Until next time, as I am working on a work that weaves fairly well into this one.

Flashback- 02/08/12 Entry

I don't think any words are necessary.
I already knew how I would be portrayed or viewed.
"Smart" and "prodigious" disappeared years ago.

Take this card, rip it up, and toss it out the window.

Thread the Needle.

Several years back, at the end of my teen years, some friends and I decided to take a visit to the campus of a supposedly "haunted," abandoned residential institution for the physically and mentally disabled that has been shut down for almost two decades in upstate New York (It was shut down due to patient neglect amongst other unmentionable horrors. Sounds like a huge loss, bad publicity, and an even worse legacy). Although it was trespassing, there was little incentive to keep the curious adolescent away from the sprawling, lush grounds.

As my friends and I walked the paths and noticed details like the unlit lampposts that lined the paths, and the smaller buildings that must have been used for purposes other than housing the residents, our curiousity got the best of us. We spotted one small building about the size of a shed. The only thing keeping us out was a thin sheet of plywood. Nothing a crowbar couldn't fix.

We went inside with our flashlights, and found something shocking and disturbing.
One room was filled with cardboard boxes containing envelopes upon envelopes of personal, detailed medical logs.

I picked one out of a box in the dark at random, and took it home as a souvenir.
The resident's name was Ms. Katz, obviously an elderly Jewish woman.
It detailed at least a few months of her personal life, her activities, her well-being, etc.

One quote I can paraphrase from memory was "Ms. Katz went outside today, sat on the bench, and enjoyed the sunshine." Another line was indicating that she was not feeling well, and that her activity level had dropped.

Ironically, a few weeks back, I wasn't feeling too kosher.
Frankly, I was feeling extremely depressed, had no energy, and had trouble taking care of myself.
It was a victory for me to step outside and relax on the porch for a few hours, enjoying the sunshine and the summer breeze.

In other words, Ms. Katz and I ended up having more in common than I ever would have thought.


I am thoroughly reinvigorated.

*Real camels don't smoke. Neither do smart people.

"What's your major malfunction?"

Well, thankfully, I don't have one anymore.

Why was my mind so messed up, jumbled, and having such odd, anxiety-ridden, and sometimes seemingly contradictory things pop into my head?

Why was it so jacked up?

Why would the odd thoughts racing through my head seem to contradict the qualities and attributes described of me in scripture? 

(Well, first off, they are thoughts, not feelings. They contradict nothing. It is important to know the difference. I try to drown out all of the noise and concentrate but it is difficult sometimes.)

I know that God is not a man that he should lie.
You can take the scripture at its word.

So, what was going on?

Keeping that one metal album in my collection that was in direct contradiction to my moral and religious beliefs. Notice not every metal album had to go, even though I am not a humongous fan of metal. Just one. (God is indicating that although he has standards, too many people are hyper paranoid, superstitious, and restrictive.)

That album stuck around because, you know...I just had to have that really cool guitar riff at my fingertips when I felt like hearing it.

The Lord revealed to me that it did not belong, and I knew that it was the offending party, and that it had to go. I kind of wrestled with it, but what I didn't know was that it was causing me psychological unrest.

All it took was the click of a right mouse button, a deletion of a single album, and a cleared recycle bin and my brain began to function, miraculously, MUCH more smoothly.

The effect was immediate, as others would testify.
Maybe even you.

This brought my memory back to the story of Saul in 1 Samuel, where due to his flagrant disobedience, God allowed an "evil" (KJV) spirit to engage him (It can be equated to one that "causes physical harm," or one that "causes painful hardship." It doesn't necessarily mean "evil" in the sense that we think of it today, as some sort of influential malevolent force, although it can apply in that sense. It depends upon the individual, their tendencies, and their temperament.

I'm going to bring you back to present day, now.

I've been caused some "painful hardship" by God allowing me to be oppressed (not possessed, which is impossible after being born into God's family) due to my own iniquity. My personal tendencies? Major, major anxiety, my vulnerability which evil spirits were given free reign to prey upon due to my disobedience. And trust me, with you people yapping and saying all sorts of nonsense, I had a lot to ruminate over in that severely handicapped state of mind.

Without a malevolent bone in my body, it is the perfect time to remind people of the difference between thoughts and feelings.

It's called "anxiety."
Look it up.

I've been set free from this spirit that has caused such painful hardship in my life.
Boy, can appearances be deceiving!
That being said, God's word is trustworthy, not men.

What are some of the main reasons this has happened?
The first was to discipline me and bring me into compliance with my Lord.
Imagine an undisciplined loose cannon running around.

The next?

To offer yet another straw to those who might have been collecting them that the spiritual realm does in fact exist.

Bricks.

Romans 8:28-30




I'd like to delve into a spiritual concept for a moment.

There have been time periods in my life where things just didn't want to go correctly.
If I had put on Right Guard, it would have found a way to turn left.

It would seem like hurled bricks of difficulty, consequence, and pain would materialize out of thin air and smack me upside the head, repeatedly, for months on end.

It took me a while to catch on, but only later, did I realize that many times the results were due to my own decisions.

What can be gleaned from the scripture above is this much: as Christians, whether good, bad, or indifferent, all of our experiences and trials are used to mold, form, break, and re-shape us more into the image of God the Son, Jesus Christ. Teach us lessons or set things straight in our personal or spiritual lives. That is what the Christian life is about. It is a process.

In the heat of the moment, when things really suck, it is hard to keep the "this is happening for a reason" concept in mind. It hurts like the dickens. It's hard to concentrate on anything other than the fact that it feels like you've broken a shin bone.

That being said, I always repeat to myself that this suffering or this episode will bear good fruit for me spiritually, and I always aim to learn and grow from it.

He speaks.
It's just a matter of keeping an open ear.