Ignorance is Bliss

Ignorance is Bliss

Ignorance is bliss definition

• Not knowing something is often more comfortable than knowing it.                                   
• Note: This proverb resembles “What you don't know cannot hurt you.” It figures in a passage from “On a Distant Prospect of Eton College,” by the eighteenth-century English poet Thomas Gray: “Where ignorance is bliss, / ‘Tis folly to be wise.’”

As I catch campaign 2016 commercials on the television’s various networks, I harken back to the good old days when politicians had a touch of class and decency (sorry for the use of an oxymoron).

Nothing happens today especially on the campaign trail that doesn’t get immediate exposure on the internet.  Even television networks find themselves leading from behind because everyone is tweeting, and otherwise posting to the social media (Facebook).

Back in the days before the internet, an illegal activity could be taking place in the next block from your residence and you might never hear of it, except for maybe a nosey neighbor that might be known for spreading gossip.  Regularly cases were exposed where a husband or wife might be having an affair on the opposite side of town (population 15,000 and bigger) and no one would be the wiser, they might even live in total bliss not knowing of the betrayal.

I recall that when I was involved in my career (28 years), my office would be on the West Side of the State, and my area of responsibility was on the East Side of the State.  I was on the road on average 2500 miles per month, and was away from home anywhere from 3 to 4 days, and sometimes the whole week.  One unscrupulous individual in my office that didn’t travel, asked me if I had a second family going on while I was away.

In the course of my business I met many individuals that were well off and traveled in their business, and while not everyone was doing it I knew a number of individuals that traveled with mistresses.  One that comes to mind was married to a beautiful wife that had been a professional model, and even after having 3 children and in her late 20’s still looked like the famous model that my friend had met and married.

This story was conveyed by my friend as we chatted over a couple of drinks in his newly decorated bachelor apartment.  It was a Friday night when his wife received a call from one of her friends who was on vacation.  She asked her friend where is Ben (the name has been changed to protect the guilty), and her answer was he is attending a trade convention in Atlanta, Georgia.  Her friend responded, I’m not doing this to hurt you but as a friend, to help you.  My husband and I are at a resort in Hawaii and Ben just came into the lounge with a young brunette on his arm, and they are acting like honeymooners.  She sent a video of the two hugging and kissing in a booth.

By the time my friend got home most of his clothes were packed and near the front entrance of his palatial home.  She had contacted an attorney over the weekend and began the process of divorce, and division of property.  My friend was in the land development business, and owned commercial properties, undeveloped land, an exclusive golf course (Country Club), one of the largest and very popular furniture stores in town (established by his father in the mid 1950’s).  By the time his wife was done with him he was near bankruptcy, and had lost most of the inheritance his parents had left him.  The times when “Ignorance is Bliss,’ applied, went out when the smart phones with cameras and videos, and social media came in.

I am a very happily married man, because I love my family and they love me.  It doesn’t hurt that in my relationship I always get the last word.  Unfortunately, it’s almost always, “yes dear!”  The best is yet to come….

Saving the Day

Saving the day

If you have followed my blog, you are aware that I like to delve into The good ole days of the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, etc., etc.  The best and fastest way is to travel back in time is by using my mind which has lived through the times, and it remains vividly fresh in my mind.  One popular saying is that the mind is a terrible thing to waste.  Well, in my case it would be like throwing out a 2 terabyte hard drive, without first saving or transferring its’ contents.  I’ve always felt that better things were ahead for us as a nation, and I still believe that, but I must admit it is requiring a lot more faith and prayer to see through the haze.

It seems that historically every time that this wonderful country of ours has taken a step backwards (setback) we manage to come out two steps ahead by the time the smoke clears.  In recent years I’ve noticed that we haven’t been bouncing back as well as we are used to.  It doesn’t really matter what your political affiliation is or the color of your skin, it used to be that whatever your shortcomings (weaknesses), our country would always be a place where you could come out ahead.

If you were willing to work hard, and smart (not necessarily in that order) there was room for you to succeed and leave your family better off than you ever attained.  As an example my parents were much better off than their parents (not just financially, but also emotionally, physically, education, etc.).  My wife and I are better off than our parents in every sense including health and relationship.  My children are already bypassing our level of accomplishment in almost all levels, but they are still young and they will recover from some of their weak areas.

Their weaknesses are not insurmountable, but I can see that their weaknesses are in part a product of society, government intervention (I’m referring to government regulation in most areas of our lives, and other intrusions where they have no business getting involved)

One perfect example comes to mind in the area of communications.  Remember when the government decided that Ma Bell was too big and had to be split?  Life was supposed to be improved for the consumer after the government intervened.  You have the answer if you lived through that time; how large is your phone bill now?  How much privacy do you have for your communications?

For those of us that have been paying for our own health insurance for years, how much money have you saved on your premiums and copays in the last two or three years? With regard to politics, it used to be that there was an acceptable code of conduct for the presidential candidates, do you even recognize what is passing for political campaigning?  Remember, I’m not claiming to be on one side or the other.

I don’t care who wins at this point (I may have to settle for the best of the worst), we may have a difficult time recognizing this country in three or four years.  It used to be that you had to have a level of acceptable decency but unless something changes quickly, or someone comes forth to save the day the road to recovery is going to be a long one.

The media used to be like a spotlight on cockroaches, (when the light came on the cockroaches ran for the cover of darkness.  Today the media is an instigator and most often a cheerleader for those they support and bully to what they consider their opposition.

It could well be that we need to hurry up and complete work on the time machine for those of us looking to escape to better times.  The best is yet to come….

Decreasing Value

Decreasing Value

Another great title for this post could be Disappearing Middle Class.  For some of us that have had a wonderful run in the workforce, and are now retired.  If we prepared adequately (education or training) and either saved money or invested wisely, and had a big helping of good luck.  By good luck I mean not have 80 to 100% of your investments in the stock market around the time of the market collapsed.  For those of us; we are surviving with our heads above water where the finances are concerned.  We don’t even notice our declining finances because we have been adjusting our extracurricular activities.  Examples:  Stop taking the annual vacation to fancy resorts in or out of the country, dropped the Golf Membership at the Country Club, stopped driving the expensive SUV (gas guzzler) and moved into a more economical sedan, Cut down eating out from twice weekly to twice monthly (entertaining more at home), etc., etc.

When my wife and I first got married and even now we like to guess how much our groceries are going to cost while the cashier is processing our groceries.  We like to see how sharp we are at guessing and see who comes the closest to the total cost.  The only prize is the honor of guessing the closest and show off our mathematical genius.  It used to be that a rule of thumb was on average $10 per bag of groceries.

Like everything else the prices have gone up and the size of the bags have gotten smaller.  Coincidence, I don’t think so.  Just like the size of a candy bar got smaller and the price stayed the same for about a year and then they totally lost their shame and raised the prices anyway (have you noticed that the size of a case of pop is now 20 cans instead of 24, yet the price stayed the same or went up).  Earlier this week I was sent out on a grocery run and as often happens, I was in the mood for reflection.  As has been typical since the drought broke in the Northwest, it was a rainy evening.  

After rushing into my car to avoid getting soaked, I noticed that I only carried out two small bags of groceries, and a couple of lose items that were too heavy for the flimsy paper bags with handles that they now sell you for five cents each.  The paper handles on the bags break long before you get home.  Total paid for the few items I purchased was over $50.  That is an average of 25 dollars per bag.  The few items that I carried unbagged were a gallon of milk, ½ gallon of orange juice, and a two liter bottle of pop.

It wasn’t that long ago that I remember buying a five pound sleeve of ground beef for $4.39 today in some stores that’s the price per pound, even more if you buy the 93% fat free.  Today’s price of the cheapest cut of beef (Chuck Roast) is $6.99 per pound.  That used to be the price of Top Sirloin.  The saddest thing is that, the market place ratchets the screws on our budgets so much and so high that when they finally have a sale to draw you into the store, and we are so grateful and reward them with our budget dollars.

I remember that growing up my parents used to look at the weekly sales (printed on paper flyers) and would actually shop the different stores to buy the advertised sales leaders.  I do believe I see those day coming back.  The reason for the high prices is often blamed on the cost of oil (transportation), the drought (lack of irrigation water for agriculture), Global Warming (according to politicians, what happens in Timbuktu affects Cucamonga, California, etc., etc.). 

There will have to be at least two more posts on the subject of what’s making the Middle Class disappear.  I don’t care about all the excuses (reasons) I hear; the number one reason for the high prices is greed and crooked corporations (they raise prices because they can – 200% plus increase in CEO compensation over the last 2 or 3 years).  We can return our country (world) to greatness, but we need to get involved or at least be aware.  The best is yet to come…….

Live and Learn

Live and Learn

At my age I would think, that I would have mastered life’s basic fundamentals for survival.  I still, however, manage to surprise myself now and again.

I pride myself in doing what it takes for self-preservation.  I have an excellent health care team.  The latest computer technology is applied to make sure that my healthcare needs are tracked for best possible results.  I’ve actually had my personal physicians send me an email while vacationing in Florida, because she didn’t like a test result and wanted me to take immediate action to change the outcome.  From my perspective it was something minor:  ever so slight increase in my cholesterol reading.  She said to me in the email:  “Mister, I don’t know what you’ve done different in the last 6 months but I want you to reverse it and watch what you eat so you can reverse the last cholesterol report outcome.  I will have you run some lab work in 60 days to see where you are at.”

I can honestly say that my own mother never paid that much attention to my well-being. While I am extremely pleased with the personal service from my health care team, this post is not about that.

Among other things that I do for self-preservation I visit a chiropractor once or twice a month for the periodic body adjustment, almost always followed by a one hour therapeutic massage.  Please don’t imagine for a moment some shady massage office on the wrong side out of town.  This particular service that I avail myself to is located in my doctor’s office just down the hall.

I’ve been known to ask my doctor, how much would rent cost me to for two or three hours of very relaxing sleep in the massage room.  The ambiance is always perfect, soothing music, nice warm and toasty massage table mattress/pad.  I actually have to try extra hard to stay awake even beyond the punishing deep tissue massage.

Well the point to this lengthy lead up, is that my wife has been complaining lately of lower back pain (she doesn’t tolerate massage therapy).  So since I love her so much, I was trying to find a way to treat her to the relaxation that I experience during massage.  I talked to the masseuse, and she recommended that I go to a specific store, where for much less than $100, I could buy a mattress heated pad with dual controls.

Well, I immediately went shopping and surprised her with my purchase.  She didn’t resist the idea, and has been sleeping comfortably and waking up without the lower back problem.  For some reason, I am disappointed that I had not taken this step long before.  I have received the benefit of chiropractor and massage treatment for at least 25 years and I never thought to replicate the environment from the massage room to my very own home.

If you haven’t thought about it, I would highly recommend that you give it a try.  I know that many people will go out and spend $30 dollars or more for a heating pad or a hot water bottle.  Yet the cost for the mattress heating pad is only a few dollars more.  

This mattress heating pad should come with an extra cautionary warning that I didn’t see anywhere in the box or manual:  You will have the possible danger of wanting to stay in bed all day long, especially during the winter months.  The best is yet to come……..

To P or not to P

To P or not to P

I was on the freeway recently driving and listening to the news on the radio (which I almost never do anymore).  Ever since digital music came along and I can take a large playlist with me, the radio has become obsolete, for me anyway. 

Amongst many topics being discussed there was a discussion on the subject of aggressive panhandling by the homeless population of a city in the State of Washington.  I won’t mention the city but I will say that it wasn’t Seattle.  Don’t get me wrong, Seattle has many problems including a large population of homeless people.  The topic was news worthy because the administration of the particular city was taking steps to deal with the aggressive panhandlers that was driving customers away from the downtown area.

An audio clip of a public hearing was played and a (obvious) homeless activist raised his voice above all others to make the point that there was no restrooms available for the homeless to take care of business.  He pointed out that the merchants didn’t allow non-customers to use their facilities.

I could easily advocate for both sides of the argument.  I have seen the mess that can be left behind when a homeless person uses a merchant’s facility to give themselves a sponge bath and a shave.  I have also seen a merchant threaten to call the police when a couple of men or more locked themselves in a restaurant restroom and leave only after the police threat while leaving behind needles and other drug paraphernalia.

That short radio broadcast got me to thinking about a different scenario.  For those of us that can afford to take in the occasional sporting event costing $150 plus or perhaps a rock concert.  We are pretty confident and comfortable that we can take care of ourselves if Mother Nature should call unexpectedly while we are out and about.

What would be the outcome if we are in a large city (15k population or much larger) and our car gets stolen with our wallet and cell phone in it.  Perhaps we get mugged or pick pocketed and we find ourselves without our precious credit cards and identification.  If you are anything like me, I seldom carry paper money on me (mostly because I have children and grandchildren).

In the case of a scenario like the one described, we are not much better than a homeless person.  I am so dependent on my cellular telephone that I don’t know anyone’s phone number not even my wife or children’s numbers.  I’m not sure that I could tell you what my phone number is.  Even if we did have phone numbers, you can no longer go to the corner pay phone in most cities.

Imagine if you found yourself in downtown Seattle of San Francisco and you wanted to do #1 or worst yet #2, but you don’t have money to buy even a pop or a cup of tea.  You could end up under arrest for relieving yourself at some street corner or even alley.  I realize that I just created a problem out of the blue for me and you.  However, that is an everyday problem for the homeless population in larger cities.  I keep mentioning larger cities because the smaller towns don’t have the homeless population associated with the cities, and besides pretty much any merchant in a small town would offer you the use of their facility, or even offer you a free meal.

I’m sorry to say that I am not offering a solution, just a possible problem.  One solution might be to try to remember a handful of important telephone numbers.  As for Mother Nature calling, Depends (no pun intended).  The best is yet to come……

Your Money’s Worth

Is it even copper anymore?

It used to be acceptable and almost a compliment to have someone say to you, “A penny for your thoughts?”  Of course that was back when you could buy something for a penny.  While it wasn’t much of a value, it was more value than it is today.  I used to frequently go to a store and if the total of my bill was say $9.56, I would regularly pay with a ten dollar bill and say keep the change and walk away.

That was my way of keeping change out of my pockets that were of questionable value and mostly served to wear out my pockets.  That was my habit, until one day when I ran into the cashier from hell that change me forever.  I was six cents short for the purchase I was making, and I wasn’t allowed to take the product.  Since that time, I must have filled about four - five gallon clear plastic refill drinking water bottles (the kind that you place inverted on your water cooler).  The copper coins go to good use, I allow my granddaughters to share my treasure.

The following is a little lesson about our U.S. Mint and the coins we mostly take for granted, especially with the use of the debit card.

·       The U.S. Mint cut the cost of making the penny by nearly a third over the past two years, but the little copper-coated coin still costs more than a cent to produce.  A new report shows the cost to produce a penny was 1.7 cents in the 2014 fiscal year. That’s down from 2.4 cents in 2011 but still more than face value.  “There are no alternative metal compositions that reduce the manufacturing unit cost of the penny below its face value,” the biennial report to Congress said.

·       The nickel, too, is dead weight for taxpayers. Production costs stood at 8 cents last year, down from 11 cents. The lower cost per coin is largely a result of rising production and reduced metal costs.

·       Other coins turn a profit. A dime costs 3.9 cents to make, and a quarter 9 cents. All together, the Mint made $289.1 million on seigniorage–the difference between the value of the coin and the cost to make it–despite a $90.5 million drag from the penny and nickel.

·       The Mint estimates that switching up the metallic content of coins could save taxpayers $5 million to $57 million a year, though vending, amusement, laundry and other groups with coin operated machines warn that it could cost them billions to reconfigure machinery and make other adjustments needed to accept altered specie, the Mint said. ~ Wall Street Journal – By JEFFREY SPARSHOTT

I realize that what I am about to relate will sound a bit like science fiction, but once upon a time not all that long ago, you could buy a gallon of gasoline by simply putting together 13 of those little copper coins.  You could also buy a McDonald’s Hamburger for 12 pennies, or a Taco Bell crunchy taco for 11 pennies even a 12 ounce pop for 5 pennies.  You could run up a hefty dental bill by over indulging on penny candy.  In the State of Texas you could buy a Texas famous sweet and juicy orange for a penny a piece.  That’s right one hundred for a dollar.  I could go on forever with the value that a penny could add to your life back then.  The best is yet to come…………..

To Be or Not to Be

Costume from Hamlet

I know that the title sounds like something out of Hamlet, but it perfectly describes my quandary.  The grandchildren have returned to school after spending the long summer vacation in my care for around 8 hours a day on average.  They are now in the wilds of new school year.

I must admit that I spoiled them as their grandfather is gives me great pleasure to make them the focus of my-everything.  I enjoyed treating them to something special almost every day.  We would go play mini golf, Chuck E. Cheese, Charlie Safari, the mall.  We would eat out at least 3 times in any given week on average.  I purchased games that we could play in the backyard, including a trampoline, and updated the swing set (with slide, and teeter totter) to be more adequate (keep up) with their age.  I even purchased a minivan so that they could ride around in safety and comfort (and they love it, they call it their school bus).

But now enters the Shakespearean title:  after just one day of school, they came home more rambunctious than ever.  I have to keep repeating myself and raising my voice to get their attention.  I want to keep being as they often called me “the greatest grandpa in the world.”  However, I want to get back a semblance of control back.  Even as I write this post, I know that my preference is to maintain the wonderful atmosphere that we developed during the summer vacation.  So my considerations are simple “to be” more strict “or not to be” more strict.  I’ve pretty much decided that the one thing I don’t want to be is like my strict grandmother (maternal side).

For now, I am thinking that I will allow them all the time they need to get used to their new school year, and renewed and new friendships.  Once the newness of the new school year wears out they should return to our special relationship.  If they don’t return, oh well, I guess that’s similar to the progression I experienced with their parents many years ago.  It’s just that so much time has gone by, that I almost forgot.

I share this with you just in case some of you are having the same experiences.  Be patient and know that the bottom line is, they are your grandchildren and they love you with all their little hearts, and you love them more than anything.  This experience is all new to them.  I am pleased that they went back to school and took to the new school year like fish to water.  In the meantime I am trying to renew projects that were laid aside during the long (what now looks like short) months of summer vacation.  The best is yet to come………….

Reflection Time

Reflection Time

As we are about to change seasons once again this time from Summer to Autumn (Fall) perhaps it would be a good time for reflection.  Summer is the fast paced season of the year.  The time to enjoy the full throttle pace going from winter and spring weather into hot summer weather.  The warm sunrays give the human body energy and a good all-around feeling, especially to those of us over 50 years of age. The summer also gives us the fast pace of having the children and grandchildren around us to provide the extra energy of always doing something or going somewhere.

The arrival of autumn on the other hand coincides with the return of the school year, and after school activities such as sports, music and dance lessons.  So for us, the demand on the responsible adults, diminishes rather drastically.  For those of us that enjoy having the children around the change is difficult, and will require about a week or two before we can adjust to the routine change.

While many changes are taking place, it’s not something new, it happens every year at the same time.  Someday soon the children will outgrow the need for the additional school vacation attention, and I know that I for one, will miss having them in my life demanding my time.  The high degree of interaction is still needed but in different areas.  We need to always be on the lookout for those subtle changes that will allow us to stay close to our beloved little ones.

This slowing down of demand on our personal time will allow us to get on with the continued responsibility to our friendships that may have taken a back seat to the needs of the young ones in our families.  I’ve always been responsible to follow up and otherwise maintain those friendships that have endured and carried me throughout life.  The feeling of responsibility was instilled in me since I first read an obscured poem that I read back in the mid 1970’s:                  

Around The Corner by Charles Hanson Towne

Around the corner I have a friend,
In this great city that has no end,
Yet the days go by and weeks rush on,
And before I know it, a year is gone.

And I never see my old friends face,
For life is a swift and terrible race,
He knows I like him just as well,
As in the days when I rang his bell.

And he rang mine but we were younger then,
And now we are busy, tired men.
Tired of playing a foolish game,
Tired of trying to make a name.

"Tomorrow" I say! "I will call on Jim
Just to show that I'm thinking of him",
But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes,
And distance between us grows and grows.

Around the corner, yet miles away,
"Here's a telegram sir," "Jim died today."
And that's what we get and deserve in the end.
Around the corner, a vanished friend.

Don’t forget or ignore your friends, they are a precious part of your life, and like all things valuable, they don’t last forever.  The best is yet to come………..

Back in Time

Back in Time

Have you ever felt like re-living a particular event in your life because looking back it was exciting, fun, special or otherwise a pivotal event in your life?  We all have a very special tool in our utility belt best known as our ability of recall through the use of memory.  Some of us are able to glean positive recollection while others opt to recall a mix that includes depressing moments in time.  It takes a special talent to stay upbeat, and always look for the positive.

You could say that I am the person you always hear about that sees the glass half full instead of half empty.  I personally know individuals that refuse to move forward until an issue of many years past is settled.  I on the other hand believe in cutting my losses in order to continually move forward.

I recently (just this past week) purchased an expensive piece of exercise equipment for one tenth of its original value (still in like new condition).  I had to travel over 60 miles to pick it up, and am grateful for my son in-law’s assistance because the equipment weighed right around 200 pounds.  I will take this opportunity to brag up my son in-law of 10 years.  He is a return Marine, making his way in private sector advancing by leaps and bounds.  He and my daughter met while attending college, and they have built together an enviable life for themselves and their two children.  What I like the most about this young man is that like me, he is always Johnny on the spot ready to serve others.

We drove in one of my sons’ cargo vans to pick up the equipment purchase.  Removing the equipment from the private residence’s basement and loading it into the cargo van was an extreme workout in itself.  Once loaded into the van, I took a long hard look at the situation before me, and even talked about it.  I remember telling my son in-law, what do you think, the equipment is so heavy I doubt it will slide of shift.  We agreed, said our goodbyes and drove into the stormy night for the return home.

Not more than 15 miles into the return trip, there was an accident on the freeway with about 6 emergency vehicles lights lighting up the scene, and creating a bottle neck in traffic.  Traffic went from 65 to 70 miles per hour to a standstill.  My son in-law from the passenger seat exclaimed “oh s**t!” as he placed his hands on the dash and I applied the brakes evermore firmly.  I managed a gradual but steady stop missing the rear bumper of the vehicle in front of us by about 10 inches.  The last thing I heard as I stopped was the slide and crash of the exercise equipment against the divider that separates the cargo area from the cab.

Talk about a mixed feelings of relief from stopping in time and avoiding a collision to knowing that the equipment I had just purchase must be damaged. A negative person would have been upset at the damage to the equipment.  I on the other hand (Mr. Glass is half full) said a silent prayer because easily things could have been much worst.  If the cargo van had not had a partition between the cargo area and the cab, we might have become part of the headlines of a fatal freeway accident.

The electronic console of the exercise equipment was damaged but miraculously still works.  Even in its present condition it’s still worth more than what I paid for it.  Important lesson, always buy at the right price, in case something goes wrong. On a foot note: the cost to replace the damaged electronic console is 5 times what I paid for the whole unit.  

The “Back in Time” title to this post is where I’ve actually lost sleep trying to re-live the moment when I made the decision not to tie down the equipment (we actually had the material needed in the van for the job).  For me to voice my thoughts at the time is a sign that a sixth sense was telling me to do otherwise. I will definitely err on the side of caution next time and every time.  If only I could go back in time or take it back.  Simply trying to figure a way to go back and change it, but I don’t really waste my time with regret.  What’s done is done, cut your losses and move on.  The best is yet to come…..

Crime or Stupidity

1953 Corvette 

Before I even get into the body of this post, let me clarify that I am not looking for absolution especially because the statute of limitations is long past.  Back in the early high school years when I purchased my first car (used1956 Ford Victoria) in the early 60’s, I was the man (at least one of three).  The best 3 cars at my high school (in order of bragging rights) were a 1953 Chevrolet Corvette Roadster (Ron’s family owned and operated the local Funeral Home) (side note:  I hated wrestling against him during team practice because whenever he applied or attempted to apply a half-nelson his hands would be near my face and they smelled of formaldehyde), the second car was a 1956 Ford Thunderbird (Dave’s parents owned a couple of used car lots), the third car was my car 1956 Ford Victoria with a moon roof.  I worked hard for my car.

One of my best friends (also Hispanic) at the time liked my car so much that he bought a car just like mine but a year older (1955) and the same color.  Well, the stage is set for the question of Crime or Stupidity.

One fine weekend I was driving in a neighboring small town, and had the opportunity to show off in front if some young men from a rival high school, and I did.  I floored the gas pedal as I took off from an intersection (with some gravel at the stop sign).  As I took off, making lots of noise with my Cherry Bomb Glasspack dual exhaust mufflers, the car fishtailed and I know the guys were impressed.  Unfortunately two blocks later a local police officer pulled me over sirens blasting and all.

I must admit my legs felt weak, but I was able to control all my other bodily functions (James Dean or Marlon Brando I wasn’t).  Actually whenever I drove my car, I felt more like Robert Mitchum (the character from Thunder Road).  I had a split second to decide what I was going to do or say and that is where Stupidity comes in.  When the office approached my window he noticed I was very young and he decided to pile it on.  His first question was; “Was that you making all that racket I heard?”

I was trying to be firm but polite and didn’t want to further aggravate him.  I said, I don’t know what you heard, but I did spin my tires taking off from a stop sign a couple of blocks back due to some gravel at the intersection.

He said you weren’t taking off, you mean blasting off.  He next asked me for my driver’s license, and this is where I decided to lie.  I said I didn’t have my wallet with me.  I had left it at home when I changed pants.  He asked me for my name, and I gave him the name of my best friend (the one that owned a car like mine).  When he asked for an address, I gave him my friends address.

He said since I didn’t see you making all that noise and driving recklessly, I’m going to let you get off with a warning, but I will keep your name on the dash of my patrol car, and if I ever stop you again, I will throw the book at you. 

I’ve never told this to anyone, because I wasn’t proud of myself, but at this point I really didn’t want to take it to my grave.  As guilty as I feel I still wouldn’t dare confess to my friend.  Life has been great, now that the slate is clean, I can consider myself an honorable man again.  The best is yet to come………..