June 16, 2015

I showed up in a Bernie picture thanks to cal04

I'm standing on his left in my bright yellow AFSCME shirt.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/128013543

June 15, 2015

Photos of Bernie in Indianola, IA 6-14-15

On the way there I got a little lost. GPS doesn't work when there is no cell service in the sticks. It was pouring rain and dark. I kept wondering if I would be hearing tornado sirens. I'm glad I had a map. But with all the rain road signs etc were very hard to see. Service came back when I got just outside Indianola. By then I already knew where I was.

About 1/2 hour before Bernie arrived (a little late) the rain stopped. I'm sure the weather kept many people away. It was very sticky by the time Bernie got there. Everything was soaking wet. I was standing next to a bee hive built into a hole in a wooden support of the pavilion. I didn't bother them, they didn't bother me.

Several people were wearing union t shirts. I had my easy to ID yellow AFSCME shirt. There was another AFSCME worker from the next county over. His son is a student at NU in Lincoln, NE and made the drive just to see Bernie. There was a UAW that works at John Deere. Others were SEIU, IBEW, Teamsters, AND NEA that I saw.

I met one guy that drove down from Chicago to see Bernie.

Bernie is still hiring Iowa staff. Two were working their first day at the event. This was Bernie's third and final stop of the day. His third day in a row in Iowa.

Since there are videos already posted, I'm just putting up a few pictures.

I got the hand shake. He was happy to talk to a DUer, retiree, and union member all in one. No photo of it. I hope one shows up in the videos or other photos posted on other web sites etc.

And he knows the DU!

OS

Bernie arrives and waiting to be introduced.




The overflow crowd in the wet grass. Standing in the blue shirt is Phil Fiermonte Bernie's Field Director. Remember that name. No hints. Let me just say we networked.




It happened so fast I missed the shot. As he was leaving Bernie stopped on his own to bend down to say hello to somebody special. Look at the smile left on that face.

June 13, 2015

Bernie Sanders fans put down those $5 footlong sandwiches and read this!!!

Event: Warren County Democrats 12th Annual Summer Picnic

TIME: Sunday, June 14, 2015 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM CDT

HOST: Bernie Sanders

LOCATION: Veterans Memorial Park (Indianola, IA)
Corner of G Street and West Euclid Avenue
Indianola, IA 50125


Next Sunday afternoon, June 14th I'll be at the Warren County Democrats picnic in Indianola, IA. I've pulled a few strings (those same strings got me in photos with John Kerry just before the 04 Dem Convention & John Edwards in Oct 07) and will get a moment to talk with Senator Sanders.

I'll be mentioning whatever the total is in our DU Bernie Sanders Group Act Blue account at noon on the 14th for some good DU PR. If you have $5 (Bernie has said several times $5 is great) or whatever to add to the total by then, that would be wonderful. As of this moment our total raised is $3,706.00 in just 6 weeks. We are solidly in 4th place by the amount raised from ALL PACs & groups. That is way above where I thought we would be at this point.

Here is the link to donate: https://secure.actblue.com/contribute/page/duforbernie

You can check here anytime to compare how our fund raising compares: https://secure.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/39795

To share the donation info you can use FB or Tweet below.

New Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsecure.actblue.com%2Fcontribute%2Fpage%2Fduforbernie%3Frefcode%3Dpromote-share%23.VUXiK8m85wQ.facebook

Tweet: https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=check+out+our+new+%40ActBlue+page+%27Democratic+Underground++for+Bernie%27.+https%3A%2F%2Fsecure.actblue.com%2Fcontribute%2Fpage%2Fduforbernie%3Frefcode%3Dpromote-share%23.VUXo8Ohnyn0.twitter


Bernie's campaign uses Act Blue too. This just keeps a total of $ donated by DUers and friends.

All the donated $ to Bernie goes to Bernie except for the actual charge card fee by law: http://support.actblue.com/faq#q15

Fees all vendors pay to use your credit card from a vendors perspective: http://paysimple.com/credit_card_rates_explained.html

IF you give a tip it goes to Act Blue, the most successful Democratic $ raising PAC for their in house expenses like rent, payroll, IT, etc.

NYT: How ActBlue Became a Powerful Force in Fund-Raising: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/09/upshot/how-actblue-became-a-powerful-force-in-fund-raising.html?abt=0002&abg=1

It takes a few minutes for the tote board to show your donation on the now semi-live goal o meter just below.

Can you kick in a little


That is me listening to John Edwards. I also did a couple interviews with the press. Video below the photo.






Uploaded on Oct 24, 2007
John Edwards talks about the importance of rejecting money from Washington lobbyists at a community meeting in Glenwood, Iowa on October 24, 2007.

June 3, 2015

When Illness Makes a Spouse a Stranger Part II...I saw the specialist today

Original post: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10026641619

Marta took me in this morning. I have been dreading this visit. Cut to the chase.

I DO NOT have ALS.

Some other things going on besides my FTD. But this was great news to me. Funny when somebody has a fatal disease thinks something is good news. Thank you all for the support the DU community has shown me since I made my diagnosis known.

Recommended watching is the documentary on Roger Ebert's fight for life: http://www.ebertmovie.com/

OS

May 8, 2015

When Illness Makes a Spouse a Stranger (can we talk?)

First I want to thank the 40-50 DUers that knew about my condition and kept my deepest secret.

Why OS doesn't really exist anymore is in an old NYT article below.

I had it long before I was diagnosed with FTD (I prefer to call it brain atrophy from the article below) just before Christmas 2013. I guess I'm lucky, some victims get this in their 20's.

My new symptoms point to me having a second deadly disease (ALS) that will shorten even more the quality time I have left. Projected lifespan 2 years. I'm just waiting to see the specialist for a confirmation diagnosis. I'm in no hurry to get there.

I so desperately wanted wanted to stay on the DU through November of 2016. But I've overstayed my time, it is so obvious. All I have done is ruin what OS used to be on the DU. My own fault for wanting to stay.

On current events. I was asked to do something by a DU Hillary supporter earlier this week. I spent the time and effort. It was pointed out to me point blank this morning because of something I did a few weeks ago, a huge "stick it" was the way it was treated by many. I had already heard it through the grapevine. It still hurt. Since then I haven't been able to stop crying.

And this morning an OP brought this reply: "I think you should delete this thread, because it sounds demented."

On the money in my case.

"you don't have Nixon to kick around any more, because, gentlemen, this is my last press conference." (http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/r/richardmn116455.html)

I've enjoyed being a part of the DU and all the friends I've made here.

As far as OS and life in the future. I won't go out violently. I won't go out on FTD's terms.

A glass to the good old days. To a win in November 2016...

OS AKA Algernon or Don Quixote

PS Make a copy before this gets locked.

http://www.theaftd.org/

http://www.theaftd.org/understandingftd/disorders/ftdal

When Illness Makes a Spouse a Stranger

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/06/health/a-rare-form-of-dementia-tests-a-vow-of-for-better-for-worse.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all

By DENISE GRADY MAY 5, 2012

He threw away tax documents, got a ticket for trying to pass an ambulance and bought stock in companies that were obviously in trouble. Once a good cook, he burned every pot in the house. He became withdrawn and silent, and no longer spoke to his wife over dinner. That same failure to communicate got him fired from his job at a consulting firm.

By 2006, Michael French — a smart, good-natured, hardworking man — had become someone his wife, Ruth, felt she hardly knew. Infuriated, she considered divorce.

But in 2007, she found out what was wrong.

“I cried,” Mrs. French said. “I can’t tell you how much I cried, and how much I apologized to him for every perceived wrong or misunderstanding.”

FULL story at link. Video: http://nyti.ms/1jY2ew8 via @nytvideo



Looking back, Mrs. French thinks her husband's mind began to slip a decade earlier. Credit Béatrice de Géa for The New York Times

May 6, 2015

I was interviewed on live TV while donating blood (challenge to others to donate) updated VIDEO

Video: http://kmtv.video.jrn.com/?ndn.trackingGroup=90837&ndn.siteSection=kmtvstudio_hom_non_sec&ndn.videoId=29027958&freewheel=90837&sitesection=kmtvstudio_hom_non_sec&vid=29027958


I was at the Bellevue Fire Training Academy. No idea this would happen. KMTV was doing a live shot there. I explained CMV negative and sounded like I knew what I was talking about.

I'm O positive CMV negative. What Does It Mean to Have CMV-Negative Blood?: http://blog.inceptsaves.com/blog/2011/05/04/what-does-it-mean-to-have-cmv-negative-blood/

I challenge other DUers to donate blood at an upcoming drive in their area!

OS

UPDATE: http://www.scrippsmedia.com/kmtv/news/Fire-Police-battle-to-donate-blood--302810331.html

By Lindsey Theis. CREATED 2:34 PM

OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV)--Throughout the week, you may have seen the #supportblue or #supportred on twitter. It's a friendly rivalry among first responders.

For the past seven years, the Red Cross has partnered with Douglas/Sarpy County first responders for the Battle of the Badges.

"We changed format for a couple years, calling it Protect, Save & Serve to create a unified drive, but we our first responders wanted the competition aspect brought back! Law enforcement won the first few years and firefighters won the last time it was a competition," said Katie Marshall, with

Drives have been organized throughout the week. The goal is to collect 150 pints of blood during Battle of the Badges every year.

April 28, 2015

Good news...bad news

People that read the DU are still learning about my health. A couple weeks ago I started having new symptoms. This morning I got hit with a sledge hammer. I was having having a bad day. It is why I haven't been on much today.

It is possible to find joy in the simple things even when your terminal. We have been waiting for the rest of our feathered friends to show up. We have a huge evergreen tree right outside our front window. It is 71 with a slight breeze. I had the window open. Suddenly like an old song playing on the radio I heard a distinct song.

I called Marta at work to tell her our first Baltimore Oriole is here. I then went out to put out more jelly. My day is much better now. The simple things.

I may not be on much the next few days while adjusting to this new twist.



OS

April 20, 2015

Dear friends PLEASE remember Ludlow today..19 men, women, and children killed in the Ludlow Massacre

2:00 minute audio story here: http://laborhistoryin2.podbean.com/e/april-20-1429540569/#

For the 19...




Ludlow Massacre Monument Junction of Del Aqua and Colorado and Southern Railroad tracks, Ludlow, CO. This monument marks the site where striking miners and their families were killed in their tent colony on April 20, 1914.


http://www.umwa.org/?q=content/ludlow-massacre




The date April 20, 1914 will forever be a day of infamy for American workers. On that day, 18 innocent men, women and children were killed in the Ludlow Massacre. The coal miners in Colorado and other western states had been trying to join the UMWA for many years. They were bitterly opposed by the coal operators, led by the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company.

Upon striking, the miners and their families had been evicted from their company-owned houses and had set up a tent colony on public property. The massacre occurred in a carefully planned attack on the tent colony by Colorado militiamen, coal company guards, and thugs hired as private detectives and strike breakers. They shot and burned to death 20 people, including a dozen women and small children. Later investigations revealed that kerosene had intentionally been poured on the tents to set them ablaze. The miners had dug foxholes in the tents so the women and children could avoid the bullets that randomly were shot through the tent colony by company thugs. The women and children were found huddled together at the bottoms of their tents.

The Baldwin Felts Detective Agency had been brought in to suppress the Colorado miners. They brought with them an armored car mounted with a machine gun—the Death Special— that roamed the area spraying bullets. The day of the massacre, the miners were celebrating Greek Easter. At 10:00 AM the militia ringed the camp and began firing into the tents upon a signal from the commander, Lt. Karl E. Lindenfelter. Not one of the perpetrators of the slaughter were ever punished, but scores of miners and their leaders were arrested and black-balled from the coal industry.

A monument erected by the UMWA stands today in Ludlow, Colorado in remembrance of the brave and innocent souls who died for freedom and human dignity.

In December, 2008, the U.S. Department of the Interior designated the Ludlow site as a National Historic Landmark. "This is the culmination of years of work by UMWA members, retirees and staff, as well as many hundreds of ordinary citizens who have fought to preserve the memory of this brutal attack on workers and their families," UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts said.

"The tragic lessons from Ludlow still echo throughout our nation, and they must never be forgotten by Americans who truly care about workplace fairness and equality," Roberts said. "With this designation, the story of what happened at Ludlow will remain part of our nation's history. That is as it should be."

The dedication ceremony was held at Ludlow on June 28, 2009.

March 26, 2015

We put out grape jelly today for our bird friends (many photos)

Edit: These photos are from previous years, not this season.

It is time for our oriels to show up. This Saturday we will put out the hummingbird feeders. We get a great selection of birds because Fontenelle Forest is on the other side of our back fence: http://www.fontenelleforest.org/

Last week raccoons ruined an old Shepard's crook hanger. I had to go buy another heavy duty version. That gives us a place to put a hummingbird swing.



The new heavy duty top looks like this.





We use this jelly because it has no HFC. Be sure you get the label marked natural.



Delicious, bold fruit taste
No high-fructose corn syrup
No preservatives
No artificial flavors or colors
Also available in convenient, kid-friendly squeeze package

You can find this at the local bird store. It is no longer available in gallon cans. We would go through 2 every year.




Here is the feeder we got at a democratic fund raiser auction. Hand made by (Gardens by) Nancy. The next year by coincidence Nancy took care of my mom in hospice. The mushroom top used to be straight across. It got pushed up by a Pileated woodpecker. We left it like that for when he comes back for more.




Oriels, Tanagers, and more come in for the jelly.

March 15, 2015

Rescued Florida dog now recovering in 'protective custody'

Source: AP

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- A dog rescued after being shot and tied to railroad tracks in Florida has been released from a veterinary clinic to continue its recovery.

Tampa Bay Veterinary Emergency Service posted a message on its Facebook page late Friday saying Cabela had "left the building to go into super secret, never to be revealed, protective custody." The 1-year-old mixed-breed dog was in hiding to "heal, socialize and begin her transition to a new life," the post said.

Tampa Police have said that Cabela was shot, tied to railroad tracks and left to die earlier this month because it wouldn't fight.

The Tampa Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/1x6iItO ) that a Hillsborough County judge on Friday denied bail for two men accused of using Cabela for fighting.

FULL story at link.



Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_DOG_TIED_TO_RAILROAD_TRACKS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

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Two previous stories at this link: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10141037705