Proud to be there

This past week was officer appreciation week.  The Montford prison does it up right:  they prepare a meal for the staff.  And there is a ceremony dedicated to the officers who lost their lives in the line of service for the past year.  There were none in Texas this year. That was good. The ceremony was, as always, impressive.  In addition to the riderless horse, a bagpiper and drummer played Amazing Grace.  A bagpipe always sends chills and brings tears.  The article gives a good, if incomplete, description of the ceremony and the symbols involved.  Everyone did a good job.  Honoring our staff gives me pause to think, and proud to be a part of this unit, even though I am not a correctional officer.

I included in the labels "celebration."  While this was a memorial and a ceremony, it was also a celebration of life and the good that correctional officers do.

http://lubbockonline.com/crime-and-courts/2011-05-06/officers-montford-prison-unit-honor-fallen-comrades-across-us

The Way We Treat Americans

I went to a book discussion group 4/21/11, and we talked about the book: "The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. http://www.jamieford.com/novels/.  It is a very good story about the Chinese Americans and Japanese Americans in America during World War II, when, if you remember, the Japanese were interred due to their heritage.

We talked about this a lot: Most of us were not exposed to this part of American history as we were growing up. We seemed to be aware that there was a period in history when children of immigrants were encouraged to learn the new language (American English) but we did not know about the overzealous atrocities of the government to confine the people of Japanese heritage, during the war.

Our government has treated other peoples, as a whole, unwholesomely.  Certainly, the Native Americans fit into this category.  So too, the African-Americans. Jewish Americans.  The Germans, especially during World War I.

Most of the book group echoed the same sentiment: we are now doing the same to the Muslims. This is sad. We do not need to treat people of different heritage as the enemy, just because they are different.

We need to learn from our past, that our differences do not make us enemies, and although we have differences, our similarities are more prevalent.

New Years Traditions

New Years' traditions and superstitions vary for us all http://www.snopes.com/holidays/newyears/beliefs.asp.   When I moved south I learned about the tradition of eating black eyed peas for good luck.  Personally, I prefer pickled herring http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herring.  Well, yesterday, I was able to partake of both.

What that means regarding the prospect for a good year ahead will wait to be seen.

Daring to

I attend a mystery book club, and currently, the selection to read is made by a different member each month... This is interesting, because we get to critique or at least comment on the selection, and each selector provides a variety of offerings.  If the selector is thin skinned, it will be difficult for that person to accept any negative comments by the members of the group. Yet, we are quite a diverse group, and usually, the comments each month vary from really enjoying to really not enjoying a book.


If the selector is ego involved in the selection, this would be a very difficult if not damaging experience. But if the selector dares to just say: "I offer this for what it is worth," then there should be no ego damage involved...

But of course, we are all human, and we all want to be validated... Yet, we are all individual, so what validates each of us might be different:


Some might want to select a book that is generally well received and popular.
Some might want to select a book that is conceived of as unique.
Some might want to select a book that generates controversy and discussion.
Some might want to select a book that provides shock value.
Some might want to select a book that has a "feel good" aura

Or what have you.....

Each of us chooses a book for various reasons:
It was one I wanted to read, so I put it on the group list, so I would get to it.
It was one I have already read, and wanted to share with the group.

The reason I want to share with the group is because:
I want their reactions;
I enjoyed the book, and hope the group will, too;
I did not enjoy it and am wondering if someone can redeem the book for me.
I did not enjoy the book, and I want my negative thoughts to be validated.

Discussing the book is just a good activity: no socially involved value... Just pure intellectual exercise...

The Difference

I went to a national touring production of "Fiddler on the Roof" http://www.fiddlerontour.com/itinerary.html on 10/29/10.  I love musicals, and this is one of my favorites.  It was very well done, and as I do every time I see the play or musical, I cried through most of the last half. 

I was totally impressed with the professionalism of this production:  the sound system was good, the dance moves intricate but synchronized, the presentation of the actors was strong and confident...

I love the Lubbock Moonlight Musicals
http://www.lubbockmoonlight.org/Lubbock_Moonlight_Musicals/Home.html  but their amateurish presentation, and poor sound system really do represent them poorly...

I suspect, with time the Moonlight Musicals will increase their polish, and I have seen it as the years progress.  I suspect, thought, that audiences want the presentation now, and are not willing to wait....

Nike

Did you know that Nike was a Greek goddess  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nike_(mythology).  I am always amazed at how much new is based in old culture. Whether it is Greek, Roman, Norse, and some other civilization, sometimes new things are not as new as we think they are...

Cultural Index Question

For quite some time, I used to send out an almost weekly email called Lisenby Lines to my family... It was a combination of drivel about my life and snippets of news that I had received from various members of my family. There were few comments about the email...

As time has gone on, I have sent Lisenby Lines out less and less.  Recently, I sent out an email asking a "cultural index question."  Just for fun.  But, I received several responses...More than I expected.  It was fun for me, and, I hope, fun for the respondents.

Gozaic

I was watching PBS tonight, and they talked about the website Gozaic http://gozaic.com/Connect/.  It is supposed to be a website that can connect you with information about various cultural and historic events.  I have spent a few minutes on the site... It seems a little busy, and too overloaded to be much help, but maybe I will get better at refining my searches.

Deep Fried

I should preface this by saying I was watching the Texas Tech Red Raider vs. Baylor Bears football game, today. It was being played in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, and at this time of the year, the Texas State Fair is occurring on the grounds around the Cotton Bowl. The announcers talked about all the food in which they had indulged. The announcers were shown, one with what was probably a corn dog, the other with a turkey leg. They made several comments about the turkey leg which made me wonder if they did not usually see turkey legs. They also talked about all the fried foods to be found at the fair.


My questions are many:

Do other parts of the country serve turkey legs as part of the junk food frenzy that accompanies fairs, carnivals, festivals, tailgating, and other activities where junk food is consumed in abundance. Is that a Texas thing? Is that a southern thing? Or is it common everywhere. Inquiring mind (mine) wants to know.


What has become very popular recently at these same types of activities is the fried food. It started with battered and fried cheese... Now we see fried snickers, fried s'mores, fried milky ways, fried Oreos, and I have heard, but not seen advertised, fried butter. I understand the latter is fried in cornbread dough (like a corn dog or fried cheese) and the butter just drips when you bite into it...I have not seen anything other than corn dogs or fried cheese, although the South Plains Fair advertised fried snickers, fried milky ways and fried s'mores. 


I understand other items have included Deep Fried Sweet Jalapeño Corn Dog Shrimp, Deep Fried Beer, Fried Peanut Butter, Deep Fried Peaches & Cream, Fried Banana Split, Jelly and Banana Sandwich. This year, Fried Club Sandwich, Deep Fried S'mores Pop Tart, Deep Fried Frito Pie and Fried Lemonade were possible fare.

If you care to comment, I would like to know about the turkey legs, and if you have a favorite decadent food, mentioned or not.

Taos Serendipity

Taos is not one of the areas of New Mexico I had previously visited.  I am not sure why, but part of it was because my impression of Taos was that it was a high tone artists colony, an environment in which I would be very uncomfortable.  That may be true.  It was there today, and there are some very posh art galleries.  There are also lots of typical tourist trap artsy-fartsy places that hope some of the posh rubs off on them by association.

On my trip to Capulin Volcano, I did not even consider going from Raton, where I was staying, to Taos, at first.  But, then I Iearned that the Annual Fiber Festival was being held.  I thought that might be an interesting activity to attend...So, my second day of the trip was the ride through Cimmaron Canyon over to Taos.

The trip was breath-takingly spectacular:  High mountains, wide canyon valleys, hills, lakes, aspens turning gold. Part of the trip through the canyon was on narrow, twisting roads with steep ledges.  Not unlike parts of the Berkshires where I used to ride and drive when in Massachusetts.  I loved it...

As I drove west, I saw pronghorned antelope, a mule deer, black-billed magpies, crows, red tailed hawks, Swainson's hawks, another unidentified hawk, and vultures, and a ground squirrel. Returning home, I saw antelope, a Golden eagle, black-billed magpies, crows and a ground squirrel... Good sightings.

As I drove through Taos, I did not stop at the Fiber Festival...I drove straight on to the Taos Pueblo, which is still inhabited by some, and has various shops... There had just been ceremonies the later part of September.  The wares were good, many reasonably price, but nothing I found I wanted to buy...I wish I had found something. I took the self guided tour, enjoyed the babbling brook and shady perch of a bench for a while, and then returned to Taos.  On the way back to town, I bought gasoline at Indian Reservation prices...

I went to the Fiber Festival.  There were some interesting animals, a few demonstrations, lots of stalls of yarn, and some very good music.  I ate a lamb pattie in a tortilla with fixings.  I watched a knitting demonstration for a few minutes... I knit...If you knit, I think watching a knitting demonstration of typical normal stitches with no narration is more boring than watching grass grow. Frankly, I like to sit in the back yard and listen to the grass grow while I read, knit, computer or what have you. But watch the grass grow? No.

So, I wondered throughout much of the rest of commercial Taos...I have already written my impression of Taos...But, as I said the return trip was just as spectacular, made even more so by the contrast in lighting by some black as night storm clouds to my left, and the setting sun behind clouds, as I looked in the rear view mirror... Truly a good vacation day.

Remember the Titans

I am watching the 2000 movie Remember the Titans, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0210945/  and was interested in how close to truth the movie is.  I found an interesting comparison http://espn.go.com/page2/s/closer/020808.html on an ESPN sight.  There were some interesting comments. 

I think one of the things the sight says is that the prejudice and integration problems were not that bad.  I remember 1970, and by then much of the rioting was over, but I was in the North.  I have to believe the tension in the South was still pretty bad, because when I came to Texas in 1977, the tension was still pretty bad. 

Another comment in the ESPN comparison indicated that there is an awareness now that people would not want to admit to the prejudice that existed in 1971. I think that is probably true.  And makes sense.  We do not want to admit how bad it was, but in a sense we have to remember, so we do not ever go back to how bad it was. 

The Value of a Human Being

I really think I have written about this before, but it is SUCH an important concept and topic, that I feel like it is worth repeating.  I have this conversation with my patients at the psychiatric hospital prison repeatedly.  The value of a human being stems from the fact that the person IS.  Not what they do or do not do. Not what they look like. Not what good or bad things they may do or not do... The human being is worth living because he/she is human and alive.

As a society we put so much stock into irrelevant things, i.e.  talent, looks, money, power, fame, career, family even, to define us as who we are.  We do not need to define ourselves in anyway other than to say "I am, and I am human."  That statement basically says that I do not have to be perfect.  I can be forgiven by myself and others for my mistakes.  I hopefully will strive to do better, but I can repeat mistakes, and probably will, although hopefully, I will also learn from my mistakes.

I have been told that this is a Christian concept.  I do not think of it purely as a Christian concept, and I truly believe non-Christians can and do embrace this concept. It is a concept that reflects the Golden Rule  "Treat others as you would like to be treated." 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Golden_Rule

Who would not want to be treated with forgiveness, respect, acceptance, understanding, and non-judgemental thoughts? What would our world look like if we did more of that?  I am as guilty as anyone at being judgement, even if I try to be forgiving, respectful, accepting and understanding...So, my task is to learn to be less judgemental.....

Does England Have a Fourth of July

We have all heard the old joke "Does England have a Fourth of July/"  Well, of she does, and France, and Spain, and Italy.  They just do not celebrate Independence Day on the fourth of July.

Last night, as I was casting around looking for a television celebration (very late, after the really good one were done) I heard an announcer say she wants to call it Independence Day Celebration, not Fourth of July.  And, of course, she is right, that truly is what we are celebrating.

I did not do so good this year: many of the local activities were rained out, so I stayed home with a book, and did not think to look for any of the television celebrations.  I understand the Macy's display was excellent, and timed well to the music http://social.macys.com/fireworks/?cm_mmc=VanityUrl-_-fireworks-_-n-_-n .  There is also the Boston Pops Concert and Fireworks http://www.july4th.org/2010_Program/Event_Schedule/.  And, there were others.

This year, I did attend a Memorial Day Service and a DDay Celebration.  I do not think that makes up for not celebrating Independence Day.... Well, the weather is good right now, so the least I can do is fly  the flag!

But, I really do want to be more observant of my country.  I vote regularly.  I just need to celebrate more.!

It Feels Like Justice, but It's Against the Law

My title is a paraphrase of a comment in the book Bruno, Chief of Police by Martin Walker http://www.brunochiefofpolice.com/ .

It is an idea that I can use in my daily life.  I work in a psychiatric prison, and one of the problems I consistently deal with has to do with behavior and respect.  When patients perceive, rightly or wrongly, that they are being disrespected by the correctional officers (or anyone else), they frequently exponentially raise the anti and exhibit behaviors that are out of context or proportion with whatever slight they perceive.  They think that they are justified in retaliation at any cost.  They feel like they are justified in whatever behaviors they choose to engage, since they were slighted.

Most of us will agree that two wrongs do not make a right...

Many of us do not think about why we follow the rules that we follow, yet this comment brings us there.  Some follow rules because they are the rules, and that is they way it should be.   Some follow the rules because they have no idea about doing anything different. Some follow the rules because they are concerned about the consequences if they do not follow the rules. Some follow the rules because their religious ideals would not allow it any other way...

So, let us thing about why people follow the rules.

Following the rules because that is the way it should be is very pro-social.  Whether or not there are consequences, the rule demands to be followed.  Whether anyone knows or not. Do right, because it is the right thing to do... It takes a lot of decision making out of behavior. 

But, if someone is disturbed by the rule, but feels obligated to follow it, they may also feel obligated to lobby to change the rule. A pro-social activity or a rebellion. Depending on so much, including the extent to which someone is willing to defy authority vs working within the system to get things changed.

Some follow the rules because they have no idea about doing anything different. This is rote rule following, and is okay, as long as the rules are good.  But this kind of rote rule following, which sometimes occurs in military or para-military environments, can lead to inappropriate behaviors (war crimes, for example.)

Some follow the rules because they are concerned about the consequences if they do not follow the rules. These are the people who think that the rules do not necessarily apply to them.  But they follow the rules, because they do not want bad things to happen to them.  But, what happens if they think no one is watching?  They have little compunction about breaking the rules.  So they do...

Some follow the rules because their religious ideals would not allow it any other way... This may be the trickiest of the reasons for following the rules.  Religious ideals can be healthy, wholesome, just, and reasonable, or they can become very fanatical, unreasonable, myopic.  We have seen some very prominent religious leaders who have strayed from religious values, succumbing to their own egos and beliefs that they were above the law...

So following the rules might be very important.  We may not like the rules, but they keep us in check, and keep us from using vigilante justice.  Sometimes, vigilante justice might feel like justice, but it is not the law.... And, we have to follow the law.

Plop, plop, fizz, fizz, oh what a relief it is

Plop, plop, fizz, fizz, oh what a relief it is.  This is the mantra of Alka-Seltzer, a digestive upset over the counter medication..  Do you  remember Speedy Alka-Seltzer?  http://www.alka-seltzer.com/home/index.html 

Snap! Crackle! Pop! makes the world go round!   For Kellogg's Rice Krispies. http://www.ricekrispies.com/#/Default

Brilcreme, a little dab'll do ya! http://brylcreem.com/

How many other advertising jingles do you recall?  These are fun!

"Bye, Bye Birdie"

I heard a talk by the founder of "Lubbock Moonlight Musicals" as it was in the planning stages.  He talked about needing community support, and maybe getting some from AT&T, as we have a large call center here.  I suggested he do the movie "Bye, Bye Birdie" and ask them to sponser "The Telephone Song" ("Going Steady."  He looked at me as if I were speaking a foreign language.  And, they have not presented the play.

The play was back on Broadway http://www.roundabouttheatre.org/birdie/.  Just recently, I watched the movie, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056891/  and as I remembered, there were phones galore in the scenes for "Going Steady."  They had them everywhere, and remember, this movie was made before cell phones and mobile phones in general (1963.)

The story is a fun spoof of Elvis Presley being drafted, the movie includes Ed Sullivan http://www.timvp.com/sullivan.html  as himself, and it sure is a lot of fun!

Gander, Newfoundland

I stumbled upon a documentary by Tom Brokaw, March 13, 2010, about Gander, Newfoundland and the events of 9/11/2001.  Due to the closing of US airspace, the jet traffic was diverted to the airport at Gander, Newfoundland.  Built in WWII, it was used for refueling cross-Atlantic commercial planes until the jets could make the flight without having to stop.

Gander is a town of 10,000 and they adopted and cared for about 7,000 people for 4 days.  "The Plane People" as they were called had to remain on the planes for hours until security was cleared.  Then, they were deplaned, but their luggage was not removed.  So, Gander and the small communities around, housed, clothed, fed and moved all these people.  They used homes and community buildings. They used school buses to transport the people.  The bus drivers were on strike, but did not hesitate to help. They provided prescriptions.  The story is the help was all free.  This is an amazing story, and shows how something good can happen.

I will tell you that when I watched the scenes of the attack on The World Trade Center, I had a visceral reaction, almost as strong, if not as strong, as when it had first happened.

Read about it at the Gander Airport website http://www.ganderairport.com/911.htm
Read about Tom Brokaw working on the story: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/newfoundland-labrador/story/2009/09/17/brokaw-newfoundland.html


Jim DeFede wrote a book about this:  "The Day The World Came to Town." 
http://www.harpercollins.com/book/index.aspx?isbn=9780060559717.

The WPA in Lubbock

Today's cultural activity was a presentation at the Mahon Public Library about the WPA in Lubbock. It was sponsored by the Lubbock Heritage Society, which is trying to revitalize itself. The lecture offered an overview of the various New Deal programs, and showed only a few pictures of the WPA projects in Lubbock.

Then two local musicians, Andy Wilkerson, and Andy Hedges, sang some Depression Era music. 

It was a good program.  I would have liked to see a few more pictures of the projects, but it was very interesting.