Friday holidays

Yay! It is the weekend and it is only Friday!

Many of my coworkers look forward to Fridays, I am a big fan of Saturdays. It is great when Friday is actually a holiday.

Let the weekend begin! 

I am golfing this morning and hopefully will begin the holiday weekend with a good score. It will be my first outing at this course, and so it should be interesting.

I have been trying to tune in my driver--it is an adjustable one, but have not seen much improvement. I'm still pretty bad off the tee.

Whatever the outcome, it should be a great beginning to the Independence Day weekend. 

Please secure your seat belts and ensure your tray tables are in the upright and locked position. We are cleared for the weekend!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Independence Day Weekend

Cue the fireworks. 

Rev up the engines for incredible traffic in the interstates.

Bring on the celebrations.

Independence Day is upon us and the weekend is already alive with activity although it is only Thursday!

Tomorrow is Independence Day Observed--for those who don't normally work on Saturday, and so a three-day weekend is in store that will begin a day early this evening as people stream away from the cities and into the countryside to relax and enjoy the summer.

With all of the chaos of the weekend, take a few minutes to remember the reason for the celebration. We live in the best country in the world, bar none! We enjoy freedoms that others only dream of and many are jealous of and would like to find ways to deprive us of. 

That written, we must be careful not one become extreme or small-minded. Just because we don't agree with something, does not automatically make it wrong, it is just different.

We are a diverse land with many cultures incorporated into the fabric of our society. That makes us stronger when we acknowledge it and weaker when we refuse to employ it.

Our responsibility is to remember that freedom comes with a price tag and we must protect and defend it so that future generations my experience its benefits.

The cement of this union is the heart-blood of every American.  ~Thomas Jefferson

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Surviving Leap Second

The world stood still for a second last evening at 8PM EDT. 

Leap Second happened.

Dire outcomes had been postulated had the computers of the world not synched properly. 

But this morning I hear aircraft flying and my computer seems to be working without any lingering after effects. I assess that leap second came and went largely unnoticed by the overwhelming majority of the people on the planet. 

That the leap second passed largely unnoticed means that many other people were successful in doing their jobs to ensure that our computer-based society could survive the threat of widespread computer shutdowns that in a worst case scenario could have shut down everything from traffic lights to power generation to every form of navigation--even our trusty handheld GPS.


I spent my leap second watching the Orioles lose their second game in a row to the Texas Rangers. 

I was more disappointed about not being able to view the once every two thousand year conjunction of Jupiter and Venus in the evening sky due to cloud cover.

And then it was over. Probably not to be remembered until the next time a leap second is added to the clocks to keep everything aligned.

Thank you to everyone who made the leap second a non-event. Let's keep it that way.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

My Take - I Don't have to Like it

The issues of the day have become emotionally charged and draw all sorts of rude responses from immature people seeking to ensure their voices are heard.

Too often in our country one group of people are working hard to reduce or minimize the freedoms enjoyed by another group of people even though we live in the same state and country under the same Constitution!

Founding Fathers

I used to believe that as a society, we were better than that. But recent issued thrust into the national spotlight, have made it clear that the petty desire to impose one belief set at someone else's expense is still resident in our country.

The gay marriage issue became a hot button issue for many people. But don't forget other similarly divisive issues that are in the news: marijuana legalization, gun control, Confederate banners, immigration, and the death penalty. Each of these topics were in the news this morning and our nation is becoming polarized by the emotional nature of these issues.

Supreme Court

The Founding Fathers got it right when they established the Supreme Court to protect our freedoms. Whether I agree with the rulings of the Supreme Court on a personal and emotional basis, I am comforted that nine detached judges hear both sides of the emotional cases that divide us and review the Constitution to determine whether something should or should not be allowed.

I don't have to like the ruling, but I have to abide by it. 

The Constitution and the Supreme Court are the last line of defense against the erosion of our personal freedoms and our civil rights. Sometimes, they point out that we are denying others of their civil rights through the imposition of our personal or religious beliefs--and that protects us all from the abuse of power.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - June 29, 2015

Buck Showalter Garden Gnome

1. It is the last Monday in June. The transition month is almost complete with July poised to assume its rightful place.

2. The Orioles ascended to the top of the American League East Division over the weekend. During early June they were 5 and a half games out of first and now they possess first place by percentage points. I'm not cheering too loudly, however, four teams are bunched at the top of the division separated by one game.

3. Garden gnomes, who would have thought so many people would get excited about getting a garden gnome made in the image of the Orioles' manager.

Turtles at Timbers

4. I was amazed yesterday, on the 12 hole of Timbers at Troy golf course to see two turtles. I won't tell what I think they were doing when before I could get my camera ready to image them.

5. Trouble in space? There have been three major failures, two of them American, during the past few months in trying to resupply the International Space Station. Perhaps the idea of commercializing space is still a dream and not a reality?

Pre-game Shopping

6. I am glad they finally captured the second prison escapee in Upstate New York. People can finally sleep well again. I was reminded of how secure people live in that area when on a news report one resident was quoted as saying they had to start locking their doors.

7. How small the world has become. The Greek financial crisis is affecting all of us.

8. Don't forget ISIL. Their forces recently murdered about 150 civilians in a Syrian town.

9. What do you do before a baseball game? Shop, of course! 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Toaster Cookoff

Replacing a toaster is no small task. 

It turns out that $$ doesn't mean better. 

The Lesser

As we replaced our beloved toaster of some decades, we realized that the first toaster we purchased as a replacement, although a recognizable name brand, it was slow and cooked unevenly. 

I like my toast evenly cooked--on both sides. 

Being unhappy with the expensive toaster, we bought a competitor and decided to conduct a "toast" off.

The winner

The results were clear.

The Black & Decker cooked faster and more evenly. The almost twice as expensive KitchenAid did not cook evenly and it took almost one minute longer to toast bread to the same level.

We used some scientific rigor in the test: the same bread and set the toasters to the same cooking level--medium, and pushed the levers to begin toasting at precisely the same time.

In the end, the more expensive toaster was returned in favor of the less expensive toaster which had fewer bells and whistles. 

And in the end, we had four pieces of toast for breakfast!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

June, Rain and Baseball

Garden Gnome

The rain is falling again this morning. It is supposed to rain all day long--even during the Orioles game for which I have tickets this evening. And I am excited about getting the Buck Showalter garden gnome! Is that the only reason to go to a game? No--but I did change my tickets from Friday night to get the gnome!

Rain can be very depressing, especially when it fall all day during one of the precious weekend days. Weekends are those most precious of days, especially during the summer, when I plan outdoor activities.

June is such an important month. It is the official transition from springtime to summer--just a short week ago. I already feel the summer slipping away.

The rain just makes it a bit worse.

Indoors projects are for the wintertime, not the summer.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

What to do on a Rainy Evening

Chris and Lucas Watching the Storm

I love the sound of the rain on the roof. 

During some of the past few evenings, we have had rain and storms move through the area. Some of the storms were fierce, like the one Tuesday evening that seemed to hang over the house providing a continuous lightening and thunder show. It is especially exciting when the lightening flash and the thunder boom are simultaneous. The storm was right on top of us.

It was awesome. It was a true show. In advance of Independence Day, it was a great show. And it was free for the enjoyment.

It is even more fun to watch the power of the storm with someone. In this case, we were watching Lucas and he joined us on the porch to enjoy the storm. It was fantastic, until the wind came up and started blowing the rain into the porch which meant it was time to move inside.

Chris had Lucas and I had my trusty dog, Makayla, who did move much closer to me as the thunder got louder. Lucas's dog, Ben, was seeking shelter in the bathtub.

It was a great evening to watch a storm.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

My Take - Boston Bomber Sentencing

It happened as expected, yesterday. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the surviving Boston bomber, was sentenced to death for the deaths and injuries he caused.

I'm not sure how I feel about the death penalty especially given the long process that will ensue before it is ever completed.

Maybe it would be better to leave the convicted in jail without the possibility of parole to consider the crimes they committed for as long as they live, rather than risk martyring them.

The news of brutal executions in the Middle East attributed to ISIL, the most recent coming just days ago as reported in the New York Times article about Grisly ISIS Video Seems aimed at Quashing Resistance,  has caused me to evaluate whether the legal system of the United States should continue to levy a penalty that is being ever more frequently and brutally imposed elsewhere in the world. 

I was encouraged to hear the condemned admit guilt and apologize for his crimes. I had been conflicted regarding his role and felt that perhaps he was heavily influenced by his brother. But in the end it was a fact that he committed the crimes.

Survivors

I pray that the survivors of the Boston bombing find peace, repair their lives and overcome what was violently taken from them on that day. Our focus should be on them, especially now that justice has spoken. We must assist them in rebuilding their lives and finding a way to live with the tragic events of that day and defeating the debilitating grief, injuries and losses they sustained.

The story should no longer be about the terrorist, it is about those who survived and remain and carry the emotional and physical scars of that day in and on themselves. Never forget, but overcome.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

My Take - Confederate Symbols are not the Real Problem

The reactionary mood across the country, and especially by both South Carolina and Mississippi, to remove Confederate symbols in the wake of the tragedy in Charleston seems misguided. A New York Times article titled, Protests of Confederate Symbols Spreads Nationwide describes the activities underway in many areas. 

Attempting to remove Confederate symbols represents a new wave revisionist history and will only serve to move that turbulent period of American history further from the memory of most people. It may also serve to make the Confederate banner a more divisive part of our present struggles for identity and unity.

An interesting opinion piece in the Washington Post titled Here's what the debate over the confederate flag and state's rights really means points out some critically important issues that need to be addressed and how this nation needs to come to grips with one of the fundamental issues which contributed to the Civil War--States' rights.

With that written, it is also important to note that the Civil War continues to be known as the War of Northern Aggression in some areas of the country. This characterization is far more divisive and destructive than the banners associated with the Confederacy.

Americans died fighting for both sides during the brutal conflict. Roughly 620, 000 soldiers died during the Civil War compared with 644, 000 in ALL other conflicts combined. 

Even Maryland will be Dealing with the
Renewed Efforts to Ban Confederate Symbols

Similar to the gun debate, the Confederate symbols themselves  cannot commit a crime. Banning them does not prevent the problems nor the divergent views of people who commit heinous crimes against their fellow citizens.

My take is that banning the symbols and removing them from sale, as some stores are doing, will only make them more divisive and those who display them more rebellious and potentially more exclusive. They will become symbols of an underground groups who are support discriminatory and violent views contrary to the norms of society.

It is more important to educate people about the meaning of the symbols, their proper place in the American experience and as a reminder that we must be ever vigilant to ensure the strength of our Republic by balancing federal power and states' rights.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge. MD