MEMORIAL DAY

This weekend most of us will celebrate Memorial Day with BBQ and beer.  For some it will pass unnoticed.  For some it will remind us of those that have served their country.

Memorial Day in Tucson, AZ

Originally it was known as  Decoration Day.  It is to commemorate U.S. soldiers who died while in the military service.  It was first enacted to honor Union and Confederate soldiers following the American Civil War, it was extended after World War I to honor  Americans who have died in all wars.

It began as a ritual of remembrance and reconciliation after the civil war, by the 20th century, Memorial Day was an occasion for more general expressions of memory, as ordinary people visited the graves of their deceased relatives.

The practice of decorating soldiers' graves was widespread in the North by 1865.  The first known observance was in Waterloo, New York.  It was because of the friendship between General John Murray and  General John A. Logan that helped bring attention to the event to the Nation as a whole.  On May 5, 1886 that General Logan issued a proclamation that "Decoration Day" should be observed nationwide.  At this time Logan was the commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic.  The date of celebration was chosen because it was NOT the anniversary of a battle.

Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery

The earliest Confederate Memorial Day celebrations were simple, somber occasions for veterans and their families to honor the day and attend to local cemeteries.  Only after 1890, was there a shift from this consolatory emphasis on honoring specific soldiers to public commemoration of the Confederate "Lost Cause".  It was 1913 that the theme of American Nationalism shared equal time with the Lost Cause.

On Memorial Day the flag is flown at half-staff until noon.  This half-staff position remembers the more than one million men and women who gave their lives in service of their country.  At noon their memory is raised by the living, who resolve not to let their sacrifice be in vain, but to rise up in their stead and continue the fight for liberty and justice for all.

Coming Home

This Memorial Day let us all resolve to not let their sacrifice be in vain.

SmartPhones, Twitter, and Facebook

Most of us by now have some sort of smartphone.  We take photos and post to Twitter and Facebook live.

Professional athletes and Celebrities post their pithy thoughts on various subjects and some get them in trouble.

Privacy is a thing of the past.  If we see something that we like we post it.  If we something that we don't like, we post it.  I try to be careful of what I post these days, but sometimes I have a short fuse.  Today was one of those days.

We are members of FMCA (Family Motorcoach Association).  We have a plaque with our membership number displayed on the rear ladder of our coach.  Most members do the same.  So there it is for all the world to see.   And then we do something for all the world to see.

Sam's Club, Bullhead  City, AZ.  There is is in all it's glory a Class A motorhome with it's FMCA plaque displayed, tow vehicle behind it parked across the lane of traffic.  There were lots of options that would not have blocked the lane, but they didn't choose one of those options.  No, they blocked traffic.

So smartphone in hand I took photos.  I posted the photos on Facebook.  I don't tweet, which is probably a good thing.  And now I am going to post the photos on my blog.  I posted on the FMCA page and started a discussion.  I am on my soapbox.

Rude and Dangerous

See the plaque?

RVers have a bad rap out there.  We drive too slow or too fast.  We double tow, where allowed and we generally forget that some of us are over 40 feet without that vehicle or trailer full of toys behind us.  So when we pull into Wal-Mart, Sam's or Costco we should try and find an area that will allow us to park out of the way and yet still have an easy way out.  We shouldn't block lanes!

Let's all remember to share the Parking Lot.  Thanks.

It's Mother's Day Again

One more trip around the sun and I am lucky enough to still have my Mom with me.
 She can still out walk me.  Heck she puts me to shame with her energy and giving.

Mom

Mom and Dad

Helen, Mom, & Me

She volunteers at the VA Hospital in Tucson, goes to Bible Study, cleans and cooks and does laundry.  She listens to my woes and encourages me when I need it.  She will kick me in my butt when I need that too.  She has always been my biggest supporter and always told me the truth when I needed to hear it the most.

In the past year I feel that I have grown to know her more than I ever have known her.  It is easier now.  I am still her kid, but the playing field is leveling out as I grown older. (I still feel like a kid around her.)  We talk more now on the phone.  Easier since I am in the States.

We are look at old photos together and share stories and clarify history.  We laugh and cry together.   She tells me of her dreams and how happy she is with her life.  It is a good one.

Mom

So thank you Mom for all the things you have done for me, for the lessons you taught me and for the ones you let me learn on my own.  Thanks for the times you let me sit on the toilet while you were bathing and tell you all my troubles.  Thanks for the hugs the kisses and the kicks in the butt when I needed them.
 THANKS FOR BELIEVING IN ME!

I Got an iPhone

We finally purchased an iPhone.  We had been using Verizon, but since we moved we don't get a signal. No I can't hear you now!

So we paid the fee to get out of our contract and signed up with AT&T and have signal and a new iPhone4.

The thing I like most about it is that I can take photos on the spot and upload to various sites  I am into instant gratification.

My latest adventure with the phone has been taking photos of headstones.  I love it.  The phone automatically tags each headstone with a GPS tag so that I don't have to tag the photos manually.  There were over 3,500 headstones in this cemetery!

Needles Riverview Cemetery

I had a great helper, Cynthia.  She helped photograph, clean and document the headstones.  Nothing like packing water, sandwiches and heading out in the Arizona sun.

I actually have always liked cemeteries.  The people there are quiet and usually nobody bothers you.  There are interesting stories at almost every step.  Now I have my handy phone.