Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin were born on this same date… February 12, 1809… they were not twins. In fact, as near as I can tell, they had entirely different parents.  They were, however, both Aquarius’s (is that right, cause it looks so wrong!).  Also, they were born in completely separate countries, thousands of miles away from each other. Which would be quite a feat for any mother in the early 1800’s. Both men were Caucasian and both spoke fluent English… coincidence?  I’m just saying.

Both men were ruled by the beautiful energies of the planets Uranus and Jupiter. Because of the combined energies of these two planets combined with the subharmonics of the Sun and Moon indicate both men were infused with  practical and intuitive energies which nicely blended to make them interested in the greater welfare of Mankind as a whole. Their optimism shone and lifted up other people and the generosity was the true mark of their nature. While one was a president and the other a naturalist, it is said that they often swapped jobs on Friday’s just to “shake things up”.

Their relationships with others were harmonious but both were hiding inconsistencies in their natures. They were sensitive to criticism  and sometimes took statement far too personally. But both were able to overcome that slight weakness in their nature to find their relationships with other people much more fulfilling.

Both men had lucky yellow ties, as one would expect, being as yellow is their lucky color.

Both men were a huge influence on Christina Ricci, also Caucasian, but claiming no lineage with these great men,  who was also born on this date in 1980. And she said in an interview with Ryan Seacrest in 2007 that she dedicated her performance in Black Snake Moan to their memories.

There will be cake and ice cream at the Lincoln Memorial after the wreath laying ceremony. Enjoy the day.

Later.

My new phone started acting up Wednesday and went into full out failure last night, so if you don’t hear from me know that I’m thinking of you and wishing you a very Merry Christmas.

See that picture. A beautiful blue, 2009 Chevrolet Corvette. That’s the corvette I didn’t win in the 28th Annual Grand Valley Corvette Association Inc. Raffle. The drawing was today. I also did not win the money for 2nd, 3rd, or 4th place. But what I did have was 2-months of fantasies about winning. I bought 3 tickets and gave me a 1 in 1500 or better chance of walking away with the car. Not great odds, but way better than winning the lottery. I guess I’m stuck saving my pennies and buying my own…. but then again, there’s always next year’s raffle.

Today, Tasha and I went to the other side of the state to pick up the cavalier and have a little cook out with the family. There was a little stress involved in getting there; a missed turn, a series of plan changes in route, the usual chaos that ensues when we go to that side of the state. In the end we grabbed the car and then split and tried to get everything done as quickly as possible. Tasha took my car and picked up Karin and then went to her moms. I took the cavalier and picked up Tyler and Zachary and went to Tasha’s moms place. It was a lot of time in the car, but neither of us was done with time in the car for the day.

Let’s see, so we’ve got Tasha and me, the dog, Karin, Tyler, and Zachary as our contributions to the party. Kirra and mom were there when we got there. Candy and Matt arrived shortly thereafter. Kari showed up, as did Marcy, and Tammi brought a couple of her kids and her mother. It was a nice get together. The kids huddled up in front of the TV and avoided us adult folks, the adults gathered on the deck. We had hotdogs and burgers and all the other stuff you expect at one of these outings. By the end everybody was on the deck and it was a good time. Always nice to see everybody.

I tried to get Tyler to come back with me, but he has responsibilities at home. So I took both the boys home around 7pm. Wasn’t much of a visit, but I don’t see them much and a short visit is better than no visit. After dropping them off the dog and I headed  home. So much driving. Tasha called and said she’s on her way home, but I don’t expect her until probably 2:00 am.

And that was my Saturday. Later.

Happy Labor Day

Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September.

The holiday originated in Canada out of labor disputes (“Nine-Hour Movement”) first in Hamilton, then in Toronto, Canada in the 1870s, which resulted in a Trade Union Act which legalized and protected union activity in 1872 in Canada. The parades held in support of the Nine-Hour Movement and the printers’ strike led to an annual celebration in Canada. In 1882, American labor leader Peter J. McGuire witnessed one of these labor festivals in Toronto. Inspired from Canadian events in Toronto, he returned to New York and organized the first American “labor day” on September 5 of the same year.

The first Labor Day in the United States was celebrated on September 5, 1882 in New York City. In the aftermath of the deaths of a number of workers at the hands of the US military and US Marshals during the 1894 Pullman Strike, President Grover Cleveland put reconciliation with Labor as a top political priority. Fearing further conflict, legislation making Labor Day a national holiday was rushed through Congress unanimously and signed into law a mere six days after the end of the strike. Cleveland was also concerned that aligning a US labor holiday with existing international May Day celebrations would stir up negative emotions linked to the Haymarket Affair. All 50 U.S. states have made Labor Day a state holiday.

The form for the celebration of Labor Day was outlined in the first proposal of the holiday: A street parade to exhibit to the public “the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations,” followed by a festival for the workers and their families. This became the pattern for Labor Day celebrations. Speeches by prominent men and women were introduced later, as more emphasis was placed upon the economic and civil significance of the holiday. Still later, by a resolution of the American Federation of Labor convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement.

Traditionally, Labor Day is celebrated by most Americans as the symbolic end of the summer. The holiday is often regarded as a day of rest and parades. Speeches or political demonstrations are more low-key than May 1 Labour Day celebrations in most countries, although events held by labor organizations often feature political themes and appearances by candidates for office, especially in election years. Forms of celebration include picnics, barbecues, fireworks displays, water sports, and public art events. Families with school-age children take it as the last chance to travel before the end of summer recess. Similarly, some teenagers and young adults view it as the last weekend for parties before returning to school. However, start dates for schools vary widely, beginning as early as July 24 in urban districts such as Atlanta, Miami, and Los Angeles. In addition, Labor Day marks the beginning of the NFL and college football seasons. The NCAA usually plays their first games the week before Labor Day, with the NFL traditionally playing their first game the Thursday following Labor Day.

We were planning on going to the other side of the state this weekend to pick up a kid, a car, and probably do a bit of visiting. But the kid doesn’t want to come home yet. The car isn’t done or the folks who have it won’t be around (not sure which is the real story). So we’re not going to do that. Really we have no plans for the weekend. Maybe the beach. Probably dinner out. We’ve really got to make some friends around here.

The work week felt long even with the sick day thrown in. I need a vacation. In fact, didn’t realize just how badly I wanted a week or two off until they put the kabash on PTO. Now I’ve got to wait until November and taking time off is all that’s on my mind. Hopefully this 3-day weekend will help ease that need.

Here’s hoping that you too get a long weekend. Enjoy. Later.

Eat some hot dogs, see some fireworks and run around waving sparklers.

Monday was a holiday, Presidents Day, and since the banks were closed, I had the day off. Yeah me. I spent the day relaxing, sleeping in, putzing around on the computer, playing some Xbox, just lazing about. I had some ideas about what I wanted to get done with my day off, but none of that happened. Ah well.

We got Tasha set up with an Xbox Live ID, Punky Hope. Now we just need to get her some friends… I mean other than me, Arohen. We played some Left 4 Dead and I got some Microsoft Points and bought Ticket 2 Ride. It’s a board game that the guys and I play on our game day’s at Kevin’s. I think they did a pretty good job in transferring it to the digital media. We had some fun playing it. I think it’ll be a good purchase.

Later.

New site! Or at least it will be soon. RonnMcCarrick.com is mine again and this time I’m not going to let my ownership of it expire and slip away. I’m going to start blogging again. About writing and fitness and life and everything. So be warned I’ve got stuff to say. A lot has happened since I last posted and even more since I last held dominion over this domain. I’ll be back soon.

My little triangle of indecision is crumbling. I finally talked to one lady — after months of not so much — that train has left the station and we agree that it’s not going any place we wanted to go. Another has pretty much tied herself to her new man and only wants me around when she’s lonely or something needs fixin’, it took awhile, but I’m okay with that. And of course there was my rant yesterday about the married lady. Ah well. Still love ‘em all, even if the feelings aren’t mutual.

To all three of them, I’m sending out best wishes that your Valentine holiday is everything you could hope for. Happy Valentines Day. Chocolates, flowers, and cards all around.

I’m a little calmer today. A little less riled up. Got a letter in the mail yesterday that put me over the top… as if you didn’t notice.

Out of school by 11:30 and the boss is on vacation for the next four days, this could be the start of a good weekend. Calm. Serene. Peaceful. Unhurried. Haven’t had one like that in a long time. I’ve got to take the boy to the dentist and study for my 410A certification, but other than that I got nothin. Sweet.

I thought we had an agreement here. No one was going to break the internet. What happened with that?

I got paged last night on an issue, some time around 9:30 pm, worked it until 6:30 am. Got paged again at 10:30 am on another issue. A few others have cropped up throughout the day. So I’m looking at 4 hours of sleep in the last 37 hours and counting. I’m hoping to have this issue wrapped in two hours. Then I’m getting me some sleep.

Wife just left to go to the funeral. I get to stay home with the kids. Not sure who got the best out of this deal.