Don’t attend every argument you’re invited to.

Remember if someone is honest, they don’t have to mention it.

The key to success is for you to make a habit throughout your life of doing the things you fear.

Do things you fear and death of fear is certain.

To achieve something you’ve never achieved before, you must become someone you’ve never been before.

Leaders see failure as fertilizer.

The three C’s of leadership are Consideration, Caring and Courtesy. Be polite to everyone.

Never do wrong by others and expect good things to come to you.

Leadership is more who you are than what you do.

Take time to think and reflect. Thoughtfulness is a key quality of successful leaders.

Every great success is an accumulation of thousands of ordinary efforts that no one sees or appreciates.

Actually, this was a paraphrase of this quote. “Those who have been once intoxicated with power and have derived any kind of emolument from it can never willingly abandon it.” — Edmund Burke

I prefaced this blog,with this true statement because “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad man.” John Emerich Edward Dalberg, 1st Baron Acton (1834–1902), British historian. Letter, April 3, 1887, to Bishop Mandell Creighton. The Life and Letters of Mandell Creighton, vol. 1, ch. 13, ed. Louise Creighton (1904).

Since 9/11 (and before) corrupt men in power have themselves passed legislation to make the American public subservient to their own evil desires. They claim it is for “Our Safety” or to “Keep America safe.” You see the premise is that loosing our freedoms adding security will keep someone who might strap a bomb to their body and detonate themselves will bring irreputable harm to the Nation. Well no, the Nation didn’t fall apart on 9/11 but rather rebounded. It was the legislators who crush the Nation, they formed agencies, TSA, Homeland Security, etc. Made it possible that the Military to arrest citizens for no reason at all, and hold them indefinitely. All these things have been making me question as to my stance, Like Benjamin Franklin said “ They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” I think about William Wallace and his rallying cry of freedom for the Scots, the cry of freedom of our founders, the stance of freedom against Adolf Hitler by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. The thousands who wanted to be free from tyranny either from within or without. They died for the freedom the were seeking. In the movie Brave Heart Mel Gibson portrayed William Wallace, before a battle this speech was given when he (Wallace) rode into the battle lines.:

William: Sons of Scotland, I am William Wallace.
Young soldier: William Wallace is 7 feet tall.
William: Yes, I’ve heard. He kills men by the hundreds, and if he were here he’d consume the English with fireballs from his eyes and bolts of lightning from his arse.
I am William Wallace, and I see a whole army of my countrymen here in defiance of tyranny.
You have come to fight as free men, and free men you are. What will you do with that freedom? Will you fight?
Veteran: Fight against that? No, we will run, and we will live.
William: Aye, fight and you may die, run and you’ll live. At least a while.
And dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days from this day to that for one chance, just one chance, to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they’ll never take our freedom?! Alba gu brath!

This then is the question I’m asking myself what then would I be willing to die for. I’d take a bullet to protect my family, I won’t betray my God. I heard pro gun advocates say “They can have my guns when they pry my cold dead fingers off from it.” I’ve even used that statement in conversations, but the question is would I be willing to point my 12 gauge at someone at my door and take their life for freedom. It looks like that might happen to this country one day. I’ve been looking for work in Canada to escape and it doesn’t to be happening. So is the rally cry I need to voice is freedom. How do we obtain freedom? This is where the divide between liberals and conservatives need to end and join forces. Wallace didn’t have red vs blue, they were Scotsmen, willing to die to rid their lands of the English. General Washington didn’t have the divide either he had Patriots. So then why can’t their be a temporary truce and rid ourselves of power-hungry men of corruption, regain our freedom. The other issue’s that divide can be hammered out later.

How about this, Term limits, Politicians can’t spend more money than what is brought in, make government smaller than the national debt can be reduced, eradicate laws that inhibit manufacturing. Oil use won’t go away, it’s not just for auto’s. Oil is used for plastics, health care, etc. Open the way up for the Keystone pipeline and reduce US dependence on OPEC.

Liberals and Conservatives can’t we agree on these. If we continue to divide we’ll continue down the slope and end up in some sort of totalitarian oligarchy. Then I fear civil war will break out. Then we as the people will have to drop our titles and be forced to fight together.

So then the question is how much do I relish true freedom, am I will to die for it as Patrick Henry said to the Virginia Convention March 23, 1775, “Give me liberty or give me death.” Would I be able to say those words and mean it.???

So then the next thing

http://rt.com/usa/news/tsa-ground-security-transportation-555/

And

http://rt.com/news/terrorism-credit-cards-government-613/

So Since I use cash allot I could be a terrorist, and end up indefinitely detained, for no reason. That’s pretty fascist if you ask me. If don’t post again I’ll be in some FEMA re-education camp being told that I must comply with the wishes of the NWO.

Apparently WordPress doesn’t like the links from RT News its important to copy the links to your browser and listen to the articles.

For years I’d buy cowboy style work boots and when the soles would wear out then I’d have them re-soled. But eventually the insoles (lack of better word to describe the part of the boot under your foot that can’t be removed) would become compacted that there wasn’t any give to the insoles what so ever. No matter what I’d replace the insoles with, Dr. Scholl’s or equivalent my feet would be in pain.

Some of the cowboy type work boots were Justin, Double H (H/H) Ariat, maybe some others those listed were of my usual picks. Pictured below is my current pair of Justin work boots. They are just okay, they are a couple of years old and have been re-soled at least twice, but my feet begin to ache after a couple of hours.

So much for using a phone to take a photo close up

The re-sole of these Justin boots are the Vibram brand and work really well

The guy at Cutlerville Shoe repair, does a really good job notice he also uses screws on the perimeter, even at that when I get out in the mud and snow the water still gets between the sole and the welt and inside the boot, well heck water gets inside the boot when they are new.

The pair of refurbished Justin’s

Not to pick on the Justin’s all the brands allowed my feet to get wet, it gets really aggravating. So we went to Mieras Work boots in town and the funny little old lady who works in sales there recommended Carolina work boots.

I tried a pair of waterproof ones on and they felt great! I thought we hit a home run!!. They were bought in May and this is November. I’m an over the road flatbed truck driver and sometimes I find myself out on a sloughy construction site. I WANT DRY FEET! We’ll they worked pretty good for about 3 months then right behind the label above the stitching came undone. Mieras fixed them for free. Then about one month later by the toe the glue began to give way and on the road some super glue was the temporary fix, but didn’t last as you can see below.

Then the heals wore out and they couldn’t be repaired because there isn’t any welt, the heals are hollow as you can see below.

I tried hot glue on the heals which lasted a couple of weeks. For $155 I expected a much better boot, sure they were comfortable and yes they were waterproof, until the heel broke through. This was my first pair of Carolina work boots and if these are representing the rest of the Carolina brands they’ll be my last pair, unless they are about $100 less, these definitely aren’t worth the price tag.

So we went to Mieras today and I bought my first pair of Red Wing lace up waterproof work boots.

These boots have a deep lug Vibram sole I wanted something that the mud and snow are easily expelled from. Take a look.

The pair of the Red Wings below

I know that work boots take longer to break in than say a loafer or a tennis shoe etc. However these are the stiffest boot I’ve ever had my feet into.

When I got home I broke out the Mink Oil and oiled these bad boys up and decided that I’d walk to the barbershop about a quarter-mile and get my hair cut trying to break in the boots. Well about half way to the barbershop I thought I was going to lose the blood out of the left half of my left foot. I think Red Wing figured out how to weave steel into the leather. The gal who usually cuts my hair wasn’t in today but her replacement (Rachael) told me her husband who is a brick mason always buys Red Wing boots and they do like my wife and I do replace the soles and they last him a couple of years before they have to buy new, but it does take several days to break them in. Okay,  then I guess I can walk around in plate steel leather for awhile if the end result I don’t have to buy a new pair for a couple of years. So today is 11/25/11 and if I remember to I will update this blog on how well the Red Wings are doing. By the way the price tag is $194 chaching!!!

So your one of the blessed ones to have a job, when you went into work everything was fine. During the afternoon the temps started to drop and now its time to go home and its hovering right around freezing and its a little drizzly.  The first thing that should come to mind is the higher potential of black ice. Because the way winter storms move in fingers it might be just wet where you are at now but a few miles away it might be freezing rain or fog.

Q: How do I know if I’m on black ice.

A: Year around I drive with a window cracked for several reasons. One is the fresh air, two is to listen to my surroundings especially my tires. If the temperature is dropping and its been or is raining or foggy and you know its right around the freezing mark, listen to your tires. If you can hear your tires on the pavement your probably no in danger yet.  Look at your antenna and mirrors if there is ice forming on them, the best bet is to slow down. If your driving at night is the tail light’s of the vehicle in front of you shiny,  ice has formed on the road, slow down. If your head lights shine on the roadway way out in front of you more than usual, ice is forming on the road slow down. If you don’t hear your tires on the roadway and your clipping right along, its shortly and you’ll be sucked off the road by the ditch monster, and oh yea, slow down.

Q: I’ve just discovered I’m on black ice, what do I do?

A: Take your foot of the accelerator and slow down. Stay away from the brakes even with ABS if you loose traction your car will actually accelerate and it becomes an out of control sled. Put a lot of distance between you and the vehicle in front of you.

Q: During my drive time I encounter heavy snow fall and low visibility. How do I know if I’m still in my travel lane?

A: If you’re on a hi-way or freeway they typically have rumple strips either in the middle of the road or most commonly either shoulder, stay over near the rumple strip and when you bump into them you can gauge where you are on the road. In town line up under stop lights they typically hang in the center of the lanes. If you go under an overpass the spot right below an over pass more clear, you can adjust where you are at when you  reach that location. Arrows pointing at the lanes on the green hi-way signs point at the middle of the lanes.

Q: Why do bridges freeze before roadway?

A: Bridges are exposed to inclement weather from all side, the wind blows underneath making the bridge cold, whereas the ground keeps the road warmer.

Q: I see long lines of people lined up during a snow storm going slow, is this safe?

A: It’s never safe!

Q: Is it possible to go to slow on snow-covered roads?

A: I believe the problem here isn’t so much as speed but more to fear. You don’t know how many people I see on snow-covered roads white knuckled. In this condition your muscles are tense, you’re more likely to cause an accident because you’re unable to react to the sudden changes in traffic and road conditions. Just a little note here. Whatever lane most of the traffic has been traveling in has snow impacted and its that lane is more dangerous to drive in. I believe you’ll have more traction in the lane least used.

Quick overview, listen to your tires, watch and see if there is or isn’t spray coming off the tires of the vehicles around you. Stay out of the long trains of vehicles. Watch for ice building up on mirrors and antenna’s. Slow down take your time. Don’t “White knuckle.” Leave yourself an “out” if things go awry.  Give yourself extra time to travel. Leave the phone alone!

October 31 I left our home base in Byron Center MI and took the load of steel I had loaded prior to Muskegon MI.

Just south of Muskegon is Norton Shores where I picked up some ground heaters that are used in the winter time to keep cement from freezing before it has time to cure and took those to Glenshaw PA.

From there I went to Brookfield OH picked up a load of skidded coils and brought them back to Grand Rapids MI.

Then about 10 miles away I went to Comstock Park MI to take a load of threaded connectors and some job boxes to Golden CO.

Then I went to Brighton CO and picked up a load of onions to take to Vineland NJ.

Then I wen to Baltimore MD and picked up some coils of aluminum and took them to Shelbyville  KY.

A short jaunt up to Jeffersonville IN and picked up aluminum extrusions to take to Bourbannais IL

Dropped down to Kankakee IL picked up a two drop load of shingles for Wyoming MI and Ionia MI. I finished that up and was back in Byron Center MI by 20:30.

By the time I finished all the paperwork and cleaned up the truck it was 22:30 before I was in the loving arms of my precious wife. Off the odometer it was 5371 in mileage. Every load except for the ground heaters and the shingles had to be tarpped, no wonder why my shoulders are sore.

So the guy on the Bobcat might sound like this:

http://www.riegsecker.com/php/theater/

http://kingsmenquartet.musiccitynetworks.com/

A few years ago My wife and I went to Agawa Canyon north of Sault Ste Marie Ontario. We rode the train, that event was rather disappointing from the way it was rushed.

At the park entrance:

As we were walking down the trail this bug was intent on watching me:

The ranger lodge was up on the hill

We traveled down a trail:

There was this awesome river there:

Where there are rivers there are falls:

On the way back to Sault Ste Marie the Marquette Reservoir was on the “correct” side of the train to take a picture:

Back in the states we went to Whitefish Bay, remember the singer song writer Gordon Lightfoot sang the song about the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

This took place near Whitefish Bay. We took more pictures but they didn’t turn out well.

The lighthouse:

Rudder of a ship:

Inside we took pics but, light and shadow made a mess of the indoor pictures, but I like the hazy effect the light has on this Victrola, kind of like its ghostly or from the “Twilight Zone.”

That’s it for Agawa Canyon, wait don’t go I have a few odd-n-ends:

Last day of summer Holland State Part, Holland Michigan:

Spider web Frysburg North Dakota Rest area, it a little abstract:

My wife and I used to live in Lake Havasu City Arizona. I took a picture of lightening over the London Bridge, yes the London Bridge is in Arizona, and using GIMP I changed it.

Last but not least my own abstract picture:

The version of justice that is Biblical is wrapped up in Isaiah 58:
1“Shout it aloud, do not hold back.
Raise your voice like a trumpet.
Declare to my people their rebellion
and to the house of Jacob their sins
2For day after day they seek me out;
they seem eager to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that does what is right
and has not forsaken the commands of its God.
They ask me for just decisions
and seem eager for God to come near them.
3‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,
‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you have not noticed?’
“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please
and exploit all your workers.
4Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,
and in striking each other with wicked fists.
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heard on high.
5Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
only a day for a man to humble himself?
Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed
and for lying on sackcloth and ashes?
Is that what you call a fast,
a day acceptable to the Lord?
6“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
7Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe him
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
9Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
10and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.
11The Lord will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.
12Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins
and will raise up the age-old foundations;
you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,
Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
13“If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath
and from doing as you please on my holy day,
if you call the Sabbath a delight
and the Lord’s holy day honorable,
and if you honor it by not going your own way
and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,
14 then you will find your joy in the Lord,
and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land
and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.”
The mouth of the Lord has spoken. (NIV)

The source of this is Love, John Calvin comments on the relationship between the rich and poor:
“He goes on to describe the duties of love of our neighbor, which he had described briefly in the preceding verse; for, having formerly said that we must abstain from every act of injustice, he now shows that we ought to exercise kindness towards the wretched, and those who need our assistance. Uprightness and righteousness are divided into two parts; first, that we should injure nobody; and secondly, that we should bestow our wealth and abundance on the poor and needy. And these two ought to be joined together; for it is not enough to abstain from acts of injustice, if thou refuse thy assistance to the needy; nor will it be of much avail to render thine aid to the needy, if at the same time thou rob some of that which thou bestowest on others. Thou must not relieve thy neighbors by plunder or theft.; and if thou hast committed any act of injustice, or cruelty, or extortion, thou must not, by a pretended compensation, call on God to receive a share of the plunder. These two parts, therefore, must be held together, provided only that we have our love of our neighbor approved and accepted by God.

By commanding them to “break bread to the hungry, he intended to take away every excuse from covetous and greedy men, who allege that they have a right to keep possession of that which is their own. “This is mine, and therefore I may keep it for myself. Why should I make common property of that which God has given me?“ He replies, “It is indeed thine, but on this condition, that thou share it with the hungry and thirsty, not that thou eat it thyself alone.” And indeed this is the dictate of common sense, that the hungry are deprived of their just right, if their hunger is not relieved. That sad spectacle extorts compassion even from the cruel and barbarous. He next enumerates various kinds, which commonly bend hearts of iron to συμπάθειαν fellow*feeling or compassion; that the savage disposition of those who are not moved by feeling for a brother’s poverty and necessity may be the less excusable.”
And this is the root of Social Love, it really isn’t justice. Justice is  the administering of deserved punishment or reward. Love isn’t like the statue blind holding a scale. Love does and acts differently than justice.
Romans 13:10, Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. (ESV)
James 2:8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. (ESV)
So therefore in conclusion I admonish the use of the term “social justice” and in my opinion the church should shy away from those who want to employ some sort of social justice programs. Giving to the poor should not be forced or coerced, but voluntary, from a sense of compassion. Therefore fulfilling the sum of the scriptures.