Even Junkyards…
Even junkyards look fantastic with the mountains in the background. Welcome to La Fruto…. Continue reading Even Junkyards…
Author: RJ Walters
I am an Independent thinking, highly functional person who is deaf and has some unique views and challenges in life.
Like all of us, I am a person who is composed of all my life experiences and that is what I write about here.
The Disparity of Benefits… And a Possible Solution…
SEATTLE — Microsoft said on Wednesday that it would offer new parents an additional eight weeks of paid time off from their jobs at the company, in a significant boost to its parental leave benefits. Microsoft’s changes to its policy came a day after Netflix, the online video service, said it would allow new mothers and fathers who are employees to take as much paid time off as they need during the first year after the birth or adoption of a child. The more generous policies are a way to hold onto employees, particularly the highly skilled technical workers who … Continue reading The Disparity of Benefits… And a Possible Solution…
Being a Radical… The Best of the Best…
This is the first post in a new category called “My Best of the Best List”. Over my life I have always been an avid read. I’m sure I have read thousands of books on many different topic. I have also traveled to all fifty States and to Canada and Mexico mainly with history in mind. So, with this post I am starting my recommended reading/visiting list for your perusal. I thought I would start out with perhaps the one book that mostly influenced by current views of Christianity and those who claim to follow Jesus. I want to … Continue reading Being a Radical… The Best of the Best…
Use of Deadly Force….
But the chief said he ultimately decided Miller’s mistakes required his firing. While he said he had “serious concerns” about Miller’s use of deadly force, Johnson said it would be up to a grand jury to decide whether Miller’s actions were criminal. Source: Police Chief Fires Officer Who Shot and Killed Unarmed Texas Football Player | TIME. I’m not going to talk much about the story cited above but instead I will be talking about the “Use of Deadly Force”. For the most part this is probably an American thing. I’m sure that we are number one in the world of unarmed … Continue reading Use of Deadly Force….
Distressed…
One thing that spreads across the U.S. landscape are distressed rural buildings. Now that corporations pretty much have taken over the old small farm buildings have been abandoned. I have more than 800 photos to help document them before they … Continue reading Distressed…
Forgive and Forget…
It’s amazing how our pets can so easily forgive and forget. If only we humans could learn that lesson from them. While I was talking to my wife recently, Dexter our cat proceeded to attack my right foot. He does this on occasion but this time it was annoying and I kicked him off. He took off like a rocket then stopped to give me a glaring look before going into hiding. An hour later while we were sitting on the deck getting our usual dose of the morning sun he came back and everything was forgiven. Our pets just don’t … Continue reading Forgive and Forget…
Indoctrination and God…
WENDY THOMAS RUSSELL: I did a survey of 1,000 nonreligious parents to find out exactly that. And the top reason cited was, people weren’t sure how to talk about religion without indoctrinating their kids into what they believed themselves. That was a hard line. The other one was interacting with religious family members and keeping the peace in families. When you’re raising a child who is in a secular household, how do you bridge the gap between the older generations who may be more rigidly religious? JEFFREY BROWN: This word indoctrinating is an important one, because it comes up time … Continue reading Indoctrination and God…
Clean Out a Corner of Your Mind..
Our minds are just too filled with things that don’t matter much. All that stuff is stifling creativity. Continue reading Clean Out a Corner of Your Mind..
Unskilled Labor..
A little over a hundred years ago the world was in a paradigm shift away from farming to manufacturing. This was a very disruptive thing for many who were living during those times. Cars were replacing the horse and buggy which had been the primary mode of transportation for more than a century. Automation of farm implements resulted in much less labor needed to produce the same goods. Things were changing and changing quickly. Fifty years ago cars were made by thousands of workers lined up each doing a small part of the assembly. It was mind numbing work but paid well. Paychecks … Continue reading Unskilled Labor..
Ten Headed Monster???
This is kind of an eerie picture but in reality it was once a thing of great beauty. As the cycle of life typically goes it was once a beautiful flower in my wife’s garden Continue reading Ten Headed Monster???
Something For Nothing…
But since Piotrowski describes property taxes as “unethical, unchristian-like” and a form of “financial slavery,” he decided to make a statement. “Since I’m being forced to pay for something against my own will, I’m paying in pennies,” he told The Philadelphia Inquirer. SOURCE: This man collected 50,000 pennies to make a statement about paying his property taxes – Yahoo Finance. I don’t know about you but these sort of stories get on my nerves but kind of like a train wreck I just can’t seem to look away. This guy claims paying taxes is “unethical, unchristian-like and a form of financial slavery”. … Continue reading Something For Nothing…
Tattooed Horse
Found this tattooed horse in downtown Louisville a few years ago. It was around Kentucky Derby time. Continue reading Tattooed Horse
The Blue Jays of Life…
Seeing all the blue jays hoarding the feeder just now got me to thinking about life. It doesn’t take much to get me to thinking these days. :) We feed over half a ton of sunflower seed annually in our backyard feeders. There is a big variety of birds that come and go. Cardinals are one of my favorites probably because of their bright color. I just seem to like bright colors at this time in my life. My “inferno orange” Chevy Sonic is a testimony to that. Anyway, getting back on topic, at least once a day a large … Continue reading The Blue Jays of Life…
Eggs…
What could be more creative than a shadow box of eggs. I found this on at the Des Moines History Museum a few years ago. Continue reading Eggs…
Cord-Cutting Gets Ugly: U.S. Pay-TV Sector Drops 566,000 Customers in Q2
Cord-cutting headaches for pay TV have now progressed beyond just a dull, throbbing pain. Cable, satellite and telco TV companies suffered their worst-ever quarterly subscriber declines for the three months ended June 30, collectively shedding more than half a million accounts — an accelerating erosion that’s put new pressure on operators and media companies exposed in the pay-TV biz. Source: Cord-Cutting Gets Ugly: U.S. Pay-TV Sector Drops 566,000 Customers in Q2. Later in this article one of the TV execs say that the customer should be the focus of this trend and not the corporate plan or such. Maybe they would like my opinion but I kind … Continue reading Cord-Cutting Gets Ugly: U.S. Pay-TV Sector Drops 566,000 Customers in Q2
Mountains… Colorado, New Mexico
New Mexico continues to fascinate me. It is so different from where I have lived the rest of my life. These pics were primarily taken in northern New Mexico (Santa Fe and north) and southern Colorado. I am convinced that … Continue reading Mountains… Colorado, New Mexico
Cruel and Unusual….
(CENTENNIAL, Colo.)—Colorado theater shooter James Holmes will be sentenced to life in prison without parole after a jury failed to agree Friday on whether he should get the death penalty for his murderous attack on a packed movie premiere. Source: Jury Sentences Aurora Movie Theater Shooter to Life in Prison | TIME. The Colorado theatre incident seems like a long ago memory now that so many others have happened. But it is nice to see that James Holmes finally was held accountable for his deeds. I know there are probably a lot of you who say he should have been killed … Continue reading Cruel and Unusual….
Ode to the Farm House..
One of the things I complain about the most is having no help in choosing a career/direction for my life. I went to a very small rural school and even though I was assigned the agriculture teacher as my counselor he was actually anything but. I think every one of those he “guided” was told to be a farmer. He simply didn’t take that responsibility seriously. I don’t know if it was any different for the other students who had different teachers? Probably not… But looking back on my life there were several clues that, if I weren’t a hormones driven … Continue reading Ode to the Farm House..
You still use a landline? FCC voting on new phone rules
Some customers, consumer advocates and the telephone-workers union accuse the phone companies of not repairing copper networks that they want to shut down. The new rules would prohibit companies from retiring a copper network through neglect. If it wants to abandon copper, it would need to tell customers. SOURCE: You still use a landline? FCC voting on new phone rules – Yahoo News. This was a new one on me. I didn’t know that the phone companies could retire copper lines through neglect. I guess when that happens they just leave it up to you to try to figure a way to … Continue reading You still use a landline? FCC voting on new phone rules
My Take On The World
First off I hope you are enjoying the new and expanded view from RJ’s Corner. Its kind of more a neighborhood now than just a corner but that’s the way it is. Its fun to be able to put all my posts in one place. Let me know how you like the new format and anything that would make it better. I have been doing some serious maintenance on the site for the last week or so and that is why recent postings have dropped. I hope to finish that up this weekend and will then start posting on a … Continue reading My Take On The World
The New GOP…
For those of you who haven’t visited here much I will state up front that while I am very much a social progressive but I am also a fiscal conservative. I too think as indicated in this editorial cartoon by Jack Ohman “where did the Republican party go?” They once were the party of small government and keeping expenses under control. During those days I voted Republican about as often as I voted Democrat. But those days now seem to be a distant memory. The new GOP seems to be made up of screamers who want infinite military budgets so that can go … Continue reading The New GOP…
RJ's Corner - Having My Say 