Hello Hello!

I find with Blogging, I have learned that it's always better to be to the point. So here it is.

My life has been an utter disaster. I'm considering changing my name to "Job" (as in the Biblical character, that is) But thanks to Kristen and Christine's guidance, I have learned a lot. And I'm keeping the faith. (Love to you both, Ladies, and thank you. Know that what you've said to me over the years really mattered.)

The recovery has begun. Apparently, I have 9 lives, and I'm down to 6. I have begun a new career, and it's really starting at the bottom. But I was a virtual flunky in my old career when I started, and I did well, so I'm hoping that I can do it again. A priest I'm friendly with told me that, in fact, while it's not ok to ask God for riches and wealth, it is quite acceptable to ask Him for help in the quest to provide for my family.

And so it begins.

A few years back, I found a lot of Blogging fodder among the people I commuted with on the Ferry. My new career calls for a 15-minute commute in my car, so that won't work. But I'm working in a retail establishment on a grand scale, and I think I may be on to something new. The cast and crew of this new place might be providing some new material, and I'm wondering if maybe I should run with it? Since "The Office" is a well-established TV show, I'm thinking I'll call my series, "The Shop".

Would love to hear what you think!

BACK!

In an effort to get some of my silly humor back into my life, I've revived an old (way old) Blog that I first started with back in the early 2000's

Simple, silly stuff. Please join me?
Beautiful Thing of the Day

Back in the day, I was known for reading utterly idiotic news items and saying, "Oh that's a beautiful thing" in my inimitable New York accent. We kept piles of clippings over the years, and I'd post 'em online. We're back!

Words To Live by

Something I thought I had definitely learned was that the Internet is very efficient at exposing the mistakes of others to us. I always knew that you can't unsee something and as well you can't unsay words once you've said them. And you can't unwrite something once the person you've hurt has seen it.

As long as I have been blogging, I've always been mindful about the possibilities of hurting people with my words. I always tried to avoid writing when I was frustrated with friends, family, colleagues, etc. I'd done a good job monitoring myself until recently.

I've been in business for myself approximately two years now. My results have been less-than-stellar, mostly because of my own shortcomings. To say there have been failures and frustrations along the way would be more than an understatement. I've sought out experts from every walk of life, both in the fields I'm in as well as so-called social media "experts. One I grew to admire suggested that every self-employed business person keep a diary of day-to-day activities, in order to have a record with which to hold oneself accountable. Seeing as how nearly every aspect of my life is either web-based, data-based and computer based, it seemed a perfect fit to create my diary online.

And as I considered myself an "expert" when it came to these forms of communication, I thought I would have firm control over the privacy of those thoughts. I would vent my frustrations, list my mistakes, all with the purpose of learning from them, and make myself not only a better businessman, I'd emerge a better person as well.

(See introductory paragraph)Well I wasn't as smart as I thought.

I hurt a friend with my words in my private diary. This shouldn't have happened because 1. I should have double-checked my privacy settings and 2. I should have never said the words in the first place. If you don't want something heard, don't ever say it, right?

Well, I have learned my lesson, but at the expense of someone else's feelings. It's too late to take the words back, but I hope it's never too late to apologize for hurting another.

From this day on, this blog will be used solely for the purpose it was intended. To make silly fun of things as I see them, and never be hurtful in the process. While this is, and will be treated as a private matter between the person I hurt and me, I speak openly about the subject because I want to remind you that the internet holds no secrets, and if you don't want to hurt someone, don't say or write the words that can do it to them.

I will be revamping this blog from the top down and bring it back to being somewhere fun to read. That will be happening as soon as I make my apology to that person, and hopefully it is something that will fade in time.

I hope you will read one more drab entry beyond this one, and then join me when I relaunch the Blog.

And to my friend, I apologize here, first. A phone call will follow.

I'm sorry.

Coming Clean: September 2007

Pop came to the house, and I moved some of my stuff in too. This wasn't going to be easy, but I felt it to be a necessary choice.

Part of the problem was that Pop was affiliated with the Veterans Administration for his medical care. He was a combat-disabled veteran of the Korean War, so his medical care was essentially free of cost to him. While he lived on Long Island, his care was administered through the Northport facility, and a Dr. Mohammed Zarrabi. The care afforded him there was top-notch, but the facility was far from us.

We arranged for a transfer of his care to a more local place, the VA Hospital in East Orange, NJ. I'm sad to say that this hospital left much to be desired. The staff was eons away from Northport's level of humanity. It was more like a Motor Vehicle Bureau; the staff was expertly trained in the techniques of ignoring people. After one consultation, I was certain that I could not subject Pop to this sort of treatment. He and I made a mutual agreement to continue his care at Northport. It would mean a lot of driving, appointments were at the least, weekly. Sometimes more. Emergencies would mean that I'd have to stay on Long Island while he was admitted. But it was all much better than what might have taken place at East Orange.

In the meantime, I'd begun my job search in earnest. I registered at such sites as Monster.com and TheLadders.com. I thought my credentials meant that it would simply be a matter of time before I was gainfully employed.

Coming Clean: Summer 2007, Pop, etc.

After I passed the Series 14 Exam, I took a couple of days off. During that time, I discovered how sick my Father in Law, Pop, was. He was to come to live at the home of my Ex and the kids. He'd been living on his house boat, but that adventure needed to come to an end. He wasn't managing his medicines properly, and the boat was not the safest, healthiest place to be. He asked if I would take up residence at the Ex's home to help with his care. I agreed. He would need some extensive care at home, and I was figuring that the timing was sort of "fate" at work. I could do this and take a lot of the burden off of his immediate family since I was on severance and was looking for work. I was having thoughts of "karma" too. Maybe providence would look kindly on me for this.

He came to our home in September. The doctors had given him maybe 2 months.

During this time, I met with the disability insurance people to discuss possible claim options. I absolutely did not want to go this route. My thinking was, if I could work, I should work. After I signed off on declining this option, I had a few occasions where I thought it might have been a bad choice.

Coming Clean, Step By Step, Summer 2007

So the first thing I set out to do was to get another certification to my name. The examination was called the NYSE Series 14 Exam, which qualifies someone to be a Compliance Officer at a Securities firm. It's not an exam many people take, so there aren't a lot of study materials available.

I spent a good month preparing for this exam. I figured it would be a good way to segue into another area of the industry. I was what they call a "Floor Official" at the Exchange, which charges you with responsibility for trade compliance through consultation with Specialist firms and brokers from other Brokerage firms. I had hoped to make a transition to Compliance in-house at Merrill, but time ran out, obviously.

Well this was another instance of mistaken suppositions. I passed the exam on the first try, and thought that I'd be good to go. I was wrong. The first obstacle I hit was the one that vexes nearly every person who is seeking employment: The Experience Catch-22. No one is hiring anyone without three to five years' experience; can't get the experience if you don't have the job. Round and round.

I had my severance pay, but I know that was finite. I had three years' salary saved in addition to that. I thought I had prepared well.

Wrong again.

Coming Clean, Going Home, May 2007

Well I went home feeling pretty crushed. That ride on the Ferry was the first time I think I'd ever ridden without keeping an eye out for an opportunity for humor. I was looking through the pictures on my phone, and I realized I started worrying about layoffs quite some time ago. I remembered that I kept telling myself to take pictures in and around the Exchange, seeing places, things and people in an environment that I might well never see again. I remember then snapping photos on the walk from the Exchange to the Ferry, on the ferry, and going home. I wanted to remember exactly how I felt that day, at each moment.

I left that meeting with my severance package. I left that day with some minor agreements worked out. I left a piece of my soul in that building, but I left with dignity intact. I knew that this was a situation that was inevitable.

A number of people thought that I should consider litigation. I was a handicapped person who was cut loose from a cold corporation at a time when I needed it most. Others suggested filing for permanent disability payments. But I figured I'd get back on my feet soon enough and as long as I was physically able to work, then I should be working. I believed things would work out and this episode would just be a chapter in my life story. I had no idea it would become such a major part of the plot.

I went home and, remarkably, slept.

Insomnia

I'm lying here at 4 AM. I'm angry with God right now. Not for the obvious reasons, though.

My youngest girl is 11 years old. She's one of the lights of my life. She's incredibly sensitive and loving, and wise beyond her years, which isn't always good.

She played a carnival game the other night. She used her entire $10 allowance to win a goldfish. A silly goldfish. Didn't even come with a fishbowl. Just a fish in a bag.

Well she loved it. She got very excited at the prospect of being a pet owner. That's how 11 year old girls think sometimes. Those of you who might raise large tropical fish know these goldfish are often used as food for those fish. For my girl, it was a chance to love.

I took her first thing next morning to Petco to get a bowl. She was so into it. Got gravel too. Neon-colored gravel for a 1 gallon bowl.

Then she spotted it: A copper-colored goldfish swimming in a tank alone. She spent the next 10 minutes or so bonding with this silly creature. I couldn't resist.

There was a time when Daddy would have gone hog wild and would wind up purchasing an entire aquarium set-up. It would have been typically over-the-top. But the world has changed to the point where I have to consider a $3.99 purchase of a silly fish. the love in her eyes for this creature made up my mind for me. Done deal.

She took such pride setting up her little bowl. Washed the gravel, laid it in there carefully. She added the water gently, added water conditioner. Her eyes were glowing. She named her two fish Fido and Maurice. Fido was the new guy. She insisted that his name was pronounced "Feedo". Hey, her fish, her name, right?

She spent the entire afternoon and evening doting over her new loves. She ever so carefully fed her little critters, being mindful not to overdo it. This was pure love.

Today however, the world was mean to my girl. Little Fido didn't survive the night. I've taken full punches to the face and a bat to the head. I've broken a lot of bones in my body in my life. Nothing hurt me anywhere near the kind of pain I felt at the moment I realized my Girl was crying over her lost Fido.

It's the worst pain a Dad can experience. The pain you can't fix, or make all better. The fish is gone. Can't change that.

Didn't even get a full day out of it.

I know the world has a lot more serious troubles to worry about. But when you're the Dad and your Girl is hurting, it doesn't matter.

Yeah I'm a little annoyed at God right now.

Coming Clean, May 2007

On May 24, 2007 my world changed. It was not an entirely unexpected change, but it didn't knock the wind out of me any less. I guess no matter what the situation, we always believe we'll have more time.

My 29-year-11-months career at Merrill Lynch came to an end. I'd been an employee since 1978, went from High School Intern to AVP, then VP, then Director through that time. I was an active Member of the NY Stock Exchange, on behalf of Merrill on the Floor of the Exchange. I went through the 1987 Crash, the Internet Bubble Burst, the 9/11 Attack and the Sub-prime lending disaster. Somehow I'd always managed to get through. But automation had come to the Exchange. The Specialist scandal, which saw some people face criminal charges, the front-running fiasco which saw some brokers sent to jail, all brought about a call for change. One of the ironies for me is that I helped design the very system which essentially put me out of business.

But in late 2006, early 2007 I sort of sealed my fate for another reason. I needed three leg surgeries and a back surgery. (2 surgeries on right leg, 1 on left). A number of fellas, over the years, had to use disability time for injuries, surgeries and the like. Somehow, they were all let go shortly upon their return to work at Merrill Lynch. I remember at one point, Merrill did a purge of the upstairs trading desk, and coincidentally, all the women who were let go at the time were pregnant. But anyone who had used their disability insurance were shown the gate. Coincidence as well?

They sent a guy around the Exchange to tap guys on the shoulder one at a time. Each guy then walked to an upstairs office off the Exchange Floor, where they got their walking papers. The only thing that bugged me, truly, about this process, is that the guy they sent around to do the taps was one of the worst weasels I'd ever met. A guy who sold his soul to Merrill and who did anything it took to keep his job. There were other guys who could have been elected to be the Tapper. But, no matter.

I got my tap around 11 AM. It was funny because I was wearing leg braces and walking with crutches as I walked into the office. The HR person didn't look too comfortable with that. We got down to business. I asked them to skip the insincere expressions of regret and cut to the chase. I was given a deal that was somewhat generous, considering my time of service. They offered me 54 weeks salary.

I did a final lap around the Exchange Floor to say my goodbyes. Took a couple of photos for posterity and then went home. Very strange feeling, to say the least.

Question of the Day

Here's something I'm curious about today.

There are times we need to address strangers, or get their attention politely without screaming, "Yo!". I've heard a million different ways of doing it:

• "Excuse me, Sweetie"
• "Pardon me, Lady"
• "Yes Ma'am"
• "Thank you, sir

No one seems to have a problem with "sir". (Occasionally someone might say, "Sir is my Dad..." but whatever). Everyone has a problem with "Sweetie". But when my parents put me in the spaceship and sent me here, they gave me a lot of instructions, leaving out the one that tells me how to address an unfamiliar woman without issue. "Yes, Ma'am" gets issues.

So, my question is, if "Ma'am" doesn't work, "Sweetie" would get me slapped, and "Baby" - well that's just suicidal- Ladies, how would you prefer to be addressed?

Coming Clean...The Introduction

I have been noticeably absent from the Blogger community of late. The last year as a matter of fact. There are a lot of reasons for that. It seems in times of trouble, I tend to close up ranks and fade away to work out the problems all by myself.

I have often said that there was probably one guy on the Titanic who believed if he just manned those water pumps a little longer, worked a little harder, that ship would not sink. And he believed that right up until the minute the ship went under.

Well it appears my ship is foundering, despite my best efforts. The deck is stacked against me, and no matter how well I'm playing this hand, a happy ending seems unlikely.

I've long gotten past the pity parties. I'm not feeling sorry for myself. I'm at the stage that's just past denial but not quite making it to acceptance. My world has gotten very, very small for me.

I need to put a face on the statistics of the economic damage that has been done by the greed and indifference of a lot of bad people in the financial world. A lot of their names and faces have begun to fade from the public consciousness, but the effects of their actions are still rippling through the population and the economy.

I'm at the very end of a dark road and I'm not seeing much in the way of light. I'd like to share my story, not because it could serve as a warning to anyone, and not because I'm unique. I'm going through the same situation that has a hold of many good people I know. They, and I, am not alone. Don't think that's much consolation though.

I'd like to share my story for a while. I know not many people visit here any more, but I have a feeling that the ones who do won't mind.

Hi There

I'm just going through some things here, and seems it's gotten a little dusty around these parts.

I've joined a lot of people who use Facebook and Twitter, and while they're fun for me, I miss the Blogosphere. To me it's a better way to touch base with the people I got started with. So could you all do me a favor?

Please leave a link to your Blog if you still keep it. I'd love to start visiting you all again. Thanks

A New Friend!

I've found a great new blog, just in time for summer. The Lady's name is Denise M. Smith and she's put together a great cooking blog, with recipes I can actually understand and use!


Please visit http://denisemsmith.wordpress.com/ and have a read. Please tell her Lippy sent ya!

Food Rules!

 We all love food. We spoke about food. This is a two-part rule. In part one, I'm dealing with kinda the way our government deals with illegal immigration: Nobody obeys the law, so now we'll talk about exactly in what ways you can break the laws, ok? So... without further ado, let's take a look at Part 1:
Since eating in your rooms seems to be going to happen, let's deal with that: Please return all dishes, glasses, etc to the kitchen. This should be done in the same century in which the food/drink was consumed. And before the leftovers sprout new life forms.
Part 2:
Let's be sure to scrape all excess/leftover food into the garbage can. It's right in the kitchen, the same distance you traveled to get said food.

Penalty: I really mean this one. Really. If I find food fossils in bedrooms, guess what will be on the dinner table the next evening.
Also, if I look in the sink and see a buffet in the drain strainer, guess what will be on the menu the next night.

Get it?

More Sadness

Five months after the death of actress Brittany Murphy, her husband, British screenwriter Simon Monjack, was found dead Sunday night in the couple's Hollywood home, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.

Monjack, 39, was pronounced dead after the Los Angeles Fire Department was called to the residence for a medical emergency, say authorities. Police spokesman Sgt. Louie Lozano said the preliminary cause of death was natural causes, but investigators remained at the scene.

Relocation Program

Here we go again!

Ok, I figure it's a privilege to have a TV in your room. When one is done watching said TV and leaving the room, please press the little button that says "Power". This will turn the TV set off and cease to consume vast amounts of electricity.


Failure to adhere to this request will cause the Relocation Rule to go into effect. 


Relocation Rule:
If above rule is not followed properly, TV set will be relocated to Ebay.com. Dad needs golf clubs.

The Ruling!

OK Kids, here is the first rule!

1. Clothes can only move if they're attached to your body. They will not magically fly up off of the floor by themselves, and the stationary bike is truly not part of the closet. The hamper has been placed there, not to cover a spot on the floor (although there are plenty of those), but rather to collect those garments no longer feasibly wearable.

Since you are now conceivably (pardon the pun) old enough to have children of your own, thou shalt assist with the laundry. And by assist I mean do one step more than making the clothes dirty. 

Thanks 

New Series!!!

I am now the full-time father to three kids again. I'm feeling quite good about that. My life is improving daily because of the time I spend with them.

I'm also becoming very aware of the need for some Law and Order in the household. I was a kid once, and I remember doing nothing unless I was told. I also remember doing things once I was told forty to fifty thousand times. We all have similar memories, as long as we weren't raised by the US Marine Corps.

I like to parent rationally. I like to try and do things right. So, naturally, I'll be asking for feedback from some of the smartest (and most susceptible to sucking-up) people I know. Ready, set, GO!

Protocol?

I'm curious about something, and I'd like your opinion/input please?

The electronic age has done nothing if not accelerated our immediate gratification demands. But something good happened, and I'm not too sure what to do.

I got an email from a good friend the other day. What she took time to write absolutely floored me (in a very good way). She was just so gentle, kind, compassionate and caring that I was very choked up by the whole thing.

It took me quite some time to read. And then it took some more time to digest and appreciate the time it took for her to compose such an incredible outpouring of love for me. I love my friends, one and all.

Now typically, if I get an email requesting info, or asking a simple question, if I have the answer at hand, I shoot right back. But there are occasions such as this, where I want to sit back and reply just as deeply from the heart. I don't want to just say, "thanks!" It takes a while, usually, but people are seemingly so impatient these days, that the window for a reply seems to have shrunk to minutes.

Now this doesn't apply here. She knows me well and knows I'll be writing back. But what do you folks normally do? Do you send a "Stand by for Reply" message, similar in theory to a "SAVE THE DATE" notification?

Love to hear what you think...Thanks!

The Question is Right Here

Let's put aside partisan politics for a moment. Let's look at the State of the State of NJ.

The roads are in horrendous condition because there is no money for road maintenance.

Hospitals are closing because there is no money to subsidize them.

The government wants to revamp the entire State pension system, eliminate benefits for State employees because there is no money to fund this sort of stuff.

The educational system in in complete upheaval, teachers and administrators are being let go by the hundreds because there is no money to give to the schools.

Taxes continue to increase in this State where we are considering changing the name from "New Jersey" to "New Taxes". The burden on the taxpayers is at an all-time high.

No services, no hospitals, no highways... where, exactly, is all that money going?

Things to Remember

You will only be as great as you let yourself be.

Dilemma

Last night, I dreamt that I was standing in the kitchen talking to my kids. All of a sudden, the ceiling crashed down on me, along with thousands of gallons of water. The kids laughed at me!!!

So...

Should I punish them?

The Dumb

I really hate being one of those dumb people. I hate the fact that everyone has to tell me what to do, how to do it, or that I should or shouldn't do something.

My house is flooded thanks to the endless rains of the past 200 years. But see, all her friends told her that there's no way the house should be flooded because I have French drains and two sump pumps.

Now I can just ignore all that water. It just isn't supposed to be there. So I'll put away the boots, the hoses, the Shop Vac, etc and sit and watch TV the rest of the time. Isn't that great?

Yep, those friends who earn millions of dollars a year being Experts on Everything on Earth save me so much trouble. The same folks who told me I was way too young to have a cancer a few years ago saved me countless rounds of chemo. Who needs Doctors when I have EEE's.

Anyway, I'll be downstairs swimming in the mirage.

It's not really there.

I hate being dumb.

Lease?

What has happened to me over the last month is so cliché that I'm embarrassed to even write about it because I can't do it without sounding like a bad novelist. But I have to do it. I'll take the chance.

I have a new lease on life.

That does not mean that from this day on that I'm going to look at the world through rose-colored glasses. There isn't going to be some magical transformation into Pollyanna or something. I'm still me. Just different.

I almost died. That is not a statement I made of my own volition. I was told by a fully-qualified medical doctor that the person who brought me to the Emergency Room saved my life. I was officially stupid on Friday night, February 12th. On that night, I became one of those people who insisted I knew better, that I was in control of my senses. I was an idiot.

Thank God, she was not an idiot. The doctor told me that, with what I had wrong with me, I was lucky she won out, and I was lucky to be alive.

That's pretty strong language, right?

I don't much like the thought of being dead. I know I will be someday, but now would not be a good time. I have people who depend on me, who love me, who like me with air in my lungs and who are glad that I am on this side of the dirt.

I'm trying to be a little silly with this because otherwise it makes me want to cry. A doctor wouldn't say that if it weren't true. There was no audience. Only he and I were there.

I'm having those moments of cognition. I see my kids with clearer vision. And yeah, the food I'm able to eat tastes a little better. And the dog even gets a little more attention. The world isn't nearly as annoying lately.

I spent 8 days in a hospital bed, in a very good hospital. And anyone who is familiar with the way HMO's and insurance companies run the medical field these days knows that 8 days means I must have been really, really sick.

I was.

And I haven't smoked a single cigarette (though that wasn't the root of the problem) since that Friday. Almost a month.

So, I like things a little better these days. And I don't smell as badly as I must have when I was a human chimney.

I do still like boots though, so as I said, I'm still me.

I feel as though I was an episode of "House, MD". Not completely uncool.

And I feel as though my Blogging Muse has repossessed me.

Thanks for the time you spent reading this. I hope you'll be as glad I'm not a corpse as I am at the moment.

Some Things Never Change...

For about the past 10 years I have used Comcast as my service provider, and cannot say enough good things about it. I absolutely loved their services and would highly recommend them

During that time, I had a very fleeting relationship with another company, America Online. I never much went for them; their company treated clients as if it were doing them a favor by allowing them to pay for mediocre service with a terrible performance record. Their business became 100% focused on servicing their advertisers, often at the expense of the clients.

Well, as misfortune will have it, I am moving to an area that is not serviced by Comcast. It will be traumatic for me! Over the last two days I have investigated the possibility that AOL had actually progressed.

It has not. In fact, it's worse than ever. I tried sending an email through them. I got redirected to some "AOL Challenge Page" where I guess I had to prove I was a human or something. The funny thing is, AOL has all these "SPAM-blockers" in place, yet my AOL account continues to be the source of the most spam emails out of all of my accounts. Anyway, the challenge page did not load. I got an error page. I went to their Home page at AOL.com. That page is down. (How the hell does a company of that size allow its homepage to go down?)

Well, this is mostly meaningless venting. I cannot believe how backward AOL remains in this day and age, and needless to say I will not be employing that amateur shop as my ISP. I'm sure some kid with one server in his garage would be more reliable than this joke of a company.

I'm checking out Optimum Online now.

The Things...

After the next Academy Awards in March, we'll start seeing movies in contention for next year. I have not seen "Avatar" just yet, but I'd like to, because I'd be showing support for some quality filmmaking, as well as watching a good story. I saw "The Hurt Locker" and was definitely taken with it. Tough story, well done.

There are a few things I'd like to see changed in the movies going forward. Some tired, old items I could really do without, in theaters and TV.

Let's retire these things and see if we can keep the creativity flowing:

• Do we really need to have closeups of people drooling in their sleep?
• Stop with the ridiculous shots of guys in Speedos. It's been done to death
• Bodily-function humor. That stopped being funny in about the 3rd grade. Enough already
• Vomit. We get the point without sharing the whole experience

I'd like to see some scary movies that are actually scary, not just a compilation of cool special effects. Thrillers like "Silence of the Lambs" were such a great experience. Think about what goes into the story, not just how you can hang the ending in order to set up 300 sequels.

I know that my particular demographic isn't the most attractive to Hollywood, but there are some attempts in Hollywood to make a film like "Shutter Island" worthwhile for adults. I hope they can get a trend going: Well thought-out, written stories that are great from beginning to end. These kinds of films make for some great viewing.

I love movies, and have always considered them among my favorite pastime. I once was an avid collector of pop music, with a ridiculous amount of albums, tapes and CD's in my possession. I cannot remember the last time I bought a CD. I mostly pick and choose from single tracks on iTunes because I can't recall one entire CD I'd be enticed to own. I don't want this to be the case with films.

A Study...

I think there might be one study we haven't commissioned yet, but which might prove very valuable. There are people out there who see any and every situation as an opportunity to be offended, cause trouble, and just generally make life miserable. You know the type: they could make Disney World a sad place to be. Their sole purpose in life is stirring up trouble.

I'm thinking if we can identify this gene and neutralize it, we might all be a little better off, no?

Life's Little Moments...

Love it when you kneel down a second and find something like a pebble, or worse, a thumbtack.