Pappa Hardy's Musings on Life.

I hate scales. Why in the heck do they have to be so truthful? Why is it that they tell you that you have gained some weight when in fact you are just sure that you have lost 5 pounds? I know that those darned scales have got to be lying to me. I am not that big, not really. I am sure that they manufacture scales just to afflict and torment man, at least those who tend to pay attention to them. There was a time when I didn’t way myself, sure that I was OK and things are right in my life. When I discovered all things weren’t right, and then became well acquainted with scales, that is when I realized that I Hate Scales.

Here it is again, turkey day. It is that time of year when we go out and see how much we all can eat so we can get sick from eating too much. Supposedly this is a family event, but it doesn’t matter, we spend more time making it, talking about it, setting it out just right, and then consuming it, than really intermingling as family.

Sometime there are some subtle family tensions and currents visible as we meet together. Our families love big events, and as such you are bound to be breaking bread with someone that you either don’t like, or don’t approve of what they are doing or how they are living their lives. With this being the case, those little problems seem to pop in droves.

I think sometimes I prefer Thanksgiving as a quiet holiday that you just have as an immediate family and keep the fun down to just a few. I hate being part of 30 or 50 people. It loses it for me when it gets that big. At least this year it isn’t being held at my house. This is the ultimate test for the politician, to be out among the people meeting and greeting them. I fail this test time and time again, and thus really shouldn’t be considering running again for political office.

Oh Thanksgiving, I enjoy you, but I also hate you.

It just can’t happen soon enough. You might think that I am referring to the bottom of the current stock market crash, or maybe a reaching of the final depths of the recession. Those are all good things to worry about, but what I really can’t wait for is the end of the long slide into the night.

I am referring to the fact that the days are getting shorter, and that the sun now goes down behind the hills right about 5pm, and we still have a month left before the shortest day of the year. I hate the short days, and the long nights. I hate the cold days and the fact that I go to work in the dark and come home in the dark. I am a creature of the light, not the night. I am hoping that the recession turns quick too, and that the stock market will stabilize. However, I have got to have more light. Let’s stop this long slide into the night.

We traveled recently for 12 hours, together in the car. One thing became clear and is a truism for the Mike Hardy Family. My wife is the family comedian. She had us rolling in the aisles. She is a very funny person, sometimes on purpose, but sometimes just because she has a great sense of humor and says funny things. I love and appreciate, most of the time, her sense of humor.

One of the fun things about getting together is the impromptu singing that seems to break out if someone is playing a song. Of course, sometimes the intent is to make fun of the family member that is playing the song (Julie for example) but a lot of the times it is just because the family seems to like to sing. That suits me just fine. I like to sing and I like to have fun. I like engaging in family harmonics.

I have realized lately that I am a Photographer. I guess I have always known that and I have always enjoyed very much taking pictures. However, I love to pose the shots, make sure that the right lighting is present, and I like to make sure they are good. Nothing makes me feel better than a good photo that I have taken, and nothing makes me madder than either an uncooperative subject or a picture that is ruined because I can’t seem to get it right.

I wonder at times if I should have taken a vow of poverty and run my own photography business. I certainly would have loved doing that. Working with the people would have been tougher, if working with members of my family is any indication. A photograph is more than just taking a picture of a thing. It is also including life in the photos, not only sterile landscapes. I want some memories too, and I am constantly battling people who don’t want to cooperate. It makes it tough for me, and is perhaps the reason why I backed away from doing something I love for a living and instead I am doing something I can barely tolerate. I am a photographer. I am not so sure I am a banker.

I saw the following article on the internet this morning concerning the price of fuel in America:

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Remember $4 gas? Soon it will be $2 gas.
As the nation’s economy worsens, the demand for oil and gas wanes. As a result, prices drop. And drop. And drop.

The price of gas fell overnight Sunday for the 60th consecutive day.

The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline fell 2 cents to $2.105 a gallon, according to a survey released Sunday by the American Automobile Association.
A gallon of gas has dropped nearly in half since hitting an all-time high of $4.114 on July 17. It’s been nearly two years since prices were this low, according to AAA figures.
At the high end, drivers in two states are paying an average of $3 or more: Alaska, at $3.181 a gallon, and Hawaii, at $3.049.

But there are now 16 states where the average price has fallen below $2. Missouri had the cheapest gas in the nation, at $1.816 a gallon.

The rapid decline in gas prices comes as the price of crude oil continues to collapse. Crude prices, which make up roughly half of gasoline prices, have fallen more than 60% since hitting a record $147.27 a barrel on July 11.

Crude for December delivery fell $1.20 to settle at $57.04 a barrel on Friday.

On Saturday evening I bought fuel for $1.92 which seemed to be the cheapest I had purchased it forever and ever. That is great news for the consumer in our country, but is just another indication of how bad the economic situation has gotten for everyone worldwide. These are scary economic times for everyone as the world, not just the United States, has come upon tough economic times. I am hoping that sometime soon we will have good economic news. With the significant drop in fuel prices, that has made the fall a little bit softer.

Today was one of those days that was just right. There is much to be appreciative of, and today was one of those. I came home from Church related activities and the temperature was just about perfect, there were no clouds, and it was a great day. Bonnie and I went out in the yard and did some cleanup work. It was just a really nice day.

This has been a tough year to be a Michigan fan. The team has a new coach. He came as the team went through a number of significant changes. Many seniors graduated, were drafted into the NFL, or players left the team for other schools because they were afraid that they wouldn’t fit in. Therefore, Rich Rodriguez has a large number of freshman, and this year it is showing. For the first year in my memory, it appears that Michigan will have a losing record. This is a painful year to be a Michigan Wolverine fan. Oh, the pain.

It is funny what you remember from driving the same old road many times a week. I used to make the drive to Laramie, Wyoming, from Cheyenne, Wyoming, at least once a week and maybe more often than that. One thing that I would do to pass the time of day was to fixate on seeing the same landmark on each drive. For me, that landmark was Ames Monument. It was a pyramid like monument structure, built for what reason I am not sure of and don’t remember. However, sometimes I could see it and sometimes not, depending on how big of a car I was in, and if I was watching at the right time. I would watch it shift across the landscape as I drove on, and then it would be over for another week. Ames Monument is still a place I look for when I drive that bit of road.