“No Soliciting” signs

“No Soliciting”  That’s pretty straight forward isn’t it?  I thought they would also be very easy to understand.  Or at least to the normally educated person it should be.  I was mistaken. Since I’ve posted two of these signs near my front door, I’ve had three people knocking on my door trying to “sell” me something.

Two of them “just happened to be in the area” and wanted to tell me about their “great products”.  Lawn aeration for one and a new replacement roof for the other.  The third one stopped by today.

The conversation went like this:

Salesman:  “Hi.  I just happened to be in your neighborhood on another job and I thought I would stop and introduce myself to all the neighbors.”

Me:  (Seeing that he is also holding one of those doorknob-hanging advert cards in his hand with the words,”Special Offer” in big print on it)  “What are you selling?”

Salesman:  “Oh I’m not selling anything!”

Me:  “Glad to hear it, good-bye!”

Salesman:  “No. Wait! I wanted to tell you about . . . “

Me:  I point at one of the two “No Soliciting” signs then again say, “Good-bye”.

Salesman:  “But I’m not soliciting!”

Me:  “If you’re pushing a product, a business, a political party, a religion or asking for donations for your own cause; that’s soliciting.”

Salesman:  “That’s not soliciting. You don’t even know the legal meaning of soliciting!”

Me:  “At my door, that is my definition which is all that matters!  Besides, you’re not much of a sales rep if you constantly argue with your prospective customers now are you?”

Salesman:  “But I’m not soliciting.”

Me:  “Then what are you doing?”

Salesman:  “Well we’re just trying to get our name ‘out there’.”

Me:  “So it’s your business you’re pushing. That’s soliciting, good-bye.”

Salesman:  “But that’s not the legal definition of soliciting.”

Me:  “Next time you’re ‘just in the area’, do two things first, would you?”

Salesman:  “What are they?”

Me:  “One, look up soliciting in the Dictionary and then two, look up the “Green River Ordinance”. We abide by it in our community. Good-bye!”

Then I closed the door. Now all of this has caused me to wonder, if these people are really lacking in a proper education or are they just acting stupid and believe some garbage their supervisor is telling them?  We may never know . . . .

 

SparkChaser4

Sack Lunches

On June 7th of this year, my sister sent me an email with this letter attached thinking I might be interested in it.  She was right.  It brought back some memories of my trip “over the pond” and back from Asia.  Some good memories and some not so good.  My reply to her regarding this email follows after “Sack Lunches”. 

Sack Lunches

I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment and sat down in my assigned seat. It was going to be a long flight.  “I’m glad I have a good book to read. Perhaps I will get a short nap,” I thought. Just before take-off, a line of soldiers came down the aisle and filled all the vacant seats, totally surrounding me. I decided to start a conversation.

“Where are you headed?” I asked the soldier seated nearest to me. “Petawawa. We’ll be there for two weeks for special training, and then we’re being deployed to Afghanistan.”

After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made that sack lunches were available for five dollars. It would be several hours before we reached the east, and I quickly decided a lunch would help pass the time…   As I reached for my wallet, I overheard a soldier ask his buddy if he planned to buy lunch. “No, that seems like a lot of money for just a sack lunch. Probably wouldn’t be worth five bucks. I’ll wait till we get to base.” His friend agreed.

I looked around at the other soldiers. None were buying lunch. I walked to the back of the plane and handed the flight attendant a fifty dollar bill.  “Take a lunch to all those soldiers.”

She grabbed my arms and squeezed tightly. Her eyes wet with tears, as she thanked me. “My son was a soldier in Iraq ; it’s almost like you are doing it for him.” Picking up ten sacks, she headed up the aisle to where the soldiers were seated. She stopped at my seat and asked, “Which do you like best – beef or chicken?”

“Chicken,” I replied, wondering why she asked. She turned and went to the front of plane, returning a minute later with a dinner plate from first class. “This is your thanks.”

After we finished eating, I went again to the back of the plane, heading for the rest room. A man stopped me. “I saw what you did. I want to be part of it. Here, take this.” He handed me twenty-five dollars.

Soon after I returned to my seat, I saw the Flight Captain coming down the aisle, looking at the aisle numbers as he walked, I hoped he was not looking for me, but noticed he was looking at the numbers only on my side of the plane. When he got to my row he stopped, smiled, held out his hand and said, “I want to shake your hand.” Quickly unfastening my seatbelt I stood and took the Captain’s hand.

With a booming voice he said, “I was a soldier and I was a military pilot. Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act of kindness I never forgot.” I was embarrassed when applause was heard from all of the passengers.

Later I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch my legs. A man who was seated about six rows in front of me reached out his hand, wanting to shake mine. He left another twenty-five dollars in my palm.

When we landed I gathered my belongings and started to deplane. Waiting just inside the airplane door was a man who stopped me, put something in my shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without saying a word. Another twenty-five dollars!

Upon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering for their trip to the base. I walked over to
them and handed them seventy-five dollars. “It will take you some time to reach the base. It will be about time for a sandwich. God Bless You.”

Ten young men left that flight feeling the love and respect of their fellow travelers.

As I walked briskly to my car, I whispered a prayer for their safe return. These soldiers were giving their all for our country. I could only give them a couple of meals. It seemed so little…

A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to “The United States of America for an amount of up to and including my life.”
That is Honor, and there are way too many people in this country who no longer understand it.

And here’s my reply:

This was common I heard later on, but earlier it was a rarity. When I flew to Asia, the airlines bought the soldiers on the full airplane each a cold soda. It was on the return trip “across the pond” and toward home that the aircrew bought each of us an alcoholic drink of our choice as a “Welcome Home” and for returning safely stateside once more. This time it wasn’t the airlines, it was the actual crew! And during the flight, each crew member left the cockpit to come back and shake the hand of each and every one of us on the plane! Then they lined up at the hatch and shook all our hands again while wishing us “Good Luck” as we deplaned.

The stewardesses also couldn’t do enough for us during the flight home. Blankets, pillows, hot towels, cold towels, plenty of snacks, I even saw a few that were crying out of happiness for making it home alive and one stewardess that was holding a soldier like a mother does her child, comforting him through his emotional release. Very emotional trip home for all of us. Little did we know the “greeting” that awaited us after touchdown. Even forewarned by the base personnel, we didn’t expect such a showing of hatred toward us. It’s past now and to be forgotten. Maybe, someday.

Love, Denny.

a.k.a.

SparkChaser4

National Moment of Remembrance

On this Memorial day show your appreciation for your freedoms earned by the blood of your Veterans.  Check the link below and don’t forget to set your alarm for 3:00 PM, May 28th, 2012!

Link: http://www.usba.com/remembermemorialday/

Bless all the Soldiers that have served or are serving this nation. You have done well, my brothers!

SparkChaser4

Pro-Pot Group Criticized Over Use of VFW Name & POW Flag

How many other brothers-in-arms were mad enough to spit nails? Weren’t it enough to p__s off the pope? Not only for devaluing the Veteran’s Of Foreign Wars Organization for what it has done for our Veterans, but for the earned respect for the POW-MIA Flag that many of our citizens show honor to daily.  To be treated as such!  Degraded just to promote drugs and there use. The article is from Military.Com and the first article HERE raised such a ruckus with the populace that they decided to back off a bit.  The second story from the same website tells us about that located HERE.  So what do you all think about this?

SparkChaser4

Our country’s next leaders.

Hair over the face and eyes, piercings in everything, tattoos all over, black fingernail polish, pants around the knees, the cuffs worn ragged from dragging on the ground and these are the young girls!!  Well . . . at least I think they’re female!  Remember folks, this generation will be your replacement???

SparkChaser4

Idiots Posing As Parents

Well I thought there were enough idiots in the world as it was, but now a sorry excuse for parents brand their children as if they were some sort of fence to be tagged with their graffiti and calling it art!  All right, many people like tattoos and as adults they have the right to deface what the Good Lord gave them in any way they want.  I have no problem with this whatsoever.  But to put their children through this painful process without any consideration for the child is akin to child abuse and it should be treated as such!  Including the filing of charges by Children Protective Services.

What’s going to happen when the child is older and realizes that a good majority of the population doesn’t have these crude markings with the garish colors on them?  One would think that once this phase/fad falls out of fashion at some point in the future, that the child might be a little angry at his/her parents for using them as a human target for their graffiti now. Wouldn’t it be wiser to leave them unblemished so to speak and let them decide for themselves at a later date if they want it or not?  And just go get the parents a box of Sidewalk Chalk instead for now. See some samples of this atrocious behavior here.

Just a thought.

SparkChaser4

Veteran’s Day Outing

On Veteran’s Day of this year, my wife and I attended the Free Lunch for Veteran’s given annually at the local Applebee’s Restaurant as we did last year. I wrote this following letter on returning home later that evening to my family.

 

Hi all;

I had to say something about what happen to me, November 11, 2011. Nida (my wife) and I went to the 185th Avenue Applebee’s Restaurant for lunch. I knew beforehand about the nice spread they put on free for Veterans as we attended it last year also. Only this time was a little different.

While seated at our table, waiting for our order to be delivered, I happen to spot several children moving amongst the crowds. And believe me, the place was packed with additional people outside in the cold waiting for their name on the list to be called. Anyway, after seeing the children, I absently thought they were just with their parents as I noticed a few women and men following behind them.

I then saw two young boys that stopped at the table next to us and spoke with the five Veterans seated there. Dismissing it from my mind, I went back to scanning a drink menu for a bit when I felt a small hand rest upon my arm. I looked up to see a young boy of about eight years of age, look me in the eyes and was saying something. Due to the din in the restaurant, I asked him to repeat what he had said and so he did.

“Are you a Veteran?”, he asked. I said that I was, whereupon he handed me an obviously hand-made card and then, offered his hand. I took it in mine and shook it gently. I told him of my appreciation for such a kind gesture and thanked him again. He took the half-step to close on me and leaned forward toward my ear. I leaned toward him waiting to hear what he wanted to tell me. He told me just three words, three words that brought tears to my eyes.

He said, “You’re my hero.” It was like a punch in the stomach. The tears started a little just then, as I watched him move on to the next table past Nida and I. Now admittedly in the past I have had many individuals walked up to me, grab my hand, my arm or shoulder, even one that gave me a peck on the cheek, all thanking me for my service. I’ve been thanked by men, women, boys and girls from around thirteen and up. But this male was the youngest and a proper gentleman at that.

After meeting this young man and thinking if this is what our youngest generation is like, it has allayed my mind of any fears or doubts whatsoever in knowing we are leaving this world in good hands.

May He bless them all,

Love, Denny & Nida

 

Now here are scans of both sides of that card he gave me.

 

 

For those that have trouble reading the small print, here is what it says:

 

Heroes

In war, there are lives taken and lives risked

Men and women giving there best to defend what they love

They defend their country

Their honor

Their people

 

Some call them soldiers

Others call them heroes

 

Our veterans have risked their lives for us

They have lived through difficulty and fought with honor

 

Many have killed

And regret doing so

 

For every life, there is a soul

For every soul, there is a life

 

For those who have died, we show great appreciation

For those who live, along with them live the horrific memories of battle

 

Some, memories of defeat

Some, memories of victory.

 

Our veterans were more than soldiers

They were, and still are heroes

Indeed!  Bless them all!

SparkChaser4

Obama’s screwed the Vets, again!

Once more the Prez does it to us Vets/Military/America!  Reading this from TheRightScoop.Com has got me so pissed mad that I won’t bother interpreting it, I send you to his link directly and you can read about it there.  Here’s the link:  http://www.therightscoop.com/obama-calls-about-michael-vick-but-wont-call-fallen-soliders-family

Oh, and by the way, may everyone have a Blessed and Happy New Year in 2011!

SparkChaser4

Washington puts Veteran’s in “the back of the bus”!

Watch this video in which Medal Of Honor recipient SSgt Sal Giunta receives his award, listen to the narrator Michael Berry tell you where first, the congressmen were placed and then where they put SSgt Giunta’s family as well as his fellow veterans and their families.  Looks to me like they were buried “in back” for a purpose!  Could it be he doesn’t want to soil his hands by shaking the hands of these honorable young men?  Or is it more than likely that the congressmen put them to the back so that they could do a little “a– kissing” to the prez.  I think it’s the latter. 

Now we know what the prez and his cronies really think of us vets.  Not much!  Something to be taken advantage of, used up, then discarded like the rest of the trash.  Come 2012, they will learn the hard way!

SparkChaser4

What is with marketing and bodily functions?

After watching television for a fairly long time today I’ve arrived at this simple conclusion.  All marketing on television (at least over the air) is written by ten-year olds infatuated with normal bodily functions.  How did I come up with this conclusion?  Watch for a time and you too will draw the same conclusion.  In many of today’s advertisements and television programming, we see videos involving people either chewing with food hanging out of their open mouths, excessive crunching, slobbering, drooling, slurping, smacking, belching or plain ol’ “passing gas” (as in flatulence).  Now I realize that over the last fifty years, marketers have lowered the age bracket at which they write their shows and commercials for, but six-year olds?  At least this seems to be the only ones that lack the intelligence and would actually enjoy this garbage! 

Could it be that marketers believe this is the average intelligence of the American adult that they are writing for?  Anyone taught common manners or basic etiquette should be floored by what is being presented here as normally accepted behavior for children or adults!  I see and can now understand why more households are shutting off their televisions and connecting to Internet T.V..  After all, don’t we have enough problems getting along with each other without teaching plain bad manners to our children as being normally accepted behavior? 

SparkChaser4