Immigrants  ( So So true )

A Somali arrives in Minneapolis as a new immigrant to the United States.
He stops the first person he sees walking down the street and says,
“Thank you Mr. American for letting me in this country!” But the
passer-by says “You are mistaken, I am Mexican.”

The man goes on and encounters another passer-by. “Thank you for having
such a beautiful country here in America” The person says “I no
American, I Vietnamese.”

The new arrival walks further and the next person he sees he stops,
shakes his hand and says “Thank you for the wonderful America!” That
person puts up his hand and says “I am from Middle East, I am not an
American!”

He finally sees a nice lady and asks suspiciously, “Are you an
American?” She says, “No, I am from Russia!” So he is puzzled, and asks
her, “Where are all the Americans?” The Russian lady looks at her watch,
shrugs, and says…

 

 

 

“Probably at work.” 

 


 

WE SURVIVED

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while
they carried us. They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing and didn’t
get tested for diabetes. Then after that trauma, our baby cribs were
covered with bright colored lead-based paints. We had no childproof lids
on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we
had no helmets, not to mention, the risks we took hitchhiking.

As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags.
Riding in the back of a pickup on a warm day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle. We shared one
soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE actually died
from this.

We ate cupcakes, bread and butter and drank soda pop with sugar in it,
but we weren’t overweight because WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING! We
would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were
back when the streetlights came on. No one was able to reach us all day.
And we were O.K.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride
down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into
the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We did not have Play stations, Nintendo’s, X-boxes, no video games at
all, no 99 channels on cable, no video tape movies, no surround sound,
no cell phones, no personal computers, no  Internet or Internet chat
rooms. . . WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them! We rode
bikes or walked to a friend’s house and knocked on the door or rang the
bell, or just walked in and talked to them!

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no
lawsuits from these accidents. We made up games with sticks and tennis
balls and ate worms and although we were told it would happen, we did
not put out very many eyes, nor did the worms live in us forever.

Little league had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who
didn’t had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that! The idea
of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of.

They actually sided with the law!

This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem
solvers and inventors ever! The past 50 years have been an explosion of
innovation and new ideas.

We had freedom, failure, success and  responsibility, and we learned HOW
TO DEAL WITH IT ALL! And YOU are one of them! CONGRATULATIONS!

Send this on to others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before
the lawyers and the government regulated our lives for our own good.
Kind of makes you want to run through the house with scissors, doesn’t
it?


 

Adieu to Mikey

Mikey made his first Motorcycle ride in may of 1994.  From that time, Mikey never left the back of my bike. He rode with me everywhere; to and from work, in the rain and cold, at a snails pace through mach ten, and never once did he complain. It was not unusual to see Mikey, both of my daughters, and myself riding around town on the wing.  Children really loved Mikey, waving at him as we past on the roads.  Young and old alike never failed to smile at the site of Mikey riding proudly on the wing.  Mikey made his first Wing Ding this year in New Mexico along with my oldest daughter, and my self. Little did we know that it would also be his last.  Mikey took his last ride on December 4, 1994. This was the Evans Toy Run, Mikey was injured before the trip, But I did not know the wound would be fatal.  For those on the ride it was a pitiful site to see the life leaking out of Mikey (even sickening when it would stick to the bikes behind us).  Even with emergency first aid received in route, Mikey lost 3/4 of his life sustaining stuffing before we reached Evans.  With more first aid he was able to finish the Toy Run for the children.  Mikey the motorcycle riding MOOSE will not ride again.

   Adieu Mikey, Keep the spirit!

                                                                DEUCE