SeanSumner.blog

As I was sitting on my porch this morning, drinking my coffee watching the dog play I thought back about how I’ve changed.  I am certainly not the same person that I was 40 years ago.  Some of that is because I had changed my perception on what I think is important and worthwhile.  My environment has changed from listening to only big radio in the middle of the house; to watching a black and white TV during Ed Sullivan show and then to watching color TV.  I went from learning to use a slide rule to typing on a computer keyboard and now I’m just speaking to the computer through voice recognition, my environment has truly changed.  Therefore both my development and my environment have to change.

 

My thoughts of today is that it time for the United States of America to change.  All great cultures have eventually change and adapted to its development and environment.  Originally  many people who moved to the United States of America from other lands and developed a country with those natives who had lived here as the first humans on its soil.  During its development as more and more people moved to this great land the original 13 states grew to 50 states.  The country developed from agricultural to industrial and from rural to city life. Did the original architects of our constitution foresee all of these changes and developments?  I believe they were working to make the best of their development and their environment for the time they lived in.  In the following 200 years there have been some additions and deletions (prohibition) and still today whether through the Supreme Court, the Congress or the president United States changes are being made an answer to our changing development and environment.

 

I think it’s time that United States of America become several  nation-states. I know that several states including California and Texas have looked at this possibility before.  Not that I liked the USSR (I always thought they would bomb our country and as a child: I would hide under my desk when the bomb hit) but it was a big country who thought it was strong and always right and eventually it broke up into several nation-states.  You can go back to time and look at great societies, like Rome and Britain, who originally had great properties and lands.  Rome lost it all but only after several hundred years of ruling.  Britain survived by downsizing.  Both ended up differently due to its changing developments and environments.

 

I Have always been interested by politics.  My world went from ” I like Ike” (President Eisenhower), survived President Nixon, cried at the loss of President Kennedy, struggled with the Presidents Bush to President Obama, it seems every president and every Congress has struggled with growing changes of development and environment.  During the last two years I watched the Congress and the president struggle to get along.  Whether it is the budget (which is so big and complicated I don’t think any of them actually understands it) or Health Care (again it is so large and complicated I don’t think anyone understands it) it seems that the United States of America is so big and so complicated that even with the best intentions it is starting to self destruct.  

 

Maybe it’s time to change and to develop a new map.  One in which shows the United States of America in a smaller size and new nation-states.  I know that northern and Southern California investigated a separation for many years and that Texas has taken several shots at becoming a nation-state. The governments of the new nation-states could get a grasp on; the budget, Health Care, civil rights and themany of challenges of a changing environment.  During recent events into appears that our Congress is broken and although I thought in time with the two major parties would work with each other which means compromise.  No one party, no one president no one elected official has the complete right answer.  Surely compromise which has existed since the beginning of our great country would handle all the new developments and environmental changes of today.  But like many cultures in the past, whether it is extremist or passive elected officials, compromise is more the exception than the rule.

 

Europe has seemed to handle a changing the borders and the beginning and ending at nation-states. Why can’t the United States do the same thing.  Each new nation-state or the remainder of the United States can choose it’s elected official is by popular vote or by the electoral college.  Each nation-state can decide on where it should send our men and women into military action.  Each nation-state could decide on where the money is spent.  Each nation-state could decide on who to support with funding, military backing or economical development. 

 

Yesterday while watching the news I saw the leader of Iraq asking for a return of military help again. I hope we have learned from our past. Within a map of new nation-states each nation-state can make that decision. I am tried of sending our men and women to a foreign nation state and losing lives while sending billions to the foreign nation leaders (or which ever side we like) just to find it all disappear.  Many times I think our elected officials send our military to war as if we were still fighting world war II.  The last war we won.  Since then whether we called it a conflict (Korea)  or policing action (Viet Nam) or to eradicate weapons of mass destruction (Iraq) we have lost.  They’ve lost precious lives, a massive amount of money, and respect in other nations- states.  The United States has been called upon many times for help from nation states that in prior years hated the United States.  Has United States gotten so big that it keeps trying to police the world and now we have lost the capability of handling our own problems at home?

 

I believe it is time to look at changing the map.  It is not the time to destroy the United States of America and its many cultures but it is time to look at other possibilities.  If we currently accept Puerto Rico as a part of the United States yet not give it statehood why can’t we allow places like California and Texas, or  North and South Dakota, New York, New Jersey and Washington, DC become there on nation-state.  Each part of the United States could work to combine with other existing states to develop a new nation-state.  The new map of nation-states could easily work together much like Canada and Mexico work with the United States. In the past the United States courts have kept companies from becoming too large (like Standard oil) breaking the company down into smaller pieces allowing each one of those pieces to either succeed or fail while working with each other for the benefit of all.

It is something to think about.  

Pops

As I was sitting on the porch this morning, I notice that a branch and some leaves had covered a small bird house in front of the porch.  I thought it to be a nice picture, and maybe I could show it somewhere as art.  Which brings me to this thought of the day, what is ” art”.  Through the years I had the opportunity to visit a number of museums.  From Los Angeles to Washington, DC Beliving that what I saw is what this country calls art.  I have also gone to several small towns, county fairs and antique shops.  All of these locations proclaimed that “art” being displayed.  So while sitting on the porch I had to ask  myself- what is art.

ART as describing by the dictionary is:

something that is created with imagination and skill and that is beautiful

or that expresses important ideas or feelings;

works created by artists : paintings, sculptures, etc., that are created to

be beautiful or to express important ideas or feelings;

the methods and skills used for painting, sculpting,

drawing, etc.

I also found that art is a craft or handy carft.

Initially, I thought I would only find art in an museum or at an exhibit.  Most of the art was created by some one from the past.  Usually the older the item the more attention was directed to it.  Later I found modern art which many times I did not appreciate or understand.

It is hard at two appreciate a painting of an old woman rocking in a chair or a painting of a bowl of fruit in today’s world. The verbal and visual environment, like video games, I tunes, movies and even my cell phone has so much more to offer than a painting or sculpture.  In the past I can understand that these pictures and sculptures and songs were the world of art.  Electronic devices were not available then and beside the beauty many pieces were sending a message to create a response or feeling.

Today there are many ways for young artists to create art.  Whether: it is a song, a building, a park, a photograph, or handicraft; their works can be shown around the world almost instantly.  Communication devices, like this blog, lets the author or the artists to create art and display at almost instantly.

So I have to change my opinion about what is art.  It is not old paintings and sculptures or songs from a bunch of dead people who lived in a time when their world and their art was confined out of where they lived.  I believed that the museum’s and exhibits are funded by the older generations who have the time and money to spend on art. I believe that my generation as it got older accepted with a we’re told as young people about what art is.  In my generation’s early years art was being reborned.  From a wall of hub caps. a house made of empty bottles, the Watts towers,Andy Warhol, colorful peace signs to graffiti.  The baby boomer generation attempted to change what we understood as art.  it is sad that the baby boomer generation, who started out developing new art now with a few exceptions, have become so sophisticated that the movement for new art has been deserted and the funding now goes to the old traditional art community.  Many of the old artist created their work while living in a harsh or poor conditions.  I would ask those of us that can afford to fund art, to look around thier world, and find a new artists.  They may be graffiti artists, corner singers, computer artist or sculpture artists

If you give a young child, like my grandchildren the canvas like a computer, they will in short order, become artist using the computer.  I hope they are supported if they continue to be involved in creating art.

Which brings main to what is an antique store.  It is always looked to me as a place of old and broken down items like furniture and paintings plus old jewelry and any other item of age.  I am always amazed at what I see in a antique store.  It looks like an organized garage sale in the same location opened beyond the usual garage sale weekend.

I conceded that art is in the eye of the beholder.  I am not a fan of old paintings of: fruit, portraits, scenic views or deformed and distorted paintings.  Maybe in the 1900s these items seemed amazing, beautiful, and created a response of a feeling.  But seriously with all the information, the ability to access the Internet, to listen to songs, watch TV or do all the above on your phone the all museums and exhibits need to wake up.  Embrace that art can change and show that change, in their museums, their exhibits and their public spaces.

I hope the following generations and just accept what my prior generation had come to call art.  With the abundance of ways to communicate and demonstrate that has to be more to art than what existing contributors fund

As I was setting on the porch this morning, I started looking for my glasses.  After several minutes I found them, on my head.  It is always embarrassing when I’m looking for something that he ends up either in front of Me or next in a place that I’ve already looked.

For the last week I have been expecting a letter from my son.  After not finding a letter I called my wife who was out in California visiting her family.  She asked me to ook through all the mail that I have already collected while she’s been gone.  I had put the mail on the kitchen counter so that when she returned she could go through all of the ads.  I searched through the stack of mail looking for the latter from my son.  I did this on three separate occasions.  Finally, I called my son and asked him to resend a letter.  The latter had a check in sho I was concerned that I had received it yet.  He said no problem and iI was resend that day.

Today it is raining so I went through the stack of mail again and started placing the different letters into separate stacks.  While stacking up the magazine’s we had received,the original letter was discovered.  This is always embarrassing.  My wife says I was   ” man looking” again.  As in much as I think that when I’m searching for an item: whether it is my glasses, something to write on, my medication or the mail, I do a good job.  But, as life has taught me, I think my wife is right.  I do not seemed as disciplined in my searching as she does.  Today I sent an e-mail to my son telling him that I found the letter.  If this keeps up pretty soon my wife are my kids will ask me to give the keys to the car because I cannot find the road.  Usually I would hear from people on this subject as- that is what happens when you get old.  Well I feel a been old for many years and I remember that I’ve always been ” man looking”.  By that I mean, I’ve always needed help finding things that others find quickly in front of me or where I just looked, the difference now is that I gets  very angry at myself.

I will not give out searching and looking for those items I need.  But I will ease up on myself and understand that I am “man looking” and I will eventually with or without others help I will find the item.

As I was sitting on the porch I had this thought and wonder if anyone else has experienced it. Have you ever noticed that saying good-by on the phone when speaking to a wife or girlfriend is not easy if you do not say I love you when ending the conversation. Not just saying I Love you but if she says it ten times you must rely I love you ten times. Isn’t once enough? Try just saying it once if she says is again before hanging up. There will be a long silence and then she will say don’t you love me or she will use you’re proper name. Like Jonathan when you have be John during most the conversation. As a man I feel that one I Love you when hanging up should be enough. But I usually say it several times when ending the phone call with my wife.

It is usually in response to her I love you. Do not get me wrong I love her dearly, but how many times when hanging up is the proper number of time. I do not want her to think the wrong thing. It is the same with I miss you. Shouldn’t once be enough I mean what I say when I say it. But I love her so much I will say it as many times as needed.

As I was sitting on the porch this morning I saw a large truck pulling a horse trailer very slowly down the road and it reminded of my dislike for slow drivers. You know the ones that are fine driving 45 mph on a road posted at 70 mph. If they are driving on the freeway they would be honked at,  flipped off and cursed out. Cars and trucks would jokey around to get passed the slow driver usually causing accidents by trying to change lanes. I use to think that these car were driven by senior citizens only. You know an old Lincoln Continental or Mercury  with a handy cap sticker ( I think when anyone buys one of these cars it should come with a handicap sticker) dangling from the rear view mirror. I would see two hands and blue hair barely silhouetting from the car or a set of big ears. It does no good to honk or curse at them they cannot hear anyway and they will not see the bird as you display it they are concentrating on staying in the lane. But recently as I have moved into a rural area I have found all ages and silhouette’s drive 10 or 20 mph slower that the posted  limit. Some will see you coming and when it is available they will move safely over and drive in the shoulder lane or just pull over and stop so you and the ten cars behind you can pass safely. However many will continue to drive slowly and cause you and other to pass on the left oncoming traffic lane which opens you , the cars behind you and the slow driver, to an accident. Passing is always dangerous and accidents happen but the accidents usually will involve several cars. The car being passed, the passing car, the car you didn’t see driving in the oncoming lane and any vehicle still behind that find itself running into an occurring accident. So please pull over let the other pass safely. The slower car is not in a hurry so why not pull over when it is safe and let those 5 crazy driver’s behind you to get around you and on their way.  I know that the slow driver feels that it is their right to drive as slow as they want and it is the fast drivers that cause accident, but if you are driving so slow it makes people pass you many times in short passing areas. You are as much to blame as the passing motorist.

SO PULL OVER DRIVE FREINDLY

   POPS