Seconds past midnight

It's midnight, Sunday May 13th. Mothers Day. I came back from my friend's house about 10 minutes ago, after a gathering which was a lot of fun. We played Pictionary, watched the Spurs beat the Suns in the NBA Playoffs (boo), and then had a nice home cooked meal. All in all, a nice ending to a pretty crappy day. We were supposed to have played some putt-putt golf yesterday, but the rain put a stop to that. So today, we are heading to Frankie's to play that, and maybe some laser tag too. It will be nice to spend a day outside with friends. Beats sitting at home all the time!

So what else has happened since my last post. Not that much really. The price of oil has gone up again, putting premium well over the $3 mark. Let me ask a question - if the cost of manufacturing oil has gone up so much, how come the oil company execs are making record profits? It's the common man who suffers - as always. There's a song called "Something to believe in" by Poison that has some nice lines:

I drive by the homeless sleeping on a cold dark street
Like bodies in an open grave
Underneath the broken old neon sign
That used to read JESUS SAVES

A mile away live the rich folks
And I see how they're living it up
While the poor they eat from hand to mouth
The rich is drinkin' from a golden cup


Hey, here is the song on YouTube:



Here are the complete lyrics:

Will I see him on the TV
Preachin' 'bout the promised land
He tells me to believe in Jesus
And steals the money from my hand

Some say he was a good man
But Lord I think he sinned, yeah

Twenty-two years of mental tears
Cries a suicidal Vietnam vet
Who fought a losing war on a foreign shore
To find his country didn't want him back

Their bullets took his best friend in Saigon
Our lawyers took his wife and kids, no regrets
In a time I don't remember
In a war he can't forget

He cried "Forgive me for what I've done there
Cause I never meant the things I did"

Chorus:
And give me something to believe in
If there's a Lord above
And give me something to believe in
Oh, Lord arise

My best friend died a lonely man
In some Palm Springs hotel room
I got the call last Christmas Eve
And they told me the news

I tried all night not to break down and cry
As the tears rolled down my face
I felt so cold and empty
Like a lost soul out of place

And the mirror, mirror on the wall
Sees my smile it fades again

Chorus

Sometimes I wish to God I didn't know now
The things I didn't know then
Road you gotta take me home

Solo

I drive by the homeless sleeping on a cold dark street
Like bodies in an open grave
Underneath the broken old neon sign
That used to read JESUS SAVES

A mile away live the rich folks
And I see how they're living it up
While the poor they eat from hand to mouth
The rich is drinkin' from a golden cup

And it just makes me wonder
Why so many lose, so few win

Chorus

You take the high road
And I'll take the low road

Sometimes I wish to God I didn't know now
The things I didn't know then

And give me something to believe in


When you think about the recent scandals that are plaguing the current administration, the one that stands out the most is the Walter Reed scandal. It's bad enough that we are involved in a war that was started on manufactured evidence, but the fact that we haven't looked after our own soldiers is really sad. They actually used it for last week's Law and Order. That's what made me think of this song, because it deals with the way that Vietnam vets were treated. It's just not right - but when you think of the people affected - not just the soldiers - but their families too - it really makes you feel sad.

On that sad note, I'll say goodnight