Breathe in, breathe out

Economic recessions come and go. I lived through the Great Depression with only 5 cents a week in allowance. My dad was making $20 a week. It’s hard to compare that one with this one.

Recessions seem to be something like breathing. They arrive and depart, inhale, exhale, keep on going. Government is doing what it can to prevent or modify recessions but those efforts have never worked perfectly. The reason is that the government is a minor player compared with 305 million individuals. We are the ones who will end the recession by virtue of hard work and using our determination and ingenuity.

Our unemployment rate is 10 percent. That means we still have 90 percent employed so we have a good basis for recovery. Little by little, Americans will find jobs and get back to work. Using tax money, the government will help.

We the people will tell you when this recession is really over.

Smart

Mildred, the church gossip and self-appointed monitor of morals, kept sticking her nose into other people’s business. Several members of the church did not approve of her extracurricular activities, but feared her enough to maintain their silence.

She made a mistake, however, when she accused Frank, a new member, of being an alcoholic after she saw his old pickup parked in front of the town’s only bar one afternoon. She emphatically told Frank (and several others) that everyone seeing it there would know what he was doing. Frank, a man of few words, stared at her for a moment and then just turned and walked away. He didn’t explain, defend, or deny.

Later that evening, Frank quietly parked his pickup in front of Mildred’s house, walked home, and left the truck there all night.

You gotta love Frank!

If

If you can start the day without caffeine,
If you can always be cheerful, ignoring aches and pains,
If you can resist complaining and boring people with your troubles,
If you can eat the same food every day and be grateful for it,
If you can understand when your loved ones are too busy to give you any time,
If you can take criticism and blame without resentment,
If you can conquer tension without medical help,
If you can relax without liquor,
If you can sleep without the aid of drugs,
then you are probably the family pet.

Five deep thoughts

1) A bartender is just a pharmacist with a limited inventory
2) In just two days from now, tomorrow will be yesterday.
3) The statement below is true.
The statement above is false.
4) I may be schizophrenic, but at least I have each other.
5) Dyslexics have more nuf.