Bring on the ObamaCare

Social Security and Disability aren't the only systems that are flawed (previous rant). Think about this:

My wife and I just found out that we are having our 3rd (and last) child. My crappy insurance through work is expensive and still doesn't cover prenatal care. So we start to shop for insurance. Apparently in Colorado nobody offers prenatal care because the plans would be too expensive. Good thing we income qualify for State health care. Here is the catch, because she has insurance she has to be off for 3 months with no insurance before receiving help from the State. Even though our insurance doesn't cover prenatal, she still has to go 3 months not covered at all. BUT, if we were illegal immigrants we could get immediate 100% state paid health care. This makes me optimistic about ObamaCare. Maybe someday I will actually look into what that bill contains but for now, knowing that it could be tied up for years before put into practice, I will just wait and hope that it at least helps the situation.

My suggestion is to make all illegals citizens, make them pay taxes and spread the debt evenly! Seriously. Look at all the states with heavy illegal alien populations and you will see the states that were hit hardest by the economy. There are a few exceptions like Michigan that lost the auto industry but other than that illegals seem to be a common denominator. 

The State and local governments would see an increase in revenue from common places like employment taxes, driver's licenses, and vehicle registrations. I say we legalize who is here and then tighten up the border. Who is with me?

Public Assistance Can Be Sickening Sometimes

Being in online sales I talk to a lot of people from all over the states on a daily basis. I have a lot of "interesting" conversations and talk to some great people and also some really strange people.

Some people I feel compassion for and others just make me ticked off. Not necessarily at the individual but at their environment they grew up and/or live in. The other day I talked to a young guy, about 22 years old. Never had a job, parents (Dad and Dad's girlfriend) told him he shouldn't go to College, and he was living with friends because he couldn't stand his father's girlfriend. I don't blame the kid about not liking the girlfriend. She was a witch to me on the phone as well! Anyway, I try to find out why this guy wants to go to college and I struggle to find any real drive in his life. Turns out, the kid has been on disability for years for ADHD making $674 a month.

That's right, apparently people can get on disability for ADHD. That is ridiculous!!! You are telling me that you can't work because you get distracted and hyper sometimes? Pop a pill and get your butt employed. You have a short attention span? Be a cashier, you meet new people every few minutes and you are constantly busy swiping and bagging. Get a grip man.

I agree that we need public assistance programs, but crap like this seriously pisses me off. Doing a quick bit of research you can find out what you need to get on disability. Websites like THIS tell you exactly what you need to get on disability. I understand people need help knowing what they need but the title "disability secrets" seems to have the connotation of cheating the system.

To me disability for ADHD is like the laughable medical marijuana phenomenon. Anyone can walk down the street and obtain a medical marijuana card for $40-100. One doctor gave a MJ card to a patient because they "sit at a computer all day" and it helps with the strain on vision.

I think everyone agrees that public assistance is flawed. Too many people abuse the system. You want to cut spending America, tighten the leash on your assistance. Drug test before people can get help. Have tiers in the system. The more you try to get out of your situation, the more help you can get. I have talked to people in states that demand you put in hours at a job help center in order to get unemployment. I heard of one individual that was laid off, found a job for less pay but when she won the unemployment case walked off her job because unemployment was close or a little more than what she made at the new job. Where is the sense of pride? Where are the values of putting in a hard day's work?

Taking kids fishing is fun... if you realize you won't actually be fishing

Once you have a child your hobbies and activities seem to change quite a bit. Now that I have two kids, I try to find hobbies that will be fun for the whole family. Fishing has always been a hobby I loved and one that I could incorporate with the whole family.

Last Saturday we headed off to Cherry Creek with a few poles, some fresh nightcrawlers, and some anxious kiddies. I set both the poles in the water and let the wife take first watch of the poles. Bella and I took her pole with some weight on the end and I left her "fish." By that I mean I would cast the line with no hook or bait into the water and she would slowly reel it in. 15 minutes later she was bored of reeling in moss. Dylan soon woke up and joined the party.

The first hour was great because I knew at 3 in the afternoon the fish wouldn't be biting anyway. Fishing with the kids wasn't an issue until the chance of actually catching the "big one" became more probable. We ended up moving to a different part of the beach out of the sun. Fair skinned Bella was showing signs of a sun burn pretty fast. We moved to the shade and I was about to recast the lines when Selena chimed in, "Why don't you let me cast?"

I calmly explained the simple facts:
a) You are a woman (just kidding... but seriously)
b) You don't know how to cast
c) We need to get this in the water ASAP or miss out on prime fishing time

She won and I took the hook off and let her practice with some weight. She did fairly well so I attached the hook. Distance wasn't an issue, it was casting straight. Seriously, every cast went 40 feet to the right. LITERALLY.

Soon the kids decided throwing sticks and sand clumps into the water was more fun than casting. Dylan found out that the spincast reel, if he pushed the button once simulating a cast, would allow him to grab the end of fishing line and run up and down the beach tangling every stick and rock in his path. Staying on the beach got boring so let's start getting wet. Our feet are wet so let's take off the shoes. By this time, slightly annoyed I still tried to keep cool. Then I saw socks floating in the water and Dylan smiling sheepishly shin deep in water.

I turned into my father during my childhood years. I can hear him now, "If you don't knock it off I'm going to pack up and we are going home!"

Selena quickly reminded me that my idea of fishing is NOT the same when the family joins me. She was right, I forgot to simply cherish the time. I was so stinking focused on landing a fish that I forgot to relax. It was getting cold anyway and we decided we should head home.

However, Selena being the amazing wife that she is, suggested I drop them off and head back out by myself and do some real "fishing!" So I went back for another 4 hours... and still didn't catch anything.

Next time!

 Bella hanging out on shore

 Dylan and I preparing to cast

 Bella and Dylan posing for Mommy

 Bella casting and Dylan scaring the fish by slapping the water with a huge stick

 This girl is made for Hollywood!

 Not quite the Hollywood pose like above but it'll do

Every now and then you just need a new hobby

First it was cycling, then it was cornhole, and now it's fishing. Every now and then you just need a new hobby and my new vice is gonna be wrangling in some big ones! Hobbies can be expensive but I like to research and bargain hunt for the necessary supplies. Plus I already have most of the fishing equipment I need.

I always loved to fish. Now that I have two eager anglers, Bella and Dylan, I have another reason to spend a few extra bucks on Daddy's toys. I can always justify my expenses by calling it "bonding."

New Rod -           $10
Backup rod/reel -  $20
Misc tackle -         $8
License -               $25

Having a hobby I can incorporate with the little ones... Priceless.

I don't think I've done too bad. I've rallied some support from my partner in crime, Matt. He bought a setup, I got a new setup and replaced my broken rod, and the kiddies have their own pole.

Matt did mention that it would've been nice to start this outdoor hobby in April... when the temp was rising and not falling. But hey, that's why they have ice fishing! Nothing better than men huddled around a little ice hole in the middle of a frozen lake.

First outing will be soon and pictures will follow. Stay tuned...

Why I Started

The first post is always the most interesting. Why did I start a blog? Does anyone care and will anyone read it? Heck yes. Well I hope so.

To be honest, and I know this is lame, the movie Julie and Julia got me seriously thinking about a blog. I know it sounds really lame but I thought that movie was pretty cool. I mean to take on a task to that extreme... that is some dedication. Plus, I have been following a blog for some time that is pretty cool and not blocked by my firewall at work. It keeps me occupied and I think the guy is pretty funny.  I stumbled across the blog searching for Chipotle Tabasco and he came up on the top of the Google search engine.

So here I am, at least a year later, finally starting a blog. Nothing really remarkable happened, it was simply time. Hopefully the stories will be fun. Hopefully ya'll will enjoy them. If you don't, let me know what I'm doing wrong!