Those oldies but goodies and you

Rick Derringer (left) and The McCoys did "Hang On Sloopy" in 1965

It doesn’t matter who you are or whether you are a man or a woman, you probably have a lot of old popular songs that are etched into your mind. Why are they there? Probably because music is one of the greatest sources of bringing back memories, whether good or bad. Is there anyone on Earth who doesn’t know some of the lyrics from "Louie, Louie"?

I was listening to Music Choice Solid Gold the other night on Cox Cable and it was like a trip back in time. Suddenly, I was remembering old cars I had, former girlfriends, and nights at the drive-in movies (I think I hold the record for the fewest movies seen at a drive-in between 1957 and 1961 and I’m damn proud of it!). Then there were the tunes from the military years, early days of a great marriage, and beyond. Songs are great memory makers, those old 2 ½ to 3 minute tunes are hard to forget. Here are some I heard recently and my recollections of them. What are some of your favorites and your memories of them?

1957: "Diana," by Paul Anka, "Wake Up Little Susie," by The Everly Brothers. I turned 16 and started driving legally that summer. Those songs remind me of make out sessions in a ‘54 Ford.

1959: "Sleep Walk," by Santo and Johnny, "What’d I Say?" by Ray Charles. It was a great summer, met my first steady girl, drove a ‘57 Chevy to California on Route 66 to meet another girl. I was young, free, and life was good along with the music. Remember "Venus" by Frankie Avalon? "Pink Shoe Laces" by Dodie Stevens?

1961: "Runaround Sue" by Dion, "Runnin’ Scared" by Roy Orbison, "Moody River" by Pat Boone. I was 20, had a girl, a job, went water skiing almost every day until September when Uncle Sam called.

1962: "Peppermint Twist" by Joey Dee and the Starlighters, "Duke of Earl" by Gene Chandler, "The Loco-Motion" by Little Eva. Stationed near Kansas City, no more girl friend but still had my ‘57 Chevy and chances to meet new girls. Sorry, Nancy, It was fun while it lasted.

1963: "It’s My Party" by Lesley Gore, "Sugar Shack" by Jimmy Gilmer, "Surf City" by Jan and Dean. Back from Germany, partying a lot in Kansas City, eating at McDonald’s so I had more money for drinking. Listening to the tunes on "Yours truly WHB,"AM radio full blast.

1965: "Downtown" by Petula Clark, "Help Me, Rhonda" by The Beach Boys, "Yesterday" by The Beatles. Discharged from Air Force in September, back to Cincinnati and college. Met future wife Barb a month after hitting town. The number one tune when I met her? "Hang on Sloopy" by The McCoys with lead guitarist Rick Derringer ("Rock and Roll Hoochie-Coo").

I could go on but you know what I mean. Most of my stuff may be a bit old unless you are Don, Tom Moore, or animadvert, some of my contemporaries. Don’t be afraid of the newer stuff. I remember disco, electronic ‘80s stuff, Madonna, Falco, Rockwell, Phil Collins, Supertramp, Rush, U2, Kim Wilde, etc. If it’s hip-hop or rap, though, forget it. I have to draw the line somewhere!

Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello in their "Beach Party" days. His "Venus" was a big hit in 1959. It was great drive-in song.

Have a great holiday

Christmas 1968 in cold Ohio

IT'S CHRISTMAS EVE AND I WANT TO WISH A MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL FROM JIM, BARB, AND TINKER. THANKS FOR STOPPING BY IN 2008 AND I HOPE TO SEE YOU ON THE BLOGS IN 2009.

Obama not smoking joint, or is he?

Have you seen the TIME photos of Barack Obama? They were taken in 1980 by Lisa Jack and are all over the internet. Obama was a freshman at Occidental College in Los Angeles at the time so he is probably eighteen in these pictures.

A mild furor has arisen over whether the cigarette he is smoking is a marijuana joint or not. Some also say that the bracelet on his right wrist is some sort of Islamic spiritual bracelet. My opinion is that the cigarette is a plain old Winston, Marlboro, or whatever. It looks too round and manufactured to be a joint which would have that "roll your own" look.

However, if it is a joint, so what? He was an 18 year old kid and 18 year old kids do things that are stupid and regretted later. If you show me a photo of him puffing a joint at age 47 in the East Room of the White House, then I will be concerned. Bill Clinton admitted to smoking a joint but, of course, he didn’t inhale. (Yeah, right!)

As far as the bracelet, I don’t know anything about Islamic spiritual bracelets but the one on Obama’s wrist looks like one of those bracelets golfers wear to supposedly combat wrist pain. The Obama naysayers will have to do better than this to succeed.

For others who think they can dig up something to get the election reversed, they better hurry. They have one month and three days before he takes the oath. Let’s not forget the people who claim he is a draft dodger and not a "natural born citizen." I have to believe he isn’t a draft dodger and is a citizen or he wouldn’t have gotten this far. The only thing that troubles me is why he doesn’t pull his original birth certificate and draft card from his files at home and produce them as proof? Wouldn’t that end all doubts so we could move ahead? Maybe he has done that and it has not been publicized. Does anybody know? I didn't vote for him but I would like to see some concrete evidence against him before I say throw the guy out.

I guess a lot of scrutiny has to do with Obama being an exotic kind of guy. He is of mixed race and has a background unlike any president we have elected. That makes a lot of people suspicious; people who would never have dreamed of investigating guys like Ike, Reagan, FDR, Teddy Roosevelt, or Lincoln.

Memories on a Safeway Shelf

Recently I was shopping at Safeway in Scottsdale and as I picked up a can of Consort hair spray (Hey, sportscaster Dan Patrick recommends it!), I noticed some old favorites are still on the shelf. They may have been reduced to one facing but it was like a trip down memory lane to see them. In all their glory sat Vitalis hair tonic, Groom and Clean hair gel, Alberto VO5 cream, and Brylcreem.

At some time in my life I used all those items along with others that are probably non existent now like Wildroot Cream Oil and Fitch hair tonic. I remember putting so much of the white Wildroot cream on my hair as a kid that when I combed it, the white cream collected on the comb. Fitch was a barber shop favorite. As a kid, you would always get your hair doused with that stuff after the barber cut your hair. He also would never cut your hair the way you wanted. He would always say "I think your mother would rather have it this way." Kids had no leverage in those days. Now, they would probably pull out their cell phone and call their lawyer on the barber AND their mom.

Vitalis was like Fitch, full of alcohol. It was actually flammable as I found out one day when I dropped a match in some. VO5 was basically a cream that you used to slick your hair down. It was more of a dressing than a gel and women even used it to give their hair a bit more body. Most guys remember Brylcreem and its great slogan of "a little dab’ll do ya, you’ll look so debonaire." Groom and Clean was a favorite of mine in the ‘60s. It was a blue gel that was not greasy, it would wash off your hands with plain water but left you hair with that nice 60s slicked down look.

By 1970, the "slicked down" look was disappearing after Gillette came out with a hair spray for men called "The Dry Look." By then I had been married for three years and made the big decision to change my act and have been a dry hair guy ever since. However, I still have fond memories of the old days of Groom and Clean and the other stuff combined with a splash of Brut or Hai Karate after shave. A guy couldn’t miss with the ladies on a Saturday night with those combinations! Add a pipe full of Captain Black tobacco and their slogan of "The chicks are back" could come true.

Now, if I can find some Butch Wax in case I go back to a flat top hair cut, I’ll be all set.. By the way, did anyone see a can of Burma Shave laying around? I lost mine.

Are print newspapers doomed?

As I continue observing Main Street, I notice a lot more driveways without the morning paper, both on Sunday and during the week. Is the death knell being sounded for the daily newspaper? The economy could be a factor as discontinuing the paper is one way to save about $5 a week. But, I think it is more than that. Newspaper subscriptions have been dropping for years and many nationally known papers have gone out of business. With the internet and TV, the daily hard copy paper has become a Model T in the age of jet travel.

In October, the East Valley Tribune dropped its coverage of Scottsdale and Tempe. They will now serve only the East Valley with emphasis on Mesa and Gilbert. They will also be a four day a week publication free to the public. They say that seven day per week coverage will be through their online edition. These cutbacks included a layoff of 142 jobs or 40% of their workers.

The key words are "online edition." That’s the way many papers are going. It allows them to compete with the immediacy of the 24 hour TV news stations and it is a lot less expensive to operate. Advertising is a main source of revenue and if you read any online editions, you will notice that there is no scarcity of ads surrounding the stories. Whether they have the same effect as a newspaper ad, I do not know but it may get to the point where it doesn’t matter. Long time Phoenix journalist Jana Bommersbach reports "Subscriptions are down, advertising revenue is down, and there are only so many cuts you can make in a business with expensive overhead–big buildings, larger printing plants, miles of newsprint, all that ink, a cumbersome distribution system, etc."

Other factors in the success of online editions is the emergence of the blogger. Many bloggers have large followings which means that every time a reader tunes in to them, they will be getting impressions of ads surrounding the blogs which in turn can mean increased revenue. And, since bloggers are normally unpaid, it is all plus business.

People want their news fast. If it happened at 10:00 this morning they don’t want to wait until they pick up their paper in the driveway at 5:00 tomorrow morning to read about it. Many have decided that they also don’t want to have to pay for that type of service through subscriptions when they can get news immediately for free.

The handwriting may be on the wall for hard copy papers but, as I have said before, I am a newspaper guy and I love to read my morning paper with a cup of Joe. I suppose the hard copy edition will survive but in an unfamiliar form. That is what the East Valley Tribune found out.

The inportance of RSVP

It’s a reflection on today’s society that before sporting events the public address announcer has to request the crowd to please honor America by standing and "removing your hats" for the playing of our national anthem. There was a time when it wasn’t necessary to ask a crowd to do that but it was in another era when "respect" was a common word in everyone’s vocabulary. That’s not the case as much today in our cell phone, iPod, hurried up mentality world.

With Thanksgiving behind us, we now enter December with its multitude of holiday parties. It is a time when many invitations will request an RSVP. This is not a new practice but, strangely enough, according to Jill Haney of JH Consultants, about 30% of invitees do not RSVP as requested by invitations. As with the national anthem, an RSVP is a show of respect and a response should always be made to the inviter.

For anyone who is not clear about RSVP, it is a French expression ("respondez s’il vous plait") that simply means "respond please." If you receive an invitation, you are being asked to let the prospective host know if you will or will not attend the function. To not respond is very rude and is not an option. It is an insult to the inviter who thought enough of the importance of your attendance to invite you. Also, the number of RSVPs allows the host to make plans as far as drinks, food, and the size of the room for the party.

An RSVP should be made the day the invitation is received or, at the latest, one or two days later according to Haney. How hard can it be to make a simple two minute phone call to someone who thought enough of you to invite you to their party?

Many invitations these days are being sent with a "regrets only" request. That makes it a bit easier on the invitee as they are being asked to respond only if they can’t make it. Even if you receive this type of invitation, it is still a nice touch to call the inviter and tell them "Thank you."

The RSVP is nothing new to most people but if 30% are still not respecting the request it desires, the above explanation hopefully will remind them of its importance. By exhibiting some manners, it may get you invited to more parties too.

To tip or not to tip

Here is a bit of trivia for you: The word "tip" originated from the old English inns where a jar was placed by the front desk with a sign that read "To Insure Promptness." In other words, if you wanted anything done efficiently by the innkeeper, you better put something in that tip jar.

Tipping is controversial to this day. How much should you tip? Some people won’t tip at all as Elaine did in an episode of Seinfeld many years ago. She and Jerry were traveling to New York and Jerry tipped the airport Red Cap $5 per bag. Elaine thought that was exorbitant and chewed out the Red Cap for expecting such a tip. The Red Cap shipped Jerry’s bags to New York and Elaine’s strangely went to Honolulu. A lesson learned: Don’t mess with service workers!

I’m not saying everyone deserves a tip. In my case, I will tip 20% in nice restaurants like The Roaring Fork in Scottsdale or Ruth’s Chris in Phoenix if I have been well taken care of. I think that is standard for today. I might even throw in another 5% if I’m especially happy that night. Conversely, if the service is inattentive and the food is bad I will reduce it accordingly. Nothing is automatic. Excellent service on a special occasion can make a tremendous difference in the experience and I see no problem with a proper reward for it.

One thing I will not do is put money in "tip jars" when no extra service is provided. Places like fast food restaurants come under this category. They are a perfect example of the "give me something for nothing" mentality we see today according to Ward Connerly of the American Civil Rights Institute in a Sonoran News editorial this week..

Connerly also mentions the annoyance of ordering room service in hotels and having an automatic 21% gratuity added to the bill. On top of that a space is usually available for "additional gratuity." A room service waiter told him the gratuity is added on because some people might not tip. That sounds like how the government works: "If we don’t like the service, we are taxed anyway" explains Connerly.

Tipping makes sense for those who earn it by providing excellent personal service. Taxi drivers, hotel attendants, waiters, and shoe shine people know about earning tips and deserve them for excellence. They better be good because 99% of their livelihood depends on those tips.

When do you think tipping is and isn't appropriate?

Every senior guy's dream

There have been some wonderful inventions within the last century.

In 1926 Robert Goddard invented the liquid fueled rocket. Without it, we probably wouldn’t have discovered water on Mars recently. I know you are thrilled about that.

In 1927, Philip Farnsworth invented the electronic television system. Technicolor for movies was also introduced that year as was the first talking motion picture, The Jazz Singer.

By 1938, items like automatic transmissions for cars became available as did the ballpoint pen, Teflon, and freeze dried coffee.

I know you are impressed by these accomplishments and there are more things invented after that time that are even more amazing. However, while watching a sporting event on television recently, I saw advertised the most amazing and useful invention probably in the history of mankind: Gentlemen, welcome to the world of the Cialis daily dosage pill.

We all remember when Viagara was introduced to help the guys out in times of stress with their ladies. The jokes were everywhere about Sun City being renamed Viagara Falls, etc. Funny stuff and Viagara was a nice help for many guys. However, it didn’t last very long and took a while after dosage to take effect. What self respecting stud could put up with that?

Fear no more, there is now the Cialis daily dosage pill that keeps the guys at full power all the time. No timing involved anymore, guys, you are always ready for action. I can see it now: The dry cleaners in Sun City and elsewhere are receiving hundreds of maroon and lime green leisure suits to be pressed for party time. The stores are running out of white shoe polish and the bars have been asked to extend happy hour by thirty minutes to 7:30. Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby records are flying out of the stores and there has been a run on used Buicks with Dynaflow. Run for the hills, ladies!

In 1969 we put a man on the moon. So what! We now have daily dosage Cialis.

Scottsdale AZ has foreclosures too

For those who think that home foreclosures in the Valley of the Sun are restricted to areas like the West Side or Queen Creek, think again. Recent figures from the Independent show that four affluent zip codes in north Scottsdale have 542 foreclosures. A lot of the people in those areas have been strung out for a long time without much cash flow. They have enjoyed the high life of credit card debt and buying cars that they couldn’t really afford.

I have seen young families with 3,500 square foot homes in places like Grayhawk and DC Ranch where the 30 year old husband is the only income producer while his cute wife tends to their 2.4 kids and goes to the gym and pool every day to keep her waist at 19". Their driveway usually has a large late model SUV and maybe a BMW Roadster for mom with a license plate that reads "My Toy."

My first thought has always been, "How can they afford it?" Unfortunately for them, with the current state of the economy, they can’t. Expensive gas, loss of jobs, maxed out credit cards, failed loans, the crash of the housing market, and other factors have taken their toll. For example, there is a 2,296 square foot home in Grayhawk that was built in 1996 and was previously valued at $529,900. It was put at auction recently with a starting bid of $239,000. Grayhawk and DC Ranch alone have 88 foreclosures listed and even super wealthy Troon has 24. Many of the foreclosed loans are between $500,000 and $1,000,000.

As a side effect of foreclosures, many homes in affluent neighborhoods are being left in disrepair with lawns not being mowed or weeds taking over properties. Homeowner associations are also suffering losses from monthly fees not being paid by the lenders who have taken over properties.

It’s a downward spiral everywhere and shows no real sign of improving soon. It’s time for many of the pseudo-rich to tighten their belts, ditch the toys, swallow their pride, and realize that driving a used Kia and living in an apartment in Mesa may be better than walking and living in an Amana refrigerator box. At least for now.

Is Mexico the new Detroit?

I can see why Mexican immigrants are anxious to sneak into the USA to make what Americans would consider "slave wages." As bad as those wages are they still beat what can be made in Mexico working in the auto industry. According to a recent AP story, Ford and GM have turned to Mexico for much of their manufacturing needs which has brought about a two tiered system of hiring because of the demands for cheap labor by the American companies. It sounds like the supply and demand law kicking in again.

Ford is forcing the auto union in Mexico to further decrease already low wages for new hires of $4.50 per hour to about half that as an incentive to get the business of building cars for them. As a comparison, the United Auto Workers tried a similar ploy last year in Detroit by offering their own two tier plan. However, their plan involved cutting starting pay in half from $28.40 per hour to about $14.20. Obviously, that is laughable as the jobs are mostly going to Mexico where $1.50 per hour with minor benefits is standard at some plants. Even China pays workers in foreign owned plants $2 to $6 per hour.

Meanwhile, GM has threatened to close one of their plants in Mexico because of slow sales. That may also be a ploy to lower wages. The immediate response of the auto union was to offer wage concessions to keep the plant open. The workers there make about $6 per hour, very high by Mexican standards. It looks like those "salad days" will be ending shortly.

Would you go to work in an auto plant in Mexico for $1.50 per hour? I made that much working part time in a grocery store in the mid 1960s. However, these days there is an abundance of young workers in Mexico who will flock to get hired under those conditions because of the supposed "stability" of such work. Juan Arreola, the Ford union leader, says "I guarantee that if we advertise for 2,000 workers, 10,000 are going to show up." Once again, supply and demand rules.

What does this mean to Detroit where second tier workers were offered a "low" $14.20 per hour? That is not close to being competitive with Mexico. Chrysler sales are down and layoffs are expected in Detroit. More jobs for Mexico?

Kids growing up too fast

When I was ten or eleven years old, girls my age were considered "little girls." They wore frilly little dresses, patent leather buckled shoes with little white socks, and usually had their hair in "pig tails." Playing with dolls was not uncommon and they had no interest in going to a mall, because malls didn’t yet exist.

I know parents who have girls this age who are now pestering their parents for mini skirts, thongs, and cropped tee shirts. Also popular with these kids are short shorts with words like "Juicy," "Hot," and "Yum," printed on the rear end. Obviously, dolls and pig tails have disappeared from the equation.

This is only part of the desire of young girls and boys to pass up childhood. As Karina Bland points out in her recent Republic column, it is not unusual for kids to be "hanging out at the mall unsupervised, and going to boy-girl parties." Most of these kids have cell phones and computers and may even have a site on MySpace. Gone are the days of board games and toys.

Karina says that many experts blame the parents for allowing kids to become this way. I agree. Kids are impressionable and when parents allow them to see programs like "Desperate Housewives" they may want to emulate the characters on that show. Some parents think it is "cute" for kids 9 or 10 to date. Here are more statistics: 55% of parents say childhood is over by 11. 75% of parents allow their kids to drink alcohol before age 18, and in Arizona, half of the eighth graders in 2006 had tried alcohol. 54% of children are allowed to dye their hair and wear makeup before age 14.

Some parents justify this behavior saying "It’s harder to say ‘no’ to a child than it is to say "Go ahead and do it.’" What? So, you don't say "no" just because it is hard? What happened to sensible, disciplined parenting? I can’t say I am surprised that parents take this attitude. In Scottsdale and Phoenix I have observed kids controlling their parents for years. The parents are too lazy or disinterested in their kids to "lay down the law." A lot of parents also have their own agendas which don’t involve their kids. It’s selfishness on their part as they refuse to give up their precious time and interests for the sake of their kids.

Maybe I am behind the times and this is now acceptable behavior for kids and parents. I see mobs of kids in the malls. There are usually boys and girls hanging together. When I was a kid, there was no way my friends and I hung around with girls. We were intimidated by them! Taking a girl to the movies was a special occasion. That was a different era but I think it made a lot more sense than some of the stuff I see today. At least we had a childhood.

A lifetime lover of LifeSavers

Does anyone besides me eat LifeSavers candy anymore? I went into a Safeway store in Scottsdale the other day and they had no LifeSavers for sale at the registers. The checker told me that they carry some LifeSaver items in bags in the candy section. My response was,"In Bags??!!" I asked where the LifeSavers were that came in rolls and were always by the register. She looked at me quizzically as though I was from another planet. It figured, she was young and was probably a Tic-Tac girl.

I have had a lifetime love affair with LifeSavers. Sure, when I was a kid, occasionally I was disloyal and would buy a roll of Sherbets or some other unworthy substitute, but LifeSavers were always the best flavored hard candy on the planet. Every store sold LifeSavers and they usually carried the entire selection. I especially remember the candy/tobacco stands at the main downtown post office in Cincinnati. They were run by guys who had lost their sight, probably veterans of World War II. They had a display of LifeSavers that contained every flavor from the assorted fruits to each individual flavor. There they were, in long rows on the counter: assorted, cherry, Wint-O-Green, Cryst-O-Mint, Pep-O-Mint, butter rum, and others. They sold for 5 cents a roll and were wrapped in wax paper and foil plus a printed paper outer wrapper. It would have been a tough package to open if not for the little string on the end of the roll which easily opened them when pulled.

LifeSavers were invented in 1912 by a candy maker named Clarence Crane who was primarily in the chocolate business. Because chocolate was hard to sell in the summer, he came up with the idea of selling a hard candy during that season. He got the idea to make them round from watching a local pharmacist make pills. The idea of putting a hole in the middle was his own.

In 1913, Crane sold LifeSavers for $2,900, probably a big mistake since the buyer, Edward Noble, went on to make millions from them. They were eventually bought by Kraft, then Wrigley’s Gum.

Like Lifebuoy soap, Prell shampoo, Ammident toothpaste, and many other popular products from the past, I guess LifeSavers have lost some of their appeal and sales to the many modern mints and candies. I still remember their ads that read, "LifeSavers, the candy with the hole, still only 5 cents." Those days are gone, they now sell for 89 cents and worse than that, they don’t have the little string on the end anymore so they are very difficult to open.

Times have changed and so have LifeSavers but as long as I can open the package, I will buy them. It would be nice, though, if they put the little string back on the end.

Give kids good financial start

My buddy at Wachovia in Scottsdale periodically sends me newsletters with financial advice. The following may affect you if you have kids and are concerned about their financial future. Hopefully they will listen to you and your advice. This stuff makes sense:

It's a common goal — to live a better life than your parents. While you may be able to say you accomplished that goal, how likely is it that your children will be able to say the same thing? To help them with that pursuit, make sure to teach them these important financial lessons:

Graduate from college. Even if your children are interested in pursuing careers that don't require a college education, encourage them to obtain a college degree first. It is much easier to go to college straight out of high school before getting married or taking on other responsibilities. And financially, college graduates have higher earnings on average than nongraduates.

Live well within their means. As your children start lives of their own, help them make some fundamental decisions about how to live. Before your children decide where to live or what kind of car to drive, help them prepare a budget to see how much they can really afford for those items and still have money for saving.

Utilize all retirement vehicles available. As soon as they become eligible, your children should start contributing to a 401 (k) plan at work. If their employer doesn't offer a 401 (k) plan, teach your children the benefits of individual retirement accounts (IRAs), both traditional deductible and Roth. The importance of saving for retirement at a young age can't be stressed enough.

Use debt sparingly. If your children take on too much debt early in life, they can spend the rest of their lives struggling to get out of debt. Stress to your children that it is best to use credit cards only if they can pay the balances in full every month. You enhance your credit and can earn points toward cash with certain cards. Other debt, like car loans and mortgages, should only be taken on after a careful analysis of whether your children can afford the payments and whether the purchase fits their financial goals.

I support John McCain

I am voting for John McCain for President of the United States.

I’m not a political expert, but I have opinions, and after watching the debates and hearing the speeches, here are the main points in my reasoning:

1. Experience: McCain, in Congress since 1982 and a war hero. Obama, Senator for 4 years, most of which spent campaigning for presidency.

2. The need for split authority in Washington. We may be seeing a Democratic majority in both houses. With a Democratic president, that party would have control of all issues.

3. Obama’s statement about "spreading the wealth" through higher taxes rather than encouragement to citizens to set higher goals to increase tax revenue. He states that "A strong government hand is needed to assure that wealth is distributed more equitably." That’s scary and reeks of socialism. Why should someone who has worked hard to attain wealth have to split it with those who don’t make use of their opportunities? How about educating various groups as to the impracticality of having ten kids rather than supporting them through government assistance?

4. Obama would like to have a global poverty tax which would tax Americans billions to help eradicate poverty in other parts of the world. You know, those places that love us so much. The administration of the funds would be through the U. N. of all places. Does that sound a bit like socialism?

5. Obama has been weak on energy. McCain led the way for more drilling and nuclear energy while Obama gave reluctant support for drilling only after he saw that voters favored it.

6. Obama’s relationship to Reverend Jeremiah Wright. He attended his church for twenty years as Wright referred to white people as "the devil" and said that HIV was created in Washington to wipe out "people of color." Obama has distanced himself from Wright during his candidacy but why not sooner?

I have nothing personal against Barack Obama, I think he means well. However, as a lifetime Republican I find it difficult to pull the handle for Democratic candidates as they usually endorse stronger national government control of our lives. I think part of being a successful American is "going for it" on your own by showing the initiative for self support, making logical and common sense financial and social decisions, and not depending on the government to support you.

"Spreading the wealth" from the rich to the poor by government is not the answer. It takes away man’s natural competitive desires to make something of him/herself and reduces them to a weaker dependent level. By voting for John McCain you will reduce government interference in your lives and reduce the effectiveness of Democratic leaders in what could possibly be a Democratically controlled Congress.

The misery of the migraine

One Friday morning in 1977 I was making my weekly call on my largest account in Kansas City when I suddenly started seeing jagged lines in front of me as I tried to read a stock status report. I had been drinking a lot of coffee that morning and the first thing I wondered was, did the large amount of coffee trigger this sensation?

Fortunately, the lines cleared up within 10 to 15 minutes but I was still concerned as to what had caused the temporary problem. I looked up the symptoms in a medical book which explained that I had probably experienced a minor migraine headache.

Ever since then, I have had "migraines with aura" many times if I overindulge on regular coffee, chocolate, Coca-Cola or any product that contains a reasonable amount of caffeine. The aura usually lasts 10-15 minutes and sometimes I am left with a headache that can be relieved with aspirin.

The few migraines I get are considered mild and affect about 20% of migraine sufferers. They are not a hindrance. Unfortunately, there is another class of migraine that is very severe: the migraine without aura. Migraine without aura may be caused by stress and is the most prevalent type of migraine. It may occur on one or both sides of the head and tiredness or mood changes may be experienced the day before the headache. Nausea, vomiting, and sensitivity to light often accompany migraine without aura.

I have had people with this condition tell me the pain and suffering involved is incredible and can even become disabling. Patients are advised to lie down in a dark room and take proper medicine for the condition. These migraines can last one to several days and can become recurring. Be thankful if you have never experienced the condition.

According to Dr. Seymour Diamond of the National Headache Foundation, about 10% of the population of the USA, about 30 million people, suffer from some type of migraine. Dr. Diamond recommends seeing a doctor if you have headaches severe enough to interfere with regular activities, especially if they are getting progressively worse.

The Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale has a division that deals with migraines that is supposed to be very effective.

Online banking makes sense

Banking online is a treat that I never thought would exist in my lifetime. Do you do it? If not, you are missing a time saving, accurate, economical, and handy way to bank, especially when it comes to paying bills.

I used to dread the monthly bills. Utilities, credit cards, doctors, and whatever else all required sitting down with my calculator, a book of stamps, envelopes, return address stickers, and my checkbook to go through the boring rote activity of paying all these people.

When online banking came along, I must have been the first in line to use it. Now I can pay ten bills in one minute. It used to take about half an hour. Plus, I save 42 cents postage on each bill and don’t have to travel to the mailbox. Also, unlike having hard copy bills floating through the mail for three days, there is no paper trail when you bank online.

It’s a sweet deal but there are a few things to be careful about: According to Ron Burley of AARP always check the amounts and payees before hitting "send" (I have Bank of America and if you make a mistake, you can change it.). Beware of automated payments. Unless it is a regular mortgage payment or car payment, don’t allow deductions from your account. Check later to be sure transactions were processed correctly (I look at my account daily, it only takes a minute.). Never give out pins, passwords, or account numbers by phone or email. Also, be sure the "lock" icon is on your bank’s site to ensure extra security.

No, I am not doing a commercial for Bank of America, Chase, or anyone else. I am sold on online banking and I want every one to know how easy it is. Look at it as a service to you from me as a "thank you" for going online and reading and commenting on my blogs for the last few years.

Now....if I can get everyone to start charging everything on a credit card and paying it off monthly while accumulating points towards cash, I will have accomplished my goals.

Over 50 and going back to work?

Heaven forbid that I would ever have to go back to work. I don’t include writing newspaper stories as work because I enjoy that and I have even been paid for my efforts occasionally. I’m talking about having to go back to work full time because of loss on investments or some other tragedy evolving from a bad economy. However, if I did have to put my selling shoes back on and face the current youth oriented brave new world, I would have a few strategies up my sleeve.

Probably any agency would tell you that there is a bias today against workers in their 50s and older. If that pertains to you, as it does me, we better be ready to compete. The first thing I would do is check my appearance. I ditched my 1980s suits a long time ago but I wouldn’t wear them now anyway. Old fashioned clothes project the wrong image. I would invest in a new wardrobe with conservative colored suits. Shirts would be white and light blue with conservative ties and well shined shoes, probably nice loafers. I always took pride in looking professional and would continue that thought.

I would keep my hair in a conservative cut and if I wore glasses, I would have a nice stylish pair, preferably not the ones that turn dark in the sun. I would never wear any political or religious accessories like lapel pins.

Probably the most important thing for the over 50 job seeker would be to catch up on the technological part of business. I’m pretty good with a computer and own a cell phone. I’ve never sent a text message, but I guess I could do that too, it looks simple enough. If you aren’t proficient in these skills and others, get that way ASAP. A good appearance AND up to date knowledge will go a long way in Phoenix and Scottsdale.

Hopefully, this is all academic and I will be able to continue in my tee shirt and shorts existence for a while longer. But, if worse comes to worse, I have my strategy for returning to the workplace. And, if I do return, I hope I won’t be required to use a Bluetooth. Those of you who know me know what I think of those!

Thanks Mom and Dad!

I guess it all depends on how you were raised and the mentality of the era in which you were brought up. I look at the people going "belly up" these days with the bad economy and my first thought is about how easy it would have been for them to avoid such travail if they employed some common sense. I wonder if common sense is even part of their vocabulary.

My parents were in their mid to late thirties when I was born and I used to lament the fact that they were older and a bit less vibrant than the parents of my friends. As time passed, I changed my mind as I realized they instilled some old fashioned values in me that have lasted a lifetime.

For example, I was taught never to let impulse take the place of good sense. I think of that these days when I see the foreclosures happening around me on homes in supposedly upscale north Scottsdale. Young families have gotten into unmanageable loans on homes and cars and are losing it all. When I was their age, I would never have considered the debt burden they have assumed. I was married five years before I thought of buying a home. When I did buy in the early 1970s, I had a payment of $220 per month on a 30 year loan. Before we signed up for that kind of debt, my wife and I put a lot of pencils to paper to be sure we could handle it. We also did something that seems unheard of these days: We SAVED our money to apply a nice down payment on our house.

Today, we are inundated by ads on TV and the newspaper to "Buy now, no money down, no interest payments until 2010!" Then there are the ads for the suckers who got overextended on credit cards to go to a service where they will "cut your credit card payment in half and get those pesky creditors off your back." Guess what? There will still be a payday on that stuff. The 70s may have been the "me generation" but today is the "I have to have it NOW generation" and many are paying the price for bad credit decisions on silly material items.

It doesn’t seem fair. I have always used common sense in my financial dealings but because others haven’t and lenders have been foolish, I now have to pay the price for their mistakes by having my investments drop in value. However, I do have an ace in the hole. My house, cars, and everything I own are long ago paid for. I will never be involved in a foreclosure and I thank my parents for teaching me the value of living within my means.

Thieves are smarter than you are

Recently there have been a lot of thefts from parked cars in lots belonging to health clubs and in areas near soccer fields, parks and other recreation areas. This follows a rash of incidents within the locker rooms of the clubs.

Some thieves are stupid and do things like walk in front of security cameras during burglaries. Those crooks usually have short careers. Then, there are the guys who rob locker rooms. According to AARP Bulletin, they can do pretty well if they are careful and not too greedy. If they steal just one or two credit cards from someone’s locker, they can easily use the two hour window before the cards are noticed missing to buy a lot of goods such as electronics. Usually, after two hours have elapsed the person robbed notices the missing cards and has them canceled. By then, the damage is done.

Because of locker room theft, many people are now locking their valuables in the glove compartments within their cars in the parking lot. That is dumb. There must be a thieves newsletter or grapevine because most of them know already this is happening. Or, maybe they have figured out that since the lockers are empty of valuables, maybe they are in the victim’s cars. A skilled thief can easily bust into a car and get the goodies out of the glove box.

Recently in Denver, a theft ring was busted that had stolen credit cards from cars of 500 victims. They had purchased more than $400,000 worth of stuff with the cards. The Phoenix/Scottsdale area is not immune and some similar cases there have been reported.

What can you do? The obvious thing is to not leave valuables in your car. That’s elementary and it’s hard to believe anyone wouldn’t figure it out. If you get new credit cards write "ask for I.D."on the back instead of writing your signature. Also, why not leave credit cards and/or other valuables at home? Or, if possible, carry them with you to the activity.

Remember, successful crooks are smart in the stealing business. You aren’t, so try to use some common sense and don’t leave you valuables laying around for these guys to take.

The games kids played

Migrant kids playing marbles in Texas in 1942. There seems to be a lot of interest in the game. (Rothstein)

I wonder if any kids still play the games that kids played once upon a time. The kids I see these days have cell phones in their hands continuously checking for and sending messages. At the same time they are listening to music on their iPods. I have seen kids crossing the street 3 or 4 in a group and they all are doing this. I guess they are friends but do they ever actually speak to each other with all that equipment dominating their time?

The only messages kids of my generation got were when our parents told us we BETTER do this or that chore around the house before we think of doing anything else. It didn’t take a cell phone to get the point across. I wonder if kids even do chores at home anymore. They seem way too busy handling their calls and downloading more music into the iPod. Besides, if their parents give them too much of a hard time, they can always have their lawyer get in touch with the parents concerning child cruelty.

Maybe I’m being a bit unfair to the kids of today but they are definitely a different group. I don’t see many on the school grounds or the streets playing the games of the past. In fact, as we have discussed in this space before, "tag" is a game of the past since the dreaded PC crowd took over. I imagine the kids are in their homes playing TV games or "X Box," whatever that is.

Just talking about the kids’ games of the past whets my desire for a good game of house ball, hide and seek, marbles, mumbly-peg, jacks, running bases, jump rope, or maybe some kick the can. The girls seemed especially adept at hopscotch.

Those were all great games that required very little equipment or expense. Some of them, like jumping rope, were the reason for kids being so thin in those days. You jump your mom’s clothesline for a while and you will know what burning calories is all about. Not too many calories disappear sitting in front of the TV. (For those who don't know the term "clothesline," leave a comment and I will explain.)

Kids had a great time with those games and no electronics or computers were necessary. I have seen a photo of kids playing marbles in the middle of a dirt Scottsdale Road in 1910. Imagine: kids playing outside, getting healthy, and actually having fun doing it. And, those kids had names like Harold, George, and Henry. I wonder if the Zacharys, Sawyers, and Tiffanys of today have ever heard of those names.