TRASH AND TECHNOLOGY

I recall from my younger years a girl telling her friends she had missed the bus but got a ride to school in a garbage truck from her neighbor.  Evidently the neighbor’s father owned his own refuse business.  Someone said to her well if you ever get serious about this fellow he at least has job security picking up trash.

Ten years later, I heard a similar statement.  While I had been out and about, I overheard a conversation between two friends.  The one buddy asked his friend why he was not working in a business type job since he had his degree in business, as opposed to the job he currently held.  The friend remarked that a job in the business field can be replaced by some type of technology but his job as a sanitary engineer will always be safe as there will always be garbage to pick up.

I thought of both incidents a few days ago while my husband and I traveled on Lakeview Drive in Sebring, Florida.  We had stopped behind a garbage truck.  As a kid growing up in Chicago, I recall that three men picked up the trash in the alleyways.  One man drove the truck while the other two tossed the garbage into the back. Currently in my neighbor, we have garbage pick-up twice a week and recyclable pick-up once a week.  One would think there is no doubt job security.

What I witnessed that day behind the trash truck in Sebring made me re-evaluate my thoughts. When the truck stopped in front of a residence, no one threw the garbage into the truck.  Instead some sort of mechanical arms came out, picked up the trash receptacle. dumped it into the truck then placed the receptacle back on the ground. 

It hit me; TECHNOLOGY HAS NOW ENTWINED ITSELF INTO THE GARBAGE INDUSTRY. 

What would have been a two man job (driver and trash thrower) is now down to one person….truck driver.  Someone seems to be out of a job, replaced by technology.  No doubt the start-up cost for this new way of trash pick-up is not cheap; there are those special trucks to purchase; trash containers to deliver to each resident in the community; but I am sure overtime they save money.

Of course what happens when there is glitch with the mechanical arms? What if they don’t retract to pick up the container?  Does the driver have to stop, get out, do it manually, get back into the truck and drive on to the next residence?  Do they call in a temp for the day?  Then I only saw one container per residence.  What if someone has more trash than the receptacle can hold?  Do they have to keep the overflow until the following week?   Weird thoughts whirled through my brain that day about how technology has taken over a job that I always thought secure. 

With technology now entering the garbage world, what will be next?  Will our friendly bartender be replaced by some type of mechanical device who can pour, mix and serve us our favorite beverage?  If so….then it will be time to stay home and just pop a cold one. 

Travel Observances

I like animals as much as the next person but there is a limit I feel in how one should treat their pet.

Recently while traveling on Interstate 95 North, I came across an interesting observance.  We have laws against driving while intoxicated, driving while on cell phone (in some places), and no texting while driving and then there is that law about buckling your seat belt.

I must say there has to be some law on the books about the incident I came across.  The car in front of us was traveling at 70 miles per hour and seemed to be weaving a bit in the lane.  My husband passed the vehicle and I looked over at the driver in the car; that is when I saw what I had not expected.  On the driver’s lap was their family pet.  The driver held the dog while trying to steer the car; the dog’s paws were also on the steering wheel.  Now I don’t mind people taking their pet in their car; it is after all    their prerogative to do so, but I do not feel Boxer or Bootsie should not be sitting on the driver’s lap helping them drive.

We passed this car safely without incident.  It made me think about what others are doing as they travel the highway.  I decided to look inside other cars as we passed them and I saw yet another driver with their small dog sitting on their lap.  It made me wonder if there was not an obscure holiday called “Let Your Pet Help You Drive Day” or “Teach Your Pet To Drive Day” that I knew nothing about. The organization MADD and their cause came to mind, I thought about someone starting a new cause called PAPOL (People Against Pets on Laps).  This is just as dangerous as someone driving intoxicated or even sending a text.  The animal could easily jump down on the floor at the driver’s feet, move one way or another on the driver’s lap causing them to get distracted. 

As we continued our travels, I kept my vigil on those we passed.  My favorite car we passed had to be the one with the driver trying to eat the hoagie.  Now I don’t know about you, but when I eat a hoagie (or submarine sandwich or gyro as some call them) I need both hands.  This driver had the thing in his hands while trying to steer the car with his knees it seemed.  An accident waiting to happen no doubt.  So I came up with yet another cause PADE (People Against Drivers Eating).  Many of the interstate highways have rest areas to pull into where a nice section is designated with tables for those wanting to have a bite to eat.  Just pull over people; don’t cause a accident trying to eat and drive. 

Maybe it is me; perhaps I am just being cynical about the traveling public.  After all it is your car and you can do what you want, but remember you are not the only one on the roads.  Some of us want a safe trip to reach our destination.

It was an interesting first day of travel on Interstate 95 North.  Day two seemed to be incident free until we hit the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.  Don’t get me started about the speed limit there.  Since a good portion of the road was under construction, the speed limit was at 55; my husband traveled at 60 and was passed by those going at least 70 or more.  We felt like snails as we were passed by everything under the sun including the birds. 

Traveling the interstate system is an adventure; never knowing what you may encounter or what you may see in the vehicles or at the rest stops.

As I think about the animals on the laps of the drivers, I came to the conclusion that perhaps these drivers were teaching their pets to steer so they could have both hands free to enjoy a snack. It sure is an interesting thought to ponder when you are behind the wheel of your vehicle. 

HOLIDAYS AND MOVIES

July 4^th has come and gone. 

On the fourth, we attended a nice outing at the Moose Lodge.  As we made our way home, I thought, “What will I blog about this week?”

Arriving home, I found the answer when I turned on the TCM channel.  The movie Yankee Doodle Dandy, the story about the life of George M. Cohan played by James Cagney, was about to begin.  Of course I had to watch this movie again for the UMPTEENTH time.  There is something about the songs in that movie that give me chills and makes me proud to be an American.  As I sat watching Cagney sing about how grand is our flag, I thought about movies I usually watch during other holidays of the year. 

I am a big fan of old movies.  It does not matter if they are in black and white or color, I happen to watch and re-watch my favorites over and over again.  Can’t say just how many times I’ve seen the Maltese Falcon and not just the Bogart version either.  I am glued to the antics of Nick and Nora Charles and sing along with Sam as his fingers tickle the ivories as he does “As Time Goes By” in Casablanca. 

During October (around Halloween), I have to see Vincent Price in the movie, The House on Haunted Hill.  Easter time, I am entertained by watching Fred Astair dance and sing in Easter Parade.   Let’s not forget all the great movies centered on the Christmas holiday.  I make sure to catch A Christmas Carol and White Christmas.  I know almost all the words to the songs in the movie. 

I need a hanky when I watch An Affair to Remember around Valentine’s Day.  Ah amour, amour…..even though I know how the movie ends, I still get tears in my eyes.  They just don’t make movies like that anymore.

Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day there are usually war movies being shown by TCM.  A few of my favorites, In Harms Way with John Wayne;  To Hell and Back  with Audie Murphy; and believe it or not Kelly’s Heroes   Who doesn’t enjoy seeing a movie with Clint Eastwood, Telly Savalas,  Carroll O’Connor and Don Rickles as well as Donald Sutherland.  What a cast of greats in that flick

I had been asked one time which movie do I associate with St. Patrick’s Day.  The answer is The Quiet Man since it takes place in Ireland.  I just love watching that fight scene near the end.

As I thought about the old movies I enjoy, I realize I can add another to my July 4^th list; Independence Day with Will Smith.

Now that July 4^th has come and gone, the next holiday, Labor Day, will be here before we know it.  There is no movie I can associate with this holiday, but my hubby thought that Norma Rae, The Valley of Decision or   The Molly Maguires could fit the bill.  Of course he would say The Molly Maguires since it had been filmed in the country in Pennsylvania where we had lived.  My pick for a good Labor Day movie to watch is The Valley of Decision because I found a bit of romance to the storyline. 

I am certain most of you have favorite movies you associate with the holidays.  I find it fun just vegging out in front of the TV with a bowl of popcorn and a beverage to watch these flicks

Until next time…..since summer is here, I may try to find a movie or two I associate with the season.  One comes to mind at this moment. A Summer Place….young love and rekindling of an old love all mixed together; all I need is the DVD, bowl of popcorn and a tall glass of ice tea (Long Island preferable). 

FREE OR NOT SO FREE

Nothing is free anymore it seems.

I remember years ago banks gave customers one of those leather/imitation leather type bank bags just for the asking.  In fact I recall one bank had smaller type bags that could be used for coins.  When I lived in Pennsylvania, I had bags from different financial institutes.  I now wish I brought them with me to Florida when I moved.

Places at one time had give-a ways: pens, note pads, key rings, refrigerator magnets and other what-nots.

A few months ago I opened an account with a local credit union.  I asked the person who waited on me if they had any of those bank bags.  She looked in the back and said no but next time I come in just ask the teller for one.  Well over the course of the next few months I had done so with no prevail.  They had no bags in stock.  The other day I again done business at the credit union and asked about a bank bag.  I had been informed that I needed to give them my business account number; if I had no business account I could not get a bag as they only provide them to businesses.  Of course the teller went on to say I could purchase a bag for $5.00.  I pulled a five spot from my pocket and purchased the bag.  I felt as if I got ripped off for some reason.

There use to be a time when you could also get a free calendar from your bank but seems they are gone by way of the dinosaur also.  Last year I picked up a nice one from the bank I have accounts with; this year when I asked, I had been told I could get a free calendar if I make an appointment to speak to one of the bank managers about my accounts.  I know what that meant; I would be sitting there while someone tried to talk me into a consolidation loan, new type credit card or some other bank offer.  I did not make the appointment or get a calendar.  The dollar store had them for a buck; okay so I paid for one but I did not have to sit listening to someone trying to give me a bill of goods about banking options.

The last promo item I got for free was a pen from a disc jockey that runs a karaoke.  I only hope when he runs out of pens he orders more and does not make me sing a song to get a new one. 

Yes I know with the economy being the way it is, companies are not providing those promotional items like they use to. It is such a shame as I do miss my free what-nots.

Now I am not one-hundred percent sure of this, but bartenders have told me they do not get free coasters from the beer distributors as in days gone by.  Recently at a local club I saw coasters provided by some business other than a beer company. 

My favorite saying goes something like this: “if it’s free, then it is for me.”

I am still fortunate to get via my email address, BOGO coupons for meals at restaurants or coupons for a percent off my food bill.  I am a frequent customer at these establishments.

So till next time…..if you see a free pen, key ring or a what-not make sure you take it.  I’ll continue my quest for the free stuff whether I need it or not…after all it is for free.

  

FULL MOON AND DRIVING

Wednesday evening I happened to be in a quandary about my blog for this week.  I somehow mentioned this on my Facebook status.  I also mentioned about the crazy drivers out on the roads the past few days.  A Facebook friend suggested I blog about that.

This weekend will be a full moon….actually it is being called a ‘super moon’.  It seems anytime a full moon is near, some drivers get crazy.  Since Monday, I have encountered my fair share (today is only Thursday). 

DAY ONE:

I am at a red light in the left turn only lane.  My car is the second one in line.  The light turns green and the car in front of me takes their sweet time making the turn.  The driver goes so slow that only the two of us got through the light before it turned red again.  With the luck I have, well the driver made a right turn where I had planned to do so.  He was so slow that it tied up traffic while he made the turn.  Thank goodness he had gone straight and I made a left turn at the next street I had come to.

Later after I did my errands, on my way home I am now behind a vehicle who wanted to make a right turn; the unfortunate part of this incident, he could not make the turn as the road to the right is closed due to construction.  He should have followed the detour.  Instead of following the detour to the left, he sat there staring towards the closed road as if any moment it would open up just for him.  I honked my horn for him to get moving but he sat there staring right.  The car behind me also began to honk and finally after a few moments the man drove straight which would not help him.  He would come to a dead end eventually. 

DAY TWO:

My husband and I are out at the grocery store.  We parked between the lines in the parking spot but when we returned to our vehicle, someone parked in two spots.  I could not open the passenger side door and had to wait till my husband pulled the car out of the parking space for me to get inside.  No idea what that driver was thinking when they parked since there were quite a few open spots they could have used.  As we drove down US 17, heading home, a person kept passing cars on the right side, then the left and again on the right.  This person did not get very far ahead of us; we ended up sitting next to them at the red light.  What the hurry could have been anyone’s guess.

DAY THREE:

We were making our way on M Street North in our town and planned to turn onto US 17; a tanker truck had left a gas station.  The driver planned to make a right turn onto US 17 but the light was red; so this tanker truck somehow ended up blocking the road.  Cars who wanted to make a right hand turn from US 17 onto M Street but could not do so.  Traffic got backed up for about a half-block until the light turned green and the tanker got underway.  The funniest part of the story, some person in his big high off the ground pick-up truck gets right up near the tanker and almost caused an accident.  What was this person thinking I wondered?

Each day I could not wait to get home and park my car in the carport. I am not saying all the bad drivers live in my town; I remember this also happening to me when I lived in Pennsylvania.  I hated driving anyplace days prior to a full moon.

Why does the full moon bring out the crazy drivers?  Or do they just happen around me?  Am I the only one who seems to think this way?  Does anyone else come across oddness before a full moon? 

Today, I am not sure what I will encounter as I go out to run a few errands, but I am hoping not to come across any strange driving situations. Probably others think the same about me when I am behind the wheel.   

Until next time….happy driving and stay safe behind the wheel. 

Father's Day Ramblings

Father’s Day will be coming up this weekend.  Personally, I do not really have much to say on the subject.  The day did not have any special meaning to me as a child.

I have heard various takes on this saying:

It takes a REAL MAN to be a father to a child but anyone can provide sperm to create a child.  A real man will be there and step up to the plate when the child arrives in the world.

I agree with this on the most part. My reason being I never knew who fathered me.  The only thing I knew about the man who could have been my father was a name on a birth certificate. 

Having a child out of wedlock in the fifties quite a taboo for a woman.

I recall being told that my father had died.  But I wondered if that were the case why did my mother not use his last name? Why did she go by her maiden name?  It baffled me as a child.  It caused me a lot of grief growing up and even into my adult years; my first husband gave me grief I had been born out of wedlock.  He thought I should have told him in the beginning of our relationship.  Perhaps I should have, but I had been quite embarrassed about it.  I did not make the same mistake when I married again; in fact my current husband said “so what; no deal breaker.”  He did not care one way or the other.

Finally, I asked about who fathered me when I was in my twenties.  My mother told me “you don’t need to know this”.  I asked relatives and heard the same thing.  Well I wanted to know; after all isn’t that my right?

I am a fan of watching the Maury show where the women have DNA tests done on the child and the possible father.  Shame they did not have that back when I had been younger.  I would have contact the show to help me find out. 

A few years ago I thought about what constituted a father and wrote a poem for Father’s Day.  All the qualities I thought made up a good father were included in the piece.

At age seven my mother married the man who I ended up calling ‘dad’.  The man accepted her baggage which was me.  Unfortunately, I always felt like an outsider in the family as he never adopted me so I could have his last name.  It took years and years for me to finally come to terms with my situation; and just deal with it.

So with Father’s Day approaching I just wanted to ‘ramble’ about how I feel.  Perhaps my stigma has made me a better person.  I know there has to be a lot of individuals out there who also share what I call my stigma in life.  It took me until I turned forty to finally give up my quest to know the answer to the question about my father.  Life goes on and I realized I had other things to concentrate upon.

Till next time….to all you dads out there….Happy Father’s Day.

 DISECTION OF A FATHER

©Scottie-ann Murphy

A father is a special person….

One who wears many hats,

We do not really see.

TEACHER

  Someone who will explain

      What is

right and what is wrong

COMFORTER

   When hurt and tears begin to fall

      Gives a shoulder to lean upon

LISTENER

   Without critical comments, will listen

      To our dreams, hopes and goals

WISEMAN

   Gives wisdom, advice and guidance

      In any problem brought his way

CHEERLEADER

  Throughout our life, cheers us on

     Giving praise…when…praise is due

AUDIENCE

  Laughs at our jokes,

    Even those that….may not be funny

HELPER

   Lend a helping hand

     When needed, no matter….when we call

LOVING HEART

   The person who does love us

      Even though he may not always say

ENCOURAGER

  If we fail at our goals, stumble and fall

     Picks us up and encourages us to try again

PROTECTOR

  Keeps us safe from harm

    And stands by our side always

A father is someone special……

Someone….we at times….

Take for granted.

THE SUMMERTIME TELEVISION BLUES

All my favorite television shows are on a hiatus until the fall.  I guess that means I can watch re-runs of shows I’ve missed that televised at the same time as my favorites or watch summer replacement shows.  Of course I could utilize that time to concentrate on my writing projects or read.

I understand that there has to be filming of new episodes; but what I do not like is the season finales.  They leave it as a cliff hanger.  Now I will wonder what will happen in the upcoming season.  No doubt there will be speculations by fans of the same shows on what will possibly transpire.  The producers of these shows sure know what they are doing.  They leave us fans in suspense; knowing we will tune-in when they start the new season.  .

 There are five shows that have me on the edge of my seat.  My mind makes up scenarios of the outcome from the season finale.  Will there be a killing off of a main character?  Will there be a wedding in the future?  Will a character get a love life? 

Ponderings are fine as long as one does not get obsessed.  Last year at this time all I could think about was what the future held for my favorite shows.  This year, I decided not to think about the new season.  What happens, will happen.    

I am sure you all have your favorite shows you watch each week.  No doubt you too are waiting for the new season to begin to see what will happen next.  Of course I find that during the summer months, cable stations begin their new shows and I hope to find a few I enjoy; but if not I’ll be spending more time doing other things in the evenings like being on the computer or reading.  Of course computer time depends on the weather, if it is stormy (as it seems to be during the evenings here in the Sunshine State), then it will be a good book.  Just glad my local library allows me to request books on-line and have them waiting for me to check out.

Till next time……think about the shows you enjoy but don’t speculate on next season’s outcome; a good surprise is always exciting.   Hopefully too, the networks will keep my favorite shows in the same time slot and on the same day.