HEY MIKE! MIKE! MIKE! GUESS WHAT DAY IT IS? HODGEPODGE

     Some people find the GEICO camel "Hump Day" commercial annoying. As for me, I laugh every time I see it.  Another thing I enjoy whenever I see them are the weekly Hodgepodge questions. Thank you Joyce!

1. What was your biggest worry five years ago?  Is it still a worry?

     Retirement! As humans we all have the RC factor, that is the Resistance to Change factor. I approached retirement with great trepidation. Now that I am retired, I find that my worries were without basis or foundation in fact. Five years ago it was hard to believe that there would be life after retirement. I have found to my great relief that there is, in fact, life after retirement...and a pretty decent one at that!

2. Yesterday (October 15th) was National Grouch Day...what makes you grouchy? What cheers you up when you're feeling grouchy?

     If you were to ask SWMBO "Do you wake up grouchy in the morning?" She would answer "No...I usually let him sleep!" I am not a morning person...never have been, never will be! Having to wake up early in the morning makes me grouchy. Breakfast with my beloved SWMBO at one of our favorite restaurants cheers me up! Absent that, a good cup of coffee usually does the trick.

3.  In one word, how does it feel to be photographed?

     Awkward! I don't like being the center of attention.

4. Besides your parents, who would you say had the greatest influence on you in choosing your life path?  Explain.

     Indirectly, it was my Dad. I know the question asks for someone besides parents but Dad had the greatest influence choosing my life path. As we grew up my Dad instilled in both of his sons that we had an obligation to serve our country, preferably in the military. My brother and I both enlisted in the U.S Air Force. At the time I enlisted, the Air Force was short of cooks and cops. I chose to be a cop. When I went to Tech School I had an epiphany. I fell in love with the U.S. Constitution and the idea that we were a nation of laws, not of men. I became convinced that law enforcement was a noble profession. I spent the rest of my life pursuing a career in law enforcement and never looked back.

5. The crisp days of autumn are here ...what's something you like to eat, but only if it's crisp?

     Pork Rinds! Tortilla Chips and Salsa (Medium Hot) ! Potato Chips!

6. What's the most useless object you own?

     My Razor! Since I grew a beard last fall, I have not picked up my razor!

7.  Share a favorite fall memory.

     When I was a child, people in my neighborhood would rake leave into small piles and burn them. The aroma throughout the neighborhood was heavenly. Another favorite memory was raking leaves into a huge pile and diving into it, covering ourselves completely. 

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

       Are the members of the Tea Party really "anarchists?" Do they really want to abolish all government? Everything that I have read or seen on television tells me that the Tea Party are not anarchists. They do not advocate the abolition of all government.  
     What they do advocate is that the government abide by the restraints of power put on it by the U.S. Constitution. They further believe that our current government has grown too large and too intrusive into our lives. They further believe that the government spends too much and taxes too much. 
        If that makes them, as Senator Harry Reid refers to them, Tea Party Anarchists, then I too am a Tea Party Anarchist and coincidentally, so were our founding fathers! I think I'm in some pretty good company! They warned in their writings that the natural inclination of government was to grow more powerful and that government had to be restrained.  That is the genius of our Constitution. MAY GOD HELP US!