Everyone should write about moving things that inspire them.
Everyone should write about moving things that inspire them.
What's Happening!?
I have been renting a hotel room for the last week. Can you believe it?
I wasn’t always such an extreme environmentalist and health-conscious person. However, I switched to organic food in 2013 when I lived on the streets of Long Beach, California. It was filthy and I wanted to give my body the best chance to live a long life. Being better for the planet was a bonus.
Living in the Los Angeles County pollution is what drove me to be the environmentalist I am today. I took the bus everywhere around Long Beach and Lakewood in particular) and I would have to stick my head in a bush to breathe clean air at bus stops. It was horrendous.
After moving to Hawaii in late 2014, I began enjoying cleaner air, but certainly not totally clean air. I rode a bike around Honolulu and took the bus to the north shore a few times. It felt like even more of a shame to see pollution in such a beautiful place.
I sold my car and began living on the street in 2012, but I vowed to stop burning gasoline. Many years later I resolved to avoid burning fossil fuels in a house. These were just personal convictions because I knew there were better options and I think the current ones are causing enormous, irreversible problems around the world.
Before I moved to Kauai from Maui in March, 2020, my dad offered to put me up in the Maui Seaside Hotel and I said ok. The government closed the 24 Hour Fitness in Kahului where I was showering and I only had a few days left on the island. A day or two after I left the hotel, it closed because it had no business due to COVID-19. They were required to close shortly afterwards anyways.
Staying in a hotel by myself felt unique because it was something I hadn’t done in eight years on the street; not even once. The last time I stayed in a hotel I was in 2012 before I started sleeping on the streets of Long Beach.
My father treated me to about three months in a half-off studio condo in Kapaa in 2020, so I saved money during that time. I was counting on showering daily at the YMCA, but they closed due to COVID-19 until the summer. When July 10 arrived, I didn’t even think about staying in a hotel or motel though. I dutifully returned to the street and lived in Lihue for the first time until I moved to Hilo in the Big Island in late December, 2020.
While I was there I recorded a series of videos aabout my experiences throughout the Hawaiian islands. I also mentioned living in Long Beach in one video. I finally had time to summarize everything between 2012-2020. I also recorded live videos as I watched the early morning TV news (Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, etc.). All the videos are on YouTube and Periscope.
In 2018 I wrote a haikus book in Oahu and in 2019 I wrote one in Maui. In 2020 I wrote a haikus book in Kauai and in 2021 I am writing one in Big Island. I have written 73 haikus so far and I have 41 to go.
It was very difficult to live outside in Hilo and it became even harder. First, the gym wouldn’t sell me a membership until I had been in Hilo for two weeks. This means I had three main shower options: camp shower (filling a bag of water), beach shower or sink shower. None are good options and all of them are freezing cold. Needless to say I began showering infrequently and poorly like I had never done before which was difficult because hygiene is important to me. It opened my eyes again to the way that some people are forced to live outside though.
When they capped two water spigots I was using I realized it was time to move on. Not to mention there was nowhere to plug in my iPod, phone or iPad. This made it impossible to charge devices, so I tried several power banks (that come half full) from Walmart and realized that was a poor way to go if I can’t charge them anywhere. Not to mention most of them had flaws.
Although I wanted to forget about it the wound on my leg wasn’t healing, so I saw Dr. Chan at Urgent Care in Hilo and got Doxycycline and and ointment for it. As I took the antibiotic and rode my bike each day, the sun burned my knuckles! In fact, it burned them so badly they have been healing for over a week with very little sun and they are still peeling. Now I see and understand what those sorts of blisters are on others.
Fortunately, a local woman recommended a hotel to me that suits my needs. It’s not glamorous, but it could be worse.
Making lots of organic tea and getting extra rest has helped the wound on my leg continue healing. A few days ago I ran out of the ointment that was prescribed to me, but my body has taken over the healing pretty well. I have been using garlic inside and out along with turmeric and they have helped. I should have cleaned it better in the beginning, but I have learned a lot of things during this 3-4 month ordeal.
I bought 365 trees for $365 because I like to plant one tree for each day I must burn coal indoors. However, there is no heater or air conditioning and I am not using the refrigerator or fan. Therefore, the only energy I am using is the same energy I would be using elsewhere to charge my devices, light the room and warm the shower. I wish it was 100% renewable and I wish I could buy a house or at least rent a room with 100% renewable energy. Nonetheless, I think Hawaii has one of the best ratios of renewable to non-renewable energy in the country and it keeps improving.
I didn’t want to seem inconsistent, but my health is very important to me and if I am unable to get clean, then I can’t be a functioning member of society. I am sad for the people that can’t get off the street. In fact, I gave $560 $20 at a time to 28 houseless people in Hilo this year. I thought they needed it more than I did and I didn’t realize how rewarding the experience would be.
I don’t mind cutting it close and I don’t mind giving it away. Whenever I give it away and endeavor to downsize and say, “I want less!” I inevitably get blessed with more sooner and later, figuratively and literally. Since I’m not playing the game of Survivor and I have a savings and income I figured it would be wise to get off the street. However, it has been an adjustment like housebreaking a wild animal.
Good luck.
Last edit: February 18, 2021, 12:37 p.m. HST
I wasn’t always such an extreme environmentalist and health-conscious person. However, I switched to organic food in 2013 when I lived on the streets of Long Beach, California. It was filthy and I wanted to give my body the best chance to live a long life. Being better for the planet was a bonus.
Living in the Los Angeles County pollution is what drove me to be the environmentalist I am today. I took the bus everywhere around Long Beach and Lakewood in particular) and I would have to stick my head in a bush to breathe clean air at bus stops. It was horrendous.
After moving to Hawaii in late 2014, I began enjoying cleaner air, but certainly not totally clean air. I rode a bike around Honolulu and took the bus to the north shore a few times. It felt like even more of a shame to see pollution in such a beautiful place.
I sold my car and began living on the street in 2012, but I vowed to stop burning gasoline. Many years later I resolved to avoid burning fossil fuels in a house. These were just personal convictions because I knew there were better options and I think the current ones are causing enormous, irreversible problems around the world.
Before I moved to Kauai from Maui in March, 2020, my dad offered to put me up in the Maui Seaside Hotel and I said ok. The government closed the 24 Hour Fitness in Kahului where I was showering and I only had a few days left on the island. A day or two after I left the hotel, it closed because it had no business due to COVID-19. They were required to close shortly afterwards anyways.
Staying in a hotel by myself felt unique because it was something I hadn’t done in eight years on the street; not even once. The last time I stayed in a hotel I was in 2012 before I started sleeping on the streets of Long Beach.
My father treated me to about three months in a half-off studio condo in Kapaa in 2020, so I saved money during that time. I was counting on showering daily at the YMCA, but they closed due to COVID-19 until the summer. When July 10 arrived, I didn’t even think about staying in a hotel or motel though. I dutifully returned to the street and lived in Lihue for the first time until I moved to Hilo in the Big Island in late December, 2020.
While I was there I recorded a series of videos aabout my experiences throughout the Hawaiian islands. I also mentioned living in Long Beach in one video. I finally had time to summarize everything between 2012-2020. I also recorded live videos as I watched the early morning TV news (Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, etc.). All the videos are on YouTube and Periscope.
In 2018 I wrote a haikus book in Oahu and in 2019 I wrote one in Maui. In 2020 I wrote a haikus book in Kauai and in 2021 I am writing one in Big Island. I have written 73 haikus so far and I have 41 to go.
It was very difficult to live outside in Hilo and it became even harder. First, the gym wouldn’t sell me a membership until I had been in Hilo for two weeks. This means I had three main shower options: camp shower (filling a bag of water), beach shower or sink shower. None are good options and all of them are freezing cold. Needless to say I began showering infrequently and poorly like I had never done before which was difficult because hygiene is important to me. It opened my eyes again to the way that some people are forced to live outside though.
When they capped two water spigots I was using I realized it was time to move on. Not to mention there was nowhere to plug in my iPod, phone or iPad. This made it impossible to charge devices, so I tried several power banks (that come half full) from Walmart and realized that was a poor way to go if I can’t charge them anywhere. Not to mention most of them had flaws.
Although I wanted to forget about it the wound on my leg wasn’t healing, so I saw Dr. Chan at Urgent Care in Hilo and got Doxycycline and and ointment for it. As I took the antibiotic and rode my bike each day, the sun burned my knuckles! In fact, it burned them so badly they have been healing for over a week with very little sun and they are still peeling. Now I see and understand what those sorts of blisters are on others.
Fortunately, a local woman recommended a hotel to me that suits my needs. It’s not glamorous, but it could be worse.
Making lots of organic tea and getting extra rest has helped the wound on my leg continue healing. A few days ago I ran out of the ointment that was prescribed to me, but my body has taken over the healing pretty well. I have been using garlic inside and out along with turmeric and they have helped. I should have cleaned it better in the beginning, but I have learned a lot of things during this 3-4 month ordeal.
I bought 365 trees for $365 because I like to plant one tree for each day I must burn coal indoors. However, there is no heater or air conditioning and I am not using the refrigerator or fan. Therefore, the only energy I am using is the same energy I would be using elsewhere to charge my devices, light the room and warm the shower. I wish it was 100% renewable and I wish I could buy a house or at least rent a room with 100% renewable energy. Nonetheless, I think Hawaii has one of the best ratios of renewable to non-renewable energy in the country and it keeps improving.
I didn’t want to seem inconsistent, but my health is very important to me and if I am unable to get clean, then I can’t be a functioning member of society. I am sad for the people that can’t get off the street. In fact, I gave $560 $20 at a time to 28 houseless people in Hilo this year. I thought they needed it more than I did and I didn’t realize how rewarding the experience would be.
I don’t mind cutting it close and I don’t mind giving it away. Whenever I give it away and endeavor to downsize and say, “I want less!” I inevitably get blessed with more sooner and later, figuratively and literally. Since I’m not playing the game of Survivor and I have a savings and income I figured it would be wise to get off the street. However, it has been an adjustment like housebreaking a wild animal.
Good luck.
Last edit: February 18, 2021, 12:37 p.m. HST
Islands I've Visited
I have visited 13 islands. This is a list in alphabetical order. I did not include Tom Sawyer Island, but I have been there too.
Catalina*
Coronado* **
Great Britain
Hawaii*
Ireland
Kauai*
Key West
Lanai
Manhattan*
Maui*
Molokai*
Niihau
Oahu*
* multiple visits
** tied island
Catalina*
Coronado* **
Great Britain
Hawaii*
Ireland
Kauai*
Key West
Lanai
Manhattan*
Maui*
Molokai*
Niihau
Oahu*
* multiple visits
** tied island
19 Employers and Jobs
I’ve had the chance to work for over a dozen companies. I prefer being self-employed though.
Here is a list of companies I’ve worked for and what I’ve done. I am sure that I had more duties, but I listed my main one or two jobs. Also, I’ve been self-employed and performed a lot of charity work.
All of these companies are in California, but I worked at a Circuit City in Virginia. Uncharted Waters employed me to coach soccer camps in Arizona and Colorado.
D&D Saw and Supply - made band saw blades
King Schools - worked in shipping, telemarketing and advertising for the flight school
DiLeone's Italian restaurant - server
Cal Stores - stocked sporting goods, took inventory, etc.
Rubio’s Fish Tacos - worked on the cash register with customers, cleaned tables, etc.
Circuit City - sold portable electronics
San Diego Unified School District - substitute teacher for grades 1-12
Oceanside Unified School District - substitute teacher
Coleman College - taught psychology and sociology classes
The Good News, Etc. - delivered monthly newspapers
Arcadia High School - coached frosh/soph boys soccer
Pico Park Community Center - taught group guitar and keyboard lessons
California Music Studios - taught private guitar, bass and piano lessons
Uncharted Waters - coached soccer camps
Escondido Union School District - substitute teacher for grades 1-12
Calvin Christian High School - coached boys junior varsity soccer and was a substitute teacher
New Venture Christian School - taught middle school Bible and history
Santa Fe Christian School — coached junior high school soccer and was a substitute teacher
Kearny High School - coached boys varsity high school soccer
Here is a list of companies I’ve worked for and what I’ve done. I am sure that I had more duties, but I listed my main one or two jobs. Also, I’ve been self-employed and performed a lot of charity work.
All of these companies are in California, but I worked at a Circuit City in Virginia. Uncharted Waters employed me to coach soccer camps in Arizona and Colorado.
D&D Saw and Supply - made band saw blades
King Schools - worked in shipping, telemarketing and advertising for the flight school
DiLeone's Italian restaurant - server
Cal Stores - stocked sporting goods, took inventory, etc.
Rubio’s Fish Tacos - worked on the cash register with customers, cleaned tables, etc.
Circuit City - sold portable electronics
San Diego Unified School District - substitute teacher for grades 1-12
Oceanside Unified School District - substitute teacher
Coleman College - taught psychology and sociology classes
The Good News, Etc. - delivered monthly newspapers
Arcadia High School - coached frosh/soph boys soccer
Pico Park Community Center - taught group guitar and keyboard lessons
California Music Studios - taught private guitar, bass and piano lessons
Uncharted Waters - coached soccer camps
Escondido Union School District - substitute teacher for grades 1-12
Calvin Christian High School - coached boys junior varsity soccer and was a substitute teacher
New Venture Christian School - taught middle school Bible and history
Santa Fe Christian School — coached junior high school soccer and was a substitute teacher
Kearny High School - coached boys varsity high school soccer
Cassette Singles I Owned
When I was a teenager, cassette singles were popular, so I bought a few of them. I usually bought one because I liked it a lot and could hardly wait for the album or because I didn’t want the album. Here are some of the ones I bought when I was a kid.
2 Live Crew - Me So Horny
Ace of Bass - All She Wants
Anything Box - Living in Oblivion
Bon Jovi - Living On a Prayer
The Cure - Friday I’m in Love
Depeche Mode - Personal Jesus
Kid N Play - Ain’t Gonna Hurt Nobody
Madonna - Like a Prayer
Metallica - Enter Sandman
Right Said Fred - I’m Too Sexy
Seal - Crazy
2 Live Crew - Me So Horny
Ace of Bass - All She Wants
Anything Box - Living in Oblivion
Bon Jovi - Living On a Prayer
The Cure - Friday I’m in Love
Depeche Mode - Personal Jesus
Kid N Play - Ain’t Gonna Hurt Nobody
Madonna - Like a Prayer
Metallica - Enter Sandman
Right Said Fred - I’m Too Sexy
Seal - Crazy
I Almost Didn’t Catch the Coronavirus
I think I may have caught the 2019 Novel Coronavirus in Kahului, Maui in mid-January 2020. It felt like a bad cold that lasted several weeks, but nobody knew anything about COVID-19 yet.I didn’t see a doctor per usual, but I drank lots of fluids and got plenty of rest. I still rode my bike about 10 miles a day, but it was harder. I mainly had a fever, congestion, cough, nausea and fatigue (and perhaps a few loose stools). It was going around and I knew three others that had it (all homeless people).
I think I caught it in a homeless dude’s car. I don’t know if I caught it from him, the vehicle or both. He sounded terrible, but said he was over it. It still looked awfully germy. He was doing something in the back seat, so I sat in the driver’s seat and that was a mistake because I became ill afterwards.
In 2018 I wrote a book of haikus in Oahu and in 2019 I was in Maui to write another one. It usually takes about three months. My plan was to move to Kauai and write another book of haikus in 2020 (which I did).
I was going to move to Kauai in December because I was finished writing my book. However, Kauai (aka “the garden island”) is very wet and I was homeless and figured I should stay in Maui three more months to miss the rainy season.
If I would have moved to Kauai in December, I would not have caught that virus or cold or whatever it was. That’s one reason why I think the first studies and breakthroughs should have been on people that have recovered from the virus because if people acquire a natural immunity, then they probably don’t need a vaccine. Hawaii might have been exposed before the mainland because of the large Asian population (and tourists) and its proximity to Asia.
I battled the illness in January and February because I had a relapse. I showed my sick, elderly, homeless friend how to drain his sinuses by pressing on the roof of his mouth with his tongue. We were sick with it and it was nighttime, so I went to my sleep spot afterwards and crashed. Unfortunately, when I woke up the phlegm had moved from my sinuses into my chest, so I had to fight it all over again.
I took a nap on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and I remember it because I never take naps. It may have been right after the relapse because I was exhausted even though I was eating very well, hydrating and generally getting plenty of restorative rest and exercise.
I was better by mid-February and I don’t think I suffered lasting effects. It may have contributed to overall inflammation in my body at the time though.
I left Maui as planned at the end of March and it was not a moment too soon because everything was closing because of COVID-19. 24 Hour Fitness closed forever and other businesses were changing. They removed the concrete bench that I was sitting on at the shopping mall, but I didn’t fight them because they were just following orders. I laughed and took a picture.
It turned out that Kauai was probably the safest place in the U.S. to be. It was largely spared from the pandemic and it was not spreading while I was there.
Good luck. Stay safe and healthy.
No More Cans
Last month I stopped buying cans (e.g. aluminum and tin/steel cans) of drinks and food. In Hawaii it is fairly easy to recycle glass, aluminum cans and plastic bottles. However, it is harder to recycle tin/steel cans (e.g. you must go to Hilo).I just don’t need any of it. I wash my hands of it. I will stick to glass and repurpose everything I can.
I look forward to the day using cans is a distant memory and people using cans look like they’re from Mars to me. Sadly, the state of recycling (and cleanup) in this country is woeful and I will stick to drinks and foods that aren’t in cans.
I Had a Dream
I dreamed about seeing my aunt, daughter Jordan and 2nd cousin and Jordan was a little girl. We were at somebody’s house in the front yard. We embraced a couple of times, but she became reluctant and gave me a weird look. She was being playful and could not stop being around me.There was activity in the house, but I was not sure who was in there. It might have been Ma and Pa Rose’s house in Jonesville, North Carolina.
Suddenly we were inside and I asked my aunt Becky about a political choice she made and she sat down and watched something on TV about politics and slowly spoke to me. It might have been Fox News. Something about my sister came up in my mind. I looked at her knowingly because her sister Sue recently told me (in real life) that I have a sister my mom gave up for adoption before I was born back when she was in high school. Becky told me (in real life) in 2011. Their brother (my dad) has never told me and my mom never told me about her. My parents were not there.
A weird, lean man in blue jeans and sunglasses arrived. I didn’t know who he was though. He didn’t seem to like me and he had gifts in his arms. He referred to me as “the relative”. I stuck out my hand to shake his hand and he dutifully gave me a firm handshake and removed his sunglasses. However, I knew it was time for me to leave.
He talked to a clean cut man with a woman that came to my defense. I am not sure who he was, but he looked familiar. He looked at the weird man in the eyes while she bent over and did something behind him to the side nearby. I think she listened and watched ready to defend me. Perhaps she was (or symbolized) a woman I met yesterday (in real life) named Melissa. It seemed like the weird man was expecting me and did not want me there, but he did not say it.
My 2nd cousin Mary Carol (that my mom and I called aunt in real life) arrived and smiled as she walked by me and touched me. I turned so quickly that my hand accidentally went through her hair and got stuck in a knot for a split second. Today the sheriff served her with a restraining order for sexually abusing me and threatening me when I was a child (in real life).
Somebody put honey in my blue sandals. I noticed it and didn’t think anything of it, but I rubbed it off in the high green grass before I left and it came right off. The grass was slightly moist.
Jordan came outside to say goodbye to me before I left. A woman that I did not recognize opened the door which was a white patio door and stood at the top of the steps without looking me in the eyes. It felt like she was monitoring us.
I wanted to tell Jordan about the restraining order. I did not know how to tell her or if they would try to stop me, but I thought it was relevant and important to mention.
Suddenly, I woke up and looked at the clock and it was 7:33 p.m.
COVID-19 Killed 1,000 People Yesterday
Reportedly, over 1,000 people died from COVID-19 yesterday. Did you hear that on any news network? I didn’t. I noticed CNN’s 7-week average was almost 850.It does not look like the vaccine is working. It looks like they are trying to worry people about children that are not dying. It also looks like they are heavily pushing a vaccine that does not work.
By the time the booster shot is available in September there could be another variant. The new variants seem like a new virus because people are beginning to die at the same clip they did when it was peaking last year.
The government wants Americans to feel like they are in control, so they keep spending and falling in line. However, for all intents and purposes it looks like it is getting out of control.
I Had Another Dream
I was in a 2-story house and a man was there that I did not recognize. He was acting weird. He might have symbolized or been my uncle Ross (his younger brother, yes-man and possible accomplice). My dad was there and they were angry.My dad had a beard like he did when I was younger. It looked like the picture in the garage. He used to dye it brown. There was at least one other person with them. The men were doing something in secret in the kitchen. They did not want me to see. My mom kept many half-full bottles of pharmaceutical pills in the kitchen that my dad gave to the fire department to be incinerated after she died (in real life).
I came down and they locked the white front door on me, so I couldn’t get out. I needed to break a window to leave, but I thought it would make too much noise and a big mess) in the piano room (in real life the room has a piano that I used to play because I was not allowed to have a guitar). This was in my parents’ house where my dad lives now. I noticed the dirty screen on the big window.
I ran upstairs and barricaded the door and the door disappeared. The door was white with a small handle like the doors in my grandparents’ house (Ma and Pa Rose in Jonesville, North Carolina).
Suddenly Michael from Hawaii was in my room. He had small bottles of herbs from Whole Foods and they were partially full. He wanted to give them to me, but I was skeptical and I declined. I thought one could be a tracking device. I had given him organic matcha tea and I opened the bag in front of him after it arrived in the mail (in real life).
Michael was a long-haired, bearded, hippie boomer that was living off-the-grid in Hawaii before I got there. He made it easy to leave too because he was antagonistic and strange. He treated me worse each day I was there.
My uncle and his wife live in Ma and Pa Rose’s house (in real life) and in 2012 I visited, but they would not let me stay there. I think it was because my great aunt Dixie owned it and told them to avoid letting me in (possibly after speaking to my father). Although my uncle liked marijuana I was fighting (medical) marijuana charges at the time. Also, Dixie changed her will on the day of my preliminary hearing in 2011 as I was fighting the charges (in real life).
(Today is the 29-year anniversary when I left my parents’ house for good and moved to San Diego State University for college. It is one week after my birthday.)
I Had Yet Another Dream
I was with my former wife Sarine and I thought she loved me. I rested my head on her chest because we were in bed. I thought I said something that endeared her to me, but I was not 100% certain she felt that way. We got ready for an outdoor concert and left, but she disappeared in a crowd.The next thing I noticed my black iPod Touch was stolen. I wasn’t sure how it happened, but I had a little pink iPod Shuffle instead. I wanted to take a picture, but it did not have that capability. In real life somebody gave me one just like it. I think it used to be my mom’s and my dad gave it to me (in real life) after she died.
I returned to the car and looked in the trunk. The rear passenger window was open. The car looked like the old, beige Mercedes-Benz that my dad used to drive. Somebody else was there making small talk, but I wasn’t sure who it was.
I returned to my house to get my identical-looking backup iPod (which I have in real life) and take a shower, but I did not locate it. It looked like somebody else was in the house though and possibly due to a break-in. It made me nervous and I wondered if it was a trap. The kitchen table was messy, but it was never messy like this in real life in my parents’ house (where I grew up) which is where I think I was.
In the bedroom I couldn’t figure out how they stole my iPod. The bed was unmade and messy and didn’t look like my parents’ bed (in real life). When I walked down the hallway toward the kitchen, I thought somebody was about to chase me and kill me.
Suddenly, my daughter Jordan was young and she ran down the hallway toward me. It looked like she was afraid because she was looking over her shoulder with a scared look on her face. When I asked her if somebody was chasing her she said, “No. You have to go.”
Before I could reply I woke up in terror.
In real life when I was young my father said girls are like baseball and you have to keep one in the bullpen in case the other one fails you. Perhaps that had something to do with my dream. I did not have anybody in the bullpen throughout my marriage (in real life).
I Dreamed Again
Last night, I dreamed that I was at a party and Katy Perry was there. She looked beautiful and she bent over in front of me and showed me her boobs!It was a house party and it looked like a house in Solana Beach, California where I taught a kid music in real life. It was a gorgeous house too.
Ireland Basinger Baldwin’s boyfriend was there and he was crying because they were breaking up. However, I did not see her there and I think he was breaking up with Katy Perry. Yesterday (in real life) I looked for Ireland on Twitter and I could not find her, so I messaged her on Instagram.
I can’t remember a lot of details, but I woke up and went back to sleep and kept dreaming.
My Mom Shannon Lee Gastrich (Sayles’) Will
To whom it may concern,
After my mom died my dad said she has no will. I did not challenge him although I was in Hawaii at the time. If she had a legal will I never heard from her executor. She may have had an informal will or agreement with my dad, but he said she has no will.
My mom told me she was going to give some small things to her family (e.g. brothers, sister, etc.). If you were expecting to get something from her (e.g. a keepsake) and you did not, then feel free to take it up with Rex Gastrich. He has the same address if you want to write him a letter or you can email me if you want his phone number.
My dad said everything went to him and he gave me a couple of small things. He made it clear that he didn't have to give me anything and it was all his.
As we know an informal will can be ignored and destroyed. Strangely, I recall my parents having this conversation when I was a child. He brought it up and after deliberation she said she'd be in heaven and it wouldn't matter to her.
An Open Letter About COVID-19 Vaccines
You have lost your mind about COVID-19 vaccines, so let me set you straight.
You need to change your lifestyle. Burning gasoline and coal incessantly is evil and wrong. Refusing to recycle is wicked. Polluting your body like you do with cigarettes and alcohol is evil. Eating the food you eat is wrong and sinful. Using the terrible chemicals on and in your body that you use is wrong as well.
A vaccine does absolutely nothing to fix the horrendous problems that you have caused and are causing to yourself and others. You should feel no pride whatsoever for getting a vaccine or being a jerk to people that do not want a vaccine. In fact, you should feel ashamed. You should also feel ashamed for your abysmal, unenviable lifestyle that is destroying yourself and life on earth.
Your mind has been corrupted. You need to ask yourself why. You doing one dumb thing doesn’t fix anything. Wake up and follow the truth and don’t think that your words have any power whatsoever because you’re a sinner without integrity. The pro-vaccine crowd needs to repent from their sins, but I know that you love your sins and you won’t because you are godless.
Please take this letter in the spirit in which it was intended. You live a terrible lifestyle and have no leg to stand on when it comes to dispensing health advice. Save yourself embarrassment and grow up before it’s too late. The people that you hate because they are exercising their freedom will outlive you in terms of healthspan and lifespan because you refuse to make the necessary lifestyle changes and your vaccine isn’t nearly enough to keep you alive.
I am used to idiots rambling on about nonsense. I was born and raised in the church. Please see yourself that way though. I am not sure if you do. However, I have heard enough from you and seen your behavior enough to realize that you have no desire whatsoever to make changes that every human on earth needs you to make. You are only selfishly interested in your health only if you can get others to change which is pathetic and worthy to be shunned.
Thanks for this tremendous opportunity to remind you that your pride is a joke.
Books I've Published
These are books that I have published. Some are in progress as of September 28, 2021.Total poems: 1,877 (26, 48, 170, 108, 170, 80, 39, 148, 36, 75, 26, 63, 55, 51, 102, 62, 47, 103, 80, 64, 115, 73, 35, 114, 25)
Total stories: 600 (136, 44, 54, 29, 16, 21, 25, 30, 40, 105, 100)
Total books: 48 (Poetry (4 haikus): 24, A Brand New World: 11, Other: 13
In progress: 4
Untitled poetry book - in progress
A Brand New World: Addendum #2 - in progress
A Brand New World: Graveyard Conversations - in progress
2021 Quotes - in progress
Just For Tryin’ - 34 poems
A Brand New World: The Addendum - 100 stories
114 Haikus Around Hilo - 114 poems
100 Days in Self-Quarantine - 35 poems
Before the Addendum - 73 poems
115 Haikus in Kauai - 115 poems
2020 Quotes - Part 1
Running on Fumes - 64 poems
2019 Quotes
A Brand New World: How It All Ends - 105 stories
80 - 80 poems
Anti at the Decade's End - 68 poems
Improvising Made Easy For Guitar, Bass and Ukulele
103 Haikus in Maui - 103 poems
A Brand New World: How You Will Live - 40 stories
The Garden and the Gathering Place - 47 poems
Hard Truths in Hawaii Kai - 62 poems
102 Haikus in Hawaii Kai - 102 poems
A Brand New World: How You Will Die - 30 stories
Madness in Miami - 51 poems
A Brand New World: The First Seven Books - 325 stories
A Brand New World: Fallen From the Sky - 25 stories
A Brand New World: After the Anointing - 21 stories
Changes Prepare Me to Fly (formerly Between Costco and Kahala) - 55 poems
A Brand New World: An Audience of One - 16 stories
Untitled (XII) - 63 poems
From the Valley to the Sea: 26 Poems From Maui - 26 poems
A Brand New World: Outside Like Islands - 29 stories
Neverending Summer - 75 poems
A Brand New World: From Station to Station - 54 stories
Looking Out In Honolulu - 36 poems
Hawaii Four-0 - 148 poems
39.5 - 39 poems
A Brand New World: What Happens Next - 44 stories
Five to One Baby - 80 poems
Do the Math Diet
A Brand New World: The First 15 Months - 136 stories
The Wrong Side
Living and Dying in Long Beach - 170 poems
Still Living and Dying in Long Beach - 108 poems
Improvising Made Easy For Guitar and Bass
Growing Great Cannabis (aka Marijuana)
The Skeptic’s Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained
The Skeptic’s Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained, The Collegiate Workbook
10,000 Wise Quotes and Spiritual Sayings
Blow Up Your Site (For Free!)
Brand New Poetry - 170 poems
Manifesto Poetry - 48 poems
My Life Beach Surviving San Diego Poetry - 26 poems
40 Top Ten Lists
God Belief
I believe in the God of the gaps. What? Is that even allowed? Don’t you have to pick a religion or something?In all seriousness I was raised to be a Christian by Christians, but now I consider myself a theist or general theist. I do not think Jesus was God or that he claimed to be God, but I still think there is a better chance that God exists than God does not exist.
I do not have religious beliefs and I am not religious anymore. I do not use a pronoun to describe God anymore either. I think if God exists, then God should not be referred to that way.
I think either in the beginning was stuff or in the beginning was God. I cannot comprehend how all of the matter in the universe got there. I also cannot comprehend how abiogenesis and the evolution of species without God could occur and make things how they are today. I suppose it might be possible.
I have attended Christian schools and colleges that have taught me about the Bible and special creation. I have also attended secular schools and colleges that have taught me the theory of evolution. I suppose I have heard a lot from both sides and I have come to realize that nobody knows. Whenever you make statements about the distant past there is an element of faith in them. This is the last thing that evolutionists want to hear, but it’s true. Their dates and estimates rely on few facts and many assumptions.
I am comfortable with a belief in God that does not fit into a religion. In light of the way some religious people act I am happy to avoid affiliating with their religion.
America’s founders spoke and wrote things that sounded like they were Christians. Later in life many of them said things that sounded like they were no longer Christians, but actually deists. They might have been on to something.
Deism means God created and left and does not interfere or particularly care about everyday events. In that paradigm I suppose God may expect everybody to intrinsically do certain things and avoid certain things and no written revelation is necessary. God may just hold everybody accountable to self-evident truths or nothing at all.
Whatever the case may be whether there is an afterlife or not is still up in the air. It sounds great to me, but it will probably be completely up to God if God exists. There is no telling whether heaven will be the same for everybody and whether or not heaven even exists. Therefore, it would be wise to treat ourselves and life on earth in a perfect way to prevent disease, suffering and death and not worry about the rest because it will take care of itself in time.
Good luck.
12 Free Pregnancy Tests in Texas
If you live in Texas and think you might be pregnant get a pregnancy test as soon as possible. Here is a list of 12 places where you can get a free pregnancy test.Austin
Dallas
El Paso
Greenville
Houston
Killeen
Lampass
McAllen
Paris
San Antonio
San Marcos
Wichita Falls
6 Sarcastic Suggestions For the Post Office
* Require both sides of every stamp to be licked
* Make mail carriers wear red, white and blue from head to toe
* Remove all USPS mailboxes except for ones in the Post Office, Applebee’s and Dixieline
* Use only the barter system when selling books of stamps
* Equip mail carriers with tranquilizer guns to be used on dogs only
* Remain closed on weekends, federal, state and local holidays, full moons, high tides and whenever Mercury is in retrograde
Pro-Choice
One of the worst political positions is anti-choice which is also known as pro-life for some reason. Here’s why.I disagree with making a woman give birth to her fetus. I support abortion-on-demand and I don’t think anybody except the mother has the final word. It is her body and the fetus is inside of her.
I don’t think the anti-choice position is well thought out. If a young girl is irresponsible and accidentally gets pregnant, why do Republicans want her to raise a child? With all due respect won’t she be an irresponsible mother too?
I think the anti-choice movement draws on the days when women had very few rights and were treated more like property. It just makes no sense, but some people act like they have the right to control women and they don’t.
Making a woman raise a child is a big deal. It’s a nearly 20-year endeavor because she is responsible for the child until he or she is an adult (18 years old). I can’t imagine making a woman commit to doing that.
In my experience people typically make a religious argument for their anti-choice position. However, religious beliefs are personal and shouldn’t be used to control other people. I am not going to do what you tell me to do just because you are religious.
I think people should empower women and let them make decisions for their body. Things like pregnancy tests and prenatal care are important. The last thing they need is to be controlled or ridiculed and that is the crux of the anti-choice movement.
Some people will say the woman should just give the baby up for adoption. However, that’s a lot easier said than done. Some women have to radically change their lifestyle to bring a healthy child into the world. Also, there is a strong bond that develops while the child is in the womb and it isn’t so easy to sever it after childbirth. Women also cite the effects that pregnancy has on their body.
I think people lack empathy when they strike an anti-choice position. I was raised in the conservative church, so I know how that goes. However, women have the right to determine what they will and won’t do with their body and others should respect their decision.
Dreams
I almost forgot that I had two dreams last night. It is a good thing that I wrote them in my notepad because seeing my notes reminded me.The first dream was very simple. I only recall playing my guitar everywhere. I wanted to play a didgeridoo too.
I fell asleep again and when I awakened I remembered another dream.
I locked my moped and put two large swimming fins on my seat. They were black and wide.
As I stood by my moped an Asian guy was running from the police and as he ran from them he spit at me. I said, “I wouldn’t. You’re gonna get it. Don’t you know what I do?”
The police caught him and threw him to the ground in an alleyway. Meanwhile a tall, familiar black guy was slowly walking toward me and said hi, then I woke up.
21 Rockstars I Miss
Tom PettyJim Morrison
Jimi Hendrix
Kurt Cobain
Michael Hutchence
Adam “MCA” Yauch
Michael Jackson
Prince
Scott Weiland
Chris Cornell
John Lennon
George Harrison
John Bonham
Randy Rhoads
George Michael
Eazy-E
Bon Scott
Bob Marley
Peter Tosh
Layne Staley
Eddie Van Halen
10 Suggestions For Gas Criers
If gas prices are too expensive here are 10 things you can do.1. Drive less often.
2. Sell your vehicle.
3. Put air in your tires.
4. Empty your trunk.
5. Trade-in your vehicle for a more economical vehicle.
6. Consider it a sin tax.
7. Trade-in your vehicle for an electric vehicle.
8. Earn more money.
9. Stop giving money to church.
10. Move somewhere where gas is cheaper.
Another Dream
I dreamed that I was eating at a restaurant with my friend Charlie. My feet were filthy and black on the bottom like I had been walking around on city streets. I cleaned them once, but they didn’t come clean. I used a Clorox wipe to clean them a second time to get them mostly clean.There was white athletic tape stuck to the bottom of my right foot. I had to peel it off in the bathroom.
There were two girls looking at me in the restaurant, but pretending like they were doing something else.
Charlie asked me if I wanted some sugar, but it was actually baking soda.
Yet Another Dream
I dreamed that I was playing indoor basketball with guys and a strange ball. It was inflatable and too big for the hoop. I recognized one guy on my team because I went to high school with him. He had long dreadlocks though. His name was John Bertussi.I was not playing very well. I had trouble dribbling and shooting. However, it was mainly the ball’s fault. It would not bounce consistently, fly straight or fit in the hoop.
Open Letter to Joe Biden About Vaccines
President Joe Biden,If you would make cigarettes illegal I would take your health advice more seriously. However, I can’t take the U.S. government’s health advice seriously for several reasons.
USDA has approved food that is unfit for consumption. I have eaten nothing except organic vegetarian food for over seven years because the other stuff is toxic. It’s like they will approve it as long as you don’t keel over and die immediately. They don’t care about healthspan, lifespan, longevity or degenerative diseases.
My aunt died from smoking cigarettes and I miss and love her a lot. Also, my dad smokes cigarettes and he has at least one kind of cancer and a smoker’s cough.
Pollution is terrible for health too, but I digress. I hope you understand why I can’t take your #covid19 vaccination pressure seriously and why I push back.
Did you see the study conducted in New York under AG Schneiderman? He found that only 21% of the time the ingredients listed on bottles of herbal supplements were actually in the bottles. That’s ridiculous! Therefore, I buy pounds of organic powder and vegetarian glycerin gel caps and make my own supplements. Do you know how long it takes? A long time.
Finally, have you watched TV and seen them selling pills? They constantly do it and they cause health problems. Have you heard the lists of side-effects? They are so horrible that I wrote several stories about them in my A Brand New World book series. Also, I suffer from “eye floaters” for an approved prescription pill that I took once and they apparently are not going away. All this to say you shouldn’t trust the people you trust and you should ban cigarettes because they harm everybody and everything.
I don’t think people know (and some don’t care) how vaccines contribute to degenerative diseases. Also, don’t get my started on their potential for abuse (e.g. nanorobots) and the things that could be in them. I reject them for other reasons, but spyware and such hasn’t been ruled out.
Good luck. 👋 Democratic Party
Three Dreams
A couple of nights ago I had two dreams.In the first dream I was looking at my Hawaiian African American friend’s face. Amber who’s originally from Georgia was sitting in a chair. We used to hang out in Hawaii because she was my neighbor.
I just texted her (in real life), so I think in the dream I was experiencing the same thing. The text would not send for some reason, so I wanted to show her on my phone what happened and when it happened. The phone took a while to turn on just like in real life, so we were waiting in silence. It was a little awkward and unusual because we talked a lot. Her eyes were wide open and her head was tilted backwards and she was looking up. She almost looked comatose.
It took me a few months to respond to her in real life mainly because I didn’t know the answer to her question yet. I think she may have changed her number though.
In my other dream I was in love and looking at a different girl’s face. This girl looked just like Selena Gomez and it might have been her! I was thinking about her love and my love for her. I liked her young, vibrant affection, respect and the way she treated me.
I dreamed last night too. When I woke up all I could remember was playing the guitar even though I could tell it was a much longer and detailed dream. I think it was an electric guitar. In real life I was going to buy an electric guitar (or at least see one for sale) with an amplifier at the exact same time that I was dreaming. I rescheduled because I needed some rest though.
12 Great Black Musicians
Race does not come into consideration when I listen to music. I listen to great music no matter who makes it. My Spotify playlist has dozens of black musicians in it. Here are my 12 favorite black musicians.Slash
Kirk Hammett
Lenny Kravitz
Ice Cube
Dr. Dre
Boots Reilly
Eazy-E
Prince
Jimi Hendrix
Bob Marley
William DuVall
Snoop Dogg
12 Great Gay Musicians
George MichaelFreddie Mercury
Fred Schneider
Adam Lambert
Elton John
Andy Bell
Melissa Etheridge
Demi Lovato
Jennifer Knapp
Daya
Boy George
Michael Stipe
My Letter to Crystal (Blackman or Sayles?)
Dear Crystal,
I hope you are well.
My name is Jason and according to my relatives my parents gave up a girl for adoption before I was born. They say her name was Crystal and she was born in North Carolina in 1969.
My mom’s maiden name was Shannon Sayles and she passed away in 2017. Her mom’s maiden name was Mary Blackman (we called her Mama Mary) and she passed away in 2015. I think both of them were raised in Jonesville, North Carolina even though I was born and raised in California.
I have been looking for my sister for a awhile. Now I am in North Carolina and I did a records search. That’s how I found you online on the government’s website.
If you are my sister I would like to talk to you. Please give me a call or send me an email. If I am not your brother, then please disregard this letter.
Thanks for your time.
Sincerely,
Jason Gastrich
An Odd Dream
I dreamed that my uncle Casey Sayles (not Casey Gastrich) was spying on where I was living as I drove up. He was in a cluttered truck with a camper shell and a dog in the front seat and he had a beard. He immediately drove off and left the way I came.As I arrived a bunch of military vehicles came out of the shadows. They were hiding behind trees. They had their weapons aimed at me.
I went inside a white house and went upstairs and they followed me. I went into a room and closed the door right before they got to the top of the stairs. Another door across the hall was closed too. I thought they might not know which room I was in, but I was listening to ocean waves crashing and I thought it might give it away. In real life I was sleeping with ocean waves crashing.
I climbed into bed and a friendly cat immediately jumped on my head and started falling asleep.
A Soccer Dream
I dreamed that my ex-wife returned from a trip to her parents’ house. She did something in my house, then quietly left, but she woke me up, so I went outside to see her. She was surprised to see me awake, but I just wanted a hug, so we embraced.The next thing I remember I am playing indoor soccer. I was the only player on my team and I was dominating. I kept scoring goal after unanswered goal.
I scored one goal with the outside of my right foot. I scored a couple of goals by deflection. The other team was terrible, I was great or both.
Their goalie was an Arab and the referee was an Arab (like my ex-wife), but I don’t recall everybody else’s race. I was running circles around them though.
After my last goal I jogged back to my side of the field for the kickoff. However, it looked like they were about to give the other team a penalty kick. I appealed to the referee and explained how I just scored a goal and they needed to kickoff the ball and he agreed and put the ball at midfield.
What I Eat
This is what my diet consists of. Everything I eat is vegetarian organic food. The order below is roughly what I eat the most to what I eat the least, but it varies.Cashews
Pumpkin seeds
Sunflower seeds
Walnuts
Carrots
Pasta sauce
Lentils
Black beans
Pinto beans
Honey
Apple cider vinegar
Extra virgin olive oil
Coconut oil
Pistachios
Mushrooms
Bananas
Apples
Mangoes
Popcorn
Tofu
Soybeans
Almonds
Blueberries
Raspberries
Blackberries
Cucumbers
Broccoli
Oatmeal
Raisins
Red bell peppers
Salad
Sprouts
Coconut
Potatoes
Onions
Oranges
Celery
Garlic
Turmeric
Chili powder
Cayenne
Black pepper
Himalayan salt
I Dreamed Once Again
I think I was at a church and the first few rows of pews were full. I looked for a spot and got my hopes up a couple of times, but a Bible was saving their seat. Finally I saw an empty spot on the side by a girl I knew. I think her name was Melissa Weigand and in real life she was a friend from elementary and middle school. I think we had a crush on each other back then. She was pretty and friendly.I used a microwave to heat water, but it did not work. In fact, my cup disappeared. I was very concerned about it too. I couldn’t understand how it disappeared or where it went.
As I began walking to the back of the room I saw a terrible creature. It was like nothing I had ever seen before. It was cylindrical like a bottle brush, but it had black bristles and a shiny, dark green body like a fly.
People were gathering around to look at the creature. I said it looked like a ferret and it did a little. However, it turned around and it changed shape and suddenly had the lower half of a man. I thought it was going to run away, but it stayed there and exposed it’s rear end to everybody and it was wearing jeans shorts. I took some pictures of it.
I needed to wash my laundry (although it wasn’t with me), but the washer did not work. I was disappointed and had a few words with a woman that was in charge. I said it was putting an extra burden on me to go and find a place to clean my laundry and she had said that she had a washer I could use. In retrospect I had a similar situation in real life in Hawaii. When I lived off-the-grid we had a solar-powered washer and the landlord said I could use it before I arrived, but after I got there she said I couldn’t. Apparently, she needed to use it for herself and her business (she had several units) and the sun only powered it enough to do 1-2 loads a week.
I left on a chair with wheels and I was using it kind of like a skateboard on flat ground. Suddenly, in the courtyard a baseball was coming our way. Somebody hit it with a bat a very long way and I think they hit a home run. The ball was probably not going to hit me or a small crowd of people talking nearby, but it was close, so I shouted to the people just in case. It bounced on the white cobblestone court yard beside me and in between us.
Before I left the church sanctuary I was concerned that somebody might steal my money. I made sure I had my wallet, but I noticed that I left my passport in my backpack which was on the pew. Inside of it was at least a $20 and a $1. I wondered if anybody was going to steal it because I opened it and revealed it when I looked for my wallet.
I rode on the chair with wheels across the courtyard and it was declined, so I picked up speed. A bunch of homeless people that I recognized were on the other side. One homeless guy was Joel Weldon. Except for worship bands Weldon was the first Christian rock musician I enjoyed live because he played at Hume Lake Christian camps the first few summers I went. In real life I liked his voice and guitar ability. As I moved past them I got the feeling that they recognized me from when I was homeless.
In real life Joel Weldon’s most popular song was called Strangers and everybody at the camp liked singing it. Strangers is about Christians having a home in heaven. He played a fun version of Blind Man and released some albums which I bought too. One was called The Final Frontier. However, he did not have an instrument with him in my dream.
Dream About Mom
I dreamed that I was in Oahu with my mom and some others. I think my former father-in-law was there for some reason. In real life my mom said she liked him, so maybe that was why.I was packing and in a room with one door and it was behind a dresser. I had to move the dresser to get out.
I wasn’t sure where I was going to go next, but I decided to go to Kauai. I was sad that my mom was leaving and about to cry.
My mom and others were going to take a bus to the airport the next day. However, I had some luggage that would not be allowed on the bus. Therefore, I was thinking about renting a car and asking them if they want a ride to the airport.
There was a lot more to the dream, but that’s all I remember.
Three Ladies Dream
I dreamed that a beautiful, young lady pushed over a portable toilet into some water. It was either a lake or a slow-moving river. I was in a kayak. She was naked and I noticed her breasts.I checked Instagram on my device and saw a picture of me next to a picture of a beautiful woman. She looked like Ireland Basinger-Baldwin. Her picture was to the left of mine and when I scrolled it looked like she moved her lips and was talking to me over an island in an open kitchen. My picture to the right of hers was looking at her.
Suddenly I was riding some sort of tram. It was like a train with no top. I was seated in the back next to a couple of kids. A woman was talking to me and walking on what looked like the second level balcony of a hotel. She was keeping up with the slow tram as it meandered through the parking lot.
I don’t think it was the same woman because she had a t-shirt and shorts on. She was about to enter a room at the end of the building. Before she entered she talked to me and showed me her underboob through the bottom of her t-shirt.
A man helped another kid get on the tram. I scooted over a little and he sat down. They seemed nice and I woke up.
My friend and eye doctor Greg Giles was in the dream in some capacity, but I am not sure why. He just came and went in the middle of it. I might have seen him in his office. The setting for the dream looked a little like the building next door to his office.
The Fall Back East
I started my 5th haikus book on November 9 and it’s coming along nicely. I just wrote #33 and it will contain ~100 poems and I’ll publish it in mid to late December. Here are the titles so far.The Fall Back East
1. Like the Weather
2. Scarf Season
3. Temperature Controlled
4. The TV Media
5. Relaxing
6. And Repeat
7. Mid-November in the South
8. Mike Lindell
9. According to the Doctor
10. The Truth
11. Homeostasis
12. Diet
13. Eastern Daylight Time
14. Saturday Night Live
15. Futbol
16. Social Media 1.0
17. Social Media 2.0
18. Megaphone
19. Visions
20. Part of Life
21. Connection
22. Rittenhouse
23. I Don’t Like the Drugs
24. Yum
25. Let’s Play
26. Just Another Day
27. Dying
28. Visiting Beauty
29. Nutters
30. Propaganda
31. Vocal Chops
32. Messages
33. Content Creator
Hello
Dear Readers,I am writing several books right now and I put one book on hold. Here is an update.
I wrote and published my 4th book of haikus this year (all in Hawaii), but I recently started writing another one. I have penned almost 40 haikus so far and it’ll probably contain 100 haikus. I intend on finishing it and publishing it around Christmas.
Instead of concurrently writing two books in my A Brand New World series I decided to write one and put one on hold. I am writing The Addendum #2 now and I am about to publish my 9th story. It’s marinating and almost finished. The Graveyard Conversations book has been postponed to 2022.
At the end of the year I’ll also publish another book of quotations. I have published several quotes books so far. I simply jot things down when they occur to me throughout the day. Some of them are wise and some are rhetorical. Sometimes I post them on social media accounts too. This book will be a collection of my original quotes and thoughts from the last half of the year. If I posted them to someone on social media the quote will also indicate the recipient.
I’ve been writing another book of general poetry too. I feel inclined to write poems all the time because it’s fun and a good outlet. I’ll probably publish my general book of poetry this winter. I have written 37 poems so far.
This week I wrote my first limerick and I’ve written four of them so far. It’s an interesting, unique, rhyming technique. I haven’t decided whether or not I’ll ever publish a book of them, but if I do it won’t be until 2022.
Thanks for your interest in my writing. Enjoy the free content on my ad-free, tracker-free website.
Sincerely,
Jason
Grades and Schooling
Except for a few times in junior high school, I have always enjoyed going to school. Some of my friends ditched school, but I rarely did because my friends were at school and I had nothing else to do.I liked to have fun in high school especially after I started driving. Getting good grades came naturally and I earned a 3.5 GPA between private and public schools. It seemed like I balanced my desire to go out a lot and get good grades because I wanted to attend San Diego State University and I only needed a 3.0 GPA to get accepted. They even let people in with lower GPAs if they scored higher than average on their SAT. I scored about 1,000 on my SAT, but I did not even need to take it to get into SDSU.
The courses were not too difficult at SDSU, but I spent a lot of time socializing in the dorms, with my fraternity friends and with people in other groups on and off campus. My GPA was so low in my first semester that I almost did not get initiated into Kappa Alpha Order! I had a 1.96 and I needed a 2.0, so they told me to ask all my teachers for a way to raise my grade. My Astronomy teacher kindly gave me a C+ instead of a flat C and it raised my GPA to 2.06 and I was initiated as a founding father.
A semester before I graduated at SDSU I was accepted into Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary in Lynchburg, Virginia. The only question was whether or not I’d pass Bible as Literature and get an English minor with my Psychology major or not. I ended up barely passing with a D.
I was a devout Christian at the time and she wanted us to write essays on the way the Bible was contradictory and errant and it was hard to do at the time. I didn’t want to do it and sometimes I just wrote what I wanted to write kind of like in freshman biology class, but I digress. The teacher was a radical, feminist Jew and pretty anti-Christian too. I was attending lots of Bible studies at the time and I prayed with one student before classes sometimes because she would pick on Christians.
I did amazingly well at LBTS, earned a 4.0 and made the Dean’s List my first semester. I was soaking it all in and there was not much else to do in Lynchburg. I appreciated the learned professors and I took lots of notes on my laptop.
Several years later I transferred my credits and earned a M.A. and Ph.D. in biblical studies at Louisiana Baptist Theological Seminary in Shreveport, Louisiana. I maintained a 4.0 the entire time and I had to write a thesis and dissertation.
When I attended Long Beach City College I maintained a 3.0 GPA. It was not too difficult, but I had a lot of things on my plate because I was homeless. I tried my best, but sometimes a higher grade seemed unattainable. It would have been easier with a home instead of having to shower at the gym before school every day, but I spent time studying and learning at LBCC almost every day they were open.
I have considered going back to school to finish my journalism degree. I could either get a journalism A.A., a journalism B.A. or a journalism M.A. or some combination of those degrees. I have two years of college journalism classes under my belt in addition to my B.A. in psychology. I would like to avoid taking out a loan if possible though.
I have taught every grade level including elementary school, middle school, high school and college. I have also coached soccer, taught a bunch of instruments and written dozens of books, but those are things for another blog.
10 Health-Conscious Precautions
Try to prevent getting and spreading illnesses. Here are some tips.1. Wash your hands with warm water and soap for 30 seconds several times a day.
2. Bring and use alcohol wipes to clean your hands throughout the day.
3. Wipe the shopping cart handle and avoid touching your face too much.
4. Shower daily with soap and warm water. Start at the top and don’t miss any spots.
5. If you are sick or worried about getting sick stay home or wear a mask around others.
6. Don’t spend time around people that are coughing a lot especially if they don’t cover their mouth.
7. Stay hydrated and get plenty of sleep. Drink organic teas like green, rooibos, matcha, peppermint, hibiscus, etc.
8. Eat raw organic honey, organic apple cider vinegar, organic extra virgin olive oil, organic unrefined coconut oil, organic garlic powder capsules and organic turmeric capsules.
9. Consume plenty of amino acid proteins, fiber, vitamins and nutrients including fresh organic fruit and organic vegetables.
10. Use hydrogen peroxide, alcohol or soap to wipe down high traffic areas because germs are found there in higher concentrations. This includes light switches, remote controls, toilet seats, sinks, tables, chairs, etc.
The Fall Back East
I wrote 100 haikus in Fall 2021 and I will publish them in Kindle, paperback and hardcover this week. They should be available on Amazon.com before Christmas. Unlike my first four haikus books this one was written on the mainland.These are the titles of the 100 haikus in my book.
1. Like the Weather
2. Scarf Season
3. Temperature Controlled
4. The TV Media
5. Relaxing
6. And Repeat
7. Mid-November in the South
8. Mike Lindell
9. According to the Doctor
10. The Truth
11. Homeostasis
12. Diet
13. Eastern Daylight Time
14. Saturday Night Live
15. Futbol
16. Social Media 1.0
17. Social Media 2.0
18. Megaphone
19. Visions
20. Part of Life
21. Connection
22. Rittenhouse
23. I Don’t Like the Drugs
24. Yum
25. Let’s Play
26. Just Another Day
27. Dying
28. Visiting Beauty
29. Nutters
30. Propaganda
31. Vocal Chops
32. Messages
33. Content Creator
34. Thanksgiving
35. One More Commercial
36. Prolific
37. A Fine Memory
38. EFTs
39. Work
40. Seasons
41. Journalists
42. Revival
43. Schedule
44. Laughs
45. The Opposite Sex
46. No Zen
47. The Big Lie
48. In the U.S.
49. Small Town Blues
50. Yin Yang
51. Light My fire
52. Life
53. Dammit Anyway
54. S.O.S.
55. 55
56. His Head
57. Cerveza
58. And So It Went
59. WPM
60. Blowing Blue Grass
61. R.I.P.
62. Jamming
63. Bloom
64. Mota
65. Seedy Stuff
66. ACV
67. Great Raw Nuts
68. Dogs
69. Making an Imprint
70. Scenario
71. Jingle All the Way
72. Medicate
73. Soothing Sounds
74. 21st Century America
75. Processed Sugar Cane
76. Consumerism
77. No Food
78. The Unforseen
79. Food
80. What’s in a Number?
81. TV News
82. Seasonal Depression
83. Fructose
84. Scratch
85. Mask Mandates
86. Everywhere
87. The Almighty Dollar
88. Bedtime
89. Independence
90. Dieting
91. Tack and Sail
92. Saturday
93. Happy Holidays
94. Clean
95. The Future
96. The COVID-19 Response
97. Good Energy
98. At the End of Fall
99. Bernie Sanders
100. The End for Now
COVID-19 Vaccinations
It is almost 2022 and many TV news stations tell people to get vaccinated every day. I am not vaccinated for Covid though.I do not think everybody needs to be vaccinated for the 2019 Novel Coronavirus. In fact, there are many reasons why somebody might want to avoid vaccines. There are known and unknown factors too.
I support each person’s right to get vaccinated or avoid vaccinations. I do not support vaccinating children. I do not think anything should be held against anyone for their decision too. I think businesses should only have optional mask and vaccination requirements and nothing should be mandatory.
It is a shame that the TV news has wasted so much time telling people the same thing. It is mind-numbing and they should stop. It has almost become a formality because daily a percentage of the news is Covid-related and they inevitably tell me to get vaccinated, so I am happy to respond and say no way again and again. When will it end though? Are some people still undecided? I doubt it.
Perhaps the TV media has ulterior motives for keeping Covid vaccinations in the news every day like they probably do with the January 6 investigation and committee. Partisan TV outlets care the most about their major political party smelling like roses and if they can blame the other major political party for something all the better they think.
It is a shame when I can’t rely on watching the national TV news for the news and I have to get it other ways because they keep repeating themselves about vaccines like it’s Groundhog Day all over again. I can only imagine that they get or perceive they will get a very big pay day if they persist. Remember these are the same people that are ignoring their carbon footprint even more during the pandemic.
I think some corporations have made the COVID-19 pandemic lucrative for TV news stations under certain conditions. The companies were household names and they were happy to strike deals with them. However, I think the same thing could have happened regarding “climate change” and the pollution crisis.
Imagine if the TV media had the same religious-like response to the climate crisis. Suddenly they snap into action, blame certain people for causing it, radically change the way they live and say everybody else needs to change like them. That would be a hoot.
