Thoughts of a Common Man

Doing my little training gigs all across New York State and as part of the safety training I have had to do sexual harassment training as dictated by the state. It’s always a rough sell to construction personnel and I get a lot of comments about ‘this sucks’. I know a lot of guys who roll their eyes when told they can’t make fun of someone who is changing their sex or want to be known by a different gender. The video is long. The test is cumbersome and the participants absolutely hate it. Then I am asked to sell it to them a little… …which is difficult because I have been in the business for a lot of years. I’ve heard it all. I’ve traded playful insults with a lot of guys and have never had my feelings hurt… …but as I told the class. “It’s a real issue, and many people have had their lives ruined by a boss or a coworker who didn’t stop.” “Don’t cross the line. Don’t be an asshole.” The class laughed. “You should write all the safety rules,” one of them said. And, in a world where it se...

So, America is now taking aim at boats with brown people on them. As a matter of fact, they struck one, saw that there were survivors and bombed it again. The idea being that perhaps it was a boat bringing drugs to our shores, but I’m just wondering here: Due process? Or is it straight up murder now? “We’re gonna’ start doing it on land,” the huge orange toad said.  Meanwhile, he pardoned a convicted drug dealer, in between drone strikes of small boats. Fighting crime? Law and order? Department of war? All of it stinks, and now, no one knows anything. The drunk, ex-Fox news reporter now knows nothing about the murder of those who survived the first attack. “I was hustling into my next meeting.” Didn’t stick around to watch the carnage. Now, I may be misinterpreting the constitution here, but is the penalty for a boat ride - with or without drugs - now murder - if you’re brown? Every damn day. A new horror. Had to laugh at the long nap during the cabinet meeting, though. Sleepy Joe?...

Uh, no. The latest distraction being bandied about is that people should put on a jacket and tie to take a flight. That would be comfortable, right? I’ll put on a jacket and tie when I get a seat big enough to be able to hold a book without making contact with the person who is also sharing my seat. People are so crammed in now. You want civility? Have the people carting us around maybe stop yelling at us the entire time. “Are your pockets empty?” The guy asks in a nasty voice. Then he asks it five more damn times before you can take 3 steps. God help you if you have a sip of water on you as you pass through the line. On the plane there’s a ten minute lecture on buckling your seat belt. Then are the wonderful moments when they hustle you onto the plane to hear: “We are seventh in line for take-off.” And you sit there for 40 minutes. In a suit and freaking tie? And then there is the deplaning issue. The plane lands and people in the 20th row immediately stand up… …if you’re seated next ...

December. Thanksgiving in the rear view. The break was certainly restful, but the howling winds and the cold temps had me feeling a little agitated as the long weekend wound down. But I was kind of looking forward to being back on a construction site. I have training coming up too, and it’ll be fun to dust off some of the old stories, and tell a few new ones. Three weeks until Christmas, which has started the: “What do you want for Christmas talk?” I gave my standard answer: “Peace on earth.” What else would I possibly want? My golf bag is updated. I have plenty of books in my ‘to read’ pile. Just sixty days away from my golf trip. Peace on Earth is the only other thing I can think of. Yet, that question is always followed up by what we are going to get the boys, and other family members. As far as my kids are concerned it’s less about a gift and more like a bank transaction. “They want money.” Time to get the tree out… …make sure the heater is charged up for my jacket. Time to head ba...