Friday, March 16, 2012

Fears

I have to say, that when I learned I was going to be a father, and learned that I would be the one that stayed home with her during her first months, many many fears entered my mind. Would I be good at this, would she be all right in my care, would I actually enjoy it? Those and many more fears entered into my world.

After three months, almost four, I have to say that I enjoy it more than I thought I would. She's fun to be around. Yes, she's had her moments of crying for hours on end, and has driven me nuts from time to time. However, I wouldn't trade getting to know her for anything. I love seeing her smile, hearing her laugh, and look forward to her getting mobile and making me keep my eyes on her at all times.

As I type this, she is at my feet in her chair sound asleep. It's fun watching her sleep not just because she's so peaceful, but also because I can tell when she dreams. She moves and squirms and it's oh so cute and charming. I love it.

I am still afraid that I won't be the best dad for I can be all the time, but I will certainly do my best. No amount of fear can replace the joy of being around her, and doing the best I can to raise her to be the best darn girl she can be.

Every parent looks at their child and thinks it, or says it aloud, and I am no different but I have the most adorable little girl in the world. She's just too good to be true sometimes.

Until next time
P

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Standards

OK... I'm getting to that place again where I feel like we are declining as a society. I think that as a society we've lowered our standards for what qualifies as a good leader. I think we have lowered our standards and come to expect less from one another when we should be expecting more. I'm sick and tired of the phrase, 'better than the alternative.' It's like saying I chose the lesser to two evils.

Now before I go any further, this is not an attack of just the Democrats but also of my Republican party. I don't despise Democrats, and I don't think that being a republican makes you omnipotent. My problems are not the parties but their choices. I just feel that we've come to a point where the nominating committees are just pulling names out of a hat and saying, I think this guy could be a leader. Where are the leaders? Where are the Best and the Brightest? I look back on the previous two elections and think, was this best we could do? McCain and obama? In the previous California Governors race, that question was asked by me several times. Is this really the best we can come up with?

Where are the FDR's or the JFK's or Richard Nixon's or Reagan's, or the Thomas Jefferson's, or Abraham Lincolns of our political world? These are what I would call the best and the brightest. We've lost sight of that premise and lowered our standards to the point where we have decided on the lesser of two evils or the alternative.

I want to be inspired, to be compelled to be a leader myself, not to just feel like we got someone for the sake of getting someone. Let's change things by demanding that we get the best to be our leaders. I don't want to settle for the alternative, I want to know beyond a shadow of doubt that the person who gets my vote is one that is MOST deserving of it. We need strength, courage, and boldness, not weakness, uncertainty, and laziness.

Inspire us, and we will follow. Let's raise the standards of public debates in this country by not just attacking the other point of view, but telling us what YOU will do. That's the thing I abhor about the debates. It's all about saying why we shouldn't vote for the other guy. Tell me why I need to vote for you.

Let's raise our standards people and expect the best. Maybe, just maybe, we will get just that. No more alternatives or lesser choices, we get what we asked for.... The Best.

You may not agree with me, that's fine. But I think if you see that I'm trying to raise a level of debate, you'll see that I might be onto something. Again, I think both parties are at fault. Not just the one that I am not a member of. I am hoping to be inspired and I am hopeful that this November, that's what I will get.

Until next time
P