It's Good to be Home!

 

           OR

        

 After recently returning from visiting family in LA, all the reasons I live here and not there came rushing at me the moment we got off the plane and started driving from Burbank Airport to Granada Hills.

My Aunt and Uncle have lived in their house here since moving from the Bronx in 1953.  As we live in a very mobile society, they come from a time that people very rarely left their neighborhoods.  Granada Hills back then was out the northern limit of LA County, surrounded by orange groves with few homes (they moved in to the new development in town).  Granada Hills has some famous sons:  John Elway (the other slow white Bronco, not the one in the police chase in the 90's) and Cheech Marin (just back on tour with Tommy Chong, fresh out of the pen!).

Don't get me wrong, I love my family.  It was great to see all the cousins and knock around for a few days (we have a 4 day rule for visiting and visitors, as well).  It's just the in-your-face reminder of what SoCal has become.  I always quip that California would be great if it weren't for the people (SoCal, actually).  After living in Scottsdale for over a decade the moving to the beauty of the Sierra Foothills on the outskirts of Reno (Phoenix/Scottsdale became all that is wrong with SoCal), it gives you perspective: Quality of Life vs. Lifestyle, What you have vs. what you want, Living vs. Existing.

We have a lot to be thankful for living where we do.

It's good to be home!

While You Were Sleeping.........

As reported in the RNR of 3/11/10:

With little fanfare or attention, President Obama signed a reauthorization of the PATRIOT Act on Feb. 2. The Democratic Congress approved the three sections of the previous law without any limits or protections for citizens that civil libertarians had called necessary. The 2008 Democratic national platform read, “Our Constitution is not a nuisance. It is the foundation of our democracy. … As we combat terrorism, we must not sacrifice the American values we are fighting to protect. … We will revisit the Patriot Act and overturn unconstitutional executive decisions issued during the past eight years.”

A measure introduced by U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy contained protections for the public, but Democrats responded to Republican opposition that might block the Senate leadership’s 60 vote threshold for passage, so Democrats caved in and stripped those provisions from the bill.

I hope the continued shredding of nation's constitution upsets your constitution as much as it does mine.

Tea, anyone?!