The new neighbor

Hey Gang,
Sometimes what I write I like it, other times I don't. Well this is one of those times I am not sure if I do. But read it anyways and you decide.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Guess what? I have a feel good story to write about, well most of the story is feel good.
I went to my rental today to do yard work. Next door, the house that was vacant for about 3 years, finally found a family. They are renting it from the owner who bought the house in foreclosure, and yes it was trashed. I knew the people who lived there. A white couple in their early 50's, not a black couple. Got that? I guess you can tell I am a bit sensitive to whats going on in Euclid. After he lost the house, if I was told correctly, because of not paying taxes, he got a job with the city, go figure. Let me end it there because that's not what this story is about, its about the boy sitting outside reading.
As I was doing yard work the boy next door said hi to me. I didn't want to stop so just said You the new neighbor? I resumed working but started thinking I was a bit cold. So I stopped and asked about his family and where did he move from. They were renting another house in Euclid but it was to small for the six of them. Before that they lived off E.55 and then Norwood off St. Claire. His Mom wanted to get the kids out of that area and said God had better plans for them. The schools he said are much better than in Cleveland, in Euclid they will not let you get away with things, I remember when I was in seventh grade while still in Cleveland this kid got straight F's and they passed him, I still can't believe it and will never forget it. I said I understand wanting to get out, both of your old neighborhoods are tough places, Clevelands been hard hit. He went on to tell me that his family is originally from Georgia and when his great-grandpa moved here 60 years ago Cleveland had all kinds of jobs thats why he moved up here. I replied its bad right now, don't know what the answer is or what to do. Do you know what he said? Pray! How 'bout that! I was being taught a lesson here. That adult and Godly answer made me me forget about yard work so I relaxed and talked with him further.
I asked what church he goes to. His family attends The Cathedral Worship Center, 216 Euclid Ave, Euclid. I asked is it a nondenominational? He replied thats all we attend, the churchs we did attend that were denominations said only blacks were going to heaven and thats not right. Sound familiar friends? Usually though its the whites who are going to heaven, guess depends on which side of the fence you are on.
Bryant is about to graduate from high school and will soon be off to Orlando where he will attend college to become a surgical assistant. His real passion though is politics and law enforcement. He was a volunteer for a mayoral candidate in University Hts... His candidate lost but his enthusiasm for politics hasn't been dampened and will get involved again in the future.
Before getting back to my yard work Bryant gave me a sheet on a genealogy service he does. He was able to track his family back to 1780 in Africa. His grandfathers side descend from the Choctaw Indians. On their grandmothers side, her father came from England and Georgia. He started a school there and named it after himself. The service is called - Genealogy Genius - the web address is: http://genealogygenius.webs.com/index.htm.
It was just refreshing to meet someone younger who has goals and is doing something with himself. And I am pretty certain whatever Bryant decides to do he will succeed. More than that though, his friendly hello is how neighbors should be.

Gotta GoGo!!
Carey

What's in your pocket?

Hey Gang,
Rowe from California emailed this short story about the shorts his wife bought him. I am so thankful that I have friends who share with me this stuff. Its all important.


here is a story that is gross. Mary bought me a pair of "levis" shorts from Wal-Mart yesterday. I cut off the tags and put them on . When I went to put my keys in the right hand pocket there was something in there. I pulled out a chicken bone that had been eaten by someone while in the store and they needed to get rid of it so just put it in the pocket of these hanging on the rack. Un believable !!!! We got some low class people out here. UGHHHH Rowe


My reply:
That is gross! I guess Rowe you have a bone to pick with Walmart. Heck, maybe it wasn't a customer but Colonel Sanders who returned them. Or those shorts could be work pants made for the bone yard. Or just maybe its a new slogan... At Walmart our prices are so low we trim the fat and leave the bone. By the way did the shorts make you look boney? You said you went to put your keys in the pocket, you sure it was a chicken bone and not a skeleton key? Or maybe short ribs?
Rowe just having fun, I would be completely grossed out myself.

Gotta GoGo!!
Carey

Why the Cavs won't win the NBA championship

Hey Gang,
I guess this isn't travel related but it is a fun article so I posted it here. Maybe it will find its way to David Letterman.
So here is my top ten list why the Cleveland Cavs won't win the NBA championship.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I know its early and the Cavaliers have to win one more series to get to the finals but it still has all of us in Cleveland thinking what can go wrong this time? 2 years ago when the Cavs made the finals it came as such a shock that we didn't have enough time to fret. But in typical Cleveland fashion our beloved home team didn't disappoint us, the Cavaliers never showed up in losing to the Spurs in four straight. This time though the Cavs are so good, this season is so dream like that something just has to go wrong, it can't be possible Cleveland can actually win a championship.

So here is my top ten list why the Cleveland Cavaliers won't win the NBA championship.


10. Lebron James gets hurt.

9. Reality dawns on the Cavaliers and they realize this is still Cleveland we're not suppose to win.

8. Michael Jordan comes out of retirement.

7. Lebron James will be forced to finish the 12 grade because they found out he is short one credit.

6. The entire team comes down with the swine flu.

5. Manny Ramírez finks on Lebron as the one who gave him the performance-enhancing drugs.

4. Obama steps in with his spreading the wealth theory and says Lebron is too good, he can only play 20 minutes to make it fairer for the opposing team.

3. The Cavaliers pregame antics cause a delay of game and they're issued a technical foul before play even starts which causes them to lose the 7Th game by one point.

2. Lebron throws so much powder in the air the Cavs come down with asthma and can't run.

And the NUMBER ONE reason why the Cavaliers won't with the NBA championship is..........

John Elway appears on the sideline of the opposing team and leads them on a drive to score the winning basket.


Gotta GoGo!!
Carey

Cleveland Tea Rally and my Chinese Experience

I decided to take a brief break from writing about Euclid and tell you about the Cleveland tea party rally and my Chinese restaurant experience though this story does go back to what I have been screaming about - Euclid and socialism. Hey I wish I could just write about happy things, its not my fault our waitress decided to tell us about her life and homeland that brought me back to that topic.
Anyway... I started a new account recently. Its on Paine Ave. in Cleveland. Across from it is an Asian Plaza that I have never been to before. I told mom about it and she replied I have been going there for years. Now I know how the kimchee, dim-sum, and other Asian delights end up in our fridge.
Just before heading to this new account in downtown Cleveland I decided to swing by the Tea Rally. My thoughts of this rally was another pompous display of cheer leading to get someone elected. Can you tell how disillusioned I am? How hard have I tried to organize an effort in my support against Euclid? Exactly, so call it pouting if you like but if people won't support my effort why should I support theirs? Yes yes yes I do realize this is about country first, just need to keep trying to wake people up I guess.
Minutes before taking off I quickly threw together a pamphlet hi-lighting Euclid's codes and fines keeping it very short and not even including my plight so people would read it. I wanted to hand these out at the rally since it was all about taxes and erosion of our rights, maybe someone from the crowd will join my battle.
Jeff and I got to the rally late, about the last 30 minutes. The crowd was of decent size with many signs and flags waving. My little pamphlet was well received except for one lady who just didn't get it. I almost wanted to escort her out of the rally. When I tried to explain to her what is going on she said angrily "Well they are trying to stop it from becoming another E. Cleveland." Lady, high taxes, regulations, government interference are all playing a large part of people fleeing Euclid. The more people flee, the more empty houses and the more values keep plummeting. Capeesh?
I did take a moment at the rally to step back and take it all in. The crowd of people was mixed, old, young, well dressed, jeans and piercings, some in costume, black, white, male, female. Quite a few had signs, some waving flags. The words of the speaker, the cheers, it was an event but the atmosphere was not festive. I realized how on the cusp we are to a real revolt. And as I was reflecting on this I actually felt my words may come true and soon if things don't change - some city hall is going to be hit by someone who is losing it all and cant take anymore. Not like Oklahoma City, an armed rebellion. I don't wish it but I almost feel its inevitable.
We left there to go to work but before starting I wanted to check out the Asian plaza to possibly get a bite to eat. It was quite an interesting experience. This is one time I didn't check if the products were made in China, I would of been disappointed if they weren't. The plaza isn't that large. Its anchored by Li Wah a Chinese restaurant and a Chinese grocery store. When you walk into the Chinese grocery store the odor hits you and it ain't pleasant. What a difference between this and an Italian food store with all those wonderful scents. I love trying different foods but there was a couple of items I don't think I could try. One is the duck tongues, quack, I mean yuck.
We then went to Li Wah to eat where we met the talkative little Chinese waitress. Jeff and I almost left when we asked another waitress if the Mandarin pork chops were filling. She said it was small. Small turned out to be small as in small pieces and but the serving was quite large. Mandarin pork chops are similar to sweet and sour pork except the sauce is not red and not as sweet.
Half way through our meal is when the talkative and friendly waitress, Young, walked by and commented on what we ordered. Oh you ordered the Mandarin pork chops that is my daughters favorite. It went from there to telling us that she came to the US in 1988 and the last time she went back home to China was in 1992. Jeff and I had little room to respond as she kept on talking. I stopped eating to listen and didn't want to interrupt her either. Both of us found what she had to say as very informative and interesting. She must of talked at least a good ten minutes.
Young went on to say how things have changed in China since 1992. Before people were trying their best to come to America as there was no opportunity to succeed in China. It was very hard to start a business. Back then you had to go to one office to register, another place to get a license. Very very difficult for businesses. Now they have relaxed their rules and it is easy to start a business. One of the few times I could get anything in I said it seems like China is becoming easier and less rules and America is becoming harder and more regulations. She said exactly! Her friends and family no longer hope to come here and they ask her to come home things are much different. Before hardly anyone had cars, just businesses or government, now people are buying cars and they are everywhere.
China is more free now, more tourists. American businesses have opened like McDonald's and KFC. When McDonald's first opened you couldn't even move it was so crowded. Everyone wanted to try it.
I asked her about Hong Kong if it was a problem that China took them over. She said not really. Before you needed a passport to go there, now we go freely back and forth, Hong Kong is built up and people love going there.
About education she had this to say. American students aren't as smart. My daughter needed to buy a calculator for math, in China we don't use them, we use pencil and paper. Our chidren are way more advanced. A Chinese child in the third grade comes here and knows everything already and should really be put into the sixth grade.
Young started laughing when she realized how she interrupted our meal and apologized. I said please don't apologize I enjoyed your talk immensely, I learned a lot and hope to talk with you again.
Now do you see how this ties in with Euclid and the Tea Rally? It just upsets me that America the land of the free for some reason wants to embrace socialism/communism that has failed miserably everywhere else. Wake up people.
I just marvel at my life, though I get tired and fed up and say thats it, it never fails to amaze me the connections that seem to cross my path that ties things together and makes me continue onward.

CKM

The 10 year website

Hey Gang,
The 10 year website as I like to call www.gogobus.cc has a couple of more links done. Why do I call it the 10 year website? Well it seems thats how long it will take to complete it. You know what? I think it has been 10 years, hmmm maybe 8.
So many people have come and gone through my revolving door. So much time has passed and here we are still working on it. What I thought at one time may actually turn into something is now more or less a hobby. People look at it, but not many use the message board as I hoped would. I always hoped it would turn into something where all of you and my many connections would post events from where ever you live. Oh well.
The links completed are the diners and Jeff is busy putting back up the postcards link that will show the many cards I received from you. Also Jeff put the rest of the Cookout/Freezefest photos on.
I am sure you can figure it out but let me help you navigate to these different links.
First lets take a look at the cookout photos. Go to www.gogobus.cc - click on EVENTS SHOWS PLACES TO GO - click on EVENTS - click on FEBRUARY

When you are done click on the EVENTS, we are now going to take a look at the Diners & Restaurants, I don't have all the states filled in, just the ones I have travel to or through and ate at. Click on PLACES - will use Ohio as a demonstration, click on it - click on Diners & Restaurants.

When finished there click on the little green house that takes you back home and lets head to the POSTCARDS.
Click on DAD AND FRIENDS ADD PHOTOS AND LINKS - click on Postcards. Jeff only has a few up, in time we will have all the postcards received from you.
Thats at for this tutorial. Give me feed back on how you think the 10 year website is doing and as I have only said only a million times know of something happening where you live or have a website post it and link it.
Gotta GoGo!!
Carey

Winter Cookout/Freeze Fest wrap up

Hey Gang,
Another year, another Winter Cookout/Freezefest, and another night of chaos, well sort of. I wanted this years event to be well planned, things set up early, more food, I just wanted it nice. But, of course it didn't work out that way. BUT - there was a divine intervention that without it we would of been left out in the cold, literally.
The delay in planning it was because of the ridiculous law against bringing in and gathering firewood. By the time Rich had come up with a plan to buy Dura Flame logs I only had 5 days left to tell everyone that its back on and get everything.
Saturday afternoon Rich drove to the park after church and left a report on my answering machine. Hey it looks like we are going to have some company, Friends Church is have a party there. They said we could join them though.
I panicked a little, OK a lot. If everyone showed up and with the kids running around and our brand of humor, I just didn't see how this was going to work out. So Jeff and I scooted over there about 3. Sure enough there was this man sitting in a lawn chair close to the fire on sentry duty, at least thats how he acted, remember the Alamos, hold the fort at all costs.
I approached him and said my name is Carey. He replied oh you're Carey so am I Cary. According to Rich we could join them, according to this guy, this is our space - GO - use the outside tables. I tried explaining to him that I have been doing this on the same date for years, we are going to have to share as there is no way to get a hold of everyone I invited. NO, use outside. Back and forth. A lady shows up, this is weird, her name was Cindy, my sisters name. So there I was going back and forth with Cary and Cindy. I was saying to myself boy is that Cary feisty and mean. He had to be saying boy is that Carey feisty and mean.
Jeff and I grabbed the other table and started to unload tarps etc... Cary said sarcastically what are you planning to do spend the night, I looked at him and said yep. Their group started arriving. The Pastor came over towards us and calmed the waters. He said sure use the other table we will be out of here by 7. I took one look at them and whispered to Jeff... look at them shivering, they won't last, we have nothing to worry about. I left Jeff behind while I ran home to grab a few more items including Jeff's Spaghetti and potato salad. About 30 minutes later Jeff calls my cell, well they left we have the place to ourselves. So the miracle was they had wood delivered and hardly used any of it. I worried all week what to do about firewood for nothing. How about that!
It was a decent turnout. Mark & Becky and their kids, Walt & Jamie and their kids, Jeff B., Jeff M., Jamie, (hmmm 2 Jamie's, 2 Jeff's and 2 Cary's OK not the exact spelling but still), Joe, Rich & Suzanne, Brian, Bruce and Keith. It was a little disorganized, the grill was almost impossible to light and Jeff some how removed the glass knob for my percolator and made the coffee go all over my cd and stereo. Stereo? Oh yeah, driving around the week before looking for wood I saw an old stereo console on a tree-lawn so loaded into my van and brought it. I was hoping to spin records but didn't have time to fix the player so hooked up a cd player to it. Hated to mix old with the new but it worked. I offered it to the Pastor but he said uhhh thats OK I have a MP player. I can't win. I just started switching to CD's and now they are becoming obsolete. OH BOY!
Enjoy the photos. The one with Jeff on the ground is after he fell off the wall while hanging the tarp. I yelled Jeff please don't move, just lay there, let me get my camera. He's OK just a little sore. The one with the smoke you can hardly see anything is Marks breath while trying to snap a photo of the gang, temp outside was a chilly 18, insides a balmy 140 of course directly in front of the fire. Maybe next year you can join us..

Gotta GoGo!
Carey
we will be posting more soon on the website

flaaaaaaaaash back - Winter Cookout/Freezefest 2006

Hey Gang,
Well the 2006 - 4th Annual Winter Cookout/Freeze Fest went
GREAT! My quickly erected homeless shelter for the
most part stayed intact. A couple of times when the
gale force winds hit things went flying BUT we all
survived and I don't think anyone got frostbite.
About 12 showed up and it seemed like this time we
had the most food, almost to much. There was
stuffing, salad, peppers, beans, Mary's fantastic
tasting chili, grilled corn & potato's, Doritos,
pretzels, bread (real and fake), yogurt, cookies,
coffee, pop - what a feast. Of course we all grilled
something, those were just the side dishes. We never
did figure out what to do with the cauliflower Eli
brought, anyone have a recipe for grilled cauliflower?
Besides the 12 that stayed I had a mysterious drunk
guy show up, or maybe it was an angel who decided it
wasn't worth freezing just to get his wings. Whoever
this guy was he stumbled into the shelter, grabbed the
staple gun from me, helped hang up a sheet of plastic,
yelled for his girlfriend to join in and when she
didn't come he disappeared, literally. Mary and I
both were asking "where did he go"? Strange??
There wasn't enough time to decorate the place like
I usually do but I am sure glad I grabbed the bath
robe that my niece dropped off for me to give to the
Godwill on my way out the door to the cookout. (I bet
you have to read that sentence twice to understand
it!)I hung it up and everyone wanted to know why the
bath robe? Well it was one of those premonitions I
guess because as it turned out it was needed by
someone, I'll get to that in a bit.
The best dressed award went to Allen who
left a wedding reception to attend the cookout dressed
in his finest. That was a treat.
I have to go through my archives but I think that
Jeff and Rich have attended all of these cookouts,
either they enjoy it or feel sorry for me and don't
want me outside in the cold alone!
There was some rookies in attendance, Eli, Chris,
Dave who finally made it to one of these Go Go Events
- Hey Dave did you thaw out yet and will you be back
for more?, and Allen.
Once again Nancy DJ'd the event
And a BIG thank you to Mary for all the help.
OH - who wore the bath robe? Allen, he put it over his suit.
Thanks everyone that helped and attended, those
that didn't - there is always next year!!


Your Frozen Food Server Friend,
Carey
Gotta Go Go!!
www.gogobus.cc

overheard at the cookout....
Carey to Dave... Dave do you know what the best
thing about a cookout in the winter is? There is no
flies
Dave - You're right and you don't have to worry
about salmonella, its to cold for the food to spoil.

Carey to anyone - hey does anyone have a lighter to
light these matches?

Mary - this food is still cold
Jeff - it all is

Chris to whoever was listening - when I was in gym
class, we were outside and a little dust devil
appeared like a little tornado, I went in it and it
was warm, and I got dust up my nose and on my clothes