View From The Ditch Bank

REFLECTIONS: As I contemplated this first post of 2011, and deciding on what to write, and writing it out in my mind, I soon realized if I included everything I thought of, It would rival War and Peace in length and be about as hard to read as the Book of Isaiah. So I have pared it down to what, I hope, is manageable ramblings. Those of you who have been with me since the beginning, or have scrolled back through the posts to see the beginning, know that I write very little about myself and my family. This may change a little this year. We will see.
For now, here are a few reflective thoughts I have to start this year of 2011.
On religion; I have stated that I am LDS, more commonly known as Mormon. In that vein, I start this year with two Nephews and 3 Grandsons serving missions for the LDS Church. One of the Grandsons will complete his mission this year and return home. If I am not mistaken, both of the nephews will return home this year also. They all will return very much more able to continue on with their life.
For my wife and I, we spent 6 1/2 years serving in the LDS Temple in Albuquerque, New Mexico and 6 months serving in The Gila Valley Temple in Arizona. We have been released from Temple service, because of the next reflection. However, before I leave this topic, I must say that those 7 years were the most enjoyable 7 years of church service I have ever spent.
Now, We were released from that service because after 2 years of being retired, I have decided to return to the land of the gainfully employed. I won't go into the job I have taken, but it is in the same line of work that I retired from. The reason I decided to return to work is simple. Money. Well, because my wife and I have some things we want to do, and a little boost in income at this time will accelerate getting those things done. Some of them are expensive. So, I will work for a while. How long to be determined. I have been met with mixed reactions from my contemporaries. Some say WHY? Some say WHY NOT? Many say good for you, and a few say Better you than me. What ever their reactions, I have returned to work.
Now, I can't leave this post with out a few remarks about politics. The new year starts off with a new congress. The Republicans are back in charge. I am a republican, but don't believe all things republican. However, many of those in the new congress have stated they will work to reverse all that has been done in the last two years. My view point on this. Don't kill the health care bill. I don't like the health care bill as it was passed. There are many aspects of it that I don't like. There some of them that I do like. Many Americans feel the same way. So, work on the bill, with the Democrats, and eliminate those items that are unnecessary, and leave the rest alone. Many of the Republicans have stated that they want to hold Obama to a one term President. While I have no objection to that, For them to just object to every thing he has done, and object to every thing he may want to do, nothing will get done and the Republicans will just come out looking like fools, and any ground they may have gained this past election will be lost, and we the people will be the biggest losers.
Now, to the State politics. New Mexico entered this new year with a Republican Governor. She has made some history, according to the talking heads on the news, by being the first Woman Governor of New Mexico and the First Hispanic Woman Governor of any State. As a prosecuting attorney in a southern county, she is making statements already of things she wants done that will be a benefit to the law enforcement community. I voted for her, and so far I like what I have seen from her as a Governor. Granted, she has only been in office 4 days. And she will not be able to keep all her campaign promises. That is a given, and should be accepted as such by all. Her promises to balance the budget, not take from education to do so were based on a $250 million imbalance. Shortly after she was elected our then Governor said Oh! the imbalance is actually $450 million. But even though he spent and spent, he blamed it on the national economy. So Mrs. Martinez will have to break some promises to get a balanced budget. She wants to reverse the Death Penalty that the past Governor got passed last year. She wants to loosen regulations and taxes making it easier for businesses to do business in New Mexico. She also wants to repeal the law giving drivers licenses to undocumented residents. She also wants to strengthen the laws against illegal immigration. She has many other ideas that sound good. Stay tuned. The year is new and who knows what will actually result by years end. And that is The View From The Ditch Bank