Five Dreads of the Apocalypse

I have thoughts on the dreads of an apocalypse.I list the five dreads as famine, plague, drought, anarchy, and war. Mankind has not been able to eliminate these. With climate warming, the presence of modern weapons, highly virile diseases and substances, the fragile fabric of society, the odds of something going wrong are large. More on this soon.

Atlanta

Last week I returned from a week's vacation in Atlanta. I visited my sister and brother. Charles had just had a minor stroke due to severe dehydration. Helen has trouble walking. I set up Helen's new computer, gave her a few lessons, encouraged her to use it often and join Facebook. I believe we have to be social focused and remain involved. I have asked her to walk often and do things to engage the mind.

Atlanta is a fine city, but it is not my style. I like the big, beautiful homes, which are cheap by Bay Area standards.

In order to keep the mind working,I am considering playing chess at this site in San Francisco near a BART station. I need to bone up, but it is convenient, plus BART is cheap. I might as well use it since we tax payers are subsidizing it. Also, the girl watching is good.

Home for Sale

We have listed our home for sale. We have lived here for 8 1/2 years. Eldoris thinks that it is too large and too much work to keep clean. You can see the listing at www.11455lochardstreet.com. We have put about $100,000 in improvements and upgrades since we have been here. There are just 48 homes on this private road. One end deadends at Knowland State Park and the other ends at the county park district's walking trails. It is pristine and like living in the country but 5 minutes to the major freeway in Oakland. From the decks, one can see downtown San Francisco.

A Story

A neighbor who is also retired comes by about once a week and we chat. Today he told me an interesting story I thought that I should share with others. He said when he was a child living in a small town in the south he would go to a small store owned by an old Chinese almost every day to purchase a soda, candy or something. He had had some learning problems at that age. One day the grocer told him that he would teach him to count. So one day when he came in the grocer gave him $40.00. The grocer told him that that was how much he had taken from him because he did not know how to count the change. He said that the pennies added up and he had lost a lot because he did not know how to count. My neighbor learned to count and has become rather successful.

How many instances of a lack of knowledge has cost us? That is why I always say that we should learn as much as we can about as much as we can because we never know when we will need it.

Please see my other blog at https//:thomaslcameron.wordpress.com.

DeLaFuneta on Oakland

I had the pleasure of introducing Oakland City Councilman De La Funeta at the luncheon of the Piedmont-Montclair Rotary Club Friday at the beautiful Sequoyah Country Club. Mr. De La Fuenta (third from left in photo) hopes that mayor-elect Jean Quan is tough enough to manage the problems of Oakland. He questions the city being able to confront the problems. I myself think that the politicians must deal with the over paid civil servants and under funded pension funds. Many cities and states have the same problem. Americans have been over-spending and under saving for years. Now we must tighten the belt. Therefore, expect demonstrations and protests next year as we have seen in Europe. So many people feel that they have entitlements that we will have to have a serious cultural change. I remember that when I was on the Alameda County Grand Jury, we found that Highland Hospital employees had a huge sense of entitlement. This situation is made worse due to the indications that the truly rich do not want to contribute to the solution to this problem. They too think they are entitled to their yachts and mansions. I see little interest in fixing the crumbing infrastructure or educating minorities. This is how we solve the unemployment problem, not more tax cuts for the rich. On the other hand, more taxes from the poor and middle class to fund the aristocracy of the belligerent unions is proving to be unacceptable. It is too difficult to get anything positive done. This stagnation can easily lead to extremist elements. I fear for our future.

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August 3 Surgery

I am looking forward to the hip replacement surgery on August 3. I go for tests, x-rays, consultations, etc. on Tuesday, July 20. I will be in rehab for at least a month followed by limited mobility for two months. However, as soon as possible, I want to resume my walking.

I went to bed hungry again last evening. This is a small price to pay for longevity and good health. Some proof was on the scales. My weight has dropped to below 181 pounds. I need to pass the barrier of 180. The goal remains 175. I have learned that I can exist without sweets. I no longer crave ice cream and chocolate covered raisins, two of my weaknesses. I have walked for 5 of the last 6 days. The one day I missed was because I waited until afternoon, and that is the day the temperature reached over 90 degrees in Oakland. Too hot for old men walking.

We are elated that home prices in the neighborhood are rising again. Zillow.com now lists the two homes next to us over $one million. We, of course, like the rest of California, took a beating in the real estate market. A very beautiful new Tuscany home a couple of blocks from us is now on the market for $1.6 million. The views of the Bay Bridge, San Francisco, and beyond are superb. This should help all of us in the neighborhood. Eldoris wants to sell our home next year. We shall see how it goes.

Eldoris is off for Phoenix next week. This woman has to travel. She is on the road too often. Her sister Mae is just as bad. I tell her that she only uses her home as a rest stop before the next trip. There is so much to do in Oakland and the Bay Area. For example, over the 4th of July holiday, we listened to music in Jack London Square, took the ferry to San Francisco, for a promenade at the piers. I guess I am just a home body. However, I have to admire the energy of both Eldoris and Mae. They just keep on going. Most 70 years olds certainly can not keep up with Eldoris. Neither can I.

Remember. Food is the Enemy!