Have they returned? 06.20.17

                We have needed rain for a couple weeks. It is raining now, and the Ford’s Homestead along with all the plants are saying, “Thank Goodness”! I should say that the wonderful rain is not the subject of this soon to be well written article. What could this article be about? I will attempt to enlighten the inquisitive among you.

                As I am starting this posting on a rainy Monday morning, I would like to comment on a subject that has nothing to do with the title of this post. This morning, earlier than my normal time to bounce out of bed, I decided to get up as I was not sleeping and I thought the new family member might need to relieve himself. I removed the screen from the door, and Tres came out of the room and headed for the back door. I find this unusual as he has only been here 2 days. We went to the door and he went outside, where he relieved himself.

                We returned to the house and he was now awake. That means, he wanted to play, and his way of playing is chewing on anything including my feet. We played for a while as my cup of coffee was getting cold. After a while, we went out the front door to retrieve the so called newspaper. A neighbor was retrieving his paper and came over to meet, “The Tres”. Tres barked at him as he approached, a seven week old attack dog, WOW!

                Tres settled down after proper introductions and allowed the neighbor to pet him. While we were talking, Tres relieved himself doing a number 2, in front of a neighbor. Embarrassing!

                The title of this article is, “Have they returned”, and it is in reference to the fact we are being watched by Aliens. As with most of my postings, I try to provide information that is relevant in today’s world, and I also try to provide visual evidence.

                Yesterday, as I sat in the Ford’s old rocking chair I had the feeling that I was again being secretly watched. Where was the alien this time? In the past they have been hiding in various locations. I just happened to look up when I saw the observer. He was fairly obvious and when he saw me looking back he begin to try to vanish. I was able to get a photo.  Click to enlarge.

                A normal person can see the two eyes and where the mouth was, as this alien tries to evaporate in an effort to avoid detection.              Got him!               If you can’t see him even after you click to enlarge, you may not be a believer!

Believe not, and you will not be believed!

Don Ford

Surprise or not 06.19.17

                As the amazing title indicates, this fantastic article may be, “surprising, or not!”

                I plan to have a couple photos and they should tell the entire story, but as usual, for that one reader, I will elaborate. In the first photo we are harkening back a few days (6/12/2017) to my article, “Skinny dipping”. In the photo below we see the hero of this story in the Grand kid’s swimming pool. His dutiful spouse of 48 years is the photographer. As you can see she is well accomplished in composing a photo for this Blog Posting. I am sure you will want to click on the photo in an effort to reveal more of this subject.

                We see in the back ground pink and yellow floaters, which were used later. Our hero is smiling at the camera and you the viewing public can make of the photo as you see fit. I think the main question would be, what the photographer was wearing at the time of the photo.

                Now we will change the subject. “Who said thank goodness?”

                The Ford Homestead has a new tenant, his name may be, “Tres”, which is Spanish for three. He is the third German Shepheard to have occupied the Ford Homestead. The first was Texas, then Tejas, and since we did not have a third name for the Great State, we have kind of settled on Tres.

                As with many new family members, the present members were concerned that the new member might be noisy and messy. So far so good. He has not yet relieved himself on any surface in the Homestead as we frequently take him outside for some grass time (not the type you smoke).

                He has a tendency to follow his humans anywhere they go.

                We were concerned that another member of the Ford Homestead, “Charlie”, might not accept the new fellow. We were wrong. So far you would think the Tres was a little brother to Charlie. Tres has followed Charlie around in the yard just like little brothers do.

                Molly on the other hand is a different story. She has been staying out of sight and has not yet said hello to the new fellow. Molly was a kitten when she came to us and she would attack Tejas relentlessly. He was a full grown shepherd and he put up with her childish ways.

                We have a neighbor who was a drug enforcement officer and he came over to see Tres. He picked Tres up and was petting him. We thought we were going to have to fight him for Tres. This same person a few years ago, stopped in front of our house and opened his door and Tejas got in the car with him. He took Tejas home but later brought him back.

                We have noticed that our new family member, enjoys chewing on everything. In the above photo he has a toy in his mouth. Yes I know the photo isn’t very good, I will try to do better in the future.

                This new member of the Ford Homestead was originally slated to stay in the office area his first night. We later decided to have him stay in the bathroom. We put a screen across the door so he could not get out and we placed a couple articles of our clothing on the floor with a pair of shoes. To our surprise, he did not make any sounds all night, and he did not deposit any foreign matter on the floor. He did his business Sunday morning like a good resident, outside near the back of the yard!

                We do have one concern and that is, Tres is continually under foot. We have to watch were we walk as he is often in the way. 

                Before we get the question, he is not a Father’s day gift. He is just a new member of the family!

We welcome Tres, the third, at the Ford Homestead!

Don Ford

FYI, the hero had his swimming suit on, that was an extra pair of shorts hanging on the pool!

Dog gone it 06.17.17

                This is a rare Saturday posting from me to anyone who cares. This is not a political comment and I am not chastising anyone for driving distracted. It is however a commentary on my late afternoon Friday sitting in the old Ford’s rocker.

                My neighbor had come over and we were discussing recent world events, or, we may have been BSing about anything we could think of. As we sat their enjoying the cool evening breeze, which is also known as early summer’s mid-90s, hot and sweaty weather. I noticed the “Dog Lady” (her name is Gail) walking down the street in our direction.

                I could see she had two dogs on leads, actually it was one dog and one puppy, and I also knew she was coming to our driveway. Gail occasionally comes to our house with a dog in hopes we will want to adopt it. Today was not different. I will attach a couple photos, one of the puppy and one of both mom and her pup. Our cats were not happy with these visitors. Click the photo to enlarge.

                               

                We had a nice visit but we did not keep either. They were good looking and well behaved.

                That is what a Friday at the Ford Homestead is like.

May you have pretty and polite visitors all weekend!

Don Ford

               

Weather or not 06.15.17

                Good morning, I hope you had a great night’s sleep, I did! As usual, after springing from my bed and sprinting to the kitchen where I made a cup of coffee, I quickly moved to the old recliner and turned on the irritating TV. For a senior citizen, having a TV is kind of like having another person in the room with you. I am sure you understand, it is like when your spouse is in their chair and you are in your chair, neither of you are speaking but you know there is someone there if you wanted to talk.

                Anyway, I observe TV for about an hour before I head for the bathroom to get cleaned up and dressed for the day. During that hour I see the same so called breaking news at least twice. And changing the channels does not help, they have the same so called news on all channels.

                Over the years I have given up listening to the so called news and weather people, but I do critically examine each of them. I have a tendency to be critical of their clothing but more than that, I enjoy examining their faces. I have noticed that all so called news and weather people on the higher paid programs have almost perfect facial features. That does not apply to those who have been there for 20 or more years.

                What do I mean by almost perfect facial features, I am glad you ask? They have no blemishes that one can see due to the makeup, their eyes are properly spaced and even (one is not lower or smaller than the other) their nose is nicely shaped and you should not normally be able to see inside their nose when they are talking. Their ears are not too large and one is not higher than the other. Their hair is always perfect.

                The men are always dressed professionally and look very good on screen. Most of the females are dressed in a manner to draw attention from both male and female viewers. The female viewers are thinking, if I would lose a couple pounds I could look that good in that short dress and the men are looking at the same short dress thinking, well you know what they are thinking. I have noticed, many of these female reporters try to show most of their legs, up to their behind when sitting. Do they get paid extra for that?

                I am tired of thinking about that subject, let’s go to another subject along the same line. Let’s say you are in a discussion (aka debate) with someone and you would like it to end. This usually works whether the other person is upset or not. When you get an opening, look at and comment on something about the person’s face. I recall an incident many years ago, this person (Dawson) and I were both hourly employees, he was, “madder than a mashed cat”, and he was letting me have it. For some reason I wasn’t participating, (I wasn’t upset). Trust me, he was in my face, he stopped talking and I said, “I hadn’t noticed this before but I can see your contacts”. My comment caused him to stop with his dissertation. He said, “I can’t believe you, you haven’t listen to anything I said”, he turned and walked away.

               

Observe, comment on your observations,

Stating the facts is not being critical, or is it?

 

Don Ford 

Segregation 06.13.17

                Segregation, the answer or problem?

            Please understand, when I refer to segregation I am considering it in relation to ideology, not based on a person’s race or their origin. Personally, I believe that people who have similar ideologies, regardless of race or origin can live in the same areas even though they may not have exactly the same beliefs. As I see it, whichever country one lives in, that person should comply with and agree with the laws of that land.

            I am not a historian (darn it) but it seems to me that throughout history, people of one ideology, will sooner or later, try to, or take over another group, with a different ideology.

 

            Ideology as defined by me is, “a belief shared by a group”. It could be a religious belief, it could be a political belief.

 

            People of any particular ideology, believe they are right, and all others are wrong. Some have this belief but do not make a big deal of it. Consider different religions here in the US. They believe in the same God but their services and practices are different. They live together in the same communities knowing they are right and others are wrong but they accept the others as uninformed.  

            Ideology that a person has been taught from childhood almost never leaves that person. A person may change their “stated ideology”, but in fact what they were taught as a child will always be the truth as they see it, stated or not.

            Groups with extremely different ideologies most often do not attempt to accept the other’s beliefs, although they do at times allow for integration into their nations. As long as they accept the laws of that nation they may live without major concerns.

            Unfortunately, at some point one belief may attempt to, or in fact take over the other.

 

            Stand up for what you believe, participate, debate, do not take a back seat!  

 

Is segregation the answer or the problem, you decide! 

 

Don Ford 

           

Skinny dipping 06.12.17

                Let’s start with a different subject. I find it interesting that no one noticed that I was not blogging last week. Would you believe I was in the hospital for an operation? Would you even care that I was in the hospital for an operation, probably not!

                Well, I was not in the hospital! I was out of town on a trip to my former home state. Yes I went back to Missouri, driving up on Monday, 11.5 hours, staying three days and returning on Friday a 12 hour drive back. The weather was perfect during my visit and I enjoyed my time there. I was taken to Lamberts in Sikeston on Thursday evening, the home of the throwed roll.

                Enough about me and my holiday, let’s get to the title subject. Skinny dipping does not mean dipping a vegetable in a diet sauce, it means swimming nude. Why would I bring that subject up, because it is the title of this soon to be well written article. One might ask if I, the author to this wonderful article have ever participated in the activity of skinny dipping. We were all young at one time and I will let my response stop there.

 

                Above is a photo of the back yard. We see the grand kid’s fort and a brown spot where no grass grows. That spot is where the kid’s pool was located the last couple years.

                My present spouse decided to get a larger pool this year for the grand kids and I, as usual stated my objection to said pool. I do not like putting it up, filling it with water and taking care of it all summer. At the end of summer I then take it down and get rid of it. 

                In the following photo we will see the recently constructed pool even though it is not filled with water. I must give thanks to David and Alex as they helped in the construction of said pool. We were able to get the pool erected in just a few hours and it will take longer to fill it with water than it did to put it together.

                The main concern with this pool is, “one cannot sit in a lawn chair and watch the swimmer inside the pool. The wall of the pool is too high.

 

                Will skinny dipping be allowed in this pool? The answer is that no kids will be allowed to skinny dip in this pool. What about adults? That is yet to be determined.

                It should be noted, one of the Ford’s security cameras is directed at the pool, fotoe from security cam # 6, below. My first wife does not like me to make up words like fotoe, and use them around the grandkids, but she does not proof read these articles before I post them. 

 

                Being retired and on a fixed income, one may not be able to purchase a swimming suit. Also, one would not want to where street clothing into a swimming pool, although I do remember as a youth climbing an 8 foot chain link fence, and jumping into the Cape Girardeau public swimming pool with my clothes on. I did take my billfold out of my pocket and hand it to the young lady who was with me before trespassing on public property. Young people don’t always think before they act!

               

Remember the olden days, some memories may make you happy!

Don Ford

Interviewing 06.05.17

 

Interviewing        06.05.17

                When interviewing, one wants to get as much information about the applicant as possible. There are certain things that an interviewer is not legally allow to ask the interviewee, but the interviewer would like to know. I was good at getting this information, legally!

                The following is my suggested method of interviewing. Follow my suggestions and you may be rewarded with valuable information.

                The applicant completes an application. Review the application in detail. If there is any area of information that is left blank, assume the applicant has something to hide, reject the applicant. 

                I suggest 3 interviews of each applicant. The first and second interviewers should be department managers that the interviewee would or might work in.

                The first interviewer will have certain questions that he / she must ask. During this interview, the interviewer will evaluate the person’s responses and body language. Each interviewer has the ability to reject the applicant.  

                The second interviewer will also have certain questions, different from the first, which he / she must ask.

                The first two interviews are more or less formal and very business-like. We gather all the necessary information and review the entire application. The applicant will likely be on guard, attempting to present an appropriate appearance and responses.

                The final interviewer will attempt to put the interviewee at ease. You walk into the room with the notes and application, introduce yourself and with a smile ask how they are doing. Sit down, square up to the table, sit up straight, leaning forward a little, begin to review the notes and application. This is a professional no nonsense image.

                After a minute or so, put the papers down and say, everything looks good. You then scoot your chair back from the table a little, turn so you are not directly facing the applicant, lean back in the chair presenting a very relaxed image. You then smile and say something like, “I see they have asked you all the necessary questions”, then with a smile ask, “What questions do you have for me”? Answer any questions.

                Still leaning back and appearing to be relaxed ask them, “Tell me about yourself.” Allow the person to talk, if they stop, you should sit there quietly looking at them. It is amazing what people will tell you if they feel like they are just talking, and most people can’t stand to sit there in silence so they will likely continue talking.                           This process is not perfect but it works most of the time.

                Note, when interviewing professionals, persons who have likely read and learned about body language, they will often be able to send you a false impression of how interested they are in what you have to say. You should learn about body language! Body language works at home as well as in business.

 

 

                In situations where there is only one interviewer, you should basically follow the same process.

                First, have your must know questions written down. Assuming the applicant is already in the room, you walk into the room with the notes and application, introduce yourself and with a smile, ask how they are doing. Sit down, square up to the table, sit up straight, leaning forward a little, begin the interview. Stay focused, and have good but not constant eye contact. Evaluate the answers being given, and observe the body language presented during each question. In this part of the interview you are a professional, present a no nonsense image.

                Second, after asking and recording (writing down) the responses to your questions, make a statement to the effect, “everything looks good, or now that we have that completed”. You then scoot your chair back from the table a little, turn so you are not directly facing the applicant, lean back in the chair presenting a very casual image. You then smile and say something like, “What questions do you have for me”?           Answer any questions.

                Still leaning back and appearing to be relaxed, ask the applicant, “Tell me about yourself.” Allow the person to talk, if they stop, you should sit there quietly looking at them. As stated previously, it is amazing what people will tell you if they feel like they are just talking, and most people can’t stand to sit there in silence so they will likely continue talking.                            

               

 

                How does this apply in personal life? If you are talking with a child, other family member or friend, you will find that presenting the appearance of not being upset, not being tensed up and being relaxed, the other person will be more likely to open up to you. Again, when your mouth is shut, others will be more likely to talk.

                                When two or more are gathered, someone will be talking, is it you?               

 

Don Ford

Positive attitude.

Positive attitude… 

                        This is the teaching version, to be used by an instructor.

The first point to make is:

When you believe, also known as Faith, you have a positive attitude. This positive attitude, faith and believing swings both ways. One can be positive that they can jump over a puddle of water, or one can be positive that they can’t jump over a puddle of water! Either way, they were positive that they could or could not complete the task.

Now we know that a positive attitude does not always mean, “Optimistic attitude”.

Consider for a moment, are you optimistic, in your thoughts and actions? Do you believe the future will be, “Better than the past”, or is your attitude more along the lines of, “things will never be better”?     You can choose!

Do you see yourself as, “Unfortunate”, and have you thought, “Why do bad things always happen to me”? 

Do you see yourself as, “Fortunate”, and have you thought, “Good things always happen to me”!              You can choose!

                       

Let’s consider a few quick statements, and as we do please see which statements relate to you.

                Statements are:

I got a pay increase!  

I got a shabby little pay raise how do they expect me to live?

I was the top producer last week! 

I worked my butt off last week, all I got was tired.

My neighbor just got a new… wow that’s great!    

My neighbor got a new…, why do they have all the good things?

My dog is having puppies!   

My dog is having puppies, how do I get rid of them?

 

 

 

Ponder the following statement.     

                The glass is both, “Half empty” while at the same time it is. “Half full”.

                                                                                               

                Consider for a moment, how do you see the glass?                    You can choose!

 

 

 

                You are working, someone interrupts you and when you turn to face the person, you knock something over and it spills on the floor.  How you respond may set the tone for the rest of the day, for both you and the other person.  Yes, you and I also influence others attitudes. 

                Suggested response:          

First, smile even if it is a fake smile.

Second, while you are smiling say, “If that is the worst thing that happens today, it’s not too bad.”  

                                You can choose!

 

 

Summary, this lesson should cause you to think about your attitude. Understand that your attitude affects others that you come in contact with (family, friends, and associates). If you are now thinking this was a bunch of bull and a waste of your time, you are the person this was written for.

 

                                “You can choose!”

 

 

Don Ford