Preparedness Tip - The Power is Out

During storm season one thing that frequently happens is the electricity goes out.

When the electricity goes out, a main concern is what about the stuff in the refrigerator.

Here are two tips to remember:

* Perishable foods should not be held above 40 degrees for more than 2 hours.
* If a power outage is 2 hours or less, you need not be concerned.

Next – What to do

Do not open the refrigerator or freezer.

An unopened refrigerator will keep foods cold enough for a couple of hours at least.

A full freezer will hold up to 48 hours.

If it looks like the outage will be more than 2 to 4 hours, pack food into a cooler surrounded by ice.

As soon as the power returns, check temperatures. Remember - above 40 degrees for more that two hours. Check internal temperatures of the food. If it is above 40 degrees, it is best to throw it out.

Train Stamp - 1869

Scott 114

3 cent

Ultramarine Locomotive

March 27, 1869

Number Issued – about 336 million

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving historically is a day recognized when the puritans at Plymouth celebrated a day of thanks for a good harvest. The day was primarily a religious day of Christian worship and fasting. But, as we all know today’s thanksgiving is centered on the meal and the gathering of family and friends.

How did the modern day thanksgiving shifted from its origin. I think it was probably a combination of commercialization (turkey industry) along with family members moving to other states, which results in one of the busiest travel days of the year.

I believe that today should be a day to give thanks for all the blessings in your life. A day to recognize some of the things we often take for granted.

Memory

The memory should be specially taxed in youth, since it is then that it is strongest and most tenacious. But in choosing the things that should be committed to memory the utmost care and forethought must be exercised; as lessons well learnt in youth are never forgotten.
Arthur Schopenhauer - German philospher (1788 - 1860)

Reminisce

What is it about reminiscing, particularly with people older than you? Reminiscing can happen at any age? It seems like the people who reminisce just happen to be older than you.

Or is it that reminiscing is a repeated story you have heard before, and you are tired of hearing it repeatedly. When someone recalls a memory and they share the experience with you – it means something – it is a good thing – it is how history is passed down from generation to generation.

At a time in history, reminiscing was the only way to pass on history, mainly because of the education of the person telling the story; it was verbal as opposed to written history. Once a story is repeated to someone to record, it then becomes history for future generations.

I have been guilty of this reminiscing myself, but I try to not reminisce too much to the occasional ear. I will only continue if the occasional ear asks questions about my story, and then I will continue. My grandfather once told me war stories. He said to be careful about war stories. Not everyone will understand the significance behind your small part in history.
The next time someone tells their story, listen for a while because it might be their small part of history that someday will be gone forever and never to be heard again.

A Day of Honor

Veterans Day

Today is a day when we honor our country’s military veterans. Veterans Day historically marked the end of World War I, on the 11th day of the 11th month on the 11th hour. I remember 1974 being a member of the Cub Scouts marching in the Veterans Day parade. The one thing that stands clear in my mind is the number of people that came to watch. People were lining every block along the parade route. At the time, I did not make the connection between veterans and the Vietnam War. In hindsight, for the number of people that came to honor veterans during the end of an unpopular war, this was a very good showing of support from the public. Compared to the Veterans Day parades over the last several years, the number of people on the sidewalks has dwindled since 1974.

Everyone should remember that Veterans Day is a day to honor all veterans, past and present.

A day to recognize the service of every man and woman that has served in the military in peace and at war.

A day to honor the military personnel currently in Iraq and Afghanistan.

We as a nation should hold this day in the highest esteem because, without our military, we would not be the great nation of freedom and democracy. We would not be able to freely assemble and express our gratitude to our nation’s veterans. So, the next time you meet veterans, thank them for their service.

Birth of the U.S. Marine Corps

November 10, 1775
During the American Revolution, The Continental Congress passes a resolution stating the "two Battalions of Marines be raised" for service as landing forces for the recently formed Continental Navy. The resolution, drafted by future U.S. president John Adams and adopted in Philadelphia, created the Continental Marines and is now observed as the birth date of the United States Marine Corps.

Today, there are more than 200,000 active-duty and reserve Marines, divided into three divisions stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina; Camp Pendletion, California; and Okinawa, Japan. Each division has one or more expeditionary units, ready to launch major operations anywhere in the world on two weeks' notice. Marines expeditionary units are self-sufficient, with their own tanks, artillery, and air forces. The motto of the service is Semper Fidelis, meaning "Always Faithful" in Latin.

In part from the History Channel

I am a former Marine of the 4th Marine Division, 3rd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment

This is a one of the reserve divisions of the Corps. I served the Corps for 10 proud years and served a tour during Operation Desert Storm.

Agree to Disagree

What a great privilege it is to have freedom. Many people take this right for granted, not realizing what it would be like not to have freedom.

Freedom can cover many aspects in life, but I am going to focus on freedom of speech. The fact that I can write on this blog about anything is huge. One of the reasons, I feel so strongly is because when I did my tour of duty in the military and shipped off to foreign lands, it made me realize what I was defending and I will defend those rights today. I sometimes do not agree with protesters but it is their right to do so even if I disagree. However, in the same note I will speak my peace whether people disagree with me or not. I think that if people would agree to disagree, we would probably see more people saying what they feel as opposed to worrying about what people might think.

A Young Nation

The United States is comparatively young to other countries and past reigns of government. The United States is 231 years old and in contrast to past established governments like the Roman Empire, which reigned for over 1,000 years from 806 to 1806, and Iraq (Mesopotamia), which was formed in 4,000 B.C. We are a very young country. The United States is one of the most modernized countries in the world, yet countries that have been around longer are still struggling to establish some form of a cohesive society. The United States has its fair share of problems, but somehow we always seem to improve upon what our forefathers established in 1776, making this country great.

As A Man Thinketh

The aphorism, "As a man thinketh in his heart so is he," not only embraces the whole of a man's being, but is so comprehensive as to reach out to every condition and circumstance of his life. A man is literally what he thinks, his character being the complete sum of all his thoughts.

As A Man Thinketh
James Allen