It's been one month since my Grandfather passed away, and since, I am always thinking about him. He was a great person and will always be missed.

For those of you who still have your grandparents, or any family for that matter, remember that we only have so much time on this Earth: make sure to let them know how much they mean to you.

Tags: grandpop, family, parents

When I was a little kid, whenever I was at my Grandmom and Grandpop's house, there was always one thing I wanted to see. It was my Grandparent's Cuckoo Clock. I was mesmerized by it, I had to see it almost every hour to hear the little bird cuckoo and hear the music box play and the little figurines dance around. Well sadly, my Grandfather passed away March 9, 2008 which hit my family somewhat hard. He was a great man and will be missed by all. His cuckoo clock, I almost consider a family heirloom, although it's probably not, lives on, now in my possession. Not to sound like I'm benefitting from the dead, because I certainly, with all my heart wish he was still alive, but it will be one more thing for me to look at and remember him by. Every time I hear the cuckoo and the music, I'll be able to think of him. And its not that I need to hear it to remember him, heck there is so much that reminds me of him, and of my Grandmom as well. It's just one more thing to help me realize that while he may have gone to a better place, his spirit, and my Grandmom's spirit for that matter too, are still here with me.

(Click for larger)

Tags: life, cuckooclock, time

Grandpop, you were always there for me and my entire family. You always gave of yourself selflessly never asking anything in return. As I sit here trying to hold back my tears, I remember that you're going to a better place. You always kept your sense of humor, making us all laugh even when things weren't going as well as we'd have liked. You brightened the room every place you visited always making us remember the brighter side of life.

You passed down your knowledge and wisdom to my Dad and to me, who will pass it on to future generations of Wagners. You may have left this world, but you have gone to a better place, and your memory will last in my heart and I'm sure the hearts of many others forever. I love you.

I have so many memories of you.

I remember your trips to Dorney Park and Wild Water Kingdom taking the whole Wagner family, making my Mom worry more about you than about her own kids.

I remember your trips to the beach visiting us, teaching us how to body surf, showing us that boogie boards are only for "whimps" on the rough waves of the Jersey shore.

I remember your antics at several pool parties showing us how to really go off diving boards.

I remember how proud you were of me when I attained the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts.

I remember how proud you were when after 5 grueling years, I finally graduated from College.

I remember your sense of humor you brought with you everywhere you went. All the jokes and antics that at some points made my Mom nuts, like acting like you're going to eat an entire cake.

I remember all the Phillies games you took us to watching the team that I idolized play, with all the thanks you needed coming from a hug and the smile on my face.

You gave of yourself selflessly and will be missed by me, and many many others. We love you and will never forget you.

http://www.legacy.com/philly/DeathNotices.asp?Page=Notice&PersonID=105439607

Tags: life, prayers

As I've mentioned before, I'm not one who really likes getting into politics too much, too many times I seem to just get disgusted with how the government is run sometimes, but I just wanted to mention something I've been thinking about.

As many know the US Presidential Elections are coming up this November and many, rightfully so, are very much getting involved in the primaries. Everyone seems to be focusing on the presidential elections, somehow believing that by Bush leaving office and a new president, even a Democrat, that the state of the nation is going to do a 180 degree turn and go back to the way it should be. Now don't get me wrong, a new president, particularly Obama in my opinion, could very much help America change its status in the world for the better, but a new president can only do so much.

Too many times, I hear of people complaining about some of the lousy laws that are getting passed in this country. Two come to mind, the first being the telecom bill (not yet passed) that grants retroactive immunity to the telecom companies, and the other being the College Opportunity and Affordability Act (PDF). The latter one will apparently cut off university funding unless universities enact strict anti-piracy strategies...in other words, unless the universities do the RIAA and MPAA's dirty work, then they'll lose funding. In my opinion, these bills aren't what I want to see getting passed through congress. People complain about these and a lot of times, I hear people blaming Bush for them. Now granted, the telecom immunity bill, he probably pressured for, but in the end that's not the point.

The President of the United States does not make the laws. As a quick refresher, there are 3 branches of government, the executive, legislative, and judicial. The legislative branch makes/writes the laws. The executive branch only approves them. If people are constantly seeing laws that they don't like, the president, in this case, Bush, is not the one to blame. Blame your congressmen, push for your representatives to vote against the bills that you feel are wrong, and push for them to vote for the bills you feel are right.

People are constantly complaining about this, yet for some reason, the same representatives seem to keep getting voted into office. The presidential elections are important, but so are the House of Representatives and Senate elections as well. I can't say I've never been guilty of this oversight, but at the same time, I'm not going to overlook this fact next time around.

Get involved in the elections, read up on the candidates, both presidential and for your representatives. And vote. Democracy, as jaded as I might sound, can only begin to happen when the people get involved. Vote for who you feel is the best candidate. If you don't vote, that is of course your right, but don't complain later when you feel the wrong candidate was elected.

Tags: election2008, rant, politics

Normally I don't like talking politics, and I still don't like to, but I want to touch on this point.

Remember when presidential candidates, or any position really would campaign and actually say what they're going to do to help the country, city, town, etc? I can't seem to remember hearing that too much anymore. Now it seems that the popular way to campaign and try to win is to lie, cheat, and bash your opponent more than they bash you. I'm truly not a fan of that at all. I want to hear and see what they want to do for the country, not what their opponent has done wrong, or what they claim their opponent has done. It's really a shame that candidates feel they need to attack their opponent in order to win votes. I guess it has pretty much become the status quo now as the strategy to use, but I'd really like to just hear what they want to do to help me, because lets face it, everyone in politics has made their share of mistakes, no one's perfect.

So, instead of telling me what the other has done wrong, why not tell me what you want to do to help.

This is particularly aimed at the whole Clinton-Obama dispute and I'm really sick of hearing it.

/endrant

Tags: rants, politics, election2008