American Accents

One thing I find interesting is language. How it evolves and develops, how various accents occur in different regions. Sometimes the names of things vary from area to area. For example, when I lived in Cumberland, Maryland, many people used the term "gum bands" for what I call a "rubber band". They also called any type of carbonated soft drink a "tonic". In Texas and Oklahoma, I have heard the word "Coke" used generically for any of these drinks, called elsewhere "pop", "soda", or "soda pop".

Beyond the words used, the regional accents are also interesting. I recently took a quick survey someone had set up on a web site that supposedly analyzes what American accent you have based upon a series of questions. I really don't know how accurate it is, but what I did find interesting is the comment in the results that said:

You have a good voice for TV and radio.

Considering my first career was in radio, that makes sense. Now, I'll be the first to admit that in casual conversation, I don't pay quite as much attention to diction and pronunciation as I did on the air, but still think I speak fairly standard American English without any of the affectations of regional accents.

In any case, here were my results.

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Midland   "You have a Midland accent" is just another way of saying "you don't have an accent." You probably are from the Midland (Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and Missouri) but then for all we know you could be from Florida or Charleston or one of those big southern cities like Atlanta or Dallas. You have a good voice for TV and radio.
The South
Philadelphia
The Inland North
The Northeast
The West
Boston
North Central
What American accent do you have? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Compromise & Healthcare

It is no news that in America we have a political climate where polarization seems to rule, rather than common ground being sought for the betterment of all. The extreme religious right has control of much of the Republican Party, while the Democrats have their own crazy fringe to deal with. Seemingly left out and forgotten are the great middle ground of moderates, people who have a variety of viewpoints, but are not tied to extreme positions and unwilling to compromise for the greater good.

Having spent the last six years ruling from the far right, the current administration in Washington is a lame duck. Although they have made it clear they have no desire to listen to the people, nor their representatives in Congress, their days are up come January 20, 2009. Two years and two days, and we can permanently say goodbye to Dubya, Cheney, and the entire bunch who have fueled their war with the lives of our military personnel, our nation’s honor, and yes, even with some constitutional liberties.

Despite what extremists may say, compromise is not a dirty word. It was compromise that allowed the founders of the nascent United States of America to create a representative Congress that protected the rights of both the small states, and the more populous ones. In order for progress to occur it require give and take, the ability to forge a win-win solution to difficult issues.

It is in the spirit of compromise that I see some hope from both parties. Newly-elected Democratic governor of Colorado, Bill Ritter, and Republican governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, have proposed looking at health care coverage for the citizens of their states. I have long maintained that the resistance to, and fear of, a national healthcare plan would make it extremely difficult to initially implement at the federal level. It will take some progressive minded governors and legislatures to show the rest of us that this can work.

The rugged individualism of the American psyche and our Cold War experience makes us resistant to the idea of any program that even hints of socialism. Never mind that there are some things that can be best addressed by the government. We have socialized highways, schools, postal service, money system, and more. The United States is one of the few “First World” powers that doesn’t provide some level of health coverage to all its citizens.

I am no economist, so this is purely conjecture on my part, but I suspect that for what we currently spend, we could have universal coverage for all of our people. The fact is that we don’t really have healthcare for many of our citizens, but rather sick care. People who cannot afford preventive and early treatment end up generating huge medical bills for diseases and conditions that could have been averted, if only they were caught and treated early. One reason insurance costs continue to escalate is the fact that we all pay for those who don’t have insurance today. If we could do it proactively on a national basis, I think we could be surprised at how little it actually costs in comparison with today.

It is also my belief that universal healthcare is very much within the spirit of the Constitution. That document’s preamble lists among the reasons for establishing the federal government is to “promote the general Welfare”. Not welfare as applied to entitlement programs, but welfare and in the general well-being of the citizenry.

Heath care insurance tied to peoples’ employment leaves out the underemployed, the part-time workers, the unemployed, and the indigent from the system. These are the people who have no resources for health coverage. Instead, we end up paying their medical bills when they go to a public hospital or the debt is written off by the provider. Often, the provider ends up being a hospital emergency room, since the poor have no regular physician. Even the gainfully employed and covered are close to falling into disaster. If you lose your job, sure you are offered continuation of coverage under COBRA. However without income, who can afford COBRA payments of $700 and up per month?

I hope that the legislators in both California and Colorado will work together with the governors of those states and effect compromise on this matter. They can lead the way by showing how to fix our current system. Action is long overdue. It is now time to explore a variety of options that will finally provide all Americans with access to healthcare. It’s the right thing to do.

Ted on Approach to Denver

Denver International Airport is approximately 30 miles north of where I took this photograph. Still, many planes approach the airport on a path toward the north/south runways from here.

This particular picture was taken with a telephoto lens, and before cropping, it was a small plane in a huge blue sky. Some cropping and sharpening in Photoshop reveal the plane to be one from the United subsidiary, Ted. You can very clearly read the carrier name, along with the gold United Airlines "U" on the vertical stabilizer. You can even make out the windows of the passengers and flight deck. You can almost read the registration number of the aircraft, but not quite. With a little longer lens or perhaps if this had been on a tripod, that could have been read, but for a quick hand-held shot, I am not disappointed in this one.

The World's Nastiest Candy?

Could this be the nastiest tasting candy in the world? I really don't know. Someone at my office brought a bunch of these to work, and everyone is saying they are horrible. The description is that they taste like sweat mixed with raw sewage with scrapings from the gutters of Manhattan added in. With all that talk, I am very afraid to open it up and try it.

The label describes this confection from Mexico as a lollipop with four layers of chili flavor wrapped around a mango flavored gum in the middle. However, given the description of those who have tried it, there is nothing that tastes like chili here. This may be like the Tootsie Roll Pop...no one will ever know how many licks it takes to get to the center; only this time it is because of the bad taste it has.

The label says that the Mexican candy company that makes this little gem is owned by Pepsico, Inc. Now, I do enjoy many Mexican foods, including some of the sugar pralines that are made there. Yet, despite my adventuresome nature regarding foods, I cannot bring myself to try the Rockaleta.

Other nasty candies I never will try include those gross Jelly Belly flavors of jelly beans, such as vomit, earwax, and boogers. Still, the people I work with claim that those are better by far than the Rockaleta. I guess I will never know.

Lollipop anyone?

An Alien Chip?

For about a year and a half, I have had a perplexing mystery that I just couldn't solve. Whenever I would enter or leave particular stores, their alarm systems would go off. In particular, the worst ones were Walgreens, Target, and Barnes & Noble.

This problem has been more of an annoyance than anything else. The store personnel, if they notice at all, usually say something like, "It's okay. It's probably your cell phone." Well, I guess if someone does steal something they can just blame the alarm on their cell phone.

One day at Walgreens, I left my cell phone, took of my shoes, left my security badge from work, and did everything I could think to do that might tell me what was setting off the alarms, all to no avail. My wife got to the point of being so embarrassed that she would not enter or leave at the same time as I did. She even jokingly said I must have had an alien abduct me and place a chip inside me. I had thought maybe it was my dental work, but my dentist said it couldn't be that either.

Thursday was the final frustration. I went into Barnes & Noble, and of course, the alarms started beeping. Then upon my purchase of two magazines, I left the store, and again..."BEEP BEEP BEEP". This time, a manager called out, "Sir, could you please come back!". So, I turned around, and he said, "Sir, I know you beeped coming in, but I need to see your receipt." So, I showed him the receipt, and he said, "Sorry for the inconvenience. I just had to check."

So, enough is enough! I related the story to my wife who vowed to get to the bottom of it. She did what I should have done a year and a half ago, and searched the Internet for answers. One blog she came across related a similar tale, and people were commenting on similar experiences. Some said that The Gap and Old Navy sew a sensor inside the seams of their clothing that would set off alarms if not deactivated. Fine, but I don't have any clothes from either of these establishments. Another person related how the problem had occurred after the purchase of a new wallet, and that they had found an anti-theft tag hidden inside it.

Alarms go off again, but this time in my head. Could it be that simple? I had bought the wallet I was using about a year and a half ago. SO, I empty my poor old overstuffed wallet down to the bare leather, and started probing inside. BINGO! Stuck with some kind of sticky adhesive was a bar code label deep inside one of the slots. I pull it off the leather, and on the back is a printed circuit used for anti-theft systems!

I have recently bought a new wallet, but had not made the transfer, and luckily so, or I may never have figured out what was going on. I got the new wallet, searched it for alarm tags and found none, and made the switch, as the tag left a sticky residue on the old one.

I have to say, I have not yet tested this by going into one of the stores that were a problem. However, I think this is the culprit. I will bring this little irritant to one of them and test it out, but I suspect my beeping days are over. Although I would never do it, the mischievous side of me had the thought of bringing it into Barnes & Noble and dropping it in some poor unsuspecting woman's purse when she was not looking!

Cheyenne, Wyoming

When I was a kid, Cheyenne was the title of a TV show starring Clint Walker. Well, today I made a trip to Cheyenne to tour a facility owned by the company I work for. Cheyenne is the capital city of the State of Wyoming, and is really, a fairly small town. It lies just north of the Colorado border, about 100 miles north of Denver, at the intersection of Interstate Highways 25 and 80.

I arrived in town a little early, so I stopped by the capitol building to take a few photos. Unfortunately, after I arrived home, I found I had my camera set on manual focus, and had failed to compensate, so many of my photos didn't come out too well. Dumb mistake. Still, I got a few that are accidentally in-focus.

Compared to the Wisconsin capitol I wrote about last month, the Wyoming capitol is small. When you compare the dome of Wisconsin, the largest by volume in the nation, with Wyoming's, the western statehouse's dome is extremely diminuitive in relation to its building. Still, it is a pleasing building, with the cornerstone laid in 1887. It also has several items of interest on the grounds.

One of these is a replica of the Liberty Bell, near the southwest corner of the lawn. On the west lawn, there is a statue of a cowboy on a bucking horse, another of the symbols of the state.

Of particular note is a statue of early womens' rights activist Esther Hobart Morris. located at the main, or south entrance to the capitol. The inscription on the base of the statue reads:

Esther Hobart Morris

Proponent of the legislative act which in 1869 gave distinction to the territory of Wyoming as the 1st government in the world to grant women equal rights

This is truly an amazing thing, a territory's legislature passing a law to grant women equal rights back in 1869, when here in 2007, we still don't have the Equal Rights Amendment enacted on a national level. Those pioneers were quite progressive!

Inside the capital, the first floor is basically one long hallway with offices on either side. These include the Governor's office and the office of the state treasurer.

The capitol doesn't really have a rotunda, but more like a medium-sized room. Looking up into the dome, there is a square design with some stained glass, and some state motifs painted on each of the four sides. There is also a statue of an American Indian in full headdress gracing the main chamber. In the west wing, there is a stuffed American Bison on display, another symbol of Wyoming and the American West.

Time ran out and I had to get to my appointment, but I was glad I made the stop at capitol of "The Equality State".

Winter Wonderland

I have written about the inconvenience of the recent snowstorms to hit the Front Range; however even out of something caused misery for many, comes something good. Today started out very overcast and gloomy, but finally the clouds have moved out and we have a beautiful day left behind. Here are a few scenes from around here that I took this afternoon. Too see a larger version of a photo, just click on it. Use your browsers "Back" button to return to this page.



First, we have a picture of a white barn sitting in a field of untouched virgin snow. I imagine the horses who usually play in the corral are inside the barn, as I didn't notice them anywhere.



This picture is somewhat interesting in that you can see a white mist behind the barn and in front of the mountains. This is evaporating snow. From higher vantage points, you can see this white haze rising in the distance all around you, as the moisture from the snow vaporizes into the air to be recycled once again as clouds.



Here we have a doe and her young ones, out looking around for something to eat. As you can see, the mother and two of her babies thought they'd better take a closer look at me. They were not alone, however, as daddy buck was just off to the right, over the crest of a small incline, as seen below.



I think he was keeping an eye on me as well, but these beautiful animals are somewhat shy, and after I shot the pictures, they left the area.

Even though the wintry weather is bad for travelers, it does leave behind some wonderful scenes if you just take a closer look.

The Plows Keep Busy!

With the second large snowstorm in a week pounding the Front Range, the plow drivers are finding no shortage of work. The second storm began dropping its mess on the Denver area shortly after 9 AM yesterday morning. by the afternoon, the roads were already becoming a mess.

This photo was taken mid afternoon on the E-470 Tollway between Lone Tree and Parker, shortly before arriving at the eastbound toll-booths. Here are two plows driving tandem as they do, to rapidly clear the highway. The plow on the right clears an inside lane, and is followed by the plow on the outside lane that pushed all the snow off onto the median. In this photo, you can clearly see the ice-melting salt/sand mixture that the plows broadcast onto the road surface to keep it from icing over. In addition to that gritty melter, they also use a liquid de-icer on some roadways, particularly before the snow begins to fall.

Farewell, Dennis Linde

I was saddened to learn of the death of award-winning musician/songwriter Dennis Linde at the age of 63. Dennis died of pulmonary fibrosis last Friday, December 22.

Though the name may not be a household word, almost everyone would recognize some of Dennis Linde's work. He wrote many hit songs that are part of our collective life soundtrack. Probably the most well-known hit written by Dennis is Burning Love, recorded by Elvis Presley. He also is the writer of Callin' Baton Rouge, as recorded by Garth Brooks; and Goodbye Earl, a major hit recording for The Dixie Chicks, among many others.

While I didn't know Dennis, I met him a few times back in the 1970s and 1980s, through my uncle Alan who co-wrote songs with Dennis, as well as their both being members of the recording group Jubal in the early 1970s. In an indirect way, my eldest son's name came from Dennis Linde. When my son Dennis was born, we could not think of a name for him. At the time, I worked at radio station WCUM in Cumberland, Maryland, and spotted one of Dennis Linde's albums in the radio station's control room. Having met Dennis and seeing his album there, made me think that it would be a good name for the little person labeled "Baby Boy" at the hospital nursery.

My sincere condolences go out to Dennis' family and friends.

Here We Go Again!

Another major winter storm is heading toward the Colorado Front Range, and predictions are that we will possibly receive another two feet of snow. This one is expected to start dropping white flakes over the area on tomorrow, eight days since the Holiday Blizzard hit town a week ago this afternoon. AccuWeather is even using the "B" word for this second storm. I guess it's time to fill up the Jeep with fuel, stock some food, and plan for a repeat performance of last week. This is not looking good.

So far, I have been in Colorado for three major blizzards; the October 1997 storm, the one in March of 2003, and the Holiday Blizzard of '06 last week. Looks like we will be setting new records.

Gerald R. Ford Dies

In my post from just after the November elections, I quoted President Gerald Ford. Last night, I saw the news that he has died at the age of 93. Much has been said about his decision to give former President Richard Nixon a full and absolute pardon for crimes he may have committed while in office. The pardon put a stop to the probability of long inquests and trials for Nixon. Whatever one's politics, President Ford has to be given credit for getting the nation on to other business, and not letting Watergate consume any more of our resources and time. While I wish he had structured it differently so that Mr. Nixon would have had to face the music for his deeds, I understand and appreciate his intentions.

I met President Ford one time, after he had left office. I was covering a Republican fundraiser for a radio station in Houston, where Mr. Ford was the keynote speaker. While I only exchanged a few short words with him, he struck me as a gracious and intelligent man. Despite his well-publicized foibles on the golf course, he was not the klutz so humorously portrayed by Chevy Chase in his "Saturday Night Live" impersonations.

Gerald Ford has been called the nation's first unelected President, but he held the office with dignity. I believe he did his best during his short term to restore respect and honesty to the institution of the Presidency. For that, President Ford gets my respect.

A Sad Milestone

Christmas Day, 2006 marked a horrible milestone in the U.S. intervention in Iraq. On that day, the deaths of American military personnel in Iraq surpassed the 2,973 lives lost in the attacks of September 11, 2001. This doesn't even include the loss of life in Afghanistan, nor the tens of thousands of Iraqi citizens who have died in this misbegotten invasion of a country which posed no threat to the United States.

Rather than liberating a people longing for freedom, we have instead uncorked the bottle of sectarian violence that had been kept contained by the cruel regime of Saddam Hussein. Now we find ourselves paying in lives, money, and other resources; and bogged down in a civil war; a fact our President refuses to recognize. He calls it "resolve". I prefer the term "stubbornness". Mr. Bush, it is not a virtue to fail to modify tactics if current ones are failing. It is not "flip flopping" to adapt to changing conditions.

Amid the holiday celebrations with family and friends, I hope all of us keep in our thoughts the lives lost in this miserable Iraq war, and their loved ones. It is also imperative that we put pressure, and keep pressure, on our elected representatives to bring this misguided adventure to a close as soon as possible.