You Know......

You know that Penn State is a party school....when the mascot gets charged with DUI!!!

So Sayeth The Shack

Wonder How Much He Paid

According to the news reports, Penn State football coach Joe Paterno underwent hip replacement surgery yesterday and all was successful. That's great.

But I'm just wondering how much he had to pay for it, out of pocket. I'm willing to bet he didn't have to pay one red cent. In fact, I'd be willing to bet that any college or pro football player who has to be treated for injuries don't have to pay any of their own money for it, even though they can well afford it a lot more so than us regular folks.

I have nothing against Joepa, or any other football player or coach for that matter. I am just saying this because of how I feel about our society's treatment of athletes and celebrities, which you already know from reading some of my other writings. They get all the money and glamour while those of us who do the "real work"of the world struggle to get by. I still owe the hospital a ton of money from last year that I'm paying off bit by bit. And it just irks me that these people have all the money and special treatment just because they play football.

So Sayeth The Shack

The Forgotten Holiday

In October, it's all about Halloween. Costumes, decorations and candy fill the stores. Then, as soon as Halloween is over, BANG! its Christmas! The trees are up, the music is playing, the decorations are out and the toys are on sale.

Now just wait a minute here!! What ever happened to Thanksgiving? It is now totally skipped over in the rush to the retail commercialized frenzy that originated with the birth of Jesus.

Don't get me wrong. I love Christmas. I love the music, the decorations, the gathering of families and the giving of presents. But everything in its own time, and let us not overlook Thanksgiving, which is an important holiday in and of itself.

Of course, Thanksgiving, like many other holidays, is all about food. But beyond that, it is about giving thanks. After all, that is the name of the holiday. In this day and age it is easy to skip over the act of giving thanks, or thinking of the things that we have to be thankful for. Most of us are more prone to complaining about what we don't have than being thankful for what we do. I blame the media for this, especially TV and the advertising that goes with it. Advertising makes us dissatisfied with what we have and who we are and leaves us yearning for the products that will make our lives so much better, whether we really need them or not. It doesn't take much TV-watching (aside from the news) to make you realize that your life sucks; that everybody else has more money, a nicer house, a nicer car, is better looking, and is getting way more sex than you are. On the other hand, watching the news can really bring you back to earth. My wife hates watching the news because it depresses her. I, on the other hand, see the problems of so many other people and I realize how good I have it. I might not have tons of money, a big house, a nice new car, the latest cell phone, etc. But I'm healthy, I have a decent job, a loving wife, two teenage kids that have done great in school and aren't into drugs or in jail....and I can come up with lots of other things. My life might be pretty mundane overall but there is plenty to be thankful for. And while each one of us is in a different situation, we all have something to be thankful for.


So Sayeth The Shack

Bailout For The Common Folk

That word "bailout" has been tossed around a lot lately, but always in regard to the "big boys"; big banks, big corporations, maybe the big automakers. The hope is that sending these folks tons of money will help us get out of this financial mess.

But will it help you or me? Maybe. Maybe not.

So here is my idea: bail out the common people instead. I don't mean a token thousand bucks or so like the government sent out earlier this year to "stimulate" the economy. Obviously that didn't work. Why not? Because instead of spending the money on new items, a lot of people, like myself, used the money to pay down debt. So what will work? Bail us out of our personal debt. Maybe not out mortgages but all other debt. I know that some people are are in debt through their own stupidity and foolishness, but many have had to borrow...use credit cards...whatever...for emergency home or auto repairs, medical expenses, etc. Having this debt erased would free up huge amounts of cash that could stimulate the economy from the bottom up which will likely work better than trying to stimulate it from the top down.

So Sayeth The Shack

Wow! What An Election

Whether or not the person I voted for won, this was the most amazing election I have ever seen. Never before have I waited in line to vote. Yesterday it was a good hour wait. It was great to finally see so many people that care about the future getting out and having their say. I always vote at about the same time of the day. Usually I am voter number 100 or less. Yesterday I was voter number 780!! Wow!!! It would be nice to see this kind of turnout at every election.

So Sayeth The Shack

What A Choice!

So tomorrow is election day and I am sitting here still wondering who to vote for.

Do I vote for an exuberent yet inexperienced young man who seems to have some great ideas, but who supposedly lacks knowledge of and respect for the constitution?(This according to Heather Higgins and others). He wants to "redistribute" wealth in a more fair and equitable fashion by the use to taxes and such things. This would be beneficial to me at the present time but at the same time I'm not sure it is fair to punish wealthier people because they have more money. His own lack of experience is supplemented by the experience of his running mate however.

Or do I vote for a much older man of much greater experience including military service but with a running mate with even less experience than the other candidate? A man in somehat questionable health and with a notorious temper. A man who allegedly failed his comrades-in-arms during a previous war. (Again, who do you trust for this information?) A man who did more than his share of negative campaigning...taking some of his opponent's words and phrases out of context and twisting them into something else (not that his opponent didn't do the same thing).

So many tough decisions. I think when I get into the voting booth tomorrow I'll just play eeny-meeny-miny-mo.

So Sayeth The Shack

Shack-O-Ween

Halloween at the Shack's Shack



Shack as a blind referee . (He can't see very well anyway so it wasn't a tough part to play.)










Shack-Wife as a crazed murderous school lunch lady. (And she plays the part quite well in real life.)







Went to a party and had a great time.

So Sayeth the Shack