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This past Saturday, the Day family took on a new member when our grand daughter was united in marriage to a fine young man named Mark. Amanda & Mark have known each other for several years and felt that the time was right to put it all together as one who will live and love each other for the rest of their lives. True marriage is a union of one man and one woman where each promises the other that they will spend the rest of their lives as one and respect each other throughout any thing that might come up. They will be one through sickness and health, richer or poorer, till death do they part. One day there will be others who will join our family through the love that each of these young people have with each other. Let nothing or no one take this union down. They have committed themselves to each other and their lives will be richly blessed though this union.

Amanda is the daughter of our youngest daughter who was called Home in December of 1994, and she has made us proud in how she has decided to spend her life. Patricia would be so proud of this young lady in how she has grown up with the desire to make her life better. Mark will be that one person in her life who will be there when needed and ready to do whatever is needed to make the life of his beloved a happy and joyful one. True is the love that each has for the other. In Mandy, I see a young lady who has taken upon herself to be the best there is and in Mark, I see a young man who is very matured and one who has given himself to be the best he can be.

We met a great many of the youthful friends that each has and I saw a little different view of the youngsters of today. They were very friendly and they showed the love and respect for the others. I feel that you won’t have to worry about this group of young people who one day might be our leaders of tomorrow. I saw love throughout the wedding and the reception. That is a little different from what I have stated before. I have witnessed some of our youngsters at other times that had no respect for others and it seemed like they were throwing their lives away. But I did not see that in any of these young people who shared this wedding day with Amanda and Mark. So I feel very good about what I witnessed with this group.

Love is a commitment of one man to one women and that commitment runs deep. Throughout all marriages there will be times when feelings have been hurt or dreams have been shattered but you take it one day at a time and life goes on. Never fail to say you are sorry because that makes you a better mate and it makes the next time easier to take. Never say things about your spouse that you wouldn’t want said about you. Never go to sleep at night without that nice little kiss because that is great sleeping medicine. And never leave your loved one without that big hug and kiss to hold them till you get back. There are many things that a marriage of one man and one woman can do. It opens the door to having children who will benefit from the love they have for the other. That love will live on until that day when we are called home

So yes, it was a great day in the families of these two people Amanda and Mark. I liked what I saw of the family of Mark and I feel good about how they will be there any time they are needed, if called upon by Amanda or Mark. The day was a happening that will go down in time as one of the best days of our lives. I welcome Mark and his family to our family with love for all. For Mandy and Mark, enjoy.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

The hot days we have had lately makes me go back in time when I was working at the mill. Before I went into supervision, I had a large taste of what my fellow friends put up with on their jobs. In the winter, it was cold outside and hot inside. There were some jobs where you burned up on your front and froze on your back. Ice would be on the outsides of the mills and red-hot inside. Add all of this to the stuffy air and you have your winter job. In the summers, many times it was unbearable in both trying to cool off and breathing that hot air up your nose. Needless to say that if you stayed there around these conditions, then you probably will finish up your years there. Working at the mill got in your blood as you had friends galore who knew what you were going through because they had been there and done that. Working repair in the slag pockets, the pan and the soot tunnels, you learned to appreciate what the ones before you and those later on would have to put up with. If your job required you to work outside, you dressed to keep warm with several layers of clothing so that you would keep warm. If you worked inside out of the weather, you dressed about the same way as extra layers keep the heat out just like it did the cold.

Life was not easy at the mill because most jobs were of the type where each person had to pull his or her part to make the work get done. When I went into supervision, there was one thing I always tried to do. I wanted to know what each of my crews had to do to complete his or her job. So many times, I would get with a crewmember and work right with them for maybe an hour or so and if they operated a piece of equipment, I tried my hand at doing it. There were not too many cranes, engines, or other jobs that I did not try. That way I knew what that person had to do to do the things I needed done. Yes, it was against most of the rules between union and management but I got as much out of my crews as they could give me without doing more than what was required of them. In my tenure at the mill, I never did file a grievance with the union and as a supervisor, only one was ever filed against me and that was resolved between the worker and myself sitting across from each other.

Those great men and women who worked there at the mill were a joy to work with and work for. That is until a longhaired person with frills on his shirt cuffs came to run Continental Steel. That is where the bottom started falling apart and our pension plans were taken to buy swampland down south. A person who previously was a 35 dollar a week bartender was named the head of what was once one of the best steel mills in the nation. Workers on both sides started giving concessions in order to keep the mill from going down. We were told that we would have stock in the company in return for those concessions, but we never saw anything from it and our pension plan was in trouble. Boy, were we taken down the path to the woodshed. Well, you all know we lost our jobs in 1986 and many lost everything. We received pensions, which were less than what we needed to just stay alive.

Well, the workers have been having their picnic each year and today, July 31, 2010 they will meet again. Have fun my friends and if I can I will be there to see the best group of workers ever who have been and always will be my friends,.Those people who are still with us deserve a lot more than what we got. However, when they meet it is like family getting together to have fun. Having fun and remembering those good old days.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day

 

You know, it takes a lot to get me mad, and even then, I hold off on trying to have the last word. That is the way I grew up, and for 73 years, it has worked for me. People who know me will say that I am one boring person when it comes to doing something I don’t want to do. I don’t dance although back in the fifties, I was told that my moves were about as soft as silk and satin. I don’t sing although at one-time years ago, I was said to have a nice tenor voice. I am about bald although years ago, I had nice wavy hair and it was thick. I don’t like to wear suits, as I don’t like to dress up. However, back in the fifties, I was very passionate about being neat and dressy. I came from a large family but now I am one of just five. My spare time is spent watching sports and old movies, and the so-called great shows they make today do not interest me one least little bit. I talk about my parents so much that some people tell me to turn it off, but Mom and Dad were special and always will be.

So yes, I guess I am somewhat boring but I am having fun while doing it. In today’s world, too much is made of those who want to be number one in their own thoughts and even though they really don’t amount to much, I guess they are having fun doing it too. So let’s just forget what others think about us and live our lives the way we want to. Now I am not talking about drugs, drinking, smoking or just being too friendly with the opposite sex or with one of your own gender.

My thought is that we need to just relax and live our lives one day at a time, trying to be pure while doing it. If you are married, then really what you do rather depends on what the other half wants and then you compromise. If you are single, then your do what you want as long it is on the right side of the law. If you have kids, then that will affect what you can do, as each one of them will want to do something different. If you have grandchildren, then there really isn’t to much to decide. What ever you do, it still is your time and you can let everyone know that this is the way it is going to be, even if that is just talk and no action.

As one who has had a ball so far, having had such great parents and great brothers and sisters, this old man of 73 will just sit down and meditate about what I am going to do next. Don’t worry about making someone mad because I don’t dance, or I don’t dress up much, or switching channels when some of that stuff comes on television that offends me. It is my life, my television, my legs, and by golly, I have a right to say no occasionally. That doesn’t make me a bad guy, just one who has been there and done that. I know what I do is boring but as I said, I am having fun doing it.

Life is short enough that we need to live it up a little but we don’t need to ride the rail doing it. Eat what you want but just don’t overdo it. Cut out the smoking if you can because that might give you a few more years. Stop the drinking as much as you can because that might give your body and brain a little rest and it too will give you more time. I am not trying to change you, as you are the only one to do that. I am just saying that what most will find boring for them is not that way for me. This old man is very happy with my life so far and if I can find something else that is boring, I might try my hand at it too.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day

Going back into my days as a youngster, I see many things that helped me grow up and be someone I am proud to be. I remember my 1st day in Willard School. My teacher was Mrs. Black and she was tall and pretty. She  had control of her class like no other. And the kids who were in my class were good friends to have. I looked at some old pictures and was amazed that most of the ones who were in my class at Willard have passed on. However, there are still many who to this day are my friends. Lee Walters was the principal and to this day, I know that he played a big part in my growing up. I can remember that in the 5th grade, I was allowed to be a patrol officer, and our job was to help the other kids get to and from school safely by stopping traffic so the kids could cross the street. I remember Mrs. Yenna who when we were taught math, she would ask for someone to cipher with her on the blackboard seeing who was the first to come up with the correct solution.

Then going to Central Junior High, and walking 13 blocks to school and back twice a day. We went home for our lunch and Mom would have some great food on the stove ready as soon as we got there. Boy, she sure was a great cook and she always knew what each of us could eat and get the best from it. I was always getting sick when chicken was cooked in our house and she knew how to keep that smell from me. Other foods such as almost any meat would make me vomit and to this day, I am as close to a vegetarian as there could be. Mom knew what foods I like and I was fed very well. Any way, the other kids would divide up my share with smiles on their faces and a full belly. Our family was like that when we were young as our mother took good care of us and she spread her love equally among us. I remember when Mom would send us to the bakery to get 2nd day bread. Man, we couldn’t tell any difference because we were bread lovers. Of course, when Mom would make soda biscuits, we took them over the bread. Boy, she made the best biscuits, and when you put the oleomargarine on them, it would run right down your chin. They were so good. Biscuits and gravy was big at our house as Mom made the biscuits and Dad made the gravy. I don’t remember Dad ever doing any other cooking except for the gravy. Mom was too good of a cook for Dad to take that chore from her. Needless to say, Dad was always happy with a full belly of food made by the lady he loved very much. Dad was the gardener of the family and he found peace placing things in the ground to grow and to be eaten later. To this day, I still put out a garden and I too find peace doing it. All in all, the things we saw and the things we learned from our mother and father prepared us for the time when each of us would find the love of our lives and make a home together filled with love and with thanks to both of them. And I will always cherish the times spent with my friends up on Lafountain Street. To this day we might  meet somewhere and talk about those good old days. You might say that I was brought up with my eyes wide open and with no prejudice toward anyone.

And that is what it is all about. Meeting new friends from your young days until that day you are called home. Friends with all of God’s children. Treating each other as if they were family, and having fun doing it. What a wonderful way to spend your life, and remembering it as the best times of our lives. My heart still has room for more friends

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

Many of my readers ask me why I write a weekly column and I will give them and you my answer today. I like it when someone calls, emails me or see me in the stores and tell me that I bring back some great memories of a time that will never come again. I have read in my earlier years, the writings of other Kokomo residents who used  the newspaper to relive those memories so precious to them until that time when they get their call Home. Mr. Fouts, Mr. Harrington, Mr. Hamilton and Mr. Bill Hall are a few names that spring forward in my memory. All of them told it like it was during their time and many went back further to relate to all about their grandparents, and other relation. To be able to just relive in their own thoughts about how it was compared to how it is today.

That is the reason I write this column. I think if it was possible, I could keep up with doing at least two columns each week. However, we need to let others have their opinions of life as it is for them and how they would like it to be. Most of my columns are about my folks and those before them. They are about my days when I was growing up as a child and about how I think about today and tomorrow. Sometimes I will attempt to get a point across about today compared to yesterday, and maybe wake up a few minds who think otherwise. To be able to give an opinion and not get someone else mad at me is my goal and I will never use this column to downgrade someone else as to politics and religions.

But if this column does some good for a youngster and leads him or her to a path of good and great motivation, then I am proud. If this column helps an older person to remember things that had been forgotten, then I am proud. And if someone walks up to me and sticks out his or her hand and tells me that they read my column each week, then I am also proud. There are many ways to express our opinions and using the local newspaper is a wonderful way to do it. One of my good friends has had a few books printed about his life in the olden days and I am proud of him doing it.

 Life is taking a path and following it to a goal in life that you want and you don’t get there just waiting for someone else to show you the way. You have to make the first move so that you are headed in the right direction. As a child, my goal was one day being a Kokomo Wildkat basketball player, but that never came to be. That did not stop me and I decided that just maybe, I wasn’t reaching high enough and being a lawyer was my goal that was there until I started my work at the Steel Mill. After the Steel Mill, I started at Sears and while there, and meeting such great people, I was content to stay there until I retired.

During that time, we lost a daughter to cancer and my life started to take a nosedive until my fellow workers there gave me all their support I needed at work to go along with my family support. One day one of my customers came up to me and we started talking about Patricia’s passing and he told me something I have never forgotten. Talk about the things that are bothering you. If possible, put it down in words to help someone else cope with that same problem. So In 1998, I started writing this column and it has been a blessing to me and as long as they let me write it, my column will be there for you to read. My thoughts for all of you to read is my goal and just maybe that book one day might come about. However, for now, just being able to visit with you each week, is my contentment.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

I have always wondered what was the main ingredient in the bond of two sisters. It seems to me that God must have put one extra cup of love in the bond of one sister to another. My mother and her sister Julia was probably the first bond that I can think of. Although Julia passed away at an early age to cancer, she and mom were very close. I can remember many times in the cold winter months, Aunt Jude, which is what most of us called her, would come in and the first thing she would do would be to walk up to the heating stove, turn around and lift up the back of her dress and say, boy, that feels good. We got a laugh out of seeing her do that. Mom would tell her to watch out and not get too close. They laughed a lot and you could see the love of one sister to another.

In our family, there were four sisters born after me and Delores and Mary were close being only two years apart. There are only two sisters left, Neva and Wanda and the bonding still is there. As I grew up, I saw more of this bonding and when I first met the love of my life, Ramona, I saw it again in the bond between her and her sister Mary Kay. During the fifties, I met the Richards family and you could see sisterly love in that family. As time went by, and we old married folks got older, we had two daughters, Debby and Patty who were close like that. They were like two peas in a pod. When you saw Debby, you saw Patty. So yes, I feel that our Creator did put a little more bonding for that of sisterly love. Yes, I know that it is the same between the men but just not that tight closeness that is there with sisters. Most of the time the male members of a family will have someone who is older and they will look up to them for guidance and support. Boys are somewhat more active in sports and the bond exists between friends. I can say with up most confidence that there is only one bond greater than sisters are and that is the one of mother and child. The mother carries that gift from God for up to nine months and so the bonding is working starting with conception. So as I look, so as I see. The bond between sisters is like that of twins. That bonding stays firm even though at times there might be something happen that kind of puts a little dent in it. The dent stays but only in the background, as sisters grow older.

So as I write this column, I think back to when we lived in the old neighborhood and I remember the Weavers where four sisters, Ann, Norma, Kathleen and Carlene were neighbors down the street and there was a bond of four sisters filled with love for each others. In recent years I found that one of my old friends named Joe Willy had several daughters who not only had a firm bonding of their own, but also one for their mother and father which will withstand the tough times of today’s world. I look back and I remember all the old friends I had in that neighborhood, and it was very apparent that there was a lot of love between not only the sisters but also the brothers of those families. As I look at what tomorrow offers, I see that many of the families are split up in not being able to withstand the bumps in the road, and I see where children who are full-grown, are giving up instead of moving on because there are blockages that they don’t try to climb over or walk around. Where did that bonding go? Why didn’t they take a good look downstream and see the path was a little deep and they might have to swim some before they could walk in it? Will the times get so bad that all that bonding will disappear?

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

Well, I guess I must have hit a main artery in the last column written about sisters. The emails were full of not only praises of what I wrote but also some who took a little issue with my thoughts. Not wanting to upset anyone, and still keep a good perspective of my thoughts, I want to just let you know that there is brotherly love between many of my readers including this writer. Anytime you come from a large family, there will be sometime when a brother will consult another brother about some things he needs a little help from. In my case, I have a younger brother who is there anytime I need him, just as I am with him. We don’t expect to be rewarded for the things we do although it is nice when you get a thank you as we do with each other.

There are many families here in Kokomo, who came up the same way we did and  they sort of have that same closeness as we do. It is great when you have someone to go to the games with and when there is something needed by the other when it is almost impossible to get out due to sickness or weather. I can remember many families in my growing up days that had that brotherly love which stuck to them throughout their time here on earth. When you have that, you have everything. So yes, we are family although some of us do not see the other much. I can remember back in time how it was living in a seven-room house there on Lafountain Street. Many times, there were two boys to a bed and in other rooms, there were two girls to a bed. Therefore, closeness came with life as it was back then, so why not continue that closeness here in today’s world.

I know families where there is so much hatred between brothers as well as between sisters, and that is not a good thing. Why wait until the person is in the casket before you cry tears for him or her. Why not take that first step up to that person and just tell him or her that you are proud to have them in your family. Do not expect to get a big hug and a soaking handkerchief at that time but be ready to get it at a time later on after that person starts thinking how it is so much better to love than to hate.

In my younger days, I saw a few times when Mom and Dad would have a little heated discussion and both would go sulk in a corner but you can believe what I saying as it never am carried over into the next day. They knew each other so well, that love came out the winner every time. I do know some couples who married early in life, and not ready to take on the responsibility of being there for each other, and that resulted in them getting a divorce. Sometimes it takes a little longer for two people to learn that when you tie that knot, it has to be done in a secure way and sometimes you have to maybe tighten that knot a little more. When I see in the newspaper where someone is celebrating a sixty or seventy year anniversary, I feel good about them doing it. We are past our fifty-third year of marriage and going for more as long as we are still on this earth. Several of the friends who are the same age are doing the same thing. It seems like the ones who got married in the same time frame we did, are still together except for those who lost their mates. So yes, love is in the air if you try to breathe. Love is at your footsteps and all you have to do is to bend over and pick it up. Your heart tells you that here is that person you want to spend the rest of your life with. All you have to do is to take that vow and carry it out to the end of time.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

Regrettably, this writer has seen some good people take the only road out of life that they thought they had and what they never thought of was the pain that is left here with their loved ones. Many times, we see or hear the names of those who did not want to carry on their lives here in the arms of those who now are left behind. Maybe it was from the lost of love of another or the disappointment of losing their jobs and thus not able to go on seeing their family go without. We just don’t know why this happens but it does and we wonder if we could have stopped them from doing it. At the time we are aware of the depression they are going through but we just don’t take the time to ask if we cam help them. Many of us look away and by doing so, we tell the other that we don’t care about them. Then when we hear of their passing by their own hands, we ask ourselves why did we not see this and took the time to intervene. Maybe we have too much on our own minds and so we don’t care what they do. Maybe we could have got them help, if we had just took the time to talk with them. Did we care? Did we see it coming? Did someone in the group take the time to get someone to help this person cope with his or her problems? Those are questions that we will ask ourselves for many a day afterward.

This writer has seen through the years, many friends take the so-called easy way out because of things that just did not go their way. Those who I know personably will be missed for a long time by their loved ones left behind. Did they, before they did it, realize that they were doing damage to the lives of their family from now to the rest of their lives? This writer is not one of those people who like those in the profession of psychiatry, because I feel that minds should not be bothered unless it is necessary. And there are those out there who talk with you and then start that person on a journey of pills for the rest of their lives. However, there are some good ones who know how to talk with a patient and get them back on the road of life without getting them hooked by medicines. So yes, maybe if someone cared enough to ask them to at least try to get help, maybe the list of those who thought that they could not go on, would get less each time.

I have been witness to many who have been so depressed that the only way to help them was to get them in to see one of those doctors. I also have been witness to those who have been so depressed that you feared to leave them alone. These same ones decided with their own minds that they would take it among themselves to get well, and that my friends is a wonderful thing to behold. As one who meditates a lot each day, I have found that I can relieve myself of pain for a few hours a day. I also am aware that my body is the work of our Heavenly Father, and thus he has installed in all of us the ability of mind over matter and this helps in the healings of our bodies, both mentally and physically. So are we able to do it on our own or do we need the help of those who are trained to help? Do we have the friends who are there to help us get over the blockage in out paths? In addition, do we care enough about ourselves that we sure would not leave our loved ones just because we cannot cope with life as it is? If you out there have thoughts of taking the wrong road, get help now. The lives of those you could save are those that are left behind to mourn your mistake in life.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day
 
 

As the time nears to vote for that person to represent us as representatives of the people, by the people and for the people, I take this time to give you my views, and not that of any other person or group. First off, I want to make this clear to all of you who are reading my words that it does not matter which party I am a part of because I vote for the person who I think will do the best job of representing me and you. In the spring we vote only as a member of a party, but in the fall we, after taking a good look at who is running, regardless of which party we are a member of, we  vote for that person who can do and will do the better job.

For over a year now, I have been witness to emails, phone calls, and just talking among friends, of the hatred some of us show for the other parties, and of the race and heritage of those in office. We have so many out there who listen to groups whose only purpose is to downgrade our government officials to the extent that nothing is being accomplished there in Washington. There are those out there who are doing it because they hate the other party. There are those out there who take the word of troublemakers that starts to undermine our very existence as a free country, able to vote as we please. And there are those roaches out there that come out long enough to add fuel to the fire and then go back into their hiding place, waiting to do it all over again later.

We live in the United States of America, and we live for each other, free to do what we want, when we want to, and how we can. We have a government at this time which is trying to get through an era of time where people are out of work, people are going hungry, and people who are losing their homes. It is a bad situation for any country but it should have never come about here in America.  It didn’t start with the present administration, although it has not gotten too much better in the last year. This came about several years ago and we just looked the other way, with that belief that it cannot get any worse because this is the USA, and we are strong enough to stand up against it. But in the meantime we are allowing the poisons to be leaked out among all the people and that flows into the elections with the voters using whatever knowledge they have gotten from the hate groups to make their choices for those to represent you and me in the next four years.

All this is my opinion of what we have to work with and I will use good common sense when I go to the booth to record my votes. I will not single out any person, nor will I condemn any party. I believe in the two party system which helps to check and balance our government. I do not accept the off parties who usually only want to take this country to its knees, nor do I accept any facts that America is going down in defeat. I am a proud American who feels that if our representatives have not done the job, then we elect someone who will. As for the top man in command, if you don’t like the way he does things, then vote him out of office next time. But at least allow him to finish the term that he was elected to do. We have to make ourselves stronger and we can do so by being proud Americans and get this country back on its feet. It won’t happen overnight just like our problems did not happen overnight. We will prevail. We will be stronger, and we will one day look back and see how we weathered the storm. My opinion is only that. Not yours, not theirs. But it can count if you believe it. I rest my case.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day
 

In reference to my column printed on Sept. 18, I want to clarify a few things. First off, regardless of who gets our vote to represent us down in the statehouse and in Washington, I don’t expect them to get much done in their first year. I say that because at both of those levels, there are piles of work that has been started or has been waiting to get their motion on the floor. You can’t expect them to just throw all of the leftovers into a trash can and start new. There are motions that could help us as well as motions that could hurt you and me, the taxpayers.

As I watch the mud slinging television ads, I see those who could only hurt us with the way that they need to tear down the other in order to get our vote. I do a lot of checking on those who feel that they should have my vote and really I don’t like what I see on most of them. Why can’t a candidate run on his or her reputation instead of trying to find mud on their opponent. Sure, we do need to know if someone is going to be able to do the job, but we also need to know the background of said person.

Back in the early sixties, I started hollering about some people who were supposed to be representing me and a good friend of mine asked me if I had voted for them. I told him that I don’t vote and he said that I had no right to talk then. That week, I went up and registered, and I have voted every election. And that is what we have in the present time. People who gripe about a representative and yet they don’t vote. Your vote does count especially now as the bunkers are getting full of those who are out there causing problems between the two main parties. God help us if we elect someone who is just a tool for those who would take us down. You and I have not only a right but also an obligation to elect those who are sincere about wanting to be our voice in government. Don’t elect a “Johnny Come Lately” to office just because he or she sounds good. What do they do now, and where do they work, and do they pay taxes like you and I do. Also check into who are floating the money to get them elected. Politics can have the evil one waiting in the curtains and we need to know who that is. I have known many people right here in Indiana who have served their people well and they are from both parties. You vote for the person who you know will do the job because they can. You keep an eye out for those warning signs, that tell you if the foot is about ready to kick you over the goalpost for 3 points instead of going across the line for 6 points. Which score would of won the game? You need to know that they have the best answer for you and me.

As for those who want to say things about our elected officials, that is their right but don’t expect me to get on your mudslide. There are many things that give others a look at what you see in the mirror. I won’t allow myself to close my eyes to that. What I write and what I say goes a long way and if it is wrong, I have to live with it. I hope that I have given you, my readers a good look at me both in the way I write as well as how I think. To put all of this in one short sentence, please do the American Proud thing and go vote this November. By the way, one reader asked me what I thought of Governor Daniels and I think that he is a man of integrity, and one who could one day be our President. He is sincere in the workings of how our taxpayer money is spent. We need that.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

I received an email the other day that was flattering and a little bit of sarcasm. However, I get them all the time and by writing this column, I have made many new friends, many of who I probably will not ever meet, but great to know that they are there. The writer said that he looks forward to reading my thoughts each week and being able to go back in time with my column makes him feel good. But he also asked me how I could be so wholesome when writing about those old days and yet is able to switch over to writing about the things going on in the world today. He agrees with most things I write but also there are some things that he could argue with me about them. He said that I must be an odd person to be able to do that.

Well, my friend, you are right in thinking I am one odd person and you are not the only one who thinks so. I do get times when I write about God, and what he means to me. I can write about pain as I have it every day of my life but it does not rule my body. I have written about how I meditate in a way that I decided was best for me, and how it takes away the pain I have. I have been through several times in my life when the doctors said I probably would not make it and by golly, I am still here. I put out a garden every year, even though most of it is done on my knees and my stomach. I do housework, cooking, and some cleaning to help my lovely wife as she is healing from her sickness. I don’t drive too much and when I do, I try to do all of the things needed in one trip. I don’t drive fast and I try to get out of people’s way when they get into their crazy driving stage and I don’t tailgate. I like sports, good food, and some exercise. I don’t answer the questions over the phone from those people who should not be calling me anyway. I don’t take part in polls as I think they are usually so far wrong trying to make others think that they have asked millions of people when instead they might of asked only a hundred people.

I don’t take part in  mud slinging because I think it would be a sin to do so. I don’t take another person’s word for anything that might be taking another person down. I have had many who have told me that I shouldn’t do this or that, and to that I say, mind your own business. I am not a flashy dresser as jeans, t-shirt or dress shirt makes me look so good. I don’t buy something to save a few cents just because it is on sale. I wait until I really need to have it and sale or no sale, I buy it.

I love my wife and family, and am satisfied with what they have given me. So yes, my friend, I probably am an odd person, and I am having a good time being one. I can write about most subjects, and am open to rebuttals any time. The one thing you will not see me do is trying to make another look bad using information obtained from another source. There are  many out there who are doing good and it would take the rest of my time here on earth to write about them. I have a path I walk each day that I feel has been laid down for me to follow, and I can walk around or step over any blockages I come upon. So thank you for your kind words and readers like you are like one of my oldest readers named Thelma, in that you inspire me to write more. There is still a lot that I want to bring to your attention if I have the time left to do so. Bring it on. I can take it.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

Well, the garden is just about done with and this year was one that had lots of heat, many days of heavy rainfall, and long periods of dry spells. The bad thing to all this was that none of the three happens together so you had to make plans each day for doing what was needed to get a good harvest. My tomatoes were huge ones and some of them actually blew up right in front of me as I picked them. Many were about the size of my open hand. The heat was good for tomatoes but I had to water them a lot just to keep them growing. Onions came out ok but not as big as those of previous years did, and I still had enough to freeze and we are still eating some at the table. I put out a lot of peppers but they really did not do as good as I wanted but the growing season was longer for them. Every year it seems like some neighbor two blocks down from me get into my bell peppers so my yield was lower. I went out one morning to pick about 30 of them that looked the day before ready to pick. Yes, you know it, they had been picked and you could see the footprints. I guess that they needed them more than we did but next year I will catch the thieves and if I don’t I will confront them. Anyway we had enough picked to put away chopped in the freezer. Therefore, the freezer is full of tomato sauce, juice, chopped peppers and chopped onions. This is beside what we will be eating for the next week or so. Just to make a point and then get off the subject, we lived here since 1961 and the area was full of good neighbors who looked out for each other and you did not worry about anyone doing bad things. Well a lot of those who lived here have either been called Home or they have moved to another area. We still have many good neighbors but we are getting older and so the neighborhood has not been as great as it was. However, we still look out for the others and katy- bar -the -door if troublemakers try to change it. Enough said on that subject.

Well anyway, this old man will still put out my garden as long as God allows me to. It not only is good exercise but also it is a place that you can go and be one on one with our Lord. People have seen me talking to the wind and they have seen me on my knees out there a lot. I plant most of my garden lying down or on my knees. I guess that if someone should go by not knowing that about me, they would think I was hurt or dead. Anyway, what I grow each year is food for us to eat in the winter months and my neighbors right by us are welcome to have some if they need it. All they have to do is ask for it and not just take without asking. I try to put out a little more than what we need so there is some extra out there. The food is healthy for all and it really is fun to go out there and work my garden and also have that little place where there is just me and God. You feel the wind blowing a little harder as you ask Him about the things that are bothering you. You know that right here is the safest place to be and you feel good being there. Therefore, my garden is not only a source of food for the stomach, but also a source for hope and faith.

You out there can do the same thing I have done with the willpower of digging up the soil, planting the seed, and watching it grow. You can be the one who will experience that feeling of hope and well-being. Next spring, get out the tools and enrich your life. You know, It can’t hurt to try.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

We, the American voters, are subject to be part of the greatest country in the world, and we allow small groups to take us down, inch by inch. We have so much negative advertising on our television that I sometimes get so riled up, I turn the channels. Why can’t we, as the Americans that we are proud to be, realize that those seeds that are being dropped condemning our candidates are growing and those weeds that come from them will overcome the fruit of our country and slowly cause them to die and disappear. When those ads come on and you and I see them, we see where they only change parts of it so that what could have been seen as a positive note turns out to be negative both in the person themselves but also in their families. And that stigma lives on because we, the people, always remember bad over good. I, at one time, thought of running for office and I think I would of done ok, but I thought of how it would affect my family and friends who supported me, hearing the other side and those little groups who spill hate, and trying to go on with life trying to keep my head above water.

Folks, right here is where I think we go wrong with our elections. We allow hate and envy to overpower our good intentions of electing someone to office and so we let the foot into the doorway, thus giving those who want to take us down, the advantage because they have planted the seed and they slowly work the soil of our thoughts and they cultivate it into a big harvest. I will vote this coming Tuesday, proud to be an American having the right to have my say about who I want to represent me next year. It won’t matter what party they are on because I will vote for the one that I think can do the best job. I believe in the two party system and no more. You have to wonder about those other groups as to what they are trying to do to our way of government of the people, by the people and for the people. Your right to express your vote is on your shoulders and not on those who want to destroy that right. Just a thought about those other countries that don’t have the rights we do. In those countries, there are so many different groups trying to get the power, that the voting always turns to that political power that continues to rules year after year. Do we want that to happen here? Not in my backyard, and hopefully not yours. Get out there this Tuesday and support the one you want to represent you and me. Give a notice to the roaches that we are not going to take it anymore. If I have gotten you mad, then great because that tells me that you will vote on Election Day. God Bless America.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

It’s been a while since I wrote much about those times from our childhood, a time that will never come back but one that will always be remembered by me and by my old friend Tom. Some say we live in the past, and maybe we do a little, but really, we just have so many great memories that will one day be history of what will be remembered only in the books of life. We had comic strips, which featured people like Mutt and Jeff, Alley Oop, Popeye, Dagwood, and many more. We had those great cowboys like Roy and Gene, Lash Larue, Sunset Carson, Rocky Lane, with co-stars like Andy Devine, Roscoe Ates, Gabby Hayes, Pat Butram, and Dale Evans. The Sons of The Pioneers & The Hoosier Hotshots, and more gave us music that we sang with them. We had Radio as the main source of news, music, great shows like Inner Sanctum, Arthur Godfrey and Garry Moore. Godfrey and Moore went on to television and they brought to us such great people like Durwood Kirby, Julius Larosa, Carol Burnette, and many more.

In the early days of television, there was only one channel and you did not watch it during the early AM hours because they had a test pattern on it. One of the great shows that I liked was the Ed Sullivan Show because it brought many stars to the viewer that we otherwise would have never seen. Elvis and many others were seen for the first time by youngsters like me who wanted to be able to sing like he did. Of course, when the soap operas came on, it was primarily designed to give the lady of the house something to watch. As those shows progressed, there were many men and children getting their chores done so that they could sit back and find out how that person did each day. So television was here to stay but the radio has and always will be the one avenue of the news and weather that will outlive most  others. And those trail blazers who brought you news in print are still out there giving you the news of what is going on both at home and around the world.

I can remember when we would turn on the Grand Old Opry and listen to some of the best music ever sung by good old and young stars down there in Nashville. You just don’t find anything anymore that told the stories of a lost love, one that is blossoming or one that has been called Home. When you listened to those great country singers, you could picture their story in your mind. Many great singers both in the country scene and in the pop scene have left us but their story lives on. So life back in my time as a youngster and then as a grown man goes on too with all the memories of a time that will never come our way again. Those who were born after the sixties will only know the great singers and movie stars through their parents who lived in that era of time.

So we do live in the past if only in our memories, and we find ourselves humming a tune or singing a song that was part of our time back then. Or we do the things that our parents did in the old days, and that is putting out a garden, walking instead of driving, and sitting in front of the television which is turned off, listening to our record players playing those tunes that we found so soothing to our ears. Will we see this of our youngsters of today or will the memories of a time so precious slowly drift away. Wouldn’t be great to be able to go back once in a while if only for the soothing music by real singers and played by real musicians? Wouldn’t it be great to just drift back far enough to see that pretty lady we called Mom hugging us and making the world right if only for a second? Yes, Tom & I will remember as long as we can, and bring it to you.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

My day starts off the same way each morning and if it takes a little longer to do a task, then the next one suffers. However, it is done. I learned that from being a member of the Day family. Most of us are sort of easy people who try to mind our own business while still checking things out if we see someone in our area who shouldn’t be there. Mom and Dad kept a close watch on us, and they kept us fed, clothed, and warm, with a touch of love each day. We were a family of 14 children although God called several of them home at early ages. Mom kept all of us under watch until she was sure that we would be ok by ourselves playing games or visiting with our friends. However, she was always close enough so that if we needed her, she came running. Do you remember how your mother would always be close by just in case you got into trouble? Remember how she would make you feel better when you got hurt? After cleaning  the sore spot and wrapping it up, she then would wrap her arms around you and that made the pain go away. Remember your first date? Remember who was waiting up until you got home? She was itching to find out how it was but she wouldn’t ask. When your school pictures were taken, she was so proud. All of these are acts of love by your mother aimed at you. I can talk about Mom and Dad all day until the day I die. Many times, we thought that they were a little too strict, but it was the way they showed their love for all of us. I would bet if you would ask other members of the Day family if their parents were too strict, they probably would say that they were but they did it out of love which is ever lasting.

When I think of Dad, I look back to the days when we didn't see him very much because he worked the swing shift at the mill and many times when he was at home we were in school and when he came home from work we were already in bed. That man worked very hard in his life in order to be the breadwinner in our family. There were times when he would go out with me and play catch, or throw the football to me. For a little guy, he was tough as nails. He never showed his real self to others because he was content to be in the background sitting with his coffee and his pipe, it didn't take much to satisfy Dad. Mom and Dad went through some rough times together but they stayed as one for fifty-three years before he passed away. Mom followed him two years later.

As we go on with our lives, we continue to lose members of our families, and so we try to put away those items that will help us adjust to our losses. The memories of your parents and your brothers and sisters will always be there in your hearts and sometimes you need to bring them forward in your mind and look at the love that was there between father and mother with their children. And all the times that you were taken somewhere special by Mom and Dad, should be in your memory bank to look back on, so that you can pass it on to your children.

Time is only a blink of your eye but it can be full of the best fun you ever had with your mother and father. The things that were a part of your life then can still be a part of your life now. However, you have to be the one to preserve it. Pictures and letters are the things that along with your memories will take your lives and put them on display for those who will follow you. Give others a chance to know your wonderful parents. They both did their time well while still here on earth. We say thanks for the memories, mom and dad.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

Well anyway, Bob and I, being two years apart had some issues all the time and most of the time it would end up with fighting and then getting a good verbal and physical result from Mom. It was three years before the next child “Delores” was born and so I was the baby of the family for that time. Mary, Neva, Wanda, Russell and John followed to make our family of 14 kids and two wonderful people we knew as our mother and father. I think that of the nine kids who lived in our family there were nine personalities and so Mom had a job keeping all of us in line.

I remember when Bob was trying out some smoking and the shed where we stored the coal caught fire and since I was sitting there with him, I shared in the discipline that Mom dished out. I can remember one evening when Ernie came home a little drunk and Mom would not answer the door when he knocked to get in. She said through the door that he could just sleep it off on the porch and when he came in he had better be sober. Well, that next morning Mom opened the door and let her oldest son in and he went right up to his room and slept all day and all night. When he woke up and came down to breakfast, Mom gave him her usual motherly hug and nothing was said about that happening ever again.

So this writer has only one thing about being a member of our family that I regret. I wished I would have treated Bob differently. He has been Home for 27 years and I know he has forgiven me. I know that I must meet my own conscience and tell him I am sorry for the way two brothers acted with the other. As far as Ernie, he went Home knowing that he was loved by all the members and that is good. With Mary and Delores, I think they knew that they were loved not only by me but with all the family. We meet road blocks in our narrow paths and we find ways to go around or step over them. We accept the things that come our way or we reject them. Life as we know it is our lives beginning with our mother and dad. What we do with our lives is a reflection of our parents and the work they did to train us and love us. So I say to you out there, love each other. Be aware that each day, you might meet love or hate, be rich or poor, be fed or hungry, be warm or cold, have friends or none, have children or none at all, be ill or well, and still you remember that you are here for a reason, and that is that you were wanted by your Mom and Dad, who loved you very much. As we journey along our paths, we hope for peace in the world and one day find peace in our hearts for those brothers and sisters who are Home with God.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day

I thought that this week, I would take you on a path that I walk each day. Whether you choose to join me is your choice but at least give it a try. I start this off by declaring that I believe in God and I know that He believes in me as he does with all who believe in Him. I have been though my life of 73 years the bearer of pain throughout my body. I have had 2 back surgeries, 1 heart bypass when I had 9 blockages which resulted with 5 bypasses. I have had the back part of my heart opened up by the doctors using a laser to clear the blockages there. I have arthritis almost in every joint in my body. In other words, I ,in my life, has had pain somewhere.

But I decided years ago that pain was not going to rule over my life and so I decided to do something about it. In 1974, I had a visitor in the hospital who told me that meditation was one great way to ward off the pain that I and millions of others have every day of our lives. He told me that I should concentrate on the big toe of my foot on the opposite side of my body that the pain is on. Make your mind think only of that big toe. So I did that for each of the 23 days that I spent in the hospital and it seemed to help me a lot. After 16 months I went back to work at the mill and was able to do my work that was assigned to me.

So in recent years after retiring from the work force, I seemed to be noticing that I had a lot of pain in my body and so I decided to start my meditation again. I would sit in my easy chair ,close my eyes with my hands together on my chest or lap, and concentrate only on what I saw with my eyes closed. Now don’t start laughing until you try it yourself. When you close your eyes and only concentrate with what you see, you will notice a lot of things almost like a wave of little things flying across your vision. I like to think that it is the millions of files that I have stored in my brain. You can think whatever you wish. Well, after concentrating on that vision for several minutes you will start forgetting the pain in the rest of your body. Many times, I fall asleep for several minutes but when I wake, there is no pain and I stay that way for several hours.

What I am trying to say is that you can ease the pain in your body by using the brain that God gave you. In other words, mind over matter. Now as you know, I am not a doctor, nor am I a minister, nor am I a healer. I am a old man who found out that pain can be held off just by using the power of the mind that is in everyone who came into this world through the process of childbirth brought forth by the union of two people in love who have been blessed with the love of God. You, my friends ,who hurt each day, can ease that pain if you want by the use of your mind working it’s passage through your body.

Now I hope that you don’t think that this will cure you of all pain because many times you will need to check it out with a doctor who can through questions and tests, find out why you hurt and do what is needed to take the pain away. My way is only a temporary one and it works on me. Whether it works on you is for you to find out. Fill your mind with other things like hobbies, chores, and exercise. Don’t let pain rule your life. Why do we just sit back and hurt when there might be a way to stop it if for just a little while. I don’t and you shouldn’t either. That’s my opinion.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

You know, writing is both inspiring and also is educational. The spelling of words is corrected when wrong and that helps get it right after a few times. Learning to place the topics properly so as to keep the reader interested sets you up on the next column you write. Making sure that you hold your column to a certain count of words keeps the column from being cut in places, so that the topic does not lose its meaning. Knowing when you have to place a capital on a word so that its meaning is not lost. Knowing when to change paragraphs when you go to a second thought. All of these are things we were taught in school, but many do not use what they learned . Matter of fact, how much of your education do you use in everyday life? Most of us take the short way of expressing our thoughts, counting things and using math in our everyday life. It amazes me as to what I was taught to think, act and reason just in our everyday life. The things that most think they will never use is actually being used by them without  knowing they are. That is what I call great teaching by those teachers in grade school, middle school and high school with college being where one realizes that they remember the basics and that will make them learn better and faster. In other words, the education that started in the first grade was done in a way that each year you added more to your life

By the time you graduate from high school, you know whether you have the smarts to take it all the way to a college and a better life in the business world. Now yes, there are a few who from day one do not want to learn or be taught, but if they just tried to learn a little, the rest would follow because your brain is picking it all up and storing all the information. As we progress each year, we need new thoughts added to what we have been taught. One of the most important things in anyone’s life is the education that they receive and how they use it to further their walk through life as it is and as it will be. Some of the most important people we have are the teachers who live their work every day. We need to make sure that our children get the best education possible and that means we have to have teachers who are willing to teach and children who are willing to learn. It is that simple. We are taught, we learn, and we pass on our learning to our children as to making sure that they attend school and they do their homework. Where would we be without education? Where would all the people in the land be without knowing our math, English, literature, and history? I wonder. People have learned from watching, participating, and asking. But nothing takes the place of a teacher and student working together for the better of that child who one day will grow up and maybe be our president or other high official. Without knowledge you will not know. With knowledge you will grow. How you use the knowledge is up to the individual, because no matter how much he or she is taught, it is up to them as to how they use it to either stand tall or stand down. We here in this great country have many types of history to learn and follow and from the day a child is born, we as Americans should make every attempt to teach them about the past, and the present so that they have a future. This writer had some of the finest teachers to work with us and our parents did their part to make sure we learned as much as possible. I say to all of you young people out there, learn so that you may take the path to success. Don’t give up just because you can. Learn because you can. Take a look at where you are and where you are going.
Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

I haven’t written anything about the steel mill for a while so as I see this cold weather approaching, my thoughts go back to those days when the mill was a very important part of this city and the people who worked there. As a young man who decided to follow in my father’s footsteps, I decided that I would work there at the mill to get the money needed to help pay for my education at Indiana. It wasn’t in my plans to work there for over 31 years but as you worked with those workers at the mill, you were able to brother up with them and it was like a family where all pulled their own weight. Sometimes the workers would come in sick and the rest of the crew sort of took up the slack until that worker felt better. It was common for a steel worker to work while sick because he or she had a family to feed and have warmth for the home. There were times when the boss man would take up the slack long enough for someone to be called and get punched in. Of course there were rules and agreements between the unions and Continental and you made sure you stayed within those rules.

There were times when one or the other would take it a little further, but sooner or later it would be resolved. We did have some renegades hire in who would do all they could to upset one side or the other. One of those men even worked out some deals with companies down south and that resulted in some equipment finding its way out of the mill. All in all, there were enough good people on both sides so that a productive business was getting the job done. That is before we found ourselves looking down the gun barrel of people who took over the operation.

Continental Steel was good for the city of Kokomo, and Kokomo was good for them. Continental Steel made a good product, that was sold across the country and the people who worked there did a great job of making a product that you could trust to be the very best. Nails could be driven through some tough wood and not bend. Try that with the product of today. We made the best roofing stock in the USA, and we shipped billets to several other companies to make their products. You could trust a product made here and have confidence in it being reliable for years. You might say that I am a little prejudice in my thoughts about our steel making and you would be right. I know its been 24 years since that day when we were told of our demise but sometimes I wonder just how much longer we might have been able have a great factory like Continental Steel here in our great city. I drive by that big empty space there on Markland Ave. and I think back to those great days when we had our pride of working at that big company which is no more.

I wonder how long it will be until no one will know that Continental Steel was there. And I wonder if we will go by way of the other factories here in Kokomo, which were here but no one can tell us just where it was. For that reason, I ask that someone take the imitative to put something there like maybe the sign that was over the main gates, down on the grounds so that our grandchildren will be able to look at it and say that my grandpa worked there. I have been told that the sign I mentioned is stored in one of the city buildings just rusting away. Many will look back and proclaim that the steel mill was a very valuable asset to the city of Kokomo but they won’t be able to actually say where it was. That is a sorry thought to have. The history of Continental Steel can be seen at The Howard County Historical Museum for those who want to see those memories. You won’t be sorry you went.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

Each year about this time we look to the ones who try to bring Christmas cheer to not only the children in our area but also to those who reside in the nursing homes, and those who will have no Christmas without help. The lights are on and We Care Park is alive and well. Good people like the Wyant families, and the ones at WWKI who put on their auction every year even though the founders of that We Care program have been called HOME are at it again. We will always remember Dick and Charlie who visited with us over the WWKI Radio station each morning with Mail Call. And Jan who had a heart of gold and who gave her all to help those in need . Those are the pioneers who one day decided to help one family and it grew to thousands. And the people who each year volunteer their time to help We Care set up their auction and ask nothing for doing it . Tammy has moved on but there are still Dave, & Bill there with some new people who are finding out that the city of Kokomo has a heart filled with love for all regardless of their situation.

I have known Mike Wyant for a long time and you won’t find a better person , both in heart and soul. And that wonderful wife of his who sort of stays out of the limelight but is a very important part of the offerings each year. Add to them the Wyant brothers and their families who start each year just taking everything down and then putting it all back up so that on Thanksgiving evening the lights can be turned on. And those volunteers who help them each year because it is in their hearts to do so. There are others in the area of We Care Park who have their displays turned on too. You have to see it to really get the idea of what people with big hearts can do for others without any asking for thanks. These people I speak about are. Angels in waiting, ready to blend the needs of others with the love of Christmas. I really feel proud that I know these good people. The Favors, who for several years have had others who had no food to eat at their tables have given their heart and soul to help in this giving of love at Christmas time. Russ is Home now but his wife still will carry on as long as she can. Bless her heart, and thanks Russ. And who will ever forget about the Goodfellows and the Salvation Army who for years have done their part in bring food and toys to those families who otherwise would not have a Christmas. All of these people I mentioned do this each year and they sure do appreciate any and all the help you can give them.

I guess that is why I am proud to live here in the city of Kokomo. The people here are good people who know what a little cheer can do for a little kid or an older person who has no way of having anything. There is love in the air as the people of Kokomo Indiana start showing why they care. Maybe it is because they came from large families, or maybe they had a Christmas without food or a gift of love. Maybe it is just because they care enough to give all the very best of Christmas to those who need it. So as this season of our Lord comes forth, remember to give thanks to Him and to make His day one of love and thanks for those out there who are not afraid to show their love for those who need it. May your Christmas be one of love, joy, good fortune and family togetherness. And as for this writer, I give my thanks to God for allowing me to live here in the city of Kokomo and also for forgiving me all the things I have done wrong in my lifetime. May each of you be blessed with His Love.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

As time flies by these days for we older folks, I look back to see where I was, compared to where I am now. Coming from a large family with my two favorite people, Mom and Dad, I feel very fortunate to have been born in a time when times were hard yet livable, and when a person’s word was like gold in that you could trust them to keep their word. Families were close back then, even though there would be times when there were dis-agreements between us kids. All we had to do would be to look over at Mom and we knew that we were to get along or Mom would get us together and then let us know we were to honor each others thoughts no matter what we felt about them. And really she knew that a few minutes later we would be out playing not remembering any thing about it. Money in those days not only was paper , gold, or silver but also promises from those grocers who let us buy during the two weeks , then to pay them when the Mill paid their workers. Credit was something you asked for if you really needed something to get by. The people back then tried to always live within their means and unlike today’s charge accounts, the accounts were done in a way that both parties knew that this was the way to go. Many times Mom would patch our clothes because there still was enough to get us by for another few months. Dad always repaired our shoes by putting them on his shoe lathe and put on new soles and heels. It was like getting a new pair of shoes and we were glad to get it. We had Macanaw coats, flannel shirts and long underwear to keep us warm when we went to school or out to play. We heated and cooked with coal and wood. When Mom made popcorn, she made enough to fill a big pan, and we had enough to go around. Ice cream in those days came in long packages and Mom would slice it so that each child had an equal serving. Many times she did without just so that we had a little extra. She was our Angel and mother ready to show her family that she had equal love for all of us.

So that was a little like what it was like and now we look at today. Many families leave their children to care for themselves so that both parents could work a job so that they can live day by day spending the money instead of putting a little away for a rainy day, It did not matter if the children disagreed, and they would have to solve their problems by themselves. That leaves some distance between kids who back in the old days would have been closer. Families eat out more these days and they eat more food. There are no grocery bills as people these days put it on a debit or charge without regard to how it would be paid. If people these days want something they go ahead and get it even though they know they can’t afford it. People want big homes just to impress their friends, even though parts of that home will not be used much. New cars are bought without regard to how they will be paid for and later lose that car because they could not make the payments. We buy televisions for each room of the house and many times have all of them running at the same time. How many families these days eat a meal together, and how much of the food is fast foods? Can we actually say we are better off these days compared to those days of old? In some ways we can, but most of the time we have to admit that the older generation had it so much better , because of the love that parents had for each other and for their children. Can we go back? Not really but we could change the ways we do things today.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

You know, I usually try to mind my own business, but there are things I see, that scares me because of what could happen. I am going to tell you about how I see young children of today and the way that their parents have no control over them. When I go to a game and I see young kids running all over the gym, I wonder why the parent allows this. You can’t sit and watch a game because there are little kids going in front of you and even climbing over you. These are little boys and girls who should be sitting there with the people who brought them. However, the parents are too interested in the game or with visiting with their friends. We always have to tell little kids not to go in front of us because we are there to watch a game. I went down to the rest room the other night and there were little kids in there all alone with no adults in the area and they were flushing all the toilets and laughing about it. Now here is my thought to those parents who don’t know where your children are. What are you going to do if that child gets hurt? I bet that the first ones you want to blame is the school management and you will holler bloody murder if you have to pay for medical bills. Are not those children important to you? Why bring them to the game if you are not going to watch them? Do you expect the schools to baby sit for you? Hey, this is serious and you should know where your child is every minute that you are there at the game. We have a problem in this world that there are molesters out there just waiting for a chance to grab a child and you should be doing everything possible to keep that from happening.

We see the schools having a hard time getting by with less teachers and less money available to give our children an education, and we see law suits by parents because of what might of happened in a locker room or classroom, even though there was no crime committed. Yes, some out there have taken the forbidden step in the things between them and the students. However, you cannot judge all of them by what a few do. This is the same in the things I have brought up. Not all children are doing the things I mentioned. Most of those parents have control of their children and they even escort them to the rest rooms. When I experienced what I have seen, I look up in the crowd and I see nice kids sitting with the parents or with who brought them. However, those small groups of kids who are not watched, as they should be, are learning a bad habit. They are finding out that really they are not loved because if they were, they would be watched all the time by their loving parents. I see what I think is a small stream building into a lake and those kids are drowning unless you, the one that brought them, do the right thing and be a parent. After all, you were entrusted by God to bring the child into this world and you should live up to your responsibilities as a parent.

We are not perfect in all senses of the word but we did watch our children anywhere we went just like if they were at home. So the next time you go to the game, exercise your duty and keep that child within reach, and teach him or her that they have a responsibility to you to stay close by your side. How is that so hard to do? There are those out there who are just waiting to grab one of them and that sure is a scary thing to know. And for those who choose to do so, give the schools a chance to have a safe night of basketball, football, or any other sport. The ball is in your court. Will this open your eyes? Are you even interested?

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

I was asked by a reader to write about my wife’s folks because they have never seen anything about them. So, here we go with what I know and felt about Mom and Pop McKee. I met Ramona on Easter Eve in 1956 while on an outing with 5 couples. We went to The Steak House in Logansport and a few times I caught the eye of a tall brown haired blue eye beauty, and I just could not get her out of my mind for several days. So one day before I went in to work the afternoon shift at the mill, I gave her a call and asked her for a date the next weekend. She said I would have to meet her parents since she was only 17 and coming from a strict family I said that was ok. So the next Saturday, I went to her house and sat down with her Mom and then with Pop when he came home from work.

Mom Sarah was a lovely lady and she smiled a lot. Pop was sort of a person who didn’t say much but when he did, I had an idea of how this thing was going to work out. Ramona and I went on our date and of course, she stayed right up against her door on the passenger side of the car. I had a 46 Dodge and was it a great car. I could drive using a straight stick or I could use fluid drive, and of course we played the radio all the time listening to music out of this world. I think we must of stopped at every eating place that evening, but soon I knew that I was supposed to get this little lady home early if I was going to have another date. We sat in the car in front of her house for a while and then I walked her up to the back door and we kissed and then said our goodbyes.

When we had another date, once again I talked with her mother and father and I felt that they approved of me and that was good. Pop was a sportsman, liking to fish, hunt, and trap. It was nothing to go there and Mom would be cleaning fish, and Pop was skinning pelts off his trappings. Pop said that when Mom went with him fishing, she would row the boat while he did the fishing. I guess she like to do that just because she was with her love of her life. I don’t think she did any skinning of the raccoons, muskrats or any of the other creatures he caught. Mom was a good cook and many times she made something special for me because she knew that I was not a meat eater. She could make the best yeast rolls, and she did a lot of caning of foods from the garden. It was nothing to see her do her caning every chance she had. Pop put out a big garden right next to the house and he always put the remains of his fish and his trapping down in that soil. He had about the best soil I had ever seen. And I came from a family that did a lot of gardening too so I knew my soil.

Well anyway Mom was a diabetic and she had to take her insulin every day. Pop liked  his beer but in later years he decided that beer did not have a place in his life and he gave it up. Mom and Pop had 5 children, and the oldest was Tim who was in the Navy when I first met Ramona. Then there was Ramona, Mary Kay, Fred and Steve. Fred,  one day decided to take up the ministry and a few years later Steve decided to do that too. Mary & Ramona are very close as sisters usually are. I am happy about marrying that tall, thin, blue-eyed beauty and we have been together for almost 54 years. No regrets, no secrets, no going back on our vows. Just two old folks getting by trying to make it last.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

Every year , we start with our usual promises and resolutions for the new year. What I find, at least on my side, it really is a waste of time and it opens you up to the sarcasm of friends and neighbors. I don’t make any new resolutions because it really is hard to keep them as we always pick the ones that involve changing our total lives. But folks, there are resolutions out there which could change the lives of others , like your loved ones. If you are taking hard drugs, make it a point to get off of them before the damage is done to the extent of your being hooked for life. If you smoke, stop it now. Don’t say you are going to quit, just do it now for the same reasons. If you drink and drive, give someone else the keys to your cars and then go off in a corner and thank God that you did that. Stop the drinking too. Don’t say that you will do something unless you really know you can do it. We live in a world of many treasures and promises are not valid unless you know they can be kept.

I am just an ordinary person who tries to get a point across without trying to change another person’s mind. I will not defame anyone saying an untruth about them. I do not pass on information that has not been checked out to see if it is the truth. I don’t envy someone just because he or she has more wealth than I do. And I don’t try to be like the neighbors who are doing the things they want to do. Don’t envy someone, respect them. Don’t say something bad about someone, say something good or don’t say anything at all. Don’t go out and buy something just because someone else has bought it. Chances are that you won’t use it much and that is wasting your money.

Never give information over the phone or by way of the internet, as it can be gotten by others who will use it to steal you blind. Never leave information laying around for others to see if it is about your bank accounts or even your social security. You don’t know just how far someone might go to learn important facts about your life that can be used by those who are part of the scam artists we have close by. These are just things that I try to do to keep my information safe from those who can and will use against me. I am just an ordinary person who believes in good over evil, common sense over the wanting of things I don’t need, and love over hate . Our world today is full of those who want to pull us under and these are the ways that they do it without calling attention to others. We have only one life to live and I try to follow the same path that has for many years been a straight and narrow one. Many times we meet a blockage in our path and we have to decide whether we walk around it, climb over it or detour to another path that seems clear but it might be worse than the one you are on now. Those are decisions that only you and I can make because it is the blueprint of life as you and I will know it and we only have that small bit of time to decide.

 I, in my path will have to maybe decide severable times, whether I am worthy of a straight and narrow path, as there are times when something seems too good to be true but tempting to check it out. I take pride though in knowing that I can not drift off my path, and then get back on when things get better. You choose and you stay on it. That is what an decisive path does for you. It gives you the way to live with rules, with love of your fellow man, and the knowledge of what is at the end of that path one day.

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day

The act of violence in Arizona has gotten me to wonder just what is going on in the minds of those who choose to act out in that shameful way. Has our world gotten so bad that we can’t solve our problems in a peaceful way? Has the American public gone by way of violence over peace and good will? We, in the last few years, have done everything to cause problems instead of sitting down and talking it over. Where has our respect of life gone? We, as Americans, need to sit down and ask these questions to each other and find ways to talk out our problems.

In the recent elections and for two year before, we, the American public, have been subjected to all kinds of hate email, letters, radio and television ads from both parties wanting to be elected to serve us yet they resort to that kind of campaigning without any thought to how some person, who could be mentally imbalanced, would take it one step further. And it is not only the emails, phone calls, TV ads, but also in our personal remarks in our columns. We tend to listen to those radio hosts and believe what they say. What we, the ones who post our weekly columns, need to do is to write in a way to respect others, regardless of what party they are of, what they represent, and how we present our thoughts to others.

That is one reason that I write about the days of old so much, in that back then, a man’s word and his handshake was a bond of promise and security. We, as the ones who ‘s columns are read each week, have the opportunity to spread good will among all of our readers and we should make it a point to not take another person down just because of what he or she wants from their representatives down at the statehouse and in Washington. Those men and women who we elected into office have a commitment to do everything they can to give us our voice in government. If you just take a look at the other countries, you will find their country in dismay with up to ten different groups trying to get power over all people. Having so many different views tends to diminish the chance of democracy being gotten in those countries. Thus you have turmoil and you have deaths as well as a country that cannot stand. You have to have a strong government of the people, by the people and for the people. A country without that cannot stand. It is that simple.

We need to pull our shorts up, roll up our sleeves, and get something done in Washington like it was supposed to be done by those who represented not only you and me but everyone else. We can not continue to bicker with each other when we are supposed to be getting things done right. We can not stand still while the roaches hide in their holes waiting for the right time to stick their head out and infect the America we love. I made a statement several years ago that they lay and wait for us to take ourselves down. Once the seed is planted, they sit back and laugh at us while planning their next move. America is ours to regulate, maintain, respect, and keep strong. We can not do that if we listen to those who would take us down. We need to take charge of our actions and use it to keep this country that I love the greatest country in the world. We need to pull together and do what is right and that is taking our country back. That is the reason that we have two parties and no more so that a compromise in our best interests is gotten and maintained. Don’t divide us, unite us. Can we repair what is broken? Yes we can, and we will. Think America, and preserve it for our children. You know, it just takes a lot of talking and doing to preserve what we had. God Bless America

Ray “Uncle Ray” Day