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 Sometimes I wonder what my next article will be about, because frankly I never know what I will write about until I sit at the computer and start writing. Sometimes it is a subject that one of my readers asks me about, and sometimes it is about a current event. So in my thoughts, there must be someone that is feeding my brain with my thoughts of today. I feel deeply in my heart that "The Great Father" above is sending me a message, telling me what to write about. It just seems to flow as I write it and then after taking a  look at it, and moving a section around to another spot, I find that I have written another article for you to read. I really can't give you any other reason for it, because I haven't taken any classes in writing, nor have I really had the desire before to do so. So, as you read this article that I have for you today, be aware that it comes straight from this old man's heart ,with the source being whatever He wants me to write about.

There is one thing that I have had training in and so my  thoughts today, deal with what I do each day at my job, and how I go about it. Being in sales, I meet a lot of people and I get to talk with them about what is going on in their lives and in mine too. Many of my customers come back and ask  for me personnaly, because they know about me and what I stand for. I won't sell a customer something without finding out what he or she wants to do with it. Then I try to find out what other tools they have to go with it. In other words, I try to qualify that customer to what he or she needs according to what I have to offer them . I won't lie to them, nor will I try to sell them them with lots of promises about what that particular item will do for them. In other words I won't sell  just to be selling. That is because of my training both at home and at the job.

That customer, who walks through that door is there for you to assist, and he or she expects to be greeted as soon as they enter. Sometimes they will only want to look around, but sometimes they know what they want, and they want to get in and out as soon as you can get to them. But you, as the person that they look for, needs to let them know right away that you know that they are there, and that you will get to them as soon as possible. Respect that customer's privacy, and let him or her look around to see all the new items you have. Remember that the customer most of the time is there to check out what you have, so that they can let thier loved one know what they want for that special day in thier life. If they know what they want and are ready to pay for it and go, then take care of them and get them on thier way. Remember that thier time is just as important as yours. If they ask for advice, give it to them as per the experience you have with the product. Never tell them anything that you really don't know to be true. If you can't answer thier question, tell them that you will find out and let them know. If there is someone else there that can answer the question, go to that person and ask for help. The customer will respect you more for doing that. That is what I call "taking care of the customer".

There are many things that I, as a salesman, do not know about what to do with a certain tool or how to do a certain project, but I keep notes and when one of my older customers or one of my friends in construction come in, I sort of have ways of getting knowledge from them that I can relay on to the other customers. In other words, my customers help me sell to my other customers. Knowledge is only wothwhile  if you use it. Asking for that knowledge is another story. Make sure that the person that you are asking, really knows what he is talking about. Remember that once you pass this information on to the other customer, you are responsible for it.

I must say that I am really proud of the customers that I have had in the fifteen years that I have been in sales. There are many out there who started with the idea of it being a hobby and they are doing it as a vocation now. They are either making money for themselves or are using thier skills to make items for "We Care", and for that I am proud to say that I was a part of it. One such gentleman who built some wooden trucks and bulldozers and helped "We Care" with it as well as selling in several states is no longer with us, but I know that he will always be looking at us from his place with "The Great Father", with love for his fellow man. Another, who takes his time each year to donate his product to" We Care", does it out of his love for his fellow man too. So George and Kenny, I take my hat off to both of you for doing what you do each year. Giving to help another is a way of doing the work that The Great Father sent you here to do.

Now getting back to selling, the only thing left to say is this. Be honest with that customer. Be courtious with them, even though they might be going through a rough day. Protect thier privacy, by letting them know that it is ok to look around.. Be there to answer any question, regardless of what that question is. Remember that no question is silly. If they didn't need to know, they wouldn't be asking. Do what you would want a salesman do to you. Success in any job depends on your honesty and your sincerity. I wrote this because I know that with the present working conditions here in our city, there are those who will be taking new jobs in sales and I hope that the words I brought you today helps.

Until the next visit or until the next message is relayed to me by The Great Father, I bid you so long with this thought. Don't let any chance at life go by, for what if tomorrow never comes. Think about that until we visit once again. Uncle Ray

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day-----

Memories are to me, like gold was to Midas. As long as I have my memories and I have the chance to share them with you, as part of the older generation and of the younger generation, I have my gold. For many of you, these memories will bring back thoughts of what you went through in the olden days, and how you as a survivor came through it. For the younger generation, there will be thoughts of how much of it is true and how much is just an old man's version of his life. Well, let me tell you this, my young friends, what I say in this column is the truth, and I am a survivor from the days of old ,that has seen a big change between those days and today. If you, as a youngster, just take the time to ask those who are still here, how it really was in the days of old, before they and I leave this earth to be with "The Great Father", you will be enriched with history that has not been printed in any book.

Memories are a history of what each person went through in thier early lives, and many times the memory is only in that person's memory bank. Sometimes some of these memories are written in the family bible, or are on pieces of paper which are laid to the side only to be found years later , by those who are left behind. Upon reading these notes, you wonder why they didn't  tell you about this. And so this sort of gets you wondering just how much you don't know about that person ,or how hard it was for that loved one to get by.

The best way to know how it was, is to ask about it. And you need to know now, instead of waiting until we are gone before asking. The history of our government and of famous people has been written for all to read, but the history of those in our personal lives is transmitted to us either by mouth ,or by some notes scribbled on paper, not knowing if they will ever be read. That is where you, as the person of today, can make sure that the history of your family lives on. Do some research, ask questions of those folks who have been there , and write it down in places where you know that it will be preserved, so that the youngsters of tomorrow will have the facts of what it was in the days of old.

Thinking back to my days of old, I remember how there were different kinds of great tasting and smelling foods in Kokomo. Of couse in my mind, the best cook in the whole world was my mother. And just about everyone else my age will say the same same about thier mothers. And they should ,because each and everyone of us had mothers who loved us and took us under thier wings , nurtured us, sort of spoiled us with thier love, and who personally fixed food that they knew was good for us. How many times have you gone home to see your mother and dad, and have gone to the fridge to see if there was some of mom's good cooking there for you to savor? My mother and father  have gone to be with The Great Father, but the memories are still with me. Bless thier hearts for taking care of us all and doing without ,so that we could survive to be able to give you , the youngsters of today, a sample of what it was  to be part of the life in the days of old.

Now, to go to the taste and smells of yesterday, how many can forget the smell coming from the bread factory uptown. You could smell the bread's aroma, and if you could put on weight from just the smell, we would all be larger than life? How about the donut shop on Washington Street? Man, those donuts would sort of melt in your hands, and they would fill your bellies just as well. There was a place on Markland Ave that had baked hamburgers, that were really fit for a king. And how about the coneys that you could get on Union Street? He would line those buns all the way up his arm and fill them with those weiners, top them off with what ever you wanted on them, and send you off with some of the greatest food around. Dad always wanted his with lots of onions and relesh . Boy, he could  put them away, but only after he made sure that we got ours. Out on Markland Ave, you could get get probaly the largest tenderlions around and on south Union Street, you could get the best tenderlions as well as other short order foods that you needed during your stopover in south Kokomo. Of course, the place on Buckeye Street put out the greatest hamburgers and fries at a very low price, and the pickles there came out of a big barrell in the back. Go to the place on the corner of Walnut and Main, and you could get the biggest bag of popcorn around. Go north to the corner of Taylor and Main, and there was a wagon that sold bags of popcorn and bags of peanuts that were the best around. Up north of there about two blocks, there was a diner car that served some great food.

As time changed, so did the places that I mentioned before. There isn't too many of those places left as the people who ran them have taken their place with The Great Father, but there are a few. As time proceeds into the future, we wonder if the memories of these places will be preserved or will they only fade away? As you noticed as I wrote this article, I didn't say the names of those places that are part of my memory. I leave that up to you to dip down into your memory bank and bring out those memories. I leave it up to you to use those memories to let our young children know about the past. I also say to you to use your memory bank each day of your life here on earth, so that your brain does not lose it's power to store those memories. The brain is a wonderful thing given to us by The Great Father, and it isn't there to just dry up . You need to fill it up with all the facts that you can come across. They say that there are genius out there that can possibly be before their time, but my thought on that is that those people are using their brains to the best of their ability and that they are doing with it as The Great Father wanted them to.

So it is up to you out there , whether you want to leave some great memories for your grandchildren. You can forget the past and live on into the future, or you can relay the memories of the past so that the future knows what their next step is. As I have said many times , you have to look back once in awhile to see where you have been, before you know where you are going. Until the next time when we will visit, I leave you with one more thought."Be thankful for the difficult times. During those times, you grow." Think about it. See you later my friends.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day--
 
 

But what has gone wrong with what we as citizens of the greatest country, have thought was ours to have without fear of it being taken away from us? Let me tell you what has happened. We are sitting on our backsides while the scum of the earth are tryng to take us down. We are allowing those who are offended by all that is right , to attack us in the very place that has been part of the roots of our government. I am speaking about THE TEN COMMANDMENTS, and yes, I am very mad. As a matter of fact, I am disgusted with our courts who are being used as pawns, by that terrible scum of the land. They are representing them against all the rest of the people. Isn't it sort of odd that we don't hear the names of that scum, who are being represented by a group of lawyers who were banded together to protect us.? The scum of the land who are always trying to make us take the TEN COMMANDMENTS off of public ground and out of our government offices are only pawns in the hands of those forces that want to see this country fail. If you know anything about taking a big building down , you know that to do it you start eating away at the bottom roots and soon it will come crumbling down.
That, my friends, is what is happening  to all of us  now. We are being uprooted and we could fall, if we don't stop it now. The very idea of taking down THE TEN COMMANDMENT's structure to appease a few is hard for this old man to take. If they don't want to see it, then they should look the other way. For that small group of misfits to take away our right to have THE TEN COMMANDMENTS placed in our public grounds, it tells me that we need to bond together and tell them that we are not going to take it anymore. If they, as a group feel the way they do, then let's deport their sorry behinds to one of those countries that will not take their efforts to destroy what is good. To use the reason of separation of church and state, to try to make their goal of taking down the sructures, makes me really mad. These creeps are of the lowest of the land and they will always be hiding under some crack waiting to make thier move to take this great country down. What do we as Americans do about it.?
If the Supreme Court, whose building has the TEN COMMANDMENTS posted , does not back us up, then maybe we as Americans need to find our own ways to protect one of history's greatest set of rules. That in itself is one answer. THE TEN COMMANDMENTS is part of our history and thus is of historical background. That should qualify it as a historical object and thus should be protected as such. Another idea is that community standards in each town and city should be revised and have the laws of each town and city to include THE TEN COMMANDMENTS as part of our heritage and thus not be subject to someone being able to tear it down. In another sense, what about what another city has done , where they have made efforts to post THE TEN COMMANDMENTS in thier front yards. There are many ways that we can protect our rights of having  that wonderful set of rules posted , without fearing that the roaches and their lawyers will tear it down.
As you know, I really don't like to fight, but sometimes we have to stop turning the other cheek and start stomping what is wrong. To sit back and let the supreme court and those filthy roaches take us down by digging at our roots, would be to admit to the world that we are afraid to fight. To stand up to them and say that they are not going to push us around anymore would be my idea of saying thanks to all those who have fought and died to keep this country safe and free of those who would take us down.
As always, this is of my opinion only and not neccessarily that of the newspaper who allows me to visit with you each week. Although I know that are many out there who agree with me, I make this statement because I am tired of being pushed around by those who want to destroy my country by digging out our roots.
I hope that you out there will get on the bandwagon and start making some noise about how you feel about the taking down of what I know to be one of the best set of guide rules ever posted. Let me know by e-mail and let the Tribune know too. It was great once more for you to allow me to visit with you, and I thank you for the time. You can e-mail me at uncleray@writeme.com, and catch my web page at www.geocities.com/kokomoman/
 See you later and GOD BLESS.             Ray "Uncle Ray" Day
 
 

I was asked to give my thoughts on class basketball, by one of my readers who played a few years back,  and who has a son and daughter who soon will be playing the sport. So as usual, this old man will give his opinion only on this subject. Whether you agree with me is up to you.

I used to be a great basketball fan. I wanted at one time in my life to be a star on a team, and get raves from the sports writers. I guess that is in a lot of young peoples' minds, as they grow up in a sort of a fairy-tale , live while you are young,  take all the thrills of  life attitude, while watching those stars you want to be like.  But as you grow older, you are content with following a favorite team, and you are content with savoring the accolades that that team is recieving from the press and the coaches. You are content with being a part of that team's cheering block and you can sit there and be an armchair member of that team. You want them to go as far as they can, and you hurt a lot when they lose. Such is the way that a loyal backer of any sport should be. That is you out there on the floor in your mind, and you sort of dream up plays that you thought would of worked. Well, that is until sports started changing to benefit a few and not the whole lot.

We,  in Indiana, had a system that was a one of a kind, because the other states had adopted a new system called class basketball. You would devide the teams up into was thought to be equal for all. In other words, you told those kids that they were not good enough to compete with the big schools. You told them that to try to compete with the larger schools, would be to end up losers. You told them that they were inferior to the larger schools because they had more to choose from. Yes , I am telling those who voted for class sports , that you put your kids on a lower platform in sports. What does that end up telling those kids? It tells them that you don't think that they can excell in sports with the big schools, and so that tells them also that to compete with them in life later on would only end in defeat. Stay in your class so that you can compete at a lower level later on. Oh yes, as you read this, and you are the ones who voted this way, you say to yourself, did we do wrong. Yes you did, because you took what was a great system , and you turned it into class sports.

Have you ever looked back and see the kids who came from little schools, who went on to college to play basketball, and excelled in thier sport? There were many, because they believed they could compete with anyone. Many of the schools were noticed because they played in the greatest tournament in the world ,called  the Indiana State Finals. It is no more, because a group of five men who were not Hoosiers all thier lives, decided to do things thier way. No more is the single state champion, who went into the memory banks of all the youngsters growing up. No more is the stigma of being a giant killer. The bragging rights of those who played in the finals are limited ,because not too many remember who won last year except the top class. Will it ever go back to the way it was. As a graduate of a small school, who thought they could beat anyone on a certain day, I hope so. But as one, who as a follower of our beloved Kats, I don't think it is possible. If you watched the games in the gym, you noticed that the crowds keep getting smaller. The gusto has gone by the wayside, and even the parents of the players seem to lose interest. Oh, by the way, it seems like only yesterday that the kids out there on the floor were wearing basketball shorts instead of the "bloomers" that they are wearing now.

As time goes by, how will the schools be able to continue to pay the expense of going many more miles to play?   If the fans don't come, the money will not be there. There are only a few of the loyal fans coming to the games and many of them are the ones, that like myself have been following the teams for thirty or more years. The only thing available is what either is donated to the schools, what they can make off concessions, and the fans who walk through those doors to watch the cheapest intertainment around.

We owe those kids out there on the floor who are representing thier schools a loyal backing. It doesn't matter who the school is, but it does matter how you back them. Let those boys and girls out there  on the floor know that you believe in them and you know they can win, regardless who they are playing. We here in Kokomo, were blessed with watching what I thought was the best girls' team in the state, and next year , The Good Lord willing, I will be watching them from my same seat  as I have had these many years. The boys' team with our new coach will be exciting to watch and look for them to have a great season too.

As for all the teams in our area, I look for excellence on the playing floor by all of them, because they all are in one class of Indiana basketball. We might of been taken by five men and split up to suit thier tastes but they didn't take away the desire of any one player who thinks and knows that on any given night, he can be the best. So when it comes time to watch your son and daughter, nephew or neice, or any other member of your family as well as the neighbors' child in sports, go watch them and cheer them on. Give them that spark that tells them that they can compete. Sports, if it is done right ,can elevate a youngster's desire to reach for the top in anything he or she does.

When I was a little boy, it was a dream to be like a great sports star, and there were role models out there that you wanted to be like. As I grew older, the role models started to go down in numbers, and my thoughts were at a standstill as I wanted to do it all and I didn't know which sport to concentrate on. I met a man at Carver Center right after it started by the name of Mr. Bowman, and later a player by the name of "Jumping " Johnny Wilson, who both told me that to be able to do it , you had to try to do it. Nothing is too hard to do if you only try. You are only as good as you try to be. Those two men were very smart men and thier message was inspiring. So what I am trying to get across to all of those youngsters out there is this. Don't let someone else put you in a class. You put yourself in a class that you know you can compete in.  As far as I am concerned, all you have to do is to try. Take care out there and thanks for allowing me to visit with you this week. And oh by the way, I want to address this to those five non-Hoosiers, who changed our sport  for the worst; "shame on you".

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day
 
 

My thoughts these days relate to the sadness that is going across this great world that  The Creator gave us to live in peace and harmony, during our short stay. Each day, as I read the news or as I watch the television, I am saddened by the violence that is spreading from city to city. And I wonder just how far is it going to go before it is stopped? Is there an answer out there that we are not paying attention to? Are we doing the best we can to slow this problem or to stop it in it's tracks?
I sit and I listen to the many people out there that are supposed to have the knowledge and the skills to stop the problem and all I hear is a simple excuse that it either is a bullying problem in the schools, or it is a teacher stepping out of bounds with a student, or it is the undue force by our officers who are using it without just cause. None of these answers, which are being given by those who get paid good money to feed us these excuses, will get to first base with this old man. I have been in this world for three score and four years and I have seen and heard it all. It is time that we stop paying these so-called experts the good money and start using good common sense to deal with these problems.

There have been bullies since the days of Jesus, and we have found the answers to bring them down. Take the bully and put him away for awhile and he might slowly turn into someone who can be a friend. Give the teacher in the schools more authority to deal with the problems, by taking off the chains that hold him back, and then back him up, and things can only be for the better. Stop getting on the backs of the officers out there that are doing thier jobs of protecting you, by taking off the streets those people who are breaking the law. Start backing up your police and give them praise instead of  trying to run them down. And start doing what we should of been doing since the late sixties. You ask what is he talking about? Well here it is in a nutshell, and remember that this is my opinion and not that of anyone else including any of those groups out there that are waiting to pounce on us as soon as we are down. I get really mad when I think how we have just sat back and allowed the violence to begin and escalate.

How many times have you turned on the television and the first thing you hear is profanity? How many times have you turned it on to suddenly be looking at a scene of nudity? How many times have you just set there and watched  the show without turning to another channel ?  How many times have you allowed your youngsters to stay in the room and be witness to what is being shown on the screen? You don't have to answer, because it has happened several times and we just turn our heads instead of doing something about it. How about all the violence on the screen that those youngsters see every day and it gets planted in their minds as just being a fact of life ?  . Wrong ,my friends, because that seed has been planted, and one day the seed will sprout into what we are seeing in the schools today. Another thing to look at is the type of music that these youngsters are listening to, while they have those muffs on their ears. Have you ever just listen to some of those songs that keep repeating the same line over and over again? While we are hearing that one line , they, with thier ear muffs, are listening to a whole new line of hipnotic messages that are slowing seeping into the brains of these fine youngsters who one day will use what they heard, to do violence such as what we are seeing now, in the shootings at school. It doesn't take anyone  with any common sense to realize that we need to do something now.

Anyone who knows me will attest to the fact that I am not a radical person. I try to disect a problem to see all the factors that it is made up of. So while we know that it has to stop, we let the problem alone with the idea that it will work itself out. Wrong again my friends, because we have a war out there that needs to be brought to an abrupt end. We need to find that one answer to this problem and we need to delete it from it's very existant. Do we allow it to continue until the courts do something about it, or do we start doing it on our own? Those kids out there are our survival, because soon they will be the leaders in our nation, and we need to send them a message that we need them and that we want them to clean up thier acts now before it is too late.

As you read this article, you probaby get the impression that Uncle Ray doesn't like the young people because he is getting old, and they are staying young. Wrong again my friends, because Uncle Ray loves everyone and especially the yougsters , and I want to see them excell in life instead of throwing it away. That is why I stress the fact that I grew up in a time when nothing came easy and respect, honesty, loyalty, and love of your fellow man, was just part of life as I knew it. If  I, as a writer of this column ,  am able to turn one life around through my writings, then I have reached my goal. If  I  am able to also get the generations of life to remember how it was in thier lives, so that they can use it as a means to make this world a better one, then I am happy with that. If  I have ever written or said anything that has caused someone to be hurt, then I am sorry about that. Someone once said that to be able to please everyone is probaly impossible, but you do what you can and you go along with life. To live life without trying to make it better would be a waste, but to live life in it's fullest would be the best.

Until the next time when you invite me into your home by opening up this paper, I bid you God Bless. and I hope that I have made your day.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day

On my road of life, I have been witness to happiness and to sadness, but I travel the road with my head held high, in hopes that someday that road will end at the steps of Heaven, where I will be judged as to whether I have enough to enter The Gates of Heaven. Only one can do that judging and that is The Great Father. Whether I am worthy of his praise, or if I am not, He will be the one to say. So as I live here in this great place that He built, I try not to do any judging of my own. That is a very hard thing to do as there are many situations that require some judgment on my and others part in order to keep this great land stable until that day when it is time for me to stop worrying about what others are doing, and just go on home. People who know me will say that I am one who does not belong to any one group as to church and as to belief. I believe in the theory that if you believe and if you do the best that you can while you are here, and you help each other in thier time of need, then you get the chance to stand before Him for judgement. So what this old man is about to say will make you wonder if I am talking out of both sides of my mouth, and if I know what I am talking about. That is well and good because it is time to say what I have to say while I am still here.
I was raised by two great people who loved me very much as they did with each and every member of thier family. I was taught that to steal was wrong and that talking against someone was wrong. I was taught that everyone was equal regardless of race or religion. I was taught also that when you promised to do something, it was to be done, no matter how difficult it was. I was taught that loyalty to your family and to your country and to your GOD was the number one thing to always remember to do.

This leads me into my first judgement of which I feel is important to say. When someone recieves an offer of a scholarship to a college because of him or her being an exceptional ball player, and he or she commits themself to that college, then he or she should follow through on that promise. That is what I call being loyal to your committment. It seems like in the last twenty years, the smell and sight of money has turned the heads of those young men and women , and they jump at the chance of being a professional sports star. Where is that loyalty to the school that overlooked someone else in order to get a rising young star.?  Where is the loyalty to the parents and to the former coaches that wanted the best in education for that young man or women? We saw this happen many times this year as there were many who turned thier back on those who helped them get to a college. One such man from Marion could of waited and matured a lot more while getting an education that will take care of him in his later years after he leaves the sport. Look at the two young men who went right out of high school in the Pacer organization. They were not committed to any college but they could of been if they wanted it. What most young people need to realize is that the money will always be there but you neec to get that higher education first.

An example of the high money stakes in professional sports is what you see and read in the papers , and on television. Many men and women, once they get the feel of being rich , are not equiped with enough good comman sence to save it. They go on dope, drinking , associating with the wrong people, and thier lives are ruined because they didn't have enough good comman sence to think it out first. And because of what they have done with thier lives, others are affected too. Think how the parents feel about thier loved one ruining his or her life. Think about that student who could of been able to go to college on the scholarship that the other wasted. Was he able to go or did he take a back seat in life because he wasn't able to further his education.

I try not to look at others and say that they should of done differently. What I do try do is to think about the one that got away, who with that chance of a higher education, might of been the one who found the answer to cancer or to other things that would of benefited all of us. What those young people learn when they get that much needed form of higher education, we will benefit greatly. What those who turned thier back on higher education in order to make that big bucks in pro sports,did was to limit thier loyalty and thier respect for all that is good in this world For the youngsters of today to fill thier brains with the dope bought with the get rich money of pro sports, instead of knowledge needed by all of us, I can only hope that they wake up fast. There is a reason why that stuff is called dope, and that is because only dopes use it.

So I guess maybe I have passed some judgement on others, but someone has to do it, and just maybe there is a few youngsters out there that will think this old man is cool with his thoughts. Just maybe I might turn someone around and he or she will take the road to using good comman sense while here on this place we call earth. Whether I got to first base with anyone , I know that the road of life is not always an easy one with all its holes and detours, and blockages, but then life wasn't meant to be easy. Somone once said that you can walk in circles and never get anywhere, until you find that spot where the door opens, and opportunity stares you in the face. Think about that until next week when I hope you will invite me in to visit with you.
Ray "UNCLE RAY" Day

Why is it that laughter isn't around much? In my time, we were always ready to pull something on someone else, and have fun at doing it. That set that person up to trying to figure out what he or she could do to get back at you. and it wasn't just the kids doing it, because Mom and Dad wanted some fun too. You never did anything to hurt someone, so you had to think up some sort of a trick or story just enough to fool the other person. After a person was treated to whatever we pulled on him or her, he or she was in for a few days of joking about it, until he or she came up with a trick or joke of thier own.

You just don't see any of that anymore. If you pull something on someone, the first thing they want to do is have the police on you, or sue you. Where did the fun go? Where did the thrill of fooling someone go?  Did we just grow too old to enjoy ourselves anymore?  Did we decide to turn our lips upside down from that grin to a frown?   Or is it just time passing us by? Well, here we go with why something is or it isn't.

First off ,we are living in a fast-paced world, where there just isn't any time to start off the day with a good hot breakfast. Either you don't have time ,or you are told that certain foods are no longer any good for you . Take the idea of food not being any good for you, and disect where that came from, and who is telling us that. From the early days of our lives, we are told and instucted to eat three meals a day starting off with a hot breakfast. Then as we grow older and our bodies get a little out of shape, and our bodies get weak, they use the reason that we are eating the wrong type of food and we don't exercise enough. Well , wake up  people, because without starting off that day without the energy derived from that breakfast, you won't feel like exercising. And you've started off the day in a bad mood.

Then we sit in front of the big tube watching all the soap operas and the game shows, and we live the parts of those actors , and we get depressed, and so we sit there eating small snacks that keep getting bigger and bigger all day. Now we are not only in a bad mood but we are depressed too. Then we go to the news on the television and we read the newspapers, and all we hear is that there are people getting killed, assaulted, and robbed, along with the widespread use of drugs by all those "dopes" out there. Boy, we really are in a bad mood and we really are depressed and now we are afraid to leave our homes because of all the trouble out there.

And we ask why don't we have fun anymore. Whatever the answer is , I can't tell you, but I will tell you what I do . First off, I eat what I want because my body will tell me if it is harmful to me. Being a heart patient, I know what my limits are and I follow through on that. I don't watch those silly soap operas, although I have always been a wrestling fan and anymore that is the same as the soap operas.  I don't get depressed because I have found out that it does not get you anywhere and if you learn to control  your self without the use of the drugs prescribed by those who are treating you, and who really don't live with you each day, so there is no way that they really know how you feel, you are so much better off. No one knows any better how you feel but you yourself. And if you use the gift of that brain that The Great Father gave each of us, you can control how you feel.

As to the news on the tube, I am one of those people who believe only what I see and very little of what I hear. Naturally I would be a bad juror because unless I actually saw what another person did, I could not pass any judgement on him or her. And I guess that I would be a poor representative in Congress because I wouldn't back up another's views just to get on friendly terms with them. and I sure wouldn't be any good at being president because I would tell those who were not there to represent the people who voted for them, that they lose their droppings elsewhere.

And last but surely not least, I won't take any drugs not prescibed by a reputable doctor that I trust. It is my body and my mind that I have to take care of and the same goes for each and every one of us. You decide for yourself as to how you feel. You start off the morning feeling good enough to smile, and you pass it on to the next person you meet. Then it's up to him and whomever he or she meets as to how they pass it on. You started it off with a happy note and that is all that counts. You are happy and I know that somewhere down the line someone else is too.

Use the training that you recieved while growing up in using good comman sense as you meet all those headaches head on, and you can't go wrong. The rule is to be happy at what you do each day, and don't let the problems of life grow so large that you can't get through that day. Each morning I thank The Great Father for allowing me one more day and I ask for guiudance from HIM, and that night as I lie down to rest, I thank HIM for letting me get through that day. Will HE give me another day? I have to wake up the next morning to find out. Pretty simple isn't it. As always it has been my pleasure to enter your homes with another visit from Uncle Ray who loves all of you very much.

You can reach me at my e-mail address of uncleray@writeme.com and catch all my writings at www.geocities.com/kokomoman/  GOD BLESS

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day

I like to write about the old days, because it is what I am about. In all of my sixty-fours years on this beautiful land created by The Great Father, I have been a loner. By that I am telling you that I have always treasured my time alone, doing those things that I like to do, instead of being in a group doing the things that they want me to do. Of course, the time that I lived at home and the forty-four years of married and family life does not fall in this catagory. Now you are reading this over again, and you are saying that this old man is crazy and is talking out of both sides of his mouth. You are wondering how I can be a loner yet love his growing up years and his marriage and family at the same time. Well, you might be right on half of that , but let me explain to you what I really mean to say.

Growing up in a family of fourteen kids, I had the same chores to do as did most of the kids my age  in thier family. I did my homework, I listened to the radio, and I watched television when we finally got a tv. And we kids were always playing some game like" Hide and Seek", "Captain May I", "Kick The Can", and baseball and all the other sports. And the topper on all that fun was listening to Mom as she told us stories, and she played the piano. And now you are thinking about when did he get some time alone. Well, there wasn't too much time to be by myself, but there was some. I used that time to draw on the walls of my bedroom. I was a pretty good artist in my young days and no one except Mom had seen these drawings. She never said anything about it, and one day she told me that I was a good drawer, and that it was our little secret, because if Dad ever saw it, he might be mad at me for marking up the walls. Well, I guess that Dad knew about it , and he kept the secret too. That was the way that our mother and father were to us kids. They had secrets with each of us and that was thier little bond with each child. And so you know why I say that I am a loner, because that puts me back in time to be with my Mom and Dad, if only in memory.

And my life with Ramona and our two daughters Deborah and Patricia, has been a blessing given to me by The Great Father, and the time that we spent together and are still spending together is all I need in this life. I don't belong to any organization or any group that would dominate my life following those rules set down by that group. I value my family time and I value my time alone. To be able to work in the garden, or to work in my woodworking , or just to sit down and watch the world go by , is very satisfying to me. To be able to stop the world in my mind for just a few minutes, tends to heal my pains and it gives me that little thought that it is just me left here on this earth, and that I don't have to answer to anyone except The Great Father himself.

Well now your thoughts have gone from this old man being crazy, to thoughts of where is he going with this article. And again you might be  right to some extent. What I am trying to bring forth into your thoughts is that we as indivduals do not have much alone time. We don't get off to ourselves enough and spend time with nature, and with the Creator. I sure would like to have more time to do so, but we live in a world where time does not stand still and our families and our jobs take up just about all the time we have. So where does that leave me in my alone time? Let me tell you where. Driving to work each day all alone in the car, or taking a shower all alone in the bathroom, or that few minutes just before you fall asleep, can be your alone time. It is mine, and while you say that it isn't much, it can be an eternity. There is time in yours and my time to be alone, but each of us will find it in a different way.

I have found through all my times of sickness, lost of my parents, and of my daughter, that only I and no one else can heal the hurt. There are times when the help from those good friends is needed and accepted in order to help heal the pain. But there are times when you and I need to just get off by ourselves and have a good cry and get all that mixed-up feelings out of our bodies. And then we go on with our lives. The Great Father never promised an easy life, but He did pave the road for us to follow. Whether we walk the walk his way or our own depends on how we decide to live. I am not a perfect person, nor is anyone else, but we can be close. I do it my way which I feel will get me to the gates, and then we do it His way. But even though I like to be alone, I cherish the life that has been placed before me. I love my wife Ramona and my daughter Deborah, and I miss my daughter Patricia. I love all my family and my wife's family and I wouldn't want to be without them.

And so as you read and you think what is this guy talking about, it is this. Cherish what The Great Father has given you in the way of a family. Cherish each person you meet and cherish that little time by yourself. Make the most out of a little, and prepare yourself to meet The Creator in your way, and not that of others. You are the one that will be there, and you are the one to answer for your life. May each day of your lives be enriched with one minute of being alone. Thanks for inviting me in to visit with you this week.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day

In my lifetime so far, I have come across a lot of people who have made an impression on me. In my early school days at Kokomo High School, I like many others, were able to meet and learn from a teacher, coach, and friend by the name of  Joe Platt.  Mr Platt was the coach of the Kokomo Wildkats and he did the job well. He was a man who did his teaching in the practice gym and then he watched and graded his players while they did thier job on the floor. Mr. Platt was a very sensitive man with compassion for all those around him. I met his wife the other day in the doctor's office, and we were able to talk for a few minutes about her late husband. I told her that Joe was a credit to the game of basketball and a great person all around. Mr. Joe Platt was and still is an inspiration to me.

Another man who made an impression on me, was Don Trobaugh. He had an insurance office across from Central School and he was a fine man who loved his fellow man and he was and still is a fine person to know. Don never knew an enemy that I know of, and at one time he owned just about the whole block where his home still is and where the Post Office stands now. To the left of his home there used to be the Packard dealership, which is gone now but still in my and others memories. Many times we sat on the steps of his home and office while waiting for the school bell to ring. He is up there in the nineties, but still very aware of everything going on around him. I am very proud to call him an inspiration as well as a friend.

A man known all over Kokomo for his dedication to youth baseball was Wesley Byars, known to most of us as "Circus John" Here was a man who had nothing but still had a lot. His love for the youth and for baseball was overwhelming, and a lot of fine men in this county played under the watchfull eye of "Circus John". "Old Circ" knew what it took to wake the youth up and to get them to do something with thier lives. He was a honest man who wasn't afraid to ask for donations to further the education of his players. There were many business men in this city that took the call of "Circus John" and helped the progress of the youth of the day. I really feel that knowing this man helped me as well as many of our leaders of today.

There are many more people that I could name that impressed me in my younger days in Kokomo, but when we moved out to New London in 1953, I was able to meet more people that have left an interlasting impression on me. I started at Western High School and that is where I met a man who to this day has impressed me, and that my friends, is Mr Richard R Rea. He was the principal there and he was a  man of dedication, compassion, authority, and love for his fellow man. There were times while I was there that he sat me down and told me what he expected out of me and out of all the students under him. Here was a man that you learned to love , respect and follow. We still see Mr. Rea at our class dinners and he is an author of a book about his days at Western and in Howard County.

And so as I speak and write about those fine men , who along with my parents, made a lasting impression on me, I think back to the other day when I met and talked to a man who has no home, and no way of getting around because he has no car, only the clothes on his back and in a battered suitcase. He asked for a handout and I gave him a couple of dollars, and he said that was enough to get him by until his next stop . I asked him where he was from and where he was going and his answer to both was that he didn't know. He said that a few years ago he was working and everything was fine with his wife and kids, but suddenly everything started falling apart. He drank himself out of a job and his wife divorced him and left with the kids and he hasn't heard from them since. He said that he was tired of being only a number in the system and he gave up on life and started walking to where-ever his legs and feet will take him.

I asked him if he tried to find help and he said the Missions in the towns that he went through always had thier doors open and they gave him a bed and warm food. He said that he did not want to stay in any one place too long, because he didn't want to burden anyone , and he didn't want anyone to try and change him. He told me that people like myself are willing to help with a few dollars, and not ask too many questions. I told him that I don't usually give to people that don't deserve it but that something told me that this poor man had a reason for being there at that particular spot, and that I was happy that he took the time to talk with me. I gave him my card and I told that someday he will wake up to a bright sunny day and he will be ready to walk a different road. He thanked me and he walked away. He never told me his name and I didn't ask for it. Will I ever see this man again? I probaly won't, but,  something in my heart says that this man will suddenly turn his life around and he will find his family and he will find peace in this land. That , my friends is what I call faith in my fellow man. Also the other day, while working in the store, I was talking to a friend that had cancer and he was saying that he was going to have some radiation done and I told him to keep a positive outlook and he will be fine. I then went to the next customer and said that I was just talking to a man about his cancer. It turned out that the customer also was going through a bout with cancer and that the doctors told him that God was looking out for him. I feel that The Great Father sent both of these men to me not only to help them but to help myself. Both of these men are in my prayers each night to get well and be able to go on with an abundant life.

No river is too deep to swim, no mountain is too high to climb, and no cause is too great to further. You have got to find those people that will make an impression on you so great that it will cause you to go that one more step in life so that you can impress someone else. It is a shame that things happen to people that changes the road they are traveling on, but it is a bigger shame for that person not to try and continue on his original path. To meet a detour only means that you either move it or go around it . To stop because something is holding you back, is to say that it wasn't worthwhile in the first place.

So to end our little visit today, let us start with this as our beginning, and nothing as our ending. In other words there is always a beginning to anything. Whether we want an ending depends on us alone. There are many paths for us to travel on , and there always will be something or someone who will try to change our path, but it is only up to us to decide which path to follow. Walk aside me and we will talk. Walk behind me and I will lead. Walk in front of me and I will follow, but only if it is the path that I want to travel. It was nice to once again visit with all of you. Continue to pray for me to give me strength and wisdom to write these articles of love. Take care my friends and look for my next writing.

Ray Day
 
 

As I am a man who still believes in the old days ,and the rules set down by our elders, I am asked by many, both young and old , to talk and write ,about my life, as it was ,and as it is now, and what do I look for in the future.
 My life as a youngster was one, that prepared me for today. In my time, the rule was to respect your parents, and everyone else, especially our elders. The elders ,who have been through all the hard times , are able to instruct you, on what is the best way to follow. Most of them were of the most credibal type of person to look up to, and want to follow in thier footsteps.. Most of them were already through most of thier life ,on this great earth, and the experience that they had ,would greatly help those who would listen.  Many times , the head of the family, was the grandfather or grandmother, who had brought up your parents ,and instilled in them the value of living a good life. And many times, they would say to you to take a good look at your parents, and follow the same path that they are on.
 In our family, our grandfathers on both sides of the family ,had passed away at an early age, and thus our grandmothers were the ones to talk to. I was truly blessed with having two grandmothers ,who not only had lived a full life, but had a knowledge of all the hard times of life, as it was. So they were the ones ,who could lead us to a full commitment ,of the values needed ,to prepare us for what would lie ahead. I remember many times, when Grandma would come back from the state of Washington and she would bring us gifts. The gifts were some, that she made for each of us , such as shirts and overalls, made by her own hands. Back then ,the only thing bought from a store, was the material to make the gifts. And the gifts were made from the heart. My other grandmother still lived here, and we saw her just about every weekend. She was, for as long as I can remember, a pretty lady with white hair, and a pretty smile. The gifts from her, was also some that she would make, and they also were made from the heart.
 So I , and the rest of my brothers and sisters ,were truly blessed with not only great parents to follow, but also great grandparents too. My parents had a lot of good friends, who were always there ,for not only them, but for us too. If Dad needed some extra money to make it until payday, it was there for him , and he didn't have to sign for it. Back then a man's word was as good as you can get. If  Mom needed help around the house ,when she was sick, the neighbors were there to help us clean up. Back then, the unwritten rule among all, was to help one another when needed. Be there for your fellow man. Respect those older than you were, because they knew how it was. It was a time when you could sit around and talk, or to just sit on the front porch, without having to lock the back door. You could trust people in those days.  So I guess that is why I try to bring you my memories of the life, that I and all the others had ,in what we call "the old days"
 Today, as we live each day to the fullest, I look back and wonder where did it all go?? Where is the respect for our elders? Why is it ,that a man's word is not good enough? Why do we allow our young to get on drugs? And why are the young children of today filing lawsuits against thier parents? Let me tell you my view of what has happened.
 Back in our day, it was the radio that we used ,to get  most of our intertaiment from, in the house. We would sit by the fire ,and listen to all the great programs of that day, and in our minds we would have the picture of what was going on. We would visualize the cowboys and the romantic stars ,as they would do the scenes ,in our heads. And what we visualized , was based on how we were trained. In other words the scenes were of the clean mind. Today ,it is what we actually see on the television screen, that paints a picture in our minds. So,in today's minds of our young, it is only killing, drinking, using drugs, and lurid sex displayed, that  has made the impression. There is nothing to the imagination any more, as it is right there in front of us.
 In today's world, you can't discipline your children with fear of being put in jail for child abuse. The "child abuse law" was started to protect the young, from abusive people. It was not intended to limit the parents and the teachers,  from using discipline to instill values and rules. But it has gone there ,because of the courts, and some of the silly laws ,made through our government. There should not be any fear in taking a child to the doctor or hospital, when they might have fallen and broken a arm, or bruised bad. But the doctors and the hospital, by law have to inform the police of these injuries. So right away the parent is questioned ,and looked bad upon ,even though they are not guilty of anything. And so, there is that stigma there, that the parent is a child beater. Now I am not down on the doctors or the hospitals, and I am not down on the police ,because all of them are doing ,what is required of them by law. So what has happened in today's world , is that we have taken the right of bringing up our children from the family,and the schools ,and given it to the courts. That is not what the "child abuse law" was intended for.
 In today's world, the right to  employment , has been set aside in favor of quotas, to make it accessible to all. That law started out ok, because we shouldn't hold someone ,from being employed,because of race, greed, religion. etc. But that law was designed for those people, who were citizens of our great country.  Today, our young have to compete with people who are not residents of this country, and thus they are without good jobs, and have to flip hamburgers ,while the good jobs are taken by those from other countries. To me , that is not right. All citizens of the "USA" should have the same rights ,as to employment in positions, that they have the knowledge for, regardless of who, or what they are. Once again, that is not what that law was for. I must make this one note, towards that summation,  in that I am not aiming at those doctors, and other positions, that we have to go outside to get. Many of our great doctors are from the other countries, who have given up thier homes, in order to come over here, and be our medical doctors. I say thanks to all of them.
 As far as drugs being used, I can't blame the young , because we let it happen. Many years ago when it was cool to go around with short hair on the men ,and long hair on the women, we let it go to the  complete opposite, and now we see long haired men, and short haired women. For each thier own, because that is what they want. It used to be, that we wore patched up clothes, because that was all we had, but today that is the style. Back then it was overalls that we wore, and today it is jeans. What I am getting to, is that just about all these fads,were because we let it happen. We let the the musical groups come over into our country and infect our minds with the long hair, and bad looks ,as well as some of the worst musical noise around. Note that I am not saying that those groups were the total problem, but that it was the influence from them ,that started us to what is cool today.  Then there was "Woodstock", that made an impression on our young. It was ok to show disrepect for the upper class,and it was ok to display yourself sexually, right out in front of others. Note that there are many of our outstanding people who were once part of this thing called Woodstock, that are leading our country today. What I am saying ,is that this was the beginning of the use of drugs, and disrepect of our elders, that has made a great impact on our young of today.
 So where do we go, and what do we do to get our country back to being an example to other countries, as to values, and respect. We have the greatest system around ,as to how we elect those to lead us, but we don't use it right. First off, the government should never hold down the parents in the bringing up of the young of today. Give back to the family the right to discipline when needed. Give back to those teachers the right, to govern thier students, as long as they are in the schools. Let's go with values, as to how a child should dress, and how they look ,as long as they are under eighteen. Take the right from the courts, and give it back to the parents and the teachers. As far as those, who are elected to office to serve us, take away the party tag and only refer to them as our representative. Once a person has been elected, he or she should not be a democrat or republican, but only as a representative of the people. Then and only then will we be able to work together ,as one unit instead of two. The two party ststem is one of the best around, but only to be used to get elected. As far as appointments to positions, that should be as to thier credits and to their capabilities, and not to the party that they belong to. I know that this will not set good with many of our great party workers, but it is what they should expect ,if this old man ever decides to be a representative from this great city.
 So what do I look for in the next century? Well, if what I said before ,doesn't make any impression , then I guess we will continue on the path of drug usage, the showing of disrepect to others, the use of sex as a way of getting what we want, and the end of a great era , that has already been trampled to death, by all the laws set forth by great law-abiding citizens , who thought they were doing what was right for all those concerned. Is there an answer? I think so, because I lived the age of respect, for my fellow countrymen ,and women , who at one time , had all the answers. There is a great amount of knowledge out there for each of us to use to the greatest extent. There are some wonderful youngsters out there, that need and want some guidence, from those who have been there. Give back to those children the values and respect , that you and I recieved from our elders. I hope that I  have helped at least one youngster through this column, because that is my goal. And remember this one thing. As long as "Uncle Ray" is around, he is there for you, and you can take that to the bank. I'll see you later in anither column, as long as they let me write this column.
Ray "Uncle Ray" Day
 
 

Well folks, this old man decided with the advice of the doctors to take a week off from work and rest. It seems that the old body with the weak legs has gotten to the place where it is telling me to slow down and give it some rest. So this past week, I took the time off and I told everyone that I was going to take a break from my everyday life and just rest.

Now if you read that first paragraph right, you read that word rest several times. Folks, there is no such thing as rest in my book, unless it is tied in bed and someone else doing everything for you. My first day off, I decided to go out and do all the chores in the garden, the yard, and in the workshop. Well, that took more than that day and since I had started it, I had to finish it. That is my bad point, in that I don't really know when to stop and rest. Oh, there is that word again. Well, I finished up getting all the garden planted, I finished up the yard work, and I cleaned up my little workshop. That was a job, because it really had not been cleaned since the end of winter.

So now, it was time to sit back and rest. Or at least, that was the reason to take some time off. It seems that when I went into the computer room to sit back and just surf the internet and rest, I took a good look at the room and I thought that just maybe this room needed a little fixing up too. So, instead of getting that rest that this old body needed, I started moving things around, in order to get everything in it's proper place, and that looked pretty good. But then I had a great idea. I should move the computer to another wall so that it would fall in place with all the other things. Well, in order to do this, I had to really give it a lot of thought so that when I was finished, it would look ok.

Well, after a few cups of coffee, I started out on my quest to move the monitor, the tower and the printer with the scanner somewhere where it would be out of the way until the computer table was moved, and I could put everything back on it. Then a wild idea came to me, that if I just unhooked everything from the power source, I could leave everything on the table and just move the whole thing to the other wall. That ,my friends, was a bad idea on my part and I don't think I will ever do that again. Folks, have you ever tried to move something several hundred pounds  in weight ? The only way it can be done by one person is to just move it a little at a time on one end and then a little on the other end. You keep this up until it is where you want it. But it wasn't to be that easy. It seems that when I started moving it, I placed a lot of stress on one of the legs, and it started to bend outward. It was lucky that I saw this soon enough so that I could try to fix it. So I proped it on another table that just fitted under it and I went to find some brace pieces to fix it with.

Now remember, that I had decided to leave everything on that table while moving it. Everything could fall and this old man would be out of a lot of money to replace it. Well, I was very lucky to get it fixed before it fell and so it was time to get on with the job of doing something that I should of never started  to do. Remember what I took this week off to do. It was to rest. But I got stress instead. I finally was able to get everything moved and it looked great. Then I remembered that I still needed to hook everything up to the power source, and that my friends, was where I really got stressed out. All the wires and hookups were tangled up and I really did not know just where they went. So it was time to read my books and do it right. After about an hour of trial and error , I was able to say that everything was ready to go. Now I was finally going to get some rest.

The next day, I told Ramona that everything was done and that I was now going to just sit back and take life easy, and enjoy my time off, which now had dwindled down to four days left, before it was time to go back to work. Little did I know that those days had some jobs waiting on it too. I put out some border flowers, and planted some flowers in the flowerboxes, and then I went to the cemetary to place hanging baskets on the graves of our loved ones and to plant some flowers in front of our daughters marker. Then I tried to clean up some around the "Patricia Ann Garden Of Love", which is there in memory of our daughter and all the other people who had cancer and have passed on. Folks, I must take this time to ask you to just go and take a look at this memorial and then to give to the cancer society, so that they might find an answer to finding a cure for cancer. They need your help so that just maybe in yours and my lifetime, we will end the taking of our loved ones to that disease.

Well, the week is over, and I am back at work, and for some funny reason, I am still tired. My legs hurt, and my back hurts and I am ready for another week of rest. But right now, I need to get on with my life and do my job, which is rewarding in itself,  because I get to meet a lot of new customers, as well as see all the old ones too. I guess that work is not really that bad because it keeps you active and busy and you really don't have time to think about all the aches and pain associated with growing old. Remember where you heard this because it will be and probaly is the truth of life. If you let a brain be inactive for too long, it soon will dry up and be of no good to you. If you let your body be inactive for too long, it too with be of no use to you except to let you know that it hurts .

And so to end this little visit with you this week, let me leave you with this thought. Whether you are working or resting, you need to stay active, whether it is reading, working at some hobby , or just visiting with your family and friends. Take a little time to rest and then get back to doing what you call restfull. Just don't take a week of vacation to rest up, because you won't rest. And I want to thank you for inviting me in to visit with you, because writing this column is all the rest that I need. May The Great Father bless all of you.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day
 
 

As this old man sits and watches the world go by, I see and hear many things that disturb me. The way that our court system allows a few people whose only goal is to uproot the system that our ancestors fought so hard to bring into being. The very idea of two people with the insensitive force put on our Supreme Court by the ICLU , who can dictate to all the rest in Elkhart and other cities in this state makes me sick. The very idea of the separation of church and state being the only reason behind the taking down of The Ten Commandments from the grounds of our government buildings is getting this old man mad and I just will not take it any more. As I have stated before , I am not a member of any organize group, but I am a God fearing American that does not like to have some little group of scumbags telling me what I can believe in or what I can observe, nor will I stand still and watch the greatest and most known set of guiudance rules be taken down without a cry of disbelief in our system to let it happen.

What we as citizens of the greatest country in the world need to do is to find a way of fighting the scumbags that are trying and slowly getting done, the tearing down of our government, by taking away the things that made us great. As far as the Ten Commandments display, if they are allowed to use thier reasons to force it down, then the rest of us should have the right to use the display on our public and governmental sites as an historical display, because it has and always will be part of our history. To sit back and allow this group to dictate to us is not the thing to do. We need to call all of our representatives home and tell them to fight to preserve what is the greatest rules in the history of our being. What we as citizens, also need to do is what is already being done by the surrouding areas, and that is to display those Ten Commandments in your yards and dare that group of roaches to take them down. I will tell you this; I am a peacefull man but if someone comes onto my yard and attempts to take it down, he or they will be dealt with in a fast and mercifull manner. By the way, I was able to aquire my signs from some friends   in Peru and you can get one by calling 1-888-474-4679, or by going to a website  at www.4the10.net/signs.htm.

Now, getting to the rest of my column today, I want to deal with the junk mail that we all get and do not ask for. How many times each week do you as a reciever of mail get letters from all the charge companies who tell you that you are already approved and can use your card right away, to buy things that you don't really need or that you really can use. It is a mystery to me that these banks will send out a already approved card to use when you already have one. Just think how easy it is for someone to recieve your mail, do all the neccessary filling in and placing another address on it  and charge all they want to your account that you never knew that you had. What I would like to see is for those companies that want your business to tell you that you have to come into thier office before any accounts are processed. Make it hard for the person who is using someone else' card to make a purchase. Thank goodness, the place where I work tries to look out for thier customers by using strick guidlines when a charge account is being used.

Another thing that really riles up my feathers is the use of the phone system to bug you and me. How many times have you answered the phone to hear a computerlize message , asking you to buy something? Folks, the only way that you can say no to this caller is to hang up. How many times do you get calls from an organization that wants you to give money to a cause that will benefit the children, and you find out too late that it is a scam. Thank goodness that come January 1st 2002, we won't have to have this problem. And the reason that we won't is because someone had the guts to fight for us.

Folks the scumbags and the roaches, and the termites will always be around just waiting to enter your lives , to start the tearing down of your foundations. If we let it happen, then we have no reason to holler. But if we stand firm in our rights as Americans, and we block the movement, so that our rights are still protected, then we will prevail. One question that I want to ask you is why do we not hear the names of those people who are trying to undermine all that we are built upon.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day
 
 

I guess that when you really think about it, this isn't a bad place to live and raise your children. Kokomo has been a part of my whole life, since the day I was born, and I really can't think of ever moving away. What does any other place have for me that I can't get here? When you look at it from  it's location on the map and you sort of visually think about it as a body, it seems to me that we are in the heart area and that tells me that we are very important to the rest of this country. Think about it, and remember that this is the home of the inventer of the First Horseless Carriage.. And if you go to my web site to my "History of Kokomo" section, you will find that Kokomo is and was the home for many inventions that have been beneficial to the rest of the country. Why would anyone want to leave Kokomo and live elsewhere.??

Kokomo is a quiet type of place, yet has made a lot of noise in the intertainment world, with many of our residents being in motion pictures. As in other parts of Indiana, we did our part to intertain the rest of the country. I have recieved e-mails from as far away as Newfoundland to the north  and Australia to the south, who have made thier visits in Kokomo with friends, and they all have praise for the kindness and hospitality of Kokomo, Indiana. Naturally, I am bias in saying good things about Kokomo, because it is my home and the home of most of my family.

We now have a great visitor convention center , and we have a great variety of shopping places to find what we need  in the way of clothing, furniture, and food. Business is sort of slow at this time, but then so is the rest of the country. Things will get better, so we just wait it out. As far as the schools here in Kokomo and the rest of the county, I must say that they are very good and the teachers here are dedicated  to doing thier job.

We have a good group of people running the city and county, and they have things under control most of the time. Our police , fire and sheriff's departments are of the finest, and I feel secure with trusting them to protect me, my family, and my property. Oh sure there are problems that arise every so often with parts of each department as to personel problems, but that happens in all the other places too. We have a terrible drug problem in our streets, but that is true elsewhere too. The only way to fight the drug problem is to let the police do thier job. That is what we are paying them to do, but if you don't let them, it won't get done. That is also a problem elsewhere.

Every year we are blessed with the "We Care" people doing everything they can to make the holidays happy for those who need it. It makes me feel real good to see that "We Care " can bring out the best in the people of Kokomo and Howard County. There are a lot of people out there that really care about you and me and they show it every year. Mike Wyant and his brothers with the help of all thier friends prepare "We Care Park" with several hundred thousand lights each year, along with other decorations, whether the weather is good or bad. They donate thier time and all proceeds go to "We Care". Talk about "Angels" here on earth.

And who else has something as great as the Haynes-Apperson Celebration around  the 4th of July holidays. Old cars taken well cared of by those people who love them. Food cooked by those who love to cook. And people just getting together for some good old Kokomo fun. Great, isn't it??

And in other parts of the year, we see people doing for others when they need it. When there is someone sick or going through great medical bills, some group is organized to help. When there is a fire and people have no clothes or food, we see someone coming forth to  help them.. So that is why I don't understand how anyone who likes Kokomo so much, can just up and leave to go to another area. If they move to Florida, they must put up with the storms. If they move to California, they must put up with different types of people who are only living today, and don't care about tomorrow.. There also, they have to fight the fires that rage each year. And crime here is nothing compared to that state. Over there they pick out one suspect and do not follow leads on others. Thier idea of fighting crime is to pick out an easy suspect and take him to the bank. No way that this old man would want to live there. Anyway the chances of most of that state one day breaking off into the ocean to became another Atlantis is very high what with the earthquake fault there.

Now , taking off for a few days to visit the different states would be ok, but to want to pick up everything and move somewhere else just because you have retired, seems to be a rash thing to do. Maybe buying another home in another state, so that you could spend your vacations there might be a great idea, but don't just leave the place you were raised in. The chances of you wanting to come back to Kokomo, Indiana will always be greater than staying away the rest of your life. I think that I will be content to stay here in this city where I am known and where my family is.

I tell you this , my friends , Kokomo is my home now and will be until I leave this earth.. My family and all my friends are here and that is all I need in this life. I guess that I am sort of old fashioned, but then that is what and who I am. Why, oh why ,would anyone want to leave Kokomo Indiana? Take care out there and thanks for inviting me in to spend Sunday morning with you. In parting  for this week, I leave you with this little message. "Be Happy Out There".

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day

The other day, one of my readers and also a friend, came into the store and he asked me if I had ever had any real pain in my body. He said that the reason that he was asking this was because as long as he has known me, I never said anything about how my body reacts to growing older. Well folks, this old man can answer that question now just like I did to him. Not a day goes by without my body telling me that it hurts. Just about every joint I have hurts, and as I walk, my feet tell me to get off them because they hurt too. My legs are almost gone, and it feels like I am walking on stilts, and my knees sometimes lock up and I can't bend them. My back is in constant pain, whether I bend, sit, or stand straight. Yes, my friends, this old man hurts pretty bad for being only  three score and four in age.

But you know what? Even though all that pain is there, there is no reason for me to complain about it. How can anyone who wakes up in the morning blessed with another day to live , complain about the aches and pains of life? How can anyone who looks out and sees the beauty of nature, in all it.s glory complain about growing old? To be able to say that The Great Father has given me that day to observe all that He has created and to do everything that I can do to help Him keep it beautiful, is all the reason to say that I feel good. He doesn't promise me a tomorrow, but He gives me today and it is up to me to make the most of it. After all, I can rest in His arms one day.

Now , I have come upon many people who are like me and who can tolerate pain at it's highest. It doesn't matter how much they hurt, because they won't let you know it. I have witnessed some who will work as hard as they can and never complain about hurting, until they have some privacy, and then they will show it, not knowing I was there. They hurt, but they don't want to show it. My Dad was like that, and many times I saw him do some things at work that I knew hurt him, but he didn't show it. He would wait until no one was around and then he would lower his head and sigh some noise of pain. I guess that is where I get my high tolerance of pain.

But there are those out there that have a low tolerance of pain and they just can't go too long without letting someone else know that they are hurting. For these people , pain medicine has to be taken to ease that pain, and many times that person is on that medicine the rest of thier life. Now it is not thier fault that they hurt, and sometimes maybe a little help from the outside will help them endure that pain until they develop a higher tolerance to it.

 And there are those who say that they hurt so bad, and it is all for pity from someone else. They have to have something wrong in order to get attention, and the different kinds on problems keeps coming and coming until the friend stop coming around to see him or her. This is a trait that can be overcomed if the person wants to. You have to try and turn your attention to a hobby or to a program that will take up most of your time, thus not giviny you the time to hurt. this is where the brain comes in. Your body will only hurt when your brain tells it to. Thats right folks, the brain is the one and the best way to turn off that pain, by turning your thoughts to something else. Oh, it is not easy to admit this but that is how I deal with my pain. I don't think about it. Sounds simple doesn't it? Well it isn't that easy for those who won't let it happen. They will continue to ache and they will continue to complain. This is my advice to them. Take a look at those loved ones who are trying to help you, and see what it is doing to them. Not pretty is it?

And so to end this visit without any pain or insult being intended to anyone, I only want to say to all of you , that all you have to do is to look around and you will see someone who is in a lot more pain than you are. I know that there are a lot more people out there that are really hurting, but you wouldn't know it by the way they act. That is what I call brain-power. Until next week, when I visit with you, I bid you good days and great nights with lots of love from Uncle Ray.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day
 
 
 

The other day, I was driving on West Markland,  and I went by the old steel mill lot ,that now is cleared of any proof that a steel mill was there. And I thought for a few minutes about if any one, ten years from now, would even know that one existed here in Kokomo. That really bothers me because I worked there and so did my dad and my brother, as well as several thousand others through the years. That place was the backbone of this city ,along with the railroad that serviced the mill and other businesses in Kokomo. Continental Steel Corporation was known all over the United States, as one who made the best nails and the best roofing stock as well as the best culvert stock in the mid-west. It was also known for the best fence product, both in guage and quality as well as price. That steel mill made a lot of money both for itself and for Kokomo, Indiana. It took care of a lot of families who depended on that bi-weekly paycheck to live on.

So, since not too long ago, I took my readers on a virtual journey through my old home when I was growing up.  I now am going to take you on one through that mill which is not there anymore, except through the memory of one who worked there. The working hours of most of those people who worked there, consisted of a swing shift where you worked days one week, afternoons the next week ,and then midnights the third week. Then you started on the same schedule the next three weeks and so on. You never really had time to adjust even though you had at least two days off each week. The jobs for those who did not have a steady job was primarily furnace repair and open jobs in the various departments who either had someone report off or some cleanup was needed. If you went to the furace repair, you either wound up cleaning the soot tunnels which were only three to four foot high. There were smaller ones under the checker chambers which was the hardest and had the most heat. Your could burn the hair off in your noses and your feet felt like they were going to burn up. Yours truly worked many a turn in those soot tunnels as well as many in the slag pockets which were cherry red from the heat still in them.

Naturally, you wanted to get a steady job as soon as you could so that you wouldn't have to clean soot tunnels for the rest of your life. So any time one opened in the sheet mill or the wire mill, you jumped at the chance of getting it. But those jobs were hot ones too, as most found out. In the sheet mill that consisted of the galvanize, the cold roll and the hot mill, as well as annealing and shipping, you worked under the stress of heat , galvanize fumes, and the chance of getting cut by the sharp edges of the sheet product. And believe me folks, I have seen some of the worst and deepest cuts possible without losing the whole arm or leg.

If you went to the old open hearth, you put up with the heat, the dust, and the possibility of explosion. I watched those guys in the open hearth do some things in thier job that most people would of walked away from. It was nothing to see those men cherry red on one side of thier faces due to the intense heat there. Eventually toward the end they changed over to the electric furnaces that was able to make steel faster  and with a little less heat. It was still hot enough that the man on the street would not of wanted to do it. Another thing that you might not believe is the weight loss you had each day due to all the sweat leaving your body.

If you went to the rolling mill, once again you came across the heat, because you had to get those ingots to a cerain temperature according to what the end product was. Believe this or not, here was another place where one side of your body would suffer the heat while the other side stay cooler. Another thing that you might  find hard to believe is that as the steel is cherry red going through those rolls, the sides of that machine had ice on it.

A lot of the workers worked outside most of thier time and it was either too hot or too cold for them but they did thier job. Weather was not a factor in working in the steel mill. You put up with the elements because that was what you were paid to do. I  personally, like the othere worked when it rained snowed or sleet.

Over in the wire mill, the rod mill and the fence plant, there were the combination of hot and cold to contend with, as well as the constant danger of getting hands, arms or legs being cut off. Every day that you walked through those gates and hit that time clock, you were taking a chance of never coming out alive. In my thirty one plus years in that factory, I witnessed  probaly fifty serious accidents  that resulted in either death, legs lost or hands and fingers  lost. We had a safety department that did thier job but there are times when things happen regardless of how safe it is.

This was true throughout the mill, but those employees kept showing up for work, because they had a job to do and a family to feed. You won't ever see again the kind of person who worked in the steel mill, because we are slowly dying out. Soon there won't be any one left to remember what it was like to work in the steel mill. Many of our people were lucky enough to get on at other factoies and they proved to be great employees there. Those men who worked for Continental  Steel  Corp. were the finest group of guys that I have ever known. It was fun to work there even though the dangers were there too. We breathed  the dust and the galvanize fumes, and yet it didn't kill us. We worked under stress of heat and fire and yet we went back for more.

So looking at that vast area of land there on West Markland, I wonder why there has to be someone to come in from the outside to tell the city of Kokomo what to do with it. I wonder why there had to be people coming in from the outside to tell us that it was unsafe there. We sure didn't hear that while it was working. And the very idea of contaminates being there because someone said it was, really gets me because those same contaminates were there for those many years and it didn't kill anyone. The problem with what happened here was a group of people took us to the bank with talk of dangerous situations with no more proof than thier own sayso. It has never been proven that there were contaminates there, because there is no proof of any one dying from it. We, as the taxpayer ,were taken to the bank by only the marks on a piece of paper. I personally worked in that dust , around the galvanize fumes and the heat and I am still here just wishing that I had another chance to work there.

Now getting to that land out there, I can tell you what to do with a small part of it and that is to put some kind of a memorial there where  the old main gate was in honor of  all those who were employees of Continental Steel Corporation from the day it started to the day it ended.You ask why I am proposing this memorial? I will tell you why. There needs to be something there that would let the future generation know that it was where thier fore-fathers worked, and families were fed with the paychecks of a place that is no more. I take my hat off to all my fellow workers who lost thier jobs, health insurance and life insurance, as well as thier lives and thier families because they were cheated out of a job by a group who didn't care. And I salute those men and women who have not let it die in thier hearts and and who are still fighting to get some satisfaction well deserved to them. May The Great Father give them piece one day because all of them deserve the praise and they deserve some sort of justice with it.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day--
 
 

I could start this column out with the opening phrase of "Once upon a time", but then it would look like I was writing a fairy tale, and so it would not be true. But I remember a time when things, that are taken for granted now, were part of the growing families' and the towns' everyday facts of life. There was a time when you worked from early morning to late at night to get the crops ready and the livestock  fed so that you might have food on the table at a later date in time.  For most of the farmers that still is true. There was no electric refridgeration to keep the food fresh and so the people used thier underground cellars or the smoke houses to preserve the vegetables and the meats. Most of this food was saved by use of canning , or drying. For some, the icebox was a life saver if you had a place to get ice from.  Today we have all the benefits of freezers in our homes and food stored in the stores until you needed to go out and buy it. You didn't see much money changing hands back  then because of  the bartering by one family with another one to get the foods wanted . Today we have weekly paychecks coming in for most people and they spend it as fast as they get it. Think about it; how many of us could of lived back then?
The way to get around was by walking or riding a horse, if you wanted to go very far. Today, we have the cars, bikes, trains, airplanes, and boats to take us to the far parts of the world. Could any of us be able to live back then, where you never left the confines of your own property, unless you were going to church or to a neighboring town? The only ones to be able to see another country were the soldiers who went to preserve peace for us.
The intertainment was maybe sitting at the kitchen table and just talking about the things that went on that day or maybe playing checkers, or reading a book. In reality, there really wasn't much time to be intertained as you had to get to bed and get some rest so that you could start all over the next day. Today we have the television, radio, cd players, as well as all the sports going on in the fieldhouses. Could any of us be able to live without all the goodies of today?
The respect of the children toward thier elders in those days was part of their growing up and maturing , so that they one day would  be able to be the heads of thier own families. The word set down by the head of the family was law, and it was carried out to the letter. The respect today of the child toward the parents has taken a terrible blow and I have to admit that maybe a lot of the blame needs to back to the parent. I say that because of the fact that in today's society, there have been laws set down by groups who want to bring the family life to it's knees. And those parents just set back and let it happen. Instead of the child having fear of discipline if they did wrong, the parent now has fear of discipline if they try to discipline the child. Where is the logic in that?

The coming of the radio was a big boom to the family as it got all of them together to hear the great shows that to this day are collector items. We used to sit on the floor beside Mom and Dad and we would listen to what was being said on the radio and we would let our minds create the picture of what was going on. There were not any shows over the radio that used bad language, so the pictures we got were clean ones. Bad language back then wasn't a nice thing to use and you were punished if you used it. In todays television shows it is a constant shouting out of the worst profanity around and the stars get good money for doing it. You can't turn very many shows on without hearing and seeing terrible acts performed right in front of your eyes. Many people are offended by it but they still sit there and watch. Maybe nobody ever told them that the remote is for changing a channel as well as turning the television on or off. Sometimes I wonder just what it would of been like if television had never been invented.
And so I say to all of you that once upon a time, there was a time when there was more good than bad, and there was more respect toward the family, and there were a lot of goodies to be had without selling yourself to the highest bidder. Today we live for today without much thought to how the past got us here. We think that tomorrow will bring us more goodies without us needing them nor having to pay for them. Do we live in a cinderella situation where the prince always gets his princess? Do we expect others to speak up so that we might have some purity in our lives? Do we rely on the the use of the plastic card to get us out of holes that we have dug for ourselves, thus placing ourselves into furthur financial turmoil ? Those are questions that each of us have to answer for ourselves, because it is each of us that are living our lives the way we want to.
Would you believe that back in my early days, we could sit on the back porch enjoying being with each other, with the front door open and unlocked without any fear of someone coming in to rob you? Neighbors watched out for each other, and the brotherly love was a part of life. It sometimes makes me wonder if the people have changed or has the attitude changed? Would you believe that the terrible crimes by the young people were petty shoplifting and smoking as well as a little drinking, where as today it is the widespread use of brain-killing drugs and murder  that is taking us down. Now I know most of the people who read my column and they are of the old school of thought that you reap what you sow, but there are young people out there that are reading this and they are saying to themselves that this old man is getting to me in a good way.
The only thing that this old man has to offer to each of you is this column that seems to help open some eyes to what is happening around us. I try to think and speak straight from the heart and I hope that by you reading these words, it makes a difference in your everyday life. You don't have to agree with me nor do you have to do what I say. We are each our own keeper, and we will live by what we do, and some will benefit, while others will not. I leave you with this thought; Life is a road made up of a lot of detours, that could cause you to leave the straight road, and take you on trips to places that you wouldn't want to go. Sometimes you have to take another path  so that you can continue. But the thing to remember is how to get back to the straight road as soon as possible. Think before you take that detour. As always, it has been my pleasure to visit with you each week, and I am a better person because of it.
Ray "Uncle Ray" Day-

"Man had fear of the animal many years ago.""There were birds of prey all over.""Man fought each other for food."
"Onr day things changed for the better.""There was a Son sent down by God to soothe the soul of man"
"An Angel of love came down"   "And an Angel of caring came too.""The Dove of peace flew freely"
"Jesus was here to save us.""Soon there was music, love & peace for all."
"This message of love was designed by RayRamona Inc. for all to enjoy."
"Everything is possible in "THE GARDEN OF LOVE". Our wish for you is joy & love for each other."

The other day, I was asked what I thought of the Olympic Games in 2008, which are going to be held in China. So here is my thoughts on that. In the first place, the idea of child labor in that country tics me off. The treatment of those who want to change the thoughts of others in that country is a scary thing to think about. For a nation to be ruled by that theory to be honored with the prestige of the Olympic Games being held there , it tells me that for a very long time we have held the IOC  high in prominence, and we should not have done so. The thought of the IOC  is to make as much money as possible, regardless of how it hurts others. For many years we have observed the judges making terrible calls and giving penalties to those who would of won under the right call. What this will do for the Chinese government is to give it prestige and say that it is all right to treat people in a in-humane way. This will make the forces in China a lot of money, and it will stay there, unless all the other countries boycott the entire Games and not send thier young men and women to be part of it.. The Games started in Greece and have been moved around to many countries, including Germany during the rule of Hitler. The young people who were sent to those games during the Hitler rein represented thier countries with pride, and the threat of harm was in thier minds but they still made thier countries proud because they tried to excell. But the recent problems with the Chinese during the U.S.  plane episode, makes me wonder if they will hold all the rest of the young people who go there to represent thier country, hostage as they did our people. I would say that until the Chinese government changes thier views on how to treat thier people, and child labor is done away with, it does not deserve the prestige bestowed by the Olympic Committee to have the games there. I hope that the Olympic Committee changes thier mind and gives  those games to a country that deserves it. That is my opinion only and I don't force it on to anyone else including those Chinese people who have made thier home here in America. I know that they honor thier heritage and that is good. I know that those who have made this country thier home did it so that they might improve thier lives. I can only say that we here in America and in the other countries should think very hard about sending our young people over there. Maybe China will change and then deserve the Games but as of today, it does not deserve them.  I really hope that something changes enough so that there will not be any new sports such as seeing how many  people can be shot, or how many can be beaten up, or who can put the youngest child to work.. That is thier sport in the political side of that country. I will not make any other views on that subject, but I hope someone else will.
 

Another thing I was asked by another reader and friend , was if  I thought that good looks was important in selecting your friends. Well, in my book of thoughts, I would say that looks are sometime decieving and they don't give a clear picture of what you are looking at. Oh, it is great that you are very pretty or handsome, but the way that you project yourself is very important and many times that first impression is what others will remember and you don't get a second chance there. The Great Father made each of us alike and yet different, in that he gave each of us the will to do with ourselves the way we want to. There are no laws on the books that say that you have to look a certain way. Thank goodness for that. Those laws only rest in the minds of those people who are making a fortune with products claiming that it will make you look pretty or handsome to others . Here is my thought on this and it is coming from a man who has weathered with age , some baldness, and a voice that shows I am from Indiana. You are what you are and as long as you are satisfied with yourself and your mate, it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. I , myself am against the wearing of long hair by the men, because most of the time it looks dirty and needs combed, but this is my right to feel that way. I have had several good friends who wore thier hair long and they did it in a clean combed way. The way that they impressed me was by the way they conducted themseles around others. My friend "Kent" is up in Heaven now and I miss him very much. So remember this thought when you are trying to pick your friends. Check out that first impression that you got , and go with that until you find out otherwise. There are a lot of great people who look to impress you but mean to decieve you. Pick your friends as you would you do anything else. Think about being clean, respectfull, and honest. Those are qualities to look  for. Do it yourself, in trying to make that first impression, anything that makes you feel good. Don't worry about doing it just so others will like you. If that is the only way to make friends with them, then they are not worth your friendship.. As always, this is my opinion only and not said to change your minds.
 

Well, it has been fun this week, visiting with you and giving you my thoughts and opinions, but don't let them be your leader. Do what you want, but please pick up the paper each Sunday and look for Uncle Ray's next column. Talk with you later, folks.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day

Before we get to this week's topic, I just want to thank the many readers who let me know that they really enjoyed our little trip through the Steel Mill. It is very gratifying to me to know that there are lots of readers out there who like what I have to say, because they know that I have been there ,just like members of thier family have. Thank you for the kind words.
This week, I am going out on a long limb and do my pointing at some pretty bad problems that we are seeing getting worse each day. As anyone who knows me , will tell you, I am a peaceful man who believes that most problems can be solved by sitting down and talking them out. Also as most of them will tell you, I am very supportive of our law enforcement people in the Kokomo area. They do thier best and they are a credit to our society. The job they do usually gets no respect from the majority of the people. Also the job they do usually goes by the wayside, because the criminal is able to get let loose because of plea bargaining, or by some little loophole that thier lawyer is able to bring up. Now don't get me wrong, because I am not trying to put the whole blame on the lawyers, because by our standards, they are doing thier job. So most of these times, the criminal is back out on the street to continue his trade.

What I am seeing now, is that people who we have known for years are suddenly killing people, robbing someone, or killing themselves for some unknown reason. A man comes in and tries to take out someone who he knew several years ago , and says it is about something that happen many years before. Already a man's reputation is scarred, even though the accusation might not be true. Another man wants to end a mates life, because of some reason of wanting to spend more time with his family. Another man is killed by someone who breaks into his home.  Are we living in a world dominated by thoughts of doing someone harm? Are we ever going to be able to sit down and talk things out, withour resorting to harming the other person? At this same time span of the things I mentioned, there are cemetaries that are being damaged by someone who knows no boundries of the hate they are forcing on someone else. Whatever happened  to this world ,that at times can be so peacefull, and the love of each other was at the top of the list? Are we going to simply stand back and continue to watch it happen without stepping up and saying that enough is enough? Hey folks, that is what The Great Father gave us voices for. Use your voice and tell those people that wants to place harm on us that we are not going to take it anymore.

Now this isn't just something that just happened yesterday. It has been going on for a long time in other cities. Take for example this thing that happened to yours truly back in the seventies. When I was working as a supervisor in charge of getting scrap steel for melting in the furnace, I knew a truck driver who brought scrap into the mill from Ft Wayne. He made a trip about three times a week and we would talk and enjoy one anothers' company. He was a nice clean cut young man, who treated all the guys that he saw in the mill in a very cordial way. Well, it turned out that this same man was abducting young women with the help of his wife who turned out to be a lesbian. After they would do with the poor victim what they wanted, they would kill her. This happened to several women in the Ft Wayne and Gary area. He ended up killing himself in Chicago when the police had him cornered. He left notes telling what he had done and told where to find his wife. She went to prision and that is all I know about it. But it is something that does happen if we as the public victim just sits back and allows it to go on. Many times it can be that person who you would never think possible that he or she would do these bad things.

As I said, I am a peacefull man and I love The Great Father very much, but something has to be done to find out why this is happening and what to do about it. Take the story the other day about a man who broke into a persons home and then wanted to press charges againist the homeowner, because the owner protected his home by attacking the intruder. Now that is protection in reverse. I will go on record that if anyone should ever come in to rob me, and he or she gets past our pet,  I will defend myself and my family in a way that that intruder would not be able to file any charges. The only charges that would be filed would be to the intruders family to pay for whatever injuries that he might incur. Regardless of any law on the books, everyone has the right to protect his or her property and thier bodies against harm.

Too many times the good people of this nation have thier rights taken away from them in what they can believe in, what they can read, and where they can get employment. Yet someone from the groups that would take this great nation down, can holler that thier rights have been violated and that little group of civil liberties lawyers  will back them all the way to the Supreme Court. Where is your right to decide for yourself what is good and what is bad? Why is the right of those groups who use the cover of separation of chuch and state, always backed up while the majority of the people have been denied the right to post that great set of rules that our nation was formed from. It really doesn't make any sense to me that a few can dominate all the others.

Well anyway, now you know how I feel about what is going on and I sure would like to have you readers let this newspaper and our leaders know what you think too. Just a little thought and we will end our little weekly visit. Many times we wake up in the morning after a good night's sleep and we go about our everyday chores with no thought of how it would be if a loved one was to get hurt or killed. We take it for granted that all is well and things will be all right. That is when you need to wake up and smell the roses. It can happen and it hurts. Look out for your family and your friends. Thanks for the great visit.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day

 I recieved a call from one of my loyal readers and she wanted to ask me about something very personal in her life. She and her husband through the years had raised two children and had given them a good life, putting them through college , and loaning them money as it was needed. Well, this lady told me that her husband had passed away and since then the children don't come around to see her. She said that through the years she has done some volunteer work at the hospital, but lately it is hard for her to get around since her husband passed away. She has grandchildren but she doesn't get to see them because the children she raised does not bring them around to visit. She stated to me that she is very lonely and has spoken to the clergy about it and even talked with a man she later found out was a priest. Even through all that, she still is hurt inside because no one wants anything to do with her. She said that she needed to get this hurt out of her system and since she reads my column each week, she felt that I would listen.

 I have to state right now that I am not educated in the type of problems she is going through, nor am I a therapist, but I think I know what she is trying to find. This lady's whole life was damaged by the loss of her husband in whom she trusted and needed every day of her married life. Now that he is gone, she feels an emptyness in her heart, and she needs the love of those children to help patch up the loss. No one ever gets over the loss of a loved one, but they can learn to cope with that loss. But sometimes they need help from either friends or family to try to cope. I have always thought that if a chain link is broken, it can be repaired, either by adding another link or by tightning it up without that broken link. Tightning up can only be done if there are family members that care who are ready to help. Adding another link would be like finding someone to be friends with, or getting a pet to love.

 In the case of this lady, she has many pictures of her husband there in the house and she could use them as a conversational piece either with family or even while she is alone. Now don't get me wrong here, I am not saying that she should sit there and talk to the pictures. What she can do through those pictures would be to remember all the great times that she and he had together. Memories are a wonderful thing to possess and the stories behind each of those memories are a blessing to talk about.

 Now getting to a topic along those same lines is what I will get up on my soapbox and say to the world. If you out there have someone you know or related to who is feeling the same hurt as this lady is, then just maybe you ought to get up off your backside and at least call them, if you can't take time to visit. To deny someone of the love of  thier grandchildren, just out of dis-respect of the wife or husband of one who has passed away, is to project the hate into those children later on. Think how those children feel not being able to visit thier grandmother. Shame on you if you don't get up and go see this lady now before she passes on. Is there so much hate in your heart, that you can't see what you are doing to her?

 Through my years on this great land we call earth, I have witness the love of a grandchild to a grandparent many times. To see a child hanging on to grandpa or grandma, and listening to every word said, makes me remember my two grandmothers. Those two ladies, although being strict, and believing in total respect to the elders, always had love for all of us children. The stories they told us will always be in our memory banks, because it was the word of experience from someone who had been there. To be denied that chance to learn from the "pro" would be to say that they never existed. Both of my grandmothers loved us in thier own way, both they did love us in the right way. Love can be the link to the past as it can be to the future. Call someone, or better yet, go to someone and visit them and say "I love you"

 As always, this column written by an oldman, is done straight from the heart, and most of the time from my own personal experience.  I try to enlight you with the things that I have learned through the years and I know that with the help from "The Great Father", my thoughts will find at least one person who can benefit from it. My thought this week has been to remember that loved one who only has you left to love. To deny her or him that love from you, would be tragic. The sun goes down when the moon comes up, but love through that whole day should remain. Thanks for letting me visit with you each week.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day

After I get done with my visit to my loved one's graves, I will take my time driving through and noticing the names on the markers and wonder just what was his or her story about thier lives her on earth. I see names of important people who helped pave the way here in our city and county, and I see names of those who were a part of this city and county, who did thier part of it growing up without all the glory given to them. . Each person who is buried in those cemetaries, has a story of thier own to tell if there is someone out there who wants to hear it. I like to observe the drawings on the markers because they tell me a lot about who is buried there.

Many times a person will not go to the gravesite of thier loved one because they say it brings back a lot of sad memories. What I say to them is to go visit the grave and remember all the good things that you and your loved one did together. By doing that it will lessen the hurt that is in your heart. I usually, while I am there ,will say hello to my loved ones even though they are there only in body and not being. I know deep in my heart that they hear every word I say, because I know that they are with The Great Father, and He hears everything I say. The hurt will always be there because you loved that person with all your heart and you miss them very much. But remember where they are now and be content with that thought.

I remember seeing a marker somewhere where it said the following.; "I was what you are now, you will be where I am now". That little thought says a lot, and the price we pay for life is the journey to The Promise Land , if we live life as it should be. Walk a straight path and if you come upon a detour, think about it and make sure that it will lead you back to the straight path. And while you still have time make peace with those who you haven't spoke to all these many years. Take time to enjoy life here on earth, without having hate in your heart. I knew some people that I wish that I had said "I'm sorry" to, and I wish that I had told them that I loved them. You don't get the chance to do so unless you do it now while you or that person is still here. It is not a hard thing to do if your heart is in the right place.

And so as we leave each other, today I want to leave you with this thought. When you were little and you needed the care from your mother and father, just how would your life have changed if one or both of them passes away before you had time to learn something from them that would of enriched your lives so much more? Think about those who have been through that part of thier lives without the love from thier parents. Where would you or I be without the love that was given to us by our parents. We are not here forever, so if they are still with you, praise them and show your respect and tell them that you love them. If they have gone home to be with The Great Father, then praise thier memory, respect that memory by visiting thier graves, and while you are there , tell them you still love them very much.

The other day while this writer was part of a funeral procession of a family member and also a fellow steelworker, I observed respect for one who has gone home. From start to finish, every car stopped and waited until the complete line of cars had passed before starting back up. That is respect in capital letters. I thank them for doing that.

Now do something for this old man; Let someone know that you like my column so that I can continue to visit with you each week. And most of all, please say a little prayer for me, so that The Great Father will give me more strength and wisdom, plus a steady heartbeat. Until next week, this is Uncle Ray signing out, and God Bless.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day

I was watching 60 Minutes the other evening, and they were discussing cloning. The people on there were telling the pros and cons of cloning. The very idea of cloning man or beast gets me riled up and so here is this old man's answer to the idea of cloning. First off, the only one that has ever brought life onto this world was GOD, The Great Father Himself. To even think of trying to imatate HIM, is to deliver yourself to the devil in those depths of fire below. No one should ever have the right to do any cloning because that is GOD's work and HIS alone.

Many years ago, a madman named Hitler, wanted to have a superior race and he murdered those who he thought was inferior beings. Hitler, if he would of been successful, would of sent the world into a haven of madmen who would of ruled the entire body of earth, under the threat of demolition of mankind. He was not successful and was supposely taken down to his death. My feeling to that is that he met his comrade, the devil and he will suffer that wrath for the eternity.

Now we find that there are those out there that are doing the same thing , but calling it cloning. If that was to ever be done, we as the human race would soon fall to a horde of mistakes called clones, who would be the only ones to ever be able to speak and to dictate to all of the rest. It is said that right now it is against the law to clone another human being, but according to some of the so-called experts, it has already begun to happen. Our government and the entire world should be installing laws and rules in that if anyone should even attempt to do this, they would be put away until GOD himself called them to his judgement table.

Folks, this is mostly a thought in some of the minds of science, that could grow with the passing of this very day. We, as members of the human race, should let all of our government officials know that we don't want this to happen and that it is wrong in the eyes of GOD. I really hope that someone out there will make those who have these thoughts  to back off. If it should ever come to be, then we as GOD's children will cease to be. It is that very simple. To imatate the work of our Creator, would be to be banished to hell.

Now, give this idea a little more thought; even though this is something made from some of the DNA of the reproductive system, would it actually have a parent? Or would it be a twin? Would it be a girl or a boy? The answer to most of those questions is that it would be a robot, controlled by the source that made it. Now there is the difference. The Great Father when HE decided to bring life into the world, made man and woman in HIS image but with minds of thier own. HE asked for thier obeyience, but HE did not ask for controll. There is a big difference in the human versus the clone. We are made with love; a clone is made with test tubes. Do we as children of GOD just sit by and let something like cloning to continue until the day that we are not needed anymore and we are wiped out. That is a very scary thought, and although I probaly will not be around to see it, I still do not approve of it. Sort of takes you back to your childhood when the evil doctor built Frankenstien, and you hurried home after the movie because you were scared that he might be lurking out there ready to pounce on you. Well, this is no movie nor is it something to laugh about. You should be scared of what might be the result of such an immoral plan.

It seems to me as the years come and go, we see many people who try to devise some way to discredit the existance of GOD, and they use the ruse of science to do things that go against all that we as GOD's children were brought up with as to where we came from and why we are here.

These same people will tell you that we evolved from the monkies or that we just happen with no basis of how or why. Well, I will tell you right now that I know the existance of GOD and HE is in my heart each second of my time here on this earth that HE built.

And so to just put my column into just a few words this week, I put forth this remark and you can hold me to it. GOD's work should never, and I say never, be imatated. Cloning would be a sin, punishable with a trip to the firey depths of hell. GOD does work through the hands and minds of our doctors, and HE should be praised for it. Many doctors and surgeons will tell you that without GOD's help and the patients' faith, many of thier paients would not of lived.

I have been there on death's doorstep and my faith got me through. That is the reason that I write this column, because HE speaks through my words, and HE wants me to help someone out there. Until HE calls me HOME, and as long as this newspaper allows me to write for them, I will visit you each Sunday morning, with words straight from my heart. Until next week, I say GOD BLESS, and don't forget to say a little prayer for Uncle Ray tonight.

There was a gathering in HEAVEN the other night, and as the night progressed, the gathering increased. They were there to witness another gathering down here on earth, and as they watched, they smiled and they praised GOD for helping both groups to gather. The occasion was The Day Reunion on earth and the ones in HEAVEN were the ones who raised those Days while they were still down here on earth. The names don't really matter because we are all GOD's children both here and in HEAVEN.
As the evening got under way, we remembered those who have gone HOME, and we talked about old times, when we were children and we still had our mothers and our fathers by our sides. The things that can be brought up at one of these reunions is priceless. Pictures that many had never seen before, and the bonding of those who might of had some problems between them, were patched up with love for each other. The words of each head of the families, as they intrduced thier family with pride, were words of praise and love for thier offspring. No one or no thing can top that.

As they entered the building, the ones who were watching in HEAVEN, would call out to the others that there are our children coming in now. They would say that they are very proud that the children they raised turned out to be great parents themselves.. As this old man and my wife Ramona came in, I heard Mom and Day say, there they are. And as the rest of Mom and Dad's children came in , they nudged each other and they looked at each other and said to each other, "job well done, honey" And as the children of Mom and Dad's children came in , there were more nudges to the others sitting there in the clouds, and words of praise for thier grandchildren.

And as the evening went on, in came our aunts and some of thier children, and Mom and Dad hollered to Uncle Harry, Uncle Jesse and Aunt Goldy, Uncle Joe, , Uncle Junior and Aunt Liz, Grandmother Day and Grandmother Babcock, and to Ernie, Bob, Hallie, Marvin, Patricia Ann, and all the others that have gone HOME, to come over and sit with them and watch the gathering of the angels that were given to them by The Great Father to raise.

There was enough food to feed an army there and if you have ever been at a Day's home, you know that they like to eat. And as the night went on, it was very hard to hear that old man standing up there tring to tell about next years reunion and why we want to increase the number attending. Talking is one thing that the Days want to do when they get together, and they will talk a little louder in order to be heard. And those in HEAVEN were able to hear each and everyone and they were proud of what they heard. They in HEAVEN didn't get to taste the food, but they remembered what it tasted like, because they were the ones who taught thier children how to cook.

All in all, it was a great gathering of the Day clan, and although many were not able to attend, we hope that they will make plans next year just before Labor Day, to come in and join all of us in a gathering of love and memories of each other and of those who have gone HOME. That will also increase the gathering of our loved ones in HEAVEN, who will sit there in the clouds and praise each other for raising a great bunch of kids.

I leave you this week with another thought, and that is if there is anyone out there that you haven't seen in many years, invite them in to a reunion of your clan. Too many times our lives are filled to the top with all the things needed to be done and we don't take time to relive those memories of our childhood. Set out one day in your life each year and have a gathering of love and of praise for those who have gone HOME. You will find your life enriched for it. And for those who didn't make it this year to the Day Reunion, we hope that you will set aside that day to come and visit with us and to enjoy the coming together of the children of the Day families.

And to those in HEAVEN who sat and watched us , I say, "We love you and we miss you, and someday we will be sitting there with you watching the gathering of the Day Reunion. Thanks for raising us with respect, and for love of our fellow man".

One more thought before we part , and then I will get off my soapbox , at least for a week. I am truly happy with all the comments from those who read my column. A man who I had never met before came to the store to check out some tools. While we talked about what he needed and what he wanted to do with them, I felt sort of like I had met him before. He was very attentative to each word I spoke and he asked me what my full name was. I told him that it was Day, but most people knew me as Uncle Ray. His eyes lit up and he shouted out that he thought that I was the same man who writes this column. He said that just the way I talked made him think that the two were one and the same. He said that he reads my column each week and that he could tell that the way I talk about tools reminded him of how I talk about life. That is why I write this column because it reaches people who only know me from my writing. I try to do my job with honesty and respect for the customer, and I write straight from the heart. Both go together with love for my fellow man and woman. To be honest with someone and to respect thier wishes is to be a common bond with them. To help them along the way in any way possible is to share in the love of The Great Father.

This is Uncle Ray signing off for this week, and if The Great Father should call me HOME before we visit again, may the time spent between us be a memory of love.

Ray "Uncle Ray" Day-

I remember when we would sit down to dinner, Dad would sit at the end of the table, and the meal didn't start until he was ready to eat. You had to make sure that he had a large glass of water there in front of him, and it had to be in the right spot. If it wasn't, then the meal did not start. Those were just rules set down by both Mom and Dad, and it was part of teaching respect for your parents. If you had company like Grandma, or if an uncle or aunt was present at the dinner table, the same rule applied to them too. We were expected to make sure that they had thier water in front of them before dinner started.  They , like Mom and Dad, were to be treated with respect, at all times. Such was all part of the training that children in my day received as part of growing up. In today's home, a child might make a threat  of child abuse and get away with it. I am not saying that it would happen, but it could because of the silly laws set down by those who don't want resect to be part of the family life. You would not have been able to make a threat like that in the old days, because it would of showed dis-respect for your elders.

Another thing that we, as children, were taught , was to not look at the newspaper until the head of the house had read it first. If Dad wasn't there, then Mom had first rights to it. Mom was always one who loved her man enough, that she always made sure that he was respected as a father, and as a husband. Some might think that maybe Dad was too harsh in the ways that he raised his family, but this oldman can tell you right now that if he was still here, he would be respected for the way he and Mom raised us. As a matter of fact, about all of my cousins were raised in the same way as we were, and they turned out to be great heads of thier homes too.

There are times when we as adults, who were raised under a set of rules that taught respect, honesty, and love for your fellow man, wonder just where did it all go? And why did it go away, leaving everything shoved under the rug, hoping that it might not show it's head, and bring things back to normal? Where and why did we, as the offspring of a great generation, go wrong in our teaching of those rules that worked so well when we were children? Some will say that a lot of the blame should go to the hippe generation, because they were the ones to bring shame upon the parents that brought them into this world. That was a time when the dopeheads really came out of the closets with the drugs and the wierd clothing. That was a time when many thousands of them got together in a place called Woodstock, and they openly displayed  the hate that was in thier hearts , disquised as love. That was a time when a parent's child just about dis-owned thier mother and father and followed the path of drugs, open sex, and the dis-obeying of the laws of the land. I have to say that those people are partly to blame , but remember that those parents just stood by and let it happen. We have to accept part of that blame.

My thoughts in relation to what should be done, would be to relax those rules that took away the power of the parents, and instill back into the family the right to teach and maintain respect, honesty and the love of family life. Many of my generation and those before us were raised and  taught respect. We lived with honesty, and we loved our brothers and sisters. What is wrong with that kind of training? It sure didn't hurt us and even though our parents are gone to be with the Great Father, the training that they gave us is still with us. I ,many times, think about our parents and I know that if they were still with us, they would be proud of how we turned out. There are no famous members in our family, but then who needs it.

Lets' all get up off our backsides and start getting things going, bringing back respect for the family, love for our country, love and respect for The Great Father, and then things will turn around making it all better. If you have ever met me or had been friends with me in the old days, you know that I don't speak out of the corner of my mouth. If I have something to say, I say it right to your face. People who were my friends in my growing up days are still my friends, because friends are forever. Someday, when I am done and gone, I hope that there are those out there who will follow my lead and try to get the respect of the family, the sense of honesty, and the love of your fellow man , back in thier lives and in the lives of all they meet. Until next week, when this old man comes to visit, I leave you with this one thought. If Mom and Dad were still here, would they be treated with the same respect as they were in the old days? Visit my website where most of my writings are posted for the whole world to see at www.geocities.com/kokomoman and let me know what you think of it. See you later my friends.
Ray "Uncle Ray" Day--