Writing, which words to use?

The writing of "Joe's Story: The Book of a Lifetime" and becoming a published author took a long time. From beginning to end it was a fantastic learning experience for me. The story itself was already in my head of course, but the way of putting it on paper was really muddled. The horrors of the Carbon Monoxide poisoning and resulting near death and amnesia experience were kind of tough to deal with again. Recording it in book form became a wonderful tonic though and brought me more completely into the world so many others may take for granted.

I am quite intelligent but my many areas of expertise didn't include the rules of composition, writing and journalism. Much to my eventual dismay. As a matter of fact, my ignorance and resistance to commonly accepted rules of writing may very well have been my undoing as far as getting on the best seller list of published books. Following rules is not necessarily a guarantee to writing success but it has been my experience that it definitely does help. As an example, every professional reviewer, except one, that has received Joe's Story for an opinion has refused to go past the first few pages. If they were professional enough to give me a response, (most are actually very rude and far to aloof to offer any reply whatsoever) they simply said they were not interested in that type of story. What a loss, they had a wonderful, true, funny and heart warming, memorable story in their hands and they passed it up. Their loss but I learned not to take it personally, it was my choice not to follow the rules.

Things that still evade my understanding will always haunt me I guess. its and it's, either and neither, friends or freinds, affect or effect, just where to put a : or a ; , climbed or clumb, you know, stuff like that. The questions of this weekend are naturally save or saved, thief or angel, heaven or hell. I wonder how I could write about them? It's already been done though anyway, I'll just leave it at that....Happy Easter1

Government debt

The national debt of the United States of America is in the trillions of dollars and going higher.

I am confused! Yeah, yeah, I can hear you agreeing but that's not quite what I mean. I am a business man. I run my business based upon the amount of money that comes in from sales or investments. If I spend too much the business ceases to exist. Every day we read about companies that are going bankrupt. They spent more than they took in. Some companies used a type of bankruptcy that protected them from creditors while they got their act together and cut expenses enough to pay their debt. Others simply closed the doors, sold everything at auction and the debt got paid with pennies on the dollar. What is the United States Congress going to do? They are in charge of the countries finances. Nobody wants to be blamed for doing what they need to do.

Everyone from every part of our government screams that they can just barely do with the amount of money they receive from the tax coffers. None of them has volunteered to take a reduction of funds and tighten their belt to make it all work within the budget. Not one! When the opposing political parties try to negotiate they get stuck on which favorite department gets special treatment. That's the part I am confused about.

If a business spends 10% too much, they usually decrease spending "across the board" by 10%. All parts of the business feel the pinch. no matter how much they scream, all areas join in the process. Why can't our government do that? Everyone would have to make do with a certain percentage of funding loss. Old, young, rich, poor, everyone would feel the pinch. Probably most of our congressmen and women would be voted out at the next election but at least we'd have a balanced budget. It doesn't look like that scenario is going to unfold any time soon but then again, maybe it will. I just probably don't understand how government spends our money. That's probably why I'm confused.

Goob bye Cable TV

Do you have a cable or dish TV provider? I do! I won't for long though. I have a defective piece of equipment and it will take them over a week to repair it. That's what I was told by a very confrontational, barely civil, aloof customer support representative after I was on the wait list for over 25 minutes holding to plead my case for help. She spoke as if I was blessed that she actually had time to listen to me and any suggestion I made was simply ignorant, unfounded grumbling not worthy of her consideration. It started when I mentioned that our connection was cutting in and out. She said: "Well, I can't be blamed for your faulty telephone equipment! I don't know what you expect me to do about that." I asked her if the conversation was being recorded. She said, "Yes it is." I asked if it was OK with her if I recorded it too. She said' "Fine, go ahead." I did. After she calmed down and finally shut up long enough to listen to what the problem appeared to be to me she said that repair may well be necessary and they could manage to work me in in about 7 to 10 days. We talked about it for a while and arrived at a time in 8 days that was convenient for them and me. How nice of her. I stated that I felt they must be tremendously understaffed to have a waiting period that long to repair a long standing, paying customer's problem. She said that was not the case but she could understand from talking to me why I may feel that way. I told her that I felt she was being condescending in her answer. She said she was not but could understand how a person like me would feel that way. I said I felt that comment was also a bit on the sarcastic side but I was exceedingly curious what she meant by, "a person like me." She said, The service rep. will call 15 minutes before they arrive. Is there anything else she can help with and did she answer all of my questions and were her answers helpful. I said that a person like me wasn't sure exactly how to answer that question. She asked if I was done, I said yes. We ended the conversation with that. I am sure that my experience was unusual for a number of reasons. #1, she spoke excellent English. #2 I only waited a little over 25 minutes to get a live person, #3 She spoke as if my being a customer in need of service was not all that important to her or her company. #4 The repair rep. is only taking 8 days to service our problem. #5 They do not offer any discount for disrupted service because it only affects part of my service, not all of it so they don't feel I am all that much inconvenienced. I am probably being petty about the whole thing. But, I figure that anyone that will accept payment of $65 every month for years from someone that is not important enough to service in a timely fashion so they can save money and create more profit for themselves, really doesn't need my business. I own a service business. If I asked my customers to wait a week they'd go away and never come back. I learned from that. I am going to cancel their service, after they fix it, and I won't ever come back. I actually prefer local TV broadcasting anyway. In the past 7 years I have spent $7000 with them. If they don't need it I wish they'd give it back. Now they simply won't get it from me for the next 10 years. How's that for complaining huh?..............................Good bye cable TV!

Blasted, confusing computers but here I am anyway

Will my trials and tribulations concerning my computers never end? Yeah, I know, most of my problems stem from my ignorance of these modern day electronic brain wonders. But, I really do try to learn enough to at least operate them with a modicum of comfort and ease. Most of the time I accomplish that. Not for the past few weeks though. I've been locked out of the realm of Internet communication by some sort of evil creature possessing my keyboards. Not just one of them but strangely enough, both of my laptops. One is driven by Windows Office and the other by Windows Vista, in different locations and separate manufacturers too. Goofy! The mouse worked but I could not type a single letter with either keyboard. Nothing at all! I followed a number of suggestions and cleaned the hard drives, ran a virus check, compressed files, got rid of petty, useless programs and browsing history. Punched the keys and zero, zip, Nada! Being a guy of relative Independence I'm not particularly fond of asking for directions. Nor am I given to requesting favors of any kind. Add to that the cost of computer experts and there I sat with a lifeless pair of electronic cacophony. The weeks went by and my patience grew thin. Frustration was setting in and pictures of computers flying across rooms and smashing into brick walls filled my dreams. My humorous outlook wasn't outlooking so much humor any more. Late last night I decided to seek professional help, both for my laptops and for my own sanity. I disconnected everything from each computer right down to removing the back up batteries, packed them carefully in boxes and resigned myself to failure to the point of actually bringing them to a repair shop. I woke up early this morning and thought that I should back up all my files before entrusting those computers to anyone else. I connected this one up, booted it up and lo and behold, the keyboard was working. I was surprised and fiddled with it for a while just to make sure it wasn't a fluke. As you can see it is still working. Not to look a gift horse in the mouth but to test my luck just a little bit more I delicately hook everything up to my back up computer with the notoriously unpredictable Vista program and for crying out loud, that blasted thing works too. I don't recall any particularly different approach to my set up but whatever it was, it worked! Setting on my desk is a horseshoe puzzle. Two horseshoes connected by welded chains with a solid ring between them. The idea is to remove the ring by twisting the chained parts. I have removed the ring and put it back on a half dozen times. However, I have no idea how I did it. I have succeeded in fixing my computers, but in keeping with my puzzle prowess philosophy, I have no idea how I did it. Have a good day. Don't try to figure out how you do it. Just enjoy it...........................Joe

Spring, rabbits and hope

In the writing of "Joe's Story: The Book of a Lifetime" it was surprising to me how my emotions would be affected by the particular season in my life about which I was writing at the time. In winter I could sense the bitter cold and the clean smell of freshly fallen snow. In the fall it was the yellows, reds and browns of the leaves as the trees went to sleep. In the summer the refreshing breeze on a hot afternoon, laying on the beach watching the waves wash ashore in a park somewhere on Lake Michigan. Spring, for many reasons brought the most intense feelings I think. Probably because it brings with it the promise of a new beginning. Dark green blades of grass poke through the crust of winter decay, Robins and other song birds herald their arrival, Crocuses, Daffodils, Hyacinths and other hardy flowers forge through the cold earth and bring living color into the sullen gray and lifeless auburn's of winter hibernation with tulips not far behind. The garden plot slowly readies itself for seeding and fertilizing. Spring brings hope. Hope for a new tomorrow. Ya just gotta love that sorta thing! And, although they can often become voracious, unwelcome pests, my favorite sign of Spring is the annual dance of the rabbits. They gather everywhere, including my garden and the middle of my neighborhood roads, making driving in the predawn hours more than a bit of an obstacle course, as it was this morning. It goes without saying what they are looking for. Rabbits just seem to have fun no matter what they do. So, I say on this day that if you feel just a little under the weather you might want to consider concocting some sort of Spring dance of your own.(RE: Snoopy in the Peanuts Comic Strip) However, I would strongly suggest you not do it in the middle of the road, or in my garden either for that matter. Have a wonderful Spring and may it stretch throughout the entire year for you..............Joe (I have shared a lot of time with three friends the past week. They are not well, two are critically ill. I ask you to help me pray for them. They could sure use some encouragement about now. Thanks!)

Scams, airline tickets, Joe Cramer, author

A national news program I was listening to had a program dealing with a subject I brought up on this blog: Internet coupon deals. It was interesting to hear my own words coming from someone else, word for word! Quite the compliment I think. I don't spend every waking hour promoting "Joe's Story: The Book of a Lifetime." Although that is very important to me I actually do have a life. Part of it is involving myself in gathering information concerning scams and price gouging techniques used to extract money from the most trusting and needy among us. The methods these operations use to circumvent the law are ingenious and we have to approach any good deal with pessimism or very likely face the loss of some of our hard earned cash.

Have you or do you know of anyone who purchased a car from one of those "Buy here, pay here" car lots? They serve a useful purpose to many high risk, otherwise un-financable folks who have gone through hard times, are honestly trying to make a better life for themselves and need transportation to get to a job. They also offer structured payment plans which help develop proper appreciation for maintaining credit. Then comes the dark side of some of those places. They buy a car for $500, sell it for $3000 and collect exorbitant interest rates, often making a profit of 6 to ten times their original cost. Something to think about.

I just received a letter informing me I "have become eligible to be awarded two first class airline tickets to anywhere in the continental United States." Boy! That's sure a mouthful of nothing tangible. Also, given there was no return address on the envelope or on the stationary and the name of the company on the letterhead was false, I'm guessin' this just may be some sort of scam.

I've always had a yearning for one of those tall, wooden, classic grandfather clocks. In my mailbox one day was and offer to purchase a grandfather clock for $60 plus shipping and handling. The picture was beautiful. It was priced so cheap because it was part of a shipment to a bankrupt company and it was cheaper to sell at below cost than to ship them back to the factory. I bit on that one! It wound up like this: $60 money order in advance, checks or credit cards not accepted, they took too long to process and these clocks need to be sold now. When the clock arrived it was shipped to a warehouse and I had to pick it up there, no home delivery. I had to pay the warehouse another $113 money order for shipping and handling. I got it home and assembly was required. This grand old, heirloom quality, grandfather clock with Swiss movement was made from some type of hardboard, similar to what the boxes my shoes come in. It was held together by cheap plastic clips. The genuine Swiss movement clock works had fake cotton draw strings and hollow, plastic, fake weights, a cheap plastic, fake pendulum and a battery operated plastic housing that I had to glue in place. The word "Swis" was stamped on the back, crooked and mispelled as it was. By the time I called the company the next morning the phone was disconnected and they were no where to be found and neither was any of my money. so yo know from where I speak, not from being so smart but from being dumb enough to be taken like that. I just wanted a grandfather clock so badly I forgot to think.

Now I'm going to turn on that national news program and listen to find out if I hear my own words again. I'd appreciate it this time if they'd us my name as part author. Yeah, that'd be kinda cool..........Joe

Drag racing, history, Joe's Story and Teenagers

From the very first page it is clear in "Joe's Story: The Book of a Lifetime" that in the not too distant past, the word freedom had a slightly different meaning. As one exuberant reader put it: "Those of us over 50 will know those things happened all the time. Those who are under 5o will wish they had enjoyed the same adventures." Joe's Story is often a really enjoyable bit of U.S. history.

Automobiles were a sign of passage for most all young people but most specificaly for men. Squealing tires, burning rubber, loud "Cherry Bomb" mufflers, straight pipes and "Lakers." Rag tops, Lead Sleds, Reverb radios, Spinners, slicks, Continental kits, fender skirts, Frenched headlights, cams, carbs and solid lifters all added to the cruising experience. Of course, those hopped up cars were hopped up for a reason, and it was usually drag racing. I did my share of drag racing right along with most other guys I knew. I spoke with one of those guys the other day and we reminisced about a race we had that never really got off the ground. He had a "64" Chevy with a 409 engine, I had a "64" Pontiac GTO with a 389 engine. He had Dual Quads and I had Trips for carburation, We both had 4 on the floor transmissions. Those muscle cars were made to drag race. We went way out on a country road around midnight and squared off side by side. A friend stood in the middle of the road and dropped a handkerchief flag us to start. He took off like a shot, so did I. The problem was he went forward but I went backward. I had mistakenly left my car in reverse. He went to the end and came back demanding his $20, for that was what we were racing for. I asked if we could do it over, it was simply a mistake on my part. He said fine and we squared off again, the handkerchief dropped and tires burned and squealed. He went racing to the end, one of my tires blew out and went flat almost ruining the rim before I could stop. He went to the end and returned, again demanding his $20. I asked if we could do it once again, double or nothing, no excuses. He like the idea of possibly going home $40 richer. I changed my tire, we squared off, engines revving, hearts pounding, the hankerchief dropped, clutches popped and we both took off like bullets from guns, side by side, banging into second gear at literally the same time, engines screaming and tires squawking announcing the added power neck and neck, his transmission almost exploded and he lost three gears while I continued to the finish line. I returned, oblivious to the fact that his transmission was junk and asked very nicely for my $40. He gave me a barage of verbal abuse worthy of a boot camp sargeant. After he explained about his transmission I apologized and told him I had no idea and he cooled off. Then he set off to go home driving in 3rd gear, the ony one that worked, at 25 niles an hour with me right behind him in case it broke again. Luckily he made it home and I helped him fix it over the weekend. So much for that race that never really happened.

Yeah, stuff like that happened all the time. That's the way it was during that time. Not everything turned out perfect then either. But, it sure seemed like a lot of fun while it was going on. I'm sure you'll enjoy reading all about them in Joe's Story and sometimes it will take your breath away.........................Joe