1st Inning.On a personal note...Me and Batman. This past week an old college friend and fraternity brother celebrated his 12th anniversary of the day he gave up financial security and familiar surroundings to move to Nashville and become a professional songwriter. He then asked his Facebook friends to post their stories of taking a risk and letting go for their dream. Well, I didn't post a comment on his page but I did think about it all week and I would like to share it here on my blog.
You see my dream was to have a happy marriage that lasted forever, have kids that loved and respected me, to have a nice roof over our heads to make memories in, and to have a decent job that allowed us to enjoy our lives and years together. I can proudly say that I have achieved that dream (well, I think my kids love and respect me but the jury is still out) but I have to confess that I wouldn't be here to live out that dream if it wasn't for Batman.
Batman you say? Yeah, The Dark Knight. You see as a child of divorce there is a lot of anger...a lot of sadness. One way I escaped that was in comic books with Batman being my favorite character. His loss as a child is not something I experienced obviously but his ability to distract himself from that reality is what I believe we had in common. As an elementary school/junior high kid I made it my goal to try and buy every back issue of Batman and Detective Comics, along with the new titles that were emerging at that time. The new movie was on the horizon and you could find me wearing Batman t-shirts and a Batman hat on too many occasions. I was a comic book geek before they were cool. As my junior high years went by I started thinking about what I wanted to be when I grew up and I started to center on something in law enforcement/investigative work. Then the 9th grade came...
Like most kids in their early teen years, I was self conscious about my appearance (the Batman gear probably didn't help) and I had horrible self esteem (something that still lingers with me to this day) and add to that my first year of wearing glasses. Well, the time of year came for yearbook pictures and I took mine then they came in and I thought I looked horrible and I would be the butt of too many jokes. As the days went by I feared when the yearbooks would come in and be disbursed to the students. I feared that humiliation so much I thought hard and long about suicide. I thought about it every day as the end of the school year approached. I would rather kill myself than face my fellow students and deal with any teasing. But one day I was in the basement of the apartment building we lived in and something just came over me. Batman came to me. I stopped in my tracks and told myself I would not let that stupid picture kill me. I would move on with my life and I would work hard, study, go to college, and be the world's greatest detective just like him either as a police officer or private detective or whatever, but I would do it I told myself. So, the yearbooks came out and I moved on thanks to Batman.
Thankfully I woke up. It was at this time that Batman returned to guide me. You see he always has a plan and that was what I needed. The days and weeks after that night I started to gain clarity on what I needed to do. I moved back in with my parents and into their basement; found a temp job working park maintenance for a local city; and started to put that plan together. I spent a few afternoons at the local library going through college admissions books and searching for a college and a program of study. My focus was on Arkansas due to having family in that state. At UMKC, I was an Administration of Justice major but for this new venture I wanted to focus more on theory and like Bruce Wayne I wanted to be a criminologist, so I looked for a school with that major and found it at Arkansas State University. The next step was how to get down there. I didn't have much money but thankfully I kept my comic books because I ended up selling a bunch of Batman comics to help fund my trip down to Arkansas. So, after all that, there I was on the road headed south on 71 highway leaving everything and everyone I knew behind. All I had was the money in my pocket from my last paycheck and from selling comic books and a loaded down Ford Escort. I was on my way to live in another state 7 hours from my parents and my hometown, and going to a college where I knew no one. I believe everyone back in Missouri was expecting me to come running back after a few weeks or months but I did not. I studied hard (not taking any semesters off even during the summer), kept a campus job throughout my time on campus, met my wife at one of those jobs, made some lifetime friendships, and graduated with a degree in Criminology and a Master's in Political Science. I turned those degrees into a career with an investigative company where I will be celebrating 12 years this August. I have a loving wife and great kids and will be celebrating 15 years of marriage this year. We moved into a great home that has given us some great memories. The ability to go from nothing to gaining everything while emerging from some very dark times and still living out my dream is something I credit to the inspiration of the Caped Crusader...Thanks, Batman...
2nd Inning.
American History Lesson...How fitting that my American History Lesson installment is the Iron Curtain speech by Winston Churchill in Fulton, Missouri. Churchill delivered the speech at Westminster College on March 5th, 1946 with President Truman at his side on the stage. It is fitting due to the current state of international affairs with Russia invading parts of Ukraine. Per History.com, "In one of the most famous orations of the Cold War period, former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill condemns the Soviet Union's policies in Europe and declares, "From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the continent." Churchill's speech is considered one of the opening volleys announcing the beginning of the Cold War."
In the speech, "Churchill began by praising the United States, which he declared stood 'at the pinnacle of world power.' It soon became clear that a primary purpose of his talk was to argue for an even closer 'special relationship' between the United States and Great Britain—the great powers of the 'English-speaking world'—in organizing and policing the postwar world. In particular, he warned against the expansionistic policies of the Soviet Union. In addition to the 'iron curtain' that had descended across Eastern Europe, Churchill spoke of 'communist fifth columns' that were operating throughout western and southern Europe. Drawing parallels with the disastrous appeasement of Hitler prior to World War II, Churchill advised that in dealing with the Soviets there was 'nothing which they admire so much as strength, and there is nothing for which they have less respect than for military weakness.'"_(B&W).jpg)
The speech was received warmly by President Truman and other U.S. officials as they knew the Soviets were bent on expansion throughout the world and only a tough American stance would keep them deterred. After his speech, the use of the phrase,'iron curtain', immediately entered into the mainstream vocabulary of the Cold War.
In a sort of behind-closed-doors response to the speech, U.S. officials were not enthusiastic about Churchill's call for a 'special relationship' between the allies for they saw it as an attempt to use the U.S. as a weapon to keep or support their crumbling British empire in the post-WWII era. Stalin's response to the speech was one of denouncement and described it as 'war mongering'. Below is a short piece of the famous speech.
3rd Inning.
The intensity of the the Seal Team's situation as they encounter trouble and are ultimately gunned down as they try to escape is upsetting as an American. Especially when we are a nation with some of the best technology and in the end it was the failure of their communications system that lead to the deaths of the three members on the team. The pain and fear can be felt as you watch the movie. The heroism displayed even as they began to fall one by one was inspirational but as soon as you are inspired by their actions something else happens that leaves them worse off.
I HIGHLY recommend this movie. Just be smart and, unlike some of the folks in the theater that night, don't let your young children watch this movie. The trailer is below. Enjoy!
4th Inning.
Music...Lost Country Stars of the 90s Top Ten countdown #2. That era of the mid-1990s was busy producing country artists left and right. This week's entry into my personal Top Ten list of artists who were getting record deals and radio play time but ended up fizzling out of the national scene is Rick Trevino. Rick had success with 3 of his first 4 CDs, those being 'Rick Trevino', 'Looking for the Light', and 'Learning as You Go'. From his CD, 'Rick Trevino', came hits such as 'Honky Tonk Crowd', 'She Can't Say I Didn't Cry', and 'Doctor Time'. His follow-up CD, 'Looking for the Light', saw limited success with the lone hit, 'Bobbie Ann Mason'. His CD, 'Learning as You Go', saw hits with 'Running Out of Reasons', 'I Only Get This Way With You', and the title track, 'Learning as You Go'. 
Rick had additional CD releases with the most recent being in 2011 but those had literally no success on the radio or national scene. Per Wikipedia, "Trevino has charted a total of fourteen singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, and recorded seven studio albums. His highest-charting single, "Running Out of Reasons to Run", spent one week at Number One in 1997."Overall, I appreciated his music and still do. A great singer with some latin flare! Take some time and go Youtube him. The video for 'Bobbie Ann Mason' is below. Enjoy!
5th Inning.
Movie I want to see...Godzilla. As I have mentioned in previous posts, I grew up in the age of watching the old Godzilla re-runs on the Saturday night 'Creature Feature'. This re-booting of the franchise looks to take us back to that old age and hopefully makes us forget that Matthew Broderick version from 1998. Per Wikipedia.org, "This new film retells the origin of Godzilla in modern times as a 'terrifying force of nature'. The film stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Bryan Cranston, Ken Watanabe, Elizabeth Olsen, Juliette Binoche, David Strathairn and Sally Hawkins." After viewing the latest trailer for this movie there are glimpses of Godzilla and it would almost appear that other mega-monsters might make an appearance. It has a good apocalyptic feel to it which with all the zombies and end of the world movies and tv shows that have been released lately it should fit in nicely.
6th Inning.
Articles of the Week...
- When in Rome..."The Founding Fathers built this country with the Roman Republic’s model in mind and were even more concerned about what caused its fall than how it rose to prominence." A good read regarding comparisons of today's USA and the last days of the Roman Empire.
- Respect the flag..."A garbage collector was working his route when he saw an American flag that had blown off its pole and landed on a trash can." Helluva respect for the flag by this young man.
- Code-crackers..."After 18 years of trying to decode a message left by her late grandmother, a woman turned to the Internet for help. At first glance, the series of index cards left behind appear to include just random letters." Crazy how something can nag at you for so long then the Internet comes in to save the day.
- Give a man a fish..."When President Johnson launched the War on Poverty on Jan. 8, 1964, he pledged “not only to relieve the symptom of poverty, but to cure it and, above all, to prevent it.” Sadly, the half-century legacy of Johnson’s Great Society has not lived up to that noble goal." It is time to try something different in the fight against poverty in this nation.
- We can rebuild him..."Technology has the potential to augment, improve and even replace every aspect of our body, from our vital organs to our legs." I want a pair of bionic legs so when the zombies attack I can haul ass outta here!
- Build it and they will come..."Add to guns and prosthetic hands something much bigger and heavier forming from the nozzle of a 3D printer — buildings “printed” out of concrete." An industry that has promise...Now to buy stocks in 3D printers...
- They're here..."According to Paul Hellyer, Canada's former Minister of Defense, extra-terrestrials have been visiting the Earth for thousands of years and they have a habit of bestowing technology upon their human inferiors." I always knew they were here. Glad I now have a high government official to confirm it.
- Population control..."Former Vice President Al Gore raised eyebrows last week when he suggested that “fertility management” was the key to fighting global warming and promoting economic development in poor countries." Not that I agree with Gore on much but the Earth is not physically getting bigger but our population sure is and that is going to be devastating on our resources. Time to look to the stars!
- A quantum leap..."A book titled “Biocentrism: How Life and Consciousness Are the Keys to Understanding the Nature of the Universe“ has stirred up the Internet, because it contained a notion that life does not end when the body dies, and it can last forever." Time to get Sam Beckett on the line and start up the Project Accelerator as we have a multiverse to explore!
7th Inning.
The RAPiD Safe is being built by Hornady's new security division, Hornady Security. Per GunHolstersandGear.com, "Claiming the fastest unlock times in the industry, the RAPiD is most quickly unlocked using one of the provided RFID transmitters: a card, a key fob, or a wristband. To my way of thinking, wearing the wristband is the best method. If you were to wake up in the middle of the night and need your gun right away, the wristband is already on and the safe will automatically open as you reach for the pistol. There are also backup ways to unlock the safe: an electronic keypad on the front, plus a manual key/lock. The RFID and electronic keypads are powered by AC household current with a battery backup. Loading some long life lithium batteries in the safe will give you plenty of assurance that you can access your gun when needed. When accessed, the top of the RAPiD Safe springs up. A fully padded “rapid sleeve” presents the handgun for immediate access. The sleeve is large enough for nearly any size handgun, including the addition of a rail mounted light or laser." To check out a demo video on this page.
The company behind the Gun Box used funds raised through Indiegogo to begin manufacturing their product. Their goal was $100,000 and they exceeded it with $139, 084. Per Guns.com, "Not all crowd-sourced fundraisers wind up as success stories, but we’re pleased to say that the Gun Box is one of them. A “smart safe,” the Gun Box uses a fingerprint or RFID scanner to unlock and provide access to its contents. The Gun Box also provides a lot of security through obscurity — it just doesn’t look like a gun safe. It looks more like a phone dock, well, because it’s that, too. As the Gun Box requires power to run the scanners, the designer, Ryan Hyde, included a powered USB hub for cell phones and accessories like Bluetooth speakers. The Gun Box also has an internal battery to power the lock in case of a power outage. The battery has a 1340 milliamp-hour battery that can sustain the scanners for a very long time, weeks and even months." 
The folks behind the Gun Box are offering three different models for sale: 1)The basic version, Gun Box RF, which utilizes a RF scanner lock through the use of a RFID key (sticker, ring, or bracelet); 2)The Gun Box Biometric which utilizes a RF scanner and a fingerprint scanner; and 3)The Gun Box Premier which utilizes both scanner types and has a GPS unit that can be used to monitor and keep track of the safe. The GPS unit will allow owners to be alerted if the safe is opened/moved or tampered with around the clock. For a demo video please visit this page.8th Inning.
FFL Factoid...Top 8 Questions Asked by FFLs on the ATF website.
Question #1: What is the process of obtaining a Federal firearms license?
Information about obtaining a Federal firearms license can be found at http://www.atf.gov/firearms/how-to/become-an-ffl.html, http://www.atf.gov/forms/download/atf-f-5310-12-notice.html, and http://www.atf.gov/firearms/faq/licensing.html.
9th Inning.
Baseball video...Royals top ten highlights over the years...This week's entry--Bo Jackson and 'The Throw'.
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